The One Man Band

If you're like me and you at some point in your life decided to become a hobby recording artist then I have some tips for you. The one man band is a thrilling concept because as an artist you are completely in control of all your production, post production and delivery. It is truly a control freaks art form, whereas film making or other art forms tend to be collaborative. Mind you the sculptor and painter also have this same sense of empowerment however they are somewhat limited in the tools they use and their latitude of expression. (This is just my opinion)

So what does a hobby recording artist need to get started. First and foremost is talent.
Ask yourself three questions. Can you sing and keep in tune? This is very important. If you can't I suggest taking up another hobby because you will be limited. Secondly do you know how to play at a basic level either guitar or piano. Having the chops in these two areas helps out a great deal because then you understand progression and chord structure. Thirdly do you know how to write music. This is a skill that matures over time. Noone truly has inate songwriting skills. Nonetheless, it is something you should work on.

Now on to the tools for being that one man band. What you will need is the following:

A computer with at least 1.5 Ghz power, half a gig of RAM and a DVD burner.
A Digital XLR stereo input 96 Khz 24 bit sound card.
A MIDI keyboard controller
A Digital Audio sequencing application ( Cubase SX3 is my favorite)
A sample playback plugin with sound library
A few virtual synth plugins
A few virtual effect plugins
A DSP processing card (there are three good ones out there)
A large diaphragm condenser microphone with pop screen
An outboard pre-amp/ compressor with digital out
An external Firewire 800 Hard Drive
Imaging software ( Norton Ghost)
A set of headphones and pre-amped monitor speakers
A monitor/ dual monitors are nice but you will need a dual port video card
And lastly your instruments like a guitar.

The cost for all this ranges anywhere between $5,000 and $10,000. (I didn't say it was a cheap hobby)

Now that you have all the tools you need you can begin writing that great song. Of course you will need to learn how to use your DAW ( digital audio workstation) but it would be too much for me to cover in one article. Colleges teach this in a two year program so it is a lot to digest. But you can learn it on your own and save a few thousand in tuition costs.

I hope this was a good start for anyone who might be contemplating this as a hobby. I have been dabbling with DAW writing for over twelve years so I have seen a lot and learned a lot.