MIDI Instruments

MIDI instruments have been around much longer than most people think. In fact, they have been around since 1983! MIDI has come a long way since then and can drastically enhance our home studios by adding a virtually endless palate of sounds and instruments to our work. Not only will they drastically increase your songwriting capabilities but they can save not only some space but also some cash in your pocket!

MIDI instruments were founded on the basis of synthesizers. Essentially, digital synthesizers began using microprocessors that expanded the amount of sounds and variations that users could have. Some of these synthesizers are still used in studios today because of their characteristic sound, such as the Prophet 5. But by todays standards the Prophet 5 is extremely limited in terms of what it can do or play.

With the digital revolution came the software instrument. This essentially opened up the doors to only really needing a computer to write music because you had all your instruments as software on your computer. Now MIDI keyboard or MIDI Controllers can control those sounds in the software sound you have at your disposal. With that one MIDI controller you have in your studio arsenal you now can potentially have several pinnacle synthesizers such as the Prophet 5, Juno, and many more! Not only that but you will be able to fully modulate the sounds you have using various LFO’s, Filters, etc.

However, this software instrument leads back to the Analog vs. Digital debate that I have mentioned earlier. It all comes down to a matter of taste whether you prefer the sound of your virtual “Prophet 5” or the actual analog Prophet 5. There are several emulated instruments our there some more expensive than others, but at the end of the day it comes down to what sound you want in your song!