PreSonus Studio One 2.5 Professional (Full Version Download) Reviews

4.8/5.0 based on 27 customer reviews

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Customer Reviews

Wallace McGraw
from Kansas City, KS, USA
April 12, 2013Music Background:
Ex Pro Musician, Church Musician, Hobbyist

Amazingly Intuitive

Although I'm an experienced musician, this is my first DAW. I'm amazed at how intuitive the interface is for something that is so feature rich. I've downloaded plugins only to find that I already had a more competent feature already within the package. The drag-n-drop interface is most appealing, and I rarely find myself lost. When I do, the community forums are top notch, with many helpful users than seemingly never sleep. I'm trying to purchase Komplete 9, as the S1 Pro comes with Komplete Elements. I'm waiting to find out if I am eligible for a cross-grade or upgrade. If I am eligible, that further increases the value of this package. Melodyne is another valuable addition, and is a breeze to use. Note: If using this DAW in native 64bit mode, you can only use true 64bit VSTs. I have wasted a few dollars on un-useable purchases. This DAW also does not have surround support, though I'm hoping that it can be patched in with a later update. All-in-all I am stoked to be using such a complete solution for recording.

David T. Anderson
from East Moline, IL United States
April 12, 2013Music Background:
Hobbyist

Studio One is unique.

Many top-shelf DAWs require countless hours of both reading a manual, and hands on work. Many top-shelf DAWs don't come pre-loaded with kerjillions of sounds and third-party VSTs. Many top-shelf DAWs make making music an effort. And many top-shelf DAWs' price point is out of reach for the casual musician.

Studio One is not one of many. It stands alone. Studio One is a powerful and complex erector set disguised as Lincoln Logs.

Emmanuel Koukoulas
from Commack, NY
April 4, 2013Music Background:
Guitar, Recording Engineer

Great program for mastering

Easy to use, organized to mastering songs for online or CD delivery. All the tools you'll need to finish your master and then some .

DAW portion is great. easy transition from Pro Tools. Highly recommend Studio One 2.5

BAYSIDE TRAX
from Corsicana, TX
March 29, 2013Music Background:
Indy producer, Hobbyist, Guitarist, Musician, Recording Artist

SIMPLY TH E BEST!!

I can't seem to shy away from writing positive reviews for this product!! Why should I?!! This is the best by far, at least to my taste considering within my arsenal I've sampled virtually almost every software available to date. In addition, the creators of Cubase and Nuendo are the same faces behind Studio One. German engineers at their best!!! This DAW is super light when it comes to CPU processing without compromising any of its professional fuctions and features, unlike any DAW I;ve used. Its marriage to Presonus is a huge plus!! Presonus has been revered as one of the leading hardware manufacturers in the music world, from computer recording interfaces to signal as well as multi fx processors. Studio One also integrates its own multi FX as well as virtual instruments plug-ins. Version 2 automatically bridged all your 32-bit, third-party plug-ins for use in a 64-bit platform. Simply put, Presonus Studio One is destined for the Hall of Fame!!

John Littlefield
from Tilton, NH
March 14, 2013Music Background:
20+years live performing, live/studio engineer

The BEST DAW.

Ok, I have been doing home studio for over 12 years, so you can image the kind of dinosaurs I have worked with as far as gear is concerned. I won't tell you all about me because that is a waste of your time, but let me just say I have been around the block a few times. It's not the years that count, it's the mileage.
I have used many different DAWs and they all did ok, but this one leaves them all at the curb standing like fools in the rain.
The features that are included in this program are everything you could want to truly get complete control over your home studio projects. From fx and eq's that really sound great to compressors, limiters, and gates that work like real rack mounted gear, this DAW delivers..! The drag and drop functions makes so many things so simple. I have owned this program for 6 months and it would take me an hour to tell you all the great things about it I have found. What is amazing is I have less than 70% of this program figured out, I have barely even started to learn about the Mastering Section, (a feature not included on the "industry standard" program). I did a Cd for a friend last year on ProTools. When I got Studio One, I recorded his newest song and rough mixed it after the recording session. He was so blown away by the sound he asked me to remix all of the songs from his last Cd..! I remixed the first one already, and the mix I got was 10 times better sounding than the Cd, and it took me less than half of the time to get that mix. If you own a home studio, BUY THIS PROGRAM..! It could turn out to be the BEST investment you ever make. One other thing, I recommend that you have a computer that has some processing power. Once you get used to this DAW you will be able to do mixing and editing so fast that your old computer may not be able to keep up.

