12 Pro-Tools ProTools is arguably the world's leading professional audio software package.
It's made by DigiDesign and their pro systems are found in the biggest and messiest studios worldwide but they also produce systems aimed directly at the home studio user.
That's all good if you're thinking of moving on to a professional career in sound and want to become familiar with the software you're likely to encounter.
ProTools is designed for editing and recording audio, so it has some basic MIDI editing features but nothing like the power of Cubase, Logic or Sonar.
You arrange your MIDI on another system and then import it into ProTools once you've finished it.
The full version is Mac-only but the home studio versions are PC compatible too.
Going down the ProTools route usually means buying their hardware as well as the software.
This makes their basic systems a bit more expensive than comparable packages.
The entry level system, called the M-Box, gives you stereo ins and outs on a USB interface box. It will cost you about £400.
The DIGI 001 package includes a soundcard and MIDI interface and will set you back around £780.
Go for a DIGI 002 and you get a control surface with faders, 8 inputs, 8 outs and a whole bunch of useful features. It costs around £2,000 though!
All of these systems include software and are compatible with both PC and Mac computers.
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