starting out in production

i want to starting producing proper hard trance / hardstyle but dont know wot software is best for it.

Also wot VST's are best for making bass lines and hardstyle riffs?

Can anyone help please?

For people starting out learning how to make hard trance/hardstyle the trend seems to be Fruity Loops (FL Studio) and a virtual analog vst like (Refx Vanguard, Pro 53, V station)

all 3 synths are capable of producing bass, lead and various other synth sounds with vanguard probobly being the best of the 3 in terms of the kinda bass you will be wanting to use.

id recommend getting hold of these along with some programe banks like the Vengeance sound banks for the above mentioned synths.

You want to be aiming at making your own sounds in the longrun but realistically when your starting out thats not gonna happen for a little while, so its a good idea to have some pre made sounds in the style your after to get used to sequencing and creating riffs etc, then you can start to understand more about the synths themselves along the way.

hope this helps a little

where can you buy software like this from?

well good online music production stores are

http://www.dv247.com

+

http://www.turnkey.co.uk/tkweb/index.jsp

+

http://www.dolphinmusic.co.uk/


i generally check all 3 when buying something new and go for the best price. also dont be afraid to phone one up and attempt to get a price down if its cheaper somewere else cos a lot of the time they will undercut a price youve seen online over the phone :)

Make sure you check out the demos first.. FL Studio's demo is pretty good - but it won't let you save or render your work.

I'd recomend getting Cubase sx3, Audio Realism Bassline is an absolute must as its a soft synth version of a Roland TB 303, and then either Novation V-Station or Vanguard (V-Station's a lot better IMO) also battery 2 is wiked 4 all ur drums etc

Yeah, Vanguard's a good one for trancey stuff, and if you know what you're doing it's quite a flexible plugin in general, though I tend to use z3ta+ 1.4 for 90% of my sounds.

Since you're writing trance I'd direct you here first and formost though:
http://home.btconnect.com/christopherg/main.htm

It's probably the best piece of audio freeware (appart from MIDIOX) that I've seen on the net anywhere... It does a fantastic job of emulating a Jupiter synth (defining trance sound), and has many LUSH presets. Enjoy, and don't say you dont' get something for nothing.


Another free yet excellent and slightly more advanced (but wierd) plugin for doing f*cked up noises in is this:
http://www.greenoak.com/crystal/

You can make some pretty nice pads with it too. Actually it very flexible, but I'm not a massive fan of the intereface.. that award goes to:

z3ta. Yeah that one again. It's a really potent softsynth, moddled after THE best synth ever - the Acess Virus so you can do basically what most classic analogue synths (including the TB303) can do and then some... It has some really nice effects, a powerful arpegiator (good for instant gratification!) and what IMO sets it asside from the rest are it's valve and cabinet modeling, so you get those FAAAT leads and basslines. z3ta will set you back 149 €, which is NOTHING compared to a full blown Virus synth, and in my opinion it does more and sounds better (PLEASE NO FLAMES HARDWARE SNOBS!)

Albino by Linplug is another great plugin (though somewhat less powerful), and it's available in AU, VST and DX formats so any host or OS will do the trick. Again it's not that cheap, but you get what you pay for.

On the mastering side of things have a look at Waves. Waves carry a reputation as being expensive, but again the features they provide are world class. Their bundles are pretty cheap when you consider what you're actually getting there. Then again, this may be a little advanced for you just yet, and you're better off spending your pennies on a new MIDI contoller (in which case I'd THORROUGHLY reccomend a Novation SL25 - best money I've ever spent)

Uh... as for send plugins there are MANY to choose from. Head on over to KVR Audio (couldn't be stuffed finding the address - google it). They have millions of free and demo plugins to choose from. Actually they have millions of everything to choose from, so you may well find a softsynth that you find meets your needs even more than the ones mentioned.

I'm not even going to get into sequencer wars.. Try everything (thoroughly since you will be a) theoretically spending allot of money on it, b) spending allot of time with it, and c) have different needs to every other musician out there). Ableton Live is in my mind the best combination of an easy to use interface with modern features. It's not that expensive (compared say to Logic Pro Audio or SX3) and it's easily the best DJ tool on the planet (not to mention it's strong studio uses). You can compose music in it or you can just jam.

SX3 is a great sequncer for people who have allot of time on their hands and don't mind fiddling with something for hours before they get a single kick and hihat going. Very powerful, very flexible, very expensive. Same goes for Logic, and to a lesser extent Sonar. They're good packages, but make sure you're not just using it because it's a "cool sequencer". We're all nerds here anyway. None of us are cool, and if somebody rips into you for using sequencer X or something tell them to get a life - well one less dorky than of somebody trying to feel good about themselves because they write music in native assembly code. We only dream of aspiring to coolness via our oomtish music and loosing our virginity before being 84. Yes, I am speaking for whoever is about to perk up and be clever. OK, I'm full of bollocks LOL. Personaly I use FL Studio which ranks lowest on any coolness scale (unless you include 15 year olds) because of a few quirky features that I find indespensible.. You'll find your weapon of choice, just keep trying them all and eventually it'll become clear which one you're most creative/ productive on.

Anyway I'm off to a party where I'll hopefully loose my virginity.











Kidding about the virginity part... I doubt I'll loose it tonight LOL

nice links mate , wicked synths !! :cool:

also for £69 you can buy tecno trance essentials from ubershell , wich has multiple kick samples + etc , i only use these sample cd's for kicks and hats though , you should really make your own basses, leads , pads!!!

:cool:

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