They won’t just let you slap Pro Tools into any off-the-shelf Mac you have lying around or can manage to snag off of eBay. They only support systems that run on computers with exact specifications that they control. that are built specifically to run Pro Tools. They build world-class consoles, interfaces, etc. Speaking of hardware - Digidesign’s dedicated hardware platform is second to none. If you do this all day, every day, a Pro Tools system will pay for itself many times over just in increased productivity.ĭigidesign/Avid invests millions in developing the absolutely best effects money can buy, and those effects run on a rock-solid DSP platform. It is simply faster, easier, and more productive by at least an order of magnitude. The PT features and workflow in this area are unequalled in the industry. Multitrack audio editing (that is, applying edits to multiple tracks simultaneously). I can tell you that Pro Tools strongest advantages are in the following: Granted, it has been a few years since I was involved in that, but I strongly suspect this is still the case. There was usually a unanimous consensus on that. When pure features (and not price/costs of ownership) were considered, Pro Tools was the winner going away every time. When a company realizes it could buy FOUR full-blown Logic rigs for the price of a single PT rig, and still chooses Pro Tools, it’s not because they are mindless lemmings.ĭuring my years at Recording, we staged several DAW “shootouts” on both Mac and PC, in which we would invite writers, hobbyists, and industry experts to compare them side by side, feature for feature. If a facility is investing a quarter million dollars in a Pro Tools system (not difficult to do), you can bet your ass they are investigating every possible alternative with a fine-tooth comb. The reason is that it really is the best DAW on the market, and always has been.ĭo not let people tell you that Pro Tools owes its industry status to simple market inertia.

While it’s true that it was the first, and while there’s no question that helped it establish an early foothold in the industry, that’s not the reason it has remained the tool of choice for high-end professionals. But as a Pro Tools veteran of 21+ years who’s worked sessions for major artists from coast to coast, and as a former contributing editor for Recording Magazine, I feel pretty qualified to answer this one.įirst of all, many people will be quick to tell you that Pro Tools is the industry standard because it was the first. I’ve never answered a question here before.

Pro tools use