"MULTIRACK HARD-DISK RECORDING AND MIXING
A multitrack hard-disk recording system facilitates the recording
and mixing of multiple tracks of digital audio on a computer's hard
disk. Recording to disk has many advantages over the older method
of multitrack recording to analog tape: CD-quality digital audio is
cleaner than tape, with much greater dynamic response (better
recording of very soft and very loud signals), and random access
allows immediate record and play from any point in your songfile.
And the hardware required for multitrack hard-disk recording is not
inaccessible: Large, fast hard disks (10 gigabytes and larger) are
inexpensive these days, as are fast CPUs. Linux can claim a number
of excellent hard-disk recording systems to take advantage of this
hardware bounty. In this chapter we will look at three of those
systems: SLab, Multitrack, and Mix."
"Which Program Should I Use?
Selecting the multitrack recorder/mixer that works best for you
depends on your specific background and needs. Of course,
considering that they are priced at $0.00 each, you could just try
them all and decide which one you like best-but you may not have
the time to do so. Each one of these programs is strong in
particular ways: SLab will appeal immediately to users familiar
with recording in a tape-based studio, Mix is best suited to
complex arrangements of pre-recorded soundfiles, and Multitrack is
best suited to quick, small-scale recording sessions (such as a
four-piece band or a single performer)."
