Avid messaged me on Facebook to say they tried commenting but the comments get deleted. Just to let everyone know I have only ever deleted maybe 3 comments. For disgusting vulgar remarks. Otherwise I don’t delete comments. I have checked KZfaq’s spam/review filter and found nothing. If anyone finds comments from avid let me know. I’m not opposed to their comments whatsoever. I just want that out there.

Drink everytime she says "VERIFY". If you're still alive by the end hit subscribe!

This is one of the reasons why I use Reaper. Copy protection on this level is absolutely ridiculous.

Reaper is a gem of a software. So light and powerful, mindblowing, really.

I'm a 22 year old engineer/mixer who just graduated from school in may. The overwhelming majority of my peers were not Pro Tools users. Most are opting to use Logic and Ableton. If avid losses the youth (and it looks like they are), their days as the "industry standard" are numbered.

The level of restraint you showed on this phone call is LEGENDARY!

This shit is so so real.... Been there done that! This is the reason many PT users go completely offline and almost NEVER update (unless tested on another computer). I've seen studios still on PT-9 because of shit like this. I feel you brotha SMH

I’d been a Digidesign ProTools user since the 90’s and worked it all the way till the early 2000’s and just got sick and tired of having to pay and pay and pay everytime there was a major upgrade and it was just downhill after Avid acquired it. Now, we’re talking about having the ProTools in a world class recording studio that worked with major labels and artistes. Dropped it and moved to Logic for a bit up until Studio ONE Pro came into my life 6 years ago. I’ve never looked back since. The workflow and ease of use and even the the team behind it is a joy to work with. It’s essentially a fam. Just get out of this energy and money sucking model and settle on Studio One. Hands down the smartest move. For any studio that wants to run a business without any hiccups. Now, I’ve had my rig in the studio, out for a live gig and also worked in the same eco system from production right up till final masters. Works seamlessly with Dante interfaces and I’ve yet to deal with latency. Good luck with your decision. Reach out if you have any questions. Been doing this for 35 years.

One word… CUBASE

Switched to Reaper a few months ago, after using Pro Tools for about 20 years, owning several pieces of Digidesign/Avid hardware. Switching to Reaper is still an ongoing process for me, there's so much to learn and customise in Reaper but I can tell you that in my experience it's all worth it. I can now do what I did in Pro Tools, just as well or better and faster.

I love how you price-shopped Studio One while you were on hold. Made me laugh so hard.

I remember when Avid announced their new subscription bullshit, renaming all of their products, all those people who bought into the perpetual license were so smug that they were somehow grandfathered in and wouldn't have to pay. I knew then that Avid would pull this crap, and here it is.

I have been a loyal Protools user since purchasing a Digi001 in 2001. I'm absolutely disgusted at the corporate greed that Avid is practising where I'm now charged a rip off AUD $450 a year to be allowed to continue using the DAW that I purchased 21 years ago! I'm supposed to get Avid Customer Service as part of this rip off subscription service that has nothing to do with service and yet I got told that I can't get phone support from Avid! This is ludicrous! I look forward to getting to know Reaper for audio editing and continue using Logic for all my midi duties. Bye bye Protools... As a matter of fact GOOD RIDDANCE AVID!!!!

