PreSonus Studio One 6 | Link Audio | Enquire for pricing
It’s a tough market, DAWs. Everyone has their favourite, the one they have sunk thousands of hours into, honing their skills. And yet, PreSonus Studio One 6 provides a competitive and convincing argument, and it’s no wonder that the newest evolution of PreSonus’ Digital Audio Workstation is making waves in the DAW environment, offering a redesigned user interface and some hefty new features that will enhance the recording process for beginners through to industry professionals alike.
Read more gear reviews here.
PreSonus Studio One 6 has gained popularity amongst audio engineers and music producers for its versatility, and the intuitive and streamlined workflow that it offers. Coupled with a robust set of features, Studio One 6 is well deserving of the praise it is receiving.
One of the key strengths of Studio One 6 is the clean modern and customizable user interface. The DAW features a design based around using a single window, allowing for easier navigation and a more efficient workflow. This workflow is built upon using the drag-and-drop functionality making it very easy to add and manipulate audio files and MIDI data, as well as plugins.
PreSonus Studio One 6 comes equipped with advanced features out of the box such as integrated Melodyne functionality, as well as an impressive range of virtual instruments, processors, and effects as well as thorough support for third party plugins.
In terms of the set of built in effects and instruments shipping on board Studio One 6 the software does come with a wide range of virtual instruments including samplers, synths, drum machines as well as a very solid and comprehensive list of audio effects plugins including the expected EQ, Compression and Reverb. These effects can be utilised in Studio One 6s mixing and mastering tools, such as the advanced automation features and robust mixer.
One of my favourite features of Studio One 6 is its performance with low latency, I was even able to run it with relative ease on my ancient laptop, which despite sounding like a jet fighter on the verge of taking off, ran Studio One 6 in a far better performance than it runs the other industry standard DAWs. This makes it an ideal candidate for real time recording and live performance, where large or complex projects are needed, and the availability of a high powered machine is not there. Being able to record a vast number of tracks at once, or live processing is a capability that is gate kept behind excessively grunty machines, and by making an effort to break that barrier to entry with Studio One 6, PreSonus have created a tool well suited to the job even when run on older computers.
The MIDI editing capabilities are one of my favourite aspects of PreSonus’ Studio One 6 with advanced editing tools such as arpeggiator, step recording and note repeat. I found the MIDI programming stage of the recording process very efficient and intuitive.
Studio One 6 handles third party plugins and hardware well, and is compatible with interfaces and controllers from Universal audio, Waves, and SSL. This is an important aspect of the DAW, especially for producers and engineers who have established specific pieces of hardware they prefer to work with.
One of the standout features of Studio One 6 especially for the more consumer and prosumer markets is the affordability, with several versions available ranging from the free Prime Version to the top-of-the-line Professional Version, it increases the accessibility of the DAW by making it financially approachable for a wide range of users who may be at odds with the pricing of the entry level options of other DAWs
Overall, I would say that PreSonus has created an exciting and powerful DAW with Studio One 6, and while it does fall short of the mark from a video editing perspective with the lack of surround sound and advanced video engine, it does perform very well with low latency, and the workflow and usability of the program is spectacular, with minimal menu diving to find what you are looking for. PreSonus Studio One 6 is an excellent choice for those who are looking for an affordable entry into the world of DAWs and is well-suited to consumer and prosumer usage.
For more information, head to PreSonus. For local enquiries, visit Link Audio.
