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If the price tag attached to Acid Pro 7 isn't enough to scare off casual musicians, its technical interface and breadth of tools will be. This fully-featured music production software is a great option for those who know their way around mixing console, but can definitely be overwhelming for newcomers.
The good news is that the latest version of Acid Pro offers interactive tutorials, which is helpful for users who aren't familiar with the software. Given the vast array of features, this addition is more than welcome. Acid provides just about every tool an artist could want, from full multitrack editing to comprehensive MIDI support. In addition, more than 1,000 loops are included so you don't have to record your own before beginning to mix it up. Acid Pro has got chops, too: proprietary looping technology, video integration, and even plug-in support, assuming you need to do something that isn't included.
All in all, Acid Pro's interface is tidy and utilitarian. A multitrack editing window dominates the screen at the center top, while a multitab Explorer/Groove Pool/Plug-In manager resides below, next to the mixing console. It's hard to understate the usefulness of the clean interface, given the overwhelming number of options available, though it's nice that the hot keys for accessing the major option windows have been coded as ALT plus an ascending number, making them easy to remember.
Beginners and even intermediates should give this a pass because of the complexity. Knowing the real-world analogues of the features is a big help. You can't opt out of installing the Microsoft MySQL database manager, and registering for the trial version is also required. The price tag of $299 sounds high, but not compared with similar programs. Free upgrades are not included, but assuming you've got the knowledge, Acid Pro will make your music-editing experience a smooth, pain-free trip.
Publisher's Description
From Sony Creative Software:
ACID Pro 7 software is a professional music workstation for composing, recording, mixing, and arranging audio and MIDI tracks. New multi-track technologies and full MIDI sequencing join legendary ACID looping functionality to form an incomparable environment for music creation and production. ACID Pro includes a custom edition of Native Instruments KOMPAKT and over 1,000 loops so you can start making music right out of the box. Native support for VST instruments and plug-ins expands your palette of available sounds. Key features include automatic pitch and tempo matching, unlimited tracks, 24-bit/192kHz recording, on-the-fly punch-in recording, inline MIDI editing, control surface support, 5.1-surround mixing, and integrated CD burning. Originally a loop-based music creation, this version brings ACID Pro into the DAW (Digital Audio Workstation) space. Multi-track recording and full MIDI editing capabilities are the largest enhancements.
What's new in this version: Version 7.0e fixes a bug that prevented ACID Pro from being used as a ReWire device.
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All versions:
4.2 starsout of 54 votes
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Current version:
2.4 starsout of 7 votes
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My rating:
Write review
Results 1-7 of 7
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"Like it but not enough"
Version: Acid Pro 7.0e
Pros
-Easy to use interface, coloring is easy on the eyes
-Easy to learn especially for Sony Vegas Pro users
-Can be used with a lowly PC without a lagging problemCons
-Interface style makes it look very outdated, especially when using top vst's like Massive
-Although easy to use, interface can be confusingly mixed around everywhere
-Crash, crash, crash, crash, crash
-The percussion could sound betterSummary
So it's almost a really good program. It's a potentially great program, but it's not yet great. Sometimes it's so frustrating to use that you might as well be using some pre-alpha leak or something (is there even one? Oh, well). If you're an experienced Vegas Pro user, then learning to make music with this software is a snap of the fingers. However, the program is so unstable that I just decided to continue using what I had used before: FL Studio. This program is good, but others like FL Studio, Ableton Live, and Presonus Studio One completely crush the competition.
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"An Old Friend - But Always Unreliable"
Version: Acid Pro 7.0e
Pros
Ease of use
Full teature functionality
recognizes most soft synthsCons
teriibly unstable
Summary
Ive been using Acid Pro for over 10 years, starting with 3 and through 7. Have written, composed and produced some 200+ published titles on the software including 5 albums and actually made a bit of a name for myself with the software. While Ive always loved the full-featured approach (I even did my final mastering right in acid, equalizing every single track and using the master bus effectively) and have had some fantastic results. However, Acid has always been a bear on my system or it just cant keep up with how hard I push it. Crash is its middle name and so I finally decided it was time to move on. But all in all, over the years it was good to me.
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"Haven't got it mastered yet."
Version: Acid Pro 7.0e
Pros
No real pros that I can tell so far.
Cons
Terrible user interface with pale pastel colors. Very difficult to setup and navigate.
Summary
I had to buy a new PC for totally unrelated reasons, re-installed the demo and have since been unable to get my midi keyboard to make a sound. I tried ASIO, Direct Sound, Wave-RT and other mechanisms without success. This is certainly not plug-and-play.
Updated on Apr 5, 2012
I still cannot stand looking at that ugly GUI with pale pastel's and fonts. I have been using other similar software that is much more intuitive and pretty for as good (or better) a price. If I ever get this working I will write a proper review. -
"My Reviews"
Version: Acid Pro 7.0e
Pros
It's good and the first time from Sony
Cons
It's not free software. I must buy when I don't have dollars
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"Easy to use, nice interface, but terrible reliability."
Version: Acid Pro 7.0e
Pros
First of all, this is a great DAW in theory. Good midi editing, nice, clean accessible and learnable interface. Great set of default plugins, and support for all of my vst/vsti plugins. Looping and beatmapping features are nice.
Cons
Reliability! This program has put me through hell too many times. I want to move to Ableton!
Summary
I have lost several big projects to this program. It becomes highly unstable when your projects get large (>15 plugins, >6-7 vsts). I've had just some strange unexplainable things happen. Here are a few examples:
-Opening project file immediately crashes Acid. No way to salvage anything
-Will output no sound, only clicks, the rest of my system's sound is significantly distorted while Acid remains open
-Sound buffering will go haywire causing any recordings to be completely erratic in speed/rhythm and/or making playing along impossible. Usually requires rebuilding of the project file.
-Using the 'Duplicate Track' completely freezes the program, requiring a restart about 1 out of 5 times
-Playback is either so distorted and slow or causing crashes that the only thing to do is export all my tracks as midi files and repatch them in a new project file
-Sometimes the program will freeze, yet playback will still be going on and I'll still get response from the vsti's hooked up to my midi keyboard. This signals, to me, that the programming is so bad it can't deal with non fatal errors
-Acid, after it crashes, locks up my midi keyboard until system restart. If Acid crashes, it will usually report the following until restart: USB device in use, MIDI keyboard unavailable.
My computer has a quadcore 2.4 ghz with 4 gb of ram and a HD sound card. I run some pretty intensive applications/games and I rarely see instability like I do with Acid Pro. I never feel safe using it. If you are just starting out and have the luxury of choosing some other DAW.....I suggest you do. -
"ok i am having a problem here"
Version: Acid Pro 7.0e
Pros
im sure its a good program but
Cons
ok, why when i try and download this, it says invalid file name???????
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"dollar for dollar the best"
Version: Acid Pro 7.0e
Pros
sounds great, its easy to use, tons of support, a industry standard.
Cons
none none none
Summary
this is one of the best production programs out there. i used it on this Rhianna remix http://soundcloud.com/supadjmq/please-dont-stop-da-music-rihanna-remix-mannys-dance-mix
Results 1-7 of 7
