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[Toy Soldier]

New song... What do you guys think? First time I've done anything with 'real' vocals instead of messed up vox.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rv-rlJS8oGA

Super catchy, I like it a lot. IMHO it'd be even more fun restructured with like 60-90 seconds cut out of it. Some of the instrumental arpeggiated sections get kinda samey, even though they're different.

Also, if you do keep that dance structure with the instrumental arp sections, I'd do a little more stereo separation to make those synths really stand out from the mix. All you have going on there can get a little muddy without that.

But yeah, nice job!

 

[FantasticMrFoxdie]

Just saw this amazing documentary about music making. It's got Flying Lotus, James Murphy, Brian Eno and ton of others in it. Thought it was worth sharing.

What Difference Does It Make: A Film About Making Music

This was an awesome watch. Inspiring stuff.

New song... What do you guys think? First time I've done anything with 'real' vocals instead of messed up vox.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rv-rlJS8oGA

Really well done. Im diggin it.

I dunno if its my speakers but the synths were a little too loud. I'd turn it down a bit

 

[Xrenity]

Thanks so much guys, really appreciate the feedback. Makes me think I'm on the right track production wise!

Super catchy, I like it a lot. IMHO it'd be even more fun restructured with like 60-90 seconds cut out of it. Some of the instrumental arpeggiated sections get kinda samey, even though they're different.

Also, if you do keep that dance structure with the instrumental arp sections, I'd do a little more stereo separation to make those synths really stand out from the mix. All you have going on there can get a little muddy without that.

But yeah, nice job!

It might be a tad too long indeed, but couldn't get myself to cut parts away. And great tip on the stereo separation I think!

Really well done. Im diggin it.

I dunno if its my speakers but the synths were a little too loud. I'd turn it down a bit

They're probably a little too loud... One time while mixing I I think the synths are too loud, then I adjust them and next time I think they're not loud enough.

Here is the first thing I've made in about a year. I'd love any comment/critique. It samples Arve Henriksen and Food and I'll hopefully be expanding it with vocals soon.
https://soundcloud.com/ianbarkerspam/sketch-4-1

Sounds good (literally, the sound)! Great atmosphere. Wonder where you'll take it to.

Singing sounds fine. Will probably come out fine in a mix. Don't stop! I think it's hard to sing confidently (probably cause I'm not that good a singer), you sound like you're pulling it off.

 

[VariantX04]

Hey all, how's everyone doing? Just an update as I've been completely off the grid from this thread since I've been busy as all hell these past few months. Things are finally starting to pick up for me after a few years of toiling away in my little bedroom trying to make a name for myself in a place that discourages music as a career. Thanks to my work with local indie devs, I managed to land a job at Sony Saudi Arabia in their new game publishing division. I'm working with a couple of friends to create an environment where indie devs in the region can finally get support for their tireless work. I had to move to Saudi's capital Riyadh but it helps that all opportunities for me are in this part of the country. I'm finally starting to land meaningful gigs. I worked recently with the premier Toyota dealer in our country on a jingle + a tune for their hotline and I released a remix of it here because I couldn't let that piano bit go without adding a beat on top of it haha.

Also, my work on Atomic+ landed me a Best Game Audio nomination at IndiePrize 2014 in Amsterdam. I didn't win but I'm really honored to be considered.

I'm still not at the place I want to be professionally and I am completely aware that I have A LOT to learn but I am extremely grateful for all the support I've been given so far and hope to keep up this momentum going further into 2014. Sorry for the livejournal-esque post, I just wanted to share this with you guys.

 

[neos]

Whiskers doing lot of good stuff

Whoah those are awesome news Whiskers, you deserved it all.
I wish you the best, you are a great composer!

I released a remix of it here because I couldn't let that piano bit go without adding a beat on top of it haha.

lol

I'm still working to my years-in-the making FF7 remix, but i'm having hard time on mixing the instruments, fitting a piano between a big sawpad and another saw synth seems to be over my skills
https://soundcloud.com/blindzoom/wip_holding-16-2

 

[J10]

https://www.youtube.com/user/PensadosPlace/videos?flow=grid&view=0

There is a lot of good information from industry professionals on this channel.

 

[Servbot24]

New song... What do you guys think? First time I've done anything with 'real' vocals instead of messed up vox.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rv-rlJS8oGA

sounds really good! tbh i felt embarrassed listening to the lyrics though...

 

[Greg]

finished a new song a couple days ago - maybe someone here will dig it:

Wash - FLAC / MP3

 

[Xrenity]

sounds really good! tbh i felt embarrassed listening to the lyrics though...

