Well..before we start, I totally get the idea that " the guy who dies with the most toys wins"
My office/computer room/music room/studio is beginning to look like a re-run of hoarders.
Other than the fact I need a bigger house to put all this stuff in I am beginning to wonder how damaging all this is to actually creating music.
I have spent untold hours messing around with the six zillion petabytes of music software I own.
I assume some of you are way more interested in the "tools" than the product they products. I also assume there are people who know nothing about music and don't play any instrument like trying to create music with software.
When does all this just become another video game?
Every now and then I turn all this stuff off and just play guitar through real tube amps with nothing in front of the amp. Amazing sound! Acoustic piano...what a concept!
Does this ring any bells?
Billy
“Amazing! I’ll be working with Jaco Pastorius, Charlie Parker, Art Tatum, and Buddy Rich, and you’re telling me it’s not that great of a gig? “Well…” Saint Peter, hesitated, “God’s got this girlfriend who thinks she can sing…”
I have some extraordinary music tools, although in a rather compact little home office, for composing Brazilian jazz. Among the few things I will spend big money on are speed and sound.
I am inspired by great sound. That means great speakers and the best virtual instruments for jazz big band and orchestra I can get.
The speed part means, if I have an idea, I want to get right to it and not wait for technology.
And I do play a variety of real instruments (brass and woodwinds) but what makes me want to pick them up and play is my work in BIAB.
BIAB 2026 Win Audiophile. Software: Fender Studio One 8, Swam horns, Acoustica-7, Notion 6, Song Master Pro, Win 11 Home. Hardware: Intel i9, 32 Gb; Fender Quantom HD8 & Faderport 8, Royer 121, Adam Sub8 & Neumann 120 monitors.
That's a good point Billy, and reminds me of an old comedy bit by Pete Barbutti. He tells a story of a guy who is the leader of a big band who is the leader only because he owned all the equipment and a station wagon with a luggage rack. He would sit in a chair with the trumpet players and the song in the bit was Little Grass Shack. Pete just sat there and snapped his fingers and when the came to a break he played the 2 notes he could play. (Pete was a very good musician, by the way.) I am as guilty of gear hoarding as the next guy with my 10 guitars I can barely play and that rack full of synths to go with the 5 keyboards I have. And I am pretty much retired from music. I am also lazy, and I have like 5 or 6 things started that I lost interest in. My focus has turned now to learning how to fly my new drone so I can put it to good use on this upcoming road trip. Then my attention will turn to things I need to do on the house and yard. I doubt if I will play in the band I was in last year unless they can deliver 22-25 dates over the summer, as it is a "festival" kind of band. It's not worth the trouble to be tearing my studio apart to go play a random gig here and there and then having to bring it back and rewire everything again.
As much as I enjoy having this software it has the potential to cheapen and water down the songwriting. When people who know zero about music, chord progressions and the like, can use PG demo songs and create music it takes something away from actual musicians who have paid the dues.
If you have people come in and build a house, and you do nothing more than serve as general contractor and never drive a nail, did YOU "build" a house?
That's PG software and some undetermined number of people here. Just another example of the microwave world we are in where shortcuts matter more than learning.
I told the story recently about the kid who turned in a song in college claiming that he wrote it, and I busted him because what he turned in was the demo that comes in a Yamaha DX7. I knew that because I also had a DX7. That kind of thing is why I don't listen to a lot of the songs in the songwriter's forum. I have my selected dozen or so goto people I listen to because I know they have actually entered a chord chart based on their musicianship and music knowledge. The "demo grabbers" I don't have much respect for. And I can usually spot them.
One of my bandmates from a long time ago started posting about how much he loves cooking, based on him using one of those services that sends you portioned ingredients and instructions on how to be the hands that does someone else's cooking. I told him that those things are the food version of a copy band. LOL!!
