# Brand new here, currently building my first home studio in about 15 years.



## Sschaefer (May 12, 2020)

Hey I joined by invite of a friend. 
I am looking for some essentials in getting my home studio setup. 
I'll be making all sorts of music from rock, metal, industrial rock to scoring theatrical music, etc... 
I plan to build it out this year so my first step is to be able to record guitar and keyboard elements first. 
I have a ton of metal songs I need to get out of my head followed by some film score type stuff. 
Anyways, I'd greatly appreciate some help! I literally have nothing, just the instruments!


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## Thundercat (May 12, 2020)

Welcome! Glad you're here!

I'm sure you'll get a shit ton of responses, but I'll start off by saying, at minimum, you're going to need to get a computer (Mac/PC - your first decision)

Then you'll need to get a DAW (as many as there are stars in the sky, but popular here are Logic, Cubase, and on the cheap but great, Reaper)

You'll also need to get an audio interface to plug your instruments into, such as UA Apollo, LUNA, or any of a number of others. I personally have an Apogee Quartet that sounds great.

That's just the start...then you'll need to also invest in time LEARNING your chosen gear - perhaps even more important than actually acquiring it. We call the tendency here to acquire gear, instead of actually making music, "GAS", or Gear Acquisition Syndrome.

Welcome again, read a lot, post, and I'm super glad you made it here!!

Mike


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## Sschaefer (May 12, 2020)

Thanks! Luckily I've got a good PC. 
And I've been composing/making music my whole life, I've always just had others do the recording and mixing for me. GAS shouldn't be a problem with me. 
I am technically illiterate so I'm hoping to learn a lot from y'all! 

What's some of the biggest things to look for in an audio interface? 
Plugging in bass, guitar, keyboard, mic etc...


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## Sschaefer (May 12, 2020)

The main way I've been recording and getting music out of my head had been manual live tracking on a keyboard / series of cell phone recordings I lay on top of eachother haha... Terrible I know, but I'm ready to roll my sleeves up and get dirty.


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## Sschaefer (May 12, 2020)

Thundercat said:


> Welcome! Glad you're here!
> 
> I'm sure you'll get a shit ton of responses, but I'll start off by saying, at minimum, you're going to need to get a computer (Mac/PC - your first decision)
> 
> ...


So why the quartet over the duet?


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## Thundercat (May 12, 2020)

I liked the form factor better.


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## Thundercat (May 12, 2020)

Sschaefer said:


> Thanks! Luckily I've got a good PC.
> And I've been composing/making music my whole life, I've always just had others do the recording and mixing for me. GAS shouldn't be a problem with me.
> I am technically illiterate so I'm hoping to learn a lot from y'all!
> 
> ...


I wish I could give you good advice here. This is just my opinion, but I look for high quality conversion - wait a moment - now the rest of the gang is going to chime in and many will say "even the cheapest interfaces have high quality conversion now!"

But I try to go with big names, like Apogee, and I've got some Lavry Blue converters in my studio as well that are awesome. Others will probably recommend Apollo stuff - but it's been a couple of years since I've shopped for this stuff so my actual knowledge has dwindled.

As far as GAS, haha, nice try - there is no person on the planet immune. Especially if you stay in this forum/marketplace too long.

I try to learn from the other great musicians and composers here, but there's a high level of marketing noise that easily distracts you very quickly. People posting threads like "OMG - CSW IS OUT!"

Oh and the acronyms. Haha, good luck; I still don't know half of them, but there is a dictionary here somewhere on the forum for what they all mean. I resented them at first, but now I am kind of immune and even use them myself.

But seriously besides buying a great interface, consider investing in training on your DAW, at minimum. There's some great training available on GROOVE3 - you'd have to check if they have training on your DAW but if so it's terrific. I am getting to grips with Logic Pro X, but it's a super slow process and besides training the best thing you can do is just use it and get your hands dirty.

And trust me - the production side of things is a WHOLE other ball of wax than simply writing a great song. Oh, if it were only that easy!

And you WILL, shortly, be sucked into the plugin game, so best advice I can give you is, try to just use the plugs that come with your DAW and only buy something else if you really research it and think it will help you. Often the plugins that your DAW comes with, for compression, EQ, etc, are fairly decent, and you won't need more than fairly decent to start off with.

Hopefully others will chime in here shortly with some solid suggestions for you for an interface. Let us know what other gear you might be interested in.

Good luck!

