Q:

Pro Tools vs Logic...

Hi all,
I am looking for a little bit of advice on DAWs. I am Mac-based and have exclusively used Logic Studio for my work which, so far, I have found to be sufficient. But I am beginning to wonder whether I should invest in Pro Tools as my main DAW. I cannot afford the full HD version but am looking at Pro Tools M-Powered (I already use a compatible M Audio sound card). Generally I am developing sound design for relatively small productions: editing, Foley (ADR when required) and mixing. Recently I am working more and more with production agencies who produce online content and advertising for TV. 
So my questions to you guys out there are: 

Do you think Pro Tools M-Powered is a worthwhile investment?
If not Pro Tools, what DAWs do you use?
What is the most compatible DAW for our industry?
Are there any obvious advantages to using Pro Tools versus Logic?

I know that most big studios are using Pro Tools HD systems but I am working independently and am not quite at that level yet. From what I can see, one advantage with Pro Tools is that all versions are inter-compatible, therefore if I run Pro Tools M Powered on my system I can open my project on another studio's HD system if required. 
Any feedback would be appreciated.
Thanks in advance.
Colin

A:

I used Pro Tools TDM/HD for many years.  When I went freelance I bought Protools M-Powered to work with my M-Aaudio interface.  It runs nothing like the HD version.  I had a host of problems, much of it was related to the interface and how Pro Tools interfaces with it.  I've had problems where I open a session and Pro Tools tells me that the interface doesn't support 96K sample rate (yes it does!), other times it has said that the interface doesn't support 48K sample rate (what!?). Once it even told me that it doesn't support 44.1K (WTF?!).  I will say that not all of the M-Audio interface/drivers are created equal.  The Profire 2626 seems a lot less problematic than the older firewire series.
Add to that, you must have DV Toolkit or Total Production Toolkit if you are doing post.  Good luck working with video without one of those.  If you really must get Pro Tools, Pro Tools LE was much less problematic than Pro Tools M-Powered for me.  I never had issue with the hardware/software playing nice together with LE.  But again, you need the toolkits.  I've had issues opening sessions from other people, then I installed a toolkit, and the session opened.  Might have to do with track count or some other voodoo thing.
In the end, I made made the move to Nuendo.  I keep the M-Powered rig around to open old sessions or sessions from other people.  If you can, wait it out a bit.  Rumor has it that there is a big Pro Tools shake up coming soon.  Pro Tools may finally offer an un-crippled native version.    

A:

I use both platforms.
If you plan to work to picture and work with other people, then I'm afraid it's Pro Tools you will need. Pro Tools LE will allow you to explore the platform without investing a huge sum. The other common alternative, Nuendo, is costly right from the start.
However, if you compose music, you might want to go the Logic route. Of the two, Logic got there first for computer-based composition. PT is still ahead for audio editing and productivity. 
Have bought a number of M-Audio's products over the years, and while the earlier ones were great, I'm afraid their latest offerings have disappointed me in terms of quality and stability. With M-Powered you will depend on an M-Audio interface (or a Mackie Onyx series mixer!). With Pro Tools you would be in the hands of Digidesign/Avid (not necessarily better, but the support path should be shorter).
Bottomline, there's a clear benefit from investing in PT. But you're likely to stay close with Logic too ;)

A:

Hey Colin. I would just add that Chuck is right. To work with the LE systems you really need the DV toolkit. I use PT HD and LE with the Toolkits-but they are pricey and its really not a good time to make that investment-because protools looks like its is finally going native. I would also add that I am a sound designer that loves using logic, but much of what id do is non-reality based stuff. Using Logic for tenuous editorial in my opinion is not ideal because that is not what Logic is about. BUt what alot of people dont realize is that you can sync Logic to pro-tools and run it as a slave synced machine (something I do often). This gives you the power of having a powerful waveform editor (Like PT) and a powerful instrument based sequencer like Logic. So its never really one or the other. And like Chuck you might want to give Nuendo a try. It actually has alot of features I wish pro-tools had and is a very well engineered platform. 
In the Film and video world- Pro-tools IS the industry standard. But its about the timing. With Pro-tools on the verge of going native I would just recommend that you wait. There are lots of good alternatives that can tie you over.  

