apoplexy's "what should I learn thread?"

[apoplexy]

Whats up guys,

Yeah, I'm a noob but I don't want to make that Skrillex sound.

So since the day I started, new years, I've read an insane amount, watched a bunch of tutorials, found a producer with 14+ years experience who is teaching me, etc. I've done the homework, I have like 50 books that I'll prob read over the next 5 years, I'm always checking forums out, learning about new VSTs -- I'm a really hard worker.

I can use FL Studio very functionally now, use Massive pretty well (am now working on getting familiar with sound design), am learning chords (although the chord list within the piano roll is very helpful) and I'm going to start working with Zeta+ next.

I'm going to use this thread to get suggestions from people who know the tricks of the trade, have been through the beginner stage before and think to themselves "man, I should've done this or this first, it would've been so much more efficient" because we all know this stage of production is the hardest until you get into that groove.

If you guys could suggest a few things that you think would be very beneficial that I look into early on I will do the work (search the forum, internet, read about it, etc) and educate myself appropriately. I'm just looking for some pushes in various directions that maybe I'm not currently pursuing. I don't want to be spoon fed, I'm not going to ask you for the answer, I'm not going to ask stupid questions, I know you guys get enough of that bullshit.

So yeah, please don't troll me because I'm probably the hardest working noob you'll see for awhile and just want a few recommendations. Once the recommendations have been made I'll go educate myself and then I'll come back in a couple weeks to ask for a couple more things, etc until eventually I get that groove and it's all on me.

I don't know, it was just an idea I thought would be beneficial to me and if the community has a problem with it I'll just scrap it.

Thanks in advance.

[deadly_habit]

Synthesis, drums, layering, using insert and send fx (learning the basics of what each type of common effect does to a sound), training your ears to frequency ranges and identifying common oscillator sounds and characteristics, same as the last one but with effects, bussing, dynamic effects (compression, expanders, limiting), mixing, composition, music theory, routing. Take your pick you should never stop learning.

[apoplexy]

Thanks dude I'm going to disect your post and any others that come until I know a shit ton about every single mentioned subject. I'm hoping this thread will send me on a path with enough reading/watching material to keep me busy for at least a couple months.

Cheers.

[Maxxan]

If you're just starting out, I'd recommend getting into FM synthesis early on. I wish I had done that when I started, now I'm so used to my shit and too lazy to pick it up properly. But if you get good with FM from the start you're going to be making some really versatile sounds later on. If it's not too overwhelming for ya.

[Electric_Head]

Imo the best place to start is the freely available book from Simon Cann - How to make a noise.

And he has these e-books out on specific synthesis methods.
I got my grounding from those books.
Very well set out and straight forward.

http://noisesculpture.com/how-to-make-a ... rogramming

http://noisesculpture.com/how-to-make-a-noise

[magnetron_sputtering]

Most of what I learned I learned right here. There is a LOT of knowledge on this board, and you can find it by digging.

Besides that, my recommendation of something to learn is active listening. Now admittedly, it's only something I'm trying to do myself recently but I realised that it's important to listen to music in order to create music. I came across active listening applied to job-seeking and professional networking. It's not just listening and going "yeah, yeah", it's taking in the information and remembering it and being engaged with the information. That way you can recall it later and analyse it. When you need it it's there. Dealing with people, this means not having to ask their name again, asking about their projects etc. Applied to music it means remembering a song structure, being aware of elements in the mix, the interplay of percussion, the sound of a synth etc. and not just "yeah man bangin' tune" while you're reading headphone reviews (i.e. when your mind is otherwise occupied). When you sit down to make music you'll have a better knowledge of what makes a song sound how it does and this will come out in the quality of your music.

I wish I was rich and unemployed so I could buy an expensive hi-fi system and simply sit for hours and listen to music as an activity unto itself.

[fragments]

The thing I wished I would have learned early on is music theory as I didn't and don't play an insturment. I've got a pretty good grounding in the basics of synthesis and mixing, but I often struggle with writing melodies and arrangement. All the technical knowledge in the world is great, but if you can write an interesting and memorable lead your perfect mix means nothing ;p

[bassinine]

the main thing you should be learning is how to finish track consistently. make sure you FINISH one every ~2 weeks.... this is the most important thing an aspiring producer can do, imo.

your synthesis/processing will get better with each and every completed track.

[fragments]

^That's good advice, too. Finishing stuff no matter what helped me a lot the first few years.

