Okay here's the list. I spend some time on this. If you have any specific questions, let me know:)


***

On Composition:

Making Music: 74 Creative Strategies - Dennis DeSantis
Amazon Link
This is a fantastic book. Each page has a general idea on boosting creativity, workflow, and designing sounds and tracks. I recommend you read and digest one of the tips per day and really think about applying them.

Music Theory for Computer Musicians - Michael Hewitt
Amazon Link
Really easy to digest book on music theory, as it applies to your DAW. Each DAW is used in the examples, so it is not limited to a specific program. Highly recommend this for someone starting out with theory to improve their productions.

Secrets of Dance Music Production - David Felton
Amazon Link
This book I recently picked up and so far it's been quite good. It goes over all the different elements of what make's dance music, and get's quite detailed. More geared towards the beginner, but it was engaging nonetheless. It is the best 'EDM specific' production book I have read.

Ocean of Sound - David Troop
Amazon Link
Very well written and interesting book on ambient music. Not only does David go over the technical side and history of ambiance and musical atmospheres, he speaks very poetically about creating these soundscapes and how they relate to our interpersonal emotions.


***

On Audio Engineering:

Mixing Secrets for the Small Studio - Mike Senior
Amazon Link
In my opinion, this is the best mixing reference book for both beginners and intermediate producers. Very in-depth book that covers everything from how to set-up for accurate listening to the purpose of each mixing and mastering plug-in. Highly recommended.

Zen and the Art of Mixing - Mixerman
Amazon Link
Very interesting read in that it deals with the why's more than the how's. Mixerman, a professional audio engineer, goes in detail to talk about the mix engineer's mindset, how to approach projects, and how to make critical mixing decisions. Really fun read.

The Mixing Engineer's Handbook - Bobby Owinski
Amazon Link
This is a fantastic companion book to keep around. Not only does Owinski go into great technical detail, he includes interviews from various audio engineers that I personally found very helpful and inspiring.


***

On the Industry:

All You Need to Know About the Music Business - Donald S. Passman
Amazon Link
This book is simply a must read for anyone hoping to make a professional career out of music, anyone wanting to start their own record label, or anyone interested in how the industry works. It's a very informative book for any level of producer, and is kept up-to-date with the frequent revisions. Buy it.

Rick Rubin: In the Studio - Jake Brown
Amazon Link
Very interesting read that is a semi-biographical book on Rick Rubin. It is not so personal as it is talking about his life, experiences, and processes. It does get quite technical when referring to the recording process, but there are better books for technical info. This is a fun read on one of the most successful producers in history.

Behind the Glass - Howard Massey
Amazon Link
A collection of interviews from a diverse range of musicians who speak about creativity, workflows, and experiences in the music industry. Really light, easy to digest book.


***

On Creativity:

The War of Art - Steven Pressfield
Amazon Link
This is a must-read, in my opinion, for any creative individual. It is a very philosophical book on dealing with our own mental battles as an artist, and how to overcome them. Definitely pick this one up, all of you.

This is Your Brain on Music - Daniel S. Levitin
Amazon Link
A book written by a neurologist on the psychology of music and what makes us attached to it. It's a fairly scientific book but it is a very rewarding read with some great ideas.


***

On Personal Growth and Development:

How to Win Friends and Influence People - Dale Carnegie
Amazon Link
Although this seems like an odd book for a music producer, personally I think this is one of the most influential books I've ever read. Knowing how to be personable, effectively network, and form relationships is extremely important in our industry. Whether it be meeting and talking to labels, meeting other artists, or getting through to A&R, this book helps with all these areas and I suggest this book to all of you.

7 Habits of Highly Effective People - Stephen R. Covey
Amazon Link
Similar to the recommendation above, although not directly linked to music, I assure you reading this book will change your views on life. It is a very engaging and practical book, and gets you in the right mindset to be successful in your life and music career. Trust me on this one and give it a read.

Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience - Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
Amazon Link
You know the feeling when you're really in the groove of jamming out and all worries tend to slip away for those moments? That is the 'Optimal Experience' according to the author. This book will teach you about that experience, and how to encourage and find it in your work. This is a very challenging, immersive, and enlightening read, which deals with the bigger picture and finding happiness in your work and life. Very inspiring book that puts you in a good mindset when you're doing creative work.

The Art of Work - Jeff Goins
Amazon Link
A very fascinating book that looks at taking your passion (music in our case) and making the most of it. It guides you on how to be successful and turn your passion into your career. Some very interesting sections touching on dealing with failure, disappointment, and criticism, yet listening to your intuition and following your passion. Inspiring and uplifting book to say the least.


***


Phew. That was a lot of work. Hopefully you guys get some usefulness out of this list. This is put together after years of reading dozens upon dozens of books on these topics.


Enjoy!

First off, good luck with your journey. There’s a frustrating learning curve, but I promise if you stick with it, you’ll eventually get it. I’m no pro mixer, but reading these books made it so less scary and now I’m generally happy with the mixes I get (yes, even in my car!)

The first two recommendations are the most obvious ones, but they’re really good.

The Mixing Engineer's Handbook 4th Edition https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N6SFVMS/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_ktsSCb7Z7623Z
^ this author also answers emails, which is lovely and very nice of him

Mixing Secrets for the Small Studio (Sound On Sound Presents...) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07GHYQ4T1/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_gpsSCb8ETC058

But my more personal recommendation is the following, which is nothing but interviews with some of the top mixers:

Mix Masters: Platinum Engineers Reveal Their Secrets for Success https://www.amazon.com/dp/087639019X/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_ivsSCbPSJ1D0T

The interviews are very helpful. So many amateur YouTube tutorials tell you ONLY use subtractive EQing. Funny how the pros don’t agree with that...

Good luck on your journey. I hope these help! If you haven’t already, start binging on Pensado’s Place on YouTube. A lot of it will be hard to keep up with at first, but you’ll learn the language.

I like to think that mixing is like cooking. There aren't any set rules, though there are recommendations on how to use different tools to achieve a great mix. That being said, if you want to truly learn how to achieve a great mix, it is essential to learn the basic concepts and theories to both digital sound and signal processing.

My recommendation: youtube, google (or bing if thats your style), and more youtube. Instead of searching "how to get a good mix", search "what does a compressor do", or "what is a convolution reverb". Thats much better than just blindly turning knobs by ear. Then practice, practice, practice, practice, study more, study even more, practice, practice, study, produce a banger, mix it well, put it up on soundcloud, the rest will be history- yet you're still studying and learning more.

(don't get me wrong, if you can mix by ear w/o understanding concepts then you're already miles above anyone else :)

There are so many books out there if you want to go to the more traditional route. One of my favorites is called Modern Recording Techniques by David Huber. Theres some great stuff in there and even if you're focused on edm it doesn't hurt to learn from a different perspective, its all the same concepts. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1138954373/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

When you say Sound do you mean what we hear? Or do you mean Audio, which can mean almost any aspect of the technology that captures, reproduces, and reinforces sound.