Mike


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## Sschaefer (May 12, 2020)

Thundercat said:


> I wish I could give you good advice here. This is just my opinion, but I look for high quality conversion - wait a moment - now the rest of the gang is going to chime in and many will say "even the cheapest interfaces have high quality conversion now!"
> 
> But I try to go with big names, like Apogee, and I've got some Lavry Blue converters in my studio as well that are awesome. Others will probably recommend Apollo stuff - but it's been a couple of years since I've shopped for this stuff so my actual knowledge has dwindled.
> 
> ...


Thanks. I think I am leaving towards Cubase. 
I think the biggest guidance I need (outside of my own research I do) is what to look for in a good audio interface.. What specs are a must, and what specs are perks? I am not opposed to spending money, but for now I'd like to get up and running with about 1K if that's possible...


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## Sears Poncho (May 12, 2020)

Sschaefer said:


> is what to look for in a good audio interface..


Figure out how many inputs you might need at one time. Figure out the outputs of various devices and how you want to use them. Some have digital outs, you may or may not want to use that. Something like a Pod has usb out, so it's an audio interface on its own. In other words, if you just used an Electric guitar and a Pod, you wouldn't need an interface (at least in theory). Also, you might want enough inputs so you don't have to unplug/plug things in a lot. Welcome!


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## MartinH. (May 13, 2020)

Welcome! You'll find some good metal recording and production advice here: 








SpectreSoundStudios


Subscribe for the most honest gear reviews on Youtube! HIT THE BELL FOR NOTIFICATIONS ON NEW VIDEOS! Hit "All" if you actually want to see them! Greetings, I...




www.youtube.com







Sschaefer said:


> Thanks. I think I am leaving towards Cubase.


I think this is probably the hardest choice you need to make because switching DAWs later is a huge hassle compared to switching audio interfaces or similar. Make sure you know what you're getting yourself into with the DAW you pick. Maybe watch some comparison videos on youtube. I don't want to give you any recommendation here, because I only have experience with one DAW, so naturally I'd recommend just that one.

And before you buy any plugins, just in case you aren't aware, there are frequent sales for almost everything. If you buy anything that isn't on sale (with very few exceptions) you're basically throwing money out the window. E.g. there are ~300$ plugins that you frequently can get for ~30$.
Nowadays there is really great free stuff available, like e.g. the Emissary amp sim and NAD IR. So you could work with DAW stock plugins and free stuff till you've figured out what you really need and then buy the things on black friday or similar. If you have guitars and a bass, the only thing you really need to buy is probably a good virtual Drumkit.

I don't think it's necessarily the very best choice, but this one has a hilarious trailer, I just have to share it: 



Also it's on sale right now, and doesn't need the full Version of Kontakt (watch out for that info when you buy virtual instruments).


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## Rex282 (May 13, 2020)

Youre probaly not getting many answers(and might not) because there is just to much information to learn from scratch to communicate on posts on a forum(we are all trying to decide which new libraries to buy....and not use!!).We all had to learn this and most of us the hard way..by making mistakes and lots of research making mistakes lots of research...lather rinse...

Right off the bat as far as DAWS since you have a PC(I take you mean a windows OS system) Logic will not work with it.There are many to choose from and everyone has a preference for one or multiple!Unfortunately you won't know which DAW you like and can work with until ...you use it.The whys and hows are just to convoluted to explain because there is not"1 right answer"(or 50)

Everyone likes ease of use and unfortunately none of the DAWS are easy when you start out( I still dont know Logic completly 10 years later).You can get some good tips from tutorials however the majority you will be figuring out yourself...or wont.I'm betting the majority just give up because it has very little(nothing) to with the actual music.Engineering is a different mindset however it is a skill that can be learned(with great loss of hair...)

It takes a lot of tenacity to hone your technical skills with all the apps and you will quickly learn the actual playing and recording will take a BIG backseat(in a truck).I'm not saying this to discourage you but to let you know...the mountain is steep.Everyone that can make a decent recording had to learn to climb one foot at a time...dress appropriately...all the best.


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## Sschaefer (May 13, 2020)

Sears Poncho said:


> Figure out how many inputs you might need at one time. Figure out the outputs of various devices and how you want to use them. Some have digital outs, you may or may not want to use that. Something like a Pod has usb out, so it's an audio interface on its own. In other words, if you just used an Electric guitar and a Pod, you wouldn't need an interface (at least in theory). Also, you might want enough inputs so you don't have to unplug/plug things in a lot. Welcome!


