Subs Received From
Sam Tsuntzurkas
Rosh Alvarez
Ben Richards
Aaron Richards
Dane Mc Nulty
Ellie Walsh

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48yr

 

Multiband compression divides the frequency spectrum into different sections so they can be individually compressed and manipulated. Compression is the process of lessening the dynamic range between the loudest and quietest parts of an audio signal. Compression generally lowers the loudest parts of a sound and amplifies the quietist sounds. 

 

When starting off with compression you need to make sure that your threshold is at its maximum so you can’t hear any effect on the audio. You should set your ratio to a comfortable level such as 2:1. This however will be relevant to the sound used. If the sound has a high dynamic range, you might need to use more compression than a sound/sample with low dynamic range. After you have set your ratio you will need slowly tweak down your threshold till you can hear the sound quieten. Make sure your gain is set to 0db so there are no inconstancies in the amplitude. You will notice now that your gain reduction should be visible either via the plugin your using or through your ears. You will now need to adjust your ratio to suitable level. The higher your ratio is the tighter your dynamic range will become. You will need to adjust your compression ratio, attack, release and threshold times based on what you are working with. For instance, you might decide to have a ratio of 2:1 on vocals with a threshold of -5db as you want to keep most of the dynamic range in the vocals. In contrast to this you might have compression of 4:1 on a pad with a threshold of -20db. In doing this the sound will maintain the same amplitude of sound throughout the mix. 

In order to Link a MIDI device to Ableton you will need a MIDI Device, Ableton, a Computer, possibly an interface and some sort of power source. 

To begin with set up your computer of choice, Apple or Windows it does not matter. Your computer should have Ableton installed if you are to successfully complete this tutorial, open Ableton.

Next you should grab your chosen MIDI device and connect it to your computer through USB connection. If the MIDI device you have chosen does not support USB you will need to connect it to an Interface. Make sure the interface is connected to your computer.

Now that your MIDI device is connected to your computer go into Ableton and use the shortcut command + , (ctrl + , for windows users) to open up the preferences window.

Then go into the ‘Link MIDI’ tab of this window and you should see a 'MIDI' and 'MIDI ports' section.

At this point you should click the first Control Surface button of the 'MIDI' section. Control Surfaces are available for the most commonly used MIDI controllers. If this is the case for your controller, choose the Control Surface for it as well its Input and Output. This will enable instant mapping and control. If it's a keyboard, also turn on Track for its Input under MIDI Ports. If Input and Output are shown in reddish, Live cannot detect the device (unplugged, off, broken driver). Some controllers Require a ‘Dump’ if this is true for your controller the ‘Dump’ button will become available, before pressing this make sure your device is ready to receive the ‘Dump’.

If your MIDI device is not pre-set by Ableton you will need to set it up through the MIDI ports section of the window. To play notes enable the ‘Track’ button of your device’s input. To adjust parameters of Ableton through your controller enable the ‘Remote’ button of your input as well as the output.

Your device is now linked. To map it to functions of Ableton press Command + M (Ctrl + M for windows) and select what you want to have it mapped to then press the button of your device that you want to control it. You are now MIDI ready.

 

Now before we begin, there are a couple of prerequisites you will need to meet. You will need a song exported as FLAC or mp3 (320kbps recommended) and image art exported as a jpg at 1425x1425 pixels with a dpi of 72 – 300. Your image must also be RGB and less than 25mb. Please note that FLAC uploading on Routenote is exclusive to premium users.

 

With all your “ingredients” prepared, the first step to releasing a song through Routenote is to click “Create New Release” from the Distribution tab on Routenote. You’ll then be given a page asking for release title and UPC / EAN. Ignore UPC if this is your first time uploading, and enter the title of either your single or album. (UPC / EAN relate to physical releases and most likely don't concern you if you're doing this process for yourself).

Click create release, and on the following page you will have a few tasks before you. I would recommend firstly filling in album details, and following that you will be able to provide metadata for each specific track on the album.

