Who has the simplest setup? You gear freaks... ;o)

Macrostructure · Post by **Macrostructure** » Fri Jan 21, 2005 2:57 pm

Thanks

You sure you want to post a link to these high quality downloads on a forum? My (ex)label would have freaked...just a thought

dfusion · Post by **dfusion** » Fri Jan 21, 2005 4:42 pm

Yeah, simpler is better! And although software makes life simpler than hardware, having too much software will clog the mental system. I've gone from massive hardware in the 90s, to mostly software, to now 100% software (mixerless) with only a handful of plugins (about 24 total, and that's FX and Instruments combined). For me that is more than enough.

I remember Chris Cowie stating on this forum he did his entire EP "New Life" in Live 3 last year using only samples and Live's built in effects.

AdamJay · Post by **AdamJay** » Fri Jan 21, 2005 4:51 pm

i am a total gear freak but i'm also totally productive.
i've got the laptop i want, not a thing i'd change about it.
and i have the controller i want, not a thing i'd change about it either.
i have enough great synths, samples, and inspiration in my arsenal. and lately i've been writing the best music of my life.

did i still drool over the Behringer deejay thingamabob? yep.
do i still think that $1250 AMD64 laptop at BestBuy is a hell of a deal? yep.
do i have the money for either? nope. and thats what keeps me productive

genshi · Post by **genshi** » Fri Jan 21, 2005 4:57 pm

Of course it would be nice to do "simpler is better" but sometimes, depending on what you do, you need as many options as possible, especially when you do this for a living.

I have several projects that I work on from film composing to rock to experimental glitch stuff. So for some projects its as simple as my 667MHz Powerbook with Live 4.1 and Reason 2.5 (or sometimes just the Powerbook and Spongefork or Csound!) and for other projects I need to use everything in my studio:

software

• ixi 0.6
• Csound
• soundhack
• Albino 2
• MOTU Digital Performer 4.12
• Cycling '74 Pluggo 3.2
• Propellerhead REASON 2.5
• Propellerhead ReCycle! 2.1
• Ableton Live 4.1
• NI Absynth 2.05
• NI Battery
• NI Reaktor 4.01
• NI Vokator
• Peak 4
• Spark ME
• Spongefork 3
• Steinberg Cubase SX 3
• Steinberg Wavelab 4.0
• u-he Rumblence:zoyd
• u-he Filterscape
• various other VST/ AudioUnits plug-ins

hardware

• Akai MPC2000
• Alesis DM5
• Alesis Masterlink
• Alesis Monitor One
• Alesis Quadraverb2
• Alesis WEDGE
• Apple G4 Desktop with OS 9 only (450mhz, 256mb ram)
• Apple Titanium G4 Powerbook OS X.3.5 (667mhz, 512mb ram)
• BBE 862 Sonic Maximizer
• Clavia Nord Lead
• Cobalt Raq3 Linux Webserver (for serving up the music)
• DBX Project 1
• Digitech GSP21 Legend
• Digitech XP100
• Didgeridoo (which I STILL can't play!)
• Djembe
• Doumbek
• E-bow
• Electrix FilterFactory
• Electrix WarpFactory Vocoder
• Elektron Sid Station
• Ensoniq ASR10r
• Ensoniq ESQ1
• Ensoniq Mirage
• Ensoniq TS10
• Ensoniq VFX-SD
• Etherwave Theremin
• Evolution UC-33
• Glyph M-Project 40GB (for MOTU 828)
• Gateway 3.06GHz P4 (1gb ram, 200gb hd)
• Groove Tubes Model 1B Tube Mic
• Ibanez Artcore Semi Hollow Electric Guitar
• Korg Electribe EA-1
• Korg Electribe ER-1
• Korg Electribe ES-1
• Korg Kaoss Pad 2
• Line6 POD
• Mackie 24x8 console
• M-Audio FireWire 410
• M-Audio TAMPA Mic-Pre
• Midiman Oxygen 8
• MOTU 828 Firewire Audio Interface
• MOTU MIDI Timepiece AV (USB)
• Panasonic SV3700 dat
• Roland JP8000
• Roland JV2080
• Schecter V1 Electric Guitar
• Samson Servo-240 amp
• Takamine Acoustic/Electric
• Waldorf XTk
• Washburn Electric Guitar

[side note: I do have to say however, I did my best Songwriting back in the early to mid 1980's when all I had was a guitar, a Prophet 600 synth, Roland TR909 and a 4-Track cassette recorder!]