Rogerio Neto
from United States
January 11, 2013Music Background:
Procude, Recording Engineer, Pro musician

PERFECT!!!

I've been using Sonar for many years, having problems with Latency, Drop outs and Bugs, etc... just the first day I got Studio One as my DAW I had no difficulty to work. Bye-bye SONAR!!!! It has every thing you need. Studio One is simply amazing! It sounds good, very easy to use, fast working, is not a software that requires very much of your CPU. I liked it even more than Pro Tools, Cubase, Logic...

Sean Compton
from Boston, MA
December 29, 2012Music Background:
Professional Guitarist and production

Just Awesome

I was a Protools user and when Avid released PT10 months after I just paid $300 for PT9 I had enough. I said goodbye to all latency issues and glitches of Protools and I'm so much happier now. Studio One 2.5 is so far ahead of Protools and I am 99.9% glitch free. No freeze ups, no latency with my firestudio project, sounds amazing and professional.

Jacob Huber
from McGuffey, Ohio
December 25, 2012Music Background:
Recording engineer, drummer, live sound, and video production

Look no further!

If you are looking for ease of use, power, and a mind blowing audio experience, then look no further. Every part of this DAW is on one screen, no split screen sadness here! Hot keys make every facet of this powerful DAW not only easy to navigate, but makes every part of the creative process happen before the inspiration leaves your mind! With VST and other plug-in compatibility as well, this DAW is a real winner!

P Rhode
from United States
December 24, 2012Music Background:
Live Sound and Musician

Presonus Studio One 2 Professional

You've reviewed and tried all the Recording software out there and found some to be quite daunting and others to make you buy more and more without getting what you want. Presonus Studio One 2 Pro is just what I needed to further my learning, to record, and do practically anything more than the rival expensive (and expansive) software features. I use the Studio One Pro with a Presonus Studio Live 16.0.2 Mixer and the 4 channel Presonus AudioBox 44 and I would not trade them for ANY other DAW/software regardless of price and features. Of course having Sweetwater expertise makes it a perfect match for assistance to ensure what you want is what you get at a great price. One thing I do recommend...get a Mac! I bought two PC laptops and each did not have the right firewire chipsets to run the Studio Live Mixer.

Todd Kreigh
from Skiatook, OK
August 15, 2012Music Background:
Pro Musician, arranger, hobbyist

Awesome!

I downloaded the demo version of this product two months ago. I am a recent entrant into the DAW world so I can't compare this to a lot of the other products. For many years I did what music production I did on hard disk recorder/mixers and stayed away from computer-based recording, because up until recently I was scared off by glitch-filled software with steep learning curves. Then I got a Yamaha 01V mixer that came bundled with Cubase AI. That made a DAW convert of me.

Cubase AI was OK, but not long after I was doing online video training at Home Studio Corner, and came across tutorials done with Studio One. And the rest, as they say, is history. I downloaded, I used, and a month later I purchased. I think this software is artfully constructed. The learning curve is not that steep, the power amazing, the plugins numerous and mind-boggling. Bundling Celemony Melodyne and Native Instruments just makes it all even better. I can't believe what you get for the price: a premium DAW that is simple to install and use, with tons of extras and tons of horsepower.

I can't quit gushing about Studio One. It is awesome. I also can't believe that a year ago I was still struggling to make music on a hard disk recorder with it's severe limitations and primitive editing tools. I'm sold on DAWs and Studio One is everything I ever wanted. I'm not qualified to tell you to "trash your other DAWs", but I can tell you that you won't be disappointed with this one.