With the album details page filled out, you can then upload your song & image.

And with your uploads done, you can finally choose which stores you want to release on.

There are a few more steps you need to click through on Routenote. These are related to pricing and territorial information, and largely depend on your preferences. I recommend not changing the territorial information, and setting prices as low as possible unless you know you are going to get a lot of sales.

 

With all that done you should be ready to release. Congratulations on making it this far!

 

References:

 How to use Ping Pong delay on ableton to achieve an effect of echo on Analog.
 Firstly you will need a few essential things to achieve the Ping Pong Delay. Sourcing a computer from a trusted seller like apple.com, buying the DAW Ableton from ableton.com and electricity from an energy provider like ‘Origin Energy’. These components are all essential in order to achieve the desired result of echo using the audio filter ‘Ping Pong Delay’ which can be found in your ‘Audio Effects’ tab under your ‘Categories’ tab in the upper left part of your screen. Which should look something like this. 













Once your computer brought from a trusted seller is turned on, setup and Ableton Live is purchased and installed you can open the program and authorize it to ensure for full access to all of the program and its features. The next step is to choose the preset instrument that is ‘Analog’ which can be found in top left area on the screen and should look something like this. 

 

 

 

 

 

Click and drag your choice onto the Ableton timeline. Once your choice is loaded, use your keyboard to make a sound selecting any key between ‘A and L’. Doing this should initiate the Analog sound.
 
 Now what you can do is click and drag your Ping Pong Delay effect onto your Analog instrument. In doing this you would have changed what you previously heard coming through your speakers into a sound with a new effect and delays and repeats.
 
 

 So you’ve just bought your computer and your about to dive into the world of production. Now maybe your thinking ‘hmm, how am I going to produce all this music with just a computer?’. Building a home studio can be a bit overwhelming when starting out as you never know what gear to buy or how to fit it into your budget.  Did you know you can actually build you own studio for under $600? 

 Monitors
 

Every studio starts with monitors. If you can’t listen back correctly to what you have been producing it can become very difficult to produce quality music. 

There are a wide variety of monitors available on the market and to get started we have chosen PRESONUS ERIS E3.5 coming in at $169. According to bettermusic.com.au, the Presonus Eris E3.5 are “Ideal for music, gaming and home video production, PreSonus® Eris® E3.5 two-way active media reference monitor speakers employ much the same technology as the larger Eris-series studio reference monitors to deliver studio-quality sound, with a smooth and accurate frequency response. Yet they're compact enough to fit almost anywhere.” Being a small compact monitor, they are perfect for your first home studio. 

Audio Interface 

Next in line for your home studio is the audio interface. These are also known as a sound card. This device converts audio signals into digital and also converts the digital signals from your computer back to audio so that our ears can hear. 

Many types of audio interfaces exist but for the budget home studio, the Scarlett Solo is recommended. For under $150, It has two input sources (microphone and direct input) and two RCA outputs. It’s USB powered and works great for the first-time studio buyer. 

Microphone 

 

Last for building your own home studio is the microphone. Just like most things in life, there are many options at all budget ranges. For this budget home studio setup, the Rode NT-USB comes in at $199. PC Case Gear supplies the NT-USB  and describes as a “highly versatile side-address microphone that is ideal for recording singing and musical performances in addition to spoken applications such as podcasting and voice-over”.
 It is compatible with all mainstream recording software on both Windows and Mac OS based computers. 

 

DAW Software 

 

When it comes to recording software, there are a lot of options. DAW or a Digital Audio Workstation as it is commonly referred to, is software that allows one to write and record audio. When starting out, it is recommend using the free options available. Pro Tools Free and Ableton Live Lite are a great way to get your studio up and running. There is also option to upgrade to the full versions at a later date. 

 

Storage 

 

An external storage device is a great way to backup and store all your audio samples and DAW sessions. Office works provides a great external storage drive with 1TB of storage space. Coming in at $69, you definitely get “bang for the buck”. This device is connects to your computer using USB 3.0 and also has an internal shock sensor and ramp loading technology that ensures greater protection against accidents and data loss.
 