[billybuxton]

the main thing you should be learning is how to finish track consistently. make sure you FINISH one every ~2 weeks.... this is the most important thing an aspiring producer can do, imo.
your synthesis/processing will get better with each and every completed track.

Great advice, this is definitely the thing i struggle with the most

[apoplexy]

Thank you very much for the responses guys. I am going to go through every post that was made and immerse myself in the appropriate topics. I know there's tons of great information throughout the forum, I just needed the topic names so I could search and find it.

The thing I love about music production is that the learning curve is infinite, you are learning new things everyday, it involves reading and devoting yourself to something and all of these things are things I enjoy. I am looking forward to this journey because I've been putting in hours everyday and I'm only going to devote more and more over time.

Cheers and I'm glad this thread didn't go the wrong direction.

[bassinine]

Cheers and I'm glad this thread didn't go the wrong direction.

we don't bite. as long as you seem like you're ready to put in the time and willing to learn.

[Artie_Fufkin]

Knowing some fundamental stuff about the physics of sound can help break things down.
Frequency, Amplitude and Time. The basic functions of an equalizer deal with frequency and amplitude. Dynamics is amplitude and time. (to begin with anyways... you can incorporate automation(time) with the eq and multiband(frequency) compression, but that's more advanced I suppose)

Get familiar with frequency ranges, the stock effects in your DAW (FL Studio) and basic waveforms and functions (ASDR, filters, monophony/polyphony, envelopes, portamento) that most synths use. Understand what these do to sounds. Listen to the sound before and after an effect is activated. Learn what the parameters do to the sound. Just get a basic idea of what these things do to frequency, amplitude and time and what you would use these for.
Learn about sampling and samplers too. Pitching up and down a sample vs. algorithmic timestretching/pitchshifting.

Learning about sampling rates and bit depth and other digital audio topics aren't that complicated if you find the right resource that make it easy to digest. It's probably not gonna create any creative breakthroughs for you, but I think it's good stuff to know about.

I would suggest trying out a simple freeware vsti(like P8 Superwave) or one in FL that has an easy to use interface. Massive isn't really difficult or anything, especially if you read the manual -another suggestion here, manuals can be help you so much-, but mastering the basic functions with a simple synth with a good GUI is a great way to learn in my opinion. Just my personal experience starting out, P8 Superwave was so easy to learn with. And you can apply that knowledge to Massive.

Also, learn to have fun. But also discipline, like mentioned above about finishing tunes.
And check out the stickies.
Welcome to the forum

[123kidd]

Lots of good points already mentioned. Make sure you really dig deep into your daw as well. Dont get overwhelmed and make sure you familiarize yourself with the stock effects of your daw first, before moving onto 3rd party vsts. Its a long fun journey, so just sit back and enjoy the ride. Practise, practise, and then practise some more. Also read the moneyshot thread if you havent already.

[big_lurch]

FL and Massive are both great to learn on. I'd start off by becoming best friends with the manual to each one, read it front to back and then maybe a second time through. Play around and experiment and get "hands on" in your synth/daw when you learn something new, you'll learn much better by actually making noise and applying what you're reading. Keep in mind that you need not have "vst lust" when first starting out, you have everything you need synth and effects wise in fruity loops, and downloading lots and lots of plugins in the beginning will be more of a hindrance as it's much better to learn a few effects and a synth inside and out, rather than a bunch half-assedly.

In addition to everything I just said, I'd also supplement the fl/massive manuals with the free ebook "How to Make a Noise" to help you learn synthesis, as well as the book "Music Theory for Computer Musicians" which will get you on your way with theory and how it applies to programming it within your daw (it's helpful to SEE the notes and chords drawin into the piano roll to get an idea of whats going on, this book helped me out tremendously).

This in itself will be a LOT to digest and should keep you busy for a while, as well as giving you a good foundation as far as theory and teaching you to navigate your daw/synth of choice. In addition to that, read up on each of the effects in your daw (eq, filters, overdrive, chorus, etc etc) to become familiar with what each one does to the sound.

When you're first starting out, be sure to HAVE FUN and MAKE NOISE. experiment, experiment, experiment. turn knobs and LISTEN to what happens to the sound, and then look it up in the manual to see what's happening, and then make a loop by applying what you've read. VERY IMPORTANT: don't have too high of expectations when you're first starting out. just have fun and see if this is really what you want to do because it's gonna be A WHILE before you start getting quality results. it's a very long road to getting good at this craft. I think most people here will tell you that it's taken them AT LEAST a few years of hard work to even get to the point where they were starting to make stuff that sounded halfway decent and not utter shit. don't get discouraged at first, it will happen, just accept it and dont take yourself too seriously and keep in mind that there's no quick solutions with this art.

