Skip to main content
MusicRadar MusicRadar The No.1 website for musicians
UK EditionUK US EditionUS AU EditionAustralia SG EditionSingapore
Sign in
  • View Profile
  • Sign out
  • Artist news
  • Music Gear Reviews
  • Synths
  • Guitars
  • Controllers
  • Drums
  • Keyboards & Pianos
  • Guitar Amps
  • Software & Apps
  • More
    • Recording
    • DJ Gear
    • Acoustic Guitars
    • Bass Guitars
    • Tech
    • Tutorials
    • Reviews
    • Buying Guides
    • About us
Don't miss these
teed
Artists How TEED went back to basics with a bedroom set-up and a borrowed synth for third album Always With Me
Lily and Blue
Artists We speak with Lily Allen’s co-songwriter and executive producer about the extraordinary fast-paced creation of West End Girl
A pair of Sennheiser HD 490 Pro studio headphones on a mixing desk
Headphones Best studio headphones 2025: my pick of cans for mixing, mastering, and monitoring - tested by a working musician and producer
Pair of Audio-Technica in-ear monitors sat on a case
Studio Monitors Best in-ear monitors 2025: IEMs for stage and studio
trevor horn
Artists "It was the best-sounding piece of kit ever – but they were so up themselves": Trevor Horn on the pioneering synth that defined the sound of Welcome to the Pleasuredome
JBL Series 3 mkII
Studio Monitors Best studio monitors 2025: Studio speakers for musicians and producers on any budget
A pair of KRK Systems Kreate 5 studio monitors in a studio
Studio Monitors Best budget studio monitors 2025: Make your mixes sing with these wallet-friendly home studio speakers
Teddy Swims in a hat
Singers & Songwriters “If you use it the correct way, I think it’s a beautiful tool”: Teddy Swims admits he’s used AI on his own material
Apple iMac M4
Computers Best PCs for music production 2025: Apple Macs and Windows machines for your home studio
A pair of Sennheiser HD 490 Pro studio headphones on a light purple background
Headphones I’ve tested 13 studio headphones this year and my top choice just landed a serious Cyber Monday deal - save $110 on the Sennheiser HD 490 Pro
Trevor Horn
Artists How Trevor Horn’s anonymous electronic group - the Art of Noise - revolutionised sample culture
DarWin
Artists “Most pop music is rubbish now”: Legendary drummer Simon Phillips on producing supergroup DarWin
Ableton Move
Tech One year on, I’ve finally clicked with Ableton Move – all because I’ve stopped trying to make music with it
M83
Artists Inside the towering M83 monolith that left its creator with mixed feelings
steve hauschildt
Artists Ambient maestro Steve Hauschildt on the obscure plugins, generative tools and '00s digital synths behind Aeropsia
More
  • "The most expensive bit of drumming in history”
  • JoBo x Fuchs
  • Radiohead Daydreaming
  • Vanilla Fudge
  • 95k+ free music samples
  1. Artists
  2. Djs

Me in my studio: Porter Robinson

News
By Chris Barker published 13 January 2012

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Intro

Intro

“I’m Porter Robinson. I’m nineteen years old and I’ve been a touring DJ for about a year. Before that, I spent my entire adolescence in my bedroom writing music.

"My studio was lo-fi by necessity; I was fourteen with no reliable income. I was monitoring my music using $100 Logitech speakers, and I only used software. My room was completely untreated and as a result I’m unconvinced by the 'supreme analogue hardware' mythology that is needed to achieve a good musical result.

"What's more important than having a hyper-accurate system, perfect room, and obscure soviet synths that can't stay in-fucking-tune, is knowing your system and working hard. As you'll see, my studio hasn't changed much...”

Page 1 of 7
Page 1 of 7
The studio

The studio

"This is my complete setup. It consists of a computer monitor, some software, the lowest-end M-Audio soundcard and some KRK Rokit6's.

"This setup is actually more hi-fi than what i produced my EP Spitfire on. For that record, I used my computer's onboard soundcard and those $100 logitech consumer speakers from best buy I mentioned earlier. Again: no hardware"

Page 2 of 7
Page 2 of 7
Sergio Flores

Sergio Flores

"Now that I've covered everything I use, these are the next most important things in my studio, two, framed pictures.

"The first is of sergio flores, the acclaimed sexy sax man, and the other is of my dog. They're posted proudly on my mantle right above my computer monitor. They might seem superfluous but trust me, I've tried producing without them and the result is unspeakable."

Page 3 of 7
Page 3 of 7
The bed

The bed

"What kind of self-congratulatory bedroom producer would I be without a bed? It too, is understated: it's a mattress on the floor.

"i couldn't find my comforter when I took this picture, either!"

