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Sound Forge Pro 18 Released!

Larry Shelby

By Larry Shelby
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jim137

jim137

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15 stills works fine for me; at $199 upgrade price for very little once again (the last 3 versions).

I still use CD Architect to archive downloads and music CDs and it has not ever been updated.

I know they think no one does CDs anymore, but I think they are wrong.

It was several years after their purchase of the company from Sony,  before they begin actively updating Sound Forge and discovering they could make money with it by updating it too often at extreme prices.

$99 would be too much.

Edited by jim137
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CSistine

CSistine

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By the way this is another evidence that machine activations are a threat for the users! ?

Now I have to fear some other programs will not be authorizable, if something is changed on my computers. Somehow this reminds me of Cakewalk and Gibson ...  ? 

Thankfully, I have Reaper and Sonar X3!

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Steev

Steev

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21 hours ago, Martin Schiff said:

I've read recently that Magix is bankrupt. Be careful.

That actually would please me to no end. ? ?Ever hear the expression "Karma Always Finds a Way to Ballance Things Out?" ??

I've never been one to hold a grudge, if it can be avoided, it isn't necessary, but I guess maybe I'm still bitter that Magix shut down ACIDplanet.com. For no reason, no explanation, and with a very quiet and VERY SHORT very fine print announcement warning.

I lost hundreds of tunes and dozens of videos I published there, many of which I have no backups for. I had about 70k+ fans, 1000's of tunes by other artists I really liked that I can no longer get access to, lost contact with many friends and collaborators, and MAGIX Poofed it all out of existence with a simple flick of the switch, NUKING the Planet of ACID. Well in MAGIX's defense they did give us 2 weeks' notice to download and salvage everything we could, but due to very high traffic causing bottlenecks and crashes to their web servers, I for one didn't salvage much, and refused to purchase or upgrade any Sony Software from them.

 

 

However, after a few years, I did in fact break down and upgrade Sound Forge Pro v10 to v15 and SpectraLayers Pro v4 to v7 both for $100 (us) flash sale. And upgrade Vegas Pro v7 to v18 for $150 (us) I figured I should drop the grudge on that considering I was also upgrading these apps from x32 bit to x64 bit should be an advantage all in itself, better performance, right?

Well a RIGHT with Vegas Pro got several updated video codacs added & a noticeable performance boost with x64 version, and better more detailed enhanced acceleration and support for my AMD FirePro graphics card. which curiously, very curiously isn't branded as "Magix" Vegas Pro? ? 

But with Sound Forge Pro? WRONG! Other than a face change with fancy new GUI grills, several useless bundles of Magix FX I don't want or like added, there are NO IMPROVEMENTS! 

In fact Sound Forge Pro 10 loads 2x as fast as v15, finds and REMEMBERS where all 3rd party FX plugins all by itself, & v15 DOES NOT!

I still have Sony's ACID Pro 7 for access to archived projects and CD & DVD Architect 5 up and running on my computer. Contrary to popular beliefs, I sell quite a significant bit more CD's at live concerts then download cards or USB drives.

Why? Because we typically make more money selling "Merch" playing live venues then we will get from a bar, cafe, or outdoor festivals or whatever.  CD's and Tee-shirts sell, download cards or USB drives DON'T.  Only the Kiddies want them, but the kiddies have an unusually warped sense of entitlement.  Kiddies don't believe in having to be paying for the quality, or for paying for anything or supporting their favorite artists, the kiddies want muzac to come out of their cellphones, and they want everything for free.

And even curiouser And even curiouser SpectraLayers Pro 7 was branded Steinberg, and no significant improvements or differences in performance than Sony's v4 x32 version. ? 7 was branded Steinberg, That was a "Surprise", guess I missed the press release if there even was one, but no significant improvements or differences in performance than Sony's v4 x32 version. 

However, I don't think Steinberg is very concerned about improving upon that. I'm thinking they are throwing up their hands to all these new free A.I. apps doing the same things all to easily in seconds that takes hours of detailed work to achieve with SpectraLayers Pro 7.

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X-53mph

X-53mph

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On 3/27/2024 at 6:06 AM, Martin Schiff said:

I've read recently that Magix is bankrupt. Be careful.

From what I can quickly gleam, they are still operating but they will be a narrowing of product development. I found this on the Vegas forums concerning that particular product.

 

Screenshot_20240328-084247.png

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Steev

Steev

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On 3/28/2024 at 6:48 AM, antler said:

Give Acon Digital Acoustica a go - there's a 30 day trial if you're interested

https://acondigital.com/products/acoustica

Thanks much, good looking out for our fellow BbB community members. ??

