N00b question...

[HitoriJaNai]

I'm sorry about this, but I'm new to all of this, especially all the equipment and where to start in terms of music...

Help, please?

[Lunahorum]

try fl studio demo.

Try playing a musical instrument such as guitar or keyboard.

[Yoozer]

I'm sorry about this, but I'm new to all of this, especially all the equipment and where to start in terms of music...

Help, please?

Don't ask to ask, don't say "HELP!" don't ask "Question..." - state your question clearly and in a concise way in the title of your topic. If you need help picking a digital piano for around $1000, ask "Which digital piano for around $1000" instead of "I'm wondering...". The former's good and gives you good answers, the latter is useless. Big load of bonus points if you've already visited a few music stores and looked at certain models, because this tells us you're not afraid to find information yourself.

The first list of questions for anyone posting topics like "complete beginner" is:

- show us what you already have (e.g. nothing at all, a computer, basic keyboard)

- tell us what you already know (you know nothing, you play a little guitar, you DJ, etc.)

- tell us what you're willing to spend (edit: AS A NUMBER of UKP, USD or EUR. NOBODY KNOWS WHAT YOU MEAN WITH "CHEAP" OR "NOT TOO EXPENSIVE".)

- tell us which direction you want to go (e.g. playing live, sounding like artist x, how to expand studio)

The first pieces of advice for complete beginners are:

- MIDI is not audio, like sheet music is not a CD - one tells you what to play, but not how it sounds; the other tells you how it sounds, but not how to play it.

- gear does not give a rat's ass about genre. There is no trance synth, no hiphop drum machine. The fact that certain pieces are iconic or often-used still doesn't mean much, actually.

- using the same gear as your favorite artist won't give you the same results

- it's going to take work. You won't find presets that exactly mimic that sound at 1.45 in an obscure b-side of some indie electronic artist only 6 people including their grandparents know about, so this means you have to make the sound yourself.

- don't buy everything at once; build it up slowly so you get to know your equipment

- get to know your equipment intimately; if you want to produce music at home, you have to turn into a jack of all trades. This takes dedication and study. The more you can squeeze out of your gear, the less you need to spend.

- download trial/demo versions of all sequencers on the market and see if you can make a song in a week. If it feels like the software is hindering you, switch.

- the software route has a high initial investment of a computer, soundcard, sequencing software, etc., but expansion is cheap - you can download several free softsynths and effects.

- the best route is what works for you personally - your rig should act as an extension of your brain. You should not have to think about mundane tasks.

[HitoriJaNai]

Alright, then, lemme see.

-In terms of what I have, only a computer at this point.

-I do play the trombone and used to play a little piano.

-Willing to spend... um... an extremely low amount at this point.

-I haven't quite thought of the direction yet, more aiming towards sounding like a live techno/orchestra/rock type thing.

As a side note, I am aware its not going to be easy. I looked far and wide for as much info as possible before finally admitting defeat and asking the question. I'll be more specific in the future. Right now, I am still open to suggestions on what to do.

P.S. Tried to use FL Studio, but it was difficult to figure out how the heck to start anything.

[PrototypeRaptor]

well, from one trombonist to another, I think you should arrange some trombone quartets... because I can't bring myself to do it. XD

In regards to equipment, writing music is not something easy to do without a keyboard, midi preferably. You'll also need a DAW, like FL, or something like finale (notation-esque software).

In other words, you gonna have to drop some bucks or use something like Reaper. Listen to Yoozer, he's always right.

(OR you could always go old skool and use REAL manuscript and write out your music...nahhhhh that way died with Beethoven.

[HitoriJaNai]

I'm looking out for a keyboard now, and am open to suggestions as to good ones. With FL, the interface just likes to mess with my head and I forget where stuff is, and it drives me insane. Finale is slightly better, except that I'm not quite professionalized in knowing what sounds any good.

I am very sad...

But I'm willing to do what it takes, just need to know where to start.

P.S. Don't tempt me to try quartets, because they will clash like hell... Gah.

[SenPi]

Also you may want to try out the Reason 4.0 Demo.

[Skrypnyk]

-I haven't quite thought of the direction yet, more aiming towards sounding like a live techno/orchestra/rock type thing.

I just want to say that this is a really, really bad idea.

also reading how it's difficult to start anything in FL and how you don't like using it shows your impatience. Granted FL really isn't the right DAW for you, but it should take a little more then a couple of hours before you make your decision.

You're not gonna make something the minute you get a DAW, you're probably not gonna make something even after you figure out the program, and I only say a live techno/orchestra/rock type thing is a bad idea because when new people who have no idea what they're doing try and do too much, it usually leads to much.

Patience and dedication, and listening to Yoozer is the best thing you can do right now.

[Burn7 Toast]

Personally I can't understand anything that has to do with FL. I have FL9, and I have NO IDEA how to use it.

Reason is cool, but I like Acid the best. Mostly because its the first thing I learned how to use.

Just my opinion. If i'm wrong... dont care.

EDIT: Its actually FL 8.

so says him

v v v v v v v v v v v v v v

[Yoozer]

Personally I can't understand anything that has to do with FL. I have FL9, and I have NO IDEA how to use it.

1) the last version is 8

2) it comes with a manual.

[Burn7 Toast]

1) the last version is 8

2) it comes with a manual.

Lolz, look at that.

I mistook my FL8 for Finale 2009.

MY BAD.

Oh and about the manual... dont care.

[HitoriJaNai]

Actually, in answer to what Skyrpnyk said, I did use FL for a good five or six hours and couldn't figure out what to do. Granted, I used the demo version, but I looked through the manual as well, and... yeah.

