[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