Jim Bickerstaff
from Wilmington, NC
July 28, 2012Music Background:
Producer/Engineer

This is Where I Landed

I was a Nuendo man once weaned off of 2" tape. Studio One has taken over. I didn't even install my old system on my latest editing PC. Studio one takes any format that comes in and feeds polished tracks in whatever format I need into my Adobe Premier Pro editor. And while the program itself is good enough, the folks at Presonus take care of business if you have an issue. They make great stuff and back it up. Great DAW and great company.

Carl Cherry
from Tucson, Arizona
July 6, 2012Music Background:
Pro Musician

The ProTools Killer

I came across this DAW by accident. Looking for something on YouTube and found a review of this software from a highly respected producer. After listening to the review, I had to try it. Studio One 2 does not disappoint. I have used Logic, Pro Tools, Ableton Live, and Reason. While all of them have something specific to them that I really like, none of them come close to the ease of use and intuitive interface of Studio One. The Melodyne integration that comes with the Studio One 2 Professional version is very cool. It also comes with almost 19gigs of additional sounds, loops and plug ins (including Native Instruments Elements). This is a solid value. My experience with this software has been nothing short of amazing. . PreSonus has knocked it out the park with this one.

Jjordan
from Virgin Islands
May 27, 2012Music Background:
Pro Musician, Producer

You Can't go wrong

Like most other reviewers, I've used just about everything out there and S1v2 is the best by far. It makes what we do (Create, Produce, Mix, Master music) so much easier and faster without getting in the way.

Practically NO learning curve whatsoever. The included Plugins are actually usable and are very nice. There are a few things I miss that Cubase has like the arranger track and maybe a couple of midi toys, but nothing that equates to being a deal breaker.

If this is your first DAW you'll feel welcomed and if like me this is your profession you'll welcome S1v2 as a trusted companion in your workflow...I expect only GREAT things from Presonus and S1.

Tao Mokoda
from Louisville, KY USA
May 8, 2012Music Background:
Swimming in the Ocean of Tone

Unbelievable Power And Value!

You really have to try this program to believe that it really is better, easier, faster, and 'funner' than whatever DAW you're using now! All that, and it's at least 90% as powerful as the "Industry Standard" DAW (Yeah, that one) and it's more flexible and vastly more intuitive. Considering it's only been around a couple years, unlike the 'Standard', Studio One is surprisingly mature and powerful.

Having spent considerable time, effort and energy into really learning Tro Pools, and really liking it, I finally tired of it's quirks and having to lift myself out of my creative space to deal with some technical issue, and so dug into Studio One. Man was I pleasantly surprised! I'm being 100% honest when I say that it was like coming out of a fog into the clarity of day. I'm not detracting anything from Tro Pools; it is more powerful, but for strictly music production, Studio One, though it lacks a few things (like a score editor) is just better for working with music. Just about everything I do in Studio One is done quicker, and with fewer clicks/keystrokes than with any other DAW I have ever used. And the results all sound amazing (that's what REALLY matters, right?)

Studio One is already 64-bit so it uses the full resources of my computer, everything I need is either right there on the screen or a click or two away, it's very intuitive to work with, but even if I get stuck, the manual is very well written and clear. It comes loaded with an excellent compliment of instruments, effects and sounds (and of course 3rd party plugins are not a problem). It loads faster, and accomplishing typical tasks is faster than other DAWs, and some of those others aren't even in the ball park! I'm using it with a MOTU Audio Express interface and have had zero issues; again, unlike 'certain' other programs.

Now, for the Cons: I really wish it had a score editor, and I will strongly suggest that to Presonus for the next version (hopefully they listen). The faders in console view could have a longer travel and they are a little inaccurate in that the actual level (the numbers) don't consistently match up well with the physical position of the fader, and I personally prefer pots rather than sliders for panning. Track numbering is missing as well and the outputs of a couple of my multi-out virtual instruments are not enumerated correctly. Except for the missing score editor, these are really very minor and all together the cons aren't worth deducting a star.

