PG Music BiaB 2021 Pro PC English

Further Information

max. Samplerate (kHz)	44,1 kHz
Max. resolution in bit	24 bit
Hardware In/Outs	2 (1x Stereo)
Audio Tracks	48
MIDI Tracks	48
Instrument Tracks	7
Floating-point Resolution	32 bit
Pitch	No
Clip-Matrix	No
Notation	Yes
Video-Playback	Yes
Surround Support	No
Library (GB)	22 GB
AAX DSP	No
AAX native	No
ARA	No
Audio Units	No
VST2	Yes
VST3	No

max. Samplerate (kHz)

44,1 kHz

Max. resolution in bit

24 bit

Hardware In/Outs

2 (1x Stereo)

Audio Tracks

MIDI Tracks

Instrument Tracks

Floating-point Resolution

32 bit

Pitch

Clip-Matrix

Notation

Yes

Video-Playback

Yes

Surround Support

Library (GB)

22 GB

AAX DSP

AAX native

ARA

Audio Units

VST2

Yes

VST3

Customer ratings of similar items

Rating from PG Music BiaB 2021 Pro PC English

Biab - an incredibly versatile and fun composition tool

ZincBath, 21.01.2021

· Assumed from PG Music BiaB 2021 Pro PC English

This software (BiaB) has added enormous versatility to my song composition and arrangement. It has upsides and downsides but overall I'm finding it (after 2 weeks) very useful. I'm using the entry-level 'BiaB Pro' version which seems quite adequate for starters in that it includes all of the products functionality (so perfect to use as a learning curve) and a lot of musical styles and recorded session options. There is a large array of both 'Real' and 'Midi' options and you can mix and match between 'Real'-only, midi-only, and a blend of Real and midi. I've found it very easy to switch styles mid-composition in order to try several approaches to the same song. That said, the user-interface, although jam-packed full of screen-button options, looks extremely dated - almost Atari-like (if anyone remembers those things).

I may upgrade once I've got a better handle on how to maximize the content, the upgrades seem mainly to increase the library of styles and recorded sessions on offer. I'm using primarily the 'Real' options and can see how these may become limiting without increasing the library. For example, it's fine for the (say) 10 songs I've produced, but if I want to produce (say) 500 songs they will risk becoming 'samey'. Note, though, that even the entry-level software is huge. I originally downloaded it onto my laptop (i5, 256Gb, 8Gb) but it was so disk and resource hungry that I reinstalled it onto an external drive where it works without issue. All the more so because I generally save the songs in .wav format. In any case the software download process via Thomann was slick and seamless.

I would guess that I'm only using 30-40% of BiaB functionality at the moment and, confusingly, the package includes another, related, product called Real Band (RB). RB shares a lot of BiaB's functionality but adds the additional flexibility of a kind of DAW option. I haven't quite got to grips yet with RB since (a) BiaB has plenty to occupy me with and (b) I haven't fully understood its advantages. I gather from the blogs that there's a split of opinion between those who swear by one or other of the products and those who use both. Over time I'll form my own opinion but for the time being BiaB is plenty to handle.

My methodology is to produce a rough presentable version of a song in BiaB, without too much refinement or editing, and I then import all the tracks into my DAW (I use Cubase but I think it's a simple drag-and-drop exercise with most DAWs) from where I develop and refine the song till I'm happy with the result. In fact BiaB has a DAW functionality where the BiaB interface appears in the DAW, but I don't use this, finding the drag-and-drop process easier without unnecessarily clogging up the screen.

One caveat I have is that the online manual, help pages, user blogs, and videos are vast but overwhelming. Rather than attempt to read all that stuff I found it easier to work intuitively as far as possible and then seek answers to specific questions when I got stuck. (Yes, I know this is how a lot of people work anyway, but this support library is really difficult to cope with.

Bottom line is that I've found BiaB to be really useful and, not to be ignored, a lot of fun.

Highly recommended.

Pros:
- Stuffed full with vast and powerful functionality (also see cons)
- Entry-level provides a wide variety of styles and recorded sessions
- Easy to get started and intuitive to a degree
- Much functionality available via on-screen buttons
- Simple export of tracks into 3rd-party DAWs for further work
- Easy to install, doesn't seem buggy
- Lots of online help and support
- it's a lot of fun to use

Cons:
- Complex when you get past the basics
- Range of functionality can be confusing
- User interface is very, very dated and on-screen buttons are a bit haphazard
- Requires a lot of disc space
- Upgrades look very expensive so need proper cost-benefit analysis
- User help, although vast, is difficult to navigate

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