However, I myself am not looking for any ways to fix what is not broken or try anything new, as that actually takes away much needed time & energy from why I use DAW's and other related music/video content creation software. I actually stopped trying and comparing DAW's back when SONAR 4 was released. THAT was the definitive ULTIMATE game changer for DAW's running on Windows Computers. Winner of several seasons of MIPA Awards for workflow improvements, innovation and rock-solid stability!

It freed me from being bound to the knee buckling pricy "Chains of ProTools" running on an aging Mac during Apple's crippling crossover from OS-9 to OS-X's introduction to core-audio drivers which turned my MOTU 8X8 into either a VERY PRICY pretty paperweight or use it running on a Windows PC. It was actually 1/2 the price to build a brand new Windows 2K Pro high end workstation then it was to upgrade ProTools & all my 3rd party FX plugins.. Which BTW, took about a year to catch up and stabilize to run smoothly on Core Audio drivers. 

Since then, Cakewalk has been my #1 choice in DAW's I still use, trust, and rely on today. Propellerhead Reason has always been my #2. But now due to modern technological advancements in ARA & VST 3, Reason the DAW can now run and be used as a VST 3 plugin called "Reason Rack" that can run in real-time as inside a host DAW with VERY LITTLE hit on computer resources and with mind-blowing extra LARGE HUGE IMPACT on your DAW's collection of instruments and utilities. In other words, now that anything and everything in Reason seamlessly & perfectly integrates into CbB, it BECOMES part of CbB as the "Synth Rack from Heaven, or Hell" depending on your personal preferences. So now Reason isn't my 2nd choice for back up DAW any more.

Now, due to some major improvements, additions, & advancements in modern tech, and innovation, BANDLAB STUDIO, the world's FIRST & only 100% Cross Platform Music & Jam Factory is my #2 GO TO, #1 Mixing & Mastering Environment for collaboration, distribution, Mixing & Mastering HQ content for Internet streaming! ?? and making? with ANYONE?? ANYWHERE?ANY TIME ????? ? 

For example, I collaborated with a sweet young lady "abel" who is learning how to speak and improve her English by singing. She's Japanese and all her recording on her iPhone. The most difficult part about doing collaboration with each other is communicating with each other, but thanks to Bandlab and the help of "Google Translate we managed to publish a new revision of Paula Abdul's Blowing Kisses in the Wind 

But ProTools running on a Mac is still my #3, and the ONLY reasons I continued to use ProTools at all is strictly for professional reasons. #1 It's the Industry Standard, which means if you want to survive and make a living in the music industry you HAVE TO USE ProTools or agree to be recorded in ProTools whether you want to or not. #2, I have probably made more money over the years teaching and tutoring others how to use ProTools in order to help them pass their BerkleeMusic.com Audio/MIDI courses than I did recording my own music, all other bands and clients, selling albums and playing live gigs, all together... Why is ProTools so important? Because once you know and understand how to use PT there is NO DAW, FX, or process beyond your comprehension, all you will need to do to get up and running in any other DAW figure out the GUI, .i.e. where all the buttons, knobs, faders, and FX folder bins are.

And you will also get a crystal-clear image, ANSWER, and understanding of the meaning of "What is the BEST DAW OUT THERE FOR YOU?". Just in case you're wondering, the answer is really quite simple. "The Best DAW you can find is the DAW you are most familiar with."

There is absolutely NOTHING wrong with Sound Forge Pro 15, other than the fact it takes time to load scanning all my VST folders, once it's up and running it does the SAME JOB as v10 and just as good. Only useful improvement I noticed in v15 and really is the duel VU meters showing measurements of DB and LUFS at the same time. 

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kitekrazy1

kitekrazy1

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There's always a risk of buying someone's code and hopefully retaining those people responsible for it.   It's rare to have that same staff.   There's a lot more turnover than we know when enshitifcation sets.  This is nothing new under the sun.

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Steev

Steev

Posted
Posted
On 3/28/2024 at 6:48 AM, antler said:

Give Acon Digital Acoustica a go - there's a 30 day trial if you're interested

https://acondigital.com/products/acoustica

Thanks much, good looking out for our fellow BbB community members. ??

However, I myself am not looking for any ways to fix what is not broken or try anything new, as that actually takes away much needed time & energy from why I use DAW's and other related music/video content creation software. I actually stopped trying and comparing DAW's back when SONAR 4 was released. THAT was the definitive ULTIMATE game changer for DAW's running on Windows Computers. Winner of several seasons of MIPA Awards for workflow improvements, innovation and rock-solid stability!

It freed me from being bound to the knee buckling pricy "Chains of ProTools" running on an aging Mac during Apple's crippling crossover from OS-9 to OS-X's introduction to core-audio drivers which turned my MOTU 8X8 into either a VERY PRICY pretty paperweight or use it running on a Windows PC. It was actually 1/2 the price to build a brand new Windows 2K Pro high end workstation then it was to upgrade ProTools & all my 3rd party FX plugins.. Which BTW, took about a year to catch up and stabilize to run smoothly on Core Audio drivers. 

