Freesound Forums

@ justinbrown: yeah, Kristal AE is extremely useful, I love it!

Software:
Besides KAE, I use (random order):
Sonar Cakewalk
GoldWave
Various VST
Audicity
Freesound!

Hardware:
PC
Edirol UA-25 - extremely useful
Old Tascam mixer
A whole load of various mics
BC Rich Bich with reversed headstock
Boss effects
DOD effects
Laney 120 combo amplifier and speaker cabinet
A cheap Olympus memorecorder. Only 90 euros but it has given me so much recording pleasure I just stick to it!

You all seem to use loads of software/hardware... I reckon Reason is the most powerful tool for making music (I make Scouse/Bouncy House). I gotta EMU Esi Sampler, n Novation K-Station n Decks etc But I use Reason the most..
What you need, is a good sequencer such as Reason
and a good audio editor, i use Wavelab... An obviously a midi keyboard!!
I heard the new prodigy album was created using only Reason.. I think it was prodigy!!

I use FruityLoops, SoundForge, Vegas, and various freeware as far as software.(had the old version of Reason but I ditched it....I will get the new one when get a new pc) Hardware...I mostly use a Roland MC-505 groovebox, an old Akai S20 sampler, a Korg ER1 beat machine, and ONE turntable ran through an effects unit into a crappy battle mixer. I also use a couple of cheap guitars and keyboards as well.

free SW
vsthost (and way too many vst plugins), studiofactory, nyquist, audacity, hog, analogx vocoder, cylonix vocoder, zerius vocoder, frohmage, audiopaint, chaosynth, drumsynth, granulab, sayit, zynaddsubfx, sfz, vienna, oxe fm synth, clicker, hammerhead, drumbox, hotstepper, ts404, poodles'n'flan, QFC, songbird, oo.org.calc, pd, reaper, asio4all, kx driver/dsp, various midi controller/generators

not free SW
cakewalk (3.01!), cooledit, soundforge, synthedit, audiomulch

HW
bizarre '60's electric guitar, homemade fretless bass, acoustic guitar, hand drums, crow/duck calls & noisemakers, yamaha ddd5 drumpad, casio cz101, roland tr606, alesis midiverb, roland juno106, alesis HR16, casio VZ1 (master KB), kawai xd5, yamaha tx7, yamaha tx81z, lexicon lxp5, boss de200, zoom 9030, yamaha spx90, peavey addverb, mackie mixers, homemade amp & speakers, homemade FX (lots) - most hardware in storage since obsolescence of my 6in/6out ISA bus MIDI interface and loss of living room space :{

im a bi of a n00b, pretty ameture setup.

I've just got a reasonably cheap but ok condenser mic, can't remember the brand actually.
Behringer eurorack MC 602A - sometimes it sounds good, sometimes it buzzes like a fridge, gotta catch it on a good day
PC lappy, ADM athelon 2.6 with a gig of ram.
large wood Djembe
mini conga
african thumb piano
tonge drum
lots of south east asian chimes and bells
thai glockenspeil
some weird asian/indian woodwind instruments that I cannot play yet
claronet
few guitars
evolution MK-249C2 midi controler.

software:
Reason 3
rewired into ableton live 5 if I need to use plugins
otherwise I record the plugins standalone in adobe audition and sample them with reason samplers.
native instruments absynth 3
Albino
master in steinburg Wavelab, with a few plugins, mostly isotope ozone though.

I run it all through a dodgy TEAC mini system, fortunatly I've got a reasonably good idea how it sounds and where it is lacking, so through referenceing against similar pro-recordings I can get an ok mixdown.

on my list to buy..
M-audio Audiophile Firewire interface
Tannoy Reveal or KRK Rokit 6" monitors.
Cubase SX
M-audio UC-33e midi controler
Korg PADKOTROL midi drum controler
lost more unusual instruments along the way.

My set ups.