Throw in the fact that Studio One currently costs hundreds less than the more popular, more aged offerings out there and there is one more reason every serious musician ought to make Studio One the foundation of any hobbyist, amateur, semi-pro or even professional studio setup. It really is THAT good!.

Levi Ruffin
from Las Vegas Nevada USA
April 15, 2012Music Background:
recording artist, producer, engineer, musician

presonus studio one 2 pro

Like many other reviewers, i too have used reason, logic, abeleton, etc. DAWs. S-1-2 is by far the best ever !!! The ease of putting a track together, or using S-1-2 for stems for complete mixing, and mastering is the easiest !!! Great product !!!!

Chad Cohoon
from United States
April 5, 2012Music Background:
Composer, Pro Musician, Eterna Student!

Even Better than Version 1!

My original review of Studio One v. 1:
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I heard of Studio One last year when it came out and my first thoughts were, "Come on guys, what a waste of resources....focus on what you are great at...hardware!).

Well, having used Logic Pro, Pro Tools, Sonar, Ableton, and toyed with several others, I can solidly say that this DAW is not only well worth your time and penny to check out but also here to stay for a while.

Developed in collaboration with Kristal Labs comprised of Wolfgang Kundrus and Matthias Juwan, both former heavy hitters of Cubase and Nuendo, this DAW although only on v. 1.5 is nimble, mature, sonic-ally gorgeous, and intuitively innovative.

It almost feels like these two gentleman had a few things they really wanted to get implemented for previous users of other DAW's and found a benefactor with Presonus to share and join the vision of their mission.

This DAW really is a breath of fresh air. Now that being said, it is still on v. 1.5 and although I sound like a fan boy, I miss many of the other features in Ableton and Logic, such as folder tracks and richer instrument/effects options and jump back to use them on occasion. However, with the speed at which v. 1.5 came out (as a free upgrade), it won't be long before S1 not only has it all, but has pushed their creativity caps to a streamlined and well conceived apex.

So if you are just getting into the game, you can't get a better deal than Logic Studio, has it all and it sounds great. But if you already have the after-market plugins and primarily use Komplete, Omnisphere, etc. etc. and are more concerned with a fast and phenomenal sounding, 64-bit host...you may find yourself in love with this program, I obviously have.

I am also excited at what Presonus may bring to the table with their hardware integration. Excellent job Presonus and the Studio One team!
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With the update including Melodyne's ARA, Folder tracks, single window multiple track midi editing, Air One convo reverb, the new user exchange, etc. etc. This is one of the finest recording related products on the market. If they would add an Ableton-esque sequencer or cell based composing tool, I'd never use anything else!

Great update Presonus and kudos to the Studio One Development team!

~C

JOHN LAWTON
from USA
February 1, 2012Music Background:
DRUMMER/COMPOSER/MUSICIAN

PRESONOUS STUDIO 1

I HAVE BEEN USING STUDIO ONE SINCE IT FIRST CAME OUT. I JUST RECENTLY UPGRADED TO VERION 2.0 PRO. I'M IMPRESSED WITH THIER HAREWARE AND SOFTWARE. WHAT I REALLY LIKE ABOUT PRESONUS IS NOT ONLY THEIR DEDICATION TO THE PEOPLE THAT USE AND BUY THEIR PRODUCTS BUT THEIR COMMITMENT TO GETTING IT RIGHT.

Greg S. Mario
from Corsicana, TX (near Dallas)
January 20, 2012Music Background:
hobbyist, recording artist, guitarist

Simply put...dee best DAW ever!!

Upgraded from Artist to Professional. Love it!! Love it!! Love it!! A full-fledged, high-end, truly professional audio workstation designed and geared for music lovers of all levels. An integrated mastering suite, track-and-drop feature never heard of on other DAWs, integrated virtual instruments such as synths, drum machines, etc.; user-friendly concept design that gives musicians, regardless of technical background, total control and freedom for one heck of a climactic experience!! A definately must have!!