It’s interesting to see the frustrations that many of us non-HD/non-Ultimate PT users have been expressing for years about Avid’s business model start to be voiced by the long term Ultimate/HD users in the music field who, up until recently, seem to have been less bothered by them. I suspect this might be, in part, because Avid is making it increasingly clear that, in their calculations, large post houses are going to be the market that is most likely to sustain them as an ongoing concern and are pricing and catering accordingly. I too remain a PT user and love the software in spite of not being a fan of Avid’s approach to the subscription/perpetual license model. Perhaps my having been disillusioned much earlier with their approach (I started using other DAWs back in the days when they were charging LE users a 500 dollar additional fee to have access to multi-track Beat Detective) means I am less upset by Avid’s recent moves because, to many long term PT ‘Studio’ users like myself, it is really nothing new. As someone who regularly uses PT, Reaper, Logic Pro & Cubase Pro (and has dabbled in Studio One - which I find underwhelming, TBH) I would highly recommend digging into Reaper. It’s really amazing (basically my daily driver along with PT) in terms of capability, flexibility and stability. Some DAW’s workflows are better for midi oriented producers, some better for those working bands and doing a lot of live tracking, and some are particularly great to mix in, but Reaper really covers all the bases. There are a couple areas where I still prefer PT’s methodologies (playlists vs take systems, track based edit groups vs ‘item’ based edit groups) but Reaper’s concepts in those areas still work fine and, thankfully, it appears that they are hard at work on their own version of playlists (as an alternative to their existing ‘take’ system) and track based edit groups (as an alternative to their current ‘item’ based edit grouping model). Outside of that, I’d say the only other thing I’d love to see them improve is the transient detection algorithm which is just ok (I’ve actually been very impressed by the transient detection Logic Pro and Cubase Pro as of late). Another benefit with Reaper that can’t be overstated is that really can set up the key commands and even a lot of the menus to be very close whatever the DAW is that you are most familiar with. For me, having pretty much all the key commands from PT set up in Reaper has the added benefit of making it totally seamless moving between the two. There is absolutely no slow down for me when I open a PT session coming out of a Reaper session or vice versa. I love a lot about Logic Pro, but I can’t tell you the number of times a day I curse myself for accidentally going into Record because of my hard wired tendency to hit ‘R’ as a zoom function. With some DAWs the lack of equivalent functions and the number of already occupied key commands makes it a close to impossible task to set up the key commands to match those of the DAW you are most familiar with but with Reaper I find it a much less daunting and much more possible endeavor. Anyhow, best of luck whatever you do. I still hold out a little hope that, with more Ultimate users like yourself being vocal about Avid’s direction that maybe they’ll reevaluate they’re current approach to a lot of things.

Well done for staying so calm and clear. If it were me I’d ask to speak to a supervisor or escalate to the next support tier. It was pretty clear that you were getting no where fast! There’s a whole free world outside Avid… Reaper is a great shout and there are so many great converters.

IMO Cubase is the best option. It's great at everything. Studio One, especially since version 5, is also amazing.

Reaper my man. Edit - Anything else but avid is good at this point. I was in the same situation : I really loved Pro Tools and was super efficient in it, but unfortunatly the business model & support were getting in the way. The switch is hard work at fist, but 2 weeks was all it took for me to get pretty confortable. Moreover, PT is SO FAR behind the curve for SO MANY features that other DAWs had for years. It's a running joke at this point. Hopefully, you may do a serie on exploring your options for long term gains in your career. Recuring pebbles in shoes are mighty foes.

I have switch to Reaper for my daily daw after using pro tools since version 7.4, when it looked like windows 95. Reaper has it's learning curve, but I've customized the shortcuts to do the same and more than what I'm used to from protools. For example R is zoom out, and shift R is render, and you can add ctrl and alt, plus ctrl+shift, etc. Reaper has the best multicore performance, at least in windows, and have a lot of great features like an spectral editor like Rx.

Happened to me a while back. Just finished the switch to Reaper for the price, functionality and the insanely helpful community around it. Wasn't even a hard switch thanks to custom themes and portable installs for when I go to other studios!

I had similar problems with Adobe when they forced users to switch to a subscription model. So had to migrate to their competitors who let you still buy the software. For music, I use Cubase, I buy the version I need and use it as I want, when I want, no hassle. I'm also not getting into UAD Spark just for that. One of the main issues with subscription: when you opt out, you can't even open your old projects anymore. You're totally scr*wed. I woud stay out of ANY subscription model. Period.

I run studio one pro and picked up a studio live 24R rack for an interface. Nice set up. Zero latency

I stopped paying for the renewal since I found out that I had to pay annually for updates. After watching your video I realize that from now on they rent you something that used to be worth between 25,000 or 35,000 dollars with their hardware. I'm going to keep using Pro tools because that's what I know how to use, just like you described. But I'm not going to give more money to a company that believes that upgrading their system is putting 5 channels in a folder...

hey bro, I TOTALLY feel your pain. Not sure what's up with creator companies starting with the letter "A", but the recent shenanigans of Apple, Avid and Adobe made us switch our entire facility over to Windows running Reaper and Davinci Resolve....and it's been absolutely amazing! And that's from a die hard Mac user running Pro Tools for 20+years! I started way back on 5.3.2 LE with a Digi 002 and have been loyal through all the hardware and software iterations....spent over 61k on cards, 192's, PRE's Midi I/O and peripherals not to mention the insane cost of computers throughout the years...finally bailed and am NEVER looking back...the first time I instantiated 4000 tracks in a Reaper session in less than a single second with my cpu sitting at less than 3 percent, I was sold lol...

