Collecting music software and gear you never use

[beats me]

I had a decent burst of music creativity a month or so ago but for the most part I don’t really work on music that much. I attempt to tell myself that is a good reason to stop purchasing anything new music related, but every 3 months or so I can’t help myself….as if a new compressor or drum plug-in is going to spawn unstoppable music output. It never does.

I think part of me does this for some yet to be determined period in my life that creativity is going to become all-consuming and I want all the tools at my disposal when that happens.

It’s one thing to constantly buy software or gear you don’t need but actually gets some use, but just flat out retarded when you buy things you know most likely won’t get used. Anybody else suffer from this affliction?

[supamonsta]

Anybody else suffer from this affliction?

No.

Make a call to your psychoanalyst, you're in trouble my friend.

[beats me]

Anybody else suffer from this affliction?

No.

Make a call to your psychoanalyst, you're in trouble my friend.

Noted.

[regretfullySaid]

It's no different than:

I had a decent burst of sexual creativity a month or so ago but for the most part I don’t really work on sex that much. I attempt to tell myself that is a good reason to stop purchasing anything new sexual related, but every 3 months or so I can’t help myself….as if a new Rabbit® or butt plug-in is going to spawn unstoppable sexual output. It never does.

I think part of me does this for some yet to be determined period in my life that sexuality is going to become all-consuming and I want all the tools at my disposal when that happens.

It’s one thing to constantly buy latex or gear you don’t need but actually gets some use, but just flat out retarded when you buy things you know most likely won’t get used. Anybody else suffer from this affliction?

or

I had a decent burst of gastronomic creativity a month or so ago but for the most part I don’t really cook that much. I attempt to tell myself that is a good reason to stop purchasing anything new cooking related, but every 3 months or so I can’t help myself….as if a new pan® or spice rack is going to spawn unstoppable edible output. It never does.

I think part of me does this for some yet to be determined period in my life that cooking is going to become all-consuming and I want all the tools at my disposal when that happens.

It’s one thing to constantly buy pots or knives you don’t need but actually gets some use, but just flat out retarded when you buy things you know most likely won’t get used. Anybody else suffer from this affliction?

It might not be that bad. I had a friend who constantly bought guitars and pedals and sold them after a month or 2. I know there's a lot of people like this. Some are just curious about the gear and want to try them out, some are temporarily filling a deeper hole /cue puking from analysis/

Dude, you like fucking with music; it's probably always going to be there at least in your head. It's no different from an ex-ball player that still likes to get on the court once in a blue moon.

Every few months doesn't seem so bad. Did you end up springing for the IK $99 deal?

[beats me]

It's no different than:

I had a decent burst of sexual creativity a month or so ago but for the most part I don’t really work on sex that much. I attempt to tell myself that is a good reason to stop purchasing anything new sexual related, but every 3 months or so I can’t help myself….as if a new Rabbit® or butt plug-in is going to spawn unstoppable sexual output. It never does.

I think part of me does this for some yet to be determined period in my life that sexuality is going to become all-consuming and I want all the tools at my disposal when that happens.

It’s one thing to constantly buy latex or gear you don’t need but actually gets some use, but just flat out retarded when you buy things you know most likely won’t get used. Anybody else suffer from this affliction?

or

I had a decent burst of gastronomic creativity a month or so ago but for the most part I don’t really cook that much. I attempt to tell myself that is a good reason to stop purchasing anything new cooking related, but every 3 months or so I can’t help myself….as if a new pan® or spice rack is going to spawn unstoppable edible output. It never does.

I think part of me does this for some yet to be determined period in my life that cooking is going to become all-consuming and I want all the tools at my disposal when that happens.

It’s one thing to constantly buy pots or knives you don’t need but actually gets some use, but just flat out retarded when you buy things you know most likely won’t get used. Anybody else suffer from this affliction?

It might not be that bad. I had a friend who constantly bought guitars and pedals and sold them after a month or 2. I know there's a lot of people like this. Some are just curious about the gear and want to try them out, some are temporarily filling a deeper hole /cue puking from analysis/

Dude, you like fucking with music; it's probably always going to be there at least in your head. It's no different from an ex-ball player that still likes to get on the court once in a blue moon.

Every few months doesn't seem so bad. Did you end up springing for the IK $99 deal?

I think part of it is if I completely abandon music or making music purchases I am somehow admitting defeat and I would need to invest in a more big boy realistic plan B, but I just don’t have a plan B.