JET
from USA
January 5, 2012Music Background:
Sing, Songwriter, Guitarist

I dig it!

I have worked in quite a few different platforms including Linux. Most DAWs I have experienced, though briefly have been confusing, mind boggling, and just plain over the top difficult.I also did a lot on a multitrack board. This DAW is the best I have ever used, hands down! Very easy workflow. I has all the plug ins I wanted. Many thanks to Brandon Eden for helping me to make a supremely awesome choice! I appreciate the knowledgeable people here at Sweetwater. It is nice to get a question answered about a product knowing it will be real info I can use. I do wish I had a foot contoller but since it runs Guitar Rig which is terrific, I am already shopping. :o) The amp windows are a little weird. I wish they had a minmize feature. They are tricky to pull back up. When you delete a function it will fold up and disappear. Even though I find it again, it's annoying. I will need to do some more reading, it's possible there is a better way as I have not had the software that long. I love the way it is laid out, all right up front, drag and drop! I have more time to be creative instead of being frustrated with ridiculous hoops to jump through. Guitarists will dig this program. You get pro results. Easy to learn if you have experience, but newcomers will find it more intuitive and relaxing. I was recording in minutes once I actually got it downloaded. One word of warning, If you have low or restricted bandwidth DO NOT buy the download. It'll take 5 flippin days! My service provider slapped a usage violation on me. A zipped file would have been better. All in all this thing is fun to use and has endless possiblities creatively. This is a great DAW and destined to become extremely popular.

Fabricio
from
December 20, 2011

studio One 2

A very complete option for those that are tired of the conventional DAW. All the action happens in front of you, no pop ups windows no diagrams, no crazy bus routing edits. its all right in your face. Workflow is superb, the sound is up to par to any other DAW and believe me I have them all, Logic pro, Live , Reason, Record, Cubase 6, Digital Performer, Reaper. I was looking for something new and fresh, and I found it is as friendly as it is powerful.

Rebecca Strauss
from boston, ma
August 13, 2012Music Background:
Classical violist, new to audio editing

I'm Very Happy with PreSonus Studio One 2 Professional

I am pretty new to audio editing, but have used a variety of fairly simple programs in the past. Studio One is great for someone like me as it is very clear and easy to follow. I am thrilled with the layout and love the detail in which I can edit a file.

Thank you

Scott Sundberg
from Spring Arbor, MI USA
May 10, 2012Music Background:
Mr. Muckabout

Excellent!

Having never been a fan of full-blown DAWs before, I've found this to be very intuitive and easy to use, yet very powerful. I won't give up my hardware just yet, but Studio One 2 is a terrific tool!

Dizzy Dave
from Dallas, Tx
March 13, 2012Music Background:
Country Keyboard player

GREAT and intuitive DAW!

I have been recording with my computer since the Cakewalk Pro Audio Days. I followed Cakewalk thru Sonar 2, and changed when i started having a lot of issues with the program crashing. I bounced around, tried Cubase for awhile, then found REAPER, which i was really impressed with. However, in order to get the full use of REAPER, you MUST spend time setting its preferences and workflow to fit you. I ended up with Mackie Tracktion right at its end-of-life, and i liked the concept but was concerned about support. I had seen the original version of Studio One and felt it looked somewhat like Tracktion. I was VERY nervous about biting the bullet and buying it because i was afraid i would miss something from REAPER......well, that is NOT the case. I am not a "power" user, I work mostly with audio and effects and a little midi, with VSTs, and Studio One V2 fits the bill for me perfectly. I've never looked back since I bought it. AND, instead of having to use CD ARchitect to burn the cd's, it is all built into the project page. i never leave the program. And, whereas I used to use a lot of 3rd party vst effects and instruments, I haven't used anything except what is in Studio One so far.

