In this Buying Guide we unpick the jargon around Hard Drives, take you through the different options available and help you choose the best solution.
The Best Sample Libraries For Orchestral Scoring
Perhaps the most comprehensive list of the best sample libraries for orchestral composers on the web. Each library is covered in detail, plus there’s lots of additional tips and tricks.
Control Surfaces For Home Studios - Everything You Need To Know
With more and more of us working from home, a lot of us need a control surface, but we rarely have space or the budget to have a large format control surface or console. However, to get the work done efficiently, we do need access to a control surface. In this article, we look at the control surfaces suitable for your home studio.
5 Plugins Every Dialog Editor Should Have In 2021
Is dialog editing part or all of what you do? Either way, you need to have a suite of tools to help you manipulate the spoken word, whether it’s for Film, TV or Radio. In this article, Mike picks out 5 plugins that he feels every dialog editor should have. Some of these may surprise you…
Looking For New Hardware Or Software? Our Tips To Help You Make The Right Choice
Here at Production Expert, we often get questions like “What is the best interface?” Unfortunately, the answer to this question can only be “it depends”. In this article, we look at ways to help users research your first or next acquisition and get the answers you need to make an informed decision.
3 Types Of Audio Plugin I'm Glad I Bought - What Are Yours?
In this article I’m going to talk about 3 types of audio plugin I'm glad I bought. At least one of them may surprise some of you.
Want To Save Thousands On Studio Gear? Here's How
In this article we are going to show you how you can save thousands of dollars every year on studio gear.
5 Music Production Things We Loved In June 2021
Sun, football and tasty new music technology releases – that’s the story of June 2021. Here are the five of the latter that topped our list…
5 Music Production Things We Loved In April 2021
The start of Spring brought us a fresh new Mac, a shower of stellar stompboxes, a radical new multi-effects plugin and an update to one of our favourite software compressors.
Filter Plugins For Creative Sound Design - 6 Of The Best
We offer 6 of the best filter plugins for creative sound design. These offer modulation features to take filtering to the next level.
Audient EVO Start Recording Bundle - Tested
In this article and video test, Luke Goddard looks at the Audient EVO Start Recording Bundle, and all-in-one recording solution for music and post-audio professionals, content creators and gamers.
Classic Analogue Synth Emulation Plugins - 6 Of The Best
With so many great classic analogue synth emulations available to the computer-based musician at all price points, how do you choose the best plugin for your particular needs? Allow us to narrow the field down…
Want More Confidence When Mixing? Here Are 3 Ideas
In this article we give 3 ways to help you feel more confident about your mixes even when your room is less than ideal, or in some cases you don’t have a room at all and need to mix on headphones.
Cyber Monday Deals For Music And Post Production Gear
Check out these amazing Black Friday Deals for music and post production gear from top brands offering software and hardware at incredible prices. We’ll be updating this regularly so make sure you bookmark the page.
Apple Mac Pro 7,1 - Everything An Audio Professional Needs To Know
In this article, we are going to take an in-depth look at Apple’s 2019 Mac Pro 7,1 new style cheese-grater and establish whether it is the right machine for every audio professional or whether other Apple computers might be more suited to some and the Mac Pro suited to others.
How To Choose Orchestral Sample Libraries - Orchestral Percussion
Next up in my series on go-to Orchestral Samples is the Percussion family. If you’ve followed the series this far you’ll know that I choose libraries based on a trade off between how great they sound, how easy they are to use and how much i enjoy using the interface. Here are the top picks for tuned and untuned percussion.
How To Choose Orchestral Sample Libraries - Orchestral Strings
Continuing my series on Orchestral Sample Libraries, let’s move onto the family that is most likely to divide opinion – The strings. This selection will doubtless be controversial, and 10 composers will give you 10 different lists. But this is mine! As each library has its own sound and its own strengths and weaknesses, I tend to blend libraries to create a unique sound, rather than relying on one. I will, however, reveal my desert island choice at the end.
How To Choose Orchestral Sample Libraries - Orchestral Brass
Continuing my series on Orchestral Sample Libraries, it’s time for the Brass. In this article, I’ll look at a few of the libraries that I rely on when I need brass in my orchestral tracks. As I’ll mention for each family, as each library has its own sound and its own strengths and weaknesses, I tend to blend libraries to create a unique sound, rather than relying on one. I will, however, reveal my desert island choice at the end.
How To Choose Orchestral Sample Libraries - Orchestral Woodwind
In the first of my series of articles looking at my personal favourite orchestral sample libraries, their pros and cons and how and why I use them, we start with orchestral woodwind. I have tried a number of libraries and just to reiterate the following is NOT an exhaustive list of available options - it’s just what I choose to use, and an explanation of why.
How To Choose Orchestral Sample Libraries - An Introduction
So, you want to buy some orchestral samples - but where do you start? This is a huge topic and not one we can cover in one article. In this series of articles, composer David Tobin is going to split the orchestra up into families and look at his personal favourites. He will examine the pros and cons and what he uses those sounds for, as well as notable alternatives. He will also be looking at his favourite associated software that helps him to add realism to the sounds. Before we start, in this article we are going to look at a little bit of history, how orchestral sample libraries are made, how you choose which library to use, what to look for, ending with a list of the upcoming articles in this extended series.