Hi Mick
Pretty much all Cakewalk digital audio recording software apart from the 'lite' versions (like the GT4 edition that ships with the VS-20) will allow you to do exactly what you wish to do.
Depending on exactly which specific features you want, and on how much you want to spend, GTPro4 and any of the SONAR versions will work perfectly for you, and will work flawlessly with your VS-20.
I'd advise that you check out the features of all four program (I've listed the links below) and then feel free to ask any questions back here and we'll try our best to help you choose the right product for you. To be completely honest with you, the GTPro4 interface is pretty easy to work with, but the GUI and technology are based on Cakewalk's
Home Studio 7, which is now 4 or 5 years old, and has now been discontinued.
On the other hand, the SONAR 'X' series is very much the way the company seems to be heading in consolidating its product range. The three versions it comes in are SONAR X2 '
Essential', which is the entry level software, the '
Studio' edition adds a lot more sophistication and features, and finally '
Producer' is the flagship version which contains the greatest array of tools and features, including Cakewalk's unique 'Pro Channel' mixing system.
Check out the features of each here:
* Guitar Tracks Pro 4 * SONAR X2 Essential * SONAR X2 Studio * SONAR X2 Producer * The full SONAR features are listed
HERE * There's a detailed comparison chart for all three SONAR versions
HERE And one thing to remember, if you do decide to upgrade to any of these products, you will, as a registered user of Music Creator (and GT4) be entitled to a quite significant upgrade discount on your purchase.
And talking of MC6, have you tried editing drums with it? Or tried using your VS-20 to control it? You'd be surprised at what a powerful program it is you know!
As to the question of drums, I use three different
non-Cakewalk drum products (Toontrack's
EZ Drummer; Toontrack's
Superior Drummer 2; Steven Slate
Drums EX) in my stuff. Of the three, my go-to is EZ Drummer, it's pretty easy to use (although still very tweakable) and sounds amazing. Superior gives me the utmost control over my drum tracks, while the Steven Slate kits add some variation of sounds. As I've already mentioned, they all work perfectly inside my SONAR software.
By the way, if you need some help to get you started, take a quick look at
THIS POST I made a while back - it's not meant to be comprehensive, but it does show you the basics of using and editing MIDI drums.
I've also got a 26-page PDF I put together for another member on using Cakewalk's Session Drummer 2. If you send me a Private Message with your email address, I'll send you a copy to look through. Obviously this tutorial is specific to Session Drummer2, but the editing techniques are almost identical to using
all MIDI drums (it's just that the interface varies from product to product).
post edited by SteveStrummerUK - 2013/04/19 07:38:07