Record or Live 8?

[WFWS]

I'm beta testing Propellerhead's Record software, and I like it alot. But I also really like Live 8. It looks to me that I will probably use some Live features, particularly in live performance, even if I use Record.

In its favor, Record sounds pretty good to me, and Reason integrates seamlessly. It also has a straightforward 'old school' sort of interface. All that rewire jumping between screens stuff is just gone. And I can use Reason synths and goodies as audio effects. Very cool. I got Reason before I started with Live, and I've grown to need it to build sounds the way I like. And I must say its not hard at all to get good sound from Record.

But Live's per clip warping and stretching, hyperflexible routing, and Looper's ability to set tempo from external instruments, along with a sensible and quick interface make me wonder if I should drop out of Record and work a little harder on working with the Reason/Live combo.

The underlying problem is that if I start down the road with Record I'll then be paying to upgrade yet another piece of software. Arggh.

Anybody in the same conundrum? Any compelling reason to use both Record and Live?

WFWS

[dontask100]

similar situation: I'm using REASON 4 and Live 7. Just purchased the LIVE 8 upgrade from local store while testing the Live 8 demo. I also received my invite this week to test Record. Have yet to get start using record as I am reading-up on current issues. Not clear to me if the upgrade to LIVE 8 is worthwhile for what I do. I'll monitor this post.

[loko]

If you can have all them then why not? Thats the only way your going to know for sure what your comfortable with. The SSL mixer in Record is awesome though, but Live has definitly changed the way we work on tracks. I'm gonna use all of them, what is it they about "jack of all trades...?"

[trilo]

I don't really understand the conundrum at all. Record is a different animal, from what I can tell. Sure, both can be used for recording performances and assembling finished tracks, but that's about it. To me, Ableton is much more of a performance tool, and Record is, well, a really powerful recording deck.

Good luck figuring out which of those will suit your needs best.

[Pasha]

By judging from what is available from the website Record seems a good linear recording and mixing tool at a very compelling price.
However, 4 years ago when I made my first steps in non-linear recording with Live session view my
way of doing music and my inspiration changed. So I think that Record puts a lot of power under your finger but it's more a
Cubase or Logic replacement (in terms of a 3000 ft view) than Ableton's. Having said so, you can read this:
http://www.propellerheads.se/company/cr ... lan&PID=18
It clarifies what Record is meant to be from Propellerheads point of view.
As I saw the mixer view I got a faint heart for a moment. I think that the cleanness and ease of use of Live is still unbeaten in the market.
How do you mix a 32 tracks piece of music with that? Too many buttons too many things to press, switch, rotate and they're all virtual.
Nothing can be as a real hardware mixing console. To control that you'll need tons of Controllers...

Have your choice, I wish you good Luck.
4 years ago I left Cubase behind.
Having a complete virtual reconstruction of a real world studio and mixing console distracts me and does not make me a better musician,
but it might simply be that I'm too old to change again.

- Best
- Pasha

[WFWS]

Pasha and all, thanks for intelligent responses. I see it pretty much the same way- I'm enticed by the mixer mostly, but also by the seamless integration with Reason. But I have also played with recording in Live, and the clip orientation does change how you work in a good way. Also, the Live interface is simple, leaving behind that virtual reality paradigm that Propellerheads suffer under. That sort of literal look and feel doesn't really make it work any better. Live's interface is much more compact, doing more with less screen space.

You notice that several navigation features in Record are not too far off of Live. But Live's use of that drag up and drag left/right to size and scroll in clip view and the sequencer is not present in Record. Record uses function keys to quickly choose, not unlike Live's Tab key, and double clicking a clip in Record will open it for editing. Things also connect mostly automatically, so for those wanting to record music more than mess with audio engineering, Record does a great job.

I finally cleared some space and time to do some recording with Record and Live. I'll do some comparison of simple tasks related to recording for the singer songwriter, and that will really help me choose the direction.

That's what is in my head. Not so much what software, but how to record in general- in the old school linearity of mixer/sequencer/track in Record, or in the more dynamic clip orientation of Live. Its a different way of working I'm considering, and from there the right software.

I'm sure others have been down this road. Anyone have an opinion on recording and work styles, or experience changing from linear production to more dynamic clip oriented production?

WFWS

[WFWS]

OK, so I got a chance to record some acoustic guitar and voice into both Live 8 and Record. I tried to make a fairly close comparison, and just see what jumped out at me.

First, I have to say that Record was very easy to do this in. Without any prior instruction, I was able to quickly create tracks and add send effects. Then play the stuff back and do a very basic mix. In Live, in order to get tracks to sync I had to drag from Session to arrange view, and trim clips, and figure out the sends and how to adjust volumes in arrangement. Now, once I know how to do this, I could have synced tracks easily enough. But I have to say Record was just a bit easier to lay simple tracks down.

Sound quality wise I also give the edge to Record. Making sure volume levels were the same, the Record track sounded a bit warmer and more open. Like the difference between a cheap preamp and a better quality one. This certainly was NOT a scientific test, but my first impression is that I prefer the sound of Record overall. When I added a bit of reverb and chorus, Record again came out sounding better to my ears.

But, I really like the arrange view, and clip tweaking and automation in Live, and you can't really mess with clips/scenes in Record like you can in Ableton.

I was all ready to just use Live, and I may still do some more playing to make sure. But now I'm thinking there may be room for Record and Live both. The sound quality is not that big an issue, and may be easily dealt with by messing with input levels, effects, etc. If sound quality is not the decider, then Live and Record both hold their ground. Record quickly yields good quality recordings and meets its hype of being designed for musicians, not engineers. Live is very flexible, and the interface is compact and quick. While I had to crack the manual to review how to use the Arrangement side of Live, once I did that the interface was very quick and accessible. I can't imagine trying to use Record in a live situation, but I probably could use Live in a Recording situation.

Hmmmm. It may be right that there is reason to have both.

WFWS

[Pasha]

First, I have to say that Record was very easy to do this in. Without any prior instruction, I was able to quickly create tracks and add send effects. Then play the stuff back and do a very basic mix. In Live, in order to get tracks to sync I had to drag from Session to arrange view, and trim clips, and figure out the sends and how to adjust volumes in arrangement. Now, once I know how to do this, I could have synced tracks easily enough. But I have to say Record was just a bit easier to lay simple tracks down.

WFWS, you made your process more complicated than it is.
You could have recorded your guitar and voice take into the arrangement view directly.
Moreover, no drag & drop is needed to move from session to arrangement.
You simply press record in session view and arrangement view 'records' everything you do.
Use session view if you want to improvise with loops/clips until your song has taken a definitive shape.
When it's time, record your 'Live Performance' in Arrangement view.
That's the way you can take advantage of Session View for composing, no need to go to arrangement to mix down
when you have a scene with two clips.

Sound quality wise I also give the edge to Record. Making sure volume levels were the same, the Record track sounded a bit warmer and more open. Like the difference between a cheap preamp and a better quality one. This certainly was NOT a scientific test, but my first impression is that I prefer the sound of Record overall. When I added a bit of reverb and chorus, Record again came out sounding better to my ears.

Live outputs a naked sound while Record already implement compression in the final stages of the mix (Master channel) so this could have created the difference. You can tweak the sound in Live as you desire and if you created a way that sounds familiar and has your 'marks' then create a Template that carries your master chain with you

Hmmmm. It may be right that there is reason to have both.

Still needs testing IMHO, good luck,

- Best
- Pasha