I hardly ever resell anything no matter the amount of dust it collects. I think the only thing I sold was my MPC because I determined early on that it was a complete waste of my time. I don't get/like it's workflow at all.

I haven’t gotten anything by IK. It’s just a company I avoid for no real valid reason. They just seem to release things that some other developer does better IMO, totally unsubstantiated by personal experience.

[regretfullySaid]

oNLY REASON i THOUGHT THAT IS SINCE YOU SAID COMPRESSOR AND THEY HAD THE RECENT DEAL.
Sorry forgot I had it in caps and don't feel like rewriting it (why isn't there a function to invert caps type? or is there one?)

Isn't your day job plan b?

Do you not write that much because you have it in your head ahead of time that it will have to take a certain amount of time and effort until you'll get to the part that you love? When you're away from your daw are you totally inspired that you wish "damn I'm ready to throw down some shit, I'm going to do so and so when I get home" and then when you get home you do something else or you tell yourself you have to do so and so first to get in the mood but by that time it's too late?

If you didn't have to work would you be at your daw all day writing stuff? Do you think it would actually be like that in reality?

Maybe one is just naturally outgrowing the other; maybe you think too much about it. Maybe you're burnt out on working solo.
If you only have a short amount of time to work on something, it's good to not think and just dive in and start doing something imo; thinking or worrying about what to do is just stalling.

I think part of it is if I completely abandon music or making music purchases I am somehow admitting defeat and I would need to invest in a more big boy realistic plan B, but I just don’t have a plan B.

See, you're already defeating yourself with the ifs and possible outcomes. That shit (anxiety) has no useful place in your head. Stop thinking and get to work, and when a limiting thought comes along telling you you have to do it this way or that way, ask why. Like if you're in the middle of the desert and you see a roadblock in front of you, the first thing that may come to mind is that you can't move forward, because you've been conditioned that way and don't think about it. But then if you think about it you may go "oh, derp, I can just walk around it".

I'm positive you know all this so don't take insult as if you were a newb, but hey, we all need a refresh sometimes, don't we?

[beats me]

The main reason I don’t write is because I’m rarely inspired, especially after a day at my spirit crushing job and the 45 minute drive home. Maybe if I wrote dance music where it’s all about production with no story behind it then maybe I wouldn’t have that issue.

My plan B day job pays the bills and I will most likely never be able to retire from it and I think if I was going for a more future oriented job, dare I say cereer, it would involve using my free time to take the steps to make that happen, be it education or training. I’m just terrified of the massive debt that seems to be about all you’re guaranteed from higher education these days, or not doing it to conclusion if I determine it’s not the field for me. “Hey, I have 40k in debt and nothing to show for it.” IT seems to be the big thing around here but I have zero interest in unclogging people fucking up their computers because their retards or typing in code all day, and in a lot of cases for way more than 40 hours a week.

Let me preface this by saying I have no issues with women in the work force, but I heard on the radio yesterday that women in my area are averaging 17k more a year than I make. Again, no issues with women, but when studies throw them in the equation it’s usually to say indirectly “at the low end”.

[regretfullySaid]

Maybe if I wrote dance music where it’s all about production with no story behind it then maybe I wouldn’t have that issue.

I feel ya, at the same time there's nothing that say's you can't put a story behind it...

17K is a pretty damn significant difference, WTF.

Living in an RV park out in the southwest mtns/desert is kind of appealing.
Fuck the game at this point. DIY or bust:p

Take advantage of scholarships and grants, kids!

There's a Zappa interview on YT somewhere where he talks about how college is not for everyone (or not everyone is for college); it's nice to hear for people who march to the beat of their own drum.

I'd like to think if most people can't pay tuition then maybe employers won't require diplomas as much. Besides, there's plenty of people who put the time and $$$ through college and they're still dumb as fuck, while some poor motherfuckers live in a library reading up on everything they're genuinely interested in that could hit any problem given to them out of the park.
I've been fortunate to work with people who prefer the self-taught/experienced outsider (yay craiglist) because they don't want cookie cutter. Now, I know there are a good number of people and universities that have benefited from each other and the world benefited from that, but youwhatImean. I've seen law grads on FB type and act like they're still in middle school. The way it looks, true education is the last priority with the big institutions. It's "pay us up the ass, take it up the ass, and we'll set you up with something"

[beats me]

There’s a lot of successful tech and web companies in the area which drives up the cost of living. Making 100k a year really isn’t that much of an achievement and you still wouldn’t be able to buy a house on your own. But the vast majority of jobs are in sectors that you’d expect in any large city. We just have the tech industry skewing the numbers. I’m sure the receptionists at the Apple buildings probably make 60k a year.

