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If you're in band, electronic act or if you're a DJ, you have probably thought about starting your own label. More and more people are moving away from the traditional methods of promoting their material and taking matters in their own hands.
Jul 18, 2011 Making music with your Mac: a complete guide. Or even make your own sound effects using the software? A microphone or the line-in port of your Mac, and a software instrument is a.
Apr 06, 2019 Content Logic Pro X Reason 10 Intro Presonus Studio One 4 Prime Audacity Ableton Live 10 Reaper 5 Cubase Elements 9.5 MuLab 7 GarageBand for Mac Ardor All new commercial Mac devices come in standard with. Jul 02, 2020 You can make music on a laptop, using appropriate software. However, the less memory on your computer, the less useful a laptop will be for making music. Many music makers recommend keeping the laptop for live performance and using a desktop for music creation. However, if you can afford a powerful laptop with plentiful space, it’ll work fine.
Whether you want to release your own tracks, promote other artists or simply start a homegrown business, it pays to have a plan of attack before you dive in feet first. I've been involved with several electronic label startups that are now running successfully and these are the things I have learned while acting as a consultant.
Invest.. Carefully
This is right at the top of my list for a reason, and I really can't stress that point enough. You have to spend money to get a professional, well-run record label off the ground. There will probably be some of you jumping up and down at this point shouting 'but I released my album for nothing!'
To clear this up, I'm not talking about just promoting your music or stamping '˜Homemade Records' on your latest CD or SounCloud page. I'm talking about a real company with infrastructure, management, distribution, accounts, a roadmap for the future, and most importantly, solid product.
You won't need millions to get going, but there are costs involved. Distribution, remixing, mastering, accounting and design all cost money. You may be able to cut corners in places, but if you get everything done on the cheap, you will end up looking exactly like that. Cheap. '¨'¨Unless you are loaded, you will need to think very carefully about where you get your funds from and how you spend them once the business is realized. Getting some business advice is probably the best way forward here. Writing a business plan and generally mapping things out is a solid move too.
Another thing to realize is that, even with the best intentions, best product and best team, you will probably have to take a hit in the wallet for the first year or so. This is true of most new businesses but especially record labels. The truth is that the market place is flooded with music (both good and bad) and it is getting tougher to get noticed and get your product to the right ears.
With the harsh realities out of the way, if you are truly dedicated to getting your new label off the ground, you can start to think about the things you'll need to arm yourself with to ensure your new venture has the best chance of thriving.
'¨Prep Your Product
'¨With a few quid in the bank, a business plan and some solid determination, you are pretty much good to go. The first solid thing, you'll need to lay your hands on is some quality product. By this I mean original music, and once you don the hat of label A&R (Artist and repertoire), this is your bread and butter.
You should aim to have your first three or four releases in the bag, or at least nearing completion before you get going. This will just mean you are prepared as you move forward. Saying this, you really can't have too much fresh music, it is in fact the life blood of any record label.'¨'¨ So get busy sourcing new tracks, making your own music and developing new artists. This can happen some time before you start the label for real, and it's a great idea to have more music than you really need to get going. This will give you a pool of material to dip into when needed.
You'll need to develop artist contracts, work out percentages and possibly prepare contracts for remixers as well. Remixes can play a pretty heavy part in a label's dynamic, especially if you plan to release electronic material.
If you are unsure about how to formulate a custom contract, you may need to seek legal advice, and of course this will cost you money (there's that nasty word again). In this case though, if you know someone that runs a label already and has a tight contract system, they may be willing to help you out with your first drafts.
Know Your Revenue Streams
If you are starting a label, it's likely that you are passionate about music, but of course at some point you'll probably want to make some money! If you have invested your own cash into the business, then you'll simply have to. When it comes to recouping your expenses and generating some profit, it's essential to know the different places money can come from and how to collect it.
Things like artist royalties are all reasonably easy to get your head around and are probably all things you are aware of if you have scratched the surface of running a label, but there are plenty of other ways to generate cash.
Publishing, merchandising and licensing are all valid revenue streams and dealt with correctly, could make you more money than the more straightforward forms of income. It's worthwhile educating yourself in the differences between performance-based and mechanical royalties, publishing, licensing and sync deals.
Considering Label Management
Even if you plan to run your label full time and you'll be devoting all your time to it, you may find that covering everything yourself is a bit overwhelming. The truth of it is that you will probably discover that there are some aspects that you just aren't equipped to deal with and qualified professionals need to be brought in.
Many things like editing artist contracts, organizing royalty statements and even developing art work can be researched and taken in hand, but if you are short on time or experience, even these simple tasks may seem a bit daunting.
If you taste some success, you'll quickly find out that things can get pretty serious. Major label licensing contracts, sync deals with TV networks and remix contracts from large artist agencies are just some of the things you might come across as things develop.
One way of dealing with a lot of this is to enter into a deal with a label management company. This is basically an agency that deals with a number of labels and they'll take of all the details for you.
The services offered will cary from company to company, but most will deal with manufacture (if any is needed), distribution, art work, contracts, royalties and licensing. Some will even sort out publishing and legal work too.
This doesn't come cheap though. Most label managers will require a percentage, anything from 20-40% of profits and others will even require some cold hard cash up front. It's all about choosing the right outfit for you. Go by recommendation, word of mouth and most importantly your gut instinct. You need to get on with the people you work with here as you will be in contact with them a lot.
Getting Your Promo Right
If you head down the label management route, then all your promotional material will be taken care of, but if you plan to step out on your own, then you will have to make sure it's water tight.
