How to Download Software for Making Music
Software for making music on your computer can be very expensive, but there are alternatives that are either open source and free or very inexpensive that you can download and use to make music right on your home PC or Mac. The recommended software here appears in order based on cost.
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Instructions
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Write down your needs for music recording software for your PC or Mac. Are you simply looking for a program that will allow quality transfer of sound to your PC from microphones, or are you looking for a more full-featured PC music-making software suite? What instruments will you be recording? Do you need to run more than one audio input simultaneously, and if so do you have a mixer?
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Start with Audacity, a free open-source audio editing and recording software suite for PC, Mac and Linux. Audacity is a great place to start when developing a system for recording music on your home computer, because it is not only free but has built-in support for hundreds of plug-ins and many auxiliary audio cards and devices. If you'd like to turn your computer into a professional home music recording studio, though, you may need software with a few more tools than Audacity has to offer.
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Try REAPER if you are a PC user. REAPER is unique in the computer music-making software world in that it is developed by a single individual, rather than by a team of coders or a dedicated company. REAPER shines in its low-cost and full support for VST (virtual studio technology) and VSTi (virtual studio technology instrument) plug-ins. Since REAPER eats a relatively low amount of PC resources, it is possible to have several plug-ins running simultaneously, even on low-end machines. REAPER software is limits-free shareware and retails for $50 for the basic license.
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Give Garage Band a try if you are on the Macintosh platform. Apple has taken a lot of the guesswork out of simple home recording. What the Garage Band interface lacks in power, it makes up for in ease of use.
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Try FL Studio if you are more interested in software for producing electronic music on your PC or Mac. There are better options on the market, but they cost hundreds of dollars. FL Studio, formerly known as the Fruity Loops project, offers full-featured recording, mixing and MIDI software suites, all for around $100. The value can't be beat in the music production PC software market.
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Tips & Warnings
An inexpensive USB audio card will allow your computer to record music and play back in real time with near-zero latency. It is well worth the investment if you are serious about using your PC or Mac as a home music studio.
Resist the temptation to buy software you don't need. Music-making PC software can quickly run up a tab of hundreds or thousands of dollars.
Resources
- Photo Credit Courtesy of Audacity development team under Creative Commons License 2.0
