This is such an important topic and I couldn't agree more about learning the gear you own and making music instead of GASing. I personally find that I GAS (verb) the most when I'm exhausted from things like too much work. It's a kind of escape, with a hunt for a quick reward. And it very rarely works. 😂
Right? I realized I was just addicted to seeing that little brown box on my porch when I got home from work. The amount of time wasted watching the shipping/delivery tracker... I don't even want to know... If I had spent that time finishing tracks I could have a couple of EPs done
Cheers Sineway and Tedd! Yeah that's exactly the point and it is very hard to make yourself completely free from that. I still struggle a lot with that getting lost in mostly social media and wasting a lot of time this way not even feeling good afterwards. And I feel the point with work 100% - this is why during the week I get up earlier and spend 30-60 minutes on music. Great way to start the day and get ready for my day job. :)
@@MilesKvndra Right, social media loops rarely feel good. And your other advice about 30-60 time per day is a great habit. Related to this topic, I sold my Hydrasynth Explorer today and I'm slimming down my setup rather than expanding it. It honestly feels great. The Syntakt is becoming my main non-DAW workhorse. 😊 Btw, I'm David Tenser. Not sure if the name is familiar but I figured I'd connect the dots just in case since we've been interacting more than a few times before I changed to the "artist name" of the duo my buddy and I conceived. You're one of the key sources of inspiration that made me I finally decide to upload some of my jams on RU-vid. Cheers!
@@sinewaymusic ah David good to have the link! And I can feel that with slimming down the setup, it can be very relieving (did the same when I went Digitone standalone for some time). And wow, thanks so much for the warm words - I know I've said it before but honestly for me it is the best motivation to hear when people can get inspiration from what I do. Keep uploading your art and share it with the world - speak soon! :)
I’ve never believed a certain piece of gear will make me or my music better. I see every synth as a self contained world or sonic landscapes that I can discover and have adventures within. It’s a sonic space that I want to occupy. What music arises from those adventures is a bonus. Having said that, I view my synth/gear addiction as being very self indulgent.
Hey guys, thanks for sharing! Like I said in the intro disclaimer there is absolutely nothing wrong about this and I truly appreciate people using their gear in an explorative way! I just realized for me that I look at gear differently and for my purpose (making music and releasing it/playing it live) it doesn't always work. Keep on exploring! 💚
One of my favorite ways to diffuse GAS - get a sampler as one of your basic bits of gear (and the $5 Koala Sampler app or PO-33 are great choices, it doesn't have to be expensive). From that point on any bit of audio can become your new instrument. If you really want to buy something new just to scratch that itch, head down to the thrift store and buy an old kid's toy that makes sounds. Sample it as-is, then open it up, circuit bend it, run it through different effects, mic it poorly, etc.. just experiment with getting a range of unusual sounds out of this thing, then make music with those sounds. If your sampler can loop the playback, you can also build your own oscillators with wavecycle synthesis. None of this requires a computer, DAW, or expensive hardware, it only requires time and effort. I can't promise you'll make great music, but I can promise you'll have a lot of fun.
Hey that’s an awesome tip, thanks for sharing! I just got the Ableton Note app and getting back to field recordings through this way more. Such a great way to get new inspiration. Cheers!
Thankfully, I can’t afford new gear, so I’m forced to be a minimalist, and I think it has made me maximize the minimal tools I have, rather than seeking to address my weaknesses as a musician/composer through new gear acquisition. Enjoyed your discussion.
Thank you! I think maximizing the tools that you have is the best thing you can do for improving your music. You will learn the gear in depth and also find new workflows for creating music. I actually do this a lot!
Rollo! That dude cuts through all the bullshit and gets me fired up to get to work. Miles, your setup has changed the least out of almost anyone I know of and you easily make my favorite Digitone music. Listening to you two, knowing you walk the walk, is inspiring. Appreciate this video and both of you dudes
Hey Tedd, thanks a bunch! Fully agreed that Ed is absolutely king at nailing it and getting us back to making music. Just love his art and creative output! And appreciate the great feedback on the Digitone videos. My setup is changing now quite a bit going to a hybrid setup with Ableton but Digitone and Digitakt still take Center Stage in this setup. :)
I think it's fine to get new gear for new inspiration. For me it would just be important that the piece of gear fulfills a longterm purpose in my setup.
Hey Matt, just when i rewatched it yesterday I realized it was actually two books: "The secrets of dance music production" from Attack Magazine (more on the actual music production side) and "The Music Lesson" by Victor Wooten (more on the spiritual/general approach of making music and growing as a creative). Can recommend both!
It's a no-brainer that hardware isn't the be-all and end-all in music production. Having top-notch gear can definitely make the creative process smoother, but remember, it's all about the skills and vision you bring to the table. You can make magic happen with basic equipment as long as you got the know-how and the drive. At the end of the day, it's the artist and their unique perspective that really makes the difference, not the gear they're using.