Haha, I can imagine. They're meant to be a little 'dumb' I guess. It's not my first language so maybe it's not as 'direct' for me as well. Thanks for the compliment though!

Also, if you do keep that dance structure with the instrumental arp sections, I'd do a little more stereo separation to make those synths really stand out from the mix.

Did some research after you mentioned this and found the following article: http://www.moultonlabs.com/more/principles_of_multitrack_mixing_the_phantom_image/P0/

Really interesting on how panning other than full right/left doesn't do as much as one would think.

 

[Servbot24]

I'm thinking about getting some Equator d5 monitors. Anyone have experience with them? I'm guessing the 5" should be fine, I just work in my bedroom (which is slightly larger than average).

Also they offer a choice of 120v or 220v at no price difference, is there any reason I would choose the lower voltage?

 

[Fusebox]

Haha, I can imagine. They're meant to be a little 'dumb' I guess. It's not my first language so maybe it's not as 'direct' for me as well. Thanks for the compliment though!

Did some research after you mentioned this and found the following article: http://www.moultonlabs.com/more/principles_of_multitrack_mixing_the_phantom_image/P0/

Really interesting on how panning other than full right/left doesn't do as much as one would think.

Interesting, but don't hard-pan in dance music unless you only want one half of the club to hear it.

That article is a little over my head for early in the day, but what I understood conflicts with everything I've read about making space for instrument in a stereo mix by panning conflicting frequencies away from each other.

 

[Fusebox]

110v if you live in US/Japan, 240v if you live in Europe/Australia.

I'm thinking about getting some Equator d5 monitors. Anyone have experience with them? I'm guessing the 5" should be fine, I just work in my bedroom (which is slightly larger than average).

Also they offer a choice of 120v or 220v at no price difference, is there any reason I would choose the lower voltage?

Derp. This was meant to be an edit to my above post. I forum fail.

 

[Vincent Alexander]

finished a new song a couple days ago - maybe someone here will dig it:

Wash - FLAC / MP3

I downloaded this to my phone today and have listened a few times. It's pretty damn good!

I caught this thread for the first time today, and am going do my best to stay active here. I play guitar and have in the past sat down on two lonely nights with Cubase and recorded whatever has come to mind...meaning my log of songs I've recorded is a sad two. However, I'd love to learn the production side of things much better. I've always been god awful and will admit I've not done anything in my recordings besides moving the sliders for "L" "C" or "R" speakers. Though I understand equalizers (a bit), I'm never touched.

Long story short: I hope to be here for a while, learn some things, and if anyone is interested, I have my guitar skills to offer up.

Imagine if the Snow Caught Fire This is from about 3 years ago---the only of the two songs I have to share. Can't even find my other one.

 

[Servbot24]

Just saw this amazing documentary about music making. It's got Flying Lotus, James Murphy, Brian Eno and ton of others in it. Thought it was worth sharing.

What Difference Does It Make: A Film About Making Music

what time does flylo come in? i watched the whole thing but didn't see him

also i found it strangely depressing for the most part all the music in it seems so calculated and market-driven

 

[Professor Chaos]

I'm thinking about getting some Equator d5 monitors. Anyone have experience with them? I'm guessing the 5" should be fine, I just work in my bedroom (which is slightly larger than average).

They seem pretty good monitors. But be aware that 5" woofers are generally not good at reproducing bass content (I see the Equator's go down to 53Hz). How much this matters to you will mainly depend on what kind of music you are making. If you are not making super bass heavy music they should be fine. But then again you can always check sub content on a decent pair of headphones. Just thought I'd throw that out there.

what time does flylo come in? i watched the whole thing but didn't see him

also i found it strangely depressing for the most part all the music in it seems so calculated and market-driven

I can't remember, but he's barley in it unfortunately. I think you see him sitting at his desk producing for like 3 seconds lol. Thundercat got more screen time.

 

[Greg]

I downloaded this to my phone today and have listened a few times. It's pretty damn good!

thanks for checking it out - I appreciate it!

 

[Vincent Alexander]

This has probably been asked a billion times, but here goes:

Should I learn piano/keyboard? I don't have a MIDI keyboard, but I've always wanted one. I'm going back pages now, listening, and am simply awestruck. I'm inspired, and want compose like those here.

 

[thezerofire]

This has probably been asked a billion times, but here goes:

Should I learn piano/keyboard? I don't have a MIDI keyboard, but I've always wanted one. I'm going back pages now, listening, and am simply awestruck. I'm inspired, and want compose like those here.

yes, why not? it's fun and very useful

 

[Servbot24]

This has probably been asked a billion times, but here goes:

Should I learn piano/keyboard? I don't have a MIDI keyboard, but I've always wanted one. I'm going back pages now, listening, and am simply awestruck. I'm inspired, and want compose like those here.

the more you learn, the more inspiration and resource you have to draw from. not to mention piano in particular is basically the most practical thing you can learn for making electronic music.

