Basics of making music

[Aragami]

Hey guys,

I'm looking to start making some electronic music, but I'm trying to wrap my head around all the gear that you can use.

Currently I'm using FL Studio 8, just making some simple patterns and experimenting with the inbuilt fx, what I want however, is a keyboard that I can use to play some loops on.

Would I be needing a controller for that, (I was looking at the Korg MicroKONTROL) or would a synthesizer (Roland SH-201?) be a better option for me?

If anyone can give me a run down on what the equipment is and what it does (basics, obviously) or suggest somewhere I can learn about all that, that would be great!

[Mr.Happy]

IMO learn to use your DAW software as well as possible before investing in anything more than the most basic of hardware. You'll be surprised what you can get out of the program without a hardware synth or MIDI keyboard.

[yawanur]

Mr H- I want to run ableton live, probably 5, on my net book when i get it. I will mostly work with live recorded bs and not so much crazy effects on midi stuff, so I'm hoping it won't be choppy. however, my MXL USB condenser has mad input problems- it's always incredibly quiet, even when I bump up the input volume to max in sys prefs on my mac [10.3.9 :p]. Tips? I'll be able to test it out in about 2 weeks.

btw HIJACK NIGGA!

OP- definitely fool around with your keyboard and mapping first. I haven't used FL personally, but my friend has made some really cool stuff without any hardware, and learning the process in parts will make it simpler when you pull it together.

[Mr.Happy]

Heh, really, I couldn't begin to guess. I don't know shit about recording and I've never even used a Mac. Or Ableton Live. Kai might be able to help you.

I'm no expert; I just can't see why a beginner would bother investing in a hardware synth when there are thousands of free software synths out there (a VST for every occasion), or investing in a MIDI controller when you can sequence everything to perfection in the DAW. Maybe the latter would be useful if you already had keyboard training, but apart from that...?

EDIT: Conveniently, the only thing I have reasonable experience with is FL Studio 8. There are some excellent and comprehensive tutorials out there; get yourself a torrent pack and work your way through it. Take a bit of time after each lesson to experiment with what you learned and try to bend it to suit the type of music you're interested in producing. Apply new techniques to old loops and things you've got saved (everybody who makes electronic music has a load of simple loops and patterns saved in a forgotten folder called 'Experimenting', or 'Learning', or 'First Attempts'). Work through the lessons as you work on your own music; maybe check out a few different tutorials on the same thing to get different perspectives. If you're prepared to put in a bit of time actually concentrating and studying, you'll get a hell of a lot out of the software without the need for hardware.

[Aragami]

Wicked Cool Mr. H, I'll put the hardware idea on the backburner for a while.

Runaway_Stapler - I have issues running FL Studio 8 on my EEE PC, so it might Ableton might get a bit choppy, depending on the specs of your netbook.