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Music software and instruments
Firebrand
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
So, I want to get deeper into making music on my computer, but I'm having a hard time finding the right software and the instruments to go with it.
What I'm looking for is something that is less technology and cluttered user interfaces, and more composing and getting songs done. Apple's Garageband seems to be pretty neat as its an "all-in-one" solution, but alas, I do not own a Mac.
So, unless there's a similar product for the PC, I would need a sequencer or tracker, and then a well-rounded set of instruments to go with it. Most sequencers seem to cost a ton, and unfortunately I'm currently a poor student. Trackers, on the other hands, are free, but I've yet to find a good place to get instruments for them that aren't old 8-bit samples from 90s MOD songs.
I'd be needing both your orchestral thingies as well as various guitars, drums, bass etc, and electronic sounds. I'm not too picky about it sounding totally realistic, but I'd rather like if they sounded better than, say, the MIDI softsynth that comes with Windows.
Right now I'm eyeing Cakewalk Home Studio 4 that's cheapish and comes with some software instruments. Any opinions?
In short, please recommend me cheap music software and half-decent instruments to go with it. I just want to make music.
What I'm looking for is something that is less technology and cluttered user interfaces, and more composing and getting songs done. Apple's Garageband seems to be pretty neat as its an "all-in-one" solution, but alas, I do not own a Mac.
So, unless there's a similar product for the PC, I would need a sequencer or tracker, and then a well-rounded set of instruments to go with it. Most sequencers seem to cost a ton, and unfortunately I'm currently a poor student. Trackers, on the other hands, are free, but I've yet to find a good place to get instruments for them that aren't old 8-bit samples from 90s MOD songs.
I'd be needing both your orchestral thingies as well as various guitars, drums, bass etc, and electronic sounds. I'm not too picky about it sounding totally realistic, but I'd rather like if they sounded better than, say, the MIDI softsynth that comes with Windows.
Right now I'm eyeing Cakewalk Home Studio 4 that's cheapish and comes with some software instruments. Any opinions?
In short, please recommend me cheap music software and half-decent instruments to go with it. I just want to make music.
Firebrand on
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It's the last sequencer you'll ever need to purchase, and at only $99, that's a pretty good deal.
http://www.fruityloops.com/
At the very least, download the fully functional demo there for free. You can't save your projects, but beyond that, it's fully functional. (You can export any tracks you create as MP3s, though)
Regardless, you mentioned wanting good instruments. In most quality music editing software like FruityLoops, you'll want soundfonts for this purpose. Soundfonts are a lot like what they sound like: a full keyboard's worth of prerecorded samples for a specific instrument (or set of instruments). This is different from MIDI, where one sample is used to cover the whole keyboard; soundfonts sound less fakey.
There are a lot of free soundfonts on the web, you just have to google for them. For additional help with this sort of thing (and music creation in general), I recommend the OCRemix forum. Being based around game remixes of all kinds, they're pretty like-minded to PA.
And in case you feel like doing something a bit different, here's FamiTracker, for creating authentic NES music.
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And oh, I do have a Casio CTK-671 keyboard that has some decent sounds in it, but I'm not sure how I'd go about reaching the sounds that are outside of the standard GM set. I guess I could... manually... program it... .... ... :P
I mean, unless it has some crazy features I don't know about.
If you prefer writing out sheet music, Sibelius is an amazing program to use- it's not particularly cheap but the sibelius equivelant of the above mentioned 'sound fonts' are pretty amazing.
Oh, Visit us. Do.
Audacity looks more like a Soundforge or an Acid than an FLStudio. Both of the former are great for the functions they serve in digital music making, but they both lack FL's biggest selling point, being that motherhuge FL step sequencer.
Any editing purely by computer will be difficult to fine tune in order to sound natural. People playing real instruments will not always play at the same volume or line up exactly with a metronome, and there will be other things acting on the sound of the instrument such as reverb. It takes a lot of practice.
For all your (introductory, at the very least) software instrument needs: http://www.kvraudio.com. For synthesizers, you could easily get by with just what you can find for free on there. I don't know much about sampled sounds, though.
I use Sibelius, and Ray Charles used Sibelius (Although, i'm not sure how he did.) so join the band wagon!
