Music composing/synthesis

Cavallino

Cavallino

Cavallino

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Hello folks, wasn't sure where to put this one but I thought I'd start here, if wrong could Mods kindly move? Cheers.

I used to prat around on a Korg X5D many years ago and do a bit of music compostitions on Cubase, and recently Ive wanted to revisit those days. Im sure things have moved on significantly from the last time I played on a keyboard so I was just wondering if any resident OCUK-ers dable a little in composing music using keyboards/synthesisers/(ipads even?) and if they can offer any insights/recommendations on hardware?

I was thinking about picking myself up a Korg Krome 61 note keyboard to start off with... any thoughts?

Thanks folks!
 
The cheapest option for you at this point is to use your PC with a MIDI keyboard and some free VSTs. You could have course buy a hardware synth but for me software is far more flexible if you want to sequence songs with drums and effects etc. If you just want to play a keyboard then you need to decide of you want a mono or poly synth etc...if you want to go that route I can also help.

Ableton is the software (sequencer) of choice for speed and ease and you can get a trial version of it from their website. If you don't have a MIDI keyboard you can use your QWERTY one to play notes to start with.

After that look at somewhere like here and grab some VST files:

http://myvst.com/

I have some synths on the iPad (iSEM being my favourite) and have sampled them, it is possible to get MIDI going through the iPad but it is a chore compared to VSTs hosted in Ableton.

This should get you started, ask me questions if you want any more info.
 
Have a look at the offerings by Novation or MAudio.

I have a novation SLMKII, the novation stuff has good support for Ableton. Although in Ableton you can assign any of the functions to any MIDI device with 2 clicks of the mouse.
 
I compose a lot. Mainly use Cubase and a heap load of Vienna Orchestra and East West VST's.

Bought an M Audio Axiom 61 recently. Quite a decent, well priced midi keyboard. Does everything I need when fitted with an expression pedal.

I don't have much more in the way of hardware (apart from an audio interface and monitors). I have to keep my cpu and ram up to speed though as a whole orchestra's worth of samples + synths and percussion loaded starts to make projects fairly sizable (On occasion have maxed out my 16gb of ram using the high quality patches in Hollywood strings).

Going to migrate some of the larger sample libraries I have over to a new SSD soon as some of my projects can take an age to load from a HDD.
 
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Folks... I barely made it into the VST era.

Can I just double check that VST are bit like soundfonts? I.e. using your PC to synthesis the instrument but playing it through a controller such as the Axiom et al?

Im in two minds whether to go for a Krome or an Axiom (i.e. a stand alone keyboard which I can just switch on and play or a midi controller but with infinite more versatility of instruments...)
 
maudio keyrig 49 is a good starting point.

If you can stretch a bit more then go for the maudio oxygen 49 or if you need more keys then the maudio oxygen 61 and alesis qx61 are also great for the money.

good luck and enjoy

P.s midi controllers as you said are way more versatile, as you will be able to pick any sound from a VST and also then record your own songs, something you probably can't do from a standalone.
 
Wow, I didn't realise they were that powerful.

How many sounds can one realistically load on a PC say with 8GB of RAM?

I guess its worth getting more?

Also, one of the things that attracted me to the Krome was the ease of playing with accompanying backing/drum kit which on some multiprograms, comes automatically?

E: Cheers dacads also. Well to be honest I was prepared to shell out around 500 to 600 on the krome so a midi controller like the axio 61 should be cheaper I guess?

Any other decent options?
 
Don't forget that a stand alone synth will have MIDI and can easily be hooked up to a PC and used as a controller with VSTs.

VSTs can be full blown synths, sample based sound fonts or things like reverb, delay, chorus effects. VST is simply the format they come in. You can install as many VSTs as you like, there is a CPU limit to how many you can play at once but I still compose on a PC with 4GB RAM and have no problems to do anything I want.
 
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Cheers guys. Yes I realise standard synths can be used as a controller also.

If I had a chance to get something cheaper (i.e. just a controller) then thats always a plus.

Any thoughts on the Native instruments as per link above?
 
Yeah I would say the NI package is definitely worth it, but before that you could use a basic oscillator plugin that should be available as standard in any DAW. This will allow you to experiment with creating your own sounds and learning the basics.

Of course if you're not looking to do this then there's plenty of different VSTs you can use. There are some free ones you can use as well for example if you're just looking for a free piano vst just do a google search.

NI komplete is a lot of money as is anything decent, but it'll be worth it if you're going to be taking things seriously which I assume you are if you're looking to spend in the high hundreds?
 
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That controller although it will work with anything is really geared up to Native Intruments software. If you are not intending to use it with NI Komplete or NI products it would be a pointless purchase IMO.

Don't forget to factor into your price DAW software for hosting and sequencing the VSTs. It is possible however to run VST's stand alone with a free host so you can just to play them, but a DAW is what you need to record songs.
 
Thanks for the advice on the NI gents.

I think its going to be either the Krome 61 keys or a Axiom 61... it would be nice just to turn the synth on and start playing as opposed to having to plug it into my pc etc.

What a stupid thing to forget.... didn't factor in DAW cost.

Back in the 90s I would used Cubase, whats the scene like these days?
 
Cubase is still good, as are Reason and Pro Tools, there are quite a few other ones as well. All comes down to what you prefer I guess.

Personally I've always used FL Studio.
 
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