 With all the equipment needed to make your home studio for under $600, its time to start making music. Happy recording. 

 

 

Resources: 

Monitors - http://www.bettermusic.com.au/presonus-eris35?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI9vSKpqLF2QIVzgoqCh22hgdUEAQYAyABEgKy8vD_BwE

Microphone - https://www.pccasegear.com/products/37466?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIj-6hoKXF2QIVEyu9Ch3uqQwqEAQYAyABEgJnifD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds 

 

Audio Interface - https://www.soundcorp.com.au/focusrite-scarlett-solo-gen-2-usb-audio-interface-with-mic-pream?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI7_fop6XF2QIVBwQqCh2OegzhEAQYASABEgLp-PD_BwE

Storage - https://www.officeworks.com.au/shop/officeworks/p/toshiba-1tb-canvio-usb-3-0-portable-hard-drive-tb110ak3ba?cm_mmc=google-_-pla-_-Portable%20Hard%20Drives-_-TB110AK3BA&cm_mmca1=NULL&cm_mmca3=conversion&cm_mmca9=columbus&CAWELAID=620015440000141730&CAGPSPN=pla&CAAGID=34435309398&CATCI=pla-298875191758&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI5oronKjF2QIVyYC9Ch1zSQOmEAQYAyABEgJSb_D_BwE 

Krump is an aggressive dance style that originated in South Central, LA (Los Angeles) in the early 2000s. 

Follow these simple steps to start getting buck!

This a brief instruction on learning the main basic foundations of the dance style called Krump; Bounce, Stomp, Chest Pop and Arm Swings just to name a few.

To get you started you will need some good krump music. Click on the links below for some krump music.

Pick a track of your own choice, play and listen to it. You will notice and find the rhythm of the track simply by bopping your head up and down or swaying side to side. Bounce to the rhythm of the track by using your legs to rise up and down to the groove or rhythm of the music.

Next is the stomp. To stomp ,lift your foot off the ground by lifting your knees to about waist high. Drop your foot flat on the ground, make sure you don’t land slanted or on your heel or on your toes to avoid injuries. It is important to stomp on beat, stomp on beat with the drums to stay on beat (kicks and snares to keep it simple). Practice this repeatedly.

Next is the chest pop. Chest pop by moving the top part of your chest up and down. Once again, make sure you are on beat, the most effective way to chest pop is by chest popping to the bass/kicks/snares of the track. Practice this move repeatedly on beat with the music.

Next is the arm swing. Before you start swinging your arms everywhere, make sure you are not next to anything or anyone you would possibly knock over or hit to prevent any injuries. The simplest way to arm swing in krump is to pretend to hold a ball. Aim to throw your arm away from your body. After that, be mindful of your elbows. Use your elbow by folding it aiming your arm swing to come close to your body. The idea of a basic arm swing is for it to be powerful and controlled at the same time. An arm swing is typically used to end a sequence of moves.

For one final step, put all of these foundations together from the bounce, to the stomps, then to your chest pop and to end it with an arm swing. 

You now have the basic knowledge on how to krump. To learn further, seek any classes or workshops near you. Otherwise, watch the links below.

Watch the youtube link below to see how krump is done by the two people that created it, Tight Eyez and Mijo.

Another link to see krump for you own viewing pleasure.

 

DJ Controller/Decks. 

PA Speakers. 

Powered Subwoofer. 

Headphones. 

USB’s (Depending if your controller has USB ports) 

Lighting Equipment. 

Rekordbox 

Road case 

 

Once you have the equipment you will need the practice/skills to beat match at least two songs together. From BPMs ranging from 70bpm to 150bpm depending on what music the host would want at there party. The two main genres played at a party is RnB and EDM. RnB’s tempo range is from roughly 70bpm – 90bpm and Electric Dance Music is from 120bpm – 150bpm. So practicing those skills to beat match between those genres is crucial. If you still don’t know how to beat match very well fading songs in and out is help full 99% of people wont notice. Unless they are a judgmental DJ. 

