Some observations about StudioOne 3

I have a friend who is trying to self-produce an album. He has self-published other albums with some financial success (made more money than he spent, which is what I call a success.) This time, he tried to manage all the production himself to minimize costs.  He started on Cubase and switched over to StudioOne. The technology has been a challenge that I am helping him with.  He became proficient on StudioOne, so I installed StudioOne Artist so I could guide him.
 
This isn't intended to be an exhaustive review, but I did want to note a few things.  Overall, StudioOne makes pretty good sense. It follows a paradigm where you work on songs as part of an album rather than each song being a separate project file. They also make a clear distinction between mixing mode and mastering mode.  That framework is OK, but I don't really feel it is an advantage compared to SONAR.
 
Right off the bat I got a real shocker when I tried to access some of my VSTs. StudioOne Artist won't do that. You can only
use the VSTs that Presonus provides for Artist. It is not a bad collection, but really ...  To access other VST's you have to buy an $80 upgrade or else upgrade to the pro version for $300.  That all seems really counter to the culture of plug-ins in the DAW world.
 
Most of the basic options are comparable to SONAR. There seems to be no way to archive tracks. That is a really important feature IMHO.  In this case, I was trying to clean up projects that had lots of extra tracks that were essentially multiple takes. They were muted, but without being able to archive, it is hard to keep them muted. Basically you can never use the global mute and solo buttons.
 
StudioOne makes makes a distinction between two different kinds of buses, which I really don't understand.  I created 2 reverb buses. That worked fine, but the solo buttons on these buses acted strangely -- not as I expected.
 
StidioOne is well behaved when adding the same effect to multiple tracks. If you select multiple tracks and drag an effect to one track, it goes on all the selected tracks. Maybe there is an equivalent way to do this with SONAR, but StudioOne seems particularly convenient in that case.
 
The effects included in Artist are mostly OK.  I particularly like the chorusing effect.  I haven't found any of the chorusing effects in SONAR to my liking. The PreSonus one provides a doubling mode that is exactly what I want to do from time to time, especially on vocals. It sounds realistic. I wish SPLAT had that.
 
SONAR is a lot more obvious to me regarding clip fades and cross-fades.
 
There are numerous user interface subtleties that really do warm up the user. Two examples: during mixdown, it says how much faster the rendering is than real time. It is no big deal, but it makes me feel good to see "Mixdown 18 times faster than real time." It makes me feel productive. Another example, during mixdown, if the output clips, it refuses to complete the mixdown, and that's a very good idea, IMHO.
 
I have only scratched the surface. My overall assessment is that SONAR is probably more comprehensive, but StudioOne is more comprehensible, which is important to people who can't invest too much time in the learning curve. The resulting sound is good with StudioOne, but I do think I get a slightly more polished sound with SONAR.
 
Just some observations, not looking to start any wars here. I think we can learn from others.

It is one thing that is cool about Sonar Home Studio. It comes with practically nothing in the way of quality plug ins and VST's but it certainly doesn't stop you from rolling your own from just about any source. SO this makes it a real value for anyone just wanting basic features but needing an open door to upgrading the add ons. 
 
I downloaded the free version of Studio one a year ago just to kick the tires. Overall it was a nice DAW and I found no fault in the overall layout. But a demo is a demo and I haven't really played with it since. 

I have both the latest versions of Sonar Platinum and Studio One v3. I've been a Cakewalk user since Professional 3.01 back in '95 and adopted Studio One (after winning a copy from a PreSonus NAMM show giveaway :)) as the DAW for my MacBook Pro since 2013. I mostly use Sonar as my default recording/mixing DAW and use Studio One for mobile recording applications of my laptop. 
 
I like how things move and flow on Studio One when it comes to recording, arranging and composing track view; I can intuitively move and copy/paste track data (whether MIDI or audio) around, even if the data doesn't begin on the first beat of the measure. For Sonar, you need to have some settings in place in order to do that. However, I also use hardware gear and Sonar is way superior in terms of sequencing and assigning tracks to hardware synths (Instrument Definitions, anyone?), whereas Studio One's implementation is rather half-assed.
 
