Tools Don’t Make Hits, Mastery Does

Ready to turn your gear into finished songs? We dive into the foundations of modern music production, starting with the DAW as your creative command center and moving through the plugins, hardware, and workflows that actually help you finish tracks with confidence. Tony breaks down the strengths of Ableton Live, FL Studio, and Logic Pro, then shows how color-coding, grouping, and shortcut mapping remove friction so ideas flow faster.

From there, we get specific about plugins that deliver real value: Serum and Massive for flexible synthesis, Omnisphere for lush textures, FabFilter Pro-Q for precise EQ, ValhallaRoom for believable space, and Waves CLA-76 for punchy dynamics. Tony shares why iZotope Ozone 12 stands out for targeted mastering moves—like isolating vocal presence or tightening the low end—and when a streamlined option like LANDR can save time without derailing quality. You’ll also hear practical strategies for organizing your plugin folder and sample library so you can find the right sound in seconds.

Hardware and room setup can make or break your mix decisions, so we cover smart picks for MIDI controllers, Focusrite and PreSonus interfaces, and monitors like Yamaha HS and KRK Rokit. Learn simple acoustic moves—monitor placement in an equilateral triangle, isolation pads, and basic reflection control—that immediately improve translation. We wrap with a clear phase-based workflow: sketch ideas, shape sounds, arrange with contrast, mix with intention, and master with restraint. Along the way, Tony shares collaboration habits and feedback checkpoints that level up every project.

If this helped you streamline your setup and spark new ideas, follow the show, leave a review, and share it with a producer friend who’s stuck in plugin purgatory. Your support helps this community learn, grow, and keep releasing better music.

Youtube Channel: https://youtube.com/@thetonikingexperience7645

https://www.buzzsprout.com/2042588/support

Rare Keys Production- https://rarekeysproduction.com

Toni King link: http://www.linktr.ee/toni.king

The Sonic Kingship Art: https://www.rhuffmusic.com/post/it-s-a-big-music-industry-so-where-do-i-fit-in

Christ The King Release link: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/toniking/christ-the-king

Chapters

• 0:00 Welcome And Topic Overview
• 2:03 Why Tool Mastery Matters
• 2:03 Understanding Your DAW
• 4:35 Choosing And Customizing A DAW
• 6:48 Essential Plugins And Formats
• 8:45 Mastering Tools: Ozone And Alternatives
• 11:15 Plugin Organization And Discovery
• 13:28 Hardware Essentials And Recommendations

