So I just recieved VDL:2 for Christmas and I thought that ACID Music Studio would count as a sequencer...apparently not.  I can't seem to get the files or .dll's to the right place in order to work.  It soon came to my attention that apparently ACID Music Studio is not widely used in this genre/industry/hobby (or at all it seems.)  This is because when I did a search for it, the only topic I found relating helpfully to the software was a topic I myself posted 9 months ago, *slaps face*.  So, I am now in the process of trying to figure out what would be the best notation software to use so I can actually make things with the samples I have now.  Is there preference between Finale, Sibelius, Cubase, etc.?  And also, what would be the cheapest preferably?

Well there is a big difference between Sibelius/Finale and DAW based software such as Cubase/Logic/DP/Pro Tools.

Sibelius and Finale are dedicated notation programs.  Cubase and the other DAWs are usually geared for total music production, and have audio and MIDI recording features, editing, and mixing features that are not found in notation software.  You have much more control over score and notation features with Finale and Sibelius than you would with a DAW.  VDL users many times use both types of software, using the notaion software to create the score then the DAW software to tweek the audio files.

Both Finale and Sibelius are around the same price, and both offer student versions I believe.  Cubase and others can range from $100-$1,000.

I would think that you will find that differences between Finale and Sibelius are similar to the differences between brands of cars (Ford, Chevy, etc.).  There will be some folks that swear by one or the other and will defend that opinion to their last breath.  I am sort of a ";tweener";.  I was a die-hard Finale user for around a dozen or so years.  That was the program my college had in its labs and by default, I learned that.  Once I graduated, I bought Finale and continued as that was the program I was used to (and Sibelius was not available then).  Years later, I checked out a demo of Sibelius and liked what I saw and decided to make the switch.  It was tricky at first, and to be honest, somewhat frustrating while I was in the ";transition"; stage as I would think of things in a Finale-like way but couldn't find the Sibelius equivalent as quickly as I would like.  Eventually, I have found that frustration has given way to a much easier and logical work-flow.  Again, this is just my opinion.  I think that the bottom line is anything you can write on a piece of manuscript paper, both Finale and Sibelius can put those things on paper in a ";professional"; looking way.  I would recommend checking out a demo of each and go from there...

Okay, thanks for the input, I'll check out each of their demos and see which one i like. 
Also, would ACID Music Studio be a DAW?

One more thing, I just re-read your initial post and saw where you mentioned cost.  If you are either a student or educator (or a church musician/minister I think), you can get either Finale or Sibelius with a pretty deep discount compared to the normal off the shelf price.  I don't know if any of those apply to you personally but I thought it was worth mentioning...

Ya, thanks, I am going to see if I can get a discount by being a high school student, but I dont know if it will work or not, but I think my dad is going to contact them or something.

You should qualify for the educational discounts then.  Contact a dealer for details on this (such as www.sweetwater.com)

[url=http://www.sweetwater.com]Sweetwater[/url] is great. You can also find good deals on educational priced software at [url=http://www.academicsuperstore.com]Academic Superstore[/url].

Many software developers will simply ask you to supply a copy of your student ID or a class schedule to show current enrollment when you're registering the software. As a currently enrolled high school student, you should easily qualify for this.

[quote author=Dave Ratliff link=topic=1474.msg6813#msg6813 date=1167146557]
I would think that you will find that differences between Finale and Sibelius are similar to the differences between brands of cars (Ford, Chevy, etc.).�� There will be some folks that swear by one or the other and will defend that opinion to their last breath.�� I am sort of a ";tweener";.�� I was a die-hard Finale user for around a dozen or so years.�� That was the program my college had in its labs and by default, I learned that.�� Once I graduated, I bought Finale and continued as that was the program I was used to (and Sibelius was not available then).�� Years later, I checked out a demo of Sibelius and liked what I saw and decided to make the switch.�� It was tricky at first, and to be honest, somewhat frustrating while I was in the ";transition"; stage as I would think of things in a Finale-like way but couldn't find the Sibelius equivalent as quickly as I would like.�� Eventually, I have found that frustration has given way to a much easier and logical work-flow.�� Again, this is just my opinion.�� I think that the bottom line is anything you can write on a piece of manuscript paper, both Finale and Sibelius can put those things on paper in a ";professional"; looking way.�� I would recommend checking out a demo of each and go from there...
[/quote]

This almost exactly describes my story of evolving from Finale to Sibelius. Only now, I'm a die-hard Sibelius user.

If you are considering going into music for your college major, you might want to contact some of the univ's you are interested in to see which program they use. If the consensus is still Finale, you might want to go ahead and learn that.

I truly think Sibelius is considerably easier to use (and thus time-saving -- very important to me), but if choose Sibelius only to go off to college to learn Finale, it might not be worth all of the confusion. And vice versa.

Still, checking out demo's of each is DEFINITELY the way to go. Good advice, Dave!

[quote author=Jim Casella link=topic=1474.msg6828#msg6828 date=1167182788]
[url=http://www.sweetwater.com]Sweetwater[/url] is great. You can also find good deals on educational priced software at [url=http://www.academicsuperstore.com]Academic Superstore[/url].

Many software developers will simply ask you to supply a copy of your student ID or a class schedule to show current enrollment when you're registering the software. As a currently enrolled high school student, you should easily qualify for this.
[/quote]

AVnintendo , make sure you pay attention to the version you buy.�� I know that Sibelius offers an educational version which is exactly the same as the regular software, however the student edition is a scaled down version and I have no idea if it has VST support or not.�� Sibelius 4 runs for around $500 regular priced, and the educational package is $250.

Finale also offers the educational discount, which is $300.�� The regular version goes for $500, so Sibelius is a bit cheaper for the discount.

(Sweetwater prices)

[quote author=erath link=topic=1474.msg6836#msg6836 date=1167198205]
I truly think Sibelius is considerably easier to use (and thus time-saving -- very important to me), but if choose Sibelius only to go off to college to learn Finale, it might not be worth all of the confusion. And vice versa.
[/quote]

Two VERY true statements here that I agree with COMPLETELY!

Finale Retails at $600 and the Education�� Price direct from Finale is $350.�� You may be able to find the Academic pricing for much cheaper at a Guitar Center ar Sweetwater, etc.�� In fact, I have seen it for $249 in some places.�� The Student Edition of Sibelius also has less features than PrintMusic does and I�� do not believe it has VST support since Sibelius 4 does not have VST support from within the program.�� This is not the Full version sold at Academic Pricing, this is the Student Edition.

Sibelius Student Edition = Finale PrintMusic

Thanks again, I'll look into Sweetwater later, and my current new question is that for Finale and Sibelius 2007 (which seem to be the only versions you can get right now) VDL2 works with them right?  cause at the updates page I didnt see the 2007 template.  And also I'm kinda dissappointed that I cant add VDL2 to the demo, haha.

To be used within the program you would need Finale 2007.  Right now there are only templates that go to Finale 2006.  These templates can be used with Finale 2007, however.  VDL2 can be used with PrintMusic as well but you have no options on editing the percussion maps that are given.  These FInale 2006 templates could be used with that program as well.  However, if you use PrintMusic 2007, you would need to use VDL in some other program or Standalone mode outside of PrintMusic.

And yes, ACID is more of a DAW.