Unless you’re primary musical gig is as a choral vocalist, and maybe even then, you are going to end up owning music equipment.  Even if you see it as a necessary evil, you need to wrap your head around a hardware setup, get comfortable using it, and get busy making music.  Between here and there, you have a number of decisions to make.

Shortly after I agreed to write this article, I was in a serious motorcycle accident.  When I was discharged from the hospital, my wife and I looked at my helmet, jacket, gloves, and boots and confirmed what the paramedics and nurses had been telling us.  My driving skills were questionable, but I made some very good decisions about safety gear.  Because my gear took so much impact and abrasion for me, I escaped rear-ending an SUV with only scrapes and bruises.  It works the same way with music.  No device or software title will make you "good."  The right kit will, however, be there for you when you need it and perform critical functions that let you play or produce.

I have already stated the most obvious and universal truth about music and audio equipment.  "You probably need some."  The second is that that the increasingly fuzzy distinction between DJing and the rest of the electronic music universe has fundamentally changed how we need to talk about equipment.  Today, electronic musicians use DJ gear and DJs use MIDI gear conceived for keyboardists.  In 2006, we are all "producers."  DJing leans toward the playing of pre-existing recording while musicians tend to play instruments.  Increasingly, it all looks like "production."

In this article I will give a quick overview of what I think is a healthy philosophy of equipping yourself.  Then I will layout an alternately random and arbitrary collection of information intended to help you navigate the rather overwhelming audio and music equipment market. 

"What do I want to do?"

It sounds like such an obvious question.  Not only do you need to ask it, but you also need to ask it over and over until you give yourself a satisfactory, relatively complete answer.  It is a much better question than "what do I want to have?"  I want several different Marshall, Ampeg, and Vox guitar amps.  I certainly don't need them.  The reason I don't need them is that, even though I am a guitarist, having those amps would not solve any problems for me or help me do anything.  My Fender amp doesn't limit me at all.  I won't be buying a Marshall until that changes.

So, what do you want to do?  Are you going to be recording live vocals and/or instruments or will you only be working with existing recordings and virtual instruments?  Will you need to provide your own PA at events?  Will you be composing on a computer?  The list of questions is potentially endless, but the process of repeatedly asking them and answering them will keep you both open-minded and focused.  It is an internal dialog about the problems you are trying to solve, and it should guide how you spend your resources and how you equip yourself.

The Process Of Weeding Out

In the earliest stages of equipping yourself for any musical task, take the broadest view possible of your equipment options.  Then start eliminating products that don't solve any problems for you or are a bad fit for some other reason (often excessive price).  Just because you think of yourself as a DJ doesn't mean you should only look at mixers marketed as DJ mixers, with conspicuous cross-faders near the bottom edge.  Once you see that something with 32 channels and a bunch of onboard processing is totally impractical for what you do, you should cross it off the list.

A Word About Adjectives

You can't read more than a few pages of ad or editorial copy about sound gear without running into "fat"/"phat," "vintage," "classic" and worst of all "warm."  Often these words are used to convey the idea that a new piece of digital gear or software captures the sound of a beloved piece of analog kit from an earlier decade.  While it is nice that people realize that digital technology is not a panacea, nobody really knows what "warm" means anymore.  Basically, it has become a synonym of "good" and should be ignored.

Microphones

I used to think there were two kinds of mikes--good and bad.  It is true that some cut-rate mikes just sound bad and that some mikes are "all purpose" to a degree, but like a drill, it is best to use one specifically suited to the task.  Mikes designed for studio recording may be too delicate and sensitive for live use.  Mikes intended for live use may not be flat enough, broad banded enough or lack myriad other qualities desirable for a given recording application.

Good mikes for studio recording include dynamic, condenser, and ribbon mikes of every description and price.  The ones you should consider depend not only on budget and sound sources but also on your other gear decisions.  Condenser microphones require phantom power (sometimes replaced by an internal battery).  Mixers and audio interfaces variously provide extensive phantom power, limited phantom power, or none.  If you own the latter and want to use a condenser mike, add to your cost an additional source of phantom power. 

