Music Creator 5 Explained Video Tutorial - A Review
Getting started with beginner recording software can be a challenge. I know because I recently ventured into the platform after several years of using a dedicated hardware DAW. There is simply so much to learn it can seem overwhelming - downright Herculean in fact. Luckily there is no shortage of help available to anyone who wishes to learn. Music Creator 5's own help section is a great place to start and of course there is also the Knowledge Base at cakewalk.com and our own forums here but some people are more visual than others and like to see a concept demonstrated in a working situation by a knowledgeable instructor. That's where a tool such as Groove 3's "Music Creator 5 Explained" video tutorial comes in handy.
The tutorial is available here
http://www.store.cakewalk.com/b2cus/ProductInfo.aspx?productid=30-G3MC5.00-20E for those interested in purchasing. The usual price in the Cakewalk store is 29.95 but right now the store is offering the product 1/2 price for only 19.95.
The question on your mind if you're reading this is probably - is it any good?
The answer is a little more complicated - yes and no. As with many products (especially music software related) it depends on your expectations.
The download process was simple enough and for once I got my serial numbers and download link almost instantly. For anyone that's nervously waited a day or longer to receive these from the Cakewalk Store, you know that's a big plus right there. Alas, I cannot guarantee it will work that quickly for everyone but that's really more of an issue with the Cakewalk store than with the video itself.
The tutorial arrived in a compressed format with its own player included. Unzipping was a breeze and within moments I was watching the first video. The tutorial is comprised of five main sections - Getting Started, Recording Audio, Recording MIDI, Mixing, and Finishing Touches. Each section is subdivided into smaller lesson segments that range anywhere from a couple of minutes to nearly twenty minutes in length, depending on the level of detailed required for the topic. In all there are 27 tutorials running a little over three hours total.
The Getting Started section serves as an introduction to the tutorial series and covers basic setup. For most of us if we've purchased the product and gotten to the point we purchase such help this part is a bit redundant. After all, not many will need help with installing or registering software but the information is there should someone need it. The best part about the setup segment is that the instructor not only shows what is happening on-screen but there are also detailed still pictures of his setup away from the keyboard, for example showing how he has his interface plugged into the computer. Again, simple stuff but some may find it helpful. Things get interesting in this section with the fourth lesson - Basic Navigation. Not only does the tutorial give a basic overview of the onscreen navigation but drops many keyboard shortcuts into the mix as well. Where there are multiple ways to achieve a task, say adding a track for example, care is given to demonstrate each. The instructor gives his personal favorite but reminds the user it can be done whatever way works for them. The lessons in this section under Editing Audio, Using Audio Loops, and Creating Your Own Loops is one of the most powerful sections of the entire work. Great care is taken here as so much success with the product is determined by one's mastery of these skills.
The Recording Audio section demonstrates two simple songs being built from the ground up. This is great because these same tunes are used throughout the tutorial and are built to a finish. As in the above section we see both live screen shots and still pictures showing the basic setup needed for recording audio. I found the sections on Looping recorded audio onto separate tracks especially helpful. Very good stuff here. The instructor makes a few mistakes along the way which is great for those of us who live in the real world as most of us aren't world-class, accomplished studio musicians who nail a part perfectly every time. (Big secret - even the pros don't always do this). It was refreshing to see the mistakes however and even better because the instructor used them to demonstrate when a mistake can be fixed with simple editing and when it's better to simply re-record a part. Bottom line - if you will spend more time trying to edit the mistake than it takes to record it again... You get the picture.
One of the most powerful tools available in Music Creator 5 is its ability to edit and record MIDI. Once again the video shines well as the instructor adds MIDI elements to the songs he started earlier. He demonstrates using Cakewalk Sound Center and concentrates heavily on using the Piano Roll View. He gives an in-depth look at the tools for editing MIDI in this view. One drawback here is that the Staff View was mentioned only in passing. For musicians who read music fluently, this view may be more helpful than the Piano Roll one. Thankfully the tools work the same in either view and this was pointed out, but such a powerful feature deserved a closer look. Another shortfall in this section is that the multitrack TTS-1 sequencer wasn't mentioned at all. If you want to create multi-instrument parts and conserve computing power while doing so, you'll get no help from this series. Another tool left untouched were the MIDI samples in the Explorer View. The instructor didn't get into importing MIDI into the project at all.
The Mixing section was both informative and frustrating in both what WAS and WASN'T there. The first thing you should know is that the section isn't so much about mixing as it is an overview of the mixing tools available in Music Creator 5. On one hand, this makes sense. No one mixes the same so Groove 3 isn't likely to get complaints like, "That's not how I mix!". However, the section does a great job introducing the mixing tools available in MC5. Particularly helpful was the section outlining the concept of adding busses and even gives some helpful tricks along the way to make your mix more professional. The "Adding A Master Reverb" section was very cool too because it stressed the importance of setting the overall mix in a room. There was also some good stuff about how to send only the effect to the master reverb buss and not the recorded information, etc. Each of MC5's effects were explained in some detail, which was a welcome addition. Not only did I learn a few things about MC5 that I didn't know, I also picked up some general mixing information I wasn't aware of. Perhaps the section would prove "Old Hat" to a more experienced user, but for someone like me it was very useful. However, the most glaring weakness in the section, and indeed the overall product, was the lack of information about using envelopes adn automation. How much information was there? Zip. Zilch. Nada. Not even a passing mention of it, which is disappointing considering envelopes and automation are extremely powerful tools in the mixing process. I recently began experimenting with them and was excited to learn more but this one single omission severely downgraded my overall experience with the product.
The final section, "Finishing Touches" seemed rushed but to be fair there isn't much technical expertise involved in exporting your music to WAV or MP3 or in burning to a CD. The final installment about "Audio Performance" was good information about improving your audio performance but a little "Duh" for some users as well. "Use lower latency settings when recording and more stability when you mix" was the gist of it. However, it is a beginner series for beginner software so perhaps some will get some use of it.
Overall, I feel the product deserves three out of five stars if you're an experienced user and four of five for a beginner. The dual rating is useful for such a product, hence my comment earlier on expectations. It was definitely helpful on many topics, even for long-time users. The instructor was excellent and his speaking voice and tone were engaging. Kudos to Groove 3 for keeping the tutorial fun and showing consistency in the curriculum by building the two songs from the ground up. The curriculum was well-conceived and presented in a such a manner that each lesson built upon the knowledge that came before. The biggest drawbacks were the lack of tutorials on importing SMF into a project, not using the multi-track sequencer built into MC5, the skimming over of the Staff View, and the total lack of information about enevelopes and automation.
Worth $19.95 to me? You bet! 29.95? I'm not so sure.....
David