The complete beginner s guide

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1 INSIDE: GEAR / TUTORIALS / SOFTWARE The complete beginner s guide S P E C I A L Make your first track today! The complete beginner s guide Get started on your PC, Mac, ipad or iphone CMUS57 BEGINNERS 6.50

computer music special / editor s letter < SPECIAL 57 2012 Future Publishing Ltd. 30 Monmouth Street, Bath BA1 2BW Tel: 01225 442244 Fax: 01225 732275 Email: computermusic.special@futurenet.

3 computer music special / editor s letter < SPECIAL Future Publishing Ltd. 30 Monmouth Street, Bath BA1 2BW Tel: Fax: computermusic.special@futurenet.com Web: EDITORIAL Editor: Ben Rogerson Art Editor: Stuart Ratcliffe Sub-editor: Kieran Macdonald Disc Editor: Tim Cant Editor, Computer Music: Lee Du-Caine Contributors: Ronan Macdonald, Greg Scarth, Jon Musgrave, Scot Solida, Tim Cant, Jono Buchanan Editor-in-Chief: Daniel Griffiths Group Senior Editor: Julie Taylor Senior Art Editor: Rodney Dive Creative Director: Robin Abbott Design Director: Matthew Williams Editorial Director: Jim Douglas ADVERTISING Tel: Fax: Advertising Sales Director: Clare Coleman-Straw Advertising Sales Manager: Aaron Slater Account Sales Manager: Leon Stephens CIRCULATION & MARKETING Trade Marketing Manager: Liza Austin Brand Manager: Alix Thompson PRINT & PRODUCTION Production Coordinator: Frances Twentyman Production Manager: Mark Constance LICENSING Licensing and Syndication Director: Regina Erak Image Library: To purchase images featured in this publication, please visit or mediastore@futurenet.com FUTURE PUBLISHING LIMITED Publisher: Rob Last Group Publishing Director: Stuart Anderton DIRECT SALES Phone our UK hotline on: Buy online at: Printed in the UK by William Gibbons on behalf of Future. Disc duplicator: Software Logistics. Distributed in the UK by Seymour Distribution Ltd, 2 East Poultry Avenue, London EC1A 9PT. Tel: Future Publishing Limited All rights reserved. No part of this magazine may be used or reproduced without the written permission of the publisher. Future Publishing Limited (company number ) is registered in England and Wales. The registered office of Future Publishing Limited is at Beauford Court, 30 Monmouth Street, Bath BA1 2BW. All information contained in this magazine is for information only and is, as far as we are aware, correct at the time of going to press. Future cannot accept any responsibility for errors or inaccuracies in such information. Readers are advised to contact manufacturers and retailers directly with regard to the price of products/ services referred to in this magazine. If you submit unsolicited material to us, you automatically grant Future a licence to publish your submission in whole or in part in all editions of the magazine, including licensed editions worldwide and in any physical or digital format throughout the world. Any material you submit is sent at your risk and, although every care is taken, neither Future nor its employees, agents or subcontractors shall be liable for loss or damage. We are committed to only using magazine paper which is derived from well managed, certified forestry and chlorine-free manufacture. Future Publishing and its paper suppliers have been independently certified in accordance with the rules of the FSC (Forest Stewardship Council). welcome Start a discussion with someone about the most important instruments in popular music and the chances are that you ll quickly find yourself talking about guitars, keyboards, drums and other tuneful objects that you can strum, hit or blow into. But while these instruments certainly have their place, there s one that can do the job of all of them and many more: your computer. The process of making music on a PC or Mac or even an ipad or iphone is something that we can all enjoy, regardless of previous experience, and in this Special we re going to show you how to get started. Whether you want to record your own synthesiser parts, program drum beats or make music out of existing audio samples, we re here to help. We ll also show you how to design your own sounds, correct and process parts using effects and then arrange them into a complete track. Once that s done, we ll explain how you can mix your tune so that it sounds like it s come out of a pro studio. Before we get into all that we ll run you through the various bits of software and hardware that you ll find in a typical PC- or Mac-based setup, explaining how they work and why you might consider buying them. Then, with just your computer, our help and plenty of enthusiasm, you ll be able to make your first track today. ENJOY THE ISSUE Ben Rogerson Editor Subscribe to Specials Save money and never miss an issue! See p7 for details twitter.com/computermusicuk COMPUTER MUSIC SPECIAL / 3

Make superb rhythm guitar parts with this amazing instrument plugin for PC and Mac!