Sound is an infinitely complex part of our world and because of that it can be infinitely fascinating. A really good reference is some Audio Engineers books. The one I have found to be a of great help is The Handbook for Sound Engineer.

This book is about 1200 pages of everything you could ever want to know about Audio. It doesn't delve into HiFi, but it covers room acoustics, psycho-acoustics, and almost every aspect of Audio Engineering from Microphones to speakers, and mixers to amps. However it is quite a read, but it makes a great reference text.

Another good book is the Yamaha Sound Reinforcement Manual. As much as I can't stand Yamaha equipment(The LS9 console is a horrible piece of junk and sounds awful) the book they wrote is quite good. It explains the basics without getting too complicated and covers a wide variety of topics.

If you want to get more advanced such as what is a line array, I would for sure look up some of the literature from some of the manufacturers like D&B, L'Acoustics, Meyer, Martin, (Not JBL) Etc. These have to be taken with a grain of salt, because half the time its a semi-sales pitch. The Audio Engineering Society also has tons of scholarly articles, but I think you have to pay for those.

And finally I would recommend the book From Tinfoil to Stereo. It is a detailed and in depth history of the Audio Industry in the professional and consumer world. A great read for understanding how the industry was thought to never take off and then exploded almost overnight.

I am currently living this after being a stage manager for 10+ years and mostly lighting on work calls. I actively avoided audio for that time, but realizing that you need to know how to (at the very least) learn the ropes for the A2 position adds to the value of your work function. I have attached a link below to a really awesome pro audio guide that I found in my research. I’m about half way through it and I already feel more confident in my A2 abilities just from the introduction of terminology and how things operate.
My advice would be to start your research, watch someone mix a show from start to finish (including monitor and mic checks), ask questions and see if you can’t mix a prerecorded show or music. Sound can be tricky and needs real time hours thrown at it to be any good. Good luck! :)

https://www.amazon.com/Ultimate-Sound-Operators-Handbook-Guides/dp/1617805599

If you're looking into studio recording (home or otherwise) The Recording Engineer's Handbook is incredibly practical, to-the-point, and a reference I still look to.

http://www.amazon.com/Recording-Engineers-Handbook-Bobby-Owsinski/dp/159863867X

As for the actual mixing and recording, save up for a decent DAW and teach yourself online (or if you can save the money, try and find somewhere nearby that gives certification courses/bootcamps). For most types of music, Pro Tools and Logic are the "go-to" standards. Ableton is great for EDM and live performances. I don't have experience with Cubase or other alternatives, but I'm sure most others are fine for the job. It's all about workflow.

The Recording Revolution is a great place to learn mixing/recording tips in a noob-friendly way. Excellent YouTube channel as well, so long as you can stomach gospel music samples.

http://therecordingrevolution.com/

My biggest piece of advice to you: do NOT got to a "college" offering audio recording degrees and the like. Huge waste of time and money most of the time unless you're already incredibly talented/gifted. Better to get out there and actually DO something, learn from mistakes, and improve yourself.

Please tell more about your current situation (budget, experience with music, the digital audio workstation that you use, do you compose music or just mix music etc.) so that anyone can help you better.

Most important advice is don't buy anything yet, because spending any amounts of money on something you know nothing about is a really bad choice in the audio realm.

The reason I say this is because you can get away with a lot for free if this is just a small hobby to you and you have a small budget. There's three things you need to have in order, before you even consider buying third party audio plugins:

1. Do you have a decent computer to produce music with?
   
2. Do you have a decent pair of headphones / studio monitors to mix with?
   
3. Which DAW (FL Studio, Ableton Live, Reaper, Logic etc.) do you plan to use?
   
   I ask these because I don't want to recommend anything before I'm sure how new to this you really are. There are a lot of free software around (especially plugins) that some argue are even better than most paid ones -- plugins that'll get you 80-90% of the quality of paid ones -- but buying plugins is mostly done in consideration of the preference of workflow, genre and "that extra something" that free plugins don't have.
   
   There's a book that I recommend for you and anyone new to mixing and it's called "Mixing Screts for the Small Studio (2nd ed.) by Mike Senior. The long awaited 2nd edition just came out a few months ago and it's probably the best book about mixing right now. It will go more in depth about mixing at home than any reddit comment, so consider buying it before any plugins. His website also has a ton of free multitrack files for mixing practice that even I do weekly just for fun and to learn new plugins. I've studied music technology and film audio for a combined 8 years and it's still a very helpful resource.
   
   TL;DR Don't buy plugins yet, tell what you use to make music with and buy the book linked above to get started on learning how to mix.

omg it's fate! hello fellow duck <33

1. there are some awesome books if you want to start learning about mixing and mastering:
   
   Audio Engineering 101
   
   Mastering Audio, The Art and the Science
   
   Mixing Secrets for the Small Studio
   
   ​
   
   those are a great place to start! the weird thing about mixing and mastering is that it's simultaneously complicated and very, very simple - in my experience the strongest engineers often use the most basic tools, they just have a very in-depth understanding of how they work and how to wield them effectively. don't get frustrated if it's not easy right away - i have been producing and engineering for a really really freaking long time and i am JUST starting to feel super confident with mixing and mastering. it takes dedication and patience but it is soooooo rewarding! you should totally do it!
   
   
2. i got to go to australia on my first international headline tour last year and it was SO COOL
   
   
3. well my favorite kind of dog is all dogs, but also my dogs because theyre my babies. i have a 100 lb staffy/great dane mix who lives with me in LA, and a 13 lb chihuahua/terrier/potato mix who lives with my dad in san francisco

In no particular order, here are some things that come to mind:



Modes of Rhythm

Anthony Wellington teaches slap bass and rhythm using the "Modes of Rhythm" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=asYfvMzjk7M

This is an interesting approach to working with rhythm.


Arranging for Large Jazz Ensemble by Dick Lowell

https://www.amazon.com/Arranging-Large-Jazz-Ensemble-Pullig/dp/0634036564/ref=sr_1_4?keywords=dick+lowell&qid=1554352576&s=gateway&sr=8-4

Good resource for jazz arranging



The Study of Orchestration by Samuel Adler

https://www.amazon.com/Study-Orchestration-Third-Samuel-Adler/dp/039397572X/ref=sr_1_2?crid=270ZIQBMLZL3O&keywords=study+of+orchestration&qid=1554354116&s=gateway&sprefix=study+of+orc%2Caps%2C203&sr=8-2

I have the 3rd edition. Get it used rather than new. This is a popular choice when studying instrumentation and orchestration for orchestral/chamber music.