 

You will now have to manage your music on your USB’s by putting what genre of whatever that song is into that genre file and make everything neat. To do that you will have to have a DJ software, the software I recommend is Rekordbox as I use that software. By using Rekordbox it will make it a lot easier to choose songs and it would make everything a lot more organised. 

 

Once arrived at the location roughly an hour before the party starts that you are DJ’ing at you will have to unload all your equipment and set it up.  You would set it up by putting you decks in front of you, your subwoofers to the left and right of yourself facing away from you on the floor and putting your PA speakers either on top or beside the subwoofers also facing away from you. The you would put all your lighting equipment behind yourself. When you are done setting up your equipment you will need to test it by playing a few songs before hand to make sure everything is right and okay for the whole night. 

 

When more people get to the party play songs that the crowd like not you because playing songs that the crowd don’t like will just give you a bad reputation and make you look like a bad DJ. There is nothing worse then DJ’ing and no one is dancing and everyone is just sitting down. 

 

DJ’ing Equipment: 

 Store DJ: https://www.storedj.com.au/ 

JB-HI-FI: https://www.jbhifi.com.au/dj-musical-instruments/ 

DJ City: https://djcity.com.au/ 

 

The home studio is something that the majority of music engineers and producers will begin with to start making and recording music. It is a blend of affordability and accessibility that makes the home studio somewhat of an inevitable investment. Most of the time, people don’t have a dedicated room to record and produce and therefore end up using their bedroom, which generally isn’t the greatest because of lack of room, bedrooms also tend to have carpet, which has an effect on high frequencies, but not low frequencies, making them less than optimal. Though the sound, acoustically, isn’t as optimal as possible, it is still serviceable. 

 

First you’ll want all the essential items to create your studio, this list includes: A computer, Your DAW of choice, an Audio Interface, Microphones, Headphones, Studio Monitors, Cables, Microphone stand and a pop filter. 

 

First, you want to pick the most optimal room for your studio. Try to choose a fairly large room that has an irregular shape and taller ceiling that, preferably has concrete or hardwood flooring (so as to avoid carpet). Rooms like these are acoustically superior to your average bedroom with square walls, low ceiling and carpet. Also try to take into account exterior sound, such as plumbing or neighbours, these sounds are much louder in recordings than normal life. 

 

After determining your room, now you should set up your equipment, optimally you’ll have a separate recording room from your engineering room, however, this is a home studio and that is likely an impossibility. Therefore it is important that your microphone and stand are far enough away from the computer that your microphone won’t pick up the sounds of its fan, optimally behind a partition from your other equipment. Because it is likely that you will be operating all equipment, you’ll want your equipment to be nearby enough to use them without too much effort. Therefore the best set-up for a single man workstation is to surround yourself with the equipment in a circle, this works well for people that need to be the musician and musician. Lastly, you’ll want to make sure to place your monitors in the most optimal position for sound, this may or may not be on your desk or somewhere else, higher or lower in your room, for this reason studio monitors stands may help to achieve the best possible placement of your monitors by allowing for different heights and angles. With your equipment set-up and monitors optimally aligned, you are now ready to begin working in your studio. 

 

Now that you have that sorted out its time to get to real business. To create a trap style instrumental, the first thing the create is the drum loop. The kick and the snare are the first two sounds you generally start with. When finding a kick sound, you want to find something that will be very punchy and quick sounding. Moreover, the snare should also sound very snappy and quick to create the distinct trap sound that it is known for. Next add in the high hats that have a triplet pattern in between the snares and the kicks to add a more pounce to the track. Create a drum pattern of your choosing based on how you feel and let your creativity loose. The next step is to pick and add the 808s. It is also worth noting to tune the 808s based on your personal preference.