Write and finish songs even if they are crap. do the best you can with each one but dont get hung up and approach each tune with the mentality of THIS IS THE ONE IT HAS TO BE PERFECT. just make it as good as you can and move forward with the next one. you're only gonna get good if you write LOTS and LOTS of songs. a lot of people will tell you that writing an awesome loop is easy, but turning that loop into a great song can be extremely difficult. so the more tunes you finish, the stronger you are going to be at moving past the loop phase and training yourself how to compose and arrange.

dont just listen to dubstep, or whatever kinda music you're making. listen to LOTS of different styles ad really live for the music. find the qualities in each style that resonate most with you and work on cultivating them within your own sound. read as much as you can on this forum,it'll take a while before you're able to discern whats useful information, and what's not. there are no absolute rules with music, keep in mind that if it sounds good to you, then it probably is.

once you get comfortable in your daw and have completed some songs, start reading the MIXING/MONEYSHOT THREAD (it's bookmarked at the top of the forum and will teach you gainstaging. it may seem quite confusing at first but it'll be one of thee most important things you'll learn with making music. i wouldn't worry about jumping into this at first, just have fun making some songs and figuring everything out, but definetly keep it in mind for when you start feeling more comfortable.

dont worry about getting a ton of gear or plugins at first, it's not necessary when you're starting out. just focus on learning the software the best you can and decide if this is really what you wanna do with your time. ALSO: take the initiative to seek out questions you have, rather than bombarding the forum with questions that can easily be answered with a quick search. youtube and the search function of this site will answer nearly everything you need to know. dont expect everyone to spoon feed you, its up to you to DIG DEEP and help yourself.

really open your eyes and mind up to art and creativity. spend time out in nature just listening to everything around you, the ebb and flow of the universe - youd be amazed at how things like the chirping of birds can sound like pitch enveloped sine waves, or the similarities between a train horn echoing in the mountains with a deep, reverberating dub techno chord. watch films. eat natural foods and get some sunlight and exercise in your life. have experiences. step out side your comfort zone and push past your boundaries. keep in mind from the beginning that you're in the wrong profession if you think you're gonna be a rock star or make lotsa money with production (not saying it's impossible but it's very difficult). it should be because it's genuinely something you love to do. this last paragraph may seem trivial but it's all helped me out quite a lot.

good luck and have fun!

[apoplexy]

FL and Massive are both great to learn on. I'd start off by becoming best friends with the manual to each one, read it front to back and then maybe a second time through. Play around and experiment and get "hands on" in your synth/daw when you learn something new, you'll learn much better by actually making noise and applying what you're reading. Keep in mind that you need not have "vst lust" when first starting out, you have everything you need synth and effects wise in fruity loops, and downloading lots and lots of plugins in the beginning will be more of a hindrance as it's much better to learn a few effects and a synth inside and out, rather than a bunch half-assedly.

In addition to everything I just said, I'd also supplement the fl/massive manuals with the free ebook "How to Make a Noise" to help you learn synthesis, as well as the book "Music Theory for Computer Musicians" which will get you on your way with theory and how it applies to programming it within your daw (it's helpful to SEE the notes and chords drawin into the piano roll to get an idea of whats going on, this book helped me out tremendously).

This in itself will be a LOT to digest and should keep you busy for a while, as well as giving you a good foundation as far as theory and teaching you to navigate your daw/synth of choice. In addition to that, read up on each of the effects in your daw (eq, filters, overdrive, chorus, etc etc) to become familiar with what each one does to the sound.

When you're first starting out, be sure to HAVE FUN and MAKE NOISE. experiment, experiment, experiment. turn knobs and LISTEN to what happens to the sound, and then look it up in the manual to see what's happening, and then make a loop by applying what you've read. VERY IMPORTANT: don't have too high of expectations when you're first starting out. just have fun and see if this is really what you want to do because it's gonna be A WHILE before you start getting quality results. it's a very long road to getting good at this craft. I think most people here will tell you that it's taken them AT LEAST a few years of hard work to even get to the point where they were starting to make stuff that sounded halfway decent and not utter shit. don't get discouraged at first, it will happen, just accept it and dont take yourself too seriously and keep in mind that there's no quick solutions with this art.