AdamJay · Post by **AdamJay** » Fri Jan 21, 2005 5:02 pm

Genshi -

no Ensoniq SQ-80? thats the best one of the lot!!!!

genshi · Post by **genshi** » Fri Jan 21, 2005 5:23 pm

AdamJay wrote:Genshi -

no Ensoniq SQ-80? thats the best one of the lot!!!!

No, I always wanted one of those but never got one cause I was broke by the time it came out and already had all the other Ensoniq stuff (had a VFX and EPS at that time also)... but definitely a fun synth it was!

Still, I have gear lust. Some of this stuff is very seductive. For example, I STILL want my ultimate dream synth and I will probably never have one:

http://www.vintagesynth.org/waldorf/wald_wave.shtml

darcyb · Post by **darcyb** » Fri Jan 21, 2005 5:58 pm

Software: Logic, Live Delta 2
Hardware: iBook 933MHz G4, MobilePRE, Roland XP-60

Thats it. The XP-60 has a decent enough tone generator for me to have lots of fun, and I let Logic/Live tweak/generate the rest.

Click for XP-60 + Logic Ambient piece

Click for Logic only techno piece

Click for XP-60 only piano piece

conny · Post by **conny** » Sat Jan 22, 2005 1:58 am

OK, there seems to be a stand still in the forums so I confess my simpleness:

PC Laptop (not mine, it's my employers)
Live, actually
Plogue Bidule (my best Live partner)
Free VST's
Three VST's that I bought (and regreted, no names)
Roland W30 sampler without DC cable
Tascam 4 track casette porta!
AND a real springreverb that responds when you say hallo to the metal shielding

That's for the gear.
Not longing for something special right now. Thought I wanted Reaktor but, as time goes by... Maybe a speaching, singing voice synthesizer.

// C

sweetjesus · Post by **sweetjesus** » Sat Jan 22, 2005 4:48 am

ableton live
trilogy
stylus
alesis andromeda
jp-8000

AdamJay · Post by **AdamJay** » Sat Jan 22, 2005 7:32 am

genshi wrote: Still, I have gear lust. Some of this stuff is very seductive. For example, I STILL want my ultimate dream synth and I will probably never have one:

http://www.vintagesynth.org/waldorf/wald_wave.shtml

i used to own one of the Black Waldorf Microwave XT's (only 666 made) would you believe i bought the Orange one , and a kid in California made a post on the Digital Hell mailing list wanting to trade his black one for an orange one... so we did the trade. It was fun for a while, but i can't even fathom paying $979 for a synth today. It really is amazing how computers have taken over. Just look at Winter Namm '05. Lots of firewire and usb stuff, not so many sound modules, synths, etc. and i'm really looking forward to Summer Namm '05, the first of hopefully endless Summer Namm's to be hosted in Indianapolis.

yes there are times that i wish i had the whole Elektron line at my disposal. but i dont have $4,000. So the M-Audio sample cds for MachineDrum and MonoMachine will have to do.

i never would have dreamed 5 years ago that i could go from this kitlist:
Roland TR-909
Akai MPC2000
Kawai XD-5 drum module
Roland Juno 1
Ensoniq SQ-80
Waldorf Black Microwave XT
various FX, mixers, etc.

to this kitlist:
PC Laptop
Evolution UC-33

but i'm so much more inspired musically with the latter.
what ya gonna do?

