Category: Geeks r Us
Hi and thanks for reading.
I've dicided that i want to get something that resembles a good setup in regards to music that i can do midi stuff with.
I've done some sequencing before but its prodominantly been on a qwerty keyboard and with vsampler and some fonts for the synth; so im still really really new to this.
My plan is to ghave a computer that has sf2's and hypersonic on it and then have a usb controler keyboard hooked up to it.
If anyone could advise me about the below spec and what else to get, really, however small it is, it'd be great:
Computer: Going to source this from ebay and have sceen a few that have p4 2.4 ghz cpu, 1gb ram and a 40 gb drive.
Components: Extra 160gb drive; another soundcard instead of having to use the soundmax? A usb card? I kno this has onboard usb, but isn't the general rule that dedicated is better?
And then the keyboard; i really have no clue. I've been in music shops and sceen some for the best part of gbp 2000, but i've sceen some on ebuyer that are classed as controlers for 150.
I'm not looking for anything to advanced here, but i dont wanna have to get another one in a year coz it can't do what i want it to do. I'm not fussed about the length, but nothing to small; are waited keys worth the extra price?
I kno that thats quite a lot, but even if someone could comment on one thing out of all of that then it would be a help. I kno the computers far off overkill hence me getting the 160 drive and perhaps the cpu could be a bit better, but is a gig ok? Should i put hypersonic onto the 160 drive coz of faster drive speeds? Does that even make a difference?
Ok, well i'll stop now, any help would be handy.
BEN.
okay, go for a pentium 3.4 gHz or higher if you want to run soft synths like hypersonic. I'm running a P3.4 gHz processor and it works fine in multiple instances. I'd suggest sonar 5 or 6 studio or producer edition for sequencing and audio etc. You can mix and master in that daw environment as well and it comes with some great effects plug ins and a few soft synths etc. Hypersonic II is great. i love it! however, the acoustic pianos are the weak point. if you want a great true acoustic piano, go for Synthogy ivory. You’ll want two gigs of ram though, one won’t be enough. You’ll run into issues using multiple tracks of Hypersonic. When you setup the machine, I’d go for an eighty gig system drive and a 300 gig storage drive. On that drive, you want to keep your actual sample libraries and your sessions etc. Go for 10,000 rpm sarta drives as opposed to the standard 7200 rpm. Make sure you get a real serious fan. Your machine will be taxed running the soft synths and cooling is very important. Even go for a liquid cooled system if you can. I’m going to write some other stuff in my next board post. I don’t know if it’ll all fit in this one. To be continued…
I love the feel of the Yamaha S90es. Feels very much like a piano. The action is smooth. However, it’s approx $2300 currently and if you just want a controller, it’s overkill. As far as midi controllers, if you play piano on a regular basis, then I’d suggest you go for a weighted or semi weighted controller. The M audio keystation 88s is an okay semi weighted board for the money. The M audio keystation pro eighty eight is a fully weighted board but I can’t recommend it as the action is nothing like a piano. Block chords and trills etc are difficult. I find it uncomfortable to play. Just my take on it though. Studio logic make great weighted and semi weighted controllers but they aren’t cheap. For synth action controllers, which are usually sixty one keys, you could go for something by evolution. They are quite good. M audio make some controllers as well that have synth action. A lot of the newer midi controllers have both standard midi in/out/through jacks but they also have uSB for midi data transfer which is a nice touch. i use both methods and either is fine. Now, will you be using a screen reader with this? When you answer that question, I can advise you on external or PCM audio/midi interfaces etc.
As someone who was a piano major, I'd definitely go with a weighted or semiweighted keyboard. There are just so many aspects of the sound you can control by touch that it really makes a difference. I'm not just talking dynamics, but timbre as well. I used to have a Yamaha DX 7 till it was stolen, and I really learned to appreciate how much you could program that synth to be responsive to your touch. Good luck.
Lou
Yeah! The dx seven was a nice board! The new yamaha digital pianos are fantastic by the way.
Nice to know. I have a Motif now, and love it. I haven't had the time to learn to sequence or program it though. I hear its quite accessible compared to many keyboards nowadays.
man if I could afford the new motif XS, I'd have it right now!
I haven't seen it yet, but I hear they put a telephone-style keypad on it, so I'm sure data entry and menu selection are easier. Much as I love my 7-ES, I wish they'd do something with the saxes.
Yeah, I've never found a synth with really convincing saxes. I love the ian Anderson flute on the motif es though! And a lot of the pads are fantastic!
I agree completely. Some of the saxes on the Alesis QS series aren't bad, though. I like the really breathy alto sax.
Yeah, actually, the qs series had some really good sounds in certain areas.
I've got a Roland E-09 keyboard here, and love the saxes on it. They're awesome.
a few years back, i had a Roland XP-30. It was actually a very good board. the phantom x isn't a bad board either.