what sort of keyboard?

Rishan

i am going for piano lessons again because i want to be able to play the keyboard and make my own music. i am a technophobe and complete beginner when it comes to musical equipment and computers, shit i never got beyond the walkman for crying out loud. i need some big time help and advice.b,121b,121i haven't played piano for about 20 years, used to go for lessons when i was very small, but gave it up like everything else in my life. i plan to learn the bass guitar too. its time to do some things i want to do for a change.b,121b,121what is a good basic home set up for someone new to all this? will i be able to use the stuff, or should i go for a music production course? honestly, i need someone to break it down into the simplest form, because i just have no clue. what does everyone use and why? (ie what does each bit do?)b,121b,121i am thinking i will need the following: computer with music programme, sampler with sequencer, keyboard with a bunch of stuff on it. some bits of kit claim to do lots of things, so what do i need and what do i not need?b,121b,121it all seems so bloody complicated. are there any good websites for equipment or information? i've seen labcabin, but can't really make head nor tail of it.b,121b,121thank you so much to anyone who takes the time to share some knowledge.

SolidState16

I'd suggest you get the following:b,1211. USB keyboard controller. b,121b,121Since you're taking piano lessons, you might want to buy one with at least 49 keys so you can practice. M-Audio makes a good one, so does Edirol. Hell, even a Behringer will work for this. Just get something that plugs into the computer you're reading this on that works. With this device, you can play notes into the next item on the list. b,121b,1212. Production softwareb,121Some people swear by Reason, some love Ableton Live, others dig Frooty Loops ....sorry , "FL Studio". They all sort of do the same thing in different ways. b,121b,121Reason is closest to emulating a traditional analog studio in computer form. It's fairly easy to use, but pretty powerful. b,121b,121Ableton works like a sampler on steroids and is insanely feature packed. b,121b,121Fl Studio is also very good, but has a kind of stigma attached to it due to the kinda silly name. It works like an xox sequencer, but is more advanced. b,121b,121All of these programs have one thing in common: they allow you to arrange your music, your samples and in some cases record your vocals and other instruments into a whole song. b,121b,121A very good alternative to all of the above, and a free one at that: download Cockos Reaper. b,121b,121That's basically all you need to get rolling. Don't believe the rest of the marketing hype. b,121b,121Check out Futureproducers.com if you want to learn along with a whole bunch of other people who are just starting out. From there, you can go to KVRaudio.com and your head will explode. Just kidding, but....not.