Other good orchestration online resources:

http://resources.music.indiana.edu/isfee/

https://www.vsl.co.at/en/Academy/Instrumentology/


The Secrets of Dance Music Production

https://www.amazon.com/Secrets-Dance-Music-Production/dp/0956446035/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=attack+magazine&qid=1554356008&s=gateway&sr=8-1

I haven't checked this one out completely, but it's an interesting resource for electronic music with great visual analysis


And if you're looking for things to improve your composing skills, definitely study counterpoint. Start with Species counterpoint then move to other styles/eras. Learning this completely changed my perspective of theory and why we learn it.


Hope that helps.

For a resource the Live Sound Operator's Handbook is worth a read. It won't get you the experience you need but it will lay a pretty decent foundation and you can read it while you're looking for live sound work.

Everyone I know personally who mixes for bands, including myself, started by doing grunt labor for little to no money, proved they were useful and started getting asked to go to gigs, hauled lots of boxes, wound lots of cable, and did more grunt work. Then got to mix monitors. Then eventually FOH. As word gets around town that you mix well and are reliable more jobs come your way and off you go.

Volunteer, get yourself a small PA, help a friend, whatever just find a way to start mixing bands. Jump at any chance to work with a good engineer and go from there. And don't quit your day job. :)

For engineering concepts, and a great general reference on sound systems and how they work, the Yamaha Sound Reinforcement Handbook

For sound system design, the best reference is Bob McCarthy's Sound Systems: Design and Optimization

For another great book that discusses both system design as well as artistic sound design, John Leondard's Theatre Sound is top notch.

Shannon Slaton's Mixing a Musical: Broadway Theatrical Sound Techniques is a great picture of how the "big shows" are run.

For a beginner's guide to sound, the [http://www.soundcraft.com/support/gtm_booklet.aspx](Soundcraft Guide to Mixing) is a good primer: not as technically dense as the Yamaha book.

There are others out there, these are my favorite.

I download short films on archive.org and mute the sound, and practice scoring to them.

I also wasn't finding much work in film, so I started writing music for indie video game developers. Winifred Phillip's book has been very useful to me (it's a big picture kind of understanding with plenty of practical advice) and I just started reading Aaron Marks' book which has some good stuff in it.

Someone also recently told me about scorbit (started by Berklee I think), which I personally haven't used much but have heard good things. You can set up a free account with them which is nice.

YouTube is filled with great (and shitty) advice. Honestly, I have more sources than I have time to explore anymore, so I'm just picking a few, and doing the hell out of them.

Also, the TigSource forums are great!

[Glen Ballou's book] (http://www.amazon.com/Handbook-Sound-Engineers-4th-Edition/dp/0240809696/ref=pd_sim_sbs_b_1?ie=UTF8&refRID=17XRBA75YDQ47T230Q36) has a lot of really good information in it. Also , this [one] (http://www.amazon.com/Timer-Amp-Optoelectronic-Circuits-Projects/dp/0945053290/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1406325087&sr=1-1&keywords=timers+and+op+amps) from Forrest Mims is cheap effective. Learning some BEE (basic electronics and electricity) is a great place to start. The one /u/tvdf mentioned has a ton of useful information as well. Good luck, it's a lot of fun once you get started!

I love the Izhaki book (Mixing Audio) it's pretty interesting and goes pretty far in depth. Another good book that I like to read idly is Alex Case's Sound FX Book. He's got a very frank and entertaining way of writing that keeps you interested

I used it to develop my critical listening skills for an audio R&D job back in 2007ish. I was a bit skeptical, not having done frequency training before, but it's excellent.

Training with band-limited pink noise works superbly for tuning your ear into appreciating where different bands "live" and the course progresses to boosts and cuts on real music.

Throw in some stuff on delay times, small volume tweaks and other audio effects, and it really makes for a great course. Accessible to beginners, and certainly useful for intermediate too.

I found the book Critical Listening Skills for the Audio Professional a nice complementary resource too. It covers a lot of the same ground, but with more explanation.

Making "beats" typically requires a knowledge of much more than mere musical/rhythmic knowledge. The skilled beat maker understands how to make incredible rhythms out of unconventional-sounding and completely non-percussive sounds, in addition to utilizing the typical drum samples & conventions.

That's why I tell people in your situation - since you're already an instrumentalist - that obtaining a strong knowledge of digital audio workstation software is the most important thing to start out with.

Learn how computer music works, what the technical implications behind it include, and how to effectively edit & produce. Good books to check out are The Computer Music Tutorial (http://www.amazon.com/Computer-Music-Tutorial-Curtis-Roads/dp/0262680823) is brilliant, as is the book Critical Listening Skills (http://www.amazon.com/Critical-Listening-Skills-Audio-Professionals/dp/1598630237/ref=pd_sim_b_6).

At the very same time, experiment with software. You can basically go in three directions in the digital realm: sequencer software, DAW software, or programming languages. These suggestions are put in order of easiest to most difficult. They are also put in order of fewest possibilities to most possibilities.

Ableton Live, Pro Tools, and Max/MSP are examples of types of "instruments" every contemporary beat-maker should know how to use, though I'm sure all will differ in which they prefer for various purposes.

Best of luck man!

I would reccomend reading Mixing Secrets for the Small Studio.

It's an amazing book that doesn't really focus on recipes for the perfect mix, but rather teaches you how to approach a mix,what's the right mindset when deciding the levels for each track and so on. It goes through every basic aspect to more advanced topics.

Give a look to its table of contents. This book may be what you need to find aswers to your questions.

Similarly, I found this series by Izotope very useful.



These are few of the things that helped me when facing the same issues you've mentioned and I hope they help you as well.

Please note that this is a comprehensive guide that could get you through the industry as a professional.

This is the list of audio resources I keep on hand for this very type of thing:

Engineering 101 (Perfect for beginners)

TweakHeadz Guide (free info overload)

The Audio Bible


Mixing Theory


EQ Frequency Chart

Compression Explained (Sound On Sound is great in general)

Compression TL;DR (WARNING: profanity, but great for visual people)


Reddit's /r/audioengineering Wiki (From my personal favorite community to ask questions and discuss audio):
Reddit's Getting Started Guide

Pensado's Place

GearSlutz

If any of these things don't make sense right away (you open a link and have no idea what anything you're looking at means) please feel free to ask me (or the sub) some questions.

For mixing, as already mentioned: Mixing Engineer's Handbook (Bobby Owsinski), Mixing Secrets for the Small Studio (Mike Senior) and also Mixing Audio (Roey Izhaki).

For mastering: Mastering Audio: The Art and the Science (Bob Katz)

And here are some great books that are not strictly about mixing, but which are very insightful about music production in general:

• Here, There and Everywhere: My Life Recording the Music of the Beatles (Geoff Emerick). The story of The Beatles's main engineer during their studio era (1966-1969), fascinating stuff.
  
