Pro Tools has been referred to as the industry-standard DAW for decades, thanks to its immediate audio editing and clean interface. And it’s ARA2 enabled if you want to use Melodyne.
Third-party plug-ins are also supported here, so you can really push the boat out on stacking a pleasing number of synths and effects in Cakewalk to get professional results. Mastering tools are included with Cakewalk so you can start and finish your tracks in a singular piece of software.
Its audio editing tools allow you to fix mistakes, arrange parts, and manipulate pitch, time and more. The ProChannel section contains a variety of high-quality effects that are instantly usable, including convolution reverb, resonant filtering, dynamic compression, EQ, tube saturation and more. The mixing console sports an analogue design with the ability to stack effects and mix channels effortlessly. Previously known as SONAR, Cakewalk by BandLab has a ton of advanced features to help create pro-sounding projects, and a sleek, customisable and award-winning user interface. Now accompanied by BandLab Assistant, a free service offering thousands of loops and samples, Cakewalk by BandLab is a fully-featured DAW that’s been on the scene for decades. Let’s take a look at the freeware DAWs you can get your hands on – both fully functioning and trials – without paying the big bucks.