As a studio one user since 2012 artist, and now professional 5, I can fully recommend studio one.

Nothing wrong about your reaction. You are 100% correct. Avid can, and should do better.

Hey Jeremy, I’m an intermediate Logic Pro user but was also taught pro tools in a course and found that Logic was quicker and faster than pro tools from personal preference. It could be different for someone of your skill level but I find Logic to be a really great solution to your problem here as it’s a one fee payment then it’s all yours. I’ve also heard great things about reaper and seen some pros talk great things of Luna. I’ve personally not understood the stigma of pro tools being ‘industry standard’ anymore with the amount of great DAW’s around now, nevertheless I’m really interested to see which avenue you take in this situation! :)

I find that a big issue with a lot of companies is that they outsource a lot of their support calls to overseas companies. It is sooooo difficult to communicate and understand what they are saying at times and vice versa, making troubleshooting issues that much more difficult. Thank you for posting this and just like I’ve seen others in the comment say Reaper might be the way to go!

Go with Studio One 5. Made the switch a few years ago bcuz of this subscription nonsense. Way happier with S1-5. Although I wish I didn't have to make the switch. Also you can use Pro Tools key commands in Studio One so the transition will be really smooth and easy

Having been in a customer service role before, you are the ideal example of a disgruntled customer. With frustrations but clear, understanding and genuinely just trying to get to the bottom of it. Kudos for that. Pro tools are definitely painting themselves into a corner. With younger music folk the DAW wars are logic, FL and ableton now. Pro tools are becoming a bit more outdated in a lot of younger eyes so it feels like they're punishing their current user base who, like you say, are a bit stuck in the ecosystem due to having the hardware and feeling confident in their work flow. That or they're abusing their position as "industry standard" to bump prices. I know that I couldn't justify those kind of cost increases so soon I'm sure a lot of smaller studios are going to have their hands forced. I always feel fortunate having settled into Reaper as they seem great developers who fix problems super quick and are famously super low in cost...but now I do struggle to jump to other DAWs, got a mixing session later on a Logic project and I'm worried I'll look unprofessional 😂

Been a commercial studio since the early 90s. Tape based. Started using protools when the new Session8 hardware came out in the mid 90s. Then thru TDMs, Digi 002, mbox for various rooms. Then went to Apogee hardware but gave up on Avid 4 years ago. While I’m very comfortable with using PT, their company philosophy is shit now. Switched to Logic, Harrison, Final Cut (video). Interesting times in the DAW world

This is why I don’t do subscription models. I chose Reaper for that reason. Buy it once and it just works. If I don’t want to do updates I’m not required to just to make it work. With that said I am not a professional studio, my studio is just for the enjoyment of my musician friends.

After being a ProTools user since the DIGI001 and buying every version up to PT12, I switched to Logic 5 years ago when I changed from PC to Mac. It was a simple cost based decision. Pay hundreds a year for PT, or a once only $360 for Logic. Took me about a month of use to get up to speed, and then my workflow was just as fast as with PT. I’m speaking from a basic home studio perspective of course. YMMV as a professional studio.

I jumped ship on Avid and went to Logic Pro X and have been super happy. I do also have a copy of Presonus Studio One and like it too. I just feel Logic Pro just fits my setup better.

+1 for Presonus Studio One. Been using it since Vers. 2.5 and the entire ride has been a blast.

Used ProTools since it was just a sequencer in the ‘80’s. Have had studios for 20+ years, present studio is about 4,000 sq foot with over $3 mil in gear and improvements. We only use ProTools for the rare project that the client necessitates it- only once since CoVID about 3 years ago. We use Pyramix (for DSD) and Reaper for everything else. Productivity and capability gains are far beyond PT, and the stability and scalability are so far beyond ProTools as well.

I have been using Studio One for years now. Started using Sphere over a year ago. I have no issues thus far. Well worth it for my needs.

You can always change the shortcuts in Studio One to match what you know; though it is probably better to learn the software in its default config.

Hey man I understand your problem with Avid, I had the same problem with them. They did the same thing to me, and my solution was F Avid and I went to Presonus studio one professional and feel so much better. You should try it, good luck.

Switched to Studio One a couple of years ago and haven't looked back. Love it. You won't be disappointed.

