In all fairness to Logic, I now a few composer/producers who wouldn't use anything else. I wasn't very happy with some of the graphic editing features, so I've postponed jumping ship and keeping my fingers crossed that MOTU doesn't phase out their software division. Even the Logic supporters I know have complained about the steep learning curve.

Any of the major sequencers are going to have their supporters AND detractors. I don't know how practical it is for you, but I would highly recommend giving a few different sequencers test drives on comparable machines. Some developers have demo versions and you may be able to get your hands on a computer with several different sequencers installed at a local music store. Hands on is really the only way to determine if a DAW fits your needs or not.

John Rodriguez
My Soundclick Page

John's got it right. Hands on is the best method. All of the programs I've learned was through hands on learning first, then I would read manuals and magazines about that program.

As others have pointed out- it is hard to say this one audio software is the best because everyone has different styles and needs.

Follow John's advice and download some demo versions and see what you think.

I think Sonar 6 will be a great choice, pro tools looks great but its preicey as hell.

I'm looking for the one with the best quality, good samples and instruments, and one that can be good for many types of music, especially music for gamming, and one thats greatest for some serious deep and great sounding drum rolls :), like in civ 3 hehe.

Most of the DAWs that I am familiar with aren't notorious for shipping with first-rate samples and VIs. I can't really think of anyone that I know of who relies on their DAW as their "go to" samples and instruments. If your really looking for the BEST samples and VIs, you may have to look at 3rd party developers, especially for anything geared towards orchestral emulation.

John Rodriguez
My Soundclick Page

For really high quality samples, you'll need to go elsewhere like East West or others not with a DAW. I personally find East West to have some of the best sounding samples and they are usually very easy to work with.

They are not cheap, but you can usually get some cheap either on Ebay or sometimes soundsonline.com has good sells. I think Symphonic Orchestra Gold (which is what I use) is going for $500. It has 8 DVDs of samples and they sound great. This would get you more than started. Then you can add others to supplement.

For example in my home studio I have:
Stormdrum (roughly 8 gigs)
Colossus (roughly 32 gigs)
Symphonic Choirs (roughly 38 gigs)
Symphonic Orchestra (roughly 21 gigs)

These samples are not for the weak computer though. You'll need tons of space, a good amount of RAM (preferably DDR2) and a fast CPU. But if you're looking for realism (and you sound like you are) then this is the way to go. Don't be discouraged by the price tag. I've built this system up over the course of two years. I use all of these samples with Sonar 5- which works great.

If you're a student, there are also academic prices as well. Or you can split the cost with one other person- since they give out two licenses with the purchase. That way you both could use the program and save more cash. I believe this is legal since you're not violating the license agreement....but you may want to check.

Hope that helps!

"Yet, what is really the best consumer software you can get?"

What's intrigued me about this thread is the use of the word 'consumer'. As far as i'm aware, audio software doesn't really have distinctions between consumer and professional. Sure, there are cutdown versions of Cubase, Logic, etc... but that doesn't really make them consumer. As most people have mentioned on here, they all mostly do the same job nowadays. A few years ago there were vast operational and functional differences between the major players, that isn't the case so much anymore. Just have a look around at each of them and see if anything grabs your fancy. Of course, a major decider will be your operating platform, which could rule out DP, Logic, Sonar, Samplitude and various others depending on whether you're a Mac or PC user. My personal preference is Digital Performer, although i'm forced to use PC because the game tools we use run on PC so i'm 'stuck' using Sonar... which doesn't work as well 'for me', but it's all apples and oranges really.

To answer the question a different way... Pro Tools is usually considered the industry standard, but as has been mentioned, it can be prohibitively expensive depending on which version you use.

Also, to reiterate what someone else said, if you're expecting 'a studio in a box' like Reason, then you may be surprised by what some DAWs offer. The built in synths/samplers/effects on most DAWs aren't much to write home about. The whole attraction with Reason was that it did this quite effectively, although i always hated the reason sound... but that's because i'm a cynical, fussy bastard, so you can ignore me on that one ;)

I dont know why but everything in Reason to my sounds 'flat' with out any real 'passion' about it if you know what I mean? It's like everything I'm making, and this ALSO includes (the samples with the program), do not sound mastered to me, and they sound like everything lacks depth and beuaty. I am a starving student lol, and I need very serious sounding sound for my programming project (game). It doesnt need to sound 'nessarily' super high quality, because it will be detered to maybe 360kbps mp3 format for gaming. And any sound effects I make will be .wav of course. But I could put the super quality version on CD for soundtrack, hand it to friends and show off for fun.

I donno I need a program that just sounds 'deep' and a program that really knows how to hit the low ends, with great response, Yes i tweak many settings in reason it works, but some of the things arent doing it. Just some instruments sound cheesy and not beutiful, but I'm a noob so...

But anyway if the samples(as in the music samples(by other composers) that come with the program) do not sound the way I want, and if its the 'best' then i begin to worry!

If you really want "serious" sounds, you should probably just hire someone who has already spent the thousands to tens of thousands of dollars on them and knows how to use them properly. Trust me, it takes awhile to learn how to make use of high end samples & software.

:)

[Edited by - justinwasack on January 28, 2007 10:25:13 AM]

Ok, first off I may have exaggerated about the 'perfect' sound, because I cant even hear it if i wanted to. I do not have high l337 monitors nor headphones. My machine is average, and I only have one machine and only one lcd. I do not have dual monitors, thousands of dollars, or wealth. My machine was made for just mid-range gaming. When I say deep and serious music, I just mean 'good-enough' or something that would sound good on my set-up. I do not need 'live' performance quality, but i need good enough quality to be put into the game and sound beleivable enough, and that is usually just mp3 quality. I have just tried sonar 6 and i love it, it is easy to see in, has some decent starter-loops, and VERY IMPORTANTLY is has volume management, and VERY GOOD reverb and filters. You can use the timeline in the program, and set the volume to peak at certain points or fade away which was crtical for me. Reason 3.0 had more loops, but i could just import that in .wav form. Oh yeah, and my set-up compared to 'l337 audio engineers' is a joke:

P4 2.6Ghz w/ HT
1.5GB DDR400 RAM
eVGA 7600GS (256MB)
120GB HD 7,200rpm
Sound Blaster X-Fi XtremeMusic
Logitech THX Z-5300e 5.1

But hey, its good enough for me right now, and I barely have enough storage to fit all my loops. But I am setting priorities right now. I plan to see those 'Garriton' Orechestrial pack which was supposidly used in SW:KOTOR and Guild Wars by Jeremy Soule which are excellent. Anyway, I trying to get by, by all means nessary!