Matt
from USA
March 11, 2012Music Background:
Professional musician, sometimes semi-professional engineer

Outstanding DAW

I purchased this DAW to get off the "industry standard" upgrade gouge train. I'm blown away, and here's why. This DAW installed seamlessly on my iMac 2.4 ghz duo core, running Snow leopard. No hassles whatsoever. In addition, and I can't stress this enough, the plug ins that ship with this software are exceptionally usable. Much more so than the plug ins that ship with the industry standard. The software grabbed on to my Mbox 2 without issue, and when I paired it with the Presonus Firestudio mobile I was just blown away! If you've used other DAW software, this will take a tiny bit of getting used to, but honestly, that would be the same with ANY software change. It's got all of the features I need without the constant error messages and buffer size issues of that "other" software. I can't make the darn thing crash, even when doing a session with lots of tracks and plugs! When, not if, they release a new version in a couple of years, I'm supremely confident that it won't cost me an arm and a leg, and that's something you just COULD NOT say about that "other" software. Studio One v2 can help you create release-ready mixes, and it does so without all the hassle of some DAW software. I'm never going back....ever.

Donald Kuchta
from Kansas
December 13, 2011Music Background:
Gigging Guitarist

Powerful New Standard in DAW's

After using other DAW's for years, I found Studio One V2 to an easy transition for the most part. Studio is fairly easy to learn if you have used other DAW's in the past. What I love about the S1V2 is that is does not overtax my cpu at all (quad-core AMD w/8 gigs ram). I use lots of plug-ins simultaneously. The included VST plug-ins are awesome and are in some cases as good as some vst's costing hundreds of dollars by them selves. I am using an Presonus Audiobox 1818vsl + Digimas D8 with S1V2 with outstanding results so far. No real complaints other than the manual is a bit lacking. For example; Using the Pipeline plug-in (for managing hardware effects) is only briefly explained what is does and not how to use it. A simple diagram would have been nice. Presonus does offer OBEDIA Free Training (trial) for anyone that bought or upgraded to version 2. I am very pleased with the Presonus products I've recently purchsed and give thanks to my Sweetwater Sales Representative (Paul Rowan) for putting up with my numerous phone calls and questions.

Brandon Wilder
from Milwaukee, WI
February 12, 2013Music Background:
Hobbyist, Recording Engineer, Music Production

Great DAW, not far from being the best

This DAW is by far the best I have used (logic pro, pro tools, cubase, ableton). It ease of use helps the one man studio (producer, engineer, artist) be able to focus on the more creative on making music then the technical aspects the other DAW's present. The factory tools built in can get you that professional sound you are looking for.

Trevor
from Ontario, Canada
June 19, 2012Music Background:
recording engineer, musician

Studio One 2 Pro is my new DAW!

I recently had to start looking for a new DAW platform to work in because Sony Acid Pro 7 has not been updated since early 2010 and the current version was created in 2008. I knew finding the software that I was going to want to work in would be a challenge and that there were a lot of platforms out there. A few of the guys in the Sony forums kept mentioning Presonus Studio One 2. So I checked it out. I downloaded the demo-trial and was amazingly impressed with it's workflow and UI. What I loved about Acid Pro was it's ease of use and work flow. What I needed was something similar with workflow and layout but something that was 2012 and something that was 64x compatible, and something that handled my ever growing amount of 3rd party plugins.
Studio One Pro 2 does it all. It is very stable on my pc which is a must. I also have to say the bottom end frequencies are much more defined than what I was used to in Acid Pro 7.
I have also been working in Pro Tools 10 at work because I needed OMF support for video. If I could work in Presonus Studio One 2 everyday I would eliminate Pro Tools 10.
You will not be sorry purchasing Presonus Studio One 2. You will be thrilled and find your love all over again for music in this DAW.

PreSonus Studio One 2.5 Professional (Full Version Download)

Audio/MIDI Recording and Production Software with Unlimited Tracks, 64-bit Processing, Plug-in Suite, Melodyne Pitch Correction and Mastering Tools (Mac/PC)