Bitwig, First impressions

Rhiza

Inspired
So, as of this writing Bitwig is version 1.0.5
I've been a happy Ableton Live user since version 8.0 and I haven't really found any DAW that makes me tick like Live does... Until now.
When Bitwig was announced I was really excited, one year went by and BOOM! Here it is, bitwig version 1.0!
What I was most excited about is the fact that Bitwig supports Linux as well as the usual Windows and Mac.
Being an avid Linux user myself and looking at SteamOS and Android, Linux is really stepping up lately. Supporting Linux is a smart move by Bitwig.
The entire program is probably written in Java. Hence the cross platform support.
The interface is pleasant and user friendly. Color scheme is nice and has great contrast.

Pros:
One of the obvious features I like a lot is the plugin crash safety mechanism. I've had (rare) experiences with Ableton Live crashing, mostly due to buggy plugins.
another feature is loading multiple projects. This is just awesome and time saving. I can work on or go through several projects easily now.
I really enjoy the native plugins and the Polysynth. It really has to be one of the best sounding native soft-synths I've come across in any DAW.
Some people enjoy the multiple monitor support. Being used to Ableton Live, this doesn't mean much to me.
Shortcuts! Ableton live doesn't have many shortcuts like various other DAW's. Bitwig solved this quite well.
Control surface script API: Don't like how your midi device acts/works? No problem! You can write your own midi device scripts!

Cons:
Buggy. I've found several bugs that are to be expected, and as of now, audio settings are very buggy (For me anyway)
The audio engine frequently crashes on me.
The midi editor just doesn't do it for me. I find it hard to work with and I wish I could decide the velocity of the notes before I write them (Like in Ableton Live)
I also have to switch between tools to manipulate the midi notes. This is very time consuming.

Verdict:
So far this wasn't a game changer for me. I will still be using Ableton Live (for now)
This is early stuff for Bitwig, and first impressions and features are surprising!
I do feel however that there is more to come. With Bitwig, patience has paid off so far. I'm excited to see what the future brings.
 
Thanks for your helpful impressions. I used Ableton for a while and liked it. I've been awaiting Bitwig with curiosity. I may give the demo a spin considering some of the features and your info.
 
It's a tough game to break in to this DAW software business. The incumbents have been around a long time and when you're asking for close to $500 from someone for your software longevity starts to weigh in to one's decision process. Go with the new guy and hope he doesn't fold? Stick with the old guy and just keep putting up with the same old same old?

I like what they're doing with Bitwig and I'll definitely be keeping an eye on them. Melding a traditional DAW interface with the more foward-thinking Abelton interface would be a sweet platform for creating music.
 
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