So, Billy, answer your own question. Are you a better guitar player because you own X number of guitars? In my case it means I am a mediocre guitar player on my choice of 10 guitars.
And it comes down to this. If it's the stuff that makes the music better, is it YOU making the music better or the stuff?
LOL...obviously if I did not like BIAB software I would not have bought their latest audiophile addition. And obviously, if I did not like the dozens of other software programs I own I would not have acquired them.
I have about the same equipment that Matt Finley has and I also find that BIAB motivates me to play several instruments at times. It is fun. For me, it is more fun to play live with other musicians. The software has its place.
My question is how much is too much? I own somewhere around twenty guitars, nineteen of which I rarely play. I have five computer systems. Well...these are obviously problems of prosperity...lol
I actually know people who are great musicians who have never turned on a computer for any reason.
So, just so you know, none of these questions have anything to do with BIAB directly. The "stuff" I referred to is across the board in the context of musical equipment/software. BIAB software only represents a tiny fraction.
Everything has a cost, and not just in money. Every thousand hours you spend in a DAW is a thousand hours you did not spend playing an instrument or with your wife or kids for that matter.
The question is not about right or wrong, good or bad, it is about balance.
How much is too much?
Billy
“Amazing! I’ll be working with Jaco Pastorius, Charlie Parker, Art Tatum, and Buddy Rich, and you’re telling me it’s not that great of a gig? “Well…” Saint Peter, hesitated, “God’s got this girlfriend who thinks she can sing…”
That's a good point Billy, and reminds me of an old comedy bit by Pete Barbutti. He tells a story of a guy who is the leader of a big band who is the leader only because he owned all the equipment and a station wagon with a luggage rack. He would sit in a chair with the trumpet players and the song in the bit was Little Grass Shack. Pete just sat there and snapped his fingers and when the came to a break he played the 2 notes he could play. (Pete was a very good musician, by the way.)
I loved Pete Barbutti's routines. this one was what he called the 3rd Trumpet Player. The guy in the 3rd Chair being the band leader because, as you said, he owned all the stuff. He would call the song, "Ok guys, page 25 in the red book" He would sit and you watch him count along with the music to his part and it was 1 or 2 notes, maybe 3! Used to do it on the tonight show all the time. He was funny, actually still is. He does some corporate events still.
My wife asked if I had seen the dog bowl. I told her I didn't even know he could.
I used to say if you can't work on it and fix it with a pair of lineman's pliers and a screwdriver, it couldn't be fixed.
While I would often be able to do my job as an electrician with those 2 tools, there's a lot to be said about having the right tool for the job.
Can you write and record with a guitar and your DAW? Absolutely. But now that I have BB and a few other things, that job of writing, or getting the ideas out in the most expeditious manner without hindering the flow is much easier.
It's not about having the most tools or toys, but using the ones that you have to the fullest extent.
You can find my music at: www.herbhartley.com Add nothing that adds nothing to the music. You can make excuses or you can make progress but not both.
The magic you are looking for is in the work you are avoiding.
The one about the cor-deen teacher was great too. And the "Somewhere Over The Rainbow" story. He is really funny.
I loved when he played the piano. Using the plunger head as a cigar holder on the side of the piano and adjusting the bench height while plinking on the keys like he was tuning it! Just all funny stuff. His eyes always sold the jokes.
My wife asked if I had seen the dog bowl. I told her I didn't even know he could.
No gigs, no dinero… made me trim down my stuff. And practice more.
Put me in a philisophical mood. The question I’ve never asked myself, but I do now when I consider new (better, faster, shinier) gear: did Coltrane need it?
Turns out Trane didn’t need the new archtop, Nord piano, Kontakt library, Intel9 processor. Neither did Charlie Parker. Recently discovered Chet Baker’s trumpet was so beat up in the eighties even accomplished players couldn’t get a decent note out if it. He recorded some of his best stuff nevertheless.