Since then, Cakewalk has been my #1 choice in DAW's I still use, trust, and rely on today. Propellerhead Reason has always been my #2. But now due to modern technological advancements in ARA & VST 3, Reason the DAW can now run and be used as a VST 3 plugin called "Reason Rack" that can run in real-time as inside a host DAW with VERY LITTLE hit on computer resources and with mind-blowing extra LARGE HUGE IMPACT on your DAW's collection of instruments and utilities. In other words, now that anything and everything in Reason seamlessly & perfectly integrates into CbB, it BECOMES part of CbB as the "Synth Rack from Heaven, or Hell" depending on your personal preferences. So now Reason isn't my 2nd choice for back up DAW any more.

Now, due to some major improvements, additions, & advancements in modern tech, and innovation, BANDLAB STUDIO, the world's FIRST & only 100% Cross Platform Music & Jam Factory is my #2 GO TO, #1 Mixing & Mastering Environment for collaboration, distribution, Mixing & Mastering HQ content for Internet streaming! ?? and making? with ANYONE?? ANYWHERE?ANY TIME ????? ? 

For example, I collaborated with a sweet young lady "abel" who is learning how to speak and improve her English by singing. She's Japanese and all her recording on her iPhone. The most difficult part about doing collaboration with each other is communicating with each other, but thanks to Bandlab and the help of "Google Translate we managed to publish a new revision of Paula Abdul's Blowing Kisses in the Wind 

But ProTools running on a Mac is still my #3, and the ONLY reasons I continued to use ProTools at all is strictly for professional reasons. #1 It's the Industry Standard, which means if you want to survive and make a living in the music industry you HAVE TO USE ProTools or agree to be recorded in ProTools whether you want to or not. #2, I have probably made more money over the years teaching and tutoring others how to use ProTools in order to help them pass their BerkleeMusic.com Audio/MIDI courses than I did recording my own music, all other bands and clients, selling albums and playing live gigs, all together... Why is ProTools so important? Because once you know and understand how to use PT there is NO DAW, FX, or process beyond your comprehension, all you will need to do to get up and running in any other DAW figure out the GUI, .i.e. where all the buttons, knobs, faders, and FX folder bins are.

And you will also get a crystal-clear image, ANSWER, and understanding of the meaning of "What is the BEST DAW OUT THERE FOR YOU?". Just in case you're wondering, the answer is really quite simple. "The Best DAW you can find is the DAW you are most familiar with."

There is absolutely NOTHING wrong with Sound Forge Pro 15, other than the fact it takes time to load scanning all my VST folders, once it's up and running it does the SAME JOB as v10 and just as good. Only useful improvement I noticed in v15 and really is the duel VU meters showing measurements of DB and LUFS at the same time. 

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Steev

Steev

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Bandlab Studio

16 Audio/MIDI tracks + Mastering for the very affordable price of TOTALLY FREE, 32 tracks + Publishing + Distribution with paid membership.

A Paid Membership Subscription is actually less expensive than a 30% off Cubase deal, and offers about, umm. maybe1000x more SUPPORT? ? Maybe more.

It runs on the cloud and on ANY computer, smartphone or device that supports Google's Chrome Browser and or any browsers, like Microsoft Edge that supports Google "Chromium" technology.

?Now how COOL & Innovative is THAT??

Although I wouldn't consider Bandlab Studio a full-fledged DAW yet, simply because it doesn't have a Buss section "yet" and I experience unpredictable latency problems & timeouts while try to record directly into it at certain times of the day..  I can only conclude & assume of these latency problems are caused by my local ISP's annoying habit of throttling back speeds anywhere from an "advertised" 300 mb/s, actual high-speeds topping out @  125-225 mb/s to a low-end side of 80-90 mb/s (speed tested/measured & calculated from my Netgear Nighthawk router) when local Internet traffic is high here in Binghamton, NY.

However, depending on where you live, these conditions are subject to change. Below is a screen shot of the Blowing Kisses in the Wind collaboration I recently published with dear sweet young lady in Japan name "abel" who had little to no troubles recording tracks in real time directly from her iPhone. In fact, the only problems I have collaborating with abel is language translation barriers between Japanese and English. She is learning and perfecting here English language skills by singing songs most publish by American artists. She getting better and better learning English, but she's not there yet. I NO skills for learning foreign languages, and when I use Google Translate to copy and paste these track names written in Japanese I get thrown into a tailspin or get nowhere slowly.

But that's OK, because MUSIC itself is a defining universal language. ?