 

When that is all done set the tempo to approximately 130 to 135 bpm. Finally, this should form the bases for the trap instrumental you are working on and you can add in the melody on top of the drum loop such as plucks or dark sounding piano keys. There you have it, now you know how to create a trap style instrumental.

Now, head to the venue where you are playing. Once you arrive, insert your USB into the CDJ’s and press the USB button to bring up your music on the side that isn’t currently playing music. Next, Scroll down using the knob wheel on the right to select ‘Playlist'. 

Once you have found which song you would like to load press the scroll wheel in as a button
and load the song. You will get a screen similar to what is displayed below. 

After a while you will need to mix into the song that is currently playing by the other DJ who you are relieving. Firstly make sure your bpm is the same speed as the song you are mixing into. Secondly you need to introduce the next song at the right time, this is called phrasing, for beginners the best time to bring in another song is at the start of the second drop. This is because you have the outro to mix in to. Eventually once the second drop is approaching be sure to have your fader down on the mixer so that no sound plays when you are mixing in. To get a feel for the beat tap the cue button to the rhythm of the song that is currently playing, when you let go of the cue button the song stops playing. Finally once the song drops hit play, trying to time it around the first kick of the second drop.

Now, if you put your headphones on you will hear both songs playing, using the jog wheels you can nudge and adjust the position of the song so that it will align with the kick of the song you are mixing into as depicted below.

Eventually, once both kicks are in time, you want to remove the low frequencies of the song you are bringing in and slowly bring up the fader to introduce the song. When the bass is about to come in for the next song, swap the low frequencies and slowly start to bring the fader down of the song that was originally playing. Next load up a song on the other CDJ by pressing the ‘Link’ button to access your music through an ethernet link cable. Repeat the same process that has just been used to continuously play music from one side of the decks to the other.

Whether you’ve got that new Chris Brown joint or a song you’ve created yourself, a lyric video is a perfect way to engage with the audience to convey the message of the song you’ve chosen. 

In this segment, I will be providing you with a step by step guide on how to create a super cool lyric video. 

 

Ten simple steps to achieve a great lyric video 

 

1.    Decide on the song. Generally you’ll want to choose a song that has simplistic lyrics so the audience doesn’t have a hard time trying to understand what the song is about. For example, if the song has words like “entomophagy”, obviously barely anyone will understand what’s actually being said. 

 

2.    If you haven’t already, download the desired song. Purchase the song and download it onto your computer, MP3 version or WAV version is optional. 

 

3.    Find the song’s lyrics. The easiest way to get the most accurate lyrics is to go on a verified website like Genius (https://genius.com/) or my personal favourite AZLyrics (https://azlyrics.com/). 

 

4.    If you don’t already have a video editing software, you can find some easy navigating video editing software like Windows Movie Maker or iMovie. Download and install the software and open desired video editing software. 

 

5.    Once opened, create a new project and give it a title that you’ll be able to find easily. For example “Chris Brown – With You Lyric Video”. 

 

(Optional: choose a background image that will enhance or emphasise the lyrics or message of song, if not desired, can leave the background alone which is by default a black background) 

 

6.    Start by adding text and type in the artist name and song title for intro of song. If you want to change the default font and letter sizing, you may do so as you please. 

7.    Insert the lyrics so it may align/synchronize with the song as it plays throughout the video. Generally, you would want to go by four lines of the song and then use a desired transition into the next four lines of the song, a commonly used transition is the fade transition.  Repeat all throughout the song making sure it is in sync with the song as it plays through. 

8.    Play the video from start to finish checking to see if the lyrics are in sync with the song all throughout. 

9.    This is an optional step, if you desire to add in any effects or add in different images etc. to emphasise or enhance the video in some way, you may do that also. 

10. After reviewing your lyric from start to finish and you are happy with the outcome of it, it is now time to save and export your lyric video. 

 

Your video is now ready to upload to any desired video publishing website. 

