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The Incredible Tools That I Use For Music Production!
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items Some incredible tools for making your own music at home. I have been a songwriter and music producer since 1993. A Voice Over artists as well for that long. Here’s a look at what I have used and mostly still own. Great products and tools indeed!
Map
Sections
10
Microphones
Audio Interfaces
Ai Music Creation Platforms
Digital Audio Workstation Software
Keyboard Controllers
Headphones
Microphones
Over the years I have owned a select few microphones. These are Some microphones I would highly recommend.
This is absolutely my favorite microphone to use for narration and vocal recordings. It’s clean, transparent, and affordable.
RØDE NT1 Condenser Mic w/ SM6 Mount & Pop Filter
This is an excellent mic stand for having the microphone on your desktop. Works very, very sturdy, built to last!
InnoGear Adjustable Desk Mic Stand, Weighted Base
This was the first professional condenser mic that I ever owned. It’s become one of the best mics I ever used. Absolutely love this mic.
AKG C1000S Small Diaphragm Condenser Mic
Tried true and well tested solid microphone! Great for live and stage, concert performances, this cardioid legendary mic delivers!
SM58® - Vocal Microphone
Audio Interfaces
Tried and tested great audio interfaces I own and use daily! The mic and headphones are amazing!
This is a great audio interface and microphone bundle, great price! The headphones sound amazing, so does the mic, interface is a solid performer!
Focusrite Scarlett Solo Studio 4th Gen USB Audio Interface Bundle with Mic & Headphones
RME Audio interfaces are like a serious professional standard. I have owned a few of these models as well as recommended them for some recording studios I have setup for some legendary clients. These sound incredible.
RME Audio
This was my very first audio card that I ever owned and installed into my customer made PC. The clarity was amazing! It worked perfectly with Cubase, Reason, Presonus Studio One, and also Vegas Audio, Sonic Foundry’s Acid Pro at the time and Sonic Fo...
Steinberg ST24/96 PCI audio card by RME - $100
Ai Music Creation Platforms
Entering into the era of AI generated music, these I have found to be ahead of the game, truly amazing at what these can do! Need a studio session musician or vocalists? These AI’s can deliver. If you can send a paragraph of text? Then you can create...
My absolute favorite Ai music creation platform. Suno is a game changer it’s phenomenal!
Join me on Suno :)
Digital Audio Workstation Software
These are some of the best digital audio workstations in the world. Software that turns your Mac or PC into a full blown digital music production recording studio. Many hit records are made using tools like these.
My personal preference choice in a Digital Audio Workstation. Cubase in my opinion has always been way ahead of its time in terms of options and functionality. The sound quality is second to none in my opinion. Virtual instruments and virtual effects...
Steinberg Cubase 14 Pro (Download Card)
Reason has literally become my favorite music production software for creating music and doing vocals, and narration voice overs. It’s extremely powerful in sound design, sequencing, mixing, and virtual instruments as well. Out of the box you can be ...
Propellerhead Reason 13 (Download Card)
Truly incredible digital audio workstation! The virtual instruments and effects are amazing! Definitely a great tool from creation to a finished product, it does it all!
Studio One Pro 7 | DAW Music Production Software
Keyboard Controllers
These are the best MIDI controllers I have or have owned before. Solid, reliable, and plenty of options and control! A great user interface between you and the music of your dreams.
This is my favorite keyboard controller, it’s just the perfect size for me. The sliders, knobs, pads, pitch and modulation wheels all work flawlessly! So whether I’m mixing or creating a drum beat, or playing chords to a song I’m creating, everything...
M-AUDIO Oxygen 49 MKV USB MIDI Keyboard
Headphones
I absolutely love these studio grade professional headphones that I have listed here. I often mix a lot in headphones, the depth and clarity is amazing and I don’t disturb any neighbors! Great isolation too!
These are my go to studio reference headphones when I’m mixing my music in headphones, also when I’m recording vocals. Discreet and quiet, no sound bleeding back into the mic while they are in use. Great for doing vocals with its closed back design. ...
Sennheiser HD 280 Pro Headphone, Black
Great sounding Bluetooth headphones!! I love these! The battery life is legendary! Good punchy lows, snap, crackle and pop crystal clear highs! Good range too!! Lightweight and very comfortable! Large over the ear design. They work great for phone ca...
JBL Tune 720BT Wireless Over-Ear Headphones
Studio Monitors
You have to have some decent studio monitors with a flat frequency response to mix accurately. You need to hear your music as it is as you are making it. The monitors here are my personal choices I have either owned or worked with. Very solid perform...
A beast in a box! Absolutely love these studio monitors. Crystal clear sound but a flat response, but you can tweak them to your location. When I’m not mixing in my Sennheiser HD 280 Pro’s, I’m mixing listening to these Rokits. They sound amazing. Ve...
KRK RP8 Rokit 8 G4 Bi-Amp Studio Monitor
THUNDEROUS!!! If you love that low end feeling, If you love the sensation of a mild earthquake when you play your favorite music? This is the subwoofer you’re looking for! Perfect for trap and hip hop music! EDM too!
KRK S10.4 Gen 4 10" 160W Powered Subwoofer
Virtual Instruments
Here are some of my favorite software virtual instruments to use for music production. Extremely realistic virtual representations of acoustic and electronic synths instruments. Great for songwriting and movie scores.