I love how polite you remain. I would have been going full Karen by 30 mins in

I got dinked out of a full year of updates with my student license. You are supposed to get 4 years, but they changed to a subscription model about 8 years ago and wouldn't grandfather me into a year of it. Switched to Studio One. Haven't looked back.,

I feel for you. Dante/Focusrite Red/StudioOne on an Apple M1 makes for a wonderful setup.

I’m sorry this happened to you, I’ve been a PT user since 2002. Left the HD world 2 years ago. I switched to Luna and Apollos for low latency tracking. Love mixing in Luna. Drum editing in Luna is solid too.

I would recommend Reaper over Studio One. Way more stable system, frequent updates, better code.

Dear friend I have never met. I was in the same shoes as you a couple og years ago. I bought Pro Tools 9.0 retail, and was able to use it until 12 came out. I bought that. And later they killed that too. I HAD to buy yearly or monthly. No thank you AVID. Hate to say this. But, It took me a long time. But finally I divorced the AVID family. Today, I am all Studio One. Bought the PRO, and I love the way this system works, No subscription, no bul**** One time buy, and you are all set. Thank you! Best regards

Yes I questioned Avid back when yearly upgrade and support cost too much, and crashing was not solved by upgrading ver 10-11...I tried other demo DAWS.. Studio one 5 and reaper are good choices=no dongle...and that solved my problems!

I love Pro Tools, but the fact they are charging now 1k a year for Flex is mind blowing.

I’m a very happy LUNA user. Highly recommend you checking it out. A lot of the shortcuts you already know are baked into LUNA as well.

I’ve been a PT user for almost 20 years so I feel ya. I began dabbling in other DAWs several years back when Avid started making these changes. I still use PT about 60% of the time but the other 40 is in Studio One. IMO The switch from PT to S1 is really an easy transition. Easier than if you were looking to jump to Logic, for example. I think you’re onto something with the switch to Dante with S1. Pull the trigger, man! You won’t regret it!

I sold my Avid MTRX, sold my Avid Carbon. When I heard that I will never own a software that I spent so much money for. I'm glad that I never gave up on studio one and always has been updating it. Studio one is the best. I can run Studio one on 16 Sampl rate and hit the "Z", ZERO LATENCY... I'm using Antelope.

Sorry for your troubles, I currently use Studio 1pro but I'm considering going back to Reaper. I'm still in the learning process with S1and I do enjoy the relative easy learning curve BBBuuuuTTTT. Every DAW company has it's good & bad points. As a business owner, it should not be a hard choice. Do what's best for your family and then your business. You probably already knew that🤑 Cheers ! P.S. Really enjoy your channel !

I got so fed up with protools I ended up switching over to cubase. The main thing that kept me in protools was the editing, but the editing in the new cubase is super solid. Editing drums is soooooo much easier.

In my opinion, the best options for DAWs on Mac OS are Apple Logic Pro, BitWig Studio, Cockos Reaper, Tracktion Waveform, PreSonus Studio One, and Harrison Consoles Mixbus, in no particular order, and solely based off of either my experience with the software or the praises of others.

I agree. Been using pt since le8. I wish more creators like yourself would make videos like this. I'm a big fan of Dave pensado, and I'm convinced if he said something like this it would change pretty quick, maybe I'm crazy lol

I got the same impression of trying to be tricked/lied to/lying through omission & am looking elsewhere at what the options are as well. When you said one thing you really like is the low latency. I suggest taking a look at RME + their TotalMix FX. No latency and rock solid. Update: to answer your question of “who is this for?” The shareholder/investor class that only cares about one thing: maximizing their profit at any/all cost. Literally zero care given for the audio community, much in the same way they’ll demolish actual literal communities if they think they can hoard even a few extra dollars by building a luxury high-rise that sits half empty. It’s all an Excel spreadsheet to them with consideration for the long-term reaching only as far as the next fiscal quarter.

I had almost the same EXACT experience/phone call and spoke to all my engineer friends about everything you’re talking about… this was a great thing to document! Thank you

Im so glad i dont have to deal with Avid. I started my production journey with an Mbox and i always had all kinds of problems even way back then. I have since switched to using Ableton and Luna. They cover all my needs and my apollos deal with latency beautifully. Universal Audio and Ableton have great customer service as well. A few years ago i tried protools again to see if i might switch back. But it was such a pain in the ass just to get it installed and working right and im on Mac. That was the deal breaker.