SO I was talking to my buddy last night about this same thing.
If I am only recording 1 instrument at a time, what is the NEED for more than 2 inputs?
I am a one man band, and plan to be that.
I ask not out of arrogance, but ignorance


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## Sschaefer (May 13, 2020)

MartinH. said:


> Welcome! You'll find some good metal recording and production advice here:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Yeah, this is why I'm here. TO learn about equipment, techniques and share when I get to that point, but really this first step is to help ease the stress of buying a DAW, because I do not want to switch.
I've switched editing programs 3 times in my professional career and everytime it was annoying.
Had to go from Avid > Final Cut > Final Cut X (lol) > Premiere and it didn't feel like starting over everytime, but it felt like stumbling again. I just picked up Premiere maybe 5 years ago and I still do not have the proficiency I had from 10+ years on Final cut.


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## Sears Poncho (May 13, 2020)

Sschaefer said:


> If I am only recording 1 instrument at a time, what is the NEED for more than 2 inputs?


Probably none, except convenience. I don't use keyboard inputs any more, only software. That's 2 inputs minimum that are freed up . A mic can be one input, but additional mics to capture room/distance can be used. A dedicated electric guitar input tends to be "High-Z". I have 2 Pods, they are stereo so that's 4 inputs. If someone uses a dedicated amp with mic, that's another input etc. 

Sure, one can plug stuff in and out. Or, they can leave it because they have extra inputs.


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## Sschaefer (May 13, 2020)

Sears Poncho said:


> Probably none, except convenience. I don't use keyboard inputs any more, only software. That's 2 inputs minimum that are freed up . A mic can be one input, but additional mics to capture room/distance can be used. A dedicated electric guitar input tends to be "High-Z". I have 2 Pods, they are stereo so that's 4 inputs. If someone uses a dedicated amp with mic, that's another input etc.
> 
> Sure, one can plug stuff in and out. Or, they can leave it because they have extra inputs.


So what are some specs I really need to make sure the Audio Interface has? Both for functionality and comfort?


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## MartinH. (May 13, 2020)

Sschaefer said:


> SO I was talking to my buddy last night about this same thing.
> If I am only recording 1 instrument at a time, what is the NEED for more than 2 inputs?
> I am a one man band, and plan to be that.
> I ask not out of arrogance, but ignorance


Personally I don't need more than 2. Do you have a desire to use outboard gear? In that case you might want to have at least 2 inputs and 2 additional outputs. 
Do you want to mic up a guitar cab with 2 mics while also grabbing the unprocessed DI signal with a DI box? In that case you'd need at least 3 inputs, 2 of which need mic preamps.

I have a Focusrite Scarlet Solo and I'm quite happy with it. I just record guitar/bass DI signals and do everything else digitally "in the box".




Sschaefer said:


> but really this first step is to help ease the stress of buying a DAW, because I do not want to switch.


Other than trying different ones yourself I wonder what could help you make that decision. Hmm... Maybe look at some reports from people who switched from one to another and check if their reasons sound like they would apply to you? I've picked Reaper and I'm perfecly happy with it. Some people switch to other DAWs because they don't like Reaper's UI (even with the countless available UI skins) or don't want to customize Reaper to fit their workflow better. Others switch to Reaper because it has very powerful routing capabilities and in general is a very capable and stable DAW. Some might prefer something else entirely, because it comes with certain stock plugins that they are used to using. Price is also a factor for some, Reaper is one of the least expensive DAWs - 60$ for the discounted (basically non-commercial) license.


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## Sears Poncho (May 13, 2020)

This looks good. Very respected company making an affordable product, most of their stuff is high end.

Keep in mind that expensive pres/interfaces etc. really need good/treated rooms, good mics etc. It's an endless cycle that is designed to drive you insane and to the poor house.  IMO it's kinda all or nothing: you get the high end everything, or else you get something like this, an AT2020 mic, etc. SOme of the "budget" stuff is excellent.

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/SSL2Plus--solid-state-logic-ssl2-usb-audio-interface


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## Sschaefer (May 13, 2020)

Sears Poncho said:


> This looks good. Very respected company making an affordable product, most of their stuff is high end.
> 
> Keep in mind that expensive pres/interfaces etc. really need good/treated rooms, good mics etc. It's an endless cycle that is designed to drive you insane and to the poor house.  IMO it's kinda all or nothing: you get the high end everything, or else you get something like this, an AT2020 mic, etc. SOme of the "budget" stuff is excellent.
> 
> https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/SSL2Plus--solid-state-logic-ssl2-usb-audio-interface





Sears Poncho said:


