Today everything is paperless. Companies save on packaging and manuals; if you're lucky, there's a PDF, but usually it's only available online. Service isn't improving; they're simply streamlining wherever they can. Every business student learns the principle at university: profit, profit, profit.

The management class, on the other hand, is well-educated and highly paid, but they've lost all connection to the musician and the user at home. They're trapped in numbers and the pressure to generate profits. It's all about improving quarterly figures and outmaneuvering the competition.

I wish someone would invent a DAW that's bug-free and free. Maybe Elon Musk will have a change of heart and give a few billion dollars to his users as a thank you. I think the Indians would do something like that.

Otherwise, save your treasures and old DAW versions to a physical storage device.

 

They'll ruin it. If not now, in the next couple of years. RIP Studio One.

 

Yep. I predicted this a couple of years ago, but got slammed by all my fellow S1 fanbois and diehards at the time. I totally saw (and continue to observe) another Cakewalk situation unfolding. Gibson didn’t muck up Cakewalk right away; that happened over a 24 - 36 month period. I’ve been a loyal, legit PreSonus Studio One guy since v2, but ever since PreSonus whored themselves out to Fender, I’ve been trying really hard to become equally skilled and comfortable with Reaper, as I had been with Studio One over the last 13 or 14 years.

I’ve customized my personal installation of Reaper quite a lot, and it certainly is a powerful DAW. Nevertheless, Studio One Pro 6.62 is the sweet spot for me. I have a legit (perpetual) ver 7 license too. I decided to use R2R’s original “Fix” though, because even the legit v7 perpetual license requires periodic phone home checks to verify; monthly, I think. I don’t bother with most of the Studio One add-ons and virtual instruments, so I don’t care if some of the extra ‘stuff’ requires activation, just so long as the DAW itself and all the built-in Studio One plugins work.

I’m getting older (getting close to 6 decades old), so I don’t give a hoot about most of the new directions that e-music and modern, experimental ambient sounds seem to take a lot of younger musicians and mixers; I’m mostly still hammering out REAL music tracks, in a traditional audio DAW workflow, just the same as I did with Cakewalk and Cubase 28 years ago - which was not-so-different from my multitrack tape and small mixing desk days . . .LOL. Obviously, I’m not alone, else people like Warren Huart and Dave Pensado wouldn’t have gazillions of followers on YouTube . . . Jus sayin.

I use lots of MIDI in the form of Rhodes and Wurli sample libraries, Horns libraries, and EZ drummer 3 (and Superior Drummer 3). Shoot, one of my latest tracks ended up with EZ Drummer 2 on it. Some of my favourite keyboard sample libraries weigh less than 500 MB and are like 15 years old! So what!? They sounded great then, and still sound great in a mix. For example: all the original Scarbee vintage keys. Precision Sound; Dusty Electric Piano, Hollow Sun; Definitive CP70 Electric Grand.

Especially in North America, and other western civilizations, many people suffer terribly from FOMO (fear of missing out), so upgrading amd updating, and spending new money almost yearly, to enable companies to remain viable is “a thing”. Well, not me! I have no interest in ‘upgrading’ my aging wife, or my old ‘92 Strat, or my older sample libraries. Fender can take a flying leap with their gougey “continous revenue stream” tactics! If my legit licenses for Studio One versions 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 ever fail to activate, I have all the necessary R2R fixes saved away for any rainy day. So there! Old guy rant over.

 

Last edited: Jan 13, 2026 at 9:26 PM

SoGlad I never went down the S1 rabbit hole.

 

A unique characteristic of human species which doesn't exist in animal kingdom: great achievements of intelligent and competent individuals are systematically ruined by incompetent idiots.

Fortunately, the return to Cubase will be greatly facilitated by the disappearance of Syncroshit...

 

Fender Studio Pro 8: Studio One DAW gets major upgrade without PreSonus branding - Jauary 13, 2026

NAMM 2026: Fender Studio Pro is the latest version of its Studio One DAW with major new features but without PreSonus branding

There’s a lot happening in the DAW world. Last week, Landr acquired Reason Studios. Today, there’s also a subscription option for Logic Pro with a preview of new features. And PreSonus Studio One users will also have to get used to something new.

Since November 2021, PreSonus has been part of Fender. Today, Fender has taken the next step and become a recording brand by integrating the Studio One DAW, renaming it Fender Studio Pro, and including the matching hardware.



Fender
Many people today associate the name Fender with a famous guitar brand that builds great instruments. However, this has changed in recent years.

For example, since 2021, the brand has also owned PreSonus, the company that develops, among other things, the Studio One DAW.

The consolidation process is entering its next phase today. Many existing PreSonus products are getting new names and a new look.

This includes the PreSonus Studio One DAW, now called Fender Studio Pro, and new redesigned audio interfaces and MIDI controllers.



Fender Studio Pro 8 DAW
If you’re a current Studio One user, there’s nothing to worry about. Fender Studio Pro 8 builds on where PreSonus Studio One 7 left off, with a new name and features. It includes UI updates, Fender Mustang, and Rumble native plugins, and more.

The Mustang and Rumble native are multi-FX processors and are exclusive to the Fender Studio app and Fender Studio Pro available. They offer 57 guitar and bass amp models and 100+ effects.