 

 

 

 

Remember: a poorly adjusted turntable will wear your stylus(needle) and records out far more quickly than if you have everything adjusted optimally. The needle will also skip and jump far more if you don't have the best settings. 

 

Firstly - there are endless combinations of settings that the turntablist employs for special effects and to do all the tricks that we know and love. For these artists there is no correct way to adjust and tune the incredibly versatile musical instrument that the turntable has become. But for club DJs and others who want the best sound and ‘trackability’ with the longest record and stylus life, here are some fundamentals- 

 

Make sure the turntable is reasonably level by adjusting the screw in feet [if your turntable has them]. If you are the meticulous type, you can use a mini spirit level from a hardware shop. Otherwise just do it visually. 

 

Set the arm height. Put a record on the turntable and put the stylus on the record but don't switch the turntable on. Rotate the large adjustment nut on the arm base (which raises and lowers the arm) until the bottom of the stylus housing is parallel to the record. 

 

 Align the cartridge in the slots in the headshell, if you are using a standard 1/2" mount cartridge. Use the alignment card supplied with the turntable if available. If you don't have one, place the cartridge half way up the two slots in the headshell. If you are using an Ortofon Concorde then no alignment is required as it screws straight into the arm. 

 

Setting the tracking weight and anti-skate controls to zero. Next turn the counterweight on the back of the arm so the arm balances without falling either up or down. While holding the weight stationary, rotate the adjustment dial on the counterweight until it reads zero at the top. Now screw in both the counterweight and dial gauge together to the recommended tracking weight of the cartridge (usually between 2 and 5 grams for most Ortofon cartridges). Now set the anti-skating adjustment to the same setting as the tracking force unless you're scratching or doing other tricks, in which case back off the anti-skating to half the value of the tracking force. 

 

 If the needle is not skipping in the groove, resist the temptation to crank up the tracking force greater than recommended. If you are working in a club with very bassy speakers, you may need to increase the weight a little to stop the needle from skipping. You can crank most performance cartridges such as Ortofon, Shure, Stanton etc. up to 5 grams if you need to. 

 

 

References: 

 

https://www.ortofon.com/media/14842/how-to-set-up-turntable.pdf 

 

Next, and perhaps the most obvious step, is to purchase a good microphone/microphones, headphones. Make sure you’re looking into what you’re buying whilst completing this step to ensure you’re buying the most appropriate equipment to you. A good microphone if you’re starting out would be the Rode NT-1A or the Shure sm-57. 

Studio Monitors come next, basically a fancy name for speakers, but have been designed for use in home studios to hear what’s really going on in the music. Once again, research what speakers are best for you. A good pair for under $300 are the KRK ROKIT 5 G3.
 Mic Stands, Pop Filters and Speaker Stands are all needed as well to aid the function of your equipment. 

A MIDI Keyboard is also a very helpful tool to purchase too if you’re planning on being a beat maker or EDM producer, however unnecessary if you’re only planning to record live sound. 

Obviously you’re going to need a desk to place your computer, interface, MIDI keyboard etc. and a comfy chair to spend hours recoding, mixing and mastering your music. 

Finally, some sort of acoustic treatment panels is a good investment. These will improve the sound of your room by evening out acoustic problems. 

Begin by draping the towel or blanket over a flat, stable surface such as a table or floor. Then gently lay your guitar on its back on top of the drape.

Starting with the bass string (low E), loosen the string by winding the tuning head anti clockwise until all tension is released and the end of the string can be pulled through the hole in the tuning head.

Next, use the restringing tool or knife to loosen, lift, and remove the peg securing the end of that string in the bridge and remove and safely discard of the string.

Now, with your first string removed, find the corresponding string in the new packet (in this case low E) and uncoil it, being careful not to puncture yourself with its sharp end.

Insert the beaded end of the string into the hole in the bridge and push the peg back in on top of it, making sure that the groove in the peg is facing towards the tuning heads. Now place your thumb on the top of the peg and hold it in place while you pull the string upwards with your other hand. You should hear a click sound as the bead hits the bottom of the peg.

