Get Started With Music Production
2020 was all about spending time at home, mostly due to the quarantine. With 2021 here, and the pandemic still not leaving, it's likely most of us will continue to spend a lot of time indoors.
Social media has been flooded with people demonstrating some recreational activity they took up during quarantine. Whether it's painting, journaling, podcasts, and so on. So, why not find a hobby of your own? And for this reason, I present to you music production.
Now, some of you might already be musically inclined, might even play an instrument, but are yet to discover the magic of music production. Others might have never tried their hand at music. Well, guess what? This is a hobby that anyone can participate in. Whether you're a master of music theory or just someone who loves listening to some good tunes, music production is for everyone. Except maybe the tone deaf, but I digress.
So, what do you need to get started? Well, there's quite a range of things, so let me divide them up into categories by how much you need to invest in them.
THE ZERO COST SETUP
If you really want to get started without investing any money, this is the route to go. You don't need any fancy interface, amp or even studio monitor speakers. For this, all you'll need is a laptop and a Digital Audio Workstation (DAW) such as FL Studio, Ableton Live, Pro Tools, et cetera, and a pair of earphones.
Using loops — pre-recorded sound samples — and the built-in piano roll of a DAW, you can make music. It's really that simple. To get used to the software and how DAWs work in general, use YouTube to find tutorials. The channel named "In the Mix" has a great tutorial on FL Studio.
MID-TIER SETUP
Now, this setup is where you'll get the most flexibility for your money. You won't have to rely solely on loops or the digital piano roll, but you can instead input your own music through an interface or a USB MIDI device. It's recommended that you have some musical knowledge or at least experiment with a DAW before investing.
Guitarists can choose to buy something like an iRig to connect directly to the computer. Otherwise, going with an interface like the Audient EVO 4 is a great option. The EVO 4 is the best bang for buck interface that you can possibly get. You can also just buy a USB MIDI piano, like the Alesis V Mini as your main input method. Additionally, purchase a pair of studio headphones like the Audio Technica ATH M-30x.
THE PROFESSIONAL HOME STUDIO
Take your budget, and set it on fire. Because that's how desensitised you need to be to have a budget to invest in something like this. You can keep the same interface as in the previous category, but ideally you want to invest in something like a Focusrite Scarlett 2i4. Get studio monitor speakers like the Presonus Monitor Speakers and a high quality microphone like the Sennheiser E945.
So, what are you still doing here? Go download the copy of that DAW and get started.
Aaqib is still stuck in December 2019. Send him the details on how to make a time machine to [email protected]
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