Need Help Selecting Stuff

Kaguramai · Joined: Dec 02, 2007 Posts: 1 Location: Cape Cod, MA

I'm a vocalist, drummer and soon to be keyboard player (after some lessons & practice). I dabbled with Cakewalk back in the day with a cheap Radio Shack midi keyboard. The sounds in the keyboard sucked so I bought a sound canvas card and installed it in my PC. This was before Windows 95. I got it all to work and wrote some shit. I was using the bank from a popular Korg keyboard or something. It was in PC card ISA form. Anyway, It's been a long time and I want to get back into writing. I'm lost and need advice... It's all so different now...

So far here are my choices for instrument interfaces...
EDIROL PCR-800 61-keys MIDI Keyboard Controller (by Roland) - $200-$300 eBay - I'm wondering if this is a good Midi keyboard controller choice?
Roland TD12SBK Vstage Series Black Electronic Kit - around $3000

Next I'll need to purchase some sounds. I don't know the best way to manage sounds anymore. I'm looking for a good sound bank, fairly new and current in the form of a box of some sort that I can hook up to my laptop. The sound I'm looking for in my music will be inspired by NIN and Front Line Assembly to name a few. Eventually I'll want to go out into the world and record my own sounds, but for now I need a good canvas with good sounds. I won't be writing much classical music although I will want good sounding instruments as well as many nasty hard core sounds. Is there a sound bank interface that has the best of both worlds? Can someone recommend something?

Next I have no idea what a good multi track writing program even is anymore. Need advice on this.
I'll want to multi track record from my keyboard, drums, & vocal mic. I'll also have an occasional guitarist appear in my music as well. I think I want Pro Tools but have no idea what to get.

Again I'm looking for a solid program that will allow me to multi track record and write that doesn't cost a fortune. I need it to run on my PC. Perhaps I need one program to record all my analog and another to write. I currently have CoolEdit Pro?? Is cakewalk a good choice anymore. Is there something better and easier to use now? Is there something more appropriate out there? I've heard Pro Tools is kick ass and Mac is the best way to go. I can't afford Pro Tools or a Mac.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated...

egw · Posted: Sat Dec 08, 2007 9:43 am Post subject:

Reaper is a pretty good low cost recording software.

Blue Hell · Posted: Sat Dec 08, 2007 9:46 am Post subject:

There is nothing wrong with good old Cooledit, if you happen to have it Very Happy

elektro80 · Posted: Sat Dec 08, 2007 10:22 am Post subject:

As for sounds, you can hook this thing up to other synths.
You could even trigger sounds from this one:

The Thomas Henry Mega Percussive Synthesizer