Next, stretch the string along the length of the neck, thread it through the now empty hole in the tuning head, and pull relatively tight. Take your thumb and finger and grab the string where it lines up with the tuning head of the next string. Now bring your fingers back to meet the newly threaded tuning head, giving the string about 4 centimetres worth of slack. 

Whilst holding the string in this position, begin turning the tuning head clockwise, making sure that the string coils neatly below each previous revolution.

Continue tightening the string until it reaches the desired pitch.

Now repeat this process for each remaining string, taking care whilst coiling the B and high E strings as they don’t coil as easily as the thicker strings.

After completing all that, trim the ends of each of the strings a centimetre or two from the tuning heads with the wire cutters and safely dispose of the cuttings.

Finally, use a tuner to fine tune each string so that the guitar can be played in a manner pleasing to the ear.

 

The basic elements required to set up a home studio include but are not limited to: a table, a computer/laptop, microphone, audio interface, headphones, a pair of studio monitor speakers and hard drive with the option of a midi controller, soundproofing as well as reflection filter. If the computer requires monitor, or you wish to have a larger workspace, then a monitor may also be a required purchase. 

 

The steps are as follows: Download and install software/DAW (digital audio workstation) examples include: Ableton, Protools, FL Studio and Logic.

 

Once installed connect the audio interface to the computer, making sure to install any drivers necessary for the PC to recognise the device and then Connect the speakers to a power source, ideally on a power board.

Now take the microphone and attach It to the audio interface, setting up any peripheral microphone accessories such as pop filter and reflection filter and stand where required.  You can find instructions here:

Headphones should also be connected to the audio interface.

Headphones for the purpose of home recording should have a flat response, preferably over the ear construction. Examples can be found via the link below:  

 

 

The studio monitor speakers must then be connected to the monitor channels at the back of the interface. Examples of entry level speakers can be found via the link below:

 

https://www.themusickitchen.com/studio-gear/best-studio-monitors-under-500/

 

During installation, make sure the speakers have identical settings and are set to the correct voltage for your region.

 

The ideal home studio has a midi controller with piano keys, pads and programmable knobs. This should be connected to the PC. Examples of midi controllers can be found via the link below:

 

https://blog.landr.com/50-best-midi-controllers/

 

Make sure the PC sound output is set to the audio interface and sound is coming out of the monitor headphones and speakers and that the Inputs and outputs from the Microphone and midi controller are being recognised By the DAW.

 

It is essential to back up projects for music production as systems can fail. The ideal solution is to have a portable hard drive to back up all projects. This also needs to be connected to the PC.

 

Once audio from the microphone is confirmed and sound is able to be heard from the speakers as well as headphones the studio setup is essentially complete.

Soundproofing of the room can also be performed for ideal acoustic treatment of the studio however a portable reflection filter as aforementioned will serve a similar purpose to some degree.

Next, go to system preferences and go to sound then select your device for input and output. So, once you’ve done that open Live, go to the Preferences > Audio. Make sure your driver type is chosen as Core Audio. In the Audio Input & Output device choosers now you select the actual interface you’re using. You can also activate the needed mono and/or stereo Input and output under Input and Output Configuration. If you have basic audio interface with two in/outputs, these will be automatically selected in Live. It’s best to only select on those you need so you can save on CPU power. Choose the Sample Rate as needed, the default in/out sample rate is set to 44100 hertz, these settings reflect the quality of sound recording and playback in life. A buffer size of 512 seems to work for most but it can be further optimized by lowering the settings. This value controls how much time passes between pressing a key on your midi controller to hearing the sound through your speaker, this amount of time is called latency. The lower you put your sample value is the less latency would be experienced however it is going to add more load to your CPU. Finally, now you should be all set. Don’t forget to plugin to your headphones or connect it to a speaker. 

One last tip, if your audio interface is off Live will default your audio input and output to no device, you need to change it back manually in the preferences.