 

[Vincent Alexander]

Any recommendations for a MIDI keyboard in the $50-100 range for a beginner?

 

[FloatingDivider]

Any recommendations for a MIDI keyboard in the $50-100 range for a beginner?

Let me preface this by saying: I don't know shit about piano playing besides hammering out some basic block chords/inversion and arpeggios. But I'm fairly sure within that price range your options are going to be limited, most keyboards will probably be fairly similar, cheapo spring loaded affairs -- which is fine if you're just wanting to play along with some youtube tutorials and such but it doesn't simulate a piano and besides basic note recognition etc you won't have any feel for playing an actual real life piano since they require more force to operate.

Honestly I don't think there's going to be a real winner in the 50$ to 100$ price range, the biggest decision you'll have to make is if you'll want extra features like pads and knobs to turn or more keys. 88 keys is pretty much required if you're wanting to play classical without having to constrain the range, for producing anything goes really it just depends on how complex you want it to get.


Also quick question, does anyone know some active producer/musician forums not loaded with 14 year olds. I just want to talk more shop or something like that but I have nobody to talk it too/with.

 

[Servbot24]

Any recommendations for a MIDI keyboard in the $50-100 range for a beginner?

For learning piano you are going to want a 61-key, which won't be happening at that price range. I would suggest possibly buying a cheap non-midi keyboard to practice with while you save up for a good one.

 

[thezerofire]

started making some stuff that could possibly approximate music. progress!

 

[Professor Chaos]

Also quick question, does anyone know some active producer/musician forums not loaded with 14 year olds. I just want to talk more shop or something like that but I have nobody to talk it too/with.

KVR's forums are pretty good. It has a great community and knowledge base and lots of plugin developers hang out there too. It's pretty much the only one I frequent now days.

 

[collige]

Also quick question, does anyone know some active producer/musician forums not loaded with 14 year olds. I just want to talk more shop or something like that but I have nobody to talk it too/with.

Gearslutz

 

[Fusebox]

Gearslutz

He said somewhere not loaded with 14 year olds lol.

There is no right answer, gearslutz is full of the worst kind of forum posters and you'll end up dumber than you were before you started reading it. KVR just moves too slow and most of it is copied from gearslutz anyway.

Gearslutz is great for news/announcements tho, just scan the thread headings for info and then move on.

Having said that I'd love to talk more shop in this thread but most people are just interested in posting the link to their latest demo instead of talking about what they used to make it.

 

[thezerofire]

He said somewhere not loaded with 14 year olds lol.

There is no right answer, gearslutz is full of the worst kind of forum posters and you'll end up dumber than you were before you started reading it. KVR just moves too slow and most of it is copied from gearslutz anyway.

Gearslutz is great for news/announcements tho, just scan the thread headings for info and then move on.

Having said that I'd love to talk more shop in this thread but most people are just interested in posting the link to their latest demo instead of talking about what they used to make it.

I'm definitely more interested in the how than the what, but maybe that's because I don't have a what to talk about yet

 

[Xrenity]

Having said that I'd love to talk more shop in this thread but most people are just interested in posting the link to their latest demo instead of talking about what they used to make it.

I'd love to do this as well but I'm not sure where to start or what questions to ask others.

But what kind of monitors do you guys use? I'm on Yamaha HS7's. Tested a lot of monitors in a shop with an a/b/c/... switch and these came up best for me (within the price range). I think that was a really big step up for my mixes because for the first time I could actually very well hear what the hell some effects were doing.

 

[Servbot24]

Are there any chains where you can test out different monitors? I live in Austin, TX so i would imagine there's something like that around here...

 

[FloatingDivider]

I'd love to do this as well but I'm not sure where to start or what questions to ask others.

But what kind of monitors do you guys use? I'm on Yamaha HS7's. Tested a lot of monitors in a shop with an a/b/c/... switch and these came up best for me (within the price range). I think that was a really big step up for my mixes because for the first time I could actually very well hear what the hell some effects were doing.

I use a pair of sennheisers 555's, I should buy monitors but I'm completely clueless and fairly broke. I also live in an apartment and don't want to get noise complaints filed against me so I'm not sure if using monitors 24/7 is a smart thing to do. I do try to check my mixes on a variety of things though(they sound pretty bad on all of them). I've been checking out pensado's place videos to try and remedy my disability but it's sort of frustrating watching him throw