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Protools is about one of the best packages for multitrack audio recording and editing.
You gotta see it like this : most sequencers like Cubase and Logic are pretty "modular", you got the arrangement page, and if you want to edit, say a midi or audio event, you use either an internal editor, or a linked external one (Wavelab for example). You got loads of editors in those "modular" systems.
Protools' approach was to have everything as minimalistic (but not in features!) as possible. In protools, you basically have the arrangement page, and the mixer page. Every editing is done in the arrangement page without needing another editor window or program. And the tools are especially well suited for the job (I've not even started talking about Beat Detective which is pure genius).
That's why protools is such a big player in the recording studio's. The features it has to record and edit audio are the best you can find.
Now, the problem is, they used that approach to MIDI also, but know that midi came as an afterwards implementation. In those cases you see that the modular approach from the aformentioned sequencers is better for MIDI. Anyone having done midi on protools will tell you that it's a nightmare (that and the fact, featurewise it's pretty basic, for example groove quantizing has only been added since version 6). Digidesign claim though, that their midiplayback is sample accurate (no time drifting at all). Some people I talked too say, midi editing is better done in another program, but once the editing is done, and needs just to be played back (for recording the final step for example), Protools is good.
Now for the plugins, you got two categories. The big studio versions use DSP cards (TDM, HD, ACCELL). The plugins that run those DSP's are usually refered to TDM plugins. Without the DSP, don't bother.
With the "lighter" systems (Digi001/002, MBox, etc), you have Audiosuite, and RealTime Audiosuite (the first one needs offline processing). VST/AU or other plugin systems are not accepted (another thing I really dislike with Digidesign, they try to keep it as closed as possible). BUT, Fxpansion has written a wrapper to convert regular VST plugs to RTAS.
Know also, that some other sequencers like Logic can use the hardware or audio engine from Digidesign (but you got to choose, if you use Digidesigns audio engine, you can't use VST anymore, that's why the TDM/HD bridge software is for, a very expensive solution). Like you are using Logic as a frontend of Protools. That way you can combine the best of both worlds. Needless to say, this is only an option for very fortunate people.
So what advantage does Protools offer? It really depends what you're doing with it. My opinion is, if you are doing a lot of MIDI based stuff, it has no advantage at all, on the contrary. Better stay with Cubase or Logic. But if your main focus is audio recording (live recording and mixing of bands for example), there it will show it's real power.
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