DAWs: Things You Need For A Home Studio
- Michael O'Connor
- Jul 26, 2022
- 3 min read
The heart of your home studio; a DAW. DAW is an acronym for “Digital Audio Workstation”, the software you use to record, edit, mix, and create files for audio. Without this crucial piece, there is no home studio!
Which DAW Should I Use?
DAWs are like food. Any DAW will get you fed; some may taste better than others, geared towards weight loss or muscle building, but every single one will get you fed! In the end, they will all get you to where you want, but they all look different or do things a slightly different way.
No DAW changes the sound in any way (with the exception of DAWs specifically adding color to a sound, like the Harrison Mixbus, but every other DAW has no impact on how one sounds). So when choosing the one best for you, this is not a consideration!
What is a consideration is what your main purpose in using it will be. Are you going to be writing music? Mixing music? Creating beats? Each DAW will have its own workflow and layout geared towards their main target audience.
That being said, many DAWs function the same, and offer no improvement or disadvantage over another one. It’s all about how well you know your DAW!
What Makes Each DAW Different?
Some examples of popular DAWs are Pro Tools, Ableton, Logic, Studio One, GarageBand, Reaper, Reason, the list goes on. Pro Tools is the industry standard though, so you’ll most likely be compatible with studios if you want to send session files back and forth, and if you’re planning on working with/in a studio, Pro Tools is likely a required DAW you need to know. It’s an all-arounder!
DAWs like Ableton are good for writing music, particularly electronic music, because of the built in effects and options you have. It is pretty clunky though if you are trying to mix on it, so if you’re planning on mixing a lot, I’d suggest something else. Great DAW for writing though, I personally have this and Pro Tools!
Do I Have To Get An Expensive DAW?
I’d suggest going with anything free to start off unless you know you will exceed its limitations. Pro Tools has a free version, but they limit some features, so try to look through them and see if it matters to you at all. No hurt if you try it out and then realize you need more, because it’s free!
The free versions of most DAWs are very useful though, most of the limited options are only what pro’s need for bigger sessions. A lot of the work they do can be done on the free versions, assuming the session they are given fits within the limits of the free version.
Do I Need Any Other Software, Or Is That It?
Once you get the DAW, it should be good to go right out of the box. No need for third party plugins, and I’d actually suggest you don’t ever buy a third party plugin until you understand what the stock plugins are doing to its fullest extent! If the pro's can get a great mix on stock plugins, so can you! It’s all about the user and not the tools!
A DAW is the thing that will allow you to record your demos, allow you to practice on a deeper level, and record scratch tracks from home instead of in the studio. It really doesn’t matter which DAW you get, because once you learn it, it’ll work just as well as any other for getting your songs out there! Don’t let this hang you up from working on your songs - it will definitely take you to another level of songwriting and understanding of music!
All the best,
-Michael
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