Zakari Luk · Post by **Zakari Luk** » Sat Jan 22, 2005 8:18 am

AdamJay wrote:
genshi wrote: Still, I have gear lust. Some of this stuff is very seductive. For example, I STILL want my ultimate dream synth and I will probably never have one:

http://www.vintagesynth.org/waldorf/wald_wave.shtml
i used to own one of the Black Waldorf Microwave XT's (only 666 made) would you believe i bought the Orange one , and a kid in California made a post on the Digital Hell mailing list wanting to trade his black one for an orange one... so we did the trade. It was fun for a while, but i can't even fathom paying $979 for a synth today. It really is amazing how computers have taken over. Just look at Winter Namm '05. Lots of firewire and usb stuff, not so many sound modules, synths, etc. and i'm really looking forward to Summer Namm '05, the first of hopefully endless Summer Namm's to be hosted in Indianapolis.

yes there are times that i wish i had the whole Elektron line at my disposal. but i dont have $4,000. So the M-Audio sample cds for MachineDrum and MonoMachine will have to do.

i never would have dreamed 5 years ago that i could go from this kitlist:
Roland TR-909
Akai MPC2000
Kawai XD-5 drum module
Roland Juno 1
Ensoniq SQ-80
Waldorf Black Microwave XT
various FX, mixers, etc.

to this kitlist:
PC Laptop
Evolution UC-33

but i'm so much more inspired musically with the latter.
what ya gonna do?

can i ask why you would abandon the 909?

MarkH · Post by **MarkH** » Sat Jan 22, 2005 8:25 am

Zakari Luk wrote:can i ask why you would abandon the 909?

I don't know why anyone would even want a 909 these day. I don't know anyone who uses the raw sounds of a 909 anyway, as you typically end up stacking/compressing in software anyway. With software like Livefill, Battery, Stylus RMX, you're more than covered and (like the purpose of this thread) your productivity goes up.

Adam, you forgot tell us how special your UC-33 is!

Zakari Luk · Post by **Zakari Luk** » Sat Jan 22, 2005 9:22 am

MarkH wrote:
Zakari Luk wrote:can i ask why you would abandon the 909?
I don't know why anyone would even want a 909 these day. I don't know anyone who uses the raw sounds of a 909 anyway, as you typically end up stacking/compressing in software anyway. With software like Livefill, Battery, Stylus RMX, you're more than covered and (like the purpose of this thread) your productivity goes up.

Adam, you forgot tell us how special your UC-33 is!

its about the analog warmth and sculpting the sound from scratch for me. personally i dont use the sounds raw that much, but i like running them through stomp boxes. i have never used a 909 or 808, but i use a jomox x-base, and i do not see myself getting rid of it. i have gotten rid of my drum sample cds.

Macrostructure · Post by **Macrostructure** » Sat Jan 22, 2005 9:49 am

conny wrote:OK, there seems to be a stand still in the forums so I confess my simpleness:

PC Laptop (not mine, it's my employers)
Live, actually
Plogue Bidule (my best Live partner)
Free VST's
Three VST's that I bought (and regreted, no names)
// C

I know it's just a language thing (I am from the UK) and perhaps rather childish of me to say this but Plogue Bidule is an absolutely wonderful name

Perhaps I will give my first child either Plogue or Bidule as a middle name...? I really do like it

Vercengetorex · Post by **Vercengetorex** » Sat Jan 22, 2005 9:50 am

Ableton Live 4.1
MOTU 828 MkII
Mackie CR-1604
2 Panasonic AG-6500 decks
Yamaha DOU-10 Disk Orchestra Unit (Yeah, really!!

)
Doepfer Pocket Fader
Oxygen 8
MANY "cheap" microphones

and my had re-tooled Sony SSU-2000's for monitoring (originaly produced 1976)

thats it.

No gear lust...

Some Plug lust (Zebra, Operator, OhmForce)

but thats it.

Who has the simplest setup? You gear freaks... ;o)

Anyone stopped buying advert-laden music magazines so that they can concentrate on making music with the gear they have already got?