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Pro Tools is a highly regarded Digital Audio Workstation, widely used in the film and television industry for audio production, mixing, …
Starting at $29.99 Per User / Per Month
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What is Pro Tools?
Avid offers Pro Tools, the company's flagship music and audio editing and recording suite.
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Pricing
Pro Tools
$29.99
On Premise
Per User / Per Month
Pro Tools - Ultimate
$79.99
On Premise
Per User / Per Month
Pro Tools - First
Free
On Premise
Entry-level set up fee?
- No setup fee
Offerings
- Free Trial
- Free/Freemium Version
- Premium Consulting/Integration Services
Product Details
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- Tech Details
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What is Pro Tools?
Pro Tools Technical Details
| Deployment Types | On-premise |
|---|---|
| Operating Systems | Windows, Mac |
| Mobile Application | No |
Frequently Asked Questions
Avid offers Pro Tools, the company's flagship music and audio editing and recording suite.
Reviewers rate Support Rating highest, with a score of 9.1.
The most common users of Pro Tools are from Small Businesses (1-50 employees).
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TrustRadius Insights are summaries of user sentiment data from TrustRadius reviews and, when necessary, 3rd-party data sources. Have feedback on this content? Let us know!
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Pro Tools is a highly regarded Digital Audio Workstation, widely used in the film and television industry for audio production, mixing, recording, and mastering. The ability to transfer files seamlessly within the Pro Tools system is crucial for maintaining workflow efficiency. Users appreciate that Pro Tools allows them to create their own music, which is particularly important when copyrighted material cannot be used. It is the preferred choice at The Production Studios of Sandbox Music Group for daily audio recording, mixing, and mastering. Additionally, it is widely employed for producing programming at WDNF-Philly.com, an internet radio station focused on independent artists. Pro Tools is also highly regarded for archiving vinyl LPs, working with analog consoles, and producing post-punk bands. While not specifically tailored for beat production, it is considered the industry standard for audio production due to its versatility and functionality. Proficiency with Pro Tools is highly valued as it allows users to easily transition to working with analog consoles. The stability of the software is crucial and any perceived instability can often be attributed to inadequate hardware or operating system compatibility issues. In addition to its extensive use in professional music studios for recording and arranging music, Pro Tools is also commonly utilized in various fields such as podcast production, marketing, instructional videos, and arts organizations. It excels in editing and recording multiple audio tracks as well as cleaning up different voices or sounds for a higher quality end product. Pro Tools streamlines the audio production workflow effectively, making it an indispensable tool in these industries.
Wide range of options: Many users have praised Avid Pro Tools for its wide range of options for recording, mixing, and transferring audio. This versatility makes it a highly flexible program that can meet the diverse needs of different users.
Highly customizable nature: The highly customizable nature of Avid Pro Tools has been commended by reviewers. Users appreciate being able to customize the performance, function, and appearance of the application to suit their specific needs and preferences.
Compatibility with various audio formats: Avid Pro Tools has received positive feedback for its compatibility with various audio formats. This feature makes it easy for users to integrate audio of different formats and sample rates into their projects. Additionally, exporting audio files is also effortless with this software.
Tedious Setup Process: Several users have found the setup process for MIDI production in Pro Tools to be tedious and time-consuming. They feel that it acts as a barrier to entry, making it difficult for new users to get started with the software.
Clunky Virtual Instrument Interfaces: Many reviewers have expressed frustration with the virtual instrument interfaces in Pro Tools, describing them as clunky and non-intuitive. Users find it challenging to navigate and work with these interfaces effectively.
Lack of Features for Loop-based Music Production: Some users have pointed out that Pro Tools lacks features specifically aimed at loop-based music production, such as those commonly used in electronic music and hip-hop genres. This limitation restricts their ability to create music in these styles efficiently.
Reviewers of Pro Tools have provided several recommendations based on their experiences with the software. The three most common recommendations are as follows:
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Try before you buy: Users suggest evaluating the free version of Pro Tools, known as Pro Tools First, before making a purchase. They recommend visiting the AVID website to access this version and also advise trying out other digital audio workstations (DAWs) to compare features and functionality. This allows potential buyers to assess whether Pro Tools meets their specific needs and preferences.
