DAW help. dont know how to start

[vishnu]

hi
perhaps someone can help....1st of all i know nothing about DAWS,PCs and recording.i am totally new to the game,so a lot of the talk goes over my head.

i have been doing some research and have found lots of conflicting info

i have at home Band in a Box and GUITAR pro6,i enjoy these progs and they have given me the itch to go further...into DAW

i have just bought a good set of studio speakers and a FOCUSRITE saffire pro 24 interface...and in prep for DAW the famous REAPER,nothing is set up yet
i have Windows7 64 REAPER 64 8RAM and 2 TB HD

i have read of seperate additional HDs for the music data...i only intend some modest recordings of myself on guitar and some VSTis of bass, keys and drums..should i get an extra HD installed now?

i bought REAPER thinking it was all i needed but then i found out i was missing all the sounds/instruments...it looks to me as though there are two ways to deal with this..buy an all in one with the sounds all contained within the package (SONAR X1 PRODUCER) or something like REAPER and then buy the sounds seperately LIKE EZ drummer etc..would this not be more expensive in the long run?

i liked the look and simplicity of sonar x1 all in one, then found loads of people on the recording forums saying it was CRAP! what do you think of something like sonar x1for a beginner like me?

it's just that there is so much conflicting info out there i don't know where to start,and when i read a beginners guide to DAW it is all full of esoteric terms and jargon and what not......

if someone could give me some advice regarding the twin HDs,and the sounds (samples or VSTis or midi sounds)that i require...should i go for something like sonar for the sounds i need for recording?


thanks folks

John

 

[vishnu]

jeez...if i cant get help here........

 

[chris in indy]

I don't know if this will help, but you are not going to buy any DAW software with all the instruments you are ever going to want or need. These are usually gathered over a period of time, as plug-ins or softsynths.

Have you considered any of the Sonar products? The difference in the products that you will see, is usually how many extras (plugs and synths) come with it.

 

[vishnu]

I don't know if this will help, but you are not going to buy any DAW software with all the instruments you are ever going to want or need. These are usually gathered over a period of time, as plug-ins or softsynths.

Have you considered any of the Sonar products? The difference in the products that you will see, is usually how many extras (plugs and synths) come with it.

would Kontact 4 cover my needs and do the job for me?

 

[diggy_dude]

Ableton Live has a boatload of instruments and effects. It will take you years to try them all.

 

[chris in indy]

would Kontact 4 cover my needs and do the job for me?

I don't know anything about Kontact.

What kind of synths or plugs are you looking for? What type of music do you want to produce? Any of the free DAW software programs will work if you want to download free plugs from KVR or some of the other free sites.

Maybe one of the free DAW's, and a soundfont player. There are billions and billions (to quote Carl Sagan) of free soundfonts on the web, and you can create your own also.