I've finally cut the cord with Avid and switched to Bitwig. The only thing I miss is editing/warping audio the way I was accustomed to. Otherwise, Bitwig is so much more FUN to use.

"… even LOGIC…" LOL - thanks for sharing this. I do love holding these big companies accountable.

Ditched pro tools on version 8, 9hd wasn't happening for me, made a bit of a journey and have for the last 11 years have been a reaper user primarily. Last few years I haven't really missed anything avid has to offer cuz cockos either baked the features into reaper already or there's a script that does the thing.

Dude, you are absolutely right. Someone commented on one of my vids that Avid just switched them from perpetual to subscription without notifying them. Most of the pro Avid discussions that I have read in this similar situation have stated that the new Flex option is geared towards large post-production houses and that Studio has everything a music production studio would need. In theory, the pricing for Studio subscriptions is now around $300 I think. Right between the previous cost for renewing standard ($200) and ultimate ($400). So smaller studios pay a little more and get more features, and bigger studios step down and pay a little less but have MOST of the tools they did with ultimate. BUT in order to use HD hardware you still have to have ultimate so I guess studios either pony up a grand a year or get new hardware that works with multiple platforms. AND if that subscription ever lapses you can no longer count on that software at least continuing to run off of a perpetual license to keep your business flowing until you can pay for an update plan. So predatory, and Idk if you watched the rollout webinar, but they have stated that Flex customers get a higher tier of support because big studios like Skywalker Sound and broadcast houses can't afford downtime. Everyone else receives lower quality support by design! They have started to backpedal a little bit, but only time will tell what really happens. Meanwhile, I'm evaluating other DAWs starting with Reaper then moving on to Studio 1. There is only one way to get a company that has grown too big for their britches to act responsibly to the consumer- make them report losses to their shareholders. Because that's where their loyalties lie- to the majority shareholders not the customer.

yep... you are not alone, my friend. (sigh) I have not upgraded since 12.5 because I feel that THAT was about as good as it would get... I knew that their MIDI sucked and would never improve. I now use Reaper for MIDI :)

This is insane. As an upcoming engineer using this software this video has me wanting to find another DAW to use instead

I feel your pain. I have used MOTU Digital Performer for years and like it quite a lot. Version 11 is really good. Last October I purchased a used perpetual license for what became “Pro Tools Studio” and have been dabbling with it, but all this craziness makes me want to just give it up and stay with DP which is also native for Apple Silicon now. I also feel sorry for the support person because she’s an offshore support person who probably didn’t even know what Studio One was when you mentioned it to her. Companies like Avid need to bring phone support back home from overseas with better trained personnel.

I use Harrison Mixbus 32c simply because it is the only DAW that has "The Sound". As I understand it, many ProTools users mix with Mixbus simply because it's better in their opinion. I also hear that Reaper is a great piece of software. ProTools users stick around simply because they seem scared to try some of the better alternatives. The market has changed in the last 20 years. Break the habit and move on to a better, less expensive option.

In my opinion, sticking to Pro Tools is holding you back. As a 10-year Pro Tools user, the subscription bullsh*t made me switch to Reaper. My workflow got sooo much better and you can customize it almost however you like to make that transition easier.

That's rough! I've been having tons of issues with Pro tools on my M1 lately and thinking about making the switch to Cubase.

Happy to primarily use Studio One. Also had ARA , latency compensation through ping , and many other features before Pro Tools. I still have pro tools 2021. Meh.

I have been following your channel for a while and I truly appreciate the knowledge you carry and pass on to other like myself. So as you ha e dumped wisdom into me and my business and studio allow me to pass on some wisdom. I like many other jumped ship of pro tools and personally I have washed my hands of them. Since leaving that software behind I have moved into reaper and studio 1. Honestly for the level and quality of the product you can go wrong with either. They both have a small learning g curve as does anything in the studio world. Just wanted to help you out and im sorry your dealing with the mess your dealing with. If I had to pick between the 2. I would go with reaper, it's super solid is simple.

S1 has a 30 day try before you buy.. download it on another computer and try it out...it even has keyboard shortcut presets...just switch to PT shortcuts...S1 is a far superior daw . Most ppl stick with PT only because they've I vested alot of cash into it.. kinda like staying in a bad relationship 🤣🤣🤣🤣....get a divorce and remarry 🤗🤗🤗...just my thoughts man.....love your channel by the way

I like LUNA but hate the fact that you are forced to use UAD interfaces which has subpar conversion. I'm currently learning Reaper and will be off of Avid by the end of the month.

