I'm new here (looking for advice on how to get started)

[topitmunkeydog]

Hello everybody! I am new here and am interested in creating some sort of electronic music, and I thought bronies would be the best people to ask about this, because after all we do have the best music

I am interested in starting a band with some of my friends, but as I can only play the piano I decided that I would learn how to do electronic components to the music. So yeah, I can play the piano and have been playing for somewhat a long time but not a super long time. And I can kind of play the ukulele. Other than that I have no experience making music, and barely any compositional experience.

So I was wondering, what sort of equipment and skills make up the staple of electronic music production? I have downloaded many free softwares like LMMS, DarkWave, and Hydrogen, and I have a USB midi interface. Is it worth it to get actual synthesizers, or is it more economical to do everything on the computer (like on AudioTool)? I am also considering investing in really old analog synths like they use in Metronomy or Trio but are you supposed to connect these to a "controller" thingy or whatever? See, I know next to nothing about synthesizers save for what I've learned while browsing through thrift stores so advice is definitely appreciated.

Thank you so so much in advance, I am completely lost as to what to do... :3

[itroitnyah]

This thread right here. It has tutorials on almost anything you need to/want to know. The topics that you'll want to know the most on are mixing, mastering, music theory, VSTs, and pretty much all the topics under the "General Section" of the topic I linked you, as well as pretty much every single tutorial, with the one exception being the genres section, where you don't have the read up on the genres you don't want to make. You'll also find this topic in the first topic that I linked you. Find a few people to add on skype that you can turn to when you need help.

[the4thImpulse]

Well it sounds like you want to play some form of electronic music live with a band in which case your setup will look different from someone who just makes pure electronic music.

Look up the band Enter Shikari and tell me if that is more or less what you want to do. Heres one example.



If you want to play live electronic music like the above example then you NEED a program like ableton to do it. It was made for live performance as well as studio work where as every other DAW will fall short.

Hardware synths will be much nicer to have on stage rather soft synths due to stability, ease of access, the fact that you can play piano, and they make you look really cool.

Anyway tell me what you hope to be doing exactly with your band and the electronic music and then I can better help you understand what you need to be looking at.

[Lavender_Harmony]

viewtopic.php?f=13&t=1369

[Freewave]

I will say if you want to take part in a virtual bands that's a great idea. Too many smaller artists don't band their efforts together of look to do something together as one. There are just not enough brony music groups when there COULD be.

[Navron]

With technology rapidly changing, there really isn't a need for analogue synths, unless you want them for the sake of having analogue synths.

Like, right now with just Cubase, I could setup my MIDI keyboard to be 4-5 different types of synthesizers I could swap between using a mouse, and play live.

Or, with Ableton, I could setup my MIDI keyboard to do the same thing, but in addition to splitting the keyboard into different sectors, creating and layering loops live, and swapping instruments with hot keys.

I'd look into Ableton Live, because when it comes to live performance, it's hard to beat. It's also a very good DAW for composing original tracks on your own.

[the4thImpulse]

With technology rapidly changing, there really isn't a need for analogue synths, unless you want them for the sake of having analogue synths.

When it comes to live performances having hardware synths (analog, VA, digital) is much nicer than a couple soft synths on your laptop. Its much easier to access whatever parameters you want as everything will have its own dedicated knob/fader. Hardware synths are also far more stable than computer programs and vsts which are very prone to crashes or small glitches. There's a lot more that can go wrong with a computer bases live synth setup.

And analog has that 'sound' that digital will never reporoduce so if thats your thing then you have no choice, besides that your right in that computers can theoretically replace many digital synths.

A combination of both I think would be ideal; having a computer for quicker loop launching and easier manipulation of loops and hardware synths for their ease of use.

[topitmunkeydog]

Wowow! Thanks for all the advice! On my regular forum I don't get quite this music attention!

@the4thImpulse While the example you provided is not exactly the sort of music I am investigating, the synths and the live drums are pretty much what I am seeking. I aspire to do something like Passion Pit or The Black and White Years or because my prospective bandmates want to play guitar and bass as well. Not sure how that will go, but sure, I will definitely check out that software you linked me to.
I am really not sure how things are going. Pretty much all the music we play will be released on the internet, but I don't know about playing live gigs. Considering I live in the self-proclaimed "Live music capital of the world" I'm sure it would be within my best interests to get the attention of people in the local music scene but I'm just not sure if we will be ready for it.
For the live synth setup I am considering just having the loops set up on some thingy sampler thingy (not sure what to call it but don't worry, I am about to read the topic that Itroitnyah linked me to) and then I will have this one keyboard-like synth that the main riff is played on. I am going to link to that same video again because it is kind of what I am hoping to achieve. As you can see, the main guy is not playing the synthesizer the whole time but there is obviously some synth bits in the song throughout. So yeah, there is a lot I still have to learn, but thanks for clearing stuff up guys

[itroitnyah]

Sure thing, we're here to help.

