So far in this series we have looked at the typical plug-ins and processors you will need to mix your music and we have also delved into the world of hardware. So far you should be pretty clear on some of the kit you will need to get the job done.

In this instalment we are looking at software again but this time we focus on the very heart of your productions, the DAW (Digital Audio Workstation). There is a huge amount of choice here with an ever growing number of different products on the market begging for your attention.

As this is a pretty general and often misunderstood subject I’ll attempt to break things down a little bit and really get down to the details you should be looking at when choosing this incredibly important and often expensive part of your recording set up.

Step 1 – What Is A DAW?

Digital Audio Workstations are essentially the living, breathing heart of your studio set up. In the last section of this series we discovered how the computer is now arguably the most important piece of hardware in a modern production setup and this is only because it carries the vital task of running our DAW.

The modern studio may still use some hardware but it’s heart is the DAW.

The definition of a DAW has changed over the years somewhat, but now an application that carries this label is expected to handle pretty much every aspect of the production process. From conception to mixing and editing to mastering you should be able to stay within the confines of your chosen DAW throughout the entire process.

So really your DAW is your recording system, it’s a MIDI sequencer, it hosts software instruments, plug-ins and is capable of summing, mixing and mastering your entire project. This is pretty impressive considering once upon a time you would need a room (or two) full of hardware to get all these jobs done.

DAWs now sport all the tools you’ll need to get the job done.

So let’s assume you have a well configured, reasonably powerful computer at your disposal and the right audio interface. What’s the next step? Well, it’s as simple as choosing the right DAW for you and installing it. Let’s start to think about the decision process when selecting your DAW.

...and that's the end of the preview!