ABLETON LIVE 9 + PUSH New version and amazing hardware REVEALED! 6.25 / December 2012 / CM185 ipad SYNTHS Get serious use them with your DAW!

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4 Make superb rhythm guitar parts with this amazing instrument plugin for PC and Mac! TAL U-NO-LX + 20 MORE REVIEWS SONA CAKEWALK 2 MASCHINE NI Make great music on your PC or Mac! OVER 20 EXPERT TUTORIAL VIDEOS ON THE DISC! ABLETON LIVE 9 + PUSH New version and amazing hardware REVEALED! 6.25 / December 2012 / CM185 ipad SYNTHS Get serious use them with your DAW! PLUGINS ON THE DISC 25from u-he, Vengeance, LinPlug + MORE! Rediscover the power of our exclusive instruments and effects use them to make an amazing track with our guide! EXCLUSIVE FREE SOFTWARE 7.9GB 7.9GB DVD-ROM DVD-ROM EXCLUSIVE FREE ROB SOFTWARE PAPEN ROB RG-MUTED PAPEN CM RG-MUTED CM PLUGINS Make superb rhythm guitar parts with this amazing instrument plugin for PC and Mac! Make superb rhythm guitar parts with this amazing instrument plugin for PC and Mac! 1841 SAMPLES CITY NIGHTS: Beats, hits, FX, synths and loops, all inspired by the dangerous, sexy sounds of the big city 1841 SAMPLES CITY NIGHTS: Beats, hits, INSTRUMENTS FX, synths and loops, all AND inspired by the dangerous, sexy sounds of the big city PLUGINS 25 EFFECTS FOR PC & MAC! INSTRUMENTS AND 25 EFFECTS FOR PC & MAC! EXPERT TUTORIALS PLUS VIDEO Wobble bass masterclass / Make hardstyle / And more! REVIEWED! NI MASCHINE 2 CAKEWALK SONAR X2 TAL U-NO-LX + 20 MORE REVIEWS PLUS VIDEO BLENDE In-studio masterclass with the funky electro house hero DECEMBER 2012 # Also on Newsstand for ipad, iphone and ipod touch! AC! MAC PLUGINS EFFECTS FOR PC & MAC! INSTRUMENTS DECEMBER 2012 # AND funky electro house hero city city l inspired by the dangerous, big the of sounds sexy the with masterclass In-studio all loops, and synths FX, hits, Beats, NIGHTS: CITY Computer Music is the magazine for PC and Mac musicians. It s packed with tutorials, VIDEO PLUS videos, samples and exclusive software to help you make great music now! 1841 SAMPLES BLENDE S RG-MUTED CM

9000 SPECIAL ISSUE 57 contents Gear guide Tutorials 22 MAKING YOUR FIRST RECORDING Fire up your DAW and learn how to record, edit and process your first software instrument part 27 THE BEGINNER S

We ll show you how to program them in dubstep, house, rock, drum n bass and many other styles 08 YOUR COMPUTER MUSIC SETUP Find out what all the different pieces of software and hardware in a

about any type of sound within your computer, as you re about to discover 14 EFFECTS Find out why effects processors are important and meet some of our current favourites 16 AUDIO INTERFACES One

whole lot more creative potential 20 MONITOR SPEAKERS Want to hear your music as it really sounds so you can create better mixes?

Whether you re arranging loops, making your own or building a whole new instrument, samples are your creative friend 43 THE BEGINNER S GUIDE TO SYNTHESISERS Learn how to install a synth plugin and

material you should use them on 54 MAKING GREAT SOUNDS It s what we all want to do: here s our massive guide to emulating some of the most popular synth, drum, vocal and FX sounds that are

We show you how 74 MIXING Balancing the various parts of a song and making them work together is a skill in itself.