If your bandmates want to play live, then you're going to need to get a good microphone or two to record your friends bass and guitar, if you don't already have one. There's a thread listed on the beginners guide thread I linked you to earlier relating to microphones, so you'll want to read that to help you select a good microphone. This youtube video should also help you pick out a microphone: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y4pW0Cvzw3g

As for a "sampler thingy" where I'm assuming you just want to be able to push a button and it plays something like a riser, snare, kick, whatever you want, you can get the Novation Launchpad for about $120 usd, so it's fairly cheap, and hey! It's built by the same company that makes Ableton Live, so it'll probably work with Ableton almost hitch free! Although I'm assuming that there are other controllers like the novation launchpad, so search around for other ones if you want.

If you're going to be playing parts of a song too, like piano or, like 4thImpulse mentioned, synthesizers, getting a MIDI keyboard would be great as well, as you can hook it up to your computer and play synths with it, all the good stuff. I think hardware synthesizers can work relatively similar to a midi keyboard in that you can play virtual synth instruments on your computer from your hardware synth. Midi keyboards are great for playing parts in your band as well, and they're quite portable depending on how big they are. But if you get a hardware synth that plays sounds that it generates and makes as well as virtual synth sounds from your computer, I don't think you'll need to worry about getting a midi keyboard. I feel like I worded this section very confusingly, so if you need clarification, I'll do my best if you ask.

So overall, you would need a microphone(s) to record your friend's instruments, a launch pad or something similar, and possibly a midi keyboard if a hardware synth can't play synths that were made using a vst from your computer. Or perhaps I read what you wanted to do really wrong and I'm just listing complete nonsense, lol

Hope I helped!

[topitmunkeydog]

Whoops, didn't check up on this topic for a while
I actually have two midi keyboards, one crappy Casio whatever thing and then one super awesome Roland electric piano with weighted keys and everything. I have used both of them as midi keyboards and they work lovely. I also have a Blue Snowball mic which I bought for a different purpose so it's a USB mic. Should be able to figure something out there.
I am considering acquiring a Launchpad or the Akai APC20 for midi controllering, and in that case I will use Ableton because it comes with it, but otherwise I probably will use LMMS. Can anyone reccomend one controller over the other?

[itroitnyah]

LMMS is definitely not very hardware friendly. I doubt that there is a single piece of hardware you could get your hands on that would work well with LMMS. LMMS doesn't even run some of the higher end synths (like NI Massive, for example), so if you're going to be using hardware, you need to get a better DAW. The 5 major ones are Ableton, Cubase, FL Studio, Propellerhead Reason, and Logic Pro are some of the best that you can get, and this thread will help you decide.

[Dabrenn]

I'm also very inexperienced, but I wanted to pop in here to suggest looking more into Ableton Live. an APC 20/40 along with Ableton will probably be your best setup for any live performances.

Also, Ableton is also my personal favorite DAW (I don't even use its Live capabilities)

Welcome to the forum and enjoy your stay!

[topitmunkeydog]

So instead of posting another annoying topic, I am just gonna ask a question here.
So right now I have a APC20 so that means I have a version of Ableton which I am currently learning. Also, my prospective bandmates are no longer prospective, meaning that no they don't want to be in a band anymore. Likely thing is that I am going to be doing a sort of solo project. Of course I will still be recording a lot of real live instruments too but I still want to learn Ableton.

My question is for people who started using the software as a complete beginner. So, how exactly did you go about learning how to use the DAW? And do you have any like, tips for me or something? I believe my type of music will not really rely on repetition as I am not as interested in EDM, so mostly I want to learn about arranging, but any advice is welcome

Thanks again!! :3

[Conduit]

Add me on skype, my skype name is flatflish, and I'll show up as Mark

[topitmunkeydog]

Sorry, but I don't actually have an account on Skype... Is it only phone calls that you have to pay for, or can I make an account and call through the Internet for free? If so I will try and make an account ASAP. (And YAY this means that I can start using my HD webcam )
Thanks tho :3

[Conduit]

Its free for both voice calls, and instant messaging.

I'm not a expert when it comes to everything in ableton, but I know enough to help you get started.

Oh, and your welcome, I enjoy helping people.