Page 4 of 7
Page 4 of 7
Scented candles

Scented candles

"When I'm making sentimental trancey fluffiness, I like to have some equally saccharine aromas filling the room.

"Yes, that second one is called 'christmas cookie' and yeah it's my favourite one."

Page 5 of 7
Page 5 of 7
Espesso machine

Espesso machine

"This is my espresso machine. Writing music while caffeinated produces some interesting results. The stimulation basically amplifies my music-production-dependent bi-polarity.

"When I'm writing good music and I'm caffeinated, I attribute all my success to the coffee, get really sentimental about the EDM scene and tweet a lot. When I'm caffeinated and I'm writing shit music, the world sucks and so does everyone. Don't talk to me."

Page 6 of 7
Page 6 of 7
Roland JP-8000

Roland JP-8000

"Did I say I don't have any hardware? Sorry, I meant I don't use any hardware. This is my Roland JP-8000, it's good for collecting dust and making retro super-saws.

"I have never once used the JP-8000 in a recorded production. It's not necessary! A healthy collection of sample packs for drum sounds and my favorite softsynths Sytrus, Massive, Sylenth1 and 3xOSC have met my needs thus far and all on a budget suitable for a fourteen year old!"

Page 7 of 7
Page 7 of 7
Chris Barker
Read more
MPH
“I got woken up at 3 AM by a fan spamming my DMs. I’m still in disbelief”: UKG phenom MPH on featuring in Thomas Bangalter’s comeback DJ set
 
 
teed
How TEED went back to basics with a bedroom set-up and a borrowed synth for third album Always With Me
 
 
kid harpoon
“There’s a reason that the Juno-106 is still the greatest”: Kid Harpoon on vintage synths and studio secrets
 
 
MARIBOU
“Each of our albums had a synth that really excited us. The first was a Prophet ‘08, the second was the MS-20, and this time the Moog Matriarch is on every track”: Maribou State on Hallucinating Love
 
 
verses gt
Jacques Greene and Nosaj Thing on the making of their new collaborative project, Verses GT
 
 
Semtek aka DJ Persuasion
7 great house and techno tips from Don’t Be Afraid label boss Semtek (aka DJ Persuasion)
 
 
Latest in Djs
Green square on a cream background
"This record shouldn’t, strictly speaking, be possible at all”: Here's Autechre – reinterpreted on acoustic guitar
 
 
user18081971, aka Aphex Twin, on Souncloud
“Got many requests for this one from a few years back”: Aphex Twin uploads new tracks to his Soundcloud page
 
 
Pope Leo XIV, Robert Prevost arrives on the main central loggia balcony of the St Peter's Basilica
Is God a DJ? Pope makes appearance at religious rave in Slovakia
 
 
Fabric DJ Getty Images
UK electronic musicians aren't getting the royalties they deserve, according to a new report
 
 
Disclosure
“One of the greatest electronic music songs of all time”: Disclosure officially release their edit of a ‘90s club classic
 
 
Armin Van Buuren piano
“I feel a freedom behind the piano”: Armin Van Buuren on his surprising new musical direction
 
 
Latest in News
Suzie Gibbons/Redferns; Ross Marino/Getty Images; Michael Putland/Getty Images
Mick Hucknall says he was simply green with envy when he heard George Michael's duet with Aretha Franklin
 
 
Crazy Tube Circuits Orama: the orange/peach coloured pedal combines classic preamp and fuzz circuits and promises a wide range of sounds
Crazy Tube Circuits squeezes out another sweet twofer with the Orama preamp/fuzz pedal
 
 
Sabrina Carpenter speaks onstage at Variety Hitmakers 2025 on December 06, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty Images)
Sabrina Carpenter offers her songwriting advice as she accepts Variety’s Hitmaker of the Year award
 
 
Brian May performs live with his Red Special, and on the right, his old pal, Black Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi, plays the custom-built Red Special replica that Iommi got him as a festive gift.
Brian May just got Tony Iommi the best Christmas present ever
 
 
Josh Freese
“It was all done on GarageBand – it’s live drums, but over this goofy funk drum loop I’d done on my laptop out on tour”
 
 
push
Ableton and Arturia reign supreme as Reverb reveals best-selling synths, samplers and drum machines of 2025
 
 

MusicRadar is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

Add as a preferred source on Google
  • About Us
  • Contact Future's experts
  • Terms and conditions
  • Privacy policy
  • Cookies policy
  • Advertise with us
  • Accessibility Statement
  • Careers

© Future Publishing Limited Quay House, The Ambury, Bath BA1 1UA. All rights reserved. England and Wales company registration number 2008885.

Please login or signup to comment

Please wait...