Virus TI for me?

[willit]

Hey there,
I'm an amateur in the producing world who wants to know where to start! I've played around with softsynths like Reason, Reaktor and some VSTi's over the years and have never been overly impressed with the sound they produce (except for Steinberg Hypersonic which has been my favorite so far). Being a DJ for over 6 years, I've slowly learnt that in the world of DJing, software these days is often more technically advanced than hardware but it's all about the 'feel' and obviously convenience in clubs that makes hardware the better option.

So the question I have here is should I be going for Hardware or Software, and what kind of essential hardware would I need for producing? At this point I should mention that I'm interested in producing Ambient/Chillout music and eventually Trance music when I feel confident enough, so I'm looking for airy and rich pads, deep bass, appregio type monosynths and of course, electronic percussion. The pads are the absolute most important to me though, which is what programs like Reason and Reaktor seem to lack.

I'm thinking an ideal setup/investment over time for me would be a 4ch mixer, a virus TI desktop hooked up to my mac, an m-audio oxygen to my mac, and some sort of drum machine thats good for dance music... does that sound about right?

any feedback would be greatly appreciated!
thanks

[AlexHall74]

Wow, it's going to be hard to answer this sufficiently but I'll give you my quick .02:

1. Get more than a 4-channel mixer if you are playing live (4-bus is greart, 4-channel not nearly enough). I just bought a Yamaha MG12/4 for $219 new from Zzounds.com. You'll be able to plug in turntables, drum machine, mic, synths, whatever with this one. Bang for your buck its a great mixer.

http://img3.musiciansfriend.com/dbase/pics/products/regular/9/4/5/375945.jpg

2. The Virus Ti is a monster synth and can do whatever sounds you need it to do. The keyboard is second to none if you get the full 61 key version, but it is not cheap.

3. Drum machines have been a real pain in the arse for me. I haven't had the cash to spring for an MPC or a machine drum for the last 6 years, but I have been able to buy a M-Audio Trigger Finger and FXpansion's GURU (I don't know if they make a Mac version, if not just get Stylus RMX, it's just as good). You can make some bad ass drum tracks with this combo, and get it for less than $400 for both if you shop around. If you want a drum machine and can't spring for a top of the line new one look at a used Roland SP series or maybe even a Korg Electribe of some kind...

4. Don't buy an M-Audio Oxygen. Don't even piss on one. Spring for a nice Novation Remote 25SL or even better a Remote 37 SL. It will auto map to your sequencer and to your soft synths so all your knobs and faders are linked to soft synth/drum machine/sequencer parameters as you click from VST to VST. Pretty fucking bad ass if you ask me. It also has drum pads on it so you could not even buy the Trigger Finger if you get either of the Remote SL controllers.

5. Don't forget a nicew audio interface. You have a Mac, get a MOTU if you don't already have one, they kick ass!!

:)

Good luck, I hope some of this rant was helpful...

-Alex

[billygomberg]

that's good advice. I have the yamaha mixer and love it. clean and flexible. I wouldn't recommend a behringer for the sound or build quality, but if you are looking to cut a corner and are going to be gigging a lot, behringer's take a beating and are dirt cheap (if it breaks it won't break yr wallet or, worse, yr heart!).

Getting one well built and deep synthesizer will keep you going for years. Invest wisely, but don't short yourself here if you are really looking for an instrument. Reaktor does do great "pad" sounds, dig deep in the user lib or get programming! If Reaktor does indeed do what you need, you can save some money on hardware.

I don't know from drum machines. unless you are cashing in on some vintage gear, modern drum machines are not blowing minds much these days. I'd recommend routing this $$$

I purchased an m-audio axiom 25 used at a good price. it's not fantastic, it's not teensy, but it does what i need it to do.

and at the very least, get a MOTU interface for your computer.

I guess, uh, there's a lil echo in here....

[Timo]

At this point I should mention that I'm interested in producing Ambient/Chillout music and eventually Trance music when I feel confident enough, so I'm looking for airy and rich pads, deep bass, appregio type monosynths and of course, electronic percussion. The pads are the absolute most important to me though, which is what programs like Reason and Reaktor seem to lack.

A Virus will give you all that by the bucket load.

I'm thinking an ideal setup/investment over time for me would be a 4ch mixer, a virus TI desktop hooked up to my mac, an m-audio oxygen to my mac, and some sort of drum machine thats good for dance music... does that sound about right?

I'd hold the drum machine. Samplers are a much better choice, imho, as they will let you upload your own drum & percussions sounds instead of being stuck to a drum machine's own synth.

If you are adamant about going hardware-only, then a sampling groovebox type machine may be good for integrating any of your sampled drums and other stuff. Otherwise a software sampler (inside a PC/Mac) would be great, and very flexible, and you could trigger it from hardware via MIDI if you wish.

[plaid_emu]

I've been changing my whole live setup around lately. Sold off all the bulky heavy stuff for an Eventide Eclipse to use in the studio. Lugging around big rack cases and tables just sucked. The setup and tear down was a bitch too.

My goal was to fit everything I need into one or two lightweight gig bags:

I bought a little MPC-500 to pair with my Waldorf Blofeld and I also plan on buying a TC Helicon Create for vocals. Mixing it all on one of those little Mackie 402-VLZ3 mixers.

I'm thinking it might be fun to go without a keyboard for a while. Sculpt sounds on the Blofeld and bang out beats on the 500 while some sequences are running.

[AlexHall74]

Hell yeah Bro, go light if you can, and with that setup above you can. Playing without a synth might be kind of fun, it actually adds to the mysteriousness of it all from the perspective of the crowd because they see no tactile cue of yiour hands on keys when a riff starts, they just hear it happen. Cool!

I'm all about going light. I do mobile DJ gigs with (1) my Dell laptop, (2) Onyx Satllite pod, and (3) two Carvin PM15A active loudspeakers atop stands. The whole rig takes a maximum of 20 minutes to setup good and proper. For a 3 hour restaurant/bar gig its perfect.