I want to make electronic music?
I've recently started learning to produce electronic as well (I started at 15, which was just around last April). To start off I used the demo of FL Studio. I didn't have any gear at that time. In June I picked up a copy of FL Studio Producer Edition ( I got the student discount for $120 then upgraded to Signature Edition in July), ATH-M50 Studio Monitor Headphones, an M-Audio Oxygen 49, and the book Music Theory For Computer Musicians by Michael Hewitt. I had no prior knowledge to using the program or music in general. I learned everything I know from YouTube tutorials especially http://www.youtube.com/user/Beats4Beets. I'm currently using a two-year-old Intel quad-thread Acer Laptop with 4GB RAM. It's not too amazing, but producing doesn't require a whole lot from your computer, unless you are using more than 10 different VSTs in one track. Martin Garrix produced Animals on his dell laptop that constantly crashed on his live stream. In terms of FL Studio, once you learn the basic controls (piano roll, playlist, mixer, step sequencer, and automation clips), you should just start messing around with synths for a while. Just as important as the technical work though is the music. I highly recommend learning music theory (just some basics, you don't need college education or anything) or else you will be sitting at your computer pressing key for weeks till you find a decent melody. Good Luck, if you ever need more info or just want to talk producing just message me here or on: YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/MrJuanchico SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/thegreatmonte
How do I master the art of electronics?
From other questions you've asked it seems you're looking for a university as an undergrad - you can’t begin Electronics at this level - I don't think you'd get an accepted anyway and you would find it extremely difficult.Why are you failing at a hobbyist level? Soldering, fault finding, using test equipment like a multimeter is essential, basic practical skills in wiring, patience and doing everything properly, etc these are fundamental requirements you need in order to successfully complete hobby projects and there are many tutorials online (YouTube) have thousands of project videos. Soldering is a skill that will get you far - poor soldering is probably the main reason hobby level projects fail, learn about Electro-Static-Discharge (ESD) component recognition etcWhen I started there was no such thing as breadboard, or Vero board - I've used card as my ‘board’ - I've even built circuits by simply soldering components together at the legs, no boards at all - mainly because such things weren't available but also in my keenness to get the thing built.My advice would be to take an evening class or part-time course in Basic Electronics. There are certain things you need to know - ‘The Basics’ and then practice your practical skills.Then think about more advanced learning - you will learn far more from practical experience than any books. Use books to get the ideas for practical work and projects.There's books specifically for Hobby Electronics, start there.It’s a long windy road - your passion will take you wherever you desire to go, but only time can make you a ‘Master’ - it's a fascinating but difficult subject to learn, find an area that interests you most and master that - over time.It's very difficult at first but once you master the basic practical skills and the safety aspects you will soon progress.If it's your passion, then you can achieve whatever you set your mind to.I can give you a brief guide to good soldering techniques if you need me to.Fault finding is an art in itself, a process of logical and analytical thought - it's like CSI sometimes, challenging and time consuming.There's no quick way to learn, start at the beginning and work forward (or back and forth with AC)Good luck.
What do you think about doing computer repair as a hobby?
You hear of many people doing auto repair as a hobby and nobody thinks twice about it. Doing computer repair is similar. One difference is that if someone messes up a brake job, people can die. I imagine this can be the case — potentially — with computer repair if the computer is one used in a sensitive industry, but most people who would repair computers as a hobby wouldn’t be doing so on computers used in sensitive industries like the health care industry, air traffic control… etc. :-)I think many computer hobbyists are doing things like building their own computer systems from scratch and repairing their own machines when they break down. Some may work on family and friends’ machines too.Some are trained others self taught and the complete spectrum between.I know of some hobbyists that are as skilled as any professional, though because they don’t do it full-time, they don’t see the variety of machines and so will have to look up more things as they go.I know of some that actually are computer technicians as a profession who come home and start working on computers for fun. Some simply enjoy the challenge of trouble shooting. It can be like solving puzzles.I know some people that are quite good at computer repair and do so for enjoyment, but if they were to do it full-time, they would grow to dislike it over time and it would no longer be a source of joy for them.I’m trained and am good at troubleshooting, but am unable to work full-time at computer repair. Still, as a hobby, I can put together a computer from bare components and I can also repair the computers I use for writing and doing computer graphics on.It can be a rewarding hobby. You are likely to have friends and relatives come to see you before they pay for a technician to look after their machine. That can be a good thing, or it can be irritating for some folks.The one negative I find is that when my own machines act up, I have nobody to call other than a computer shop… or to do my own research and learn how to deal with whatever problem I am having on my computers.PS You’ll need a good workbench to work on and shelves for projects in progress as well as shelves, etc for components you salvage from old machines.
How do you learn about electronic device repair?
In my case, I watched my father dabble with electronics from when I was eight years old. From ten years old I pretty much took over his hobby when he lost interest. I acquired all of his magazines and read them all avidly. By age 15 I was cycling around the village with a pannier full of vacuum tubes and repairing TVs. By nineteen I had built a “superhet” valve (tube) radio, a 30W guitar amplifier, an oscilloscope and many other devices. By age thirty I was running a CB radio repair business in my spare time. Subsequently, I repaired around 25,000 analogue satellite TV receivers, with the aid of an apprentice, whom I trained.I’m not saying that mine was an ideal route for learning but I believe that there’s no substitute for practical experience. Buy basic tools from a garage sale. Grab something faulty that doesn’t matter and try to discover what’s wrong with it. Dismantle and reassemble stuff. Watch relevant YouTube videos. I recommend “bigclivedotcom”, “FranbLab” and “Mr Carlson’s Lab”.Also download my (free) Beginners Guide to Electronics.