Mac G5 Dual 2.7
Rack:
Furhman Power Conditioner
Digi 002
2x Focusrite Octopre

Software:
Pro Tools 7
Logic Pro 7

PC 2.3 ghz Intel
Delta 44

Software:
Cubase SX
Reaktor
Max/MSP

I agree with the Max/MSP ebeing the real thing. Reason is fun to play with, but, well limited.

I like to scavenge.... various old computers I've pulled out of bins (benn using the same monitor for 4 years now, pulled that out of a bin in the rain), various guitars I make out of bits and pieces, home-made MIDI things (theremins and "button-boxes", cheap microphones, answering machine loop-tapes, short-wave radios tuned to "off" frequencies, a small army of tape-decks, home-made & very modified PA's...
audio-to-midi converters (just sing into the mic and see what happens)...
anything that friends put into my hands...
Cool Edit, ***AUDIOMULCH*** , everything by Bram Bos...

a soldering iron & a basic guide to Circuitry are the best investments any musician can make

right now fruity loops 7, mad tracker, audacity, an m-audio keystation, a sh*tload of vst's...and a 120 bass titano accordion ...

nothing fancy, but it does what i need

Host: Cockos Reaper
VSTi: Vember Audio Surge, Vember Audio Shortcircuit
VST: Voxengo GlissEQ, Voxengo Elephant, Ohm Force OhmBoyz

+ some freeware plugins

I use Reason 4 and Recycle for producing my tunes..love it,i think its awesome...heres a tune i made recently..check it out

"Can u Feel the Music" by Chris e Lee

http://soundclick.com/share?songid=6867824

Ok I have updated my setup by setting up a local wireless network and replacing the old obsolete software on my main PC. I have put Reaper on both PC and laptop and ditched Kristal, Mellosoftron, MiniHost, and Quartz. I still can't seem to ditch my old Cool Edit 96 that just seems easier to edit field recordings and multisamples.

For sampling Paxx has replaced Mellosoftron and made the thought of using the Alesis's PCMCIA card and Soundbridge software a but pointless. It would take me as long to build a 128 patch sample bank with Paxx as it would to download 8 megs of untried samples to the Alesis or screw around with folder allocation and primitive loop editing in Mellosoftronfor one sound. If Mellosoftron could render to WAV and had a realistic way to build up voices on it's 16 channels, it would be as good as any other sampler restricted to 16 bits.

For processing guitars and bass, I still use my Zoom 3000 and the 607 for bass. I am experimenting with VST's but there is something about recording a guitar clean without effects that detracts from the playing depending on the style... kinda hard to feel the anger of an E power chord clean and then applying digital distortion to it... maybe someday. Bass on the other hand is easier, you play it and it is what it is unless I feel like getting creative which everyone is doing these days so sometimes simple is clever, if that makes sense.

Still using my old Peavy bass, strat clone and Yamaha acoustic guitar. Also have a Chinese made toy keyboard (they suck compared to the old Casio’s) and a student acoustic guitar at my disposal if needed. Sometimes I run the guitar and bass through a Behringer MIC200 for some real tube warmth if I plan on recording a lot that day. Both processors have amp simulation and noise reduction on them so usually some compression and a bit of EQ on the track and that's that.

To record the acoustic guitar and vocals, I use a Behringer B1 microphone and sometimes the MIC200 for tube warmth. I usually process vocals completely with plugins aside from a little EQ and tube sound. I run things direct then possible to my sound card (USB interface on my wishlist after monitors). Sometimes I route the microphone, guitars and keyboards through my Behringer UB-802 mixer for EQ and routing but I rarely record more than 1 stereo or mono track at a time so I plug direct most of the time for signal's sake... and I am lazy and hate looking for AC adapters and plugs and cables that never remain in the same place for some reason.