> This looks good. Very respected company making an affordable product, most of their stuff is high end.
> 
> Keep in mind that expensive pres/interfaces etc. really need good/treated rooms, good mics etc. It's an endless cycle that is designed to drive you insane and to the poor house.  IMO it's kinda all or nothing: you get the high end everything, or else you get something like this, an AT2020 mic, etc. SOme of the "budget" stuff is excellent.
> 
> https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/SSL2Plus--solid-state-logic-ssl2-usb-audio-interface


Well this is nice.
I was expecting to pay a lot more for an audio interface


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## Sears Poncho (May 13, 2020)

Sschaefer said:


> I was expecting to pay a lot more for an audio interface


Well, you _can...  _


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## Sschaefer (May 13, 2020)

Sears Poncho said:


> Well, you _can... _


I guess what's better said is that I was planning on having to spend more


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## barteredbride (May 15, 2020)

Hi Sschaefer,

Just a quick note to make sure you picked up on what @Sears Poncho said about making sure the inputs you plug your guitars into on your audio device are ´hi-Z´. You need this type for guitars.

Some audio interfaces have like 4 inputs that look the same, but only one will be suitable for guitar! So keep an eye out! The SSL one looks like both inputs are hi-Z, but I would double check.

And why do you need more than one input? Well, maybe in the future you have 2 electric guitars, an acoustic guitar and 1 mic for recording an amp or vocals. Thats 4 inputs already.

It´s better to have everything plugged in, switched on and ready to record, or start playing with. In the moment you get that fucking cool melody or idea, you don´t want to be searching around for a lead or unplugging stuff in and out, setting up the track on your computer etc etc.


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## barteredbride (May 15, 2020)

And a note on DAWs...

You said you´ve been recording / composing for ages but are not digging the technical stuff but are stacking phones (I love this by the way!), but maybe something like Studio One 4 is more what you need.

I use Cubase (because it has expression maps for orchestral stuff) but Studio One is more intuitive and is more, i guess, modern. Cubase can be a bit stuffy.

In any case, the best advice i had was to download the demos and use each DAW for 1 month and create songs in each one to see which one you like the best. A totally free and fun way of deciding. 

Also, another piece of advice is to just forget about this forum and go and talk with a load of guitar people over at KVR !

Other guitary computer stuff: Amplitude 4, Helix (line 6), Guitar Rig.


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## Sschaefer (May 15, 2020)

barteredbride said:


> And a note on DAWs...
> 
> You said you´ve been recording / composing for ages but are not digging the technical stuff but are stacking phones (I love this by the way!), but maybe something like Studio One 4 is more what you need.
> 
> ...



THis is great info. I really appreciate it.

Funny you mention this, I am on the path right now to finding out which audio interface is best for electric guitar, bass and vocals.

So any suggestions on that front would be much appreciated. 
Also, what is KVR?


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## Sears Poncho (May 16, 2020)

Sschaefer said:


> Funny you mention this, I am on the path right now to finding out which audio interface is best for electric guitar, bass and vocals.


If you have certain Line 6/Boss multi-effects, you already have a good interface. My Pod HD can handle a mic. It doesn't have phantom power so that would be a separate purchase. I think the ProX has it, I don't know about Helix. I have a Boss BR800 that has it. They are all surprisingly good. 

As I mentioned before, the high end stuff is a major $$ commitment. The prosumer stuff can be very good. There are also mics like the AT2020usb. Just plug it in, that's it. 

Do you use multi-effects boxes often, or do you mic amps?


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## Sschaefer (May 16, 2020)

Sears Poncho said:


> If you have certain Line 6/Boss multi-effects, you already have a good interface. My Pod HD can handle a mic. It doesn't have phantom power so that would be a separate purchase. I think the ProX has it, I don't know about Helix. I have a Boss BR800 that has it. They are all surprisingly good.
> 
> As I mentioned before, the high end stuff is a major $$ commitment. The prosumer stuff can be very good. There are also mics like the AT2020usb. Just plug it in, that's it.
> 
> Do you use multi-effects boxes often, or do you mic amps?


I've never done anything on my own other than layer inside keyboard or record on multiple cell phones 🤣


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## barteredbride (May 16, 2020)

One other interface for you to think about...









Tascam Series 208i


USB Audio / MIDI Interface with DSP Mixer 24 Bit / 192 kHz, USB 20x8 audio interface, 4 Front combo inputs Mic / Line / Inst: XLR / jack, 48 V phantom power, 2 Balanced TRS main outputs with front level control, 6 Balanced TRS outputs, 2 Stereo...




m.thomann.de





It has *four* inputs on the front for either instrument or mic with phantom power, as well as 2 headphone inputs.