Esoteric condenser and ribbon mikes are often paired with dedicated microphone preamplifiers to take full advantage of their sonic properties.  While not always required, mike pres provide phantom power (if needed), enhance or color the mike’s sound, and boost the signal level before it hits the mixer or audio interface where pre-amplification may be inadequate, of lower quality, or absent.  Between the added complexity, expense, and fact that some can be damaged by something as seemingly innocuous as a misdirected puff of air, you may find that working with delicate, high-end microphones is best left to others.

Live sound mikes are a little easier to wrap your head around.  For most people, a few mainstream dynamic and condenser mikes from Shure, Senheizer, or M-Audio will get you home and for not too much money.  Live mikes need to sound good, but unlike studio equipment, they need to be rugged and resist feedback.  Inevitably, this leads to a measure of compromise.  Thankfully, a handful of tried and true live sound mikes that most people find perfectly adequate are available on the market.

The two microphones that even non-musicians know the model numbers of are the Sure SM57 and 58, the most popular, recognizable, and imitated microphones in the world.  The 58 is the vocal mike shaped like an ice cream cone.  If you hear the word "microphone" in casual conversation the picture that pops into your head is the SM58.  The 57 looks like the 58 after somebody ate most of the ice cream.  Having much less pop-screen, it is the instrument mike of the pair.  They are popular because they work great and can take a beating and a working professional can afford as many of them as are needed.

Legend has it that a Sure SM58 can be completely submerged in beer for several minutes and still finish the gig.  I don't suggest testing this, but it makes a point that is worth repeating.  The reason these mikes are so widely used is that they are serviceable even when abused.

Computers

Although you might wonder, based on what you see in the magazines, you don't need a computer to make electronic music.  Computers are like turntables.  You need them for doing things in a certain way.  It isn't a given.

If you do everything with MIDI you can use a workstation class keyboard as the center of your kit with outboard sound modules and effects as needed.  If you primarily work with audio a hardware multi track recorder may prove more elegant than a computer.  Computers are great, but you may not need one.

Perhaps the biggest advantage of a computer is the astonishing range of things they can "learn to do" simply by installing an additional program on them.   A PC that has been doing nothing but hard disk audio recording can become the equivalent of several hardware synth modules by installing a few hundred dollars worth of software and not give up it's multi-track recording job.

I need to qualify my use of the word "equivalent."  There are software substitutes for almost any piece of audio or music hardware.  Hardware aficionados will be quick to point out that these substitutes are not the same as the hardware.  They are right.  In some cases they are superior in certain regards (automation, flexibility, factory and user presets for example).  The same application or plug-in may be inferior in other ways.  It is the nature of digital technology, which software by definition is, that it will not exactly duplicate the behavior of any analog device.  If you feel like you need the exact sound of a specific tube compressor you should save your pennies and buy it.  If you want a compression effect with many sonic characteristics of a tube compressor, download demo versions of some plug-ins modeled on such compressors and buy the one you like best.  The software option is almost always cheaper, but never exactly the same.

Choosing a computer is a bewildering task in any case.  Choosing one for music production can be even harder because of the frustrating array of trade-offs connected to each and every option.  The good news is that most computers manufactured in recent years are up to many basic music production tasks like running an entry-level DAW with a hand-full of plug-ins.  The bad news is that this is where "one size fits all" stops.  The ability to connect a specific audio interface or run a specific piece of software will rely on OS compatibility and the compliment of ports on the computer.

The key word here is "compatibility."  Read specs and system requirements for the software and hardware you want to use before making a PC purchase. 

There are a few other guidelines that should inform any computer purchase for music production.  