I started my music journey at 4 years old in 94, at 15 I knew that if I wanted to be a "pro" musician I needed to learn and have pro tools, took me 3 years to save enough money to buy my first 1 channel interface, I'm in México so here everything is twice expensive, I end up buying an maudio with pro tools LE, it was a dream come true to me, limited as hell but a dream... Then at 21 I bought an used mbox pro mini, a tiny little 2 channel blue box and an iMac, I was getting ready for buying my first full license of PT, at 23 after school and by doing low pay jobs and gambling money playing fifa games on Xbox I was able to buy my first PT11 license, I used the crap out of that thing, finished music school, learned PT inside out, build my own business, had a girlfriend, I was living the DREAM... sadly shit hit the fan... And oh my lord it did... in late 2019 I broke up with my GF, early 2020 at 30 years old, the pandemic started, lost almost all of my business and my Mac died, it was just to old, so I had money saved so I told my self "go big or go home" soy put together a monster of pc, new gear, and of course new license of PT, 2020 went by, 2021 was the eye opener, it didn't get much better, and PT by subscription was really eating a big chunk of my already low income, but I push through it and things got better but PT got more expensive, by the end of 2021 o decided that after 12 years I was leaving PT... I love PT but it just didn't worth it, without being able to buy a perpetual license and support, constantly crashing, that day I was really sad... So I made the switch to reaper, I love it and hate it, it does almost everything PT does, somethings even better, and even better new features! And I hate it coz is ugly af and it hangs with crazy large sessions with crazy routings, like folders inside folders inside folders haha and is not PT I miss it often, I miss the stock plugins like lo fi, vari fi, the stock compressor etc... But then I realized that reaper and PT are great for recording, editing, mixing, master, sound design, dubbing, automation (is better on PT but reaper has its own amazing features) but nether of them are crazy good to handle midi instruments, 0 MIDI FX, film scoring is hard, producing hybrid music audio and a bunch of midi is not imposible but cubase and ableton are miles ahead of reaper and PT, on both the score editors SUUUUUCK! So I think that the only neutral DAW is logic, I like logic but can't aford and don't want a Mac, so I figured out I would write produce on ableton or cubase and then mix on reaper or pro tools, I though to buy a perpetual license with out the support, but after this video and other stories I won't be buying PT again, probably never... Thanks for reading this hahaha Edit: probably PT is the worst breakup and the worst toxic relationship I ever had

Same situation here, and same conclusion. I’ve been forcing myself to work some projects in logic and some in Luna to prepare to jump ship without drowning in work and learning while working. This is just another nail in the coffin. Would I like to continue working in PT? Of course I’m a ninja in PT but Avid has me going totally punk on them and their business model.

Just ridiculous how AVID helps their customers. Once had an M-Audio interface that always worked and AVID took over before Windows10 came and the interface didn't really work in windows anymore because it was no longer supported by AVID 😮‍💨

Dude, that sucks, but I appreciate you making a vid on it. Definitely worth making folks aware of this.

I had a similar problem and moved to Studio 1 and transitioned effortlessly it was very simple and I will never look back.

Hey man I said it before here. I gave up after being a 20 year Pro Tools user and moved to Reaper two years ago. I know you are still tied to PT god's because pro studios are still using it and it's still something people look for when selecting a studio but OMG I will never look back after switching.

I switched to Reaper as my primary daily DAW. I still have many old projects in Pro Tools so I couldn’t completely cut the cord so I’m on the cheapest Pro Tools subscription plan.

Thank you for this video. I too purchased PT Ultimate perpetual decades ago and have recently been paying the $400-ish annually for the support plan. I just checked my account and saw it was about to expire!!! If not for your video I would have had to shell out a boat load more money to get it back. Did I mention Thank you Thank you Thank you!!!

I switched from Pro Tools to Studio one back in 2018. They were bad back then and now with the forced subscription its even worse. I'm a dealer for avid and I somehow still manage to have to do tech support for people even though i don't use the software anymore. I have a direct line for someone there and they still can't even help me. I miss certain things about pro tools... However I feel like studio one has been easier to use, it doesn't crash. I feel like i'm more creative in it and its customizable. I have luna as well but I rarely ever use it.

Sell your protools gear while there are still people who think it's worth it.

been a protools user over 10yrs, Left after protools 10 was done once they went subscription, best decision i've made thus far, this type of service is unacceptable especially if your paying a subscription.

