Subject:Editor vs. Multi-track

Posted by: Hix

Date:1/26/2002 8:51:16 PM

Sound Forge is a sound editor. Vegas Audio is a multi-track app. What is the diference? Is it that Sound Forge is a more advanced app.? Can the audio app in Vegas Video do things not possible in Sound Forge? I purchased Audio LE to learn about the Sonic Foundry product line and so far I'm very satisfied. Is that Sound Forge is used to output to diferent formats such as cd, dvd, tape, etc. I'm upgrading to Vegas Video shortly.

Subject:RE: Editor vs. Multi-track

Reply by: Iacobus

Date:1/26/2002 9:37:53 PM

An audio editor is basically self-explanatory. You can create a new recorded file for tweaking and/or edit/enhance an existing file. It's perfect for doing both, as you can clean up a recorded take for use in other programs, like ACID (Sound Forge has ACIDizing tools) or Vegas.

Vegas is great in the sense that it's a true multitrack app. You can record from several sources at once as well as create a complete music project. (I like to think of it like a sequencer without the MIDI. Actually, I think of ACID in a similar way, only ACID is not a multitrack in the truest sense.)

In my setup, I use Sound Forge to create/enhance any material I'm going to use in ACID Pro, which I then arrange the material in said app. Then I render the project and actually go back to Sound Forge for tweaking/mastering purposes. (Normalizing, rendering in different formats like MP3, WMA, etc.)

You'd probably work with Vegas in a similar manner.

So, in short, you just may want to have both Sound Forge and Vegas. Include ACID if you want to make quick music beds of existing material or your own material.

HTH,
Iacobus

Subject:RE: Editor vs. Multi-track

Reply by: Caruso

Date:1/29/2002 7:20:05 PM

Iacobus - perhaps you can clarify for me. I'm a classical musician. I understand (and use often) music notation software to write music (programs like Coda's Finale let you key in your music, then, if you want, play it back), and I love using VegasVideo to edit video and audio or both.

I know a bit about editors like SoundForge or Wavelab, but I'm stumped by ACID. Exactly how does one go about creating music with that program. Do you still start by recording live music? Or does the software create random patterns which you then isolate and edit to shape them into a piece?

Sorry to show my ignorance, but would appreciate any light you can shed.

Caruso

Subject:RE: Editor vs. Multi-track

Reply by: Chienworks

Date:1/29/2002 8:21:26 PM

ACID starts with "loops". These are small sound files that can contain any sound you wish. Typically they are a few notes (like a riff)
or a chord, or a percussion hit. They can be assembled on the timeline and arranged any way you want. Each individual "event" you
place can be altered in pitch, speed, duration, position of attack, etc.

Imagine taking a taped recording of lots of bits of music, chopping them up, and splicing them together to create a new song. Add in
transposition, tempo changes, and a host of other editing abilities, as well as lots of tracks. Then you should get the idea.

It's a pretty powerful system once you get the hang of it. If you're curious, i would really suggest you download the demo version and
then pay a visit to http://www.acidplanet.com/ and grab this week's 8-Pack. The 8-Packs are a complete project that an ACID user
has put together. It includes the scoring/arrangement from the timeline and the 8 loops files used to produce that project. You can
then see and hear for yourself how the song was put together.

Subject:RE: Editor vs. Multi-track

Reply by: Iacobus

Date:1/30/2002 2:26:21 PM

Like Chienworks said, ACID is mainly a loop based music creation tool—the stress somewhat being on "loop".

Things get confusing for the traditional type of musician, as there's no music notation to speak of. That's understandable. (I play classical guitar myself and read traditional notation as well.) Instead, we're working with digital audio waveforms rather than music notes.

Still, it's very easy for the person accustomed to music theory to use that knowledge to his/her advantage in ACID, since ACID works with keys, tempos and even note values.

For example, I use ACID Pro to compose drum tracks using One-shots (snippets of audio that are designed to play once in any given event) and set the grid to a specified note value (8th notes, quarter notes, etc.). I can then "paint" a rhythm that I have in mind on the timeline. Anything I paint will automatically lock to a note value.

The possibilities of music creation are quite large, especially if you have ACID Pro and an editor like Sound Forge or WaveLab. Personally, I like to record in Sound Forge and bring everything into ACID Pro to arrange the project. (You can also use Vegas as well for the same purpose.) You could record live into ACID but its recording features are a little too rudimentary for me.

I like to think of ACID Pro as my band, because, quite frankly, it is my band. In the days of yore, I used to pine to have a decent band that could play what I had in mind. With ACID, I no longer have a need for a band (unless it's live, in which case, good luck, because I like to create freaky, far-out sounds).

Iacobus