Hi to my friends in the KVR audio forum!

Okay, here goes... I started making my own music (as a "one man band") and songwriting 20 years ago. I mostly know how to play percussion (congas). Plus drums, bass guitar, keyboards, guitar - and I sing. I used to teach Latin American percussion to groups and individuals in paid courses. I composed (– though I am far from being "a composer") about 100 songs and tunes for myself and upon request of various bands and singers who wanted me to write new songs and arrangements for their records and concerts. I was a member of 3 bands (from Jazzrock to Beat) and played small concerts. I was repeatedly on stage and acted as a bandleader for while. For some years I helped out in demo-ing and selling instruments in a large music store (Soundlab Zurich) on weekends since I knew most instruments. And I don't like Techno or Electronica, the "old school" styles rock my world. Here's my current hardware/software setup for my little music projects. In the sector of VST instruments, I tested just about everything there is and finally decided to keep or buy just a few. Maybe this page helps you choose your own gear.

• DAW: Intel Core 2 Duo E6850, 4GB RAM, X-Fi Elite Pro, EIZO monitors (dual-screen)
• Tascam US-122 (to record MIDI, guitars and vocals in the computer without latency)
• Alesis M1 Active MkII nearfield speakers
• AKG K 240 Studio headphones
• Shure "Unisphere 1" microphone
• M-Audio Keystation 49e, a very compact music keyboard. I also had: Roland S-50, D-50, RX15, Korg, and several other synths and samplers.
  
• I also play the guitar and bass. I have or had: "PRS SE Custom Semi-Hollow" (a very high-quality and easy to play guitar), "Godin Freeway" (smoothest neck I ever played), "Line 6 Variax" (25 guitars in one), "Wörbach Space Series" (handmade guitar with superb sustain), "Ibanez Artcore", "Ibanez George Benson Signature" Model, some old "Hohner Professional" semi-acoustic, "Tune Bass Maniac" bass guitar (I played this in the Jazzrock band), "Fender Precision" bass (just beautiful), and "Kramer" bass (too heavy for my taste).
  If you like testing and comparing e-guitars, you should check out: "Sadowsky semi-hollow" (best guitar sound I ever heard), "Ibanez Montage" and "Parkwood Hybrid" (best hybrid guitars today), and "N-Tune" (most useful tool). Brands not to miss when testing are "Godin" (great guitars) and "Cort" (really impressive quality and excellent design for a third of the price). If you can't decide, just buy a Fender Stratocaster (make sure it's an "American" one), you can't go wrong with this guitar. And if you still can't decide, get an Ibanez guitar. Most Ibanez owners I know are still happy with their axe.
  Beginners should, in my opinion, best start with a semi-acoustic rather than an electric guitar.
  
  The choice of guitar strings and picks is nearly as important as the guitar itself! This cannot be emphasized enough. One should test at least 25 different strings and picks to find the ones that really fit. Today, I use "Fender 150 SL 0.008" Nr. 73-6500 (extremely thin), coming back from the long-life "Elixir" strings (be sure to test the "Nanoweb" version). I also tested Dean Markley Blue Steel, DR, GHS Boomers, D'Addario (funny how I don't like these most popular strings) and many others.
  Same thing with guitar picks: I bought and compared loads of them. The winner was and still is the "Dunlop Max-Grip" 1,5mm. I've learned over the years that finding "your" pick can actually make you a better guitarist. And it's true that the Dunlop Max-Grip increases precision.
• Latin Percussion congas (siam oak), I also used to have 4 white Meinl congas
• Yorkville guitar amplifer (small but pretty powerful)

• Multitracker: Mackie "Tracktion" (the easiest DAW to use, plus the "LAME" encoder for direct MP3 generation)
  
• Soundfont player: sfz+ (needed occasionally)

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• Drums: They make or break a mix so they're essential. You can try Jamstix 2 with "XL Pak" for jamming with a guitar etc. But if you want production-ready, tasty sounds, a snare that sounds right and tight, cymbals that don't sound trashy, a logical interface, and want to be able to add congas and other percussion without the fuss, get Drumcore. Based on my bit of experience as a band drummer in an Indie Rock band, I'd say that Drumcore sounds better than Jamstix, DFH, Toontrack and all others I tested/bought. Drumcore sounds real, tasteful, and sits perfectly in the mix. On top of that, you get the sampled stage drumkits of famous drummers.
• Bass: DSK BassZ with "Precision Bass" or Alembic selected (the only two I'm willing to use), plus lowpass filter, plus Spectralive.
• Grand: Tascam GVI Continuous Velocity Piano. Nothing else came even close (not even TruePianos and so many others I tried or bought). The Tascam grand is a free VSTi.
• Rhodes: mda E-Piano. Hard to believe, but most Funk and Lounge producers prefer this over Lounge Lizard, NI, Mr. Ray 73 etc. The mda E-Piano is free and sounds good in a mix.
• Rhythm guitar: RealRhythmGuitar.sf2 (a clean Strat soundfont for strumming). But you should also check out what Sonivox has.
• Sax: DSK SaxophoneZ. Has some crackling sounds when filter is on, but sounds great and "live". Best I ever tested.
• Pads and Strings: It depends. StringZ has fat strings, Superwave has nice pads, or use any other. Not so important.

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• Track FX and Mastering: After long experiments with multiband compressors, CamelPhat3, Soniformer, Endorphine, special mastering plugins by Voxengo and many amp sims such as Amplitube 2, Brackenburry, Voxengo Boogex etc. I found an ingenious idea in a homerecording forum: Use Guitar Rig 3 for everything! Not just for guitar amp simulation but for any instrument and mastering. This method works well because Guitar Rig 3 contains all effects required for tracks and master bus - such as EQ and compressors. In addition, I often add Spectralive for tracks and mastering. And sometimes I insert the legendary BBE Sonic Maximizer. For vocals, I use a de-esser, plus Gsnap (automatic pitch correction - I don't need Melodyne), plus Decabuddy (harmonizer for choir and male/female formants).