Essential pieces of equipment.

T

The Hooligans

New member
Hello all,

So i am still in the beginning phases of the whole music process but I see it is something that I enjoy, because of this I am looking to pick of a few pieces of equipment to kind of give myself that home studio feel. However there are so many items on the market that it makes it hard to know where to go. For starters I am looking to get a 49 key keyboard, I currently have a 25 key and it just isn't enough. Secondly, I am not how sure how essential this is but I am debating on picking up a AKAI drum machine. When it comes to making beats I think getting my drums right is where I struggle the most. I am hoping that this equipment can help me improve my craft. Can i get any suggestions or recommendations for equipment that can help me improve my craft over time.

Thanks
 
You are asking about interfaces.....the parts you interact with.

Keyboard - drum pads.
You should use what you feel YOU need to harness your creativity. So obviously, yes, you need a keyboard with MORE KEYS.
Hop on any site that sells musical gear and look at the choices in features, prices and reviews. And then order the best fit or go to a store (I've heard some people say there aren't any stores around them) and sit down in front of your options and spend some time USING THEM like you would if you were home and see which one speaks to you.


As far as drums go, do you mean the SOUND of your drums or PLACING your drums by manually hitting drum pads while you record in whatever you use?
Those are two different things. You can get a MIDI instrument controller that has BOTH pads and keys. Or, if you are looking for a drum Machine then there are a lot of choices and many more besides something from AKAI and even the AKAI brand has a bunch of choices.

AND what you already use and have might be worth taking into consideration.
 
I'll start off by saying the equipment won't improve your craft, it'll just give you something else to learn on top of what you're already learning. Why isn't 25 keys enough? Unless you plan on actually playing the keyboard 25 keys should be enough to jot down any ideas. As for the drum machine go with a Maschine, that's as good as it gets.
 
Griffin I think I am leaning towards an MPK49 or Novation SL. These are the ones that stood out most when looking at reviews.

With the drum issue I think its a mixture of both. I spend a lot of time tweaking my drums trying to get the right sound as well as laying them down into the pattern. I think having a drum machine would be much easier then trying to click in my drum patterns. The only issue I see is that exactly as you have said there are many options available. I plan to get a used model to start with but I don't want to get anything thats too outdated.
 
The Hooligans said:
Griffin I think I am leaning towards an MPK49 or Novation SL. These are the ones that stood out most when looking at reviews.

With the drum issue I think its a mixture of both. I spend a lot of time tweaking my drums trying to get the right sound as well as laying them down into the pattern. I think having a drum machine would be much easier then trying to click in my drum patterns. The only issue I see is that exactly as you have said there are many options available. I plan to get a used model to start with but I don't want to get anything thats too outdated.
Click to expand...

@ Fidelity : I would just like a bigger range of keys. Although mine has the octave shifter I find myself generally hitting the same keys. I feel that over time as I continue to improve a bigger keyboard is something I would want to move on to anyways. I figure might as well get it now and learn all of the basics while I am still in the learning phase. I do agree that hardware alone won't produce success but I do feel that certain hardware can make certain aspects of it easier
 
No, you are right. As your playing evolves, you'll probably think larger than a bassline.
And I don't think the point is to jot down ideas. I think he wants to make music.
Get what you feel you need. IF you were asking for somethinmg far left, then yeah, I'd agree that getting more crap aint gonna help, but getting they stuff you physically tough right, is rather important.
 
@Fidelity : I am not opposed to getting a fullsized K/B outright. I would just need to make sure it can fit where I would need it to be.

As I have been looking can someone who has experience or even owns a drum machine, can I get any type of insight of which is the way to go. Right now I am looking at a Maschine or an Akai MPD32. is the MPD the same as the MPC because I notice a very noticable price difference.
 
Yeah, that's understandable, but if you can afford it and fit it, by all means go that route. You might even want to learn to play the piano down the line with an 88 key.

I own a Maschine Mikro MKII, a bunch of functionality built into this thing. Not only do you get a good hardware controller but you get great software with it. Pad sensitivity is as good as it gets, integration with my DAW (FL Studio) is great although it wasn't seamless at first. I recommend it to the fullest.
 
Fidelity, do you ever wish you would have got the full size. I initally saw the Mikro and liked the price tag however, I don't want to purchase it and regret not getting the full version.
 
if you dont mind octave switching 25 and 49 just dandy.If you feel you can put up with the size 69 and 88 would be your best bet (i prefer maudio 88 keystation despite the sizeness)
and look into what you want from your pads, do you want them to be soft and trigger without letting go of them or do you want them to be sensitive and fast but lose the feature of multiple strikes without removing your fingers?although i own a korg and akai mpd 18, id suggest you look at everything first.

look at maschine or alesis and much others and make sure that is what you want before making the plunge, their pdf manuals show everything.
 
KonKoss I would prefer the pads that trigger as soon as i hit them. I had issues with the pads on my keyboard because they weren't very responsive, and I had to hit them very hard.
 
No, I have the MPK49 and that was for the combo. Nowadays I have a Maschine and Nanokontrol, I can sell my MPK49 and get me an 88 key if I wanted but I've gotten used to it. The Mikro is fine, I don't regret not getting another version. The other versions give you more displays and buttons, they do the same thing though.
 
akai's can be modded with 15$ corx but if that's not your thing i'd just get a korg,ableton push or machine.

mpd18's the cheapest option at 70 bucks but id just either spend that on physical mixer knobs or the bigger akai's.the pads are the same unmodded but they do make up for it in knobs.it seems like you already have a maschine though so unless you want a sidekick pad for other things it'd be a good idea just to use that one.

Dont get me wrong, you can do everything in a daw without any of that stuff but imo it's gonna be more fun with it lol.
 
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you don't need a drum machine.. daw, keyboard, mixing headphones and mixing speakers and you should be good from an equipment aspect
 
Any reccomendations for a midi keyboard? I was learning toward an AKAI 49 or 61 but someone recommended that If i am still looking to get a Maschine no need to pay that much for a keyboard where I won't use much of the additional bells & whistles
 
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