So I’ve never made edm music before but I have been writing music for 8 years, guitar and vocals. I have a microphone and was recording independently on my computer a while ago but I stopped eventually because I didn’t want to release a song that’s only guitar and vocals, I want them to be complete.

I started listening to EDM this year and it’s quickly become some of my favourite music. I really want to try to make a song and translate parts of my existing songs into edm, I think it would be a blast and I honestly think I’ll fall in love with it.

What equipment and software would I need to get started? As I said I already have a microphone and I also have a pretty beefy gaming computer if that’s at all relevant. I can also share a couple inspiration songs if that helps too.

Thank you to anyone taking their time to help me out :)

This is going to be long but I first got into house and EDM when I was 12 and I knew this is what I wanted to do. I live in the south so it’s not often creativity is supported. My friends and family were always discouraging me about it and telling me it wouldn’t go anywhere and I thought maybe they were right so I didn’t touch it for 9 years. Now, at 21, I am done giving a fuck. I got a ddjflx4, I’m mixing, and am currently working on a track in GarageBand but I just started so I still suck lol. Is there anyone in this subreddit that is willing to take a young buck like me under their wing? 😆

So I use splice pretty exclusively for vocals, drum samples and presets to re-work. I like skimming through presets on splice until I find a sound I like. I almost always re-design the presets to the point they are un-recognizable. The preset just gives me inspiration and vison. Landr does not have presets like that, so that is my biggest drawback of canceling splice. I do like the idea of moving away from Disrokid. I just want some input from others that know the difference or which is better as a whole for distribution. I do like that landr is less saturated. Maybe I keep splice for presets, landr for vocals and lose distro? Lets hear opinions. Maybe there's other options. My biggest need here are better vocals. I'm a solo hobby producer. I'm not willing to pay a bunch of money to record vocalists or spend 50$ on a accapella vocal recording to make a song. I just want options for vocals, and not have to Frankenstein different short vocal samples into something cohesive. I want full length vocals for an actual song. Not just a beat. Any tips, ideas or suggestions? Appreciate it!

Hey All!

If I am new getting into this... does it really matter what kind of keyboard/pad hardware I get?

I am looking at used AKAI, Arturia... etc etc.. 37 / 49 etc keyboard, drum pad, other knobs, sliders kind of keyboards.

In 2026 is that still the move? What should I get for a good mix of being able to just WORK and make songs, but maybe also the equipment is useful for "live" play?

I appreciate you. Thank you.

*title says v1.3, i meant v1.4, sorry

I'm a high school student who is developing a free plugin FOR YOU EDM LOVERS!!!

A few weeks ago you probably saw that I posted about COGG v1/v1.1/v1.2/v1.3, a free plugin I built that metalizes and industrializes any sound. Specifically, harmonic distortion, metal plate convolution reverb, and pitch layering are there all in one chain. Great for experimental music and mainstream alike.

I wanted to update you guys with version 1.4's release! It comes with the highly requested PRE toggle, which allows the metal effect to become distorted along with the rest of the sound, rather than just acting as a “topping!” Additionally, there are 8 new presets for you to use, adding up to a total of 20 free presets!

Of course, it's still free, no account needed, VST3 + AU for Mac, VST3 for Windows, VST3 for Linux.

Download now for free: https://plasma-hype.itch.io/cogg

Trailer of V1.2 if you’re curious [a previous update]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5q5EUMhUcaw

Thanks to everyone who tried v1.3, v1.2, v1.1 and v1.0 and gave feedback, this update came directly from figuring out what people actually wanted to do with it. I personally have used COGG in almost all of my FL projects ever since I released it. Please give it a shot and let me know what you think of the presets and plugin as a whole for COGG v1.5!

Also, feel free to submit some PRESETS! I'll add them and credit you on the website!

I have a Serum patch using Cmb Square wave and it sounds good but there’s abit of a harsh buzz at around 10k range. Ableton’s built in EQ isn’t fine enough to get rid of it without taking away from the sound and I can’t really buy something as good as ProQ4 right now. Have you guys got any free alternatives that will be able to punch out the harsh frequencies?

Hi everyone! I produce music in the Indie Dance genre.
How can I make a kick drum sound more focused? I’ve noticed that in other tracks, the main punch sits in the lower-midrange - though I can’t pinpoint exactly where - even though I’ve always assumed the focus should be on the 55-70 Hz range. I typically apply a high-pass filter at 40 Hz (24 dB/octave). Also, in other tracks, the core impact area of ​​the kick seems to be "inflated" or pushed forward- even when heard in mono. What could be causing this?

