Advice for an absolute beginner

hi

i’ve just looked through the FAQ’s but at the risk of annoying you all, it looks like my q’s are far more ‘basic’ :w00t:

i’m looking to do some mixing just from home (no commercial stuff at all) and could do with some advice as to what h/w i need.

i have a sony vaio - i’m guessing i need something like an ableton novation launchpad controller with ableton on the vaio, a seperate sound card, speakers, headphones… is this sounding about right?  i’m planning it all being digital only… running off usb sticks

do i need to be concerning myself with the leads between all re noise?  and is there any potential issue with processor speeds from the vaio that i need to know about?

sorry if this is a really stupid, basic post to be putting up… but it’s where i am right now…  thanks…   

This for Dj Mixing or production Mixing?

Not sure what the difference is?

Ableton have steered me towards the AKAI APC40 - which looks good with Ableton Suite 8 for £699

Are you using it for DJing or Music Production?

Music production only

Phil brings up a good point.

He is asking if you just want to mix already existing songs or do you plan to write your own songs.

There is different equipment required for both. Some of it overlaps, but it’s better to have the gear that is specific to your needs.

Since I started out I have gone through www.sweetwater.com for most of my equipment needs. You can call them up and they’ll put you in contact with a rep who is very knowledgable and can match gear to your specific needs and your computer setup. I’ve been very happy with their service.