[regretfullySaid]

I was just seeing that employment has gone up in Albequerque and wondered if it had to do with any Fast Food Chicken expansions:p

[beats me]

Maybe if I wrote dance music where it’s all about production with no story behind it then maybe I wouldn’t have that issue.

I feel ya, at the same time there's nothing that say's you can't put a story behind it...

17K is a pretty damn significant difference, WTF.

Living in an RV park out in the southwest mtns/desert is kind of appealing.
Fuck the game at this point. DIY or bust:p

Take advantage of scholarships and grants, kids!

There's a Zappa interview on YT somewhere where he talks about how college is not for everyone (or not everyone is for college); it's nice to hear for people who march to the beat of their own drum.

I'd like to think if most people can't pay tuition then maybe employers won't require diplomas as much. Besides, there's plenty of people who put the time and $$$ through college and they're still dumb as fuck, while some poor motherfuckers live in a library reading up on everything they're genuinely interested in that could hit any problem given to them out of the park.
I've been fortunate to work with people who prefer the self-taught/experienced outsider (yay craiglist) because they don't want cookie cutter. Now, I know there are a good number of people and universities that have benefited from each other and the world benefited from that, but youwhatImean. I've seen law grads on FB type and act like they're still in middle school. The way it looks, true education is the last priority with the big institutions. It's "pay us up the ass, take it up the ass, and we'll set you up with something"

My ex will always be an under/unemployed student. Her solution is always to go back to school even though she has a 4 year degree and has never had a job worth a shit. She’s in her early 30’s and still lives with her dad and will continue to until some unfortunate guy comes along and decides he wants to take care of her and her emotional baggage financially.

I feel bad for talking shit about her but about a month ago we were going to have dinner after almost 6 years of no contact and then she cancelled at the zero hour when she found out I smoked a little pot the night before. Like I’m the loser in life comparatively. Fuck her.

[Machinesworking]

The solution to unnecessary music software purchases for me is to be ridiculously broke all the time.
I struggle and pine over purchases to the point of ridiculousness. Even with that in mind this winter has sucked ass financially and I still purchased Kirk Hunter Concert Strings in a group buy and Vexenego Elephant. I needed a decent mastering compressor though.... also I've always wanted a "pro" level string library.

The main thing I sometimes am able to do to shake off writers block is give myself major slack. Writing a piece lately that started off boringly 4/4 and ended up coming up with a 7/4 ending that you can't tell is in a weird timing that actually worked. One of those instances where doing something drastic was the right choice. Layering guitar over it I realized it had this Grunge rock type feel to it, even though it's techno as shit. I could have lamented about how every little thing I did in that song was a personal cliche, but listening to the whole thing at once it's actually not that bad or cliche at all. Wear all your cliches proudly, mix in everything and above all start with some synth or part that you love. Personally I'm stuck on a Moog bass thing, if anything is repetitive in my music it's a reliance half the time on a dirty Moog style bass. Fuck it, it's part of my sound, nothing wrong with that. One thing forums and talking to other musicians will do that I think is a little negative is get you confused as to what your personal take on things is, you'll decide a plug in or synth isn't that great because the general consensus on a forum is that the plug in or synth is "dated, too thin, too used, too complex, too xyz!" when in reality someone else's inspiration being exactly like yours is IMO a negative.

I hear you on the being in a bad mood etc. I can't even write sad shit if I'm in a funk. So keeping a healthy amount of self respect is important. That's a rough one sometimes. If it helps you occasionally throw out some self depreciating personal life story type joke that makes me laugh and commiserate at the same time.

Hey look at it this way at least you're not dead broke, and then your van gets towed, then the kittens knock over your Les Paul and break the neck away from the body slightly.... So no plug ins for me for a while until I crawl out of this hole.

[jbodango]

Perhaps plan "B" would be moving from music creator to audiophile?

Have you seen/heard these cables?
http://www.amazon.com/AudioQuest-K2-ter ... 000J36XR2/

[regretfullySaid]

Thank you, those reviews will be great reading for the next couple days.

[Davo]

While looking through the thread "post your set up and sexy cat" (o something like that) I have been struck by the similarity between these environments and those that are created in poker machine establishments. Apparently part of the allure for poker machine addicts is the flashing lights and sounds. The parallel might explain a need to continually "invest" when all rationality tells you that it is a waste of money. I think a case can be made for gear addiction as a psychological problem.