5 9000 SPECIAL ISSUE 57 contents Gear guide Tutorials 22 MAKING YOUR FIRST RECORDING Fire up your DAW and learn how to record, edit and process your first software instrument part 27 THE BEGINNER S GUIDE TO PROGRAMMING DRUMS Beats form the foundation of most contemporary tracks. We ll show you how to program them in dubstep, house, rock, drum n bass and many other styles 08 YOUR COMPUTER MUSIC SETUP Find out what all the different pieces of software and hardware in a typical setup are and how they hang together 10 DAWS We explain why a digital audio workstation is essential and recommend five of the best ones 12 SOFTWARE INSTRUMENTS You can now create just about any type of sound within your computer, as you re about to discover 14 EFFECTS Find out why effects processors are important and meet some of our current favourites 16 AUDIO INTERFACES One of these handy boxes can help you to get better-quality sound in and out of your computer 18 MIDI CONTROLLERS Having a MIDI controller means less time spent using your mouse and keyboard and a whole lot more creative potential 20 MONITOR SPEAKERS Want to hear your music as it really sounds so you can create better mixes? You re going to need a pair of these then Advice 88 FAQ Asking questions is all part of the learning process: here we attempt to answer some of the most common ones 36 MAKING MUSIC WITH SAMPLES Whether you re arranging loops, making your own or building a whole new instrument, samples are your creative friend 43 THE BEGINNER S GUIDE TO SYNTHESISERS Learn how to install a synth plugin and tweak its oscillators, filters, envelopes and LFOs to the best possible effect 50 THE BEGINNER S GUIDE TO EFFECTS Find out what all the major effect types are, how they work and what kind of material you should use them on 54 MAKING GREAT SOUNDS It s what we all want to do: here s our massive guide to emulating some of the most popular synth, drum, vocal and FX sounds that are currently in hit-making circulation 66 BUILDING AN ARRANGEMENT Having a collection of parts is one thing, but you haven t got a track until you ve structured them into an arrangement. We show you how 74 MIXING Balancing the various parts of a song and making them work together is a skill in itself. We take you through the process and reveal the tricks of the trade 80 THE SECRETS OF REMIXING Learn the techniques that the pros use when they re putting a new spin on an existing track 92 IPAD/IPHONE MUSIC MAKING Apple s ios devices enable you to make music anywhere. Find out how and discover some of the best apps and hardware add-ons currently availablele WAYS TO BECOME A BETTER COMPUTER MUSICIAN Tips for taking things further and staying creatively fresh COMPUTER MUSIC SPECIAL / 5

> disc / contents DISC Your CD or digital download is designed to help you to start making music right away.

is that it will emit a demo reminder sound every 60 seconds or so.

All of the instruments and effects are compatible with both PC and Mac and work as plugins: you can find out what

They re referred to in various tutorials throughout the magazine, and you can download demos of the other software

LennarDigital Sylenth1 (demo) Synapse Audio Dune CM u-he ZebraCM Vengeance Sound VPS Philta CM Edition TAL-Elek7ro

This means that each part in each kit (drums, bass, synths etc) is designed to work with the others in that kit.

In theory you could build up a song using just the samples in one of the kits, but this isn t the most imaginative

It s better to see them as starting points: by all means use the sounds in your music, but mix them up with your

You can also process the sounds to make them tonally and musically different you ll discover ways of doing this as