  
• Recording Unhinged: Creative and Unconventional Music Recording Techniques (Sylvia Massy). If you are not familiar with this awesome lady, look her up.
  
  
• Behind the Glass - Top Record Producers Tell How They Craft the Hits (Howard Massey). A collection of interviews with some of the best record producers.

Jake Perrine wrote three books on Ableton, if you already know the ins and outs of the daw's interface and what not then the other two aren't the most useful, although they do contain some amazing workflow tips and what not, but I'd recommend picking this up http://www.amazon.ca/Sound-Design-Mixing-Mastering-Ableton/dp/1480355119 . It's great for Ableton specific Mixing and Mastering.

Also, another series of books that are fantastic for continuing music training are these ones. http://www.amazon.ca/Composition-Computer-Musicians-Michael-Hewitt/dp/1598638610
They are a little less about production and more about composition, harmony and theory but very well written and informative.

I always recommend this book to people looking for information on Reason:

http://www.amazon.com/Reason-Power-Book-Michael-Prager/dp/1598634771/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1262104174&sr=8-1

This guy covers everything... Every knob, slider and button. It also contains a lot of tutorials.

As xabermanx said, get a midi controller to do your actually writing. Otherwise, you're stuck using the pencil tool to draw notes into the piano roll. I use the M-Audio Axiom 49, but you can find something cheaper that will work just fine.

As far as online resources, here are a few:

http://audio.tutsplus.com/ - They have a lot of Reason specific tutorials

http://www.musicradar.com/tuition/tech - This is the site for music magazines like Computer Music. There are quite a few tutorials in here, too.

http://www.boyinaband.com/ - I think this guy offers my favorite Reason tutorials out there. He offers step by step instruction on how to create your own synths and all kinds of stuff.

I'd also recommend checking out Propellerheads website. They have a ton of tutorials available here: http://www.propellerheads.se/substance/discovering-reason/

Last but not least, I'd recommend you look at picking up Record for Reason at some point. Record is Propellerheads new software built for live playing. If you get a good audio interface, you can record vocals, guitar, drums, etc... over your Reason tracks. It uses the Line 6 PodFarm software. If you don't have an interface and are looking at going that route, you will need to get a Line 6 interface or an iLock to use the Pod Farm software.

http://www.propellerheads.se/products/record/

There's no expectation that you produced every sound yourself either. Just ask the Beastie Boys, or any rapper for that matter.

The thoughts you express here are harmful to creativity. I'd advise you to change your perspective on what constitutes authenticity.

Also, you don't know me. Don't assume that you know my artistic process. My post here comes from having studied and taught mindsets that are beneficial for creative output.

Some resources for you that I'm sure you'd find helpful:

The Mental Game of Electronic Music Production by Jason Timothyhttps://www.amazon.com/Music-Habits-Electronic-Production-Procrastination-ebook/dp/B00ZJG398U

The Secrets of Dance Music Production by David Felton
https://www.amazon.com/Secrets-Dance-Music-Production/dp/0956446035/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1538863017&sr=81&keywords=the+secret+of+dance+music+production

I'd also highly recommend the music school taught by Mike Monday. He's coached people like Claude Von Stroke and is a well-accomplished producer himself. His insights into the creative process are among the best I've found. Nothing technical, all mindset, which is the biggest stumbling block to making and releasing lots of quality music in my opinion. https://mikemonday.com/

To respond to this, I'd like to quote from one of my favorite books: The Audiophile's Project Sourcebook by G. Randy Slone

>In order to classify one item as better than another, we must first understand the criteria for evaluation. If we intend on using sonic accuracy (i.e., distortion performance) as a baseline for evaluation, then the bulk of the commercial vacuum tube amplifiers don't even come close to solid-state models...In truth, however, the audiophile enthusiasts who prefer vacuum tube equipment don't desire their equipment to perform equally with solid-state units, because it would then sound like solid-state units....

He continues

>Practical testing throughout the past few decades indicates that the lowest humanly perceivable level of low-frequency even-order harmonic distortion is about 1%. Some audiophiles consider higher levels of this type of distortion (i.e., 2 to 4%) desirable, which explains the modern trend toward high-distortion vacuum tube equipment (vacuum tube-based audio equipment tends to produce higher levels of lower-frequency even-order distortion in comparison to their solid-state counterparts).

You see, Mr. Gallo simply likes the sound of tube equipment. The part I don't agree with is spreading falsehoods about solid-state amplification. Why do you think top recording studios, cinema production companies, and audio professionals everywhere use solid-state equipment in their facilities? I would suggest it's because, through the wonders of technological advancement, solid state electronics can produce incredibly low distortion in small, energy-efficient packages, which cost less to purchase, and certainly cost less to maintain.

Mr. Gallo is entitled to his unfounded opinion, even if he claims it as fact.

OK, not trying to come off as "snarky" in my comment. Simply addressing audio physics. The way graphic EQs function mechanically you would loose a lot of power just by reducing your 1K handle. not to mention the phase problems.

Being that it is a work in progress, you need to flatten your EQ and work on the processor from 200Hz up. A good start would be reducing that section of your crossover's output by 6 dB bringing your EQ closer to flat.

>Theory is important and essential to understanding and making sense of what you see in live sound rigs, but it comes down to what you hear in the end.

This is half true, sound, sound waves, phase, and coherence are invisible.

You are essentially, for example, taking a Ford truck, let's say with a Hemi engine, putting it in drive, giving it gas, then putting the brakes on as you try to drive fast.

This may not make any sense right now but I assure you the physics are 100% true. If I could suggest a book for you to check out, Sound System Design and Optimization by Bob McCarthy. I'm sure you can even find the PDF if you scoured the internet for it. It will open your eyes (and ears) to ideas you haven't yet imagined.

It seems like you want an intro that is intermediate in level rather than for absolute beginners, one that focuses on audio rather than general theory, and one that isn't primarily focused on projects.

I don't happen to know of a book that is an exact fit, but you might be interested in "The Audiophile's Project Sourcebook: 80 High-Performance Audio Electronics Projects"

http://www.amazon.com/Audiophiles-Project-Sourcebook-High-Performance-Electronics/dp/0071379290

But usually in order to really understand electronics, you have to deviate from your immediate goal, so a general electronics text might turn out to be the best of what's available out there.

One truly classic famous book is The Computer Music Tutorial by Curtis Roads: http://www.amazon.com/Computer-Music-Tutorial-Curtis-Roads/dp/0262680823

I consider this a must-read despite the fact that it is aging, and regardless of the fact that it is not purely schematic diagrams. The conceptual understanding of the general topic is more important than the medium that implements something.

