Adobe Audition (formerly Cool Edit Pro) is a digital audio workstation from Adobe Systems featuring both a multitrack, non-destructive mix/edit environment and a destructive-approach waveform editing view.
Audition allows a user to record or import multiple sound files and mix them together with effects to produce one sound. This multitrack environment can be used for creating music, radio ads, podcasts, soundtracks, voiceovers, and just about anything audio related. Audition is particularly popular in the radio and broadcast world while musicians still largely prefer other packages such as Pro Tools, Cubase, Logic, and Ableton. Audition offers a full suite of built-in effects and analytic tools to polish sounds to professional quality. While MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) integration is not Audition’s strength, some MIDI options do exist. Audition also allows for VST plugins, which range in price and quality from being free and home-grown to thousands of dollars and professional quality.
Here is a detailed comparison matrix of several DAW software pieces.