6 > disc / contents DISC Your CD or digital download is designed to help you to start making music right away. Here s a guide to the content and how it all works Software Our Software folder contains a collection of top-notch software instruments and effects. With the exception of Sylenth1, all the software is fully functional, which means that it ll work without any limitations. Sylenth1 is an acclaimed software instrument that s supplied for you to try out in demo form: the main limitation is that it will emit a demo reminder sound every 60 seconds or so. If you want to purchase the full version you can do so at All of the instruments and effects are compatible with both PC and Mac and work as plugins: you can find out what these are and how to install them on p44. They re referred to in various tutorials throughout the magazine, and you can download demos of the other software mentioned from the manufacturers websites. LennarDigital Sylenth1 (demo) Synapse Audio Dune CM u-he ZebraCM Vengeance Sound VPS Philta CM Edition TAL-Elek7ro TAL-NoiseMaker TAL-U-No-62 Samples Our samples are supplied in three construction kits. This means that each part in each kit (drums, bass, synths etc) is designed to work with the others in that kit. Not only are all the samples at the same tempo, they re designed to sound right together as well. In theory you could build up a song using just the samples in one of the kits, but this isn t the most imaginative way of working. It s better to see them as starting points: by all means use the sounds in your music, but mix them up with your own recordings and samples from elsewhere. You can also process the sounds to make them tonally and musically different you ll discover ways of doing this as we progress through the mag. Nu Disco Kit 1 Nu Disco Kit 2 Nu Disco Kit 3 Tutorial files The majority of the tutorials in this Special are accompanied by support files which you can find in the Tutorial files folder. In the magazine, a Tutorial files icon on the screenshot for the first step of a tutorial indicates that support files are available for it. These files can be audio examples of what s being demonstrated in a particular walkthrough step, samples that you can use as part of the tutorial, project files that will load into a particular piece of software or patch files for a software instrument. Whenever a tutorial file is used in a walkthrough step, it ll be clearly indicated with either a filename or a description of how to use it. 6 / COMPUTER MUSIC SPECIAL

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YOUR COMPUTER MUSIC SETUP Rather like Clark Kent, your computer has a dual identity.

videos of skateboarding cats, but on the other, it s a creative powerhouse that can help you to make pro-quality

Whether you ve got a Mac or PC it doesn t really matter releasing your computer s music-making potential doesn t

You could easily start creating choons with nothing more than a few free pieces of software, but if you re willing

8 YOUR COMPUTER MUSIC SETUP Rather like Clark Kent, your computer has a dual identity. On the one hand, it can be used for everyday tasks such as sending , browsing the internet and watching videos of skateboarding cats, but on the other, it s a creative powerhouse that can help you to make pro-quality music. Whether you ve got a Mac or PC it doesn t really matter releasing your computer s music-making potential doesn t have to be costly or difficult. You could easily start creating choons with nothing more than a few free pieces of software, but if you re willing to add one or two other bits of kit to your setup as well, you ll definitely feel the benefit. What follows is a guide to some of the gear that an aspiring computer musician should consider investing in. Not all of it is essential, but these are the basic building blocks of any computer-based home studio setup. 8 / COMPUTER MUSIC SPECIAL

your computer music setup < Computer You ve almost certainly got this already and, providing it isn t a decade-old machine, your current PC or Mac

As a general rule, more powerful machines will be able to cope with more complex projects and run the latest, cutting-edge software.

Your DAW (short for digital audio workstation) is used to record, edit, process and mix all the various parts of a song, and will probably come with

Software instruments P12 Although you can record keyboards, guitars, drums and all other types of instrument into your computer as audio, you don t

Audio interface P16 Although you can generate all of your sounds within your computer, they need to be heard in the real world.

to its outputs. An audio interface has inputs, too, turning real sounds that you record into digital information.

If you can, it s wise to invest in a pair that s specifically designed for making music rather than listening to it, as these should give a more

9 your computer music setup < Computer You ve almost certainly got this already and, providing it isn t a decade-old machine, your current PC or Mac should be fine to start making music on. As a general rule, more powerful machines will be able to cope with more complex projects and run the latest, cutting-edge software. DAW P10 This is the central hub of your software setup. Your DAW (short for digital audio workstation) is used to record, edit, process and mix all the various parts of a song, and will probably come with its own selection of built-in instruments and effects. Software instruments P12 Although you can record keyboards, guitars, drums and all other types of instrument into your computer as audio, you don t have to. These and pretty much every other type of sound can be generated in software and loaded into your DAW as plugins. Audio interface P16 Although you can generate all of your sounds within your computer, they need to be heard in the real world. This is where your audio interface comes in: its job is to translate the digital data that your software produces into high-quality sound that goes to its outputs. An audio interface has inputs, too, turning real sounds that you record into digital information. Monitor speakers P20 The final link in the chain, your speakers produce the sound that you can hear. If you can, it s wise to invest in a pair that s specifically designed for making music rather than listening to it, as these should give a more honest representation of how your mixes actually sound. Effects P14 Effects are used to correct sounds that aren t working as they should, enhance parts in your track or process them in an extreme manner so that they sound radically different. As with instruments, you can add them to your DAW as plugins. MIDI controller P18 The most common type of MIDI controller is the keyboard this can be used to play and record your software instrument sounds. Many keyboards also sport knobs, buttons, pads and faders these are used to adjust the corresponding controls in your software. COMPUTER MUSIC SPECIAL / 9

