The music production industry has advanced and evolved at a rapid pace in the past few years. A digital audio workstation is one of the most important elements for any music production setup and selecting one can be challenging as there are several DAW’s available out there. With new and upgraded DAW’s flooding the markets, deciding and selecting the best DAW for your music production is difficult, but we’re here to guide you. And if you’re a music producer who is looking for a new digital audio workstation in 2021, this article is just for you! In this write-up, we will talk about our top four favorite DAW’s for music producers and discuss their pros and cons. So let’s get started!
- AVID Pro Tools
Avid Pro Tools is a great digital audio workstation developed and released by Avid Technology for both Microsoft Windows and macOS operating platforms. With a fast 64-bit recording and mixing engine, it is one of the best DAW’s out there. Along with the robust recording and mixing features, Avid Pro Tools also has new factory and Plugsound packs that make the overall experience smooth and efficient.
Pros
- Avid Pro Tools has a powerful mixer and superior mixing options. This DAW has mixing features that almost remove the need for a physical analogue mixer.
- Another great feature of pro tools is that it provides ultra-low latency that allows smooth and efficient processing and results in optimized performance.
- The best part about AVID Pro Tools is that it has zero bloatware that slows down the performance thus making it a great and sophisticated DAW.
Cons
- This DAW can be a bit expensive and requires you to own several AVID approves interfaces.
- This DAW also requires a high-powered computer as it has a very high CPU usage.
- Abelton Live
Abelton Live is a perfect digital audio workstation for music producers. Designed and developed by Abelton for both macOS and Microsoft Windows, this is a great DAW. And when compared to various other DAW’s, Abelton Live is designed to be a software for recording live performances as well as a tool for composing, recording, arranging, mixing, and mastering. This is a true digital performer and has various features and options within itself. This is one of the best DAW’s available right now.
Pros
- Abelton Live is a great DAW as the way the software handles sound wrapping is really fantastic and practically has no latency and gives a perfectly natural tone.
- Another great feature of Abelton Live is the ability to handle and process a wide range of instruments.
Cons
- Although Abelton Live is a great DAW, it may seem a bit outdated to some users as some features have not received updates for quite some time.
- Logic Pro X
Logic Pro X is a digital audio workstation and MIDI sequencer software application for the macOS platform. It was originally created in the early 1990s as Notator Logic, by German software developer C-Lab which later went by Emagic. Logic Pro is a wonderful DAW for macOS users and offers some highly advanced features and options that make music production a breeze.
Pros
- One of the best features that Logic Pro has is that it offers free VST plugins and it already has everything you need to create a high-quality master recording without purchasing any other plugins.
- Another nice thing about Logic Pro X is that it works perfectly on macOS and gives the user a custom and better-optimized user interface.
Cons
- The only con that Logic Pro X has is that is it limited to macOS users only. If you own a Windows-powered computer or laptop, you can’t run Logic Pro X.
- Reaper 5
The Reaper 5 is a great DAW for music producers. This digital audio workstation and MIDI sequencer software is developed and created by Cockos. And it is available for both Windows and macOS, and there are beta versions also available for Linux. Overall, this DAW is a well-balanced and feature-rich software that makes music production easy and smooth.
Pros
- The Reaper 5 is a great choice as it offers a fast and efficient workflow and optimizes your entire production process. And it is perfect especially for music producers who create EDM or Hip Hop.
- Reaper 5 also offers a clean and smooth user interface that allows complete digital audio production with full multitrack audio and MIDI recording, editing, processing, mixing, and mastering.
Cons
- Although this is a great DAW, one disadvantage is that it cannot be used by professionals who want high end advanced tools in their software.