Familiarize yourself with the limitations of those old video games and start writing music within that framework. For example, for NES games you'll want a chiptune tracker (FamiTracker is decent and free), while for SNES games (which used FM synthesis) you'll want to collect some cheesy soundfonts and GUS patches and compose music with those in a program like FLStudio or Reaper.

The Complete Guide to Game Audio may assist you.

Now that you've got some experience with the tools, try re-scoring some recorded gameplay footage (or even just some scenes from 80s movies) and don't forget to design the sound effects as well. Come join us in /r/gamedev or maybe poke around flashgamelicense.com and see what's cooking that you're interested in.

Good luck! :)

https://www.amazon.com/Ultimate-Sound-Operators-Handbook-Guides/dp/1617805599

https://www.amazon.com/Mixing-Engineers-Handbook-4th-ebook/dp/B01N6SFVMS

These could be really helpful for what you’re doing. Your peers that you work live gigs with are great resources as well.
Best of luck!

I've never used Audacity but I doubt it's causing any problems with your sound. DAW's generally don't directly impart anything to the sound of the audio. I think it's more likely to be your mic, recording technique or mixing.

It sounds like your vocals are clipping. I've never used a USB mic. Does it have an input gain? How do you control the strength of the signal that it sends to the computer? Are you running any plugins on what we hear in this recording?

I would focus on getting a cleaner recording prior to mixing. That being said, if I had to work with this vocal recording as-is, one of the first things I would address is the sibilance. It's pretty brutal. I would definitely put a de-esser on these vocals. If Audacity doesn't come with one, you can probably find a freeware plugin or you can shell out $30 for one from Waves:

https://www.waves.com/plugins/deesser?gclid=Cj0KCQjwho7rBRDxARIsAJ5nhFqMUAjLTR8WqSPyRmzn0JKgjxp7_oprsVoreHbSUdBXDSwa_xr1tpcaAhdeEALw_wcB#andrew-scheps-on-deessing-guitars-and-cymbals

The vocals also are a bit loud which is making the rest of the instruments sound small. You might get a mixing book and practice some mixing. I recommend this one:

https://www.amazon.com/Mixing-Secrets-Small-Studio-Presents/dp/1138556378/ref=sr_1_2?crid=ARKCMXORM8IP&keywords=mixing+secrets+for+the+small+studio&qid=1566872451&s=gateway&sprefix=mixing+secrets%2Caps%2C185&sr=8-2

The ones that I felt were the most comprehensive and not so boring were these: and I recommend using them in this order:

https://www.amazon.com/Producing-Music-Ableton-Quick-Guides/dp/1480355100/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1483652098&sr=8-3&keywords=ableton+books

https://www.amazon.com/Interactive-Composition-Strategies-Using-Ableton/dp/0199973822/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1483652133&sr=8-1&keywords=interactive+composition

https://www.amazon.com/Design-Mixing-Mastering-Ableton-Guides/dp/1480355119/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1483652098&sr=8-2&keywords=ableton+books

I went through a handful more than this but those three probably helped me the most. Notable mention is Ableton Live 9 Power! But I found it to be really boring.

You could just go with the first book and it would be a fantastic step in the door to Ableton. Interactive Composition is the most fun but it's definitely less thorough. The last book is just if you want to go even deeper into using Ableton, it just shows more of Abletons uses for mixing. It basically starts off right where the first book ends. It's also shorter than the first so it's pretty quick to get through.

Critical Listening Skills for Audio Professionals and the The S.M.A.R.T. Guide to Mixing And Mastering Audio Recordings are excellent for beginners, particularly because they come with an audio CD and DVD respectively to aid in the learning process. After going through those two books thoroughly I would strongly suggest you always keep a copy of Modern Recording Techniques by your side for reference. When you're ready and willing to read fairly advanced literature on the subject you should look in to a book like Acoustics, which explores the physics of sound, although it's no longer being published I'm sure there are several similar books available.

You should not agree to an hourly rate as a freelance audio producer. You should have a per minute of audio rate. Rates tend to be all over the place but depending on the project you can safely ask for $30 per minute of audio. I usually ask for $50-100 per minute of audio. I highly suggest reading entirely through Game Audio by Aaron Marks. You should also write royalties into your contract. Usually a percentage of profits. 1-5% for total audio production (one person) is probably fine.

Tl;dr Only agree to hourly rates if you are hired as an in-house audio producer.

For recording, I'd strongly recommend the books Recording Secrets for the Small Studio and Mixing Secrets for the Small Studio by Mike Senior. They cover everything you need to know in a simple, readable format. I'd also recommend browsing the archives of Sound on Sound Magazine. It has been the leading music tech magazine since 1987 and the archives are a treasury of knowledge.

For guitar pedals, I'd recommend the YouTube channel That Pedal Show. It's a weekly series all about pedals and amps. The presenters really know their stuff - Mick is editor-in-chief at Guitarist magazine and Dan is a professional guitarist who builds pedalboards for some of the best players in the world. Their videos show off some of the best gear in the world, but they also cover really basic topics like how to power your pedals, what order to put your pedals in and how many watts your amp should be.

When I first started out, I would google/YouTube basically everything. Wish I could recommend specific YouTubers or videos, but this was a while back. Find some beginner videos on YouTube.
This looks like a pretty solid overview to Logic X.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hU5XhG5Ywbk

If you want to learn absolutely everything about Logic, read this.
http://www.amazon.com/Apple-Pro-Training-Series-Professional/dp/0321967593

Wouldn't hurt to give producing a shot. Having good studio vibe is important for engineers or anyone who works any job in a studio setting. Producing other people's music is a fast track to learning that. Not to mention building a good network. You could get a crack at mixing the artists track to which is great practice.

If I remember correctly the books that head the most impact for me were:

http://www.amazon.com/Critical-Listening-Skills-Audio-Professionals/dp/1598630237

http://www.amazon.com/Mixing-Audio-2e-Roey-Izhaki/dp/0240522222

http://www.amazon.com/Behind-Glass-Record-Producers-Softcover/dp/0879306149

The event list shows all the midi events that Logic associates with the piano roll. It's a tabular depiction of the blocks in the piano roll, along with a lot of detail. Ordinarily you don't need it, but to tweak the velocity of a single note, or to figure out why you're getting double note strikes (fer instance), it's a godsend.

You should nab Apple Pro Training Series: Logic Pro X by David Nahmani. It's a great tutorial that walks you through a mind-boggling huge set of Logic features.

Yep - assuming you've got midi involved, you can change the instrument to something else.

This is kind of Logic 101 - you might want to invest in a book or two. The Logic manual is pretty dry, and overwhelming in detail. Most folks recommend reading the manual, but I found it hard to slog through. Get some time in the software, then start chewing through the manual.