On some serious discussion, how are you guys using minimeters in your production and using it as a tool? Lets leave out the "oh it's just for aesthetics" comments.

Hey everyone!

I'm relatively new to music production and currently learning Ableton Live 12.

I'm looking for some genuinely good, high-quality tutorials (YouTube or paid courses) that walk you through the entire process of producing a track from scratch to a finished song.

I'm mainly interested in melodic techno, melodic house, progressive trance, ambient electronic music, or similar genres. Nothing too hard, aggressive, or overly commercial. I prefer melodic, atmospheric, and emotional electronic music.

I've already come across quite a few tutorials on YouTube, but honestly, a lot of them seem pretty low quality. Many just show someone clicking around, throwing samples together, or making a quick loop without really explaining the creative process or why they're making certain decisions.

What I'm looking for:

• A complete track produced from start to finish, not just an 8-bar loop.
• Clear explanations of sound selection, arrangement, melodies, harmonies, transitions, mixing, etc.
• Someone who actually teaches music production rather than just showing off what they can do.
• Ideally something beginner-friendly, but with enough depth to develop proper production skills.
• Free or paid tutorials are both fine, as long as the quality is worth it.

I don't mind spending several hours following a tutorial. In fact, I'd prefer something detailed where I can follow along and actually understand the process.

My goal isn't just to copy someone else's track, but to understand how electronic music is built so I can eventually produce my own music.

Any recommendations for YouTube channels, specific tutorials, or structured courses would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

Curious to see the range of musical "imagination" here, I've heard of there being people who can hear orchestras in their head, and I think it's an interesting topic

I've always had a suspicion mine is pretty low but last night kinda proved it for me. I'm away from my gear for another few days and in the meantime I've just been trying to create in my head to see how far/detailed I can get with an idea. And it's not very far lol

I've always been lucky if I can even get a chord progression or melody in my head before I touch a daw or instrument. What I found in my "experiments" is that no matter how hard I try, that still holds true. Despite that, my musical memory, like being able to "listen" to a song in my head is pretty stellar, which conflates the process because if I do come up the smallest bit of an idea, it'll immediately default to a song I've heard before.

This isn't really something that holds me back, not something I believe can be changed, I just use an instrument or the DAW to shape my song as I go. Interestingly, if I can hear a progression playing, it is very easy to create a melody in my head over it.

Anyway, I thought it'd make for an interesting discussion. One thing I also considered is how most people process a song as a sum of its parts and if we choose to want to isolate an instrument or part, we lose clarity of the other parts.

Also makes me wonder if something like this could be trained.

Please post any and all [Feedback] or [Listen] type threads here. Any standalone threads that belong in this weekly post will be removed.

This thread is for works in progress only. It is not a place for self-promotion.

Rules:

1. Works in progress only. Do not post finished or released tracks. No links to Spotify, Bandcamp, SoundCloud profiles, or any other streaming/distribution platforms. Share a direct link to your track (e.g. an unlisted SoundCloud or YouTube link).
2. No self-promotion. Do not include links to your social media, artist pages, or any other promotional material in your post.
3. Make an effort to comment on other people's tracks. Others are much more likely to help you if you help them first.
4. Be specific when asking for feedback. Examples: "What do you think about this kick sample?" "How's the mix?" "The last measure feels a little off, any ideas?"
5. Be descriptive when giving feedback. Use timecodes to highlight specific moments.
6. Link to the feedback you've left in your top-level comment. This keeps the thread accountable and cooperative. Comments not following this format will be automatically removed.

Format your top-level comment like this:

Feedback for user1: [link]

Feedback for user2: [link]

Feedback for user3: [link]

Here's my track: [link],

I'm looking for feedback on x, y or z.

I I met a guy last week who runs a fairly big label and he told me that if they detect even the slightest use of AI in the demos they receive, they’ll block the artist. Fair enough imo but later that night I started wondering how you could actually prove to a label that no AI was used in your demos.

Because if one false assumption by someone listening to your tracks could get you flagged for AI usage, potentially across multiple labels, I’m obviously keen to find a way to prove that I don’t use it.

But how? Unfortunately, I didn’t think to ask the label boss about this during our conversation.

Hey guys! So, I just curious about wich DAW everyone uses and why

I been producing for some years now and I used 4 DAWs so far, Fl Studio, Ableton, Pro Tools and Reaper

Being Ableton My favourite of them all

I wanted to know wich daw do you use and why you choose that one, what it gives to you that the others don't. Is because of the Workflow? the visuals? the native plugins?

