Old 12-08-2017, 10:50 PM   #1
Test
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Default Absolute noob

hey guys, say can you give me some pointers what i should do next in oder to get going with this program? i never used such a program before and i dont play any instrument so i have to learn a lot.
what i want to do is make some EDM(techno) mostly for myself as hobby.
i tell you what i have done so far;

so far i watched tutorial vid 1-27 from kenny, read some in the manual and the effects manual, watch a separate tutorial about the megababy sequencer.
after this i started to make a simple test track but its made entirely from sequencers. its like 1 sequencer for baseline, one for high hat, 3 separate ones for 3
different melody´s with 2 pattern each i can change with envelope.

however now a am stuck kinda, i am not sure how i would go about to make more fine grained individualization for the different tracks and part of the tracks.
not sure how to explain it but i feel with only sequencers its quiet tricky to get some more fine grained details into the test track.
i am too noobish to even know what effects i want or need but when i add effect X to my sequencer it will be for the whole length of the thing. not just for one part of the track(i think).

so now it seems i have to record what i get from the sequencers in order to make some midi or audio items from it, in order to individualized the parts, on a per "item" basis. or at least thats what i think is the way to go, i rly dont know, that why i ask here.
it seems to me i have several options to achieve one and the same thing, but i am not sure what path i should take down this road?

would it make sense to have only sequencers and micromanage the crap out of them with more envelopes?
or would it be better to record stuff from the sequencers and work with audio or midi items?
or screw sequencer entirely and make stuff like drums in midi editor?
you see i am not sure how to progress from here and if my thinking even makes sense, i have the program since like 4 days so i am an absolute noob. can you give me some pointers cause i am like on a crossroad and have no idea what direction to go.


thanks,
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Old 12-10-2017, 03:47 AM   #2
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Hi. This is so not my area of expertise (as if I have any...) but I can sympathise with the idea of REAPER offering too many possibilities.

I would suggest that you adjust your short term expectations a little and go into "children's play" mode. Start experimenting. By all means add some effects, "micromanage" a track as you say. There are no rules although maybe some workflows are more efficient for different genres. At this stage I think that's less important than trying stuff out and hearing what can be done.

BTW Are you clear about the difference between tracks and items and that you can add ITEM fx instead of per track?

I think Kenny's series on doing a first song with MIDI is worth re-viewing. It's not about EDM obviously but the principles (inputting parts, looping. fx etc. ) are very generally applicable. Have you tried inputting notes via a MIDI keyboard or even the Virtual keyboard? I would guess most EDM musicians I have talked to start with the beats so maybe start with constructing a simple rhythm with REAsamplomatic using a drum sample. And then loop it, add additional tracks etc. Again Kenny covers it admirably.

I think you need to start getting motivated by what sounds you can achieve rather than getting dazzled by how you might achieve them. I hope this doesn't sound too generalised and perhaps some more EDM musicians can offer better advice.

Oh and as for being at a crossroads, that seems to have turned out OK for Robert Johnson!
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Old 12-10-2017, 11:04 PM   #3
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You don't play instruments, don't have expertise with DAWs, and want to do EDM = I'm not sure Reaper is your best bet.

I could be wrong, but maybe you'd have more fun with something customized for EDM beginners; you know... I software that makes it easy to create loops, arrange them on the screen, choose from a list of instruments, beats, tempos, and so on.

I remember toying about with FL Studio a while back. It was free, for the basics, and I had fun pulling loops and arranging them to test ideas. I made some cool electronic songs in not time flat.

I'm really not an expert at EDM. I found this: https://edmranks.com/top-5-best-musi...software-daws/

I would really like to say go with Reaper, just because I love it so much for what I'm doing, but something tells me it would be more painful than it needs to be, given your situation.
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Old 12-11-2017, 12:15 PM   #4
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RDBOIS View Post
You don't play instruments, don't have expertise with DAWs, and want to do EDM = I'm not sure Reaper is your best bet.

I could be wrong, but maybe you'd have more fun with something customized for EDM beginners; you know... I software that makes it easy to create loops, arrange them on the screen, choose from a list of instruments, beats, tempos, and so on.

I remember toying about with FL Studio a while back. It was free, for the basics, and I had fun pulling loops and arranging them to test ideas. I made some cool electronic songs in not time flat.

I'm really not an expert at EDM. I found this: https://edmranks.com/top-5-best-musi...software-daws/

I would really like to say go with Reaper, just because I love it so much for what I'm doing, but something tells me it would be more painful than it needs to be, given your situation.

That up there is what you want to do. FL Studio is made for loop kids that want fat dropz and stuff. Reaper is the wrong hammer for this particular screw. It might become the right hammer, but if you don't play at all, this cart is ahead of the horse.

I'm done mixing metaphors now.
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Old 12-11-2017, 11:11 PM   #5
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ok guys thanks for the input! i looked around in the net and i indeed saw that many recommend abelton, FL and other stuff for EDM but not reaper. i come to understand, after reading much more stuff that reaper can do it but it needs more effort on my side, while the others are set up to do what i want to begin with.

why i come try reaper in the first place is one reason, its "cheap" or lets say it does not cost much for when i want full version.
i dont know what i can do with abelton(i take this as example) 80€ version? it sounds like a "demo" i have to pay 80€ for, and to fork out 300 or lol 600 for software, i can not do that

some other thing happened yesterday that changed my perspective a little, i wanted to try input melody with a keyboard, and by chance a relative who died left behind a casio lk50 and a arius(or so) digital piano. they are unused now so i went and got the lk50. could not find a midi cable so i had none, BUT i enjoy the keyboard quiet a bit so i bought some notes for beginners and i try learn the keyboard now.
at least to where i can play simple melody with 1 hand, more would be nice when i find the motivation.
i go grab a midi cable today also.


back to the software; do you guys really think when i get the cheapest version FL or abelton i be happy with it? are the missing features not needed so badly? i mean there must be a reason why the full version cost like 6 to 8 times the amount of money?
i was ready to put in more time to do the same stuff but get some more flexibility for when i maybe want it down the road, but you guys have a lot more expirience, i have to believe what you say, you guys are probably very right.

thanks for the help i appreciate a lot!
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Old 12-12-2017, 12:23 AM   #6
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How dedicated are you to this new hobby?