I liked these two books for getting me started and wrapping my mind around the product:

Apple Pro Training Series: Logic Pro X - it's a set of tutorials you follow along that show you all the major parts of the software.

GEM: Logic Pro X - how it works - a highly illustrated manual showing how Logic works under the hood.

Also check the sidebar if you're in to video. The Mac Pro Video courses for Logic are generally very good.

I recently asked something similar on /r/dsp looking for a way to program hardware to make sound. One of the posters pointed me to these two books made by a korg dev who wrote how to make VSTs and the like (You'll be most interested in the second book). All C++ and from what Ive read so far really good books. ALSO look into the Juce library for more. They started as an independent library before Roli bought them and have been improving the core tools substantially. They even have smartphone tools to make android/ios synths. Again this is C++.

(Link to the poster who showed me for credit)

While there are some excellent books on the subject and plenty of online media, I would say the best place to start is wikipedia just to familiarize yourself with the field, the basic process, and some of the lingo.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audio_engineering

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sound_recording

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audiomixing%28recorded_music%29

From there you can move on to more comprehensive materials, such as this online multimedia audio course, or hard copy educational materials such as The Recording Engineer's Handbook or The Mixing Engineer's Handbook

Getting some mixing software would also be helpful. If you have a Mac, garageband is actual not a bad place to start for getting the basics of multitrack recording and mixing down. Otherwise, Reaper is basically the lowest cost fully featured Digital Audio Workstation on the market.

If you don't have the gear to start doing recordings yourself, you can always seek out recording stems to practice mixing with. If you don't mind industrial music, Nine Inch Nails provides their fans with multitrack versions of many of their songs for remixing purposes. See the remix section of nin.com. You'll need to register, but its free. Once you have the multitrack recordings, you can import them into your DAW and use them to practice balancing the mix, experiment with EQ, compression, panning, and what not.

Mastering and Mixing are two terms that seem to get used interchangeably (especially on the music subreddits), and really shouldn't be. It's a little pet peeve of mine. Wall of text coming your way:


Mixing is the process of getting good balance and making everything sound "good" in a mix. This usually involves adding reverb, EQ, and compression. Mixing is difficult to do well, and there is a lot of room for creativity and taste. When most people say they mastered a song, they really mean they a mixed a song.

Mastering is the process of taking audio and bringing them up to commercial standards (called red book standards.) This is done with a stereo audio file, and involves very delicate EQ, and a special type of compression. This is usually the last step a track has before being put on CD and really mainly done if you expect to be releasing a physical album. It is a very difficult job (and mastering engineers get paid a lot of money for this!)

While there are a few books written on the topic, mastering/mixing music is an aural skill. Sure, you have to learn how compressors, EQ, and reverb work, but that is nothing compared to training your ears to do the job. You can't learn that in a book. It just takes practice.

Software? I personally love using Reaper for home recording.

Also, read this book.

I recommend to read front to back, but it works great as a reference manual as well. Lots of detail into the intricacies of the reason program.

There are very good books on Amazon which might get you started on game audio. Some links :

Game Sound: An Introduction to the History, Theory, and Practice of Video Game Music and Sound Design
A Composer's Guide to Game Music
The Complete Guide to Game Audio: For Composers, Musicians, Sound Designers, Game Developers

About the audio engines (audio middleware), the two big ones are FMOD and Wise (when the studio is not using its own middleware). There are some tutorials on Youtube which might get you started on that. It's essential to know the basics of sound integration (I mean how to use FMOD/Wise with game engines) if you want to work in video games.

Also, come join us over at /r/gameaudio

1. Ableton for midi / sampling, logic for recording audio (in my opinion. They both have lovely interfaces)
   
2. Closed back headphones, and turn down the click. (change the click it to a hi-hat or something less harsh if its picking through the mic)
   
3. Get an audio interface. Plug headphones into headphone output and monitors through main output. You can turn down monitors and keep the headphone signal for recording.
   
4. Timothy Dittmar wrote this easy reading book which explains everything in great detail. Definitely worth a read for beginners in my opinion.
   
   ( https://www.amazon.co.uk/Audio-Engineering-101-Beginners-Production/dp/0240819152 )

this is the best i know of that covers many subjects in the world of audio. its directed toward sound engineers but a lot of would be of interest to you. breakdowns on things like acoustics, sound treatment, electronics, ad/da and a ton more. take a look at the table of contents. http://www.amazon.com/Handbook-Sound-Engineers-Glen-Ballou/dp/0240809696

I've found it worthwhile to learn what all the knobs, switches, buttons, and slides do. This applies to all the synths and samplers. This allows you to tweak the preset patches and experiment less blindly. Youtube is a good resource but I've gotten more from this book
But I vote anything that sounds good acceptable!

Thanks bradmitri! If you want a good book to learn more about width and depth, you should read The Mixing Engineer's Handbook. It has helped me a lot in terms of figuring out arrangement and how to improve my mixing.

David Nahmani's book is a great, comprehensive and easy to follow resource. That's how I got into it!

https://www.amazon.com/Logic-Pro-10-1-Professional-Production/dp/0134185730

The cheapest way to do this would be a Zoom recorder which has built in interface, or you could look into the headphone/condensor mike/interface packages from Steinberg, Focusrite, Presonus etc. I got one with scarlett 2i2, the interface and headphones are pretty good, the mike not so much, i would get an audio technica at2020 or AkG p120 instead.

Good background reading, probably in your local library: Home Recording for Dummies and https://www.amazon.com/Home-Recording-Handbook-Youve-Great/dp/087930958X

and https://www.amazon.com/Recording-Secrets-Small-Studio-Senior/dp/0415716705/

https://www.amazon.de/Secrets-Dance-Music-Production-Cutting-Edge/dp/0956446035/ref=sr_1_1?s=books-intl-de&ie=UTF8&qid=1523906870&sr=1-1&keywords=Music+production

Currently the best. Can‘t praise it enough.

that’s actually pretty realistic advice....just keep trying. keep throwing darts at it and you’ll hit the bullseye eventually. keep watching videos, messing around, and putting time in

you’ll want to give up a lot - but every time you overcome that feeling you’ll come back more inspired.

also, check our Syntorial

and this book:
The Secrets of Dance Music Production https://www.amazon.com/dp/0956446035/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_Ncp2DbCN85VDK

There's no solid books specifically on "Hip-Hop' production. The one's I've read have been hoop-lah. What you can get him is a book on software, or on a synthesizer.

If there are other books like music theory, or production in general, that may help. But I have no experience in that section. Good luck!

You would probably benefit from attending [Meyer SIM training](http://www.meyersound.com/events/seminars/courses.php#SIM 3 Training and System Design), if you're in a position to do that. It's offered internationally. You would also probably get a lot of good info from Bob McCarthy's book, Sound Systems: Design and Optimization: Modern Techniques and Tools for Sound System Design and Alignment.

