Version 1 was simplistic but incredibly friendly and quick, and it’s remarkable that subsequent releases have transformed it into a sophisticated, versatile production tool without compromising its immediacy. This latest release builds on the previous version’s focus on becoming a more rounded, conventional recording application. There’s finally a proper mixer, which pulls together the various mixing parameters into a conventional single-window interface. It looks utilitarian to the point of ugliness but it uses limited space well and has the ability to hide or show particular settings or channel types. Colour coding to identify different sections would be welcome, though. Acid Pro 7 is able to manage more CPU-hungry plug-ins than before. Other improvements include the ability to drag objects to different tracks and to precede recording with a metronome count in. 3.0 out of 5 stars Sony Acid Music Studio 8.0 not entirely stable Reviewed in the United States on JanuIt seems to be a great tool, although zooming in on tracks is rather annoying because Acid doesnt stay centered at the cursor.
#Sony acid pro 8 reviews PcĪcid Pro has long served as validation for music producers who work on the PC platform, or at least have a PC integrated somewhere into their studio setup. Someday, this DAW will be available on the Mac, but until such time, PC-based music. A new Input Bus channel type allows a live audio input to be monitored with effects applied ?” essential for recording electric guitars direct into the computer. It’s now possible to create tempo-change ramps and curves rather than just static blocks.
However, behind the scenes, the software still adjusts the tempo in one-beat blocks, which we found to be a little coarse in some circumstances.Īll of the above features have been available elsewhere for years, but they strengthen Acid Pro’s ability to compete with more conventional recording software such as Cubase. There are still quite a few notable omissions, though, such as tools to assist the recording and compiling of multiple takes. Its snap-to-grid facilities lack the option to preserve an object’s offset relative to the grid when moving it.
Mix automation is available either by recording changes in real time or by editing envelope curves, but the latter technique is unavailable for bus and virtual instrument channels. As such, the only way to edit some automation data is to re-record it from scratch. Tempos are limited to a range of 70 to 200bpm, which seems needlessly narrow and may prove to be extremely unhelpful.Īcid Pro’s Beatmapper function was once a cutting-edge tool but Ableton Live has taken the idea further, tempo-mapping with greater accuracy and less user input and even coping with varying tempos. Sony Acid Music Studio 9: Still fast and fun, but the working methods feel dated and new features suffer from poor attention to detail Music production is an inherently complex business. Magix ACID Pro is not available for iPad but there are some alternatives with similar functionality.
#Sony acid pro 8 reviews manualīeatmapping with tempo changes is listed among Acid Pro 7’s new features, but we were disappointed to see that this is a manual rather than automatic process.
It's not free, so if you're looking for a free alternative, you could try GarageBand or Cross DJ. If that doesn't suit you, our users have ranked more than 50. To map a song with a subtly changing tempo, we had to enter markers every couple of bars.