Just Gettin' Started, What software is good for starters Options

[monkeyman]

I am interested in creating music and would love to start creating more again. However, I don't have much software. I am mostly interested in electronic music, and don't really see the possibility of the need to use real instruments. Therefore, can anyone recommend a decent starting point. I have heard of a software program called Reason. Would this be seen as the best piece of software for an electronically focused musician ?

Any comments or suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks.

[Presto]

There are sofware solutions for the sounds which don't need 6 months learning before you get going, but somebody else will have to advise you.

If you want to record voice you'll need some hardware.

Personally, I use protools for audio and I got started immediately. Its not renowned for its midi capabilities but you should be able to do without midi. Protools Free can be downloaded from www.digidesign.com

If you had an analogue/digital converter such as the Griffin Imic (around 60$) you could probably take sounds (mono out) from a friends keyboard.

I do have an Imic usb A/D converter but before trying it with my keyboard, I gave up when the microphone recordings sounded awful. This was probably because I didn't have a pre-amplifier for the mic.

As I need very good quality for mic inputs and didn't want to spend too much money, I got an Mbox from digidesign (around 600$). It provides 48V phantom power for 2 mics, a preamp, and a much better A/D converter. ProTools LE comes with it and it works fine on OS9. Sounds from keyboards, mic recordings - with this you could do it all. If you have a usb plug in your powerbook, and a CD/R drive, this could be a solution.

Also, wonderful things can be done with plugins. These are extra little apps that plug in to your main app. If you don't want to spend alot, don't think of buying any for protools (you get a few bundled with protools le which aren't too bad). Extra ones would be very good, but you need to be rich. There's one I'd have liked but it costs 600$!!