Rating System

Here at theDAWstudio.com we have developed a rating system that will help you better compare and distinguish different levels of equipment quality. We don’t use a 1-10 scale or 5 stars, we combine many rating techniques by rating gear in different categories. Each category has between four to six levels to describe the rating of a product. Once you know the system, you can better understand the Reviews and see how much better it is than stars or 1-10.

LEVELRating
FEATURES
EASE-OF-USE
SOUND QUALITY
RELIABILITY
BANG-FOR-THE-BUCK
BUILD
QUALITY

LEVELWhat is the quality level of the gear? Consumer or Professional?
Consumer – Gear that is meant for hobbyists and novices.
Prosumer – Gear priced for hobbyists, but capable of producing Professional level content.
Semi-Pro – Professional gear with corners cut to meet a price point.
Professional – Professional quality gear made to sound amazing and be reliable

FEATURESWhat is the feature set? Does it have tons of options or just the basics?
Minimal – This piece as little more than an on/off switch.
Basic – There are a few features, but nothing out of the ordinary.
Just What You Need – Just enough features to make it cool, but not confusing.
Lots But Confusing – So many cool features that you don’t know where to start.
Full-Featured – Any feature that you could want…it has it.
Includes The Kitchen Sink – Has any feature that you could image and ten more that you couldn’t imagine.

EASE-OF-USEHow easy is it to get the product working?
Rocket Science – Takes an advanced degree to even get sound.
Decent Learning Curve – It might take some time to figure this one out.
Average – It works well out-of-the-box but there are a few things to learn.
Super Easy – It practically runs itself.
A Monkey Could Do It – It literally runs itself and might make you obsolete.

SOUND QUALITYHow good does the piece of equipment sound?
Sounds Like @?$&! – It is painful to listen to (but maybe that is what you want).
Gets By – Not painful, but still not enjoyable.
Good But Not Great – It sounds OK and will work for most circumstances.
Great Sound – It sounds great and impresses most everyone.
Sounds Amazing – It sounds really good putting a smile on your face.
Like Butter – When you hear it, you get chills and your legs get weak.

RELIABILITYHow much trust can you have that the piece will work when most needed?
Wouldn’t Trust It As Far As I Can Throw It – The unit is inconsistent and could combust at any moment.
Questionable – It seems reliable, but when circumstances get rough it might wimp out.
Solid – It appears to be very consistent, but it would be safe to have a backup.
Works Every Time – You should never have any failure problems because this piece is solid.
No Need For A Backup – You could run a tank over it and it would still work.

BANG-FOR-THE-BUCKHow much gear goodness are you getting for the money?
Not Worth The Money – This unit is way overpriced and not a good buy.
Kind Of Pricey – Might be worth, but not that good of a deal for the money.
You Get What You Pay For – You get a product equivalent to the amount of money you spend.
A Great Buy – This item is a good deal getting great features at a really good price.
Deal-Of-A-Lifetime – This unit is amazingly under-priced giving you the functionality of other units for a fraction of the price.

BUILD QUALITYHow well is it built? Is it professionally done or piecemeal?
Don’t Sneeze Near It – The unit could be put together better by a child.
Held Together By Duct Tape – The unit looks like it was built in someone’s garage.
Decent Quality – The unit looks professionally made, but still not the best build quality.
Excellently Put Together – If you look under the hood, everything is put together with the highest level of quality.
Indestructible – The device is built so well that it can be used as a black box on an airplane.