I also have a Samson C01U that I was using like an idiot with the laptop as a cumbersome and awkward field recording setup. I have used it to record some vocals but the major flaw with this mic is the fact that (unless I am not understanding things) you cannot monitor the input while recording. Even my little Olympus DS-40 digital recorder allows live monitoring and stands in as a stereo USB microphone if needed, but apparently I do not know how to live monitor that one either which makes it's use as a stand in for USB interface less than good but for recording I can deal with not hearing acoustic instruments in the mix while tracking, no big deal.

For drums, some basses and instruments I do not own, I use the Alesis QS6.1. The Alesis is still my main and only MIDI controller (aside from the qwerty!) and I have 2 expansion cards to compliment the decent sound pallete. I no longer need the 8mb sample card so I might burn the expando banks to it if I have a few hours to spare. I also use the MIDI Yoke for 8 virtual MIDI ports I can route to all the various straggler software I have like algorithmic composers, DNA to MIDI translators, etc.

For processing internally I use all the free plugins, there are too many to list and I am eliminating dupes and buggy ones and ones I don't use lately. I use Wavosaur as my dedicated editor in Reaper. I have the AnalogX DX stuff and their stand alone stuff as well. I also use Coagula and another image synth to create synth sequences occasionally. I rarely use Sampled, Drumsynth and Adsynth to create samples and sounds anymore but they are not going anywhere. Also, as I mentioned, Cool Edit 96 is still in my arsenal after all these years. A lot, if not most, of the multisamples, one shots, found sounds and field recordings on here were recorded or edited with it and it has some quirky old school tools you cannot find on modern software like phone number tone creation and binaural beat generation to name a few and we have all been in the middle of a song and wondered how the hell are we going to hypnotize people during the bridge with an old friend's phone number, right?

I still have the old clip on mic, the old radio shack dynamic mic and a bunch of other weird sources of sound like a magnetic microphone, multiband radio, etc. They live in the drawer I occasionally rummage through looking for an adapter or cable. I always use a metal pick on guitars when not fingerpicking and I haven't touched a bass string with a pick in 15 years. I am weaning myself of any use of loops and anything less than CD quality. I am going back to MIDI and keeping everything but vocals and acoustic guitar as digital as possible with minimal routing outside of the extensive capabilities of Reaper which has made external processors and mixers all but obsolete in my world. Like tape hiss, bleedthru, and track limits the use of my soundcard will soon fade into history as well when I get the USB interface. You still need a real electric guitar, I don't care what software or plugin you have, if it isn't a guitar, it isn't a guitar... digital xylophones are fine but playing a guitar solo on a keyboard is just silly.

im looking for some free software that lets me make loops and full songs on my comp sinse i don't have any instruments, also i need something simpelish cause im new to this
TY

Kirill ><)))*>

NoiseCollector

For processing guitars and bass, I still use my Zoom 3000 and the 607 for bass. I am experimenting with VST's but there is something about recording a guitar clean without effects that detracts from the playing depending on the style... kinda hard to feel the anger of an E power chord clean and then applying digital distortion to it... maybe someday. Bass on the other hand is easier, you play it and it is what it is unless I feel like getting creative which everyone is doing these days so sometimes simple is clever, if that makes sense.

We use Cubase Studio 4 and Guitar Rig, with the effects applied to the monitor so that you can hear them as you record. We play in Drop B so really need to hear the effects. This goes for guitar and bass.

For my own stuff i use Reason 4, Cubase Studio 4, Renoise 1.9, and Audacity for rough editing. I have a MIDI keyboard and am looking to get a Zoom H4 to use for field recording and as a PC interface so i can put my guitars, basses and various circuit bent stuff to use.

