A1200 soundcard

[Ral-Clan]

Bars & Pipes is possibly the best MIDI sequencer software ever made for any platform.  Uses tracks & plug-ins.  Will run well on a 68020 or above.  Its freely available and still being delevoped by A. Faust.

As for manipulating audio: your 040 will handle doing 2-track edits no problem (i.e. simple mastering of mixed down songs - fades, normalization, etc.).

There is some good multitrack software for classic Amigas, but you need an 060 or PPC card to really use it (HD-REC, Audio Evolution, etc.).  On an 040 you might be able to run it, but once you get into EQing or adding effects, the 040 won't be able to keep up.

As for soundcards.  There are a few: Delphina, Tocatta....I have the Repulse.  I don't know if any are still being made, and if you can get one it's going to be expensive.  They work well though.  Since you have an A1200 you have the option of buying a MEDIATOR or PCI busboard and using a regular PC Soundblaster card (cheap for the Soundblaster, but the Mediator is expensive).

Then, there's also the whole range of tracker type music programs.  They take a bit of work to get your head around, as they are quite different from conventional Cakewalk, B&P type sequencers.  But they are very good for highly patterned work, especially electronic music.

[Ral-Clan]

Here's a pic of my Amiga centred home studio.

http://www.amiga.org/gallery/index.php?n=1690=8

  I fully admit that a modern laptop could do all of this today, but I have the gear and it works well.  I also enjoy using real equipment over virtual stuff.

Plus, B&P is only for Amiga so far.  Don't want to give that up.

That's amazing that you got a BPPC and Repulse all in one deal.  Good (and expensive) hardware.  You should be able to do multitracking with this no problem.  I'd love to have an 060 or even a PPC, but they are SO expensive.  I'm afraid to ask you much you paid for your setup (care to tell us ;-) ).

[Ral-Clan]

WOW! You REALLY hit the Amiga GOLDMINE. If you ever want to sell it I'll give you.....$400!  Hey think what you could do with the $100 profit  :-D !

As for the gear:  The only newly purchased stuff is the Juno-106 which I got in 1985 when I was 15, and the Yamaha MD-8 multitracker.  The rest is from pawn shops and used music gear places.

As for the monitors and amps:  I actually use a Sansui 150W commercial grade home stereo amplifier as my amp, and a pair of TEAC home stereo speakers as monitors.  Most people would tell you that you need pro-level studio amps and monitors, but I have found that my setup is pretty good.  I am used to the sound of this amp/speakers and can get a good mix that sounds good on other equipment as well.  I've produced a couple small scale commercial CDs with this setup and never had a complaint regarding sound.

I'm not sure why you would want a 750W amp for a home studio!  It would blow your ears off. That is better for stage work.  I don't think I even crank my 150W amp up to full volume....it would drive me out of the room!  I only suggest that 750W might be too much because sometimes amps don't behave at their best freq. response unless driven hard.  If you're only using it at low volumes for home studio work, it might be underdriven (not giving you a true representation of the sound).  Also, some stage amps are not the best for critical studio work.

[Ral-Clan]

You could probably get away with multitrack recording 4 tracks on an 040.  Real-time effects (reverb, EQ) will tax the processor too much.  However, if you add the effects afterwards you should be able to do it if you don't mind the wait while the effects are being calculated.

There is also the ADLIB516 card & Studio-16 software from Sunrize.  It's old, but if you can find one it works well for simple audio multitracking.  It was really designed for doing voice-over & adding a soundtracks to video/radio production work though.  This means that while it records well, it doesn't have a provision for adding complex effects or EQ'ing individual tracks that you would expect from a music multitracking program.

[Ral-Clan]

I agree that too many options (bells & whistles) can sometimes be paralysing.  Sometimes it's better to keep things simple.  Sometimes it's better to have 8 tracks rather than 128.

I like the idea of DAW.  But when I was setting up my equipment in the mid-90s, DAWS just weren't there yet.  So I bought dedicated external gear.  

Most of it is digital.  It works well, and still works too, so might as well use it.  Since it is digital, the end product sounds pretty much the same.

Also I enjoy a bit of a chaotic environment.  Patching cables, turning knobs, using old strange equipment.  Experimenting.  Makes me feel like a bit of a mad scientist and inspires me to try interesting things.