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:00

Hello everyone and welcome back. We're going to get into a great subject today that I'm very excited about and I think that you will enjoy. But before we do that, let's get into that theme music, family. All right, all right. We're gonna get into it today. I'm very excited. Let's do this. Let's do this. Welcome back to Teach One Tuesday podcast where we explore the fascinating realm of music production. I'm your host, Tony King. In today's episode, we're going to delve into a topic that is foundational for every music producer: mastering your musical production tools. Whether you're a newbie or looking to level up your skills, fully understanding your tools can greatly enhance your creativity and workflow. What we're going to cover today, family, uh is which I think is essential. Understanding your DAW, workstation, digital audio workstation for those who don't know what that means. Essential plugins, hardware essentials, workflow strategies. And I want to go over this because I don't want to take for granted or just assume that everyone knows this information. What I want to say before I dive more into this is that, you know, mastering your tools, um, it can be daunting, number one, because it's so much, so many plugins out here, so much information. So take your time with that. But I want to make sure we circle back to this so that everyone understands that you can have the greatest tools ever, but if you don't know how to use them, um, and when I say that, as when I say that, uh, take one thing at a time, you know, it's so much information for one plugin. But if you don't understand your doll, then you're kind of limiting yourself in what you are able to do and your creativity. All right. So let's jump in here. Understanding your doll, let's kick things off by discussing your digital audio workstation or doll. This software is the central hub for your production work. So it's essential to choose one that fits your style. So let's go over a few of these. Uh Ableton Live, great for electronic music, producers. Uh, it's session view, it's perfect for live performances and improvisation. Uh, next FL Studio, known for its intuitive layout and powerful step sequencer, ideal for beat making. Uh, next Logic Pro X, which is the dot that I use. I've been using it ever since I started during production years ago. So this is one that I live by, even though I'm thinking about adding on to it. Uh, a favorite among Mac users, it offers a comprehensive suite of tools for recording, audio editing, and software instruments. Uh, key features here: look for features like automation, virtual instruments, and mini capabilities. A good DAW should allow you to draw in automation curves, use software instruments seamlessly, and support a range of audio formats. Uh, tips for customizing your workspace. Spend time organizing your tracks, color coding, and grouping related tracks helps maintain order. Familiarize yourself with your DAW's shortcuts and layout options. This will save you time and enhance your efficiency. And uh, that is just so true. Uh, being organized is half the battle, in my personal opinion. Uh, having things all over the place it will cause you to have to work longer. Um, and it's just not a great way to work. So make sure you can get to what you need to get to um when you start your sessions, whether you are doing production for my engineers, whether you're starting a mix, you know, make sure that you have uh a template in place. Um what my engineer teacher taught you know taught me this, even though I knew about it, but I gotta look at his and how he was able to organize everything and get straight to work. Okay, so the next section, let's get into essential plugins. Now let's dive into plugins. These are critical for expanding your creative palette. There are two main types of plugins you'll encounter: virtual instruments and effects. Types of plugins, VST, Virtual Studio Technology, widely used across various dolls, perfect for adding virtual instruments. AU audio units used primarily in Mac OS environments, particularly in Logic Pro. AAX Avid Audio Extension, used for Pro Tools, offering high quality performance for audio processing. Uh recommended plug-in synths, serum, wavetable synth, almosphere, uh sample base, and massive subtractive synth, effects, fat filter pro Q, it's an EQ for Hollow Room, Reverb, and Wave CLA 76, it's a compressor uh mastering, um, isotope Izone, which I love. I'll go back to that in a minute. Isotope um Ozone, which provides a suite of essential mastering tools, including EQ dynamics and spatial mixing. Uh, let me stop here and talk about this for a second. I recently uh got Ozone 12 and I absolutely love it. All the tools, it's I love I love it because of how specific you can get when you when you're mastering uh your song, how you can hone in now on a particular section. If you just want to affect the vocals or if you just want to affect the drums, you can do that. Um, you know, and I and so many things that you can do. I mean, and if your low end is not hitting the way you need to, you need it to hit, they have a uh a plug-in for that. I mean, there's so much you can do in Ozone, you know, and but but here's what I'll say as well say though, if ozone or something like ozone is just too much, you know, is too much for you to just hone in on or use or it's too complicated. It's a lot of stuff. You have to sit with it, you have to learn, watch videos, or whatever. You can also just use uh another plugin that I have from another company called Lander, they have a mastering suite. Now, if that's more simpler for you, go check that out because I have both. All right, and so and then you have mastering services all over the place now. So check out which one is best for you. But if you want to master yourself, ozone12 is the bomb.com. Lander, I have used both lander is the bomb as well. Um, the last thing I mastered, I actually use both. I use lander uh mixing uh plugin, and I use some things out of Ozone 12 to help me just to get things just right. And if you're wondering what song that is, uh it's my latest single, uh Christ the King. You can go check it out. It's on all streaming platforms. I mixed, uh, I did everything on there and uh mixed and mastered everything. So go and check it out. Okay. And uh yeah, you know, I I I just absolutely love it. I am a fan of Ozone, just completely. Uh so let's move on. Managing your plugins, keep your plugin folder organized, uh categorize them based on type, synth, uh effect mastering, use tags for quick access. Remove any plugins you do not use. A clutter-free environment will keep distractions at bay. Now, there is a