new to producing

Performance & Techniques Music Production
1

new to producing

hi everyone

I have been DJing for years but want to get into remixing and producing. I have seen loads of programs to get me started but to be honest its a minefield. Where should I start? Ableton FLstudio? I have no idea. I hav ideas in my head just dont know where to start. I would like to know about plugins too. Are they just for changing sound of what you have already done or is it deeper than that. Any help on where to start would be greatly appreciated.

I have a quad core iMac and a launchpad (which I use with Traktor) and an s4.

Thanks in advance

2

Hey nobbycossie,

if you are running Mac, I don’t believe FL Studio (I actually use this) will work for you. You may have to run something like Ableton or Logic.

There are lots of plugins you can use, ranging from synthesizers to compresors, eq’s, maximizers, and even your usual DJ effects like reverbs and gates. I mostly use Massive from Native Instruments and the Waves Diamond Bundle for eq-ing and compressing and all the wonderful jargon that is probably going straight over your head haha. Even some of the default plugins are great…

YouTube is also a great resource for learning, as they also show what you need to do. So once you know what product you want to use, just search something like “Sidechaining in Ableton” for example.

I’m fairly new to producing, only been doing this close to 7 months now. But once you get into it, it becomes a lot of fun :smiley:

3

youtube is the way to go…especially look up master classes…i know d.rameraz (spelling?), foamo, rusko and others have put up master classes that go into ALOT of detail about tracks and how they do things

4

Did you get a copy of ableton lite with your launchpad?

If not, head to the ableton website and get the demo. Start with the tutorials, and just generally play with everything…

There is also logic, cubase and a few other DAWs for mac, but as a personal preference i like ableton. Been at it for 5+ years :smiley:

5

Ableton the way to go lol. In All seriousness its a pretty comprehensive program. as stated above, Youtube. Its were you’ll learn the basics. and since your a DJ to , this is the metaphor I will make. Learning to produce is like learning to beatmatch again. you cant give up and you gotta stick with it to get anywhere

6

Rusko’s master class is a great one to watch for sure. And DJBambii is right, just stick with it. Once you start getting the hang of how your program works, all your ideas will start to flow from your brain to the so-called “paper”.

As being a DJ you have a slight advantage too. You’ll have a better sense of timing and when something should happen.

Every little bit helps, and it all comes with practice

7

Cheers guys. Yes I did get ableton lite with my launchpad, just never installed it. Will give it a go and see if I like it. Just a massive confusing minefield at the moment so will just play with stuff and see how I get on. Thanks for the advice.

8

Make sure you do all the lessons, they’re really helpful in explaining the basic concepts.