Still struggling with the image of Wynton Marsalis and his macbook, though. Give me some time to process that. And those state of the art trumpets he plays. Duke Robillard playing a Gibson Centennial, Michael Brecker’s mouthpiece, Metheny’s Orchestrion, Jack deJohnette’s cymbals, Jarrett’s Steinway, … still.
Wise words, Billy.
Biab, Kontakt, Sampletank and lots of nice libraries, from Fluffy audio to Abbey Road drums. Check out these great contemporary Jazz Styles: www.jazzstylezz.com
Some of these comments on the forum make no sense to me.
I know this should sound obvious, but PG Music products have been created to, well, MAKE MUSIC.
If Mozart were alive today I am absolutely sure he would have BIAB and use it all of the time, with glee. And he would have more plugins than me.
He was this kind of guy: you would show him a harpsichord and he would go: “Got it! Seems kinda small, but let me see what I can do!”
Or they would lead him by the hand into an orchestra pit, tell him this is what he had to work with now, and he would say: “Oh yeah! That’s what I’m talking about, Now check this &*%^$ out!!!!”
Same thing with BIAB, eh?? And all other stuff.
With the absolute overload and glut of available tools and sounds, why are people still talking?????
Where are the amazing songs? Why are we talking about cables and wires???? Where is the music? Why are you still singing the blues and saying oh baby??? Why are you still drinking from the whiskey glass and saying your mama done you wrong???? Where are the tunes????????
I have more instruments in my house than I can count and I play most of them regularly just because it is FUN!!!! I have closets full of analog pedals and I know how to use them all.
But ALSO, I am stupefied by the potentialities created by BIAB for blending the stuff I can play with that others can play. And as an artist, I know you don't have to do it any one way. You can sing over a demo style. Just change two chords and you should be good. It's just a chord progression for God's sake. You can play just a beat. You can use Ozone 9 or not use Ozone 9 but for the love of God, PUT UP A SONG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Do something!!!!!! Pluck a note!! One!!! Or none!!
BUT POST A SONG.
So we can HEAR IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Almost everything else is 100% pure gibberish.
If Mozart were alive he would tell you.
So there. That is my daily rant. I feel better now.
David Snyder Songwriter/Renaissance Man Studio + Fingers
Mr Snyder, you once again hit it on the head. Summing up, what I say you say was "Don't hide behind the technology. Use it as a tool." Everybody would love to hear actual music, not planning, not recruiting people, not all of the this and the that.
As part of my recital in college I did the Allegro Movement from Mozart's Piano Concerto 21 in C Maj. That piece is so beautiful (even when I played it) that I played most of it in tears. He is my all time favorite classical composer. And it's not even a horse race. Beethoven was great as well and comes in at #2, and the darkness of Wagner brings him in at #3. I probably like Wagner because, like me, he never finished anything! LOL!! He completed only one symphony, his Symphony in C Major. WHen he was 19! After that, again much like me, it was all downhill from there...
Man, everybody told Handel he was a big fat loser and a washed up old man and everyone hated him too--and his music sucked and he was out of date. That he was totally uncool.
Then he entered a Christmas music contest.
They said what you got old fart loser.
He said:
"I call it the Messiah. The ending is pretty epic. So epic, in fact, that I predict it will be played in every church in every city in the entire freaking world every Christmas Eve for the rest of time or until Jesus comes back. Trust me."
Just sayin' man. Just sayin.'
David Snyder Songwriter/Renaissance Man Studio + Fingers
To get back to Billy's original post and considering this is PG's forum, the answer to him is whatever makes you happy is good. The point is to still make/play/listen to music. I've been on this forum for over 20 years and most here are hobbyists just having some fun. There are a few true pro's but most are just messing around having some fun.