And I can still work on "Recording Sessions" in my No Brainer #1 Choice of DAW's CbB... Due to all the truly mind-blowing technological INNOVATIONS of Bandlab achieving successes I never thought I'd live long enough to experience....  BL Studio it is my #1 1st choice for collaborations & a unified field of "Mixing Sessions"

BlowingKissesBL-S3.thumb.jpg.2eb5f56642240768b1f7e9fb7ed3640e.jpg

On the lower 3rd of the screen is BL Studio's Fx Effects Chains Presets section with LG SELECTION OF DOZENS of PRESETS which can all be reconfigured,  rearranged, swapped out, automated and customized, saved & shared with any and all Bandlab users for further continued use and customization with a VERY large ever expanding in number & quality, & getting bigger selection of automatable FX, processors, and utilities like Auto Pitch, TIME STRETCHING, a new Drum Machine, a new Sampler, gazillions of samples, loops, one shots, and MORE.

Although the appearance of the GUI and FX names change, If you look at BL's Studio's lower 1/3 Fx Effects window as you would CbB's ProChannel, you will see and hear STRIKING similarities to ProChannel modules and Sontius FX bundle. Does a BL 1176 sound vaguely familiar to you whilst looking for a nice familiar compressor/leveling amp? Howz about a BL-2A?

Need a good familiar amp farm selections of American/British/Botique guitar Amps & rigs of STOMP BOXES?

Oh & BTW, if any of this stuff breaks and or glitches on ya, don't worry, be patient, just drop back in later after someone from BL fixes it.

 I have NEVER had a lasting problem with Bandlab Studio running on my Windows or Mac computers. The biggest problem I have ever had with BL where I had to intervene to fix was with my iPhone not getting a proper update. But all I had to do was trash my current installation and go to the Apple App Store & reinstall it from there. 

In about 5 seconds after logging back into my Bandlab account, EVERYTHING was still there exactly how I left off.

 

Edited by Steev
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Steev

Steev

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On 4/1/2024 at 12:13 PM, pwal³ said:

that could be traffic issues server-side...

glad you're having fun! :)

Thanks much @pwal, I am indeed having MUCH FUN! Just as some people have fun trying out new DAW's and various other types of software, I have fun jamming, making & producing music. As far as I'm concerned, a DAW is nothing more than a "box of tools" that helps me reach my goals of 'MAKING MUSIC", and if it ain't broken I see no reason to fix or replace it. Being I already pretty much KNOW what I can do & how far I can abuse my DAW before pushing it too hard it crashes & burns, I'll quickly get bored watching it happen over and over. ? Besides that all being counterproductive to innovation and to the very main reasons why I grown with and continue to love Cakewalk DAW, which I'm intimately familiar with, as opposed to being "fickly" intimate with too many, aimlessly jump'in and runn'in around with several DAW's just to see 'if' & 'what' they can do better or even do what CbB and what I already have can do that I want and need and want it to do.

And I've narrowed that down to a very short list, and Cubase, Mix Craft, Studio ONE, Ableton, Logic Pro, Larry, Moe, & Curly have all been checked off the list. The one and only DAW left on the list that can compete with to replace CbB that I look forward to is the new future release of SONAR! ? And if we have some problems and glitches with it after release, which I'm fully aware can happen and even expect to, I can always revert back to my favorite tried, true, rock solid, trusty, STILL ALIVE & WELL 'backup' DAW, which is the last version release of SONAR Platinum 2018 so I'm not very worried. Being I don't abuse my tools, CbB has only given me critical problems ONCE. And that's only because, for any number of reasons an "Update" failed to complete installation. And when I rebooted my computer to complete installation, WINDOWS failed to boot, causing and forcing me into my "STEP AWAY FROM THE COMPUTER" Mode, which lasted a day.

The next morning after I calmed down for a near miss emotional meltdown reaction, I booted Win 10 up in "Save Mode" went in my "Boot Records" Folder, selected and scheduled a systems rollback to one day before I updated CbB, and BAMB! In less than an hour later I was up & running like nothing ever happened.? And I decided to go into my; "Update? I don't NEED no STINK'in UPDATE!" MODE and stayed that way until Bandlab issued another newer update. I don't like to fall too far behind, but hey........ If it ain't broke, DON'T FIX IT!"

And yes indeed there have been issues on the server side of Bandlab, but they are easily detectable because they come with a standard auto popup window/page stating, "Sorry we are having technical issues, please try again later." And the Bandlab Support team jumps to it and solves it issues in record time.

But I can run & use Netgear's "Speed Test" software to measure bandwidth at my cable modem & have set my schedule for when my ISP throttles back on "peak hour" traffic bandwidth. VERY reliable 7-day averages, easy to forecast WHEN to do WHAT. Only subject to change with Holiday schedules, severe weather conditions, and maintenance of hardware/software updates and repair.

Edited by Steev
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