Alternatives to Sonic Studio PreMaster CD

[chris harris]

I switched from Wavelab (which I absolutely LOVED) to Sonic Studio PreMaster CD. I mostly did this so that I could have all of my applications on one Mac in my studio. I was tired of keeping the PC alive just to run Wavelab.

I can't tell you how much I actually hate this Sonic Solutions software. The website claimed that it would work with any hardware that has working core audio drivers. I tried it with a Fireface 800. No joy. Would not work. I've got a MOTU 2408mk3 now and it won't work with that either. The only way that I can use it is with the built in audio on my Mac. Since I'm only using this for sequencing and burning, it's not too much of a hassle. But, it's still unacceptable. I spoke to someone at Sonic Studio tech support. He was really nice. But, in the end, we did not solve my problem. He said that he would elevate it to the engineers and I haven't heard back in about a month.

But, now that I've used it for a while, I'm discovering how much I don't like it. The entire interface seems old and clunky. It's really counter-intuitive for me. It just feels like an old, slow application.

And, I'm not working with major label projects. Most of my clients are either burning their own discs to sell or are using manufacturers that don't even accept DDP delivery. So, the big selling point of PreMaster CD is really of no value to me.

At this point, I'm ready to bail. I'm still a couple of years away from having to upgrade my g5 to a new Intel Mac. I guess then I can just run Windows under Boot Camp and install Wavelab.

But, for now, I guess I could buy a cheap PC just to run Wavelab. I just thought I'd check to see if there are any other Mac applications that have fairly advanced PQ editing and fades/crossfades, in a smoother, more advanced interface that will work with my hardware.

Thanks for any info.
Chris

[Catfish]

I was pretty much in the same boat, editors on PC (Soundforge/CD Architect), PT and Cubase on Mac.
I wanted the one box solution and I went with Bias Peak Pro.
It took a while to get my head around, but it really is not too far off from SF or WL.
I really enjoy the Playlist, it functions kind of like like CD Architect.

New version 6 is pretty cool and I am happy with it as an editor/track sequencer.


Catfish.................

[JohnDavisNYC]

WaveBurner, which is part of LogicStudio is pretty great.... not to mention it comes with this software called Logic which is also pretty great....

john

[Toddf]

Jam.

Not sure if you can do actual fades as we have that done already but it does do crossfades and you can select ID points.

Peace, Todd