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## Sschaefer (May 17, 2020)

barteredbride said:


> One other interface for you to think about...
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Thanks!! I've also learned from my research that switching an input from "line" to "instrument" enables/disables High Z input. Is this true?


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## ynwtf (May 17, 2020)

Mornin'.
New user here and in fact this is my first post, but I wanted to make a quick (hopefully) reply here.

I'd suggest an interface that is relatively cheap and one that can provide some level of expansion down the road while you learn the gear and software. My second interface was the Focusrite Scarlett 18i8. You can Google the details if you want, but I ended up with this because it provided a lot of immediately usable options plus the ability to grow down the road.

For example: four 1/4" / XLR (with phantom power I believe) inputs right in the front, plus two headphone outs for me and a friend for when they're over. This covered me immediately as all i had was my mic and a stereo signal coming from my guitar board. On the back, it provided four additional 1/4" ins should I later want to dedicated other instruments to them such as a bass DI, keyboard, etc. There were two 1/4" outs for monitors and a midi in and out port for one day expanding into a midi keyboard or e-drum kit down the road. It also provided an optical input to add an additional 8-channels by connecting something like the Behringer ADA8200 for a live drum kit. Or whatever. And it came with a light version of a DAW plus a plugin suite to get going.

I'm not saying get this interface, but I am providing some perspective to consider to help make planning your growth a little easier down the road. You may only need need three inputs today. Considering the relative price of entry for some level of expansion tomorrow may save you some regret, after the fact. Something like this should hold you over just fine until you outgrow it---if that ever even happens.

Also a note on software. A lot of developers run crazy sales on DAW, plugin suites, effects, etc. Some are annual, semi-annual, or random. My point is, if you have the patience to wait you can often get GREAT deals on software. I believe Presonus may have current discounts on their Studio One DAW. Narrow down your list and watch a few YouTube channels to watch user's workflow and comments. You may find you prefer the design interface of one over another.

Anyhoo. Just sayin'.
All the best in finding your setup. 

:D


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## Sschaefer (May 17, 2020)

ynwtf said:


> Mornin'.
> New user here and in fact this is my first post, but I wanted to make a quick (hopefully) reply here.
> 
> I'd suggest an interface that is relatively cheap and one that can provide some level of expansion down the road while you learn the gear and software. My second interface was the Focusrite Scarlett 18i8. You can Google the details if you want, but I ended up with this because it provided a lot of immediately usable options plus the ability to grow down the road.
> ...


Thanks a lot man! This is really great info, also I like the perspective of a new guy as well. 
I think I'm going to be getting the Tascam Series 208i
As long as hi z zinply means switching between instrument and line. 
It also comes with enough io's for now and the ability to expand (I agree with your point on expansion 100%). Also comes with a sample of Cubase and some plug-ins that sound interesting to my inexperienced brain 😛


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## barteredbride (May 17, 2020)

Sschaefer said:


> As long as hi z zinply means switching between instrument and line.



Hi again!

Basically, yes.

I´m sure someone will have a proper detailed explination for this, but this is how I see it:

*Hi-Z input - *use your normal guitar TRS cables with these. I know you know this next bit of info, but anyway...Electric guitars have no actual power supply themselves, the pickups just convert the vibrations to sound, so the signal needs some extra boost of power. The audio interface boosts the signal if you use the hi-z option. If you use a guitar in an input without hi-z, the signal will be kind of weak and sound a bit crappy.

*Mic input -* use XLR cables with these. If you use a dynamic microphone (like the classic Shure SM57) you don´t need any extra power for these mics. If you use a condenser mic, you´ll need to give it some power, this is where the 48volt phantom power option/button comes in.

*Line input -* use TRS cables with these as well. This option is used for keyboards, synths or other hardware which already have a power supply, so they don´t need any extra boost to the signal.

The inputs you can see on the front of the Tascam interface have combo inputs, that can take both XLR and TRS cables.

Hope that helps!


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## Sschaefer (May 17, 2020)

barteredbride said:


> Hi again!
> 
> Basically, yes.
> 
> ...


Awesome explanation, makes sense. Thanks so much! Looks like I'll be picking up that tascam as it does what I need it to. It gives me multiple inputs, has the high z inputs as well... Several IO's for headphones and IO's for monitors. I did some research on it, it appears to be well received and has low latency.


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## barteredbride (May 19, 2020)

Was looking through some expansion packs for Superior Drummer and saw this and remembered your post!









Death & Darkness SDX


Two studios. Two engineers. All the death and darkness you can take.




www.toontrack.com





Don't know if it's what you're looking for (?!) but maybe worth a look.


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