CubaseRox wrote: I think a set-up is just as important as the "final product".
Without a good set-up you cant achieve a good "final product"
Nobody said that a set-up should be poor, obviously the gear you have reflects a certain production standard to some degree, but it's all about how you use that gear, rather than just having the best stuff available.
CubaseRox wrote: Many people on here care about what eveyone uses, they care about what path was taken to get there
Yes but that's different than thinking you
need that gear in order to get
that sound. What amazes me ( and I am not saying this guy is doing this ) is the fact that people start downloading this and that like there's no tomorrow, thinking that they can now make better music. The resulting reality is poorer music because the people never really have the chance to get to know anything, they are blinkered in this madness of 'Oh, I must have it syndrome', in the mistaken belief it is going to come to their aid in their search to improve themselves.
It's rubbish and these software engineers have latched onto this crazy technology greed and are releasing ridiculous amounts of software alongside advertising telling people that they need this and that etc.
I suppose it's a good marketing strategy for them targetting beginners in this manner, because in essence they ( and magazines ) bombard them with this and that and people actually become brainwashed into thinking they actually need all this stuff. Then 6 months down the line and an empty bank account and they hear about the next thing they should get. It's terrible IMO and I wouldnt like to recommend anything all but the basics to anyone because they need to explore those basics a bit more before moving on because its only then that you realsise what you may or may not need for your music.
The set-up the guy has there ( If its all new ) is gonna take him an age to get the best out of, but I'd bet my bottom dollar that he will download something new weekly and so begins the path of technological laziness, ( something I have fell victim to as well )
In this day and age with the internet and huge amount of downloadable freebies and demo's, its just too easy to get lost in a vast array of sonic possiblities for any musician. The days when people were limited with what they had are long gone and it's a shame because that was when some of the most influential stuff was around. Artists knew their equipment inside and out, they new how to exploit it and get the amazing sounds that half of the music communtity is still trying to emulate today.
And this is my point, whilst I have completely jumped the gun and overpresumed his post, I have heard it so many times and it usually eludes to this kind of mistaken belief.
My advice would simply be, to get a set-up and stick with it, get to know it inside out and use whatever you have to its full potential, no more, no less. Just by doing this alone, you start to understand your own music and requirements when seeking out new additions to your studio.
It's just too expensive to not take it seriously, unless of course you are into the crack thing, but even then you are you own worst enemy because you fall victim to your own greed and still never realise your set-ups full potential because you grab the next available plug and so the cycle continues.
Limited set-ups are proven to provide the best results is all I am saying and for anybody starting out it can be realy tempting for them to get 'everything'. But the learning curve/music making ratio has to be met somewhere and I would advise anyone to take as much time as they can learning the equipment they have at their disposal.
( Errr sorry for the short essay, but it is something I feel quite strongly about. It's just not nice seeing people thinking they need to spend all this money to make better music )