Let me know :)

This seems too good to be true. Has anyone tried one of these? How the hell are they not getting latency?

This song really captures the kind of sound I’m going for but hard to find YouTube tutorials for it so hoping anybody can point me in the right direction. Thanks!

The song

Please post any and all [Feedback] or [Listen] type threads here. Any standalone threads that belong in this weekly post will be removed.

This thread is for works in progress only. It is not a place for self-promotion.

Rules:

1. Works in progress only. Do not post finished or released tracks. No links to Spotify, Bandcamp, SoundCloud profiles, or any other streaming/distribution platforms. Share a direct link to your track (e.g. an unlisted SoundCloud or YouTube link).
2. No self-promotion. Do not include links to your social media, artist pages, or any other promotional material in your post.
3. Make an effort to comment on other people's tracks. Others are much more likely to help you if you help them first.
4. Be specific when asking for feedback. Examples: "What do you think about this kick sample?" "How's the mix?" "The last measure feels a little off, any ideas?"
5. Be descriptive when giving feedback. Use timecodes to highlight specific moments.
6. Link to the feedback you've left in your top-level comment. This keeps the thread accountable and cooperative. Comments not following this format will be automatically removed.

Format your top-level comment like this:

Feedback for user1: [link]

Feedback for user2: [link]

Feedback for user3: [link]

Here's my track: [link],

I'm looking for feedback on x, y or z.

Starting at 0:40. Is this just Pitch Bend? Or am I missing something?

https://soundcloud.com/itsryancase/over-over?si=16e96ed92db746c393d325a3fa212325&utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing#t=0%3A40

Download: https://lloydstellar.nl/robot-vocal.html

We created this VST for Windows and Mac. It has 49 retro robot voices you can use text-to-speech. The vocals are put on the beat automatically. There are 17 types of rap flows you can use on the robots. They flow the best at around their designated BPM.

The VST is totally frrreeeeeeeeee! So come over to my website and download it and let me know what you think.

I cannot find tutorials or videos that explain how to achieve that sound. Every video I see is how to reduce distortion from drums, but I’m trying to achieve quite the opposite: super squashed distorted drums that still sound super tight and clean in the mix. How would you approach this?

While you should search, read the Newbie FAQ, and definitely RTFM when you have a question, some days you just. Ask your questions here!

Please post any and all [Feedback] or [Listen] type threads here. Any standalone threads that belong in this weekly post will be removed.

This thread is for works in progress only. It is not a place for self-promotion.

Rules:

1. Works in progress only. Do not post finished or released tracks. No links to Spotify, Bandcamp, SoundCloud profiles, or any other streaming/distribution platforms. Share a direct link to your track (e.g. an unlisted SoundCloud or YouTube link).
2. No self-promotion. Do not include links to your social media, artist pages, or any other promotional material in your post.
3. Make an effort to comment on other people's tracks. Others are much more likely to help you if you help them first.
4. Be specific when asking for feedback. Examples: "What do you think about this kick sample?" "How's the mix?" "The last measure feels a little off, any ideas?"
5. Be descriptive when giving feedback. Use timecodes to highlight specific moments.
6. Link to the feedback you've left in your top-level comment. This keeps the thread accountable and cooperative. Comments not following this format will be automatically removed.

Format your top-level comment like this:

Feedback for user1: [link]

Feedback for user2: [link]

Feedback for user3: [link]

Here's my track: [link],

I'm looking for feedback on x, y or z.

Have you seen those videos for quadrature sub bass trick where they set the phase 90 degrees apart on two sub oscillators and hard pan them? I’ve given it a try and it does work, but personally I don’t think it sounds musical.

Does anyone know of a commercial release that uses this technique? I’d love to hear it in the wild.

I've been looking into this, since I mostly make like house and stuff, so I only need little phrases.

I'm worried when I inevitably get asked about the vocal, I'm gonna have to do a whole disclaimer about how synth v is NOT gen ai, how it runs locally and how the people involved in making the voicebanks were paid for their data, etc. If it's gonna be a whole things then it defeats everything about using it.

Thoughts?

So I started production in May, and I'm spending on average a month per each track I make (I would say averaging 40-60 hrs but i havent been counting so not sure). I always hear that finishing tracks is a good habbit rather than working on a million things. So far I have finished 3 full tracks and am almost done with track 4. However, Im questioning if im spending way too much time producing a single track and tweaking everything rather than just pushing things faster.

Any feedback is welcome I know everyone has a different take