1. More RAM is always better. More RAM reduces your system's reliance on virtual memory and speeds up various audio and MIDI activities.  Large amounts of factory installed RAM can be very expensive.  Check the availability and cost of 3rd party RAM and learn how to install yourself.  
2. More disks and disk capacity are always better. Your friend who plays Halo 2 all day, every day, only thinks he needs a four disk RAID array on his PC.  If you record a lot of multi-track audio you actually do need one.  Well, not necessarily, but you need it worse than Halo Boy does.  Audio (and video) takes up huge amounts of disk space.  Because large amounts of data are frequently written and read from multiple disk locations audio systems also benefit from being able to access more than one disk at once.  Specifically, it is best to save the audio files themselves on a dedicated drive that does not have applications or the boot OS on it.  Whenever possible you should also opt for drives with higher spindle speeds.
3. More ports are always better. Even if you only need to hook up a couple of MIDI devices and one USB audio interface right now you may be glad you had a few FireWire ports later.  With a desktop PC you can usually add ports later with a PCI card or hub, and you can often add them to a laptop with a hub or PC card.  Some devices don't work well with external hubs.  Some add-in cards don't have good drivers for a given operating system.  Adding to the ports a computer came with is almost always an option, but it is also often a bit of a gamble.
4. Choose a computer platform based on application availability, not "computer religion." Some music and audio software is only available for either Windows or Macintosh.  GigaStudio and Digital Performer are two prime examples.  Wanting to use GigaStudio is a good reason to choose a Windows computer.  Your sister-in-law telling you Dell is better than Apple is not.  The fact is that modern Macs and PCs have very similar capabilities.  What matters most is compatibility with the software and outboard hardware you want to use.
   
   Historically, Macs have averaged higher prices than Windows PCs.  We don't really know what will happen with Mac prices as we go into the first full year of Macs with Intel processors.  If history repeats itself people like myself who prefer the Mac OS and its attendant apps will continue to spend a little extra.  As of today you can probably get set up more cheaply with a Windows PC, assuming the software you want runs on Windows.
5. Don't buy a laptop unless you need one. Speed and expandability in a laptop will always cost more than in a desktop computer.  Laptops are less reliable, on average, than desktops.  The advantages of laptops over desktops are that they are small, portables and cool.  If those are not things you need, your money is better spent at eMusic or Beatport.  
   

Workstation Keyboards

For people who think of themselves as musicians first and foremost, especially those with piano or keyboard backgrounds, it makes a lot of sense to put a powerful keyboard instrument at the center of your gear.  Workstation keyboards are distinguished by their extensive internal abilities, in addition to being able to control or work with other devices.  Extensive sound libraries, sequencers, samplers and effects can be found in these keyboards.

Controller Keyboards  

If your sounds live in modules or on a computer you probably will be at least as happy with a simpler MIDI controller keyboard.  They are smaller, lighter, and cheaper.  They generate no sound.  They only send instructions to other devices.  Some, including multiple Korg and Novation models, also include control surface features, which can reduce your reliance on a mouse when working in a DAW or soft synth.

DAW

Sequencing and hard disk recording functions have merged into the modern Digital Audio Workstation application.  Pro Tools, Cubase, Logic, FL Studio, Digital Performer and Cakewalk Sonar dominate this category.  Ableton Live, probably the "hottest" app around right now, goes in this category as well.  The difference here is that Live started life as a simple but elegant looping app somewhat akin to Acid, but cross platform and with outstanding time stretching functions.  The recently released Acid 6 is also trying to elbow its way toward respect as a full-featured DAW with a full compliment of multi track recording and MIDI features.

Most DAWs follow some sort of multi-track recorder analogy in their interface.  Most offer support for a wide range of 3rd party plug-in effects and software instruments.  Most will work with a range of internal and external audio and MIDI interfaces.  That said, there are a lot of things that are not supported by various DAWs.  Unless you want to run more than one (a perfectly viable option) you are going to lock yourself out of _something_ when you choose your DAW.  Read the specs.  Read the system requirements.  Call your vendor and ask questions about compatibility and support.

Along with price your choice should be made based on feature set and compatibility.  You might like the look and feel of one DAW more than the other, but all the major players have usable interfaces.  It doesn't matter how pretty it is if you need it to talk to your FireWire DJ mixer and it won't. 

If you have thousands of dollars invested in VST plug-ins you may want to stay away from Logic and Digital Performer, which do not directly support VSTs (although there are ways around that problem).  Are you madly in love with your MOTU audio interface?  Then, VST's or not, you should look at Digital Performer. The same company makes it and they will probably work great together.  Performer will probably talk to your previous VST host via ReWire anyway.

