Pro Tools Artist Perpetual is Avid’s entry-level DAW for music creation, offering 100+ plugins, MIDI tools, virtual instruments, and cloud collaboration, all in the industry-standard Pro Tools session format.
Music Creation Environment
Pro Tools Artist is designed as a complete music creation package, bundling a large collection of plugins, loops, and samples to spark ideas. It includes virtual instruments like GrooveCell, SynthCell, Boom, Mini Grand, and Xpand, giving you thousands of sounds to explore and tweak. The environment emphasizes speed and fluidity, allowing you to build songs quickly and experiment without stopping playback.
MIDI tools are central to the workflow, with features like auto-conforming loops that match your session tempo. You can use the Retrospective MIDI Record to capture improvisations you didn’t hit record on. Folder tracks help you rearrange parts, and MIDI Real-Time Properties let you add humanistic dynamics. Ableton Link support lets you connect your favorite electronic instruments and apps for collaborative jams.
Audio Recording and Editing
The DAW supports high-quality audio recording at up to 32-bit floating/192 kHz resolution, with seamless punch and loop recording and automated playlist tracking. The audio comping workflow is designed to help you create the perfect take easily, cycling through playlist takes to find the best performance. With any Core Audio, ASIO, or WASAPI-compatible interface, you can record into Pro Tools Artist.
Editing is flexible and creative, letting you shape, fix, chop, and tweak audio and MIDI freely. Elastic Audio allows you to fix timing, beat match, and correct notes. Melodyne is integrated via ARA 2 for real-time pitch and time manipulation. You can also turn audio to MIDI or vice-versa to change instruments or edit notes, expanding your creative possibilities.
Mixing and Automation
Mixing in Pro Tools Artist is powered by over 120 included plugins, including the Artist Bundle, which offers classic analog-style compressors, EQs, and effects. The automation system is advanced and accurate, allowing you to automate track volumes, panning, plugin settings, and sends to craft your best mixes. Avid control surfaces, from the free Avid Control app to the modular S6, offer deep integration for hands-on control.
The Pro Tools Sketch Window, introduced in 2023.9, provides a non-linear, clip-based tool for capturing and arranging ideas with samples and loops. You can drag clips to the Edit Window for further work. Cloud Collaboration lets you share projects with anyone, and the Pro Tools session format is the industry standard, so you can take your music to any professional studio.
Distribution and Collaboration
Pro Tools Artist includes AvidPlay, which offers music distribution to streaming platforms like Apple Music, Spotify, TIDAL, Deezer, TikTok, and Amazon Music. It supports high-quality audio at 24-bit/192 kHz, including Dolby Atmos music, while allowing you to keep 100% of your rights and earnings. This makes it easy to get your music heard worldwide.
Collaboration is built-in with Cloud Collaboration, enabling you to work on projects with others anywhere. You can share ideas and files seamlessly, whether you’re working with a producer across the globe or in the same room. The session format is a universal language, ensuring compatibility across the Pro Tools family.
Key features
- 100+ bundled plugins including the Artist Bundle
- Virtual instruments: GrooveCell, SynthCell, Boom, Mini Grand, Xpand
- 32-bit floating / 192 kHz audio resolution
- Elastic Audio and integrated Melodyne via ARA 2
- Retrospective MIDI Record and real-time properties
- Cloud Collaboration and Pro Tools Sketch Window
- AvidPlay distribution with high-quality streaming support
Best for
Best for songwriters, beatmakers, and home studio musicians who want a professional-grade DAW with industry-standard session compatibility, extensive MIDI tools, and comprehensive mixing plugins, plus a direct path to streaming distribution.