Hey peeps,

I have two requirements today...

1) I need some software (preferably free) that wil let me chop certain parts of music out of a track and then save it as a different file (preferably MP3). This is so I can create my own ring/sms tone for my phone.

2) I need some Midi creation software, with a good range of instruments. It doesn't have to be free, but it would be an advantage!

Any help much appreciated as always.

Audacity will chop tracks and output as mp3...



Your sound card is the limit when it comes to MIDI IIRC, it should at least contain the 100 or so General MIDI instruments...It's been a few years since I've seriously played with it...

What he said ^^

Also, google "mp3cutter". That will chop mp3s without having to deal in WAV like Audacity. I use it for ringtones.

Yes, MIDI is simply a set of instructions describing what sound should be played. Hardware decoding is normally preferable, with dedicated units being available, although some sound-cards including them. I don't see why it's not emulatable in software though, although I don't know of any software to recommend.

Edd

Windows comes with "Microsoft GS Wavetable Synth", which is a software midi emulator. Yamaha also do one, which I have somewhere.

In the days of 486s, hardware support was important because emulation clobbered the processor. These days, most people can spare a few clock cycles.

There's loads of free editors. Here's just one:

http://www.musescore.org/

Back in the recording studio we had a lovely Roland electric piano, it had the most wonderful sampled sounds, all mapped with MIDI, just hooked the Macs up with Logic Pro and off you went...I miss that equipment...

We had some Edirol SD-80 sound modules, which produced some very nice sounds.

Edd

There are loads of "music creation software" packages around, which you get depends on what you want to use it for.

First off, there are "loop-based" programs like FLStudio - they use pre-made snippets of sounds that you stick together to form music.

Then there are the true sequencers that record MIDI data from a keyboard and use either virtual instruments and/or external modular sound devices to actually produce the music - Cubase being one of the most common.

Then there are what I call "hybrids" - Propellerhead Reason being the most obvious. This has a sequencer and a range of sound modules contained in it, so you don't need any oher instruemnts in order to produce the music.

The main "problem" is that most of these programs aren't cheap - Cubase and Reason cost a few hundred quid, and on top of that, Cubase requires virtual instruments (around £100 a pop) or external sources (even more expensive) plus a MIDI interface.

Also, you'll need a keyboard of some type for the latter two - you can't use Cubase/Reason without one.

I've just remembered, it will be ancient, but whoever makes it used to make Logic for Windows, what compatibility is like I don't know, but a copy of Logic 5 could possibly be quite cheap now...
You can plug it into QuickTime for the MIDI sounds, or another MIDI software/hardware device...It'll do everything than Audacity does and more, and you don't need a keyboard with it, you can use the mouse.

I'd look for a copy of Logic Express 5 (note: newer copies are Mac only, older copied could be Windows or Mac) of eBay and the like, if you can find it, it's great software. I've not used Reason, but Logic outruns Cubase by miles IMO.

Logic 5 isn't really a direct competitor to Cubase. It's an audio workstation rather than a MIDI sequencer and is aimed more at production rather than recording, so it's more a competitor to Sonar, Ableton Live and Nuendo than Cubase, although all these packages overlap in capabilities.

There's a list of sequencer packages here and digital audio workstations here.

At the end of the day, it depends what you want to do. I use Cubase because it handles VSTi better than a lot of others, but I also use Reason because it's completely integrated and very easy to get on with.

Another one to add to the list - Arturia Storm

I use Audacity and so does a good mate who has his own band.

Easy to use and free