Then, you can work with the new Studio Verb, a new algorithmic reverb plugin that covers a wide range of sounds and applications, from small drum rooms to massive and lush artificial spaces.

Its tactile user interface and comprehensive set of tone-shaping controls invite creative sound design. It has a unique ping button that opens new possibilities for shaping reverbs.

It sends a short burst of noise into the reverb, triggering the full frequency spectrum of the effect, allowing users to shape the reverb sound intuitively with better audible feedback than any other instrument can provide.

Also new is the Voice FX collection, featuring six FX types: De-Tuner, Delay, Transformer, Filters, Ring Modulator, and Vocoder. These are useful for podcasts and voice-over productions.



The popular VU meter plug-in, which previously had been a separate download, is now pre-installed as part of the Native FX plug-in set.

Further, the Impact and Sample One virtual instruments have received more features, including extended loop crossfade time, sample fade-in/out controls, and more. That’s not all.

Sample One now also includes a complete modulation matrix, similar to those in Presence and Mai Tai. The mod matrix offers up to 16 patch points, each with 14 sources and 24 destinations.

Alongside this, it also features a new Splice integration, AI features like the Chord assistant, an audio-to-note function, and more

Other new features & improvements are:

• new arrangement overview (single mixer channel strip view)
• new channel overview
• musical metronome
• customizable track controls
• reverse single/double click behavior for instruments and effects
• session import from Fender Studio
• and more

First Impression
I was concerned that the name change would lead to further changes. However, it appears to be Studio One, just with a new name and expanded feature set. The new additions look great, especially the classic virtual instruments, which have been significantly improved.

More integrated effects in a DAW are also very welcome.

Fender Studio Pro 8 is available now for $199,99. Existing Studio One 7 users can upgrade to Studio Pro 8 for $99.99 / £89.99 / €99.99, while the Fender Studio 1.2 update is free across all platforms.

More information here: Fender

Source: https://synthanatomy.com/2026/01/fender-studio-pro-the-new-studio-one-daw-with-presonus.html

 

Hopefully Fender won't change Studio One's workflow which is the main reason why I still use it after 11 years.

 

Well, although not FREE, Reaper comes mighty darn close to capably fulfilling all the criteria. Technically, you can use Reaper without actually buying it, but since a regular license only costs $60, and covers approximately 4 to 5 years of updates, it’s the most affordable Pro-grade DAW in the world. When I first started dabbling with Reaper, I was very put off by how it looked, but after diving in and learning how to customize it and actually use it, it’s frikkin’ amazing how powerful it is. AND. . . AND it is miles ahead of every other DAW in how resource freindly it is. Reaper scales better, and it spreads out multicore allocations 10x better than Studio One 6.x or S1 7.x.

 

I guess that's why there weren't any major updates as promised, for the v7 subscribers throughout the year - they were busy getting this thing up and running. They got some signature features from other DAWs, that FX strip from Ableton. I saw that the paid promotion videos went up simultaneously today but it's already talked about it as being guitarists-oriented. We'll see soon enough as the plot unfolds in real time.

EDIT: Gregor is mad as hell in that announcement video.

 

Last edited: Jan 14, 2026 at 12:05 AM

Yes, and I don't even like the application itself. That's no statement on how good it is, I know it is. It's subjective and
for me I just don't get on with it and prefer others.
Anyway, more to the point - weird sort of power move from Fender. I could be wrong of course, but I think it's a bit late in the day for them to create an identity for themselves as a major player in the DAW market, to associate themselves fully with that, under their own branding, etc. That being the case, if it does prove to be the case, I think it just devalues The DAW Formerly Known As Presonus Studio One and I can't see what they hope to gain from erasing the Presonus name from the chalkboard and replacing it with their own, apart from as an attempt to throw their venerable guitar, bass and amp shaped hat into this ring.

 

Even the Quantum HD8 sound card is made by Fender!

 

Fender has owned Presonus and Studio One for five years.

 

Even better reason to not screw around with the name.

 

After the unsuccessful Fender Studio Pro name, the next version will be called Trump Studio Bro.

What's new:
No third party plugins are supported.

 

Last edited: Jan 14, 2026 at 7:33 AM

This is the new Fender "Studiocaster" only avaliable for Studio One customers. (price TBA)

 

Last edited: Jan 14, 2026 at 7:22 AM

As an EDM producer, seeing the 'Fender' logo in my studio feels fundamentally wrong. 47 guitar effects? What on earth is that about?

To be honest, the CEO’s appearance was painful to watch a total relic of the 'Stone Age' reading off a script without a clue.
The YouTubers promoting it aren't any better; they’re just visionless yes-men who praise everything without a single critical thought.
It’s exhausting. (Gregors endless annyoing smile for example)

And let’s talk about the UI: still not properly scalable. I suppose the grandpas they’re targeting now will get a magnifying glass included in the box just to see anything on a 4K monitor. It's embarrassing.

Imagine a friend on Bitwig asking what I use, and I have to say: 'Fender Studio One.' It sounds ridiculous.

Is this officially the DAW for retirees and those who aspire to be?

 

Last edited: Jan 14, 2026 at 7:55 AM

Have they added the extra fat channel EQs and compressors to the main version, or are they still behind the subscription paywall?

 

the new controllers have fatar pads i thought they only did keybeds?Fender Motion

 

139€ in 2018 or so and its still working perfect with any DAW