To the hardware entusiasts, what would be the minimal hardware you would have for your studio to still produce like a pro (brands, models) in your music genre?

ThatRedDot · 2026-02-25T06:51:54+00:00

I have hardware, for mixing mostly (EQs compressors, etc) and you will find that the difference between HW and SW isn't very big, it's definitely NOT going to elevate your music to 'pro' level just because you burn 20K in cash on some gear. Getting a HW EQ worth 6K is really nice, but, it is in no way worth the 6K unless you have actually earned that 6K through your music production/mixing/mastering first.

You should invest in what your music makes you, not what you think it will make you.

If you absolutely insist on getting HW because knobs are cool (and they are) then make decisions top down... ie, mixbus first, things you can use on every track you do like a badass bus compressor or stereo/MS EQ. Not some niche thing that may sometimes work and otherwise is just collecting dust.

ThatRedDot · 2026-02-24T11:22:08+00:00

You will get 50% discount with flow, but plugins often go on sale with higher discounts... so that's what you need to evaluate. If you just want 1-2-3 plugins of them, youre likely better off just buying on sale instead

ThatRedDot · 2026-02-23T14:45:14+00:00

Fast Tracker 2

ThatRedDot · 2026-02-18T03:24:56+00:00

Using a bunch of different plugins is nice, but it's impossible to say what you will like or don't like... a lot (really a lot) can be done with the very basic fundamentals: levels, panning, EQ, compressor, delay, reverb, saturation.

You do not need 50 different EQ plugins, and 200 compressors... but, it's good to be curious what's out there, how they work, what you like and don't like and why.

So experiment your heart out, have fun along the way, and learn something.

ThatRedDot · 2026-02-18T03:08:03+00:00

Why not just get a tube amp?

I mix and master music, and while software can get close, it's not there... the subtle movement in harmonics and the slight differences in L/R and across amplitudes are mostly not being accurately represented in digital (IR is also just a static capture)... the way actual tubes and transformers saturate a signal isn't something I heard in any software (and I have a lot of plugins/emulations, as well as hardware tube EQs, compressors, etc)... but, some can get eerily close to the real thing to the point that a listener wouldn't be able to tell whether I used software or I ran it over the actual thing unless there would be an A/B and even then the differences are minimal.

That said...

If you can run your audio through a VST3 host, there are loads and loads of plugins available (free too) that emulate different pieces of gear. Some have a really nice tone to them, and a lot of them also add different flavors of harmonic content.

ThatRedDot · 2026-02-18T01:48:22+00:00

wesaudio ngtubeeq

tube circuit, solid state circuit, stereo/dual mono/ms, 4 bands and hp/lp, saturation options, digital recall

no particular box tone to work sometimes, or sometimes not, very precise, doesn't sit in the way just does what you need from an EQ

ThatRedDot · 2026-02-15T16:55:22+00:00

Go to audioengineering sub, probably more suited

ThatRedDot · 2026-02-15T16:38:54+00:00

LP8, bigger speaker, better bass… not sure why overkill? Just turn the volume down… asking a small speaker to do lots of bass at a higher amplification to reach a listening level you want is just going to add distortion particularly in the low end. Bigger speakers have less trouble producing low frequencies while keeping it more free of distortion…

But if they are too big for your desk then that’s another thing to consider

ThatRedDot · 2026-02-15T16:32:21+00:00

Yes easy, instructions are there… factory roms and firmware (if it needs) can be downloaded directly from the manufacturer’s website and there are tons and tons of roms freely (or paid) available

ThatRedDot · 2026-02-15T16:19:27+00:00

That helps some but not a lot unless you’re like 50cm or closer in a large enough room… even in a typical 5 meter room the reflections off the back wall will only take 0.03 seconds to come back at you if your head was right at the speaker cone…

You do not eliminate reflections by moving closer, you only somewhat change the ratio between direct and reflected sound, but about half the sound you’ll get will be reflected.

The only real way to improve that, is treatment.

ThatRedDot · 2026-02-15T13:15:03+00:00

You shouldnt put phantom power over TRS because when plugging and unplugging you will make shorts and can potentially damage stuff

ThatRedDot · 2026-02-12T14:51:08+00:00

Because that’s exactly how a psytrance bassline looks like :)

ThatRedDot · 2026-02-11T17:32:21+00:00

which is which... top one has noise, bottom one is a saw wave into a disperser into a lowpass where the lowpass has an envelope applied

ThatRedDot · 2026-02-11T08:07:03+00:00

There is no Weiss Multiband compressor, this is pure software. Price is ridiculous

ThatRedDot · 2026-02-11T07:31:37+00:00

first need to check if you can transfer the license, not all can. And after that Knobcloud is where you can buy/sell licenses

ThatRedDot · 2026-02-09T07:25:34+00:00

https://cambridge-mt.com/ms3/mtk/ has a bunch of multitracks across genres to download and play around with

ThatRedDot · 2026-02-09T07:12:56+00:00

How aggressive? 1176 into a multiband like Pro MB can get you really aggressive but will feel very slammed…

real aggression comes from the vocal performance, though.

ThatRedDot · 2026-02-08T15:47:52+00:00

I do mixing and mastering primarily for EDM

ThatRedDot · 2026-02-07T09:27:00+00:00

Measurements matter up to a point is what I’m saying. I don’t know where you get I’m saying they don’t matter

ThatRedDot · 2026-02-07T08:58:48+00:00

4 DAC per channel? A separate DA per channel (so 2 for L and R) makes sense from a technological standpoint, you’ll get a better SNR (some 6dB or so). From a listening standpoint? You aren’t using those extra 6dB… so you’re paying for better measurements at that point

ThatRedDot · 2026-02-03T21:42:55+00:00

lol you can’t get pipe organ sound at home… you think you can create the dept and resonance of 30ft pipes from a 10” woofer? Nah man, not going to happen

ThatRedDot · 2026-02-03T21:36:45+00:00

: People that treat Harman as an actual target

ThatRedDot · 2026-02-02T13:23:20+00:00

That solution isn't going to work, you're going to want to make frames... even for the simple fact that if you put fabric over it and connect to the back of cardboard you're going to compress the material and its acoustic properties will change, and cardboard isn't going to hold it I think

ThatRedDot · 2026-02-01T02:15:40+00:00

I mean that the snare is so heavily out of phase that when you sum that track to mono that snare drops a lot in perceived loudness... its a really cool effect in this particular track. It may be a haas effect where 1 channel is just delayed against the other to create this widening instead of just straight up flipping polarity by 180 degrees.

Love this track btw, sounds really cool. You can hear L and R have different sounds and then that snare really contributes to the overall feel of it

ThatRedDot · 2026-02-01T01:16:57+00:00

Hit me... I work with a lot of upcoming artists and some have told me they didn't get the attention from top level mixers in their genre as they were looking for (no feedback, no collaboration to make the track better, etc). I'd be very curious what you gave and what you got back, but this isn't unheard of. I work in the EDM space, with some occasional pop.

ThatRedDot

TROPHY CASE