pod xt vs x3, mixcraft.

[jhgreene64]

Hi. Just wanted to share my experience with these items recently. I decided to switch from ableton/fender fuse for DAW recording to something simpler and better sounding respectively. Ableton, as many of you know, is unbelievably cluttered and complicated. It also has a huge footprint. After learning about the seamless simplicity of Garage Band for mac, I wanted something similar. I stumbled onto Mixcraft, a super simple DAW that produces outstanding results. I was also starting to get a little bored with the tones in the G-DEC 15 that I have had for a while. I purchased a POD X3 at best buy, took it home and developed an immediate dislike for it. It was far too complicated and the tones are discernably different than the POD XT with which I was already familiar. Luckily, BB took the X3 back and sold me one of the last remaining XT,s. The combination of the XT/Mixcraft makes for a beautiful sounding setup that doesnt take forever to get up and running. I cannot praise the two enough. If you are not a computer whiz and want to lay down ideas quickly, this is the way to go!

[repoman]

I'll have to check out mixcraft. I've been using an old version of cakewalk for some time and have been thinking about upgrading but the newer versions of cakewalk really seem like overkill for my needs.

Jeff

[Michael-GnL-Michael]

Mixcraft is a Windows only application, just an FYI.

[jwebsmall]

Mixcraft is an excellent DAW.

It's super simple to learn and use.

The bundled effects have amazing presets.

The EQ presets for mixdown and mastering
are ideal for rough prototype demos. You have
to work in other DAW's to get similar outcomes.
(I also have BBE sonic sweet and stomp ware plugins).

If you are trying to come up to speed on learning to use a DAW
and have a Windows PC, Mixcraft is your ticket.

When I want to prototype something late at night when
the idea strikes I can get it recorded faster with Mixcraft
than any other DAW IMO. Last month I got a late night
song idea which I finished writing at 12:15 am (in the morning),
flipped on the computer, fired up mixcraft and had the song
recorded (using my trusty G&L Legacy btw) and shut down the
computer by 12:24 am. I got word earlier this week that song
placed top runner in a Nashville song contest that will be announced
mid August. Thank you G&L and Mixcraft!

I have their Beatcraft virtual drum machine also. It's the easiest
to program drum machine I've come across. You visually program
the drums (if you don't have midi pads - I visually program it anyway).

I have Ableton Live, Pro Tools 9 and Presonus Studio One Pro
besides Mixcraft. I also had an earlier version of Cakewalk Sonar.

My main DAW is Presonus Studio One Pro. When I doing something
really serious I use Studio One next to mixcraft it is the most
productive DAW out there IMO. And the sounds and mixes are
absolutely pristine. This beats the pants off ProTools 9
IMO. But I still use Mixcraft for quickies. And I would recommend
learning Mixcraft first before trying to tackle more advanced DAWs
like Studio One or PT9.

If you want to learn to work with loops Mixcraft is a great way to
get started! When you get to advanced intermediate you'll be
ready for Ableton. But Mixcraft will take you over the
learning hump and get you making music faster than any other
DAW out there IMO.

[Miles Smiles]

It was far too complicated and the tones are discernably different than the POD XT with which I was already familiar.

I owned 2 Pod Xt's for a long time, one as backup, as I perform on stage with that device. One Xt has been replaced by an X3 and I got all my Xt sounds easily on the X3 with Gearbox and they sound exactly the same, so the other Xt is still the backup device. The X3 has several advantages, just like USB 2.0, so you may record several channels at once, like the processed stereo signals + unprocessed signals from guitar and microphone input at the same time. The X3 has a better display and if you get used to it, you will find it easier to use even without Software, as there are more knobs for easier access to the parameters. The very only one point, the Xt is better, is the activation of the tuner, which is a special knob at the Xt. At the X3 you have to hold the tap-button. But then the X3 has the better tuner display and the playback from the PC doesn't stop while the tuner is active, as it does with the Xt.

Using Gearbox or the Podfarm Vst plugin (the older one), the user interface is exactly the same, so will not notice which device is connected to your computer. My Xt is full equipped with all extensions you can buy, including the Podfarm plugin. Which made it more expensive, than the X3 was, by still being an Xt. The X3 is not expandable, as there are all the modules already activated out of the box.

So I would not recommend to buy an Xt, if you could also get an X3.

BTW, I use Samplitude SE for recording, bought it at the price of a magazine it came with. I always record just the mono unprocessed signal, while hearing the processed signal. With Podfarm I start with the same settings the Pod has and may change the settings later or leave it. With Gearbox the Pod setting may be stored to disk, where the Podfarm-Plugin may load it and it sounds very the same while untouched.

As the plugin does process the guitar sound from the raw signal just at the moment of replay or while exporting to a wave file, you can not hear punch-in-punch-out parts, as reverb or delay are not affected at that locations of the recording, it appears seamless.