Write and finish songs even if they are crap. do the best you can with each one but dont get hung up and approach each tune with the mentality of THIS IS THE ONE IT HAS TO BE PERFECT. just make it as good as you can and move forward with the next one. you're only gonna get good if you write LOTS and LOTS of songs. a lot of people will tell you that writing an awesome loop is easy, but turning that loop into a great song can be extremely difficult. so the more tunes you finish, the stronger you are going to be at moving past the loop phase and training yourself how to compose and arrange.

dont just listen to dubstep, or whatever kinda music you're making. listen to LOTS of different styles ad really live for the music. find the qualities in each style that resonate most with you and work on cultivating them within your own sound. read as much as you can on this forum,it'll take a while before you're able to discern whats useful information, and what's not. there are no absolute rules with music, keep in mind that if it sounds good to you, then it probably is.

once you get comfortable in your daw and have completed some songs, start reading the MIXING/MONEYSHOT THREAD (it's bookmarked at the top of the forum and will teach you gainstaging. it may seem quite confusing at first but it'll be one of thee most important things you'll learn with making music. i wouldn't worry about jumping into this at first, just have fun making some songs and figuring everything out, but definetly keep it in mind for when you start feeling more comfortable.

dont worry about getting a ton of gear or plugins at first, it's not necessary when you're starting out. just focus on learning the software the best you can and decide if this is really what you wanna do with your time. ALSO: take the initiative to seek out questions you have, rather than bombarding the forum with questions that can easily be answered with a quick search. youtube and the search function of this site will answer nearly everything you need to know. dont expect everyone to spoon feed you, its up to you to DIG DEEP and help yourself.

really open your eyes and mind up to art and creativity. spend time out in nature just listening to everything around you, the ebb and flow of the universe - youd be amazed at how things like the chirping of birds can sound like pitch enveloped sine waves, or the similarities between a train horn echoing in the mountains with a deep, reverberating dub techno chord. watch films. eat natural foods and get some sunlight and exercise in your life. have experiences. step out side your comfort zone and push past your boundaries. keep in mind from the beginning that you're in the wrong profession if you think you're gonna be a rock star or make lotsa money with production (not saying it's impossible but it's very difficult). it should be because it's genuinely something you love to do. this last paragraph may seem trivial but it's all helped me out quite a lot.

good luck and have fun!

Thanks so much for such an in-depth response. I am definitely ready to invest a huge amount of my time into this craft and the fact is, I love learning so something like this will keep me very, very busy. Regarding questions I have, I know how forums work, nobody likes noobs coming onto the boards and asking questions that could be solved with a single search. Whether music production, bodybuilding, graphic design, all of the boards are the same in this regard so I will certainly not do anything that will irritate anybody.

My goal with this thread was for a few people to openly point me in a few directions that they wished they would've been pointed in when they were in my shoes. I got a lot more responses than anticipated and it's pretty safe to say that I'll be busy for the next few months if not, 6months-1year with this information alone. I'm going to do everything that was recommended here and probably make another post in this thread in 6months-1year for some other recommendations.

Thanks to everybody who responded, now it's time for me to continue doing major work.

Also, I registered for the free online Sound Design course offered by Emory University through Coursera. It starts in February, do you guys think this will be worth pursuing?

Thanks in advance.

[O Captain]

the main thing you should be learning is how to finish track consistently. make sure you FINISH one every ~2 weeks.... this is the most important thing an aspiring producer can do, imo.

This is my favorite advice in this thread. Keep on pumping out new tracks and work on releasing a couple EPs. Next year you will revisit some of your material you wrote and cringe... that's just how making music goes

[tpc_uk]

I agree with the get tunes done comments.

Its just the most important thing. Just get the tune done....

Sometimes what is needed in a tune is only found during its arranging phase where you can see a bigger picture....if not move on.

Just being prolific, being able to work fast & start arranging as soon as poss would be ideal.... if you can get there then the finer points of production & quality control would be next on the agenda..

[apoplexy]

Would I be able to get any of you guys on AIM? I'd appreciate it as it would let me get a quick question answered every now and again regarding FL Studio. Just shoot me a PM if you don't want your AIM public.

[Crimsonghost]

Also, I registered for the free online Sound Design course offered by Emory University through Coursera. It starts in February, do you guys think this will be worth pursuing?

I think quite a few of us have signed up for the one being offered by Berklee. Honestly there's noting wrong with any sort of free education from a music school.

Another good read is Music theory for computer musicians.

Good luck