In Console view, Sonar flows way better. The ProChannel has most things you need, and the buses already exist for assignment. I HATE mixing in the Studio One environment because I have to basically build my channels and buses up from scratch (yes, I could use templates, but even in Sonar I can work much quicker from nothing). Maybe it's because I don't 100% understand how to route and assign effects in Studio One, but whenever I work in Studio One, I want to use as few effects/bus routings as possible, whereas in Sonar, I want to use as much as possible. 
 

Also try the Sonitus modulation effect. It's flexible enough that you can get pretty much any chorusing effect you want. People sometimes dismiss the Sonitus effects because they're old. So what? They got it right 

BobF
On a whim I installed the S1/3 Pro demo a few weeks ago.  Once I finally got everything downloaded (I have a slow-ass internet connection), I was immediately impressed.  I was so impressed that I purchased a crossgrade license as soon as a sale went on.
 
I have now spent a bit of time with it and honestly, there are things I like and things I don't like.  Just like every other DAW I've tried.
 
I'm currently working on a flow that starts with S1 ( arrange/scratchpad ) and later migrates to SONAR for tracking/mixing.  I expect to end up back in S1 for mastering.  I'm hoping that the pending Ripple Edit in SONAR will make the arrange/scratchpad features of S1 less appealing.
 
The simplest explanation I can come up with is that S1 is quicker to get started, but SONAR has the advantage when it comes to details.  Keep in mind that I have thousands of hours with SONAR and a few hours with S1.
 
But ... the jury is still out.  Ripple edit and a few other tweaks could easily make S1 an afterthought.  Well, there is the integration with Notion 6 that I haven't even started to explore yet.

 
Hi Bob.
This is intriguing. Can I ask how you transfer your projects between Splat and S1? I would love to give this a try.

You can add time to the end of a song bounce for reverb and set the length.

I have sonar platinum and have been with cakewalk since buying producer version 8.5 back in 2009 I think... I also have studio one - 2 professional. I have yet to track a single song in it. Though I keep saying I am going to try it. I use it primarily for mastering. Simply because it can export with more meta data baked into an mp3 including a bands' logo... AND THEY LOVE THAT! So when a band puts their new mp3 on reverbnation, or itunes, even just their phone it is already there and it looks more professional. I also love the song/project (album) workflow of s1. It is brilliant that if you update the mix on the song, that automatically updates the associated mixdown file in the mastering project screen. So smart and soo useful! Though I have never taken advantage of it because I love to track and mix in sonar...
If cake implemented better mp3 export options and a linked project file that worked like s1 for mastering songs on an album together I S1 would never see another dime of my money. I Agree with a couple others here about sonars mixdown options being a little insane and counter intuitive. If you have a clip highlighted (because it's the last thing you clicked on and edited in Track view) it sucks! Have you guys ever done this? You make the mistake above then you click export audio... export a wav., burn a cd, wait for it to finish, shut your system down, turn off the monitors and your gear, satisfied you have a solid mix, go out to the car to do some errands, pop that cd in and listen to a 4 minute long mixdown of JUST YOUR SNARE TRACK!!? aaaaaaaaahhhhh. WTF??!! I hate that part of sonar with all that I am, because it has burned me so many times. Send a client home with an mp3 of just a ride cymbal track and they go to show their wife their new song as soon as they get in their front door... you get the dude WTF is this sh@t!?#*!! Phone call every time!

I have Studio One 3 that I got when I purchased a Presonus hardware item.  I don't use it but I recently did for a test.  I'm having problems with Sonar when mixing down mono tracks to a stereo tracks, there is a slight (0.75db - it was more but uninstalling Sonar and reinstalling it got it down to the 0.75db) difference in the two tracks.  For testing I exported the mono tracks from Sonar and imported them into Studio One 3.  I did a mixdown in Studio One 3 and the mixed down stereo tracks have identical levels.  Can't say anything else about Studio One 3 as I don't use it, but it does accurately mixdown, where my Sonar does not.

ChuckC
You make the mistake above then you click export audio... export a wav., burn a cd, wait for it to finish, shut your system down, turn off the monitors and your gear, satisfied you have a solid mix, go out to the car to do some errands, pop that cd in and listen to a 4 minute long mixdown of JUST YOUR SNARE TRACK!!? aaaaaaaaahhhhh. WTF??!!