> daws DAWs One bit of software is all you really need to start making music on a computer, and it s called a digital audio workstation As a computer musician, your DAW is the single most important

DAW stands for digital audio workstation, the term given to full-on music-making applications.

and when you need them. So what exactly does a DAW do?

10 > daws DAWs One bit of software is all you really need to start making music on a computer, and it s called a digital audio workstation As a computer musician, your DAW is the single most important piece of software that you ll have installed on your Mac or PC. In fact, you could make a complete track without having any other software installed at all. DAW stands for digital audio workstation, the term given to full-on music-making applications. In this case, though, full-on doesn t mean intense and hard to understand; DAWs have actually got much easier to use over the years and you can learn them at your own pace, picking up new skills as and when you need them. So what exactly does a DAW do? Everything is the short answer, but broadly speaking, you can break down the functions of a DAW into recording, editing, processing, arranging and mixing categories. When it comes to recording, you have several basic options: use your DAW to trigger software instruments (synthesisers and the like), use prerecorded audio samples, or record real sounds (guitars, vocals etc) as digital audio. In this Special we re going to focus on the first two options, meaning that everything is kept in the box (the box being your computer), but you can of course mix and match all three methods. Typically, each of your recorded parts gets its own track in a DAW, and these can be edited in all manner of ways. Whether you want to carry out basic timing or pitch edits, move recordings around or make wild and crazy changes, your software will have you covered. Processing is a good catch-all term to describe the many ways in which you can use your DAW to make parts sound different (and hopefully better). Your software s arranging features, meanwhile, will help you to flesh out your ideas into a complete song. Finally there s mixing, which involves making all the various parts of your song sit together properly. These are the absolute basics we ll explore all the music-making aspects mentioned above in greater detail as we go through the mag. For now, though, let s check out five of the most popular DAWs on the market. Ableton Live (boxed) Ableton Live doesn t look and feel like most other DAWs, but for its army of fans, that s precisely the point. Rather than requiring you to construct songs in a linear fashion by recording parts in a left-to-right scrolling timeline, Live lets you create lots of musical clips and then trigger them as you wish. The resulting performance can be recorded and then edited, making Live a great option if you want to jam with your ideas rather than plan them out. Live is also famed for the way it handles audio: you can bring new audio clips into the mix even when your track is playing, and the software automatically puts them in time with everything else. This has made the software popular with both producers and DJs. Image-Line FL Studio (boxed) Whereas some DAWs were launched at a time when the computer s role in the music-making process was to trigger sounds that were generated by external hardware synths, samplers and the like FL Studio definitely has its roots in the idea that you can do everything in your PC. FL Studio actually started life as Fruity Loops, a simple software drum machine that enabled you to make beats by clicking buttons in a grid (a process known as step sequencing), and it remains popular with those who don t come from a traditional music-making background but want to be able to get their ideas down fast. Don t be fooled into thinking this an entry-level only product, though it s got all the juice you could possibly need, as power users such as Deadmau5 and Avicii will attest / COMPUTER MUSIC SPECIAL

OVERVIEW HARDWARE. Kensington Security Slot 2 buttons to switch templates. USB B socket. 16 rotary pots. 2 buttons for navigation and more switching

OVERVIEW HARDWARE. Kensington Security Slot 2 buttons to switch templates. USB B socket. 16 rotary pots. 2 buttons for navigation and more switching OVERVIEW Launch Control is the perfect partner to Launchpad and Launchpad S extending the opportunities for producing and performing with Ableton Live. It s also a versatile controller which can be mapped