This is the book here. I've started reading it, but haven't actually gotten around to trying it myself. He's supposed to have a whole plugin platform that is basically ready to go so that you can focus on the synth part and not on all the infrastructure. It looks very promising.

Fair warning: synths can be beasts. The DSP part isn't what's going to give you the most trouble, hopefully. This book covers synth architectures and coding them in C++. I strongly recommend going through his first book on audio effect plugin design. The author is a former engineer at Korg.

I strongly recommend you start with a plugin before porting it to a hardware platform.

I wish I had this book when I started. It's a great overview for a beginner!

The Secrets of Dance Music Production https://www.amazon.com/dp/0956446035/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_r0hmDbF5S638M

Reading this will teach you the Fundamentals of creating Dance Music. I have a copy and I'm actually reading it right now very Helpful, very well written.

I’m just gonna come out and say this:

Try reading an audio engineering book before buying anything.

I don’t wanna be a Jerk and post a snarky reply but these are really basic questions that could all be easily answered simply by reading a book...



https://www.amazon.com/Recording-Techniques-Engineering-Society-Presents/dp/1138954373/ref=mp_s_a_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1549576072&sr=8-5&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=audio+engineering+books&dpPl=1&dpID=514099eQvRL&ref=plSrch

Feel free to ask about gear specific questions but you need to have some basic understanding about what the equipment does and how to use it.

Edit: Spelling and grammar.

http://www.amazon.com/Sound-FX-Unlocking-Potential-Recording/dp/0240520327/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1457647368&sr=1-1&keywords=alex+case

http://www.amazon.com/Shaping-Sound-Studio-Beyond-Aesthetics/dp/1598633910/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1457647230&sr=1-1&keywords=gary+gottlieb

I've met both authors, too. Both are incredibly passionate educators within the audio community and just overall nice people.

Absolutely. I can’t believe how far I had to scroll to find this comment.

Supplement with this one as well: Modern Recording Techniques (Audio Engineering Society Presents) https://www.amazon.com/dp/1138954373/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_UVzrDbZR5H4QB

They give you a good idea of where to start if you’re new and are immensely helpful to beginners.

I began as a classical pianist, got a DMA, been teaching for almost 20 years, mid 30s now. I like the Mike Senior books on building and running a studio (mixing and recording ), and used them in a commercial recording class I taught a while back. They are a great place to start.

I would strongly recommend you check your local public library to see if they have a copy of this book, like my local library did: http://www.amazon.com/Understanding-Audio-Getting-Professional-Recording/dp/0634009591

I ended up buying my own copy after borrowing one because it's just that good. It'll answer your question and then some.

*Pulls up PDF of book, flips to table of contents. *

​

Yeah, just by looking at the section headings and subjects, this is all about live sound reinforcement. Not really that useful for DAW music production. Unless you're aiming to be a FOH engineer.

​

You want a good book for learning about music technology, recording, and FX? The book Modern Recording Techniques may be more in the alley of what you're looking for. I'm sure you can find a PDF of it online, but its one of the few books I recommend actually purchasing.

If you're just starting out and want to learn the ins and outs of it, get this book: http://www.amazon.com/dp/0321967593/ref=cm_sw_r_udp_awd_fNQttb0MQ3DBX

It's amazing at teaching you the basics and going into some deeper stuff that'll allow you to really go where you need to go. It's actually the only book that's certified by Apple and after you go through the book, you can go get your official Apple certification license for Logic if you ever decide to go that route.

You want to learn the basics of C++, which can be done alone if you have enough persistence, a good book, and can reach out to people for help or just take a class in community college. Then get started on a project.


C++ Primer

• This will teach you the basics of C++
  
• https://www.amazon.com/Primer-Plus-6th-Developers-Library/dp/0321776402/ref=sr_1_2?s=lawn-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1548995509&sr=8-2&keywords=C%2B%2B+Primer
  
  Designing Software Synthesizer Plug-Ins in C++:
  
  
• https://www.amazon.com/Designing-Software-Synthesizer-Plug-Ins-RackAFX/dp/1138787078/ref=sr_1_fkmr1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1548995557&sr=8-2-fkmr1&keywords=Designing++vst+plugins
  
  ​
  
  Designing Audio Effect Plug-Ins in C++
  
  
• https://www.amazon.com/Designing-Audio-Effect-Plug-Ins-Processing/dp/0240825152/ref=pd_bxgy_img_2/138-0414389-6890603?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0240825152&pd_rd_r=7063af91-25da-11e9-b2b2-83751d0b2340&pd_rd_w=v6mGa&pd_rd_wg=bRXL7&pf_rd_p=3f9889ac-6c45-46e8-b515-3af650557207&pf_rd_r=7QWB9RZWTXXHMW3S95X9&psc=1&refRID=7QWB9RZWTXXHMW3S95X9

There are a bunch of really good books out there for learning the basics. Try reading http://www.amazon.com/Understanding-Audio-Getting-Professional-Recording/dp/0634009591

It's pretty lightweight, but gives you a good foundation, and the book is not a huge investment like a lot of textbooks can be.

You can learn everything you need to know about how to operate it in a weekend. Unfortunately, what you won't learn in a weekend is how to effectively record and mix music. I recommend you pick up a book on mixing audio like Mixing Secrets for the small studio or The Recording Engineer's Handbook if you plan on recording through this mixing desk.

The Recording Engineer's Handbook by Bobby Owsinski is a great guide for this, with loads of other useful info in it as well. I know it isn't an app but I feel everyone who records anything should own this.

there is an excellent book on the subject. https://www.amazon.ca/Sound-Design-Mixing-Mastering-Ableton/dp/1480355119

Check out this book: https://www.amazon.com/Designing-Software-Synthesizer-Plug-Ins-RackAFX/dp/1138787078/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?keywords=DSP+synth+will+pirkle&qid=1570634689&sr=8-1-fkmr0

​

Get it along with free software and it walks you through developing digital synth plugins.

Have you watched this yet?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TEjOdqZFvhY

And read this:
https://www.amazon.com/Recording-Engineers-Handbook-Bobby-Owsinski/dp/159863867X

And the Youtube Channel "Recording Revolution" has some good beginner stuff.

A solid book for this is Understanding Audio by Daniel Thompson. Covers the basics, and not so basic info about a lot of subjects important to audio engineering. It has a couple of chapters pertaining specifically to signal flow. It is available from Amazon.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0634009591/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_x2rMybMMSN74Q

Here's a few I would recommend.

• Audio Interface. At least 2 mic inputs. Focusrite Scarlett 2i2, there are bundles for this btw some come with headphones/mic/cable etc.
  
