If you’ve ever thought about recording or creating music tracks digitally, or if you were wondering if it’s possible to collaborate with other producers and musicians remotely, Soundtrap could be the answer.
Soundtrap, owned by Spotify, is a free version, cross-platform, DAW (digital audio workstation) collaboration application.
It has collaborative features that allow you to come together with artists and music makers all over the world through smartphones, tablets, laptops, and desktop computers.
If you are new to Soundtrap, have recently heard of it, or want to know more about it, you’ll learn everything you need to know about all the features of Soundtrap from this review.
We’ll cover a range of Soundtrap’s features and go over its benefits and drawbacks, so that you can decide if the software is right for you.
| 🏆 Best Overall  | 🥇 Best Hosting  | 🚀 Growing  | 🎤 Distribution  |
| | | | |
Soundtrap And Its Features
Soundtrap delivers a lot of features that help home-recording musicians create professional sounding music (also see, ‘How To Soundproof A Room For Podcast Perfection‘).
You receive access to a library full of different sounds, virtual instruments, and an easy-to-use DAW that helps you collaborate and record music with others.
We’ll cover each of Soundtrap’s features in more detail below.
Cloud And Social
The Soundtrap platform has collaborative, cloud, and social features that make it stand out.
You can collaborate with others through video and voice chat, which helps the creative process go by smoothly.
You’ll be able to communicate in real-time about any edits and what you need from others to finish the tracks you’re working on.
Any projects you create will be saved to the cloud, so you can access your files from computers all around the world.
The collaboration process is also a breeze with this platform. You can tag new collaborators in your music production whenever you want. This is done by sending the artist an invite through their profile or via email.
Music Editing
Soundtrap has a lot of music editing features that musicians will find useful. You can use detailed tools that can help you create anything from clean, simple songs to in-depth, modern pop tracks.
Here are some of the features that Soundtrap has to offer:
- Able to connect personal guitars, amps, and various instruments
- Includes Antares Auto-Tune
- Many pre-set, ready-to-use loops, sound effects
- Various instruments, from drum machines, piano roll, to synths
- Automation abilities to fine-tune sweep, pan, and others
- Instinctive sequencer to create beats
- Soundtrap originals sound packs
There are just some of the features that are included with any basic DAW. Soundtrap has several more features that make it a notable software.
Soundtrap Capture
Soundtrap Capture is a separate app that is included with a Soundtrap account. This app lets you draft tracks with other artists and professional musicians quickly and efficiently.
The app lets users digitally gather in a shared area, letting them upload vocals, instrumentals, and beats in a basic DAW.
It doesn’t have any complex characteristics, just basic ones. You’ll be able to draft a new track before working on it later in the Soundtrap app.
Storytellers Feature
This feature is made with podcasters in mind. No matter what type of podcast you want to make, Soundtrap has the features to help you create it.
Soundtrap Storytellers lets you oversee your guests, fine-tune audio songs, and even make a specific jingle with the app.
Musicians may not find these features particularly noteworthy, but it’s a good thing to know that there are extra features that will help you record non-musical audio files.
Education
Another feature that makes Soundtrap a great app is that it concentrates on education. Soundtrap for Education lets students of all ages learn about creating music.
This is a nice choice for students without recording studio access or costly DAW gear.
Soundtrap Process
Now we’ll go through how to use Soundtrap, from signing up for an account to collaborating with other musicians.
The process begins with signing up for an account. You, along with any other musicians you want to work with, will require individual Soundtrap accounts.
Several plans suit musicians with different styles, as well as bare-bones options suited for podcasting.
You can also choose the ‘try before you purchase’ option, where you sign up for free for access to the basic features, then pay later if you like the software.
Once you have made and signed into your account, you’ll see the main DAW.
Unlike other complex DAWs that are hard for beginners to understand, Soundtrap has created an elegant DAW that is instinctive and efficient.
Anyone new to DAWs will find Soundtracks features easy to comprehend. You can also look through their tutorial guidelines to see guides and videos that can help newbies navigate the software.
The program won’t be equipped with expensive DAW features, but it still has enough to help you create music.
If you’re ready to start your first session and need a beat, you can use the midi keyboard, drum pad, and loops to establish the base of your song.
These details work very well, even as well as the ones seen in professional DAWs. You can use the sequencer to make personalized beats and add various music effects later.
Collaborating And Creating Tracks
Another reason why Soundtrap is such a good piece of software is down to its remote collaboration abilities, as you can invite other musicians to create music together.
This involves pressing the ‘invite’ button, then tagging others with their email or Soundtrap username.
You can work with endless musicians to create the music you need. Artists can sing, play instruments, or perform any creative expressions that are needed.
Collaborators can make edits, record vocals or instruments, and add music to the shared files.
One thing to remember is that the edits won’t occur in real time. The changes will only be visible after they are saved and synchronized.
You may need time to get used to this, particularly if you’re working with many musicians at one time.
Fortunately, you can get around this issue with the video chat setting. Soundtrap has a video chat ability that lets you collaborate with any artist you are working with.
This lets you update the files as you go, so it feels like you’re jamming out together instead of online.
Connectivity And Cross-Platform Compatibility
Another benefit of Soundtrap is it is a cross-platform app, so artists working on desktops, Apple, or Android devices can all collaborate.
All that is needed is a stable internet connection and musical ability to get the most out of Soundtrap.
A lot of people refer to Soundtrap as the ‘Google Docs’ of DAWs. You may notice that it feels similar once you start working with others.
Soundtrap is one of the perfect cloud-compatible platforms to mix and record songs, just like Google Docs is for creating papers and documents.
Recording, Mixing, And Editing
Once you’ve signed up for an account, and have all the collaborators set up together, you can now start recording, making, and editing your music track.
Soundtrap has a lot of features that help you create music without the need for a recording studio.
The application has built-in loops, automation, and auto-tune abilities, allowing you to edit the music you’re working on as necessary, then export it after it’s finished.
Ownership And Copyright
Many people may be concerned over this point. Everyone knows about ‘terms of service’ documents with sneaky phrases giving social media applications ownership of our content.
This is a huge worry for artists that post their music online and are concerned about businesses taking advantage of them.
Fortunately, Soundtrap’s terms of service give you total copyright and ownership over any music you make with the app.
This won’t be the case if you have a label or studio contract, but most of the musicians creating music with Soundtrap will own all of the tracks they create with the software.
Advantages Of Soundtrap
- Collaborative video chat ability
- Extensive library full of ready-to-use instruments, beats, drums, and loops
- Easy to work with other artists in different locations
- Focus on education to help students and teachers learn
- Can create professional-sounding tracks with the software – as long as the artists are skilled
- Terms of service give musicians and artists control of their music – unless signed to a label or studio
Disadvantages of Soundtrap
- All of the files are stored on the cloud, so they are affected by Spotify’s servers
- Can only receive optimum results if you have a stable, strong internet connection
- Good for working long distances, but a different recording system will be needed to record a full ensemble in a studio
- Any edits to tracks don’t occur in real-time, they are only visible after they are saved
Is Soundtrap Worth It?
Soundtrap is online software that acts as a digital DAW. It allows artists to collaborate on music when they cannot work together in one location.
The app has lots of editing features, like drum machines, auto-tune, and video chat.
It also works well with different instruments and vocal recording gear, which makes collaborating on music go by smoothly.
The software has other features, like Soundtrap Storytellers and Education, which just add to the functionality of this application.
If you want to work with other musicians, but cannot gather in one shared space to do so, Soundtrap is a great solution.
Distance is no longer a limitation when it comes to making music that you love.
