Synth!

cducar

Member
So i went to a concert this past weekend and one of the openers was an electronic type dance-ish band. I'm not normally a fan of this music, at all, but this guy was really amazing live. So good, that he inspired me to try to do the same type of thing. The only problem is I have no clue where to start. I know a program I should probably use is Reason 4, but do i need a synth keyboard to plug into my computer? or can I do everything with just the program?

Thanks to whoever knows what I'm talking about/asking.
 
What you want is probably a MIDI controller keyboard. Most MIDI keyboards use the USB Protocol, so no problem there with connections. Then it's usually just a case of assigning the I/O module in the DAW.

http://www.chemical-records.co.uk/sc/servlet/Info?ref=gbase&Track=EKEYS

This the absolute minimum MIDI Controller keyboard.

One great function of most modern DAW is to actually learn different functions and assign them to keyboard controls, so most keyboards can actually have various effect and patch parameters assigned to various buttons and knobs on the keyboard. This is a bit more upmarket and considerably more than I use:

http://www.absolutemusic.co.uk/shop/view_product.php?product=kormicrokontrol

The good thing about button assignment is that it allows you to re-create layouts on the MIDI controller, as if it were a 'real' synth. So you can set the resonance filter to one knob and the waveform shape to another, envelope adjustments and even effects like reverb, compression, phase et al. Look into it. There's nothing complicated when you get into learning the basics.

I've never used Reason, but I've heard nothing but praise for it. I use Logic Express 7 (will be upgrading to Studio 8 eventually), which only has limited synth capacity built in, but is still enough to tinker with.
 
Reason is definitely the way to go. Depending on what you are wanting to do, you don't necessarily need anything else. But given the cost and potential of Reason, it would be senseless to buy it and not a midi controller.

Something like this is all you need. Plug it into a USB port, and you are set.

http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/KeyRig25/
 
I tend to prefer the 49 key controllers. Personally, I use a lot of octaves in my work - often the same note differentiated between octaves, so a smaller controller is limited in that regard when playing 'live' in. I tend not to quantise anyway, so I don't have the need to re-work parts once they're played. Hence I used a 49 key controller and leave the tracks without adding in the extra notes in the different octaves later.

However, the footprint of a 49 key controller is significant, so if you want to save space, get a 25 key one.
 
I tend to prefer the 49 key controllers. Personally, I use a lot of octaves in my work - often the same note differentiated between octaves, so a smaller controller is limited in that regard when playing 'live' in. I tend not to quantise anyway, so I don't have the need to re-work parts once they're played. Hence I used a 49 key controller and leave the tracks without adding in the extra notes in the different octaves later.

However, the footprint of a 49 key controller is significant, so if you want to save space, get a 25 key one.

Totally. More keys is better.
 
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