Cheap, small scale, ‘bedroom’ artist set-up-no external instruments

[Fraggle]

I used to be a jazz saxophonist with a band, and I used to play jazz club gigs for good money, but I gave it up because I wanted more control over what I played . In 1997 I got a ‘teaching’ job and kept my music as a hobby. Unfettered by financial connections I could make the music I wanted , because I was doing it for love and fun , not to pay the bills. So , I been doing this electronic music thing since the late 1990’s.
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1 midi keyboard- I recommend M-audio (I think for 90% of us a 4 octave keyboard is enough but if you want to play a lot of piano, then invest in an eighty eight (full size) key keyboard)

DAW- I recommend Studio One 4 or 5, I have used FL studio and Ableton (4 through to 9) - I don’t think there’s a clear ‘better’ or ‘worse’ with a DAW. If you make a range of music styles I think Studio One is flexible enough , but if you are focused mainly on modern contemporary genres, I think Ableton might suit you. Ableton uses ‘Max’ as a plugin system, and in the 6 or 7 years I used Ableton I never found Max to be stable, and ended up using only Ableton plug ins - they may have fixed this by now.

Samples - This depends on the music you make. If I buy samples, they’re drum loops, because I prefer to spend my time designing patches on synths, so I have little need to buy synth samples or any other genre of sample. I am just not interested in the fine tuning and creation of drum loops. However, if a deeply drum based genre is your thing, and you love making drum loops, but always find synth patch design a bore/chore, then focus on buying synth samples and use your own drum machine to design your own drum loops. (Of course, a lot of drum sounds are made on synths).

FX- this is where you can save a lot of money. DAWs come with all the basic FX you need , but most people get attracted to 3rd party FX … My (3rd party) FX VST2/3 folder is very minimal.
For mixing I would recommend Fabfilter plugins. Get the ones you need. For example I use the Multiband compressor far more than I would their compressor, so I bought the MB compressor instead. I didn’t find their gate effect was worth the money, but DEFINITELY get their EQ it is f**king amazing.
For filter and other FX I stayed with this company and got their ‘X4 filter’ plugin and their distortion plugin.
For reverb - Valhalla are the best value for money - Their “vintage” reverb covers most amateurs needs.
For Flanging and other delay based FX - Valhalla make an incredibly versatile plugin (I forget its name now)
For a traditional delay - Valhalla also make (what I have found to be) the best delay

Basically , to save money, as a rule, never duplicate an FX , research your best one, spend a bit more on it if you need to , because in the long run it will save you shopping elsewhere for another.

Synthesisers- Like FX , don’t duplicate the functionality. I think the best synths are Serum and Zebra HZ (you need to buy Zebra 2.9 , and then buy Zebra HZ if you want it)…the only synthesis style not covered by these 2 synths is sample based synthesis. If you want that , then you could look at BT Phobos (not often talked about, but a very good pad monster, but you need a powerful computer for it)….or the traditional option of Spectrasonics Omnisphere, also gives you deep sample based synthesis.

MIDI arps - most DAWS have an arpeggiator, but , if, like me, you make a lot of music with arpeggiators then I recommend buying Cthulhu (Xfer Records)…It is very flexible.

It’s your music - its important - so, spend money on samples, FX and synths if you need them, but try not to duplicate functionality….In this “bedroom music” hobby the old adage “you pay for what you get” is very true, but equally, theres a lot of stupidly overpriced stuff out there (like Phase Plant)

Headphones - here , I can't recommend a specific brand ( I use RHA T10i - $190 very good for the money - quite flat response) but I would say spend over $150 as here you do pay for what you get....look for FLAT RESPONSE headphones ....don't buy headphones used for relaxing listening - seek mixing headphones that are made for the sole purpose of mixing - ones that do not add more bass and treble than are in the original signal/sound you are making.

Microphone - I do not use vocals - I cannot give any advice on this.

Computer- I switched to Macs for all my computing in 2007 and have never regretted it , so if you have a choice, I would make music on a Mac rather than use windows 10.

Hope this helped some small scale amateurs like me…

[kvotchin]

Depends on exactly the kind(s) of music you intend to make. And your budget of course.

But that’s not the worst advice I’ve ever seen on the internet. Even if I’m personally no fan of Macs.

[Michael L]

Why not Logic?

[Junkyard Sam]

This is a great post, and it's interesting to see how other people solve their needs. We're all a little different, but there's some universal advice here that is good. One example is when OP said to buy the best plugin of every time and to avoid duplicates. OP is not a hoarder. Smart. Have the best tools, know them well. Produce.

In my case I recently downsized from a 61 key midi keyboard to a little 25 key Launchkey Mini MK3. It would be too small for most people, but for the right person it's perfect. Oddly, I've grown to love the smaller keys -- they have less travel. Normal keyboards feel strange to me now -- why do keyboards need a full inch of travel?!

So my setup is:

Overpowered gaming PC (not for games)
Scarlett Solo audio interface
dbx 286s preamp (i love this)
mxl 770 large diaphragm mic ($80)
FL Studio all plugins bundle (for composition)
Reaper (for recording audio)
Adobe Audition for sound editing (not my favorite editor but I get it free through work.)
Har-Bal for mastering EQ

I shouldn't mention my plugins because they aren't minimal... I have the Hornet All Plugins bundle. I have the Waves Horizon with a bunch of incidentals. And RC-20 which is a critical favorite. Black Rooster VHL-3C (free) is one I use a lot because I love the highpass/lowpass. Waves Omni Channel is a particular favorite...

I love the idea of minimalism and reducing down my core set of plugins over time.