Pro Tools Ultimate vs. Studio

[Martin (Punky) Sopart]

Hello all!

I'm thinking about changing my Ultimate to a Studio subscritption.
Are there any disadvantages regarding accessibility?
In addition to Pro Tools I'm using the Carbon, a S1 and the Dock.

Thanks in advance and best wishes! / Martin

[Brian Casey]

I accidentally swapped my subscriptions recently and hadn’t noticed any differences either way…but in the midst of a busy studio schedule O also haven’t had time to explore any further…they seem to be identical bar some unlocked features in ultimate.

Sent from my smart-ish phone!

> On 24/06/2025, at 8:59 AM, Martin (Punky) Sopart <ma...@cakewalker.de> wrote:
>
> Hello all!

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[Steve Baskis]

Some information off the Internet:

=== PRO TOOLS VERSIONS DETAILED COMPARISON ===

1. AUDIO TRACK COUNT:
- Artist: Up to 32 audio tracks
- Studio: Up to 512 audio tracks
- Ultimate: Up to 2,048 audio tracks

2. INSTRUMENT TRACK COUNT:
- Artist: Up to 32 instrument tracks
- Studio: Up to 512 instrument tracks
- Ultimate: Up to 512 instrument tracks

3. MIDI TRACK COUNT:
- Artist: Up to 64 MIDI tracks
- Studio: Up to 1,024 MIDI tracks
- Ultimate: Up to 1,024 MIDI tracks

4. AUXILIARY TRACK COUNT:
- Artist: Up to 32 aux tracks
- Studio: Up to 128 aux tracks
- Ultimate: Up to 1,024 aux tracks

5. SIMULTANEOUS AUDIO INPUTS:
- Artist: Up to 16 simultaneous inputs
- Studio: Up to 64 simultaneous inputs
- Ultimate: Up to 256 inputs (using HDX systems)

6. VIDEO TRACK SUPPORT:
- Artist: No video support
- Studio: Single video track supported for playback
- Ultimate: Full support for multiple video tracks with editing features

7. SURROUND SOUND AND SPATIAL AUDIO:
- Artist: No support for surround or spatial audio
- Studio: Supports up to 7.1.2 surround and Dolby Atmos
- Ultimate: Supports Dolby Atmos 7.1.4 and Ambisonics (3D audio)

8. AUTOMATION FEATURES:
- Artist: Basic volume and pan automation only
- Studio: Full automation including plugin parameters
- Ultimate: Comprehensive automation suite with preview, capture, and snapshot modes

9. CLIP EFFECTS (REAL-TIME EFFECTS PER CLIP):
- Artist: Playback only, no editing
- Studio: Full clip effects support
- Ultimate: Full clip effects support

10. VCA TRACKS (FOR GROUP MIXING CONTROL):
- Artist: Not supported
- Studio: Up to 128 VCA tracks
- Ultimate: Up to 128 VCA tracks

11. FIELD RECORDER WORKFLOWS:
- Artist: Not supported
- Studio: Not supported
- Ultimate: Fully supported

12. HEAT INTEGRATION (Avid’s analog-style saturation plugin):
- Artist: Not supported
- Studio: Supported
- Ultimate: Supported

13. AVID CONTROL SURFACE SUPPORT:
- Artist: Limited support
- Studio: Full support for EUCON and other surfaces
- Ultimate: Full support including S6 and S4 hardware

14. DOLBY ATMOS INTEGRATION:
- Artist: Not supported
- Studio: Basic Dolby Atmos mixing support
- Ultimate: Advanced Dolby Atmos integration for theatrical and immersive audio

15. PRO TOOLS | CARBON INTERFACE COMPATIBILITY:
- Artist: Not compatible with Carbon interface
- Studio: Fully compatible with Carbon and Hybrid Engine for low-latency tracking
- Ultimate: Fully compatible and optimized for Carbon, including maximum DSP offloading

16. APPROXIMATE PRICE (Subscription):
- Artist: About $10 per month
- Studio: About $32 per month
- Ultimate: About $100 per month

=== SUMMARY ===
- Pro Tools Artist is ideal for hobbyists and beginners.
- Pro Tools Studio is built for professionals in music production needing surround, advanced tools, and Carbon support.
- Pro Tools Ultimate is intended for large studios, film, and broadcast, with the highest track count and deepest toolset.

> On Jun 24, 2025, at 03:59, Martin (Punky) Sopart <ma...@cakewalker.de> wrote:
>
> Hello all!

[Nick Gawronski]

Hi Steve, I love this information.  I currently have a Pro Tools studio
yearly subscription and will be getting one of the new M5 mac book pro
systems when they come out.  I do not mind waiting for Pro Tools support
as I need a working mac book pro for other tasks that only the mac can
do.  I was wondering can I change to a yearly Pro Tools ultimate
subscription and can the ultimate version run on a laptop or does it
require cards to be installed into the system like the other high end
versions did?  Nick Gawronski