Skip to main content
Music Radar MusicRadar The No.1 website for musicians
  • Guitars
  • Amps
  • Pedals
  • Drums
  • Synths
  • Software
  • Pianos
  • Controllers
  • Recording
  • Buyer’s guides
  • Live
  • DJ
  • Advice
  • Acoustic
  • Bass
  • About Us
  • More
    • Reviews
Magazines
  • Computer Music
  • Electronic Musician
  • Future Music
  • Keyboard Magazine
  • Guitarist
  • Guitar Techniques
  • Total Guitar
  • Bass Player
More
  • How to make an AI cover song
  • 30 beautiful acoustic guitar chords
  • 86000+ free music samples

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

  1. News

Paul Hartnoll's favourite music software

By Computer Music
published 16 March 2010

Apple Logic Pro
"I love almost every aspect of it."
(Image credit: Opening image: © SUSI SAEZ/epa/Corbis)

Apple Logic Pro

“Logic Pro is where I do all my writing and I love almost every aspect of it. My favourite bits of it are its openness, the way I can work without it becoming too technical, unless I want it to - then it’s so vast I’d never see the bottom.

"The plug-ins are fantastic, too, but I know people who use Logic and bypass them for third-party ones without even trying them out properly. Fools! The synths are brilliant, as is Ultrabeat, but the sampler could do with being overhauled, as it’s way out of date compared to the competition."

FULL REVIEW: Apple Logic Pro 9

Page 1 of 5
Page 1 of 5
Ableton Live 8
"Without a doubt my favourite live tool."

Ableton Live 8

“Without a doubt my favourite live tool, and I enjoy using it as a studio writing tool as well, but it’s a little bit more haphazard. Live is where I go if I don’t know where I want to go, if you know what I mean. It’s like a fun playground.”

FULL REVIEW: Ableton Live 8

Page 2 of 5
Page 2 of 5
Sonic Charge Synplant
"A really quirky but infinitely usable soft synth."

Sonic Charge Synplant

“This is absolutely incredible. I did a film score recently with just analogue synths and Synplant. It has a different mindset and that’s what you go to it for, plus it’s got some amazing capabilities. There’s the way that it’s like a different sound on each note, which you can then spin while it changes the assignment of where the sound comes from. It’s a really quirky but infinitely usable soft synth.”

FULL REVIEW: Sonic Charge Synplant

Page 3 of 5
Page 3 of 5
GForce impOSCar 2
"One of the few soft synths that I always go to."

GForce impOSCar 2

“We were given a beta copy of this and it’s one of the few soft synths that I always go to. I never feel like I’m compromising my sound by using this program rather than a hardware synth.”

PREVIEW: GForce ImpOSCar 2

Page 4 of 5
Page 4 of 5
LinPlug Albino 3
"I can't replicate it with my hardware analogue synths."

LinPlug Albino 3

“Albino 3 has a really lovely sound to it. If I make a good patch on it, I usually can’t replicate it with my hardware analogue synths, which, to me, is the measure of a good soft synth.”

FIND OUT MORE: LinPlug Albino 3

Page 5 of 5
Page 5 of 5
Computer Music
Computer Music
Social Links Navigation

Computer Music magazine is the world’s best selling publication dedicated solely to making great music with your Mac or PC computer. Each issue it brings its lucky readers the best in cutting-edge tutorials, need-to-know, expert software reviews and even all the tools you actually need to make great music today, courtesy of our legendary CM Plugin Suite.

More about tech
Arturia KeyStep Pro Chroma

Chroma chameleon: Arturia’s limited-edition KeyStep Pro controller comes with blue LEDs and lets you customise the colours of your tracks

Hainbach

“It covers my utilities bill”: German electronic musician Hainbach reveals how much his 1 million Spotify streams earned him in 2023

Latest
Dave Grohl playing drums on Play live, 2018

Watch Dave Grohl unleash a 36-minute live version of his Play instrumental

See more latest ►
Most Popular
We tested 4 of the most popular online e-mastering services and compared them to a real mastering engineer. Here’s what happened

By Stuart Adams1 December 2023

How Gear Acquisition Syndrome almost ruined my life: "I love synths so much that I've lost my grip on reality. Why did I let myself spend 20k on sh*t I don’t even use?"

By Noah Nichols1 December 2023

Alex Lifeson reveals signature LERXST amp line with MojoTone ahead of writing sessions with Geddy Lee

By Rob Laing30 November 2023

Zultan launches Heritage Flat Ride cymbals in two sizes

By Stuart Williams30 November 2023

Harley Benton's new N-150CE guitar might be the ideal excuse to add a resonator to your collection

By Rob Laing30 November 2023

"Right, we've had a break – this is it": Radiohead drummer says band are "coming around to that point" of getting back together

By Andy Jones30 November 2023

"This might not be such a good idea after all": A YouTuber tries to recreate classic $200 ReBirth software with $15,000 worth of original vintage Roland hardware

By Andy Jones30 November 2023

"To say its arrival was earth-shaking would be no exaggeration": why, 40 years on, the Yamaha DX7 was the most important release in synth history, even though it did "make your head dribble"

By Andy Jones30 November 2023

14 tips for producing better techno: "Automate the low-pass filter frequency to create a rhythmic pattern on your bassline"

By Sara Simms30 November 2023

Spotify Wrapped 2023 is here, and Taylor Swift has been crowned the top global artist of the year

By Ben Rogerson30 November 2023

The Pogues vocalist and songwriter Shane MacGowan has died, aged 65

By Rob Laing30 November 2023

  1. The Prodigy
    1
    “It's so offensive that it can't actually mean that”: Have The Prodigy finally changed the lyrics to ‘the most controversial song of all time’?
  2. 2
    How Gear Acquisition Syndrome almost ruined my life: "I love synths so much that I've lost my grip on reality. Why did I let myself spend 20k on sh*t I don’t even use?"
  3. 3
    “It covers my utilities bill”: German electronic musician Hainbach reveals how much his 1 million Spotify streams earned him in 2023
  4. 4
    Why does the Epiphone Greeny Les Paul cost $1,500?
  5. 5
    Get sweet, sweet deals now at Sweetwater
  1. gas
    1
    How Gear Acquisition Syndrome almost ruined my life: "I love synths so much that I've lost my grip on reality. Why did I let myself spend 20k on sh*t I don’t even use?"
  2. 2
    How to create drumless jam tracks or isolated drum tracks of your favourite songs for free
  3. 3
    “It covers my utilities bill”: German electronic musician Hainbach reveals how much his 1 million Spotify streams earned him in 2023
  4. 4
    Why does the Epiphone Greeny Les Paul cost $1,500?
  5. 5
    "There were guitar players weeping, they had to mop the floor up. He was piling it on, solo after solo" – how Jimi Hendrix and Eric Clapton changed guitar forever

MusicRadar is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

  • About Us
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Terms and conditions
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Accessibility Statement
  • Careers

© Future Publishing Limited Quay House, The Ambury, Bath BA1 1UA. All rights reserved. England and Wales company registration number 2008885.