Also, compact all-in-one hardware workstations like Yamaha’s AW4416, Fostex’s D-2424 or Akai’s DPS24 have been excluded, because they don’t provide an option for displaying all record, edit, mix, effects and mastering functions on an SVGA monitor. And Digidesign’s Pro Tools, Soundscape’s R.Ed 24 and Sonic Solutions’ SonicStudio aren’t listed here, because they are not offered in a turnkey bundle with a Mac or PC.

But this guide focuses on stand-alone systems - digital audio workstations that require little more than a monitor, keyboard and an AC strip (or five) to power-up.īecause we are focusing on turnkey systems, this list does not include software-only solutions. Industry standards and manufacturing alliances are expanding, and no workstation is truly an audio island unto itself - or is it? The music, post and mastering production systems highlighted here bristle with the AES/EBU, VITC, SMPTE and 9-pin ports that pave an open lane between platforms. Despite an alarming number of proprietary file formats, hardware configs and CPU implementations, today’s recording devices are moving toward an ever-global interconnectivity.

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