A fully digital multitrack audio production suite for under $2,500? When you couple Vegas Pro from Sonic Foundry with a high end 24-bit 96kHz multi input sound card that is exactly what you get!
For those who are not famil
iar with the concept of multitrack digital audio production, Vegas is essentially a 'sound' layout tool which allows you to import sound files from various sources and adjust the volume and position of each of the individual sound files. For example, if you are producing a video sound track for the Web, you might retrieve an MP3 music file from the Internet, then use an audio production tool such as Sound Forge to record a voice-over from an announcer. Finally you might spice up the video by adding some sound effects which you have 'ripped' (or extracted) from an audio CD.
Since Vegas can import AVI, MOV (Quicktime) and MPG video, you would initially import the video into Vegas and extract the video sound track. Vegas can import most common audio formats irrespective of sampling rate or bit resolution so bringing in the MP3 backing music file is as easy as going to the file selection folder and importing the file. If the announcer has already recorded the voice-over, you would import that file as well as the sound effects.

Vegas can perform the mixing in real time which allows you to actually hear how all of the sound files will sound when played together. Since mixing is non-destructive you can retake, edit or even delete parts of the mix without affecting the original sound recordings.

In a professional video, the volume of the music is decreased during the voice-over and with Vegas this is not a problem. Since you can actually see where the voice-over starts and finishes (because the sound wave is displayed on the screen), you simply would zoom in to a music track and adjust the volume envelope (the little blue line which diagrammatically shows the volume of that particular track). If the voice over timing is not quite right, you can break the voice-over track into sections (or events) and move the events so that they are synchronised with the video, which previews just below the time marker.
Finally you would add the sound effects and using the panning parameter (which displays as a yellow line), to accurately position which speaker the sound effects come from. When you are satisfied with the results, Vegas will allow you to render the mix down back into the movie where it can be uploaded to the Web. Alternatively, you may choose to save the audio file out as a WAV, AIF, ASF (Microsoft streaming media), RM (Real Audio) or MP3.

I tested Vegas using a Terratec EWS88MT sound card ($1,395 also available from Moore Music), which provides eight independent audio inputs, giving you your own multitrack recording studio. Using Vegas' in-built recording tools, you can record four separate stereo tracks simultaneously and then mix them down ready for distribution over the Internet using MP3 or for burning onto a demo CD. To help produce professional recordings, each track can be equalised and compressed using FX plug-ins. Since Vegas is Direct-X compatible, you can purchase third part plug-ins such as the Sonic Foundry Noise Reduction plug-in, the Acoustic Mirror or XFX Plug-ins to further enhance
your recordings.

Whilst the manual contains just enough information to get you started, the on-screen help is excellent, as is the user interface. Using a tape recorder and mixing desk analogy, recording, rewinding, editing and volume control is a simple matter of pressing the appropriate button and adjusting the sliders. In fact, the only thing missing is the splice tape and offcuts on the floor.

Even though the base hardware requirements are modest, Vegas needs a fast (and large) hard disk and lots of memory to get the most benefit. Performance was excellent when mixing around 12 tracks on a Pentium II with 64Mb of RAM. However, the system was struggling when attempting to edit a video soundtrack so if you plan on doing serious multitrack mixing, a Pentium III would be a good investment.

Although the $995 price tag probably precludes buying Vegas for Karaoke, when you consider the cost of hiring a recording studio, it does not take much studio time to recover your software investment. For people involved in multimedia, video or audio production or for those who want to produce a top quality demo CD, Vegas Pro is a must.