Potential newbie advice

Hi all

A bit to a ramble but hoping for some advice!

Many years ago I used a piece of Tracker software to sequence 4 track of samples, mainly drums with the odd ambient sample, and then use the various patterns to make a whole song.

Once done I'd record it to tape and then us that as a basking track for guitar, bass, and vocals and did a few performances - very amateurish I know but it worked for us.

These days I've focussed mainly on guitar playing but am keen to get back to writing again.

I have the NI audio interface which I use in combination with my Kemper amp/profiler to record to Logic, and I know there a whole host of stuff I can do in Logic - and do sometimes - but liked my old way of working.

So, I'm looking at one of the Maschine pieces of kit, and maybe a keyboard to connect to it.

Would this solution work for what I think I want, and will it integrate with my existing NI audio interface/Mac/Kemper/Monitor speaker etc?

Many thanks for any help/advice - guess I'm just looking for something to play around and I prefer the physical aspect of pads and keys.

Best regards,

SImon

 

I also cut my teeth on trackers (the old C64 and Amiga days), so i can relate.

I guess you're looking for something immediate, like a multi-tracker that can help you to quickly record and flesh out ideas.

I wouldn't immediately limit yourself to NI gear just because you have an NI interface. I do like Maschine (mk3) because it has a typical "groovebox" way of working, but i feel there might be more immediate ways for you..

F.e. there is a hardware tracker that might be interesting to you, it also has line/mic in and sampler: https://polyend.com/tracker/

Roland MV-1 verselab is also a nice option, if you're also focussed on recording vocals/guitar: https://www.musicradar.com/reviews/roland-verselab-mv-1 (if you're more interested in electronic compositions MC707/MC101 might be good alternatives for MV-1)

Akai is really doing well these days, if your budget allows it the Akai Force might be a cool option, it has direct-to-disk recording since firmware 3.1: it's more like a "Ableton Live" clip oriented hardware standalone box, but it's MIDI and Audio routing capabilities are impressive. Alternatively Akai has the MPC One and MPC Live standalone boxes, but these are more touchscreen based DAW's in a standalone box imho, very powerful but workflow-wise more like a PC based DAW.

Pioneer has the SP16 Toraiz, which imho is a hidden gem if you're looking for straightforward sample-based workflow, the prices dropped and they now can be had for sub-1000 prices.

Then of course NI and Maschine. As I said, i love Maschine because it reminds me of my favorite groovebox Yamaha RM1x workflow, i use it with a macbook that I don't even look at the computer. You can also go for the M+ if you want to go standalone, it should also work with the latest NI audio interfaces, but also has it's own I/O of course (as have all the above options). Granted, i feel the Maschine is most powerful in the department of amazing sounding built-in synths and electronic sounds.

So a lot of options, i would suggest to not only look at videos and read reviews, but try them out in person, to see what clicks best. Buying second-hand is the best option these days imho, as you can resell when you don't like without any loss, or even make a little profit.

Good luck!

 

Wow - that's perhaps the most comprehensive reply I've ever had to a forum question - thanks for taking the time!

I've looked at all of the option, and I must say the hardware tracker looks awesome - I might pick oe up at some point.

For the time being I've ordered one of the small 25 key keyboard - A25 I think - and the Maschine Mikro, seems like a good option as I don't need the audio interface on the bigger models.

I've also been playing more with guitar rig and will probably pick up the full version 6 soon enough.

That should be enough to see if I can get on with the NI universe hopefully!

Thanks again,

Simon