- I've written this mostly for those who want to use LMMS (hence the
specific notes), but almost all of it is applicable to any DAW.
- it
is organized to the best of my ability, though that is a low bar. things
are often listed in random or no order.
- everything in this
document should be either free or have a free version.
- time always
marches on, and nothing here will stay accurate forever.
you'll need a program to make your music in. here are some good free ones
to start, but do your own research to find what works best for you
-
everything here should have *full* functionality (no demos)
-
finally, if you're on a mac, I recommend you use garageband to start. justice did it, you can too
*free if built from source code
synthesizers are pretty much the backbone of electronic music. not all of these may be synths, but they are all useful.
1 has some good free plugins, but you’ll have to look around a
bit
2 IK requires a lot of hoop-jumping, and it only allows for
free demos usually.
3 Zyn is in LMMS by default, and has free “classic” versions
which have a pretty bad ui (comparable to synth1). the new version costs
$45
4 VST3 only. will not work with LMMS as of writing
you will need a sampler to play from instrument sample packs most of the time. some good ones are below- I recommend decent sampler or LABS. note that each is compatible only with some packs. kontakt is most popular with the most packs, and LABS has its own proprietary (free) community within the application
*soundfont players already exist in most DAWs by default; LMMS has one, FL has the fruity sf player, and so on. chances are you won’t need this, but it’s the best I can find if you do
VST/other effect plugins. Some links may be repeated, as companies offer both
1 has some good free plugins, but you’ll have to look around a
bit
2 home of the famous OTT compressor, would recommend
3 free version of the “soundgoodizer” plugin in FL studio,
which is a compressor and some other things
*LMMS uses DrumSynth (built-in) to recreate sounds of the starred drum machines. there may be a difference in sound quality between the two.
other things that don't fall into other categories
*I cannot understate how amazing cymatics is sample-wise
08.31.2022 MDY; v2.04
I USED A MARKDOWN TO HTML CONVERTER FOR THIS AND REGRET NOTHING
https://arsentical.github.io/