Agree 100% SX. Skills and vision is so important and also to not loose focus. If you get a piece of gear to fulfill a purpose within your setup there is nothing wrong about it. But agree that if you are skilled with something the artist makes the difference - pretty sure that a great guitarist can also make a 100€ guitar sing :)
I really enjoyed this. I was using the buying of gear to not address the underlying problem that I didn't believe in myself and my creations. I was trying to externalize my solution and got addicted to it. I'm glad to say I've fallen back in love with my one 88 key weighted keyboard, one analog synth, my SP404s, and Push 2 as my tools. Knowing what you actually need and sticking just to that is a hard balance to strike, but it's important for creativity. And learning to become comfortable and efficient using it is super important. Thanks again, Miles! Loving your videos.
Awesome to hear Remy! And yeah totally agree with you about the knowing what you need, which is exactly what I’m after. There is so much cool and fun gear out there but if you just follow that it’s hard to really get into it and establish your own creative vision as a bigger picture. For me the bigger picture should come first and then you should ask yourself the question: what do I need to get there? Which pieces of gear can really help me to achieve that vision? The result is that you become way more selective in which gear to consider and which not
Hey Amalie, I’m feeling that and I really struggle with it too. But as I keep focusing more on my workflow with the gear that I have it actually keeps me away from buying new stuff.
Thank you! Yeah I know that but I think in the end it’s just about what makes you happy. If you’re fine and can vibe with all the gear that’s cool and if you need to let some pieces go that’s cool too. The last can have a positive impact too
There’s another variant : GIIS - Gear Improvement Idea Syndrome. Sometimes kills creativity too, if you endlessly wait for an unannounced feature and forget to make music in the meantime !
Hey Alexandros, good point! I think it is hard to wait for a feature to be announced because you will never know if manufacturers will actually bring it to the machines or not. I take the machines as they are and firmware updates are just an appreciated addition :)
Right? It can be so inspiring to really reduce the tools around you and just focus on a few. Big creativity booster - and it helps you with getting things done (sorry, couldn’t resist). 🫠
That was really on point mate 🙏 I can absolutely agree and relate to what you guys are talking about. I’m hopefully good at controlling my GAS. I think watching people trying gears and reselling them definitely cured my need to buy more when I started. Sticking to “less is more” in my creative process has been very efficient 🖤. Thanks for always bringing great contents over here! Keep them coming my dude 🙏
Cheers Guillaume, thanks for stepping by buddy. Always happy to see you here! 💚 And yes, looking at your setup I would say you definitely build it very carefully with every piece of gear having a purpose. Really appreciate your jams and your outcome with 100 jams in 100 weeks in a row is absolutely impressive. Big inspiration my friend, keep it up! 🙌🏻
Good stuff, thanks for the video! I recently put a hold on buying any new gear for a while and have been trying to learn more about the gear I have. I've been using Jamuary as an excuse to dive deeper into a few of my synths and it's been a great experience.
Cheers Marcus! Yeah I think this is a good move to get engaged with the things you already have and do a deep dive. I was surprised how deep a machine can be and what I can squeeze out of it, Jamuary is the perfect opportunity. Have fun exploring and happy jamming! 🙌🏻
If you buy a digitone you need a digitakt for drums, then you need an octatrack for transitioning, then you need an analog heat to beef up the sound. Beware of going down the elektron rabbit hole.
Hey there, not necessarily in my eyes. I made Digitone standalone music with drums and synths for about a year and released a full EP. So it’s definitely doable. But agree that the rabbit hole of Elektron is deeep! 😁
Hey aekorps, I’m in regular exchange with Ed and can tell you he is not like that. He is all about exchange, learning from others and sharing great thoughts but also discussing struggles we’re all dealing with. He’s a really fun guy and I actually learned a lot from him
If you are always buying gear it kind of is. But my point is more that you should focus on the tools that you already have rather than thinking about which piece of gear to buy next. And thinking/dreaming/reading about future gear comes at no costs.
Oh yeah. Same with tons of free sample packs: it can really drain you with stuff and your creativity will suffer. I have to say I really appreciate getting inspiration from a good sample pack but will then use only ONE pack for a specific use case (eg a specific track).
Good stuff! Get deeper with the gear that you have until you have a very well formed idea on what the next piece of gear will actually fulfill with your sound and workflow. 🎉
Exactly that Todd! Also leads to less bad buying decisions because you can really iron out which piece of gear is missing in your setup and then go for that. 🙌🏻
Hey dude, it was actually two books: "The secrets of dance music production" from Attack Magazine (more on the actual music production side) and "The Music Lesson" by Victor Wooten (more on the spiritual/general approach of making music and growing as a creative). Can recommend both!
