Keys, strings, some brass, some drums,
Fruity Loops and Ableton, various vst instruments, i play with just about everything I can find....multiple formats, Mac or Windows or Linux
Korg Electribe EA-1 and ES-1, Boss SP-202, Korg D-12, Korg miniKP, Numark EM-360, Yamaha QY10, Novation miniKey
Depends on the moment and the day, lately I have been on an Amon Tobin/Two Fingers kick but listening also to Count Basie, Ella Fitzgerald, and Louis Prima.
The Velvet Underground and Nico, Amon Tobin's Out from Out Where, Calexico's Aerocalexico, The Breeders' Last Splash...too many to list
The Prodigy, Metalheadz, Aphex Twin, EZ Rollers, Simon Posford, Garmarna, Gjallarhorn, Charlie Parker, Count Basie, The Velvet Underground, Lou Reed, Trent Reznor, Amon Tobin so many, many more...
It really depends on the track and the mood, I don't really try to emulate any specific sound or genre...but I like anything beat heavy, I like things with a mid-eastern flavor, or with jazz. My sound changes over time, depending on what I am trying to express
I work as a systems administrator and sometime programmer, I write, paint, research, etc...I have too many interests to honestly list. Sometimes one of my interests suffers because of my focus on several others (like music).