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Invest in learning resources: While acknowledging that Pro Tools can be challenging to learn, reviewers emphasize that it is worth the effort. They recommend having a guide or book to help navigate through the software's extensive features and options. Additionally, users highlight the importance of gaining hands-on experience with Pro Tools to become proficient in its usage.
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Consider cost and long-term investment: Reviewers acknowledge that Pro Tools is widely recognized as an industry standard for audio production. However, they advise potential buyers to consider the cost of purchasing and maintaining Pro Tools, particularly due to its annual subscription and new pricing structure. Nevertheless, users believe that Pro Tools offers exceptional functionality and editing capabilities, resulting in high-quality recordings. They believe that the investment is worthwhile, especially for individuals looking to learn proper mixing and recording techniques.
In summary, reviewers recommend trying out Pro Tools First before committing to a purchase, investing in learning resources, and carefully considering the cost and long-term value of Pro Tools. These recommendations emphasize the software's industry recognition, challenging learning curve, and its suitability for various audio production tasks.
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Reviews
(1-3 of 3)Companies can't remove reviews or game the system. Here's why
April 26, 2022
AVID Pro Tools: Casting A Long Shadow Many Stand In
Avid Pro Tools is the only DAW I use. I use it daily for audio recording, mixing, and mastering at The Production Studios of Sandbox Music Group. I also use it to produce programming for WDNF-Philly.com, an internet radio station focused on local, regional, national, and global indie artists in that order. Whether archiving vinyl LPs for posterity or broadcast on VINYLLY!!!, or producing a post-punk band, Avid Pro Tools is the only choice. While it may not be as suited for beat production as say, Reaper, Avid Pro Tools is the industry standard for audio production, and rightly so. Proficiency with Pro Tools almost assures you can step up to any analog console and in short order know where to begin. Stability is crucial. Much of the criticism of Pro Tools encountered online centers on perceived instability, but in most cases, any instability originates in inadequate system hardware, or OS-triggered issues when users upgrade their OS before AVID certified compatibility.
- Highly-customizable, application and UI (performance, function and appearance).
- Wide audio format compatibility; Ease of integrating audio of different formats, sample rates; equal ease of exporting.
- Broadest hardware compatibility. The ability to tweak performance parameters extends hardware's useful life.
- Virtual instrument interfaces are clunky and non-intuitive.
- Rename/Move session functions should programmatically update subfolder labels.
- Better, more targeted in-app access/help to the myriad of shortcuts, and scripts already present in PT.
- Stability
- Continually updated and currant compatibility
- UI and Performance customization
- POSITIVE: Even with the 2022 Price Increase ($299/yr) - One billable hour more than covers my software expense. I could drop Slate and Waves and still have all the tools I need to continue producing.
- POSITIVE: "PRO TOOLS POWERED" carries more industry weight than "Reaper Powered" or "We Use Logic."
- NEGATIVE: I am continually tempted to upgrade my hardware to take full advantage of Pro Tools including Atmos, etc.
Originally a PC user, my first music program was "Personal Composer" in 1988. I moved to Cakewalk in the late 90s, which became Sonar. Sonar was a very good DAW and I was happy with its performance and functionality. It was, essentially, as close to Pro Tools for PC as you could get. However I had long planned to make the move to Apple, and the standard for Apple and audio production is Avid Pro Tools.
We use Pro Tools for audio recording and music production, specifically for music beds, interstitials, introduction music and music cues, or incidental music. The music might be for product demos and presentations, or instructional videos. We also include music in rich media EPUB3 ebooks as a way of demonstrating audio capabilities of the format.
Additionally, I have used Pro Tools extensively at various music studios over the years, when acting in my role as producer or as assistant engineer on various projects. Pro Tools is an industry standard for recording and arranging music, and it is rare to find a professional music studio that does is not using Pro Tools.
Additionally, I have used Pro Tools extensively at various music studios over the years, when acting in my role as producer or as assistant engineer on various projects. Pro Tools is an industry standard for recording and arranging music, and it is rare to find a professional music studio that does is not using Pro Tools.
- Integration with UAD - I have used Pro Tools with a number of UAD devices over the years and it always integrates perfectly, and saves CPU resources by offloading effects processing to dedicated Digital Signal Processing (DSP) chips on external hardware. Plus, UAD effects sound great!
- Multitrack Recording and Arrangement of Music - This is really the big one for Pro Tools. It's for recording and arranging, and that's really its focus.