Audio Interface:
https://www.storedj.com.au/studio-gear/audio-interfaces

The first step is to gain some inspiration and motivation by listening to your favourite artists. 

Once you feel like you’re inspired enough, break down the different elements and instruments 

that compose the song. 

After analysing track and identifying the different elements, launch a Digital audio workstation 

(DAW) of your choice.

If you do not have access to a MIDI controller, DO NOT WORRY! Musical typing is always an 

Helpful option and is accessible in pretty much any DAW you use. (If you want to use real 

instruments to record, read the other non-existent instruction manual on setting up and 

recording with an interface). 

Hopefully, you have a basic knowledge of keys and scales, if so choose your preferred key for 

your song. If you don’t have the first clue about keys and scales, it may be difficult to write a 

piece of music with a melody in key. However, Luckily enough for you all humans can hear what 

sounds good and what doesn’t in a melody. So just play around until you finally come across 

something aurally pleasing.

Pick a sound that you’d want to have as a lead. It could be a trumpet, piano, your own synth, 

the options are pretty much limitless.

Now, write a riff that you are satisfied with. Don’t worry you can always re-tweak until you’re 

Pleased. Have some of your influences in mind when writing the lead, but don't take the exact 

riff. But have the idea and note the key.

With your lead melody in place, write a funky-fresh bassline in the same key to compliment it 

and give it the nice full sound you deserve.

Now that you have a nice melodic lead, and a funky-fresh bassline, add in some other elements 

(eg. Background synths, atmosphere, backing vocals, etc..) to give your song more oomph.

You now have the base for a fat track that you’ll be showing all the youths to give the impression 

that you’re cool and hip to it, BUT NOT SO FAST, before you go around parading your piece, 

One of the most essential parts of a track undoubtedly is the drums. 

Most DAWs have stock drum patches that you are able to use and tweak the sound to your 

liking.

Make 3 or 4 new MIDI tracks depending on the part of the drums you’re using. Make 1 track for your kick, 1 track for snare, 1 for the hi-hats and if you want, a track for your crashes/rides.

Now with all your different elements, piece them all together and structure the track to your 

Choosing. 

Some instruments may sound a tad bit bland, however luckily, God blessed us with the “plug-in 

Rack” where you’re able to pretty much manipulate the output sound of your track.

Now with all your channels tweaked and your songs structured you are ready to show off your 

fancy new track.

Vinyl Players fall into one of two broad categories; automatic systems in which the record plays with the push of a button and manual systems in which the listener needs to player the needle on the record manually. Some popular choices are the Audio Technica LP 120 or LP 240

Low to High end players tend to be manual however beware that older players may be subject to wear and tear such as the platter; the section on which the record sits and the tonearm; the ‘arm’ part of the vinyl that transmits the vinyl into sound and the head-shell; the needle part that touches the vinyl are all parts that wear down with time and can be expensive to replace relativel to the price of the entire system. 

The signal produced by a vinyl player is quiet and so a pre amp is needed to amplify the sound to the listener; many modern player have this in built while the older ones tend to not have one and so depending on the vinyl player one may be needed to connect the vinyl player to studio speaker. 

Connect the player to the pre amp (assuming its not inbuilt) if you have speakers without amplifiers (passive) speakers this will require an amplifier for the speakers; if you have active speakers they will have an inbuilt ampler.

You will also need an audio interface to connect the Vinyl and Speaker circuit to the computer. Depending on the type of speakers you have you will need either RCA or TRS cables. 

Now run a USB cable from the from the audio interface into a PC or MAC; GarageBand or Logic works fine for Mac and Audacity can be downloaded for free on PC. 

Using your respective software  connect the vinyl player via an audio channel in your chosen software; now  if you play a vinyl the audio will now be detected on your software via the interface.

You are now able to record directly from Vinyl. The sound parameters can be adjusted via the inter face and the Pre arm according to taste as well as from controllers directly on the vinyl player.