Magix Samplitude Pro X is a full featured pro-grade music production suite for recording, mixing and editing audio. This DAW is designed for audio editing but does have a music specific focus making it perfect for musicians that want total control over their final product. It does this while keeping a mid-range price too.
As such the interface on this software presumes you know what you're doing, so it's complex and detailed. There are lots of tools to make production easier, just so long as you know what you're doing. Also, you'll need a Microsoft setup as this is still a Windows only software.
So is Magix Samplitude Pro X for you? It's among our best audio editing software picks, but it isn't quite top of the list.
Magix Samplitude Pro X: Features
Magix Samplitude Pro X is a fully professional grade product meaning you can expect features like the ability to edit while live recording. But let's cover the basics first.
Samplitude supports 999 tracks, 256 physical inputs and 32-bit recording up to 384kHz. This comes with a well delineated layout featuring time stretching and automation lanes as well as great graphical representations of waveforms.
There's a helpfully large transport area and a useful inset section that allows you to bring in additional editing views as you need. The mixer itself appears in a separate window to keep everything clean and organized.
What makes Samplitude unique is that it stores audio files, it calls objects, allowing you to carry out operations that in most other DAWs could only be done at the mixing stage. As such you can play with audio in a non-destructive way. This is great for lining up an album full of tracks ready for mastering, for example.
Powerful features include ultra-low-latency recording, MIDI editing in an advanced way, and lots of virtual instrument support.
Melodyne 4 Essential comes as part of the bundle which is really useful for correcting pitch on single tracks. And since there is ARA support, this is integrated in the environment so you don't need to send the track out and back in again.
Magix Samplitude Pro X: Performance
Magix Samplitude Pro X is powerful while remaining accessible to use. MIDI editing, for example, is very flexible, allowing you to scale, mirror, stretch and shrink automation data as well as to smooth curves easily.
Change the gain level easily by grabbing the centre arrow of an audio clip and simply pulling it up or down. You'll see the waveform grow or shrink as you do so, allowing you to judge visually how it will sound in relation to the rest of the audio.
If you don't have hardware attached, there are on-screen instruments that make this easy. Like a big on-screen keyboard when you don't have physical keys plugged in, for example.
Plenty of power is required though as you can cause this to stutter if you move the page arrangement a lot during playback. It's also quite a cluttered layout that might feel a little overwhelming to some.
The plug-in browser is a welcome addition which sorts the program's instruments into categories. Talking of, the Mixer view also offers easy plug-in and built-in parametric EQ access.
The on-board effects options are decent with a suite of analog rack tools for compression, shaping transients, mastering dynamics. The spectrum visualizer is a nice addition which can be pulled onto the main page with a single click.
The restoration tools for clicks, hiss, noise and smoothing works really well and means this DAW will take you right up to WaveLab. The preview of encoded files like MP3, AAC and Mastered for iTunes is also a welcome addition.
Should you buy Magix Samplitude Pro X?
Magix Samplitude Pro X offers lots of tools and features that are perfectly positioned for musicians running Windows OS that don't want to pay top-end prices but want the best DAW features. If you're a Mac user, we'd recommend something like Apple Logic Pro X instead. There were a few lag moments and the cluttered layout isn't for everyone.
That said, this does it all for a ground-up solution to music creation and production right from the home, and without costing the top-end prices.
