I really want to make my own beats but i have to idea where to start. i just want to use like a digital piano and a mixer i think. can someone point me in the right direction or in a better direction?
a mixer really isnt needed to do this. Id reccomend downloading or trying fruityloops, as it is the most beginner friendly and if you seem to enjoy yourself using that program you can begin to use more advanced programs. just download the demo for now FL Studio Homepage If you want a midi controller for your computer, look into this cheap beginner one (technically you don't need anything but fruityloops, but a keyboard makes a world of a difference) Buy Korg nanoKEY MIDI Keyboard Controller | Keyboard Controllers | Musician's Friend need anymore info just reply ill try to help. I know quite a lot about this stuff. I just took the most basic beginner set up for you there. How much money would you be willing to drop for this? is it something you would really like to do?
if you wanna make beats good get a MPC, its a drum machine that you can sample into and you can be more fluently creative than using a computer, or you can get fl studios/reason/pro tools it dosnt matter what equipment you use it all boils down to how good the beat maker is,,, what type of beat making are you interested in??
i mean im looking into learning the basics now and getting some equipment for christmas so i should have plenty of money.
i know the future by lil wayne the statement wizkhalifa the realest wizkhalifa idk, just mainly things you can smoke to.
get yourself a good program like ableton live or fruity loops and get acquainted with all the workings of it, maybe get a nice midi controller/drum pad (if your planning on spending some cash, theyre very useful for workflow etc.), then read a bit about basic music theory (scales/chords and what not),you know study the style of music your trying to make, then let your muse take you from there... good vibes! making music is one of the best feelings on earth
thanks guys i appreciate all of this. im using a mac btw, the demo wont download and i think thats why.
like the others said get fl studio or a beat machine. fl studio is gonna be confusing at first though if fl studio wont work try cool edit pro
if you wanna do beat like those that you said you like just get froot loops, can sample in it, you just need audacity (its free..) to chop up segments of a sample and then throw some SAMPLED drums over it or 808s (works best when both sampled drums and 808 library drums are used together
Fruityloops does not run on a mac. It is windows/ linux only. And since your getting these for christmas, i would skip over every program and jump right to ableton. It truly is a complete package. Ableton - Ableton Live Home Go to products and click try for the suite or live version, whichever you feel is best suited to you. Once you get the hang of ableton ( this may take a while, all programs have a pretty steep learning curve) you could venture into reason, and those two combined is a industry standard for digital music creation. and if money is also not an option, look into these keyboard/midi controllers: M-AUDIO - Axiom Pro 25 - Advanced 25-Key USB MIDI Controller with HyperControl Technology They are incredibley high quality, have faders, knobs, 25 keys (more then enough) and 8 drum pads which can be used to lay down beat. With both of those thats really all you would need.
All you really need is a sound-rendering program and a computer to use it on, for real. I use Logic Pro on a MacBook. I probably will never switch over to a mixer. Everything you can do with a mixer, you can do with Logic. You just gotta find a program that you like (which can be hard). I started out on FL Studio about 9 years ago, and even then I could tell that it wasn't the best program. Garageband was a step in the right direction, but as soon as I started fuckin' around with Logic I knew it was the one for me. You should check out some of my music, if you got the time. Links in my sig. Let me know if you have any questions. EDIT: I just read that you ARE on a Mac. GET LOGIC. You will not regret it.
Once you start, try remaking songs in the same genre that you want to make. Then you will discover the tricks and trades of that style of music.
Boils down to personal preference. I use Cubase but a good package to start would be fruityloops. E-Magic logic is available for the Mac, it's what I used to use before they stopped releasing it for the PC. You'll need a half decent soundcard (one with ASIO drivers recommended) and maybe a MIDI keyboard but that's about it to start. Check out youtube and various forums specific to your genre for production tips and tutorials to get you started. Will get you up and running a lot faster than trial and error.
I didnt know he had a mac, if so just use Garageband, it comes free on the mac, thats what I started with