- Import and Export - Pro Tools is great for its ability to import and export multitrack files in a way that mimics traditional analog multitrack recording.
- Loop-Based Production - Pro Tools is still in the old world of audio recording where you're expected to record a track from live sources. It has less features aimed at production of loop-based music like electronic music and hiphop.
- Sample-Based Production - While you can sequence samples, you are expected to use MIDI to trigger the samples, for the most part. Of course, you can sequence them out without using MIDI to trigger a sampler plugin, but that's not the use case Pro Tools was designed for.
- Creative Ideation - Pro Tools expects you to figure out what you want to record first, and does not have tools for helping you produce or create the music.
- Positive - Industry standard, gives image of professionalism and reassurance to clients that they are in good hands.
- Positive - Great integration with UAD means in certain configurations, you don't have to spend as much on a computer to get a large amount of processing power.
- Negative - The cost and tie-in with hardware is prohibitive. Although it is possible to use Pro Tools without hardware, that is a less supported use case, and generally speaking, you will want to use the Pro Tools software with hardware together.
Pro Tools has the most prestige and branding of any Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) that I know of. It is the industry standard for professional recording studios, and you'd be hard pressed to find an audio engineer who hasn't used it at one point or another. Most audio engineers I know exclusively use Pro Tools. That being said, I also know a number of electronic music producers who won't touch it, preferring Ableton Live, or Logic Pro.
I choose the right tool for the job, so I use Pro Tools when I am in a music studio working with another engineer who uses it, or working with bands who are familiar with it. When I am working on loop- and sample-based music on my own, I use Ableton Live.
I formerly used ACID Pro more often but I have not returned to it very frequently since making the switch to Ableton Live many years ago. I have also used Logic Pro X when in a Mac-exclusive environment, or when producing music on the go on my MacBook Pro.
I choose the right tool for the job, so I use Pro Tools when I am in a music studio working with another engineer who uses it, or working with bands who are familiar with it. When I am working on loop- and sample-based music on my own, I use Ableton Live.
I formerly used ACID Pro more often but I have not returned to it very frequently since making the switch to Ableton Live many years ago. I have also used Logic Pro X when in a Mac-exclusive environment, or when producing music on the go on my MacBook Pro.
July 23, 2019
ProTools- Edit Audio like a Pro!
Avid Pro Tools is being used by our organization as a primary tool to record and edit multiple audio tracks underneath the video, as well as edit and record podcasts and audio webinars. It allows us to be able to isolate different voices or sounds and clean them up using the appropriate sends/inserts to present a higher quality product to our clients.
- Variety of plug-ins and the ability to buy 3rd party plug ins and use them well.
- Recording to multiple tracks, live monitoring while recording, live inserts/sends while recording audio.
- Pro Tools always creates a backup of your audio file that you can restore at any point in time.
- Built in metronome, timeline indicators for beat/time.
- Midi controls/ virtual instruments are fantastic.
- Video tool is buggy- constantly crashes or lags when importing a video.
- No integration with Adobe products- also has to be purchased separately from other Avid products.
- Expensive to buy outright.
- Does not work as well with PC as it does with Mac OS.
- Cleaned up audio that we assumed could not be salvaged producing a higher standard of quality to our clients.
- Ability to revert changes to the audio file once made has led to more flexibility to edits for clients.
- Lots of transferring time taken up due to its lack of integration with any software but primarily the Adobe Suite.
- Adobe Audition, Adobe Premiere Pro, Audacity, Final Cut Pro X, GarageBand, Trello, Zoho CRM, Zoho Desk, Zoho Projects and Skype for Business (formerly Lync)
In my opinion, ProTools is the best audio editing tool currently on the market. It's very user-friendly, incredibly intuitive and has so many different functionalities that would take weeks to learn how to use them all and well if you needed them. It is far better suited than Audition, Garageband or Audacity for single-track editing as well as multiple track music recording/ editing, and provides you with far more features and benefits. The only real downside to ProTools is its price- it's fantastic for what you get but may not be worth the cost if all you are doing is small audio edits along with side video projects made or edited in the Adobe Suite. For sound effect layering, creating music tracks (where the midi controls are far superior to its competition), or multiple track recording, ProTools is without a doubt the best software on the market.