Yamaha DTXpress/DTXplorer/DTXtreme

That's a toughie.
I've used both and I they've both got their strengths.

I've used Cakewalk Pro Audio since version 2 and now I'm up to v9 so I guess I'm biased, but it really is easy to use and conforms to
the Windows standards more readily than Cubase. There are loads of good features - Guitar Tuner/Tab notation, Style Enhancer, etc. plus all the usual stuff. DirectX plugin support is good but there's no VST plugin support. If you've got outboard gear you can control it with StudioWare (although I'm not sure this is included with the basic package). The learning curve is really shallow - you'll be up and running in no time. Results are very good and the latency is extremely low. All in all, a very stable and easy to use program.

If you want sheer "blow-you-away" appearance and twiddly stuff then Cubase is the choice. The program looks simply stunning
and has got loads of knobs and sliders and LEDs to play with. It actually runs and feels more like a "proper" studio than Cakewalk and consequently prefers a system with a good quality soundcard. If you can master Cubase (and that takes some doing), you could easily slip into a professional MIDI studio and have an idea about what you're doing. It's also got tons of features, DirectX and native VST support, outboard-gear control and is just so much more professional than Cakewalk.

In summary then,
Cakewalk - 
Pros : Simple, powerful and stable. Nothing too complicated. Easy to set up and use. Version 9 has very low latency and nice extras.
Cons: No VST plugin support.

Cubasis/Cubase - 
Pros: Sheer total control. VERY professional. Loads of features (more than you'll ever need).  Visually - the dog's bollocks.
Cons : Can be overly complex. High learning curve. Harder on system resources than Cakewalk. Doesn't like cheap soundcards.

I could go on for years, but I hope this helps you. My suggestion is to get demo versions of each from the Web and see what you think.



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