Organizing contact databases, bulk mail-outs and an audio storage system are all things you will have to think about here but thankfully none of these are too complex if you are already tech savvy. If however you don't want to get your hands dirty, but are adverse to handing over a large percentage of your profits to a label management company, you'll be happy to know there are other options here. Mac software 10.7.5.
There are dedicated promo companies that will take care of everything for you, and the fees are very reasonable on the whole. With this in mind, you can actually farm out any part of your label, piece by piece. For example, if you feel comfortable with doing your accounts but not design, then hire a designer and get into the books yourself.
The trick is being honest about your strengths and weaknesses, and working with what you have. You have to weigh up the services you need to pay for and the funds you have to get started. Just make sure that you put your resources into the right areas.
Final Thoughts
Hopefully this is useful to some of you starting your own labels and rather than put you off, it should really just make you aware of the risks. All this said, the main ingredient needed is passion. Combine this with some excellent music and your product should float to the top of the pile all by itself.
By now, you probably know what a powerful creative tool your Mac is. It’s definitely hard to beat when it comes to retouching photos, editing videos, and — naturally — making music.
There are, in fact, so many music making apps for Mac that it’s hard to decide which one to get and what’s the difference between them, especially if you’re just starting out. But don’t worry — below is the ultimate guide to help you pick the best music production software currently on the market.
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The Best Free Music Software For Mac
It’s important to note that no single music creation software is best for everyone. Needs, experience levels, and preferences tent do differ a lot, so the final choice should be different as well. Having said that, there are a few options that have been winning in their respective categories over the years again and again. Here they are.
GarageBand: The easiest way to start
You don’t have to go far for an introductory experience to music making programs — the GarageBand app is already pre-installed on your system.
GarageBand for Mac is a versatile free music making software for beginners. You can use its tutorials to make your first steps into playing an instrument, record your own music (including your voice), add special effects, and produce complete tracks to upload to SoundCloud or beyond.
If you don’t have GarageBand in your Applications folder yet, download it from the App Store for free. When you open the app, it’ll prompt you to get all the available sounds and effects. In the latest GarageBand version for macOS Catalina, Apple has included a fantastic virtual drummer that you can customize to fit your patterns exactly, whether you’re playing rock or hip-hop. The layout of all the GarageBand options is quite intuitive, so you can definitely study the app on your own, learning more as you go.
Some downsides to the GarageBand app are essentially reasons why pros don’t use it: at some point you max out its capabilities and need features like advanced crossfades, for example. When you feel that instead of the music making software serving you, you start serving the music making software — it’s probably time to upgrade.
Ableton Live 10: The best music making software ever
At the other end of the music software spectrum is the industry-standard Ableton Live. First released in 2001, Ableton has been honing its music making software for nearly two decades. It’s not only able to record, arrange, mix, and master your music but also be used at live shows to play that music back, right from the same interface.
Bad news: it’s very difficult to learn Ableton on your own if you don’t have any background in music making. Luckily, there’s a large international community of users, so you’ll likely be able to find either a local or online group in your language, which could become instrumental to getting over various hurdles.
Even more bad news: Ableton is not a free music production software at all. While Ableton Live 9 used to have a Lite version that could be downloaded free, Ableton Live 10 starts with an Intro edition at $99 (then Standard at $449, then Suite at $749). The more expensive the version the more effects, instruments, and sounds it contains.
n-Track Studio: A top recording software for Mac
If the gap between GarageBand and Ableton Live is so wide, naturally there would be some music making apps that would try to fill it up. Enter n-Track Studio.
Make Your Own Music Software
Make music with n-Track Studio
With this simple app, you can take a professional music recording studio to your Mac. No expensive equipment, no fuss.
n-Track Studio is a music making software free of Ableton’s complexities but with nearly all of its power. You can record songs from live instruments or create complex EDM tracks using virtual tools as well, with the help of a massive library of sound effects. What’s more, n-Track Studio features a free MIDI software built right in and doesn’t require a too powerful of a processor on your machine, since its audio engine is optimized for minimum latency, even when dozens of tracks are played at once.
Starting with n-Track Studio is very easy:
Best Music Making Software Mac
Click the circled plus icon to create a new track, either blank or armed for recording
Right-click on the new track and choose “Add blank MIDI track”
Select your instrument
Play any progression you like, either using your trackpad or a connected controller
Repeat as many times as needed and enhance with other effects
Overall, exploring n-Track Studio is pure pleasure: more freedom than the standard GarageBand without the difficulty and cost of Ableton. Perfect choice!
Make all music sound better with Boom 3D
While selecting the best free music making software is important, it’s equally important to ensure that whatever tunes you create are going to be played appropriately. As most Macs are simply too quiet for all the intricacies of the music software, you need Boom 3D to make it all work.
Best Music Software For Mac
Boom 3D is a system-wide volume booster and equalizer for your Mac. First, it features a variety of presets to make every genre sound as good as possible, by setting the right midtones, bass levels, and high-pitched notes. Second, it lets you surpass the default volume limit on your Mac to really get the maximum out of your speakers.
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Make Your Own Music Software On Mac Computer
Finally, Boom 3D also acts as a nifty little music player that features over 20,000 radio stations from around the world and plays back tracks set in your specific preferences.
So, again, while choosing the best music production software comes down to your level of experience and needs, if you go for a mid-market product like n-Track Studio, you definitely won’t be bored for a long time. Just don’t forget to couple it with Boom 3D for an absolute killer of a sound.
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Best of all, n-Track Studio and Boom 3D are available to you absolutely free for seven days during the trial of Setapp, a platform with over 160 apps for your creative self, from music making programs to film editing and drawing. Try Setapp today and unleash you creator spirit. It’s free, so why not at least try?