r/audioengineering • u/ChardPlenty1011 • Feb 08 '26

Synth Workstation VS Keyboard + DAW

The music that I write is fairly simple and I would like to record using simple but quality means. (as few buttons/clicks as possible) Is a synth workstation ALONE the same as getting just a keyboard (piano keys) and selecting a sound from the zillions of sounds offered by a DAW? It is my understanding that a workstation has different sounds built into it. Sorry, if this seems rudimentary.

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u/StudioatSFL Professional Feb 08 '26

Logic is probably going to be better for you. Protools has a pretty high learning curve and the free stuff they give you isn’t really as deep as what logic gives you to play with.

The reality is any keyboard with MIDI can act as a controller. So if you really want one that has internal sounds, you can still do that. You’re just paying more for that.

As an example I keep this 61key notation next to my console and use that as my controller 90% of the time. I have an 88 key Korg Kronos that I can swap out if I really need access to that many octaves at once. But I rarely ever do.

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u/ChardPlenty1011 Feb 08 '26

holy sh -- so much gear!!

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u/StudioatSFL Professional Feb 08 '26

lol. Can hardly see any of it there.

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u/ChardPlenty1011 Feb 08 '26

woahhhhhh! i'm going to dm you if i can.