A final word about Pro Tools: Pro Tools|HD is the dominant DAW platform for full-scale commercial studios.  The app and requisite hardware quickly run into five digits and that is before you buy any optional plug-ins or third party connectivity or control products.  For that you get the most powerful hard disk recording, MIDI and editing system money can buy.  This is not what most people need, or even want.  For mere mortals there is the very capable Pro Tools LE and the entry level Pro Tools M-Powered.  Project files from these versions work with Pro Tools|HD, easing the trip from your setup to a larger studio for mixing or mastering.

DJ Software

Ever since I first saw iTunes I wanted to DJ from a computer.  The advantages are obvious.  I can have thousands of tracks at my fingertips along with extensive track information.  A laptop is smaller and lighter than a single turntable.  The list goes on.  DJ apps like Traktor, Pioneer DJS and Final Scratch take all of those and add effects, beat matching, integration with other gear and apps and a host of other features.

The top software-only title in digital DJing is Traktor DJ Studio from Native Instruments.  There are other dedicated DJ apps, but none has attracted that attention Traktor has, with it's four virtual decks, searchable library, Allen and Heath-esq interface, built in stretching and beat-batching abilities, quality effects and (non protected) AAC support.  The simple fact that it is a Native Instruments product doesn't hurt either.

Ableton Live also deserves a look here.  Before there was any pretense on Ableton's part that Live might be a DAW, it was allowing users to manipulate digital audio files in DJ-like ways.  As the name implies, it has been focused on performance from the beginning.  Its rendering engine is also an option for producing high fidelity recorded mixes entirely in the digital domain.

Serato Scratch Live and Stanton Final Scratch are integrated hardware and software solutions for computer DJing.  Both are clearly aimed at people who love their decks.  Scratch Live and Final Scratch come with a special audio interfaces and proprietary, coded vinyl records which are used with traditional turntables to manipulate digital sound files in real time.  The Final Scratch package includes a special version of Traktor. 

Scratch Live is a Rane product and Final Scratch is from Stanton.  This implies an honorable vinyl lineage for both of these very progressive solutions.  Keeping everybody's options open, both apps can also be controlled from CD decks when properly configured and used with the manufacturers' proprietary time coded CDs.

Remember that fun things can happen when you push a piece of software a little bit.  Just because a given app is not marketed as a DJ tool does not mean you can't DJ with it.  If it plays audio files it has possibilities.

Turntables

Despite repeated reports of its impending extinction the vinyl record species is alive and well.  The cover art is big enough to actually see.  You can manipulate them on the turntable.  A wide grooved 12-inch can sound better than a CD.  Some dance music is never released on any other format and they smell like a new car when you take the shrink-wrap off.  What's not to love?  They are expensive, delicate, heavy, prone to wear and the inside groove doesn't sound as good as the outside.  Whatever.  I still love vinyl.

If you want to play vinyl records you need a turntable.  If you want to DJ vinyl you probably need a matched pair.  If you were a master of the craft on the order of Carl Cox or Grandmaster Flash it wouldn't hurt to have three.

Like a guitar, when the turntable becomes a musical instrument the virtues of one over another become very personal.  There are a few guidelines most people probably agree on.  

1. Direct drive is better than belt drive.  
2. Technics, Vestax, Dennon, Stanton and Numark are trustworthy turntable brands.  
3. Technics, Stanton, Shure and Ortofon are trustworthy cartridge and stylus brands.

Beside the standard start and stop button, pitch control and speed strobes some models have removable target lights, selectable line or phono output level, quick-swap tone arms, reverse buttons and extended pitch control ranges.  All of these can be thought of as enhancements to basic turntable function.  They are neither critical nor fundamental changes to what a turntable does. 

Some models offer much more radical innovations to the turntable.  For example, the Stanton ST.150 and STR8.150 offer key correction.  Some Vestax models move mixer features like line inputs, monitoring and a cross facer into the turntable.  All of this pales in comparison to what can be done with a CD turntable.

