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Independent research by truerecs. Not affiliated with, endorsed or verified by deadmau5.Are you deadmau5? Claim this page
Independent research by truerecs. Not affiliated with, endorsed or verified by deadmau5. Every item links to its public source.
38 items · Last checked

What DAW does deadmau5 use?

deadmau5 has said they switch DAWs: Cubase for detailed MIDI work, Ableton Live for quick edits and Pro Tools to recall their Rupert Neve Designs 5088 console. They started out on Impulse Tracker and were seen trying Bitwig Studio in 2016. Synth mainstays include an Analogue Solutions Colossus, a Moog Voyager and an EMS Synthi AKS.

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What studio gear deadmau5 uses: a sourced gear guide

Independent research by truerecs: every item links to the public source it comes from.

Studio

10 items

Synths

14 items

Stage

3 items

Records that shaped me

1 item

Where it started

1 item

Modular

9 items
Questions

About deadmau5's gear.

What DAW does deadmau5 use?

deadmau5 told MusicRadar in 2022 they switch between Cubase for MIDI-heavy work, Ableton Live for quick edits and live shows, and Pro Tools for fader recall on their Neve console. They started on Impulse Tracker in the early 1990s and teased a track made in Bitwig Studio in 2016.

What plugins does deadmau5 use?

deadmau5 has said they use Native Instruments Kontakt for programmed parts, Universal Audio UAD plug-ins as utility tools, and VCV Rack 2 Pro for virtual modular inside the DAW.

What synth does deadmau5 use?

deadmau5 has said the Analogue Solutions Colossus and the Moog Voyager are mainstays, and in 2026 said they use an EMS Synthi AKS a lot. Studio tours have shown a Roland Juno-106 and Jupiter-8, a Prophet-10, an ARP 2600 and a gold Minimoog Voyager 10th Anniversary Edition.

What modular synth does deadmau5 use?

Their wall of modular includes an Analogue Solutions Colossus, a Modcan system, Oberheim SEM modules and Mutable Instruments Yarns. A 2024 case build showed Moog DFAM, Mother-32 and Subharmonicon, Behringer Neutron, Pro-1 and K-2, and Mutable Braids, Clouds and Elements.

What mixing console does deadmau5 use?

deadmau5 has said they use a Rupert Neve Designs 5088 console in their studio and like driving it into the red for analogue tone.

What DJ mixer does deadmau5 use?

deadmau5 has said they use the PLAYdifferently Model 1 mixer in their live show for its signal path, controlled alongside their own OSC/Pilot app.

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deadmau5
About this guide · Last checked

deadmau5 is the Canadian producer Joel Zimmerman, behind Strobe, Ghosts 'n' Stuff and the mau5trap label. This guide covers the DAWs, synths, modular systems, console and live tools they have named in interviews or shown in studio tours, from the Impulse Tracker days and the 2017 studio tour to the 2026 Reverb tour, plus a record that set them on their path.

truerecs put this guide together from public videos, interviews and posts. Each item says how we know and links to the source. deadmau5 didn't write it or choose anything on it. How we source gear guides.

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truerecs gear guides are independent research from public sources, not made or approved by the artist. Store buttons on this page may be affiliate links: truerecs may earn a commission when you buy through them, at no extra cost to you. deadmau5 isn't paid for them. Report an error or ask for removal. Full disclosure.