Great video! 100% agree! We're more creative when we have 1 crayon, rather than an entire box of colors. In other words, less is more. There's a sociological concept known as "The Paradox of Choice" that suggests fewer consumer options is better for the consumer than too many. For hardware synths, I have a single table. My rule is I won't own my synths that won't fit on that table. If I want something new, I have to sell something first.
Hey Luke, thanks for sharing the great insights! Much appreciated and I really like the take with the table. I actually do it the same way that I try to keep everything on that table also to keep the studio clean and not overloaded. The only exception from that is the OP-1 which is my travel synth and I rarely use it in the studio.
@@MilesKvndra Definitely check out The Paradox of Choice. In a 2004 book of that name, the author estimates the ideal number of options for consumers is between 8 to 15...not too few, but not too many. Maybe it's the same with synths? I have 10 desktop synths on the table now.
@@baltimoreluke interesting! Haven’t heard of that. I have 4 synths/FX and a laptop so I’m below that. But I feel that right now it’s absolutely enough
Thanks Miles, Its a constant fight with myself, usually due to a lack of self-confidence and avoiding getting to know my own gear in more detail and depth. Great topic, greetings from Peru.
Noooooo!!!!!! Actually you don’t - necessarily - need to learn a synth. Presets can be a great inspiration and the more presets from different types of synths you have the more possibilities one has for a serendipitous moment. Horses for courses.
Yes they can but I still think it is important to learn a synth so that you can tweak the presets to best fit the purpose you need them for. Or even better that you can start to create your own presets. For me it’s the best way to find your own sound. Just my thoughts
@@MilesKvndra I was referring to the theme of the topic with regards to minimizing one’s setup and concentrating on learning one synth. It doesn’t matter if a person tweaks or simply uses presets as long as the journey is fun, hopefully creative and satisfying. There are soooo many synths and sooooooo many presets that the idea that you can’t be individual or original using them is kind of moot. I just think that absolutist thinking or being dogmatic on a subject is counter productive. It’s like the less is more debate… If everyone followed that philosophy then we would only have sparse productions, let’s mix it up with ‘Less music is more’ and ‘More is more’. Debussy AND Holst:) Whatever floats your boat is fine by me…
@@kelvynification ahh then I got you wrong. 100% agree with you on this. I’m order to move quick I’m also using presets of course to set the direction for a production. However, I realised that a basic understanding of a synth/tool will help to tweak those presets to work well in a song. But totally agree that everyone should find their own workflow with that and vibe with it.
Hey dude, thanks for the feedback! Yeah it was hard for me at first but then it clicked at some point and I learned a ton about the synth by exploring it's limitations. Keep on rocking with it! :)
Yeah, wow, I find the 4 tracks to be a pretty tough limitation - even with p locks. (Although I can make certain ambient things that work well with just 4 tracks) I find adding my Digitakt into the mix provided *just* enough more tracks to help. (Also, I just don’t really like the sound of FM drums)
@@johncitizen8828 hey John, yeah that was exactly why I got the Digitakt as well. It just helps a lot to have more Tracks available to make the productions sound more full
Hey Troy, it was actually two books I recently read: The secrets of dance music production" from Attack Magazine (more on the actual music production side) and "The Music Lesson" by Victor Wooten (more on the spiritual/general approach of making music and growing as a creative). Both are a good read!
The simpler musical instrument is - the more creative & cool stuff you can do. And the most simple thing people don’t understand that everything around you can make a sound! Your hands are your snare, your legs are your kick, your voice is your synth… your dog, your doors, your cat, world around you making ton of sounds every second - you just only need to catch them 🤷♂️
True! Such recordings always add a great personal touch to whatever you are working on. I rarely use it myself but always like good field recordings in other people's music.
Happy to hear that it is appreciated! I wasn't sure how this video would be accepted being fully aware that I'm also making reviews which might lead people to GAS. But I think it is super important to talk about it!
GAS joy is a process of finding the key. One peace of Gear is a one key to the door. Once one have the key one can open the door of joy any time. Another keys will open the same door of joy. Joy of the existential creativity, the Gods mission to manifest the world from the unmanifested state. Why one need to waste time on the keys if one is the always open door 😊
Great and important advice! I spent so much time downloading stuff when I first started. I had Al the tools and no music. I was pretty good at finding software cracks though. Best thing I did was delete it all and learn what was in my DAW. I discovered that I didn’t need most of it, and also now live a more ethical life! Awesome chat. Thanks for the great Ed Rollo for sending me here. I look forward to your collaborations!
Cheers Brian! Happy to hear that and that’s exactly what I did too. Now I’m relying a lot on the Ableton stock plugins which are great and get improved with every update.