plugin that I just uh that I just got, I believe from Waves, where they organize, I forget what the plugin is called, but they uh have a plugin that organizes your sounds that you already possess. And you're able to just uh type into uh the bar, whatever you want to call it, uh and then you're able to type in exactly what you're looking for. If you're just looking for hi-hats, if you're just looking for kick drums, if you're looking for a synth, you can type in that specific thing and it will bring up uh what you have uh within your system. And so uh go check that out. It's Waves, uh something sampler, something to that effect. I can't remember what it's called, but go and check it out. Waves is the company that creates it. All right, and so let's move on here. Hardware essentials. Hardware plays a pivotal role in your musical production setup. Let's explore the essentials. Overview of essential hardware, many controllers, a must-have for trigger sounding trigger sounds and controlling parameters. Look for feature-rich options like Novation, Launch Key, or Akai MPK many. All right, audio interfaces, crucial for converting analog signals into digital, focus right scarlet, and presonos audio box are reliable choices that deliver excellent sound quality. And uh, I can attest to this for Focus Right Scarlet. I have a Focus Right, have had the same one for some years now. I am looking to upgrade, but I have been using uh Focus Right Scarlet for years now, has done the job for me, so definitely I'm a fan of that. If you're looking for a recommendation, studio monitors invest in good quality monitors like KRK, Rokick, or Yamaha H uh, Yamaha HS series for accurate sound representation. And that's actually where I need to upgrade. I need to upgrade my monitors, ASAP. Choosing the right gear, access your production style. For instance, if you focus on electronic music, look for a MIDI controller with pads and knobs. Consider your space in compact portable gear might be best for smaller studios. Setting up your studio, ensure your studio is acoustically treated to enhance sound quality. Experiment with placement of your monitors. A rule of thumb is to form a key an equilateral triangle between your head and monitors. Use isolation pads to decouple your monitors from the desk, reducing unwanted uh resonance. All right. Let's keep going here because I want to make sure you guys get all the information that you need. I want you to be able to be as prepared and uh as possible. Make sure that you have everything in place. Workflow strategies. Develop a robust workflow can drastically improve your music production efficiency. Let's discuss some strategies. Develop a consistent workflow, create templates in your DAW for your different types of projects. This allows you to jump straight into your creativity without spending time on setup. Segment your production process into phases, idea, uh generation, sound design, arrangement, and mixing. I definitely have uh templates for my I have templates for my mixing, I have templates, a template for my mastering session, I have a template for the covers that I do just to get me started, and so I can just jump straight in. It saves so much time. Efficient sound design and arrangement. When designing sounds, start with a basic waveform and experiment with modulation. Don't hesitate to layer sounds to create depth. Arrange your tracks by building around a central idea using contrast to create dynamic sections. This keeps the listener engaged. Collaboration and feedback. Don't shy away from sharing your work in progress with trusted peers. Fresh ears can provide invaluable feedback. Use collaboration tools like Splice or Sound Better, which allow you to work with musicians and producers from anywhere. And I really can uh attest to this as well because um no matter what I'm doing, whether I'm no matter what phase I'm I'm in, um I usually bring my wife in during the uh uh we'll have three different phases. The writing, the four different phases. The writing phase is just me. Um I may bring her in when everything is laid down. I laid all the tracks down. Um, and then I bring her in when I'm basically done with the mix and and I'll let her hear the master. Um, so you know, and make sure it's someone that you trust, you know, that's very, very important. Somebody don't don't bring anybody in there that's gonna be hating on you, that wants to see you fail. You know, don't bring anybody in there like that. So, you know, bring people in there that's really gonna help you, that's really gonna help you to shine and and help you to grow as well. If it's something that needs to be changed, they will tell you the truth, but all but tell you in a loving way. All right. I want to thank you so much for checking this out, man. You know what? This has uh been some great information, uh, some things that even I have learned during my homework for this episode. Um, in this, the more information you you you have, the better. And um, I want you guys to be prepared and have everything uh that you need. Do me a favor before we go, um check out for me several things. My channel, uh the Tony King Experience on YouTube. You can check me out on YouTube, you can check me out on Facebook, um uh you check me out on Instagram, uh, Threads, TikTok, of course, and uh LinkedIn. I'm on I'm ever I'm everywhere, but on YouTube is where I do my covers and and so many different things. So check it out. There'll be a link in the description uh for all of this. Uh check out my blog, the Sonic Kingship Art blog, where I give even more information uh on so many sub so many subjects um that we talk about here. And so uh go and check that out. If you haven't checked out my music, uh go and check it out on all streaming platforms. Just type in my name, Tony with an I, and then last name King. All my music is there. The latest single is Christ the King. Go and check that out. It's all there for you. And uh stay tuned, man, on the podcast as I continue to give great information so that we all can continue to grow and go to another level because this is a community, and I want us to continue to you know do uh uh great things. That's a wrap for today's episode on mastering your music production tools. I hope you find these insights and strategies helpful as you navigate your own production journey. Remember the key is to keep experimenting and improving your craft. Please join me as I continue to uh uh reveal more and more information. Make sure you return the next time an episode is released, and let's continue to grow together. I hope you're having a wonderful day. If you're not having a wonderful day, you can change that by your mindset. Thanks so much, Tony King Out.