How Much Does PT Really Cost? (HD and LE)

[dragonfly]

And how come HD is never in Guitar Center or on ZZounds?

Like a previous poster said, Pro Tools is an integrated hardware/software solution and HD is, complicated, top of the line. Retail sales people are not capable of providing the necessary technical support, so Digidesign won't let them sell the product. Apple does the same thing because tech support is a nightmare in the world of computer hardware/software .. You have to be certified to sell Cisco, and other high end technical products, because the manufacturer doesn't want to inherit a confused mass of misguided customers or screwed up system messes.

My only advice would be to keep it simple until you get your chops up.. don't throw a lot of money at studio equipment until you know exactly what you are spending to accomplish. Start out small and keep your bucks for upgrading.. chances are by the time you get a firm handle on whatever system you buy, you are going to want to upgrade .. so keep it simple at first, and save your money for when you know what you want.

[Tweak]

"But is it really Pro Tools?" she asked me. LOL. This weekend I had a session with a vocalist who was just thrilled with the capabilities of my Logic Studio. "Wow this is fantastic! It must be Pro Tools, right, Rich?" I tried to briefly explain all the background already in this thread, without getting too techie. No this is logic, and its just as powerful, if not more...bla, bla. She looked at me with wide open eyes....so I pointed to my little mbox mini sitting on a shelf. See that? That's the Pro Tools your homies are saying they have, not the "real pro tools". Its all bling bling, cha-ching cha-ching. Get it? I knew she did not want to hear that. She wanted to be able to tell her crones that she recorded in a fantastic pro tools studio. That she found it was not pro Tools slightly tarnished the perception of the results, I think. The strange thing is that on the forums we might argue about quality for years, but to the person on the street, brand name of the sequencer can impart a quality that no mixologist or mastering engineer can match.

[AJNandi]

the cheapest pro tools le i could find was a usb plug sort of like an i-lok which allows you to use LE with a headfone jack, cause its hardware dependent, its 250$ at my local music store

[Twiggy]

Its not sort of like an ilok, its an audio interface.

An ilok hold your licences for plugins etc... You could get pro-tools software, plug in a ilok and it wouldnt work.

The M-box mini has 2 headphone outs. So if you're never going to record anything into pro-tools, it'll work just fine. If you want to record something, you can't.

I know a few people who have the m-box mini and use it with their laptops, just for editing in PT on the move. If you do a recording session then have a 3 hour train ride, you can shove it on your laptop and clean up the session, ready to get right into the mix when you get back.

[AJNandi]

i have an mbox mini, it has two line inputs, and an xlr input, stereo outs, plus a headphone out in the front
its a cube and it plugs into the computer through a usb cable

m box micros look like iloks but arent iloks, it has only a 1/8th inch headphone out and plugs into usb without a cable,

atleast thats what it says on avid's website
http://www.avid.com/US/products/family/Pro-Tools/Pro-Tools-LE/fc/Pro-Tools-LE-Systems/Mbox-2-Family

[DNAstudios]

it looks more like a flash drive then anything...

[AJNandi]

i guess its literally a "micro" sound card sorta thing
but itll be good for on the go

[Twiggy]

but itll be good for on the go

I'm pretty sure that's waht it was designed for, and the only thing I'd use it for. I wouldn't want to be running my main monitors off it.

But great to have it as a backup incase something happens to your main interface / you're on the move.

[TKMJ Productions]

Let's see.......
A Cubase session in the studio will cost you $75 per hour.
A Protools session in the studio will cost you $125 per hour.

Why the difference in cost when the sound results are the same??????
Well....... We are passing on the savings for insisting on Protools at the request of the customer.
Someone has to pay for it.

[AJNandi]

Just because they demand PT you jack the price up 50$?

genius

[TKMJ Productions]

Just because they demand PT you jack the price up 50$?

genius

Like I said. Someone has to pay for it. Why would anyone in business not past costs on to the customer. A higher investment in hardware and software requires a large price to the consumer to maintain an equal profit margin.

Why would anyone pay more????? Simple.... Market Hype.

You're in business to make a profit, Right?

[Twiggy]

Just because they demand PT you jack the price up 50$?

genius

Just like if someone demands a mic you don't own, you charge them rental.

Just like if someone demands tape, you charge them for the tape...

[AJNandi]

well then when i have my own studio...."oops i accidentally lost everything that you want, so i guess i have to charge you for rental"

lol na i wouldnt do that,

but what if u had PT and ddnt use it, like cubase was your main sequencer
and they wanted PT, you could charge them more right?

supply vs. demand?
demand seems greater here

[Twiggy]

well then when i have my own studio...."oops i accidentally lost everything that you want, so i guess i have to charge you for rental"

What? I don't understand what you mean.

lol na i wouldnt do that,

but what if u had PT and ddnt use it, like cubase was your main sequencer
and they wanted PT, you could charge them more right?

supply vs. demand?
demand seems greater here

If demand is greater, then they can easily go to a different studio. If I was running both a great Cubase rig and Pro-Tools HD, I would probably charge the same for pro-tools that other comparable studio's in my area charged, and charge a bit less for the use of the cubase rig because it cost me less money to obtain, so I pass the savings onto the customer.

Seems sensible to me...

[TKMJ Productions]

well then when i have my own studio...."oops i accidentally lost everything that you want, so i guess i have to charge you for rental"

lol na i wouldnt do that,

but what if u had PT and ddnt use it, like cubase was your main sequencer
and they wanted PT, you could charge them more right?

supply vs. demand?
demand seems greater here

You charge them extra for the conversion time from PT to Cubase or what ever sequencer you have from theit original tracks. If they are fresh and insist on PT then you charge them a percentage of the costs. Time is money dude and investments in your studio, your customers pay for over the long haul.

Business is about profit.

[130dB]

That she found it was not pro Tools slightly tarnished the perception of the results, I think. The strange thing is that on the forums we might argue about quality for years, but to the person on the street, brand name of the sequencer can impart a quality that no mixologist or mastering engineer can match.

That is one of the most profound statements I have heard on this topic, and I completely agree.
ProTools has become a name like Kleenex. Reguardless of the brand, many people would say "pass me a Kleenex."
PT is one of the few names in the pro-audio world that has penetrated the general public and become equated with DAW.

Back in the early 90's, they were the only game in town for a high-end pro studio wanting to go DAW.
Many studios invested serious $$$ into PT rigs.
Now that there are so many capable options on the market, it doesn't always make business sense to write off $30-100+K investment to switch to something else, even if they like something else better.

Personally, I don't see anything special about a PT LE system that makes it any better than anything else out there, and the hardware limitations are a serious down point. I frequently hear the PT name being thrown around as bragging rights by amatuers and I laugh quietly to myself.
OTOH, if I could afford an extensive PT HD system with an Icon desk, would I use go for it? oh yeah.
The reality of it is I can't and probably never will.
Fancy hardware does not make the engineer. The knowledge to get the most out of the equipment you are using, does.

Thats my 2¢

@TKMJ Productions
I agree with you charging more for a PT session for the reasons given, and as I would call it in many cases.... "snob tax".

[MonsterMusician]

I got my mpowered for 340$ at guitar center.There is an even smaller one at best buy for 100$..it only has two inputs.I would say for the nicest sytem you can spend up to 10,000 on.Good Luck.Wish I had 10,000.I saw one in action at a concert that my friend recored...amazing


Charity
http://www.monstermusician.wordpress.com