Who are you and what do you do? How long have you been a working musician?

Mathias Stubø, producer and DJ. I’ve been living off my music since I graduated high school in 2011.

What hardware are you using?

MPC2500 SE

I have an MPC 2500 that I use a lot for drums and chopping, so it's the heart of my setup. I also use different samplers and drum machines, but I really like that MPC sound.

Korg Mono/Poly

I have a Korg mono/poly that I bought lately, and it’s a beast. I thought I was gonna use it mostly for basslines and some leads, but found out it could do much much more.

Roland SP-303

This machine is ace. I use it to get lo-fi sound which is good for kicks and snares/claps and makes more room in the mix. It also has some effects I use a lot. I usually plug it from my synths and use the reverb, delay or the legendary vinyl simulator compression thing.

Numark NS7 w/ flightcase

Had this since 07. It’s making it easier to do DJ-stuff with certain parts of a mix fast when I have an idea. I don’t have to burn a CD first to do that.

Korg MS2000

I like MS2000. I use it a lot for leads, effects and other bright parts of the mix, it’s easy to program and I always bring it on stage for the live shows.

Dynacord Echocord Super 76

Nice tape delay and reverb. I use it sometimes on snare drums and guitars or stuff that’s maybe a bit too edgy and needs warmth.

:motu896: sound card

I’m a big MOTU fan. Had this since forever and it’s still my top choice for my kind of sound.

For monitors, I’m currently using ADAM A7X.

What software are you using?

Logic

I use Logic as my main sequencer. I like the way it looks and it sounds good.

Reason

When I started using computers, Reason was my first software. It’s genius, especially in rewire with Logic. The synths can do anything when you learn to use them and it has some very good reverbs, delays and compressors.

Ableton

Live is my main live tool when I’m doing laptop based shows. Can’t see any software outbeating Ableton for live stuff. It’s stable and the setup makes it easy to improvise. In the studio I use it in rewire with Logic (and Reason) if I need to do some more complex audio editing, and it’s also easy to chop up samples MPC style.

Arturia Jupiter, Minimoog, Arp2600, Prophet

Loving all of these soft synth versions of the great classics from Arturia. Use them for all kinds of stuff.

Waves

Waves is king for software compressors. Api 2500, SSL comp, H-comp, and CLA comp are my favorites.

Native Instruments Kontakt 3

Great software sampler. My fav when I’m not on the MPC.

Lexicon reverbs

What would be your dream setup?

A pitch shifter plugin that sounds impeccable.

Can you describe your creative process? Is there a particular routine or schedule you stick to?

I usually start out with some sort of drums or percussion to get it going. After that, it’s basically trying to found out the chords and harmonies of the song. When that’s figured out, I add layer for layer with stuff to back up the chords, like synth hooks, lines, small samples, whatever nice I can fit into the chords.

I think my approach to producing is sort of like painting. I have a clear visual sight in my head of what’s coming out of the speakers. I usually mix the track as I’m producing it, because a lot of my stuff is really depending on how it sounds sonically, not just the song itself. That way it’s always easier to hear what’s needed also.

The last part for me is always about cutting away stuff that doesn’t need to be there, and also adding effects and stuff to follow the dynamics of the track even more.

Where do you shop for and discover music?

Everywhere. I go record shopping or crate digging for vinyl, or sit on YouTube a whole night through looking for funk tunes. I dig wherever I can.

Any highlights from your latest musical discoveries?

Lots of different 60’s and 70’s folk rock and psych that I’ve been hipped to recently. Love it.

Any production tips & tricks you'd like to share?

Use your ears. Mixing is about levels. I want to find the level, position and intention of each track before I add too much effects to them. I switch master level back and forth a lot, trying to mix loud for a moment, then the opposite. That helps a lot.

The key thing is to balance what’s more and what’s less important in a mix. What you want to stick out and what doesn’t need to be heard precisely.

In my way of mixing, nothing should be struggling for attention. What's important is that the key message or intention of the song is intact.

Where can we find you on the web?

Proviant Audio / SoundCloud / Facebook / Twitter /