Question How to start off use of DAW?

[Luxie]

I’ve been in a DAW before. I use Piapro Studio, and that needs a DAW, but I’ve never actually made an instrumental. My end game goal is to get Luka and make songs with her. Music needs a melody.
Where do I start off? Are there resources I could use to get myself started?

 

[poser]

LMMS is a free, open source DAW with a user manual provided

Welcome to LMMS | English | User manual

docs.lmms.io

edit: theres also Cakewalk, another free daw

Cakewalk Home

Fueled by over 30 years in the relentless pursuit of innovation, we're building the most intuitive, next-generation music production tools that will empower all creators to push creative boundaries.

www.cakewalk.com

 

[PearlStarLight5]

Luka V4x comes with Studio One Artist edition, which accepts Piapro Studio as a plug-in. To download it, you need to register for Presonus, type in your serial code for Studio One Artist edition, and then download the .exe to install it.

 

[inactive]

My recommendation would be to give a schwackload of DAWs a try and see which one best suits your personal needs and workflow. It is entirely possible that you may want to switch to a different DAW as you gain experience, but worry about switching when—or if—that moment arrives.

 

[bibbs]

LMMS is a free, open source DAW with a user manual provided

Welcome to LMMS | English | User manual

docs.lmms.io

lmms is legit, i've been trying to get into music making too and it's got everything you need in a daw. eventually i'll move on to something paid (thinking cubase), but thats way later and lmms is good for most of everything you'll want to do. it's a little clunky in the ui department, but functionality is good. learn a little bit about vst plugins and how they work, lmms supports most vsts i've tried in it.

also we live in a world of some really good free synthesizers like vital and surge XT nowadays. but i've been content to use synth1 since it's been around and has a lot of good presets to download. i also have fl studio mobile which is cheap, it has some pretty good built in instruments that you can work with. you can also check out spitfire labs for free instruments as a vst plugin.

right now i've been using all free stuff or cheap stuff, i know once i spend a little on a new hobby i'm going to spend a ton, and i need to save money right now lol. not until i feel like i've really got something here am i throwing down a ton of money.

off the top of my head here's some of the stuff i've been playing with

software: lmms, synth v basic, fl studio mobile
vsts: synth1, vital, surge XT, delay lama (lol), ample bass p lite ii, spitfire labs

also it's worth mentioning, bandlab cakewalk is free nowadays. i have it installed but havent tried it too much, but i'm sure it's good. also pay attention to humble bundle, they have a lot of music related software bundles from time to time, i have sony acid from humble, but haven't used it too much.

 

[peaches2217]

My recommendation would be to give a schwackload of DAWs a try and see which one best suits your personal needs and workflow. It is entirely possible that you may want to switch to a different DAW as you gain experience, but worry about switching when—or if—that moment arrives.

I second this. Most DAWs have free trial. Try them all out and see what clicks! It can be a bit overwhelming, so just do one at a time.

 

[IO+]

I recommend to try the cakewalk bandlab if you are windows user, their stock plugins is great and best of all... It's free.