Hands down one of the best acoustic pianos that’s virtual that you could ever hear! Perfect for the emotional ballads and classical pieces you might compose.
Komplete Native Instruments New York Concert Grand
An outright solid sound solution with many instruments to choose from right out of the box! Excellent sounds!
Native Instruments Komplete 7
Literally, one truly incredible robust library of the best orchestra and cinematic sounds that you could ever hear! If you ever need that big movie score, cinematic sound for that masterpiece you’re composing? This virtual instrument will not let you...
ProjectSAM
Computers
These are my choices for my digital audio workstations software to run on. The graphics so the job perfectly and the speeds are amazing. Plenty of USB parts making internal and external storage capacity options available.
A true powerhouse in a tiny package! Solid performance, excellent graphics and speed. Perfect for my music production and video editing!
Beelink GTR Mini PC Ryzen 7 3750H 16GB 512GB
Incredibly fast storage drive! A perfect addition to my music production studio!
Samsung 870 EVO 2TB 2.5" SATA III SSD
This is a fantastic upgrade replacement to the existing Beelinks I own. Faster, stronger.. yes!!!!
Beelink SER9 Pro AI Mini PC, Ryzen 9 HX, 64G RAM, 2TB SSD
This one is definitely capable!! This is a GTR9, the last one I got was a GTR7. Yes, loving the specs on this one!
Beelink GTR9 Pro Mini PC Ryzen AI Max+ 128GB RAM
This powerhouse is a truly reliable computer! Rock solid in its performance. Intelligent design and intuitive operating system. Great for music production, graphics and more! Yes I’m a Mac lover.
Buy Mac mini with M4 Chip
Vintage Musical Gear
Here is a favorite list of mines for some older musical gear that I either used to own or used quite frequently in various recording studios and studio sessions. Some I honestly miss dearly! :)
I remember when this came out in 1992. A sampler and a sequencer, and a keyboard all in one package! It was actually easy to use, once you understood it. That would vary from person to person. I’m sure, quite a few hit R&B and hip hop records wer...
Is the ASR-10 really worth it in 2023? : r/synthesizers
For its time in the year of 1989, this was a great sounding keyboard, I often used it as a MIDI controller as well. I did many music projects, commercials, film projects using this keyboard. It wasn’t too big and bulky and it had a rack mounted model...
Roland U-20
The era was 1990 when this flagship monster was released! The Roland D-70 sounded amazing, looked amazing felt really good to play! Once again another great music production tool for me at the time. It just had a look that it meant business when you ...
Roland D-70
This was absolutely my heart and one of my most favorite pieces of gear that I have ever owned. An 8-track multitrack recorder on a cassette was just unheard of back then! For its time? Truly a mind blowing technical marvel that was the heart of many...
Tascam 688 Midistudio (MT Nov 90)
These were amazingly simple to use and they sounded great! They did exactly what they were designed to do! A fast easy way to add professional sounding reverbs to your home studio. An Alesis Microverb delivers!
Alesis Microverb II
I have to admit while it sounded great? This for me was an expensive piece of gear, and it was extremely complicated to use! At least it was to me. Yet it sounded amazing at the same time! Mixed emotions and memories about this one. Loved it and almo...
Yamaha TX16W
Now this? Was one of my favorite pieces of gear of all times. I started sequencing on a Boss 550, then a Roland D20, which was pretty linear, it wasn’t strong in pattern based sequencing. The answer for me to that problem was indeed the Alesis MMT8!!...
Alesis MMT-8 MIDI Recorder (SOS Jan 88)
This was one of the very first synthesized instruments that I ever put my hands on and learned how to use. Classic analog synth sound that was very popular and powerful of this era. It sounded great and was on a whole lot of records!
JUNO-106 | Software Synthesizer
This was my first 8-multi-Track recorder! Did some truly amazing songs with some incredible talented artists with it. 8 different tracks on a single cassette? Amazing! It sounded amazing as well!
TASCAM 488 : The Ultimate Analog Cassette 8-Track Recorder
This… was the very first drum machine that I ever owned! This is where I first learned how to make a beat…. Wow as I’m posting this it brings back a thousand memories! At the time? Truly one cool affordable drum machine for making beats! I was a bass...
Boss DR-110
This was and still is an excellent no frills straight to the beat drum machine. I’m sure this one has made it to many popular hit records. Great sounding realistic drums for the time. That snare in here is still one of my favorite snares to use in a ...
Roland TR-505 Rhythm Composer
This was my first professional rack mounted drum module. A wide variety of drum sounds and styles to choose from. Entire drum kits are all available from the twist of a knob, or a press of a button. Play it from a MIDI keyboard or trigger it from a d...
DM5 Drum Module
An oldie but a goodie! Great sounding external reverb unit! Classic reverb unit that sounds amazing and clean in recordings, whether it’s vocals, drums, or instruments it has a reverb that will fit it! An awesome reverb unit.
Alesis Quadraverb units? Anyone have any stories of these from when they ...
This was a perfect companion for the Alesis MMT-8. It was basically a disc drive for it. Which was is great for backing up song data. Making cataloging songs and such easier. Great tool for its time!
Alesis DataDisk
This is a great solid Simple sampler to use. For its time it delivered nicely! Want too hard to use at all. Sounded great!
Akai S2000