At age 76, the worst thing I see with an old person who's still pretty healthy is they get bored. They never developed any worthwhile hobbies, never developed their minds in anything. They never had a real career, just worked regular jobs because they needed to live but the jobs never meant anything to them. Now they're retired with nothing to do but watch reruns of Oprah or something. This is why when I retired from the CPA firm almost 5 years ago now I agreed to still work part time for them as a remote consultant. It's why I still gig every chance I get, like I basically froze my butt off doing two outdoor gigs for Presidents Day in Avalon on Catalina Island. I had to play bass because our bass player was sick so I needed to work up some songs that I already know well but never paid much attention to the bass lines. In addition to that I'm a high tech geek and I watch a ton of YT vids about all kinds of stuff. I have a very curious mind and can find tons of things that interest me. The internet is the best library ever created in the history of the human race.
I say this to not brag, far from it. I know there a lot of elderly people on these forums. If you're retired and do not stay active to the best of your ability both physically and mentally, you're just going to waste away. I try to, gently of course, tell people this both in person and online.
All the toys we all have are all good. If you need to get rid of some of it to make space, that's sensible just don't quit making music. There is no downside to this, music improves the mind because of how it all works. I get Eddies point about somebody using a demo song and saying he wrote it and that somehow offends him. Fine, but the person who did that and posted it is probably older and is simply keeping themselves active by doing that and I say good for them. They're not trying to go to Sony and tell them Hey, listen to this new song I just wrote! Discussions like this always revert to the musical world in general, I'm trying to keep it real, here, on these forums.
Keep it up, don't give it up. If all you can do is a rewrite of Mary Had a Little Lamb using a Biab demo song, great I'd love to hear it and good for you. It's better than watching 30 year old reruns and drinking beer on your couch.
Band-in-a-Box® 2026 Mac Special Offers Extended Until May 31st!
Good news- we've extended our Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac® special offers until May 31, 2026!
Band-in-a-Box® 2026 is packed with major new features, enhancements, and an incredible lineup of new content! The program now sports a sleek, modern GUI redesign across the entire interface, including updated toolbars, refreshed windows, smoother workflows, a new dark mode option, and more. The brand-new side toolbar provides quicker access to key windows, while the new Multi-View feature lets you arrange multiple windows as layered panels without overlap, creating a flexible, clutter-free workspace. We have an amazing new “AI-Notes” feature. This transcribes polyphonic audio into MIDI so you can view it in notation or play it back as MIDI. You can transcribe an entire track (all pitched instruments and drums) or focus on individual parts like drums, bass, guitars/piano, or vocals. There's an amazing collection of new content too, including 202 RealTracks, new RealStyles, MIDI SuperTracks, Instrumental Studies, “Songs with Vocals” Artist Performance Sets, Playable RealTracks Set 5, two RealDrums Stems sets, and much more!
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Band-in-a-Box® 2026 for Mac - Special Offers End at 11:59pm PDT on Friday, May 15th, 2026!
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202 New RealTracks Released with Band-in-a-Box 2026!
With Band-in-a-Box® 2026, we've released 202 incredible new RealTracks (in sets 468-488) in a variety of genres—featuring your most requested styles!
Jazz, Funk & World (Sets 468-475):
Our new jazz, funk & blues RealTracks include a groovin’ collection of RealTracks and RealDrums! These include more requested “soul jazz” RealTracks featuring artists Neil Swainson (bass), Charles Treadway (organ), Brent Mason (guitar), and Wes Little (drums). There are new “smooth jazz” styles (4), which include a RealTracks first: muted trumpet, as well as slick new smooth jazz brushes options for drums. Blues lovers will be thrilled—there are more “classic acoustic blues” styles, including guitar (5), bass (4), and drums (10) with blues master Colin Linden, featuring understated and tasty background acoustic soloing, plus brushes drums and acoustic bass. There are also new electric blues RealTracks, including electric blues with PG favorite Johnny Hiland (3) and soulful electric slide guitar from Colin Linden (4). If you love funk & gospel, there are great new options this year, including gospel organ (3) from Charles Treadway, as well as new funk, tango, and rock ’n’ roll drums (3) and bass (1). And for big, bold arrangements, we have uptempo soul horns (4) featuring a three-part hip horn section with options for a full mix or stems of each individual horn — plus an accompanying rhythm section (4) of drums, bass, guitar, and electric piano!
