TOOLS I USE

A list of all of the many tools and services I use to create music and art. From instruments to software and plugins to art supplies and beyond.

This is purely a list, not reviews. For reviews or general discussions about gear you might want to check out the blog on this site under WRITING.

All products listed here I actually use and fully recommend. This list will be updated as things change. Some of the links on this page may be affiliate links. This means I may receive a small commission, at no additional cost to you, if you decide to make a purchase.
DAWs / Recording Platforms

Apple Logic Pro

Logic Pro Remote (to control Logic Pro from my iPad Pro or iPhone)

GarageBand (note taking on both iPad and iPhone)

MainStage (not a DAW but for writing and performance)
Guitars

Fender Elite Stratocaster HSS, white w/maple fretboard (now the Ultra Series)

Fender Elite Telecaster, blonde w/maple fretboard (now the Ultra 2 Series)

Gibson MIII w/Floyd Rose, black w/maple fretboard and Seymour Duncan Pickups: B / M / N

Gibson Gospel Steel String Acoustic w/James May UltraTonic Pickup

Guitarras Camps FL-11C Flex B Flamenco Guitar
Bass Guitars

Pedulla Buzz Bass 4-String

Hamer Cruise Bass w/ 2-Tek Bridge
Amplifiers

Fender Limited-Edition ’65 Princeton Bordeaux Reserve 112 12W Jensen P12Q Tube Guitar Combo Amp (find similar)

Universal Audio OX Amp
Effects Pedals

Voodoo Lab Dingbat Pedalboard with PX-8 PLUS Pedal Switcher

Audio Sprockets ToneDexter

BK Butler Tube Driver Custom 5 Knob Bias Model or try the 4 Knob Version

Tube Works 910 Tube Driver (3-Knob)

BOSS DD-8 Digital Delay

BOSS TU-3W Waza Craft Chromatic Tuner

BOSS – PQ4 Parametric EQ (Discontinued, unfortunately ‘cuz it’s awesome)

Digitech Whammy Pedal

Jim Dunlop 535Q Multi-Wah Guitar Effects Pedal
Keyboards & Synthesizers

Roland RD-2000 88-Key Weighted Keyboard

Mostly “in the box”/computer based, so I have an extensive library of plugins. See “Plugins” section below. I've owned many hardware synths over the years but I feel sound-wise that plugins have caught up and often exceeded the originals. I'm not a collector, I'm a user, so why maintain, carry, and insure many physical objects? I love'em, but I no longer feel the need to own them.
Drums & Percussion

Vintage Ludwig Drums

Various Kit Pieces

Handmade Darbuka

CP Bongos

LP Tambourine

Shakers
World Instruments

Fife

Recorders (various sizes)

Castenets
Software

Apple Final Cut Pro

Apple Motion

Apple Compressor

Affinity Suite:

Visual Studio Code

Adobe Creative Cloud Subscription

Most commonly used programs are:

  • Photoshop
  • Illustrator
  • AffterEffects
  • Premiere Pro
  • Dreamweaver
  • Lightroom
  • Dimension

Maxon One Suite (Cinema4D, RedShift, etc.)

Unreal Engine
Plugins

Universal Audio Ultimate (almost the Complete Bundle with how many additional plugins I’ve purchased)

FabFilter (contact me and I can send you an email with a 10% off discount code)

Roland Cloud

Plugin Alliance

Spitfire

Vienna Symphonic Library

ToonTracks Superior Drummer 3

BFD3 Drums

Spectrasonics Keyscape

Native Instruments Komplete Collector’s Edition

iZotope

IK Multimedia – TONEX Max

IK Multimedia – AmpliTube 5 Max

SoundMorph – Much of their catalog but get a lot of use out of DUST, their binaural granular synthesizer
Studio Equipment

Universal Audio Apollo Twin Interface

Universal Audio Apollo X8p Interface

KRK V8 Monitors
Microphones

Townsend Modeling Microphone (now called the Universal Audio Sphere DLX Modeling Microphone)

Neumann U-87 – circa 1970 (now called the Neumann U 87 Ai Switchable Studio Microphone with improved treble response)

Shure SM-7B

Shure Beta 58A

Shure SM-57
Headphones

Audeze LCD-1

Sony MDR7506 Professional Large Diaphragm Headphone

Shure SRH1540

Sennheiser HD650

AKG 240
Camera Equipment

Canon EOS-1DX Mark II

GoPro Hero (several, various versions)

iPhone 16 Pro Max
Lighting Equipment

Coming Soon
Business Tools/Services

Shopify

Google Workspace – This link saves you 10% off the first year

Express VPN – Get 30 Days for free, easy to use and for most people it’s an easy recommend, but I have now switched to:

SurfShark VPN – Because I needed split tunneling for Mac (which is hard to find in 2025). It also has a lot of other built in features that are extra with other platforms.