Thank you for the excellent video. It is exactly what I need at the moment. I produce music with Ableton for more than 10 years and had a real GAS-Pobleme with VSTs.😅 Two years a go, I sold and uninstalled a tone of them and went back to the stock plugins of Ableton. Best creative decision ever. 🤯 Since a couple of months, I use a Push 2 with the goal to reduce my screen time. 🙈 (At work I am working primarily on the computer) And now I planned, inspired by your videos, to switch to an DAWless Elektron Setup. But now I decided to stick with just Push and learn every bells and whistles before I switch to a different setup. In diesem Sinne danke für die ganze Inspiration und mach unbedingt weiter mit deiner fantastischen Musik und deinen tollen Videos. 👍
Hey Morel, Thanks so much for the great feedback and sharing your story. Much appreciated! I know that to well and had kind of a similar path switching from full DAW to DAWless and now going to a compact hybrid setup with Ableton in the center. So far the experience is great as I get the best from both worlds (fun of outboard gear and recording and processing power of Ableton). I also got rid of all plugins and do most things with Ableton stock plugins. They are great and are also easier on the CPU. Push is a great instrument and I'm glad I also returned to it now. All the best for learning it and keep it up - ich mache auf jeden Fall weiter, du auch! 🙌🏻💚
When I am interested in synths, I watch videos about them. Instead of ficus in the features, I focus on the sounds and ask myself how I would recreate them. If I can do it with my setup, I don't worry about it. If I can't, I think about whether I want to.a new synth in my studio is for the sole purpose of expanding my sonic palette in the way I want it to go.
Hey David, That's exactly how I do it and I think a good way of avoiding GAS. Makes me more conscious of my purchases and also gets me more engaged with what I have to really get the most out of it. Very important point.
3:17 absolut: auf ein Teil konzentrieren…, hach, hätte ich doch direkt die Geräte von Elektron kennengelernt. 😢😂 Nun gut, der Lyra 8 hätte nicht noch auch sein müssen…, Grüße aus Köln-Roggendorf!
Ich muss auch noch mal ein riesengroßes Danke an Dich richten, ohne Deine Videos würde ich die Motivation nicht aufrecht halten können. Der Dank geht im Endeeffekt an die gesamte Community, die hier unglaublich viel leistet. Da werde ich auf ewig nicht mithalten können mit den vielen tollen Videos die eingestellt werden. Wenn ich z.B an den Kollegen Substan denke…, großen Dank an Euch alle!
Needed this message. Great delivery and different way to think about GAS....the easy way out. Do the hard thing and work with what you have until you CAN'T anymore....then carefully and thoughtfully fill the need.
Cheers Jason - that's exactly my approach. Makes it way easier to identify what is missing in your setup and what you actually really need to bridge that gap. Thanks for watching!
The unexpected crossover we needed. Amazing topic.. I find myself going back to Logic stock EQ/compressors more and more. It's immediate, resource-saving. I've overhauled my future hardware setup over and over again in my head, and imagined workflows and usage types instead of being affected by the hype. It's so difficult but so important! Thanks for doing this.
Cheers Sebastian! I'm glad to hear that the topic resonated with you. It's always great to hear from someone who has taken a step back and thought critically about their gear and workflow. It can be difficult to resist the hype surrounding new gear and software, but taking a step back and thinking about what you actually need and how it will fit into your workflow can save a lot of time and money in the long run. And to be honest: In my new hybrid workflow I'm also using mostly Ableton stock plugins and they do a great job!
This is the best advice, Miles! Thank you for making this video. I was battling GAS myself and now instead of trading my existing gear for new stuff, I am just getting rid of the things that are stopping me from being productive.
I'm glad to hear that the advice in the video was helpful Azim! Reducing clutter and focusing on the tools that truly serve your needs can be very liberating. Keep that up!
Yeah... A bad case of GAS can get pretty costly; especially if you put your gear away when not in use. That whole "Out of sight, out of mind" comes into play as you may be browsing a website or in a store and you see what you think is a grail synth, completely forgetting that you already have a synth that will do what you want in a case in your closet.
Hey Joshua, very good and important thought. That’s why all my music boxes are always on my table except from the OP-1 (which I nearly exclusively use for travels).
You should get in touch with the person who wrote the book and advertise it on this channel maybe. I would enjoy watching more videos like this where you not only make music, but also talk about synthesizers and making electronic music in general. Especially with topics like this i think everybody watching can relate easily haha There is just too much cool stuff out there :D
Hey, thanks for the great feedback! I definitely will do these videos from time to time when I find topics that resonate with me. So cool to hear that this is appreciated and resonates with you! 🙌🏻
Hey Siskin, I like Ableton a lot. For me it's a very streamlined DAW that makes it easy to follow along and I really like the clip mode. You just need to stay away from all the plugins on sale or ste stuff you "need to level up your music" bulls**t in my eyes because this is where GAS can really hit.
