PM Music Band in a Box version 8 for Mac Review

History:

Purchase: I play guitar and sing for fun and occasionally at small, local venues with a focus on swing jazz and ballads. I'm a member of the alljazzguitar listserve and other participants were raving about BiaB. The general consensus was that it was the best thing short of a regular group to play with. I ordered it through my local music store, Northern Music in Potsdam, NY and paid $65.

What I Like About This Unit: It's fairly easy to use. You can download a huge number of files from listserves such as BIAB at Yahoo Groups. I have easily created files, just typing in cord names, choosing a style (sinatra, basie big band, piano trio, jazz swing are just a few) and play away. It also has a special soloist feature which creates a solo on the fly. The solos are a fair intermediate solo in quality, I have copied them and studied them later on. There are a wealth of third party add-ons to purchase more styles for those who want to actually record using BiaB.

What I Do NOT Like About The PM Music Band in a Box version 8 for Mac: I am using Roland software, included with my BiaB, for the musical sounds. The quality isn't the best. If possible use a special sound card.

Band in a Box version 8 for Mac Quality: The software documentation is good.

Summary: I live in a rural area and meeting others to jam isn't always possible. BiaB makes it simple for me to play and jam.

Rating of this product: 5

This PM Music Software Educational Review Submitted By: Victor Caamano

Date: 2001-08-01