It's the best sheet music program on the market, imho.
kind of embarrassing, but here goes
and I second fruity loops if you want easy.
can't recommend it enough.
aka Grillaface
I also use Sibelius 4. It is without a doubt the best software on the market for notation-based music creation. Plus, Kontakt Gold will give you just nigh every orchestral instrument you will need. For every bit of percussion you'll ever want, there's the VDL2 library (I also use and HIGHLY recommend this if you use a lot of percussion) and for your contemporary music needs, there are Rock & Pop sound packs for not too much more.
You can try it out for free too.
Links:
Sibelius
Kontakt and other Sound Packs
VDL2
Holy crap. I know it's hyperbole, but that makes it feel like 6 was out for like 3 weeks.
YESSSSSS...
So.. I'm looking for tutorials, how-to's, tips, and general infos on this really expensive software.
BTW: I've got an M-Audio Keystation-88, which, you know, has 88 keys, and is big and stuff. I'm really serious about this, but have NO clue where to start.
So far as learning how to use it, the best thing to do is simply go through the tutorial PDF that's included with the program. Like I said, the interface is fairly intuitive, so you shouldn't have much trouble learning the basics. Another good thing to do is open up some of the example songs and have a look at the modules and settings they use to create particular sounds. Additionally, you could always check out of the many, many Reason websites out there. I've found Reason Freaks to be pretty helpful - especially when you want to start downloading extra sound Refills (which you will.)
Oh, and another great thing about Reason? You don't need a MIDI controller to use it. Having one certainly makes things easier, though.
Regardless, it's definitely worth the money.
You can pick-up Cubasis for fair-cheapness. It's a scaled down Cubase but has a similar layout and has very flexible functionality.
It's got some nice VST (that's midi sounds) and some other bits and bobs like a stereo mastering suite (I always prefered Sound Forge for that) plus you've got about 16 channels to record to with mp3 or wav files.
It isn't the sort of thing you can jump right into but it has the usual example tracks and a few discs of samples to start you off. Buy a cheapo midi keyboard to ease the midi programming and you've got a nice bit of software that can turn it's hand to just about anything and should you wish to develop further the skills you pick-up in Cubasis will go a long way.
I used a Fruity and Acid Studio combo a few years back when I was making a lot of music on the PC, and Fruity/Acid is an amazing little duo for under $200. I never used any instruments or MIDI keyboards, so this software-only approach worked well for me.
You can create some amazing tracks by putting together some great loops in Fruity and then dropping the loops into Acid, mixing the tracks and cutting them up. I ended up with a massive library of quality songs using only these two packages and some sampling software (can't remember the name of that one). Sadly, 75% of all my music files are sitting on my old PC tower that hasn't been powered up in over 3 years and I don't know if the tower even works anymore.
Acid Studio: http://www.sonymediasoftware.com/Products/ShowProduct.asp?PID=971
Acid Pro offers some extras, but you're looking at a shit-ton more money with that--it's close to $400.
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I also really enjoy Garage band, as it's super easy to use and record with, but alas, I don't have a mac, and I'd rather not record in my classroom all the time. But I'm not sure if there is a feature where I can edit the score, is there?
That would be nice.
EDIT: Also, I have no idea how compatible it is with various sequencers, etc.
-So sayeth the wise Alaundo
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Sibelius is compatible with a lot of MIDI libraries, not just the default Microsoft WaveTable Synth. Kontakt Gold makes Sibelius sound heavenly.
Select the instrument that you want to edit. Then click on the Scissor symbol in the lower left-hand corner of the screen. Once the new are rises, look in the "Region" section for two buttons, one having boxes, the other having an eighth note. Click on the eighth note. Your window should now display a score. Select the note value you want from the drop-down menu in the advanced area and click wherever you want it in the score. It's not efficient but it will get the job done.
Sibelius does everything that Finale does in a much more intuitive manner. Seriously, give it a try. Most universities are teaching Sibelius over Finale because students spend more time making music and less time trying to figure out how to use a complicated program.
Regarding Sibelius: Is it just meant for notation, or is it suitable for recording the music in too? Do you have any control over how the score is played through the sound module?