Only hardware here...
Mainly :
- Nord Modular G2X
- Nord Micro Modular
- Alesis Fusion
- Roland XV5050
- Yamaha Rm1X
- Yamaha RS7000
- Couple of hardware multi FX
- 2 Bass guitar
- Bass pedal board
- Active & passive micorphones
- Yamaha WX-5
- Korg D3200
- Boss BR600
- LOT of cables

I currently use a 10 year old HP desktop computer, running Windows XP. The Software I use is a demo of FL Studio 8, Audacity, and Mu.Lab Free. At School (I'm a senior in highschool), I have access to an old Emac running OS9, and Digital Performer 4. I use A MicroKORG as my only hardware Synth, although when at school I also use Yamaha's So3. For Recording, I have a generic PC Microphone, and my school's array of Shure and Rodes Microphones. On the VST side, I use Augur, ABVST, DSK MiniDrumz, DSK Odisea, DSK xXx, DSK Darkness Theory, DSK Chaos Theory, TOAD, WavSim (PPG emulator), TAL Bassline, SK Crooner, SK Drummer, Casio VL1, and sometimes FL Studio's Beepmap.

The Programs:

Reason 4, ReCycle, Audacity (great for field recording and samples...and free, too), and Pro Tools 8.

The Equipment:

Studio Projects C3 condenser mic (bitchin and cheap), a handful of Sennheiser dynamic mics, Fender Strat, Marshall Halfstack, and a whole lotta noise.
The KeyRig 49 by M-Audio is the best priced USB Keyboard I've found at $100.

The Verdict:

With all the equipment, I find that I have the most fun with just a regular old acoustic guitar.
Pro Tools is nice, and I know the program well.
There's just too much crap in the way of the creative process.
The best program for my songwriting demands would have to be Audacity 1.3.7 (Beta).
Just click and record.

Jordan Mills

www.jordanthebamf@yahoo.com

Hmm, The software is Sound Forge 9, Adobe Audition, Cubase, Madtracker, Live, and Audacity of course.

The hardware is a Nord Lead 2
a Bunch of bent stuff and homemade stuff,
an Alesis Miron
a Midi Controller

And alot of processing,

And most of the NI stuff I have used has never failed me.

synths

korg wavestation original keyboard
roland jv 2080
nord micro modular
akai s2000
paia fatman analog
moog theremin

host

ableton live
NI absynth
NI reaktor
NI kontakt

mixer

yamaha promix01

controllers

percussa audiocubes
m-audio oxygen8

old 2 gig computer put together from trash and stuff people gave me, an old old Roland vs0840 ex four track recorder (takes zip disks as recording media, which I am looking for very hard right now) used as an interface to my computer which has an older m audio sound card. a microphone i got from Rain forest cafe when I worked there as a repair guy (its a sure Sm-58 with a push to talk and mounted on a flex shaft, it was a replacement mic for the one they used for the hostesses{"John Lennon safari of 4 your adventure is ready to begin"} that i found in a dusty corner under a bunch of other equipment in a box marked "elephant mic) a cheap ass six string electric that I have heavily modified, an old Technics console organ from the early 80's that I got for free from craiglist.com. a set of Johnson harmonicas, a Yamaha recorder, a number of homemade drums and a bunch of refurbished acoustic guitars. Fruity loops, all kind of VST's an old record player for scratching and shit like that. and anything else I can think of.
I am currently trying to find schematics and wiring diagrams for midi interfaces so I can turn a cheep ass keyboard into a midi interface.

I use Cool Edit Pro for making loops and stuff, then do all my arranging in Cubase VST 5.1. I've got a bunch of VSTis, mostly free ones. I think my favorite is Superwave which has an absolutely wonderful sound. I like Garritan Personal Orchestra too. Usually I render all the audio into Pro Tools either at home in the spare bedroom or, preferably, at the ruddy great recording studio where I work. Then I/we add all the real instruments; drums, bass, guitars, whatever, slap some vocals over the top and finish it off. All mixing and finalling is analogue, then a digital mastering process which again is Cool Edit Pro. I have a hacked version of one of the filters from CE96 which is my secret weapon.

I really like to work with unusual sounds and loops. Usually I'll sample things into Sampletank to turn them into "instruments", or just cut up some random audio and see what happens. I'm planning to invest in a solid state recorder in the near future.

The studio is here.

Cheers,
Sandy.