Replace "CD" with "SoundCloud" and that is exactly what I did last night. And it went one step further. I even embedded that SoundCloud into a website before I discovered my file had only the narration and not the three sound clips that were the main point of that file. It was deceptive because the file begins with narration, so when I played the first bit of it, I assumed everything was there. At least I didn't email the client saying the job was done.
 
And the catch-22 of that selection thing has another aspect.  If you select the clips, that resets the ruler, which then clips off the reverb tail.  You can't just do a Ctrl-A to select all of the clips. But if you go set the ruler, you are prone to deselecting tracks if you don't do it just right. I suppose this all makes sense to some designer somewhere, but every time I go through this process, I feel like Cakewalk is trying to drive me insane.
 
With StudioOne, you simply say Export Mixdown and it is done.  In this case, you can set start and end markers for the song, which I did, and that assured the tails got included. Those markers never move on their own so unless you add length to your song, you set those once and never have to worry about the software biting you in the butt.

cparmerlee

AT
You can add time to the end of a song bounce for reverb and set the length.

I'm sure there are many work-arounds.  The point is that it shouldn't be necessary. I realize that many of the people here have decades of experience with SONAR and its various quirks. If a company wants to appeal to a larger market share, it is a good idea to work on making the experience as non-tedious as possible.  Cakewalk has made some efforts in that regard, but ultimately I think that is the ultimate difference between the two products compared here. StudioOne is less capable and less tedious.  It need not be a trade-off.
 
And I rarely bounce anything.  It seems to me bouncing is a tradition here, but it just isn't something I find much need to do. Why bounce when what you want to do is export the mixdown?  Isn't that what Export is for?

 
I take a simple approach to rendering tracks - seems to work in both Sonar and Studio One. I do a Control A and render. I would note that in Studio One I had to make sure my markers did not force a "stop" or "end" that might cut the song short.
 
I have both full blown programs. There is much to enjoy with either - however I do most of my work in Sonar. It's more intuitive for me and I get more done. However I will loudly second the echos of loving Studio One's mastering (project) screen! Since using that, my Soundforge 10 has not seen any action.

"Ctrl-A resets the SONAR ruler, which causes tails to be clipped.  If you are dealing with audio files, I guess you can stretch one of the clips to be long enough to accommodate the tail. But that doesn't work if you are using MIDI."
 
After you Ctrl-A, set "thru" to the point you want the render (or export) to end.
 
For quality control I always render before export. That way I can check and correct a mix. Once I am happy with the result I export the Clip. I can't imagine I would do it differently in any other DAW.
 

cparmerlee
On edit: I note the post above about Studio One fitting on a laptop screen. I use two 27" monitors, plus a third monitor to stash VST windows and other paraphernalia.  It does seem that the StudioOne screen is naturally more compact. For me that is not really an advantage, but I can see how that could make a difference on a laptop.

indeed it it does... and the scaling (zoom) is better too - check out how many tacks you can have visible in the track window at once!

No, It's not a waste of time for me. I do all final trimming, (lower case m) mastering FX and fades on that last clip. And I know that I am exporting exactly what I want, without having to take the time to restart the whole process because I once again clicked the wrong option in the export dialog.

I use Studio One 3 for album assembly, it's great for that...better than CD Architect IMHO. That said, I still have to do certain mastering operations in SONAR and shuttle files back and forth between the two programs, or use the Montage feature in Wavelab (which has its own issues).
 
SOP having DDP export is wonderful, especially since the latest maintenance release fixed the fatal DDP export error (hopefully it also fixes the CD writing problems that required me to switch projects over to Studio One 2 if I wanted to make test CDs for clients).
 
However, the reason I don't use SOP for multitrack projects is because SONAR has features that are essential for what I do, and Studio One doesn't have equivalent features. That doesn't make Studio One inferior. It makes SONAR a better match for the kind of work I need to do. I recognize that no program will ever do everything I want, so I use SONAR because it comes the closest by far.
 
On a different topic, this should have been posted in the Software forum because the thread has nothing to do with helping SONAR users make better music with the program. I don't think the intention of the OP was to be rude to his hosts, but this kind of thread can end up being a magnet for those who are, or who lack common courtesy.
 
(SONAR tip: If you don't select anything and Export with the default settings, everything will be exported without the need to Select All.)