A while back I made the decision to move 99.99% of my music production to PC. I thought I’d share my current thoughts on the decision. I’ll start by saying this move was probably one of the best decisions I’ve made. Music production via PC or Mac in terms of cost really isn’t as expensive as some might think. You don’t need to spend a huge chunk of cash either. What I find so amazing is the number of free VST instruments available. There are some incredible VST’s that sound great and cost nothing to download. If you’re really tight on cash there’s even a good free DAW (Cakewalk by BandLab). How that program is free is beyond me because the developers even provide free updates.

When I break down the cost of moving my music production to PC, I just can’t justify buying another keyboard. I have a large list of VST’s.., some paid and some free. I also take advantage of PluginBotique.com for amazing deals. I have gotten so many free and majorly discounted VST’s from that site because of their deals. With the cost of my 88 key controller and paid VST’s, I’ve got just under $700 into the switch. Sure, you can go crazy and spend thousands of dollars on VST’s and studio equipment, but it’s not necessary because there are affordable ones that surpass what you’ll get in a hardware keyboard.

My main DAW is MixCraft, but I also have Cakewalk by BandLab too. My upgrade cost from MixCraft 8 Pro to 9 Pro was $29, and I don’t need to tell the members here how good that DAW is. Hell my 88 key midi controller came with free copies of AIR Mini Grand, AIR DB-33 Drawbar Organ, AIR Velvet EP, SoniVox 88 Ensemble, and Addictive Keys. Can’t beat that. If you’ve been considering moving to DAW based production or just supplementing your current arranger set up. It’s worth every penny IMO. I’ve been having a blast since the change.

Sqk