CD Decks

Several established audio companies offer professional quality CD players with features aimed at DJs.  Dennon, Stanton, Pioneer, Tascam and others offer rack mountable dual CD players with features like master tempo/key lock/key correction (various names for deck-based time stretching), beat counters or detectors, sampling/looping, effects, automatic beat matching and MIDI control.  While the advantages of players of this type are obvious, nobody is going to mistake them for a turntable.

Pioneer's introduction of the CDJ-1000 in 2001 introduced the "CD Turntable" to the DJ world.  These devices are CD players that are oriented horizontally and have a flat, record-like surface on the top that can be manually rotated.  In some cases they look very much like a standard turntable. 

Functionally, Pioneer took familiar features from DJ CD players and added the ability to manipulate their audio output as if it were coming from vinyl.  The one turntablist claim that no proponent of DJing with CDs could contest, "you can't uzi-fade scratch a CD," had been answered. 

The CD turntable brings many valuable options to the DJ and producer.  Many will accept digital media other than CDs, such as SD cards.  They make the options of professional CD players accessible without a standard equipment rack.  They provide many of the functions of DJ software outside a computer and with an interface not unlike a hardware sampler or groove box.  Last but not least, if it's on a CD, now you can scratch it.

Some manufacturers are also combining CD turntables with DJ mixers, providing an all-in-one performance and remix device. 

Mixers and Audio Interfaces

Some mixers are very straight forward boxes that bring in sound here, put it out over there, and give you control of all the levels.  Others are heavily cross-pollinated with audio and MIDI interfaces.  This can be quite convenient in that it gives you a chance to handle analog source mixing along with getting audio in and out of your computer with a single device.  It also means that you need to consider sample rates and a broader range of compatibility issues when looking at such a device.

The hybridization of the mixer and the audio interface works from the other direction also.  An increasing number of audio interfaces now offer direct hardware monitoring and can act as stand alone mixers when not connected to a computer.  Portable audio interface such as those by Edirol, Mackie, Focusrite or M-Audio which have quality mic pres, can act as a mixer and route multiple audio channels of high resolution audio in and out of a computer may prove to the Swiss Army Knives of the project studio in coming years.

Speakers And Amplification

Speakers fall into three basic categories.  Stage monitors, studio monitors and PA speakers.  "Monitor" distinguishes any speaker that is intended to provide audio information rather than sound reinforcement or entertainment.

PA speakers and monitors of various sizes come powered or un-powered.  If you want specific amplifier options you will need to go with un-powered monitors.  Thanks to modern computer modeling techniques used to design speaker enclosures, there is no longer an automatic sound quality penalty for having an amplifier built into the cabinet.

Speaker efficiency or sensitivity describe how much volume you can expect to get out of the speaker for each watt of amplifier power fed to it.  Of course, all other things being equal, you pay more for an amplifier with a higher wattage rating.  By buying more efficient speakers you can, in a lot of cases, spend a lot less money on watts by spending a little more money on efficient speakers.

I went to college with a DJ who thought it would be a good idea to build his own speakers for his mobile system.  He bought reasonably good drivers and crossovers, but he did such a poor job on the cabinets that enormous amounts of power were lost to air leaking out the joints and to the wood, in essence, flopping around.  To get the system up to dance volumes in a medium sized church basement he spent tons of money on thousands of watts of amplifier power.  In the end, he didn't save a dime and the system didn't sound as good as if he had bought commercially available PA speakers.

Lots of things influence the way a speaker sounds that is not reflected in a cursory list of specifications.  Cone excursion, magnet size, voice coil details, directionality and crossover frequencies can be very important but may take a little digging to learn.  Still, numbers never tell the whole story.  Like microphones and lots of other things, it is wise to hear speakers before you buy them, preferably in actual use, not just in a show room.  Of course, this is not always practical or possible.  Any listen is better than none.

Amplifiers are pretty straightforward.  For the most part you can just read the specs and pick the best fit for your application from a reputable manufacturer.

Forums like Tasty Fresh are great places to hunt for other people’s first hand experience with various programs and hardware.  Ask around.  Ask yourself.  Do your homework.  Wear a helmet.