Conclusion
Ultimately, Live 10 and Logic Pro X are both comprehensive in their provision of MIDI and audio recording, editing and mixing facilities, bundled plugins and brilliantly realised workflows, so deciding between them comes down to three things.
First, the kind of music you make. Even with Logic now equipped for loop-based recording and arrangement, Live’s interface, workflow and devices just fit better for dance and electronic music. And although there’s no reason why you couldn’t record and mix a band or produce chart-friendly pop in Live, Logic was built for exactly those kinds of jobs, which is why it ranks second only to Pro Tools as the platform of choice in professional studios across the globe.
Second, what kind of producer are you? Do you like to keep your sessions creative and fast-moving, or are you more of a tinkerer, happy to take your time finessing sounds and arrangements, but requiring the most powerful engineering tools you can get your hands on to do it? Again, both can absolutely play to either approach, but Live’s slick, modernist interface inspires the former, while Logic’s deeper editing and mixing functionality lend it more to the latter.
Finally, budget, which is such a personal consideration that we can’t really offer any guidance beyond saying that if you can’t afford Live 10 Suite but aren’t short on third-party plugins, Live 10 Standard is well worth thinking about.
Predictably, when the dust has cleared, neither of these two music production powerhouses qualify as markedly ‘better’ than the other in any category, with the exception of ‘Value for money’, where Apple’s unrivalled market power lets them knock Logic out at a
frankly silly price.