How motivated are you and what is your goal?

Let me give a quick overview of my situation, perhaps this can help you answer theses questions.

I've been writing songs for the last 20 years; mostly guitar, bass, and vocals.

In the 'old days' I would record my songs with an analogue 4 track recorder on cassette tapes. That was it! Just good old fun to preserve ideas and let me play bass with myself playing guitar, and singing on top.

Then came the PC and DAWs. I got a free software that pushed my 4 track into 10-15 tracks (I was limited by RAM and CPU). Still just good fun, but this time with more effects (free stuff).

Then I was like... "I'm fed up to having a cheap sound" so a friend and I bought an average microphone, average speakers, and a professional DAW - Cubase. We recorded a few songs, but I didn't have the time to learn the software, so it was really just a waste of money. Computer died and so dies all the software; spilled beer in the microphone; took a break from recording.

Fast forward to last year when I decided to start recording my songs again.

I found Audacity. A free software. Now with better computers, RAM, and all, I got really excited at what I could do~~!!! But Audacity was very limiting, to say the least. I tried FL Studio which was great fun, but I was not prepare to invest. It seemed, well,..., fruity!? LOL

I knew this was IT for me. The backlog of songs is building and I need to record them once and for all; knowing that all I need is a good 'demo', nothing near the pro sounding songs. BUt still, very low on finances.

Then I found REAPER. I was like "WTF? I can get a professional-type DAW at such a low cost"? You see, while I knew I wasn't going to get a pro-loike sounding song, I knew that I wanted to have in my hand the capacity to get there. I didn't want to be in a situation where the DAW was the limiting factor. What this meant is that I was dedicated to learning how to use the the DAW to get the best sounding songs I could.

And that is what Reaper means to me. The possibility to go as far as I can; the only limit is my will to learn how to get there. I can't blame the tool, only myself. Having said that, I'm still very limited in cash flow, so I only have an entry level microphone, entry level speaker monitors, entry level headphones, cheap PC laptop (cheap soundcard), recording on a desk in my untreated living room, and so on.

So I do have technical limitations after all. But, I can in time resolved these limitations, and the DAW will be there waiting for me -- with me having acquired more knowledge in time. I have some growing space !!!

I need growing space.

REAPER has pushed me into new directions. Because it does so many things, I've learned how to program MIDI so I can add Cello, piano, and even Drums to my compositions. And because of this... I've been pushed to learn how to arrange my songs. I've learned the basics of how to mix, setup an efficient mixing workflow, etc.

I still don't know the half of what REAPER does. This is because I'm busy recording my guitar, bass, vocals, and mixing them to get a song. I certainly don't want to spend all my time reading technical stuff. So what I record, mix, and render to a MP3. Then I do another song, but this time I had time to read some technical stuff that I can apply to the mix. I render that song to Mp3. Each song is getting 'technically better'. I'm hoping that one day I'll have them sounding 'the best they technically can', given the hardware limitations (e.g. microphone, monitors, plugin quality, etc.).

I have the motivation to learn. REAPER doesn't scare me, I'm taking it bit by bit, adding more and more to my knowledge of song production. I know I'm never going to 'make it big' or 'make money', but I'm a proud musician and I want to enjoy listening to the songs I wrote, and perhaps others can also enjoy them in the leisure of their homes or headphones wherever they are. Note: most of my friends simply enjoy when i play and sing for them in real life.

So, How dedicated are you to this new hobby?

How motivated are you and what is your goal?

Do you need growing space and the knowledge that you have one of the best tools around? Or, will a cheap plastic hammer be good enough to get them small nails into the thin boards you'll be using to build something? Because this REAPER hammer comes with a user manual. LOL

Does that make sense?
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Old 12-12-2017, 04:58 PM   #7
jerome_oneil
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Test View Post
...i went and got the lk50. could not find a midi cable so i had none, BUT i enjoy the keyboard quiet a bit so i bought some notes for beginners and i try learn the keyboard now.
Keep doing that. Everything else will work itself out.

Then you're in real trouble...
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Old 12-17-2017, 11:03 PM   #8
kstn
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"The only way to learn a new programming language is by writing programs in it."

1. Find some loop libraries. There are a lot of them thorough the web. (Freesound.org for instance)
2. Try to make some tracks from this loops.
3. Try to mix them. Use FX, look what distortion can make with drum loop (for instance) )))
4. Try to record your own melodies (even with 1 hand) on your casio (audio) and make new tracks with them. BTW one my friend plays keys with one finger and make great tracks

This way you will get basis, then learn new features. Just don't stop

5. Read some book about recording. Paul White's Creative recording for instance.

PS IMHO Ableton and\or FL aren't variant. Reaper is less user-friendly, but more powerful, so is better to learn it. If you want to play in music there was an EJay series.
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