I’ve gone through a couple studio iterations in the past 10 years in which I amassed too much gear and used too little of it. I bought a lot of gear, sold a lot of gear, and barely put in enough time with most of those objects. In the end, my most productive stages—those in which I actually recorded and released an album—involved using very limited amounts of equipment: a sampler, a couple of effects and a mixer; a guitar and computer; guitar, a couple effects, and a loop pedal.
My first piece of electronic music equipment was an MS2000. I just had that and a Gateway PC. I would build whole worlds just multitracking that synth. Not the best music in the world, but I don’t remember being distracted, hitting creative blocks, or feeling like I needed more gear. Then, as my blissful ignorance of other gear eroded, I began to think, “I need that thingamajig to really make professional music.”
I like this idea of “returning” that’s been mentioned a couple times. I’m now returning to a very simple setup. Selling off most of my gear. I now have a couple small synths, a computer and soundcard, monome, a tiny but powerful guitar amp, a guitar, and some effects pedals. It all fits on a table (except the guitar).
I now look at my workspace and see welcome restraints. It’s manageable. I don’t need or want a hulking studio. I want a simple canvas and a diverse but limited color palette.
I don’t claim to be an expert in much of anything, but here’s my recommendation for getting the most of what you have: Treat your electronic music gear as would a classical soloist. A violin has only four strings, yet the sounds that can be coaxed out of it are plentiful. Approach your synth, sampler or what-have-you and explore just one of the sounds it can produce. Make a whole song out of that sound by moving it around in space and time. Ignore everything else.
