My first studio equipment, what should i consider buying

[animesh_u10]

Hi guys,its been a couple of months since i have been producing and have been saving up lately to buy some basic equipment for production,
i have some questions regarding the same, i am going to list out the equipments that fall in my budget,
after that will put my questions,

WHATEVER I PERSONALLY LIKED HAS A (*) sign after it..

EQUIPMENT SHORT LISTED:
(ANY ONE OF THESE)

>Akai lpk 25
>Samson graphite mini 32
>Maudio key station mini 32
>Alesis q25

(PLUS)
+lpd8

OR BUY A KEYBOARD WITH INTEGRATED PADS:

>Arturia minilab hybrid

>akai mpk mini25

>m-audio axiom air mini32

>Nektar Impact LX25 (*)

HEADPHONES:

>Sennheiser HD 201/ HD 180 (*)
>Samson SR850
>Samson SR950
>AKG K77
>Audio-Technica ATH-M20x


SOUNDCARDS i only need to connect my headphones and midi do not have monitors at the moment)

>BEHRINGER UCA222 U-CONTROL(*)
>ROLAND CAKEWALK UA11 DUO
>FOCUSRITE SCARLETT SOLO
>LEXICON ALPHA USB DESKTOP (*)
>Creative USB Sound Blaster X Fi PRO (*)
>Asus Xonar U7



QUESTIONS:

1)will the keyboard with integrated pads do a better job than buying both of them seperately,
2) what keys should i consider 25 or 32 or forget pads and go for 49
3) weighted or semi weighted
4) I compared soundcards and audio interfaces, and cant get to a conclusion as external soundcards are wayy to cheaper than interfaces does it actually make any difference,
5) What should be the correct order to buy the equipment mentioned above that is first the sound card then the midi ? cause as of now i am not having much of a clipping problem, and if i consider going for an expensive card i gotta cut out on one of the three things.


PS IF YOU HAVE ANY OTHER SUGGETIONS PLEASE DO LET ME KNOW,

Thanks for hearing me out,

(Y)

 

[gecko zzed]

1)will the keyboard with integrated pads do a better job than buying both of them seperately,
2) what keys should i consider 25 or 32 or forget pads and go for 49
3) weighted or semi weighted

I can't really answer these questions, because I don't have a lot of experience with keys with pads. I use a keyboard to drive virtual instruments. If you are dealing with mostly synth-type sounds, then semi-weighted will be fine. If you really need the feel of weighted keys, like if you are doing a lot of piano work, then fully weighted is the way to go.

4) I compared soundcards and audio interfaces, and cant get to a conclusion as external soundcards are wayy to cheaper than interfaces does it actually make any difference,

Interfaces are more expensive because they are designed and built specifically for recording. Soundblasters and the like, though you can record, are best for one way (not duplex) audio, such as playing games or music. Think Focusrite or Roland.

5) What should be the correct order to buy the equipment mentioned above that is first the sound card then the midi ? cause as of now i am not having much of a clipping problem, and if i consider going for an expensive card i gotta cut out on one of the three things.

The interface, of the things you listed, is the most important.