Most Honorable DAW
Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) promiscuity is a very common thing in this day and age... I'm talking about hopping from DAW to DAW as if it was no big deal. Having gone through Sony ACID, FruityLoops, Cakewalk (now Sonar), Reason, Cubase, and now Ableton, with a lot of overlapping and back-and-forth, definitely makes you wonder if you've ended up with the "right one".
For me REAPER is the one that got away, or rather the one that I never even got to try. But why? According to an overwhelming amount of testimony, REAPER is very stable, lean-running on most computers, and packs features that other big competitors lack. The best thing about it seems to be its copy protection: NONE. That's right, the company does not believe in copy protection, or even spending big bucks in marketing: "For starters, REAPER is coded by a small group of dedicated engineers, not multiple software units under the central command of product marketing".
I guess the lack of marketing explains why I never tried it--and I'm somewhat disappointed at myself for it.
REAPER operates using the honor system, keeping cleans clean and shooting straight:
"No Risk
The evaluation version of REAPER is complete and uncrippled. There are no artificial interruptions or restrictions, and you can save and load projects normally. We believe in giving you a fair chance to make sure that REAPER works correctly with your hardware and suits your workflow.
The REAPER installer simply copies REAPER and its support files to disk. It does not install anything except itself.
If after 60 days you decide that REAPER is not for you, simply delete it.
If you decide that REAPER is for you, you must purchase a license.
No Intrusive Copy Protection
We believe that technological enforcement of copy protection is not in the best interest of our customers."
REAPER is extremely competitive and provides features even Ableton can't match. More importantly, their honor-based business model and the frequency of their updates really show the company's commitment to its users. I'm way too deep with Ableton now, but if I could go back in time I would definitely give REAPER a chance.
tags:
audio, audio production, gear
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