Rock & Pop (Sets 476–482):
Our new rock & pop RealTracks bring a powerful mix of requested favorites, fresh genres, and modern chart-inspired styles! We have more of our popular “Producer Layered Acoustic Guitars (15)” featuring Band-in-a-Box favorite Brent Mason. We’ve continued our much-requested disco styles (10), and added new Celtic guitar (5) with a more basic, accessible approach than our previous Drop-D or DADGAD offerings. There are also highly requested yacht rock styles (17), inspired by the smooth, polished soft-rock sound of the late ’70s and early ’80s — laid-back grooves, silky electric pianos, warm textures, elegant harmonic movement, and pristine production aesthetics. Fans of heavier styles will love our new glam metal (13), capturing the flashy, high-energy sound of ’80s arena-ready guitar rock. We also have a set of rootsy modern-folk rock (18), with a warm, organic sound combining contemporary folk textures and driving acoustic strumming. And we’ve added lots of new modern pop styles (16) — the kinds of sounds you’re hearing on the radio today, featuring exciting new drums, synths, and cutting-edge RealTracks arrangements.
Country, & Americana (Sets 483–488):
Our new country & Americana RealTracks deliver a rich collection of acoustic, electric, and roots-inspired styles! We have new country pop (9) with legendary guitarist Brent Mason. There is also a potpourri (14) of bouzouki, guitars, banjo, and more, perfect for adding texture and character to contemporary acoustic arrangements. We’ve added funky country guitar (5) with PG favorite Brent Mason, along with classic pedal steel styles (5) featuring steel great Doug Jernigan. There are more country songwriter styles (8) that provide intimate, rootsy foundations for storytelling and modern Americana writing. Finally, we have “background soloing” acoustic guitar (12) with Brent Mason — simpler, but still very tasty acoustic lines designed to sit beautifully behind vocals or act as a subtle standalone solo part.
And, if you are looking for more, the 2026 49-PAK (for $49) includes an impressive collection of 20 bonus RealTracks, featuring exciting and inspiring additions to add to your RealTracks library. You'll get new country-rhythm guitar styles from PG Music favorites Johnny Hiland and Brent Mason, along with modern-pop grooves that capture today’s radio-ready sound! There are also new indie-folk styles with guitar, bass, 6-string bass used as a high-chording instrument, acoustic guitar, and banjo. Plus, dedicated "cymbal fills" RealDrums provide an added layer that work very well with low-key folky styles with other percussion.
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MIDI Styles Set 92: Look Ma! More MIDI 15: Latin Jazz
MIDI SuperTracks Set 46: Piano & Organ
Instrumental Studies Set 24: Groovin' Blues Soloing
Artist Performance Set 19: Songs with Vocals 9
Playable RealTracks Set 5
RealDrums Stems Set 9: Cool Brushes
SynthMaster Sounds Set 1 (with audio demos)
iOS Android Band-in-a-Box® App
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FLAC Files (lossless audio files) for the 20 Bonus Unreleased RealTracks and RealDrums
MIDI Styles Set 93: Look Ma! More MIDI 16: SynthMaster
MIDI SuperTracks Set 47: More SynthMaster
Instrumental Studies 25 - Soul Jazz Guitar Soloing
Artist Performance Set 20: Songs with Vocals 10
RealDrums Stems Set 10: Groovin' Sticks
SynthMaster Sounds & Styles Set 2 (sounds & styles with audio demos)
XPro & Xtra Styles PAK Sets On Sale Now - Until May 15, 2026!
All of our XPro Styles PAKs and Xtra Styles PAKs are on sale until May 15th, 2026!
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