Bro, I’m in 100% agreement with you. And I use PT because I know it. I have literally done the same thing if googling other DAWs while on on hold with them lmao. Avid had done everything they can to mess with their loyal customers and have THE worst customer service of any company I’ve dealt with, not just audio related. And the fact that you need a subscription or pay a fee just to talk to someone about a general question or tech support, is insane to me. But they have us bent over a barrel because they know it’s “standard” software in the industry, but I don’t think they realize that other DAWs are quickly becoming more popular with the pros. They need to get it together!

This is exactly why I quit ProTools and went to Reaper last year. As a small hobbyist, I didn’t even get support with my copy of ProTools. When I had an issue with ProTools which was often and by often I mean almost daily, I would have to spend hours on the Internet scrolling through forums trying to find a solution to the latest stupid issue. Numerous problems they would never fix. You’d just have to wait six months or a year until the next update came out and hope that they fixed whatever bug you were having. Reaper is updated constantly. I bought my copy a year ago and I think they’ve already had four or five updates.

I’ve been migrating to Studio One, also have an audition of Reaper going, so happy I didn’t invest in the Carbon or HDX hardware last year… I’m nearly 100% convinced that Presonus is the new king…

Go with studio one man! It’s hands down the best

I came from PT (non HD, did the low latency thing with an Apollo) and then tried Studio One. It has a lot of features and made PT look "old" in so many ways, but I couldn't stand the workflow and the cluttered interface. Now I'm on LUNA. It feels way more like Pro Tools. But it has some drawbacks. There is still some features missing (some of them crucial, like "Import Session Data") and the routing options are quite limited for a HD guy. The latency free monitoring can be 4 stereo (or 8 mono) and nothing more. But I accept these drawbacks, hope for some new features and I'm happy not to pay AVID anymore. Also loved the product, but not the company. I always had the feeling I'm getting ripped off.

My first DAW was a pirated copy of Pro Tools M-Powered, admittedly, which I used with my M-Audio sound card. I later bought a copy of Sony Acid, and then when I was displeased with that I switched to Ardour, the Open Source, cross platform DAW. I eventually ended up on Reaper, and then (kinda sorta) ended up back on Ardour, because of Harrison Mixbus being a mixed source variant of the same codebase, but only for mixing stems. I do bottom up mixing of individual busses in Reaper, then export stems of said busses and do top down mixing in Mixbus. I have been working that way since 2012 and have not looked back or had any major issues. I dabble in other DAW's here and there for shits and giggles, but always go back to what works.

Reaper is coming for Avid’s soul. Can you believe I can do post production work on a 2014 i5 4Gb laptop in Reaper? Not kidding. System meters barely move.

Two words for you: "Cubase rules!!!" You can thank me later :)

Pro Tools WAS my main DAW for years, and I switched to Studio One months ago. Even though I knew Pro Tools, I decided to jump ship and learn another DAW. Pro Tools pricing plan is out of control. Good luck!

Because I watched your video I looked for others. I am blown away about how many short videos Avid has put out over the last 30 days. Almost like they were trying to push any other videos with "ProTools" in the title away.

Sorry you had to go through that! There are other good options for DAWS so you’ll be sorted if you move. I use Logic Pro but have heard nothing but great things about Reaper. Would love to see if AVID respond to you and please make a video if you do!

Now I'm at the end of the video, so pissed off, because I remember them pulling this same shit with me and literally trying to trick me into paying double, even though I had a perpetual license as well!

I only keep a ProTools licence because alot of my Pro clients use it, and I need it to check for compatibility etc. But for my own work, like many I switched to reaper. It’s the way forward.

I'm loving my logic workflow, but Pro Tools will always be my favorite audio editor. It's fast and I went through what you're going through and every February I get charged now after moving to the subscription system. They're just doing a bad job of explaining it. I recommend that you just call sweet water and they will help you better since I believe the perpetual license crossgrade is it's own product.

Honestly wouldn't suprize me if at some point Avid faces a class action lawsuit. Just over the perpetual license...

I've been planning on switching to Cubase from PT for the past few months. And every day my decision is being affirmed by videos like this. Sucks that you had to deal with this, but thank you so much for sharing your experience

I admire your ability to speak calmly in this situation. Will you teach me this art?

Switched our studios over Cubase, WaveLab Pro and Dante last year. Done with PT