Do I need an external raw editor with Aperture?

Sorry for the simple question - I'm an unsophisticated photographer just dipping toes in RAW stuff
Does Aperture have the same functionality as the external RAW editors like Sony Image Data Converter and the various Canon tools etc?
What I am asking is - do I need to install these and use them as external editors or can I achieve mostly the same thing in Aperture on the raw/arw images?
I don't agonise over the detail but I would like to tinker and experiment, but having an extra tool is a bit annoying.
Cheers, Z

Aperture is a generic third party raw converter, like Lightroom, Aftershot, DxO, Capture 1, and several others.
Canon DPP, Sony IDC, etc are specific converters for their own brand of cameras only. As such they offers features that make use of manufacturer knowledge about the raw, the sensors, the lenses, the camera settings and so forth.
The third party solutions like Aperture compete pretty well in terms of the basic raw conversion, but only have limited access to some of the camera specifics, so can't fully compete when it comes to some of the cameras advanced processing options (for example diffraction compensation offered in some recent cameras)
Where third party solutions compete is in their ability to support raw from multiple brands of camera and by providing a much larger set of additional features.
Aperture provides excellent features to support the entire workflow process from initial capture to final publishing.
Its raw conversions are generally excellent in terms of the detail/noise balance. Colour and tone is usually a bit neutral or flat and needs adjusting to taste to make them pop, but the use of presets can make this fast and semi-automatic (contrast this with Lightroom which applies a profile that gives a much punchier default conversion). However, specific results will usually vary by camera; Canon, Sony and Olympus and Fuji conversions are usually well regarded, while Nikon users seem to be the most vocal about apertures flat conversions.
The use of in camera settings (tricks) designed to extend dynamic range can impact the raw processing. Where Aperture can read and understand the settings (like Fuji's DRx00% settings) it does a good job, but I see occasional issues reported from Nikon users about issues when using its ADL feature.
So whether you will need an additional raw tool will ultimately be down to what cameras and lenses you use and you own impressions of what you think of Apertures conversions for that equipment.
Unfortunately, there is no longer a demo version for you to try for yourself, although I've seen some comments here about purchasing and then asking for a refund if you are not happy, but I doubt that is official policy but perhaps contact App store support and ask.
When I bought the wrong Bourne movie in iTunes, at first I thought they'd given me the wrong one and complained. Then I realised it was my mistake so told them to forget the complaint. They emailed back saying they had refunded my purchase as it wasn't what I intended to buy. I've had several other dealings along related lines and I have to say I've never been on the wrong end of one their decisions, they have always played very fair with me.
Andy

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Do I need an external raw editor with Aperture?

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