I'm doing my best to have patience, that's why I'm still looking for a program to use. Trying to decide between Reason and Acid.

Anyone know where cheap MIDI keyboards can be found?

[Helo]

Listen, Hittori. There are at least a dozen of these 'lol, I'm a n00b unwilling to look for any info by myself'-type posts on here. Poke around before you ask anymore. All the questions you've gotten more specific about have been discussed, and at length, in other sections of the forum. I'm new myself, and the first thing you need to learn is that its better to lurk and learn than to open your mouth and clutter the forum with useless topics.

So, my advice:

1.) read everything in the Guides and Tutorials section. Then read it again.

2.) Download Reaper (see the Guides and Tutorials)

3.) pick up a keyboard with MIDI functionality from a thrift store or garage sale - don't spend money until you know you want to do this

3.5) you'll almost certainly need to get a MIDI to USB convertor to interface properly

4.) try and create something EXTREMELY SIMPLE at first, then work into the harder things

Once you've gotten a basic understanding, then you'll know what questions are valuable and deserve answers.

In closing, I hope you aren't offended by my harsh words, but it seems that you have put little effort forward up to this point - and really what does that say about your ability to succeed in something requiring significant amounts of work to produce a good product? However, the fact that you are seeking to be spoon-fed info at least shows a desire to learn, and that is the first step. Lurk-n-Learn™

/wall-o-text

[HitoriJaNai]

Your words are not harsh at all, in fact it would probably be well put to say that this thread should be closed. It's true I'm a newbie at this, but I fully admit I went around this the wrong way. If I have an actual, full-fledged question for which I cannot find an answer, then maybe I'll start a new thread. Till then, I'll be sure to get a keyboard and cable for my comp. Keeping quiet...

Before I forget though, can you play a MIDI keyboard through the computer without one of the music creation programs?

[Yoozer]

Before I forget though, can you play a MIDI keyboard through the computer without one of the music creation programs?

Controller keyboards like http://www.zzounds.com/item--MDOAXIOM49 don't make any sound by themselves - they're merely remotes.

Controller keyboards like http://www.zzounds.com/item--MDOPRO88STAGE do make sound by themselves. A good rule of thumb is that they don't, unless specifically specified otherwise.

This is why the name "controller" is used - any keyboard with its own sound source and MIDI can be called "MIDI keyboard". "Controller" implies no sounds, sliders/knobs/pads, and USB (besides the regular MIDI).

As for FL and the manual: if the manual does not contain an actual tutorial, it's of course not of much use. You are still unfamiliar with terminology, and when something like "LFO 3 in the modulation matrix controls oscillator 1's pitch and pulsewidth at the same time" appears your eyes glaze over. Do keep in mind that the terminology has a good reason - like the aforementioned controller/MIDI keyboard - it saves you from typing out a 3-paragraph description.

Even when someone bothers to write it out like this, there's still terminology in there that is unexplained because whoever writes this may skip the fact that you're coming from absolute rock bottom.

[OverCoat]

These replies seem kind of intimidating to me

I say just make some noises and figure out what it all does later have fun and learn while doing it, don't learn all this complicated stuff just to dick around in FruityLoops

Honestly it took me a few years before I started making stuff that didn't make peoples' ears bleed, but looking back, it was a lot of fun to make all that retarded noise, I wouldn't go back and do it any differently.

I WOULD recommend learning the piano as I did, playing the piano can be pretty fun.

[Nase]

These replies seem kind of intimidating to me

I say just make some noises and figure out what it all does later have fun and learn while doing it, don't learn all this complicated stuff just to dick around in FruityLoops

Honestly it took me a few years before I started making stuff that didn't make peoples' ears bleed, but looking back, it was a lot of fun to make all that retarded noise, I wouldn't go back and do it any differently.

I WOULD recommend learning the piano as I did, playing the piano can be pretty fun.

Man, I couldn't agree more. First and foremost, using a sequencer for the first time was just a load of fun.

I can imagine though that it isn't when you open FL the first time and give up after 2 hours because it doesn't sound like your favorite Zircon remix or something.

Thinking about it, I'm actually really happy I didn't really know shit about electronic music back then and didn't have anything to compare my stuff to on the harddrive. I was just constantly blown away by making bizarre melodies and programming weird synth patches without having the slightest clue about synthesis.

And guess what, I still like most of my first tunes in terms of originality. Even though they can get pretty hideous

So yeah, have fun. Lack of knowledge can be a blessing when you use that lack the right way

[OverCoat]

I can imagine though that it isn't when you open FL the first time and give up after 2 hours because it doesn't sound like your favorite Zircon remix or something.

haha yes

and this is another good point - don't try to compare your stuff to better music [lol zircon = better music am i rite :3] though it's a good idea to borrow from that music to learn what you need to do.

When I was starting out I didn't really know zircon, though now he's one of the few of remaining Soundtempest crew left so I appreciate him Back then though, I had... Injury and Children of the Monkey Machine, which seemed to work well enough for me - Sometimes I wonder how much different my music would sound if I had known different people.

[HitoriJaNai]

I thank you two, a lot. You guys rock!

And when I tried FL, no, it wasn't really that I was trying to mimic anything... I was trying to play around with it, before I had even found out about this (or video game music remixes in general, or zircon, for that matter). That was my problem, I guess, was that I just couldn't figure out what buttons did what. Sometimes, I'd remember, and go "yay sound", others I'd push a button and it would just fart in my face (figure of speech).

But thank you, I hope to find a good inexpensive keyboard soon, and will hopefully get to play around a lot.