  
• Monitor Speakers. KRK Rokit 5.
  
  
• Monitor Headphones. Sony MDR-7506
  
  
• Condenser Microphone. Audio Technica AT2020
  
  
• Dynamic Microphone. Shure SM57
  
  
• Reference books. Mixing Engineers Handbook, Recording Engineers Handbook
  
  That would be enough to get you started. Some are a bit expensive but do a google search for alternatives.

This book is good http://www.amazon.com/Sound-FX-Unlocking-Potential-Recording/dp/0240520327/

There are lots of good audio amplifier circuits in (Book 1) and/or (Book 2) .

If those books are too technical for you, you can try (Book 3) or (Website 1) and (Website 2)

Check out this book, I just got it yesterday and it really helps you understand what everything in the software is about and how to use it.

Highly recommend this one. I'm only half way through and learned so much so far. I'll prob need another read through.

The Mixing Engineer's Handbook 4th Edition https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N6SFVMS/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_3iQBCb2M9RWM6

sound reenforcement handbook for fundamentals

https://www.amazon.com/Sound-Reinforcement-Handbook-Gary-Davis/dp/0881889008/ref=pd_bxgy_14_img_3?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0881889008&pd_rd_r=CCG9CPVAPDH3ECTFGHMA&pd_rd_w=C5R8y&pd_rd_wg=5hRnU&psc=1&refRID=CCG9CPVAPDH3ECTFGHMA

system set up and optimization

https://www.amazon.com/Sound-Systems-Optimization-Techniques-Alignment/dp/0415731011/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1496423594&sr=8-1&keywords=sound+system+design+and+optimization

deeper fundamentals and underlying theory behind systems,

https://www.amazon.com/Sound-System-Engineering-Don-Davis/dp/0240818466/ref=pd_sim_14_10?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0240818466&pd_rd_r=HSPA70XSS4QNR9DZF1P5&pd_rd_w=5ywPt&pd_rd_wg=X1Td5&psc=1&refRID=HSPA70XSS4QNR9DZF1P5

approachable fundamentals, but not too much deeper theory - kind of a up and running style of book

https://www.amazon.com/Ultimate-Operators-Handbook-Guides-online/dp/1617805599/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8

This book will give you what you need to know, even if you don't have any DSP background (though you should definitely read up outside of the book). My professor taught us out of it for one of our digital audio classes in which we designed FX plugins.

http://www.amazon.com/Designing-Software-Synthesizer-Plug-Ins-RackAFX/dp/1138787078

C++ for the core code, Objective-C/Swift for the UI if you need to make an audio unit or C++ for a VST.

I found these two books to be great, but they would likely be very overwhelming for somebody who doesn't have much programming experience.

https://www.amazon.com/Designing-Audio-Effect-Plug-Ins-Processing/dp/0240825152

https://www.amazon.com/Designing-Software-Synthesizer-Plug-Ins-RackAFX/dp/1138787078/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_14_t_1?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=D56EXGZ6Y9A7ENTTBEGC

I am Logic Pro Certified by Apple. I recommend you buy and read this book

I've learned the most from macProVideo and these two books:

• Logic Pro X 10.1: Apple Pro Training Series: Professional Music Production
  
• Apple Pro Training Series: Logic Pro X Advanced Audio Production: Composing and Producing Professional Audio
  

Pretty basic book, if that's confusing then you'll really be stumped by this one:

http://www.amazon.com/Sound-Systems-Optimization-Techniques-Alignment/dp/0240521560

The Berklee Press book "Understanding Audio: Getting the Most Out of Your Project or Professional Recording Studio" was highly recommended by a buddy of mine who took the course. I just ordered it yesterday.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0634009591/ref=od_aui_detailpages00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

gotchu fam. I'm just guessing, as I don't own this book, but the title of this post is "the secrets of dance music production" so I googled that and found this on amazon.

Mike Senior's Mixing Secrets for the Small Studio is solid: https://www.amazon.com/Mixing-Secrets-Small-Studio-Presents/dp/1138556378/ref=dp_ob_title_bk

https://www.amazon.com/Sound-Systems-Optimization-Techniques-Alignment/dp/0240521560 If you want to get REALLY in the weeds about audio system setup and theory

https://www.amazon.com/Theory-Computer-Musicians-Michael-Hewitt/dp/1598635034

https://www.amazon.com/Secrets-Dance-Music-Production/dp/0956446035

Bob McCarthy's Design book. It's given out at every class he teachers from Meyer but you can get it online too.

http://www.amazon.com/Sound-Systems-Optimization-Techniques-Alignment/dp/0240521560

https://www.amazon.com/Sound-Systems-Optimization-Techniques-Alignment/dp/0240521560

For me it was a combination of online resources/forums, jumping in head first on projects and reading this book cover to cover.

My acoustical engineering bible. Buy it used. It has a topic on every acoustical engineering topic you can imagine written the leading professors in each field.

http://www.amazon.com/Handbook-Sound-Engineers-4th-Edition/dp/0240809696

EDIT: The book is 1600+ pages and very detailed.

http://www.amazon.com/Apple-Pro-Training-Series-Professional/dp/0321967593

The Logic Pro X book by David Namahdi.

Do you have a link? Or do you mean Mixing Secrets for the Small Studio?

You should read this book instead.

Green Bible

Edit: Formatting

buy this book

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1138556378/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

not sure if this would be up your alley: The Audiophile's Project Sourcebook: 80 High-Performance Audio Electronics Projects - i was looking into guitar pedal design. Maybe look into pedal schematics. This may be totally off from you're asking though, I'm not sure..

It's a magazine, I know googling "adsr magazine book" is pretty stupid on paper but it worked for me.

https://www.amazon.com/Secrets-Dance-Music-Production/dp/0956446035


EDIT: actually this magazine is just called Attack. I may be wrong? This book still looks pretty cool.

Here

http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/159863867X?pc_redir=1404448977&robot_redir=1

I cannot give you the knowledge you seek on reddit. And I can assure you its not the gear. It's the fact that even in the lost you refer to you guys as complete idiots. But you aren't and idiot, you are ignorant. If you are willing that can be fixed.

You want a recording. That is hard. The knowledge on how to even make a simple recording will require work to achieve. There is no simple answer to a question this broad.

If you don't want to do the work, then just find a studio and pay someone else to record you.

if you're trying to figure out how people are doing the things they are doing in 2019 books are a waste of time. the "book" you should be reading from is other people's songs. reference reference reference. you're not going to get anything but fundamentals from books. no book is going to tell you to clip or slam your shit with OTT which as memey as it is - that's the modern sound.

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if you're stubborn though here's a books that will tell you less than 10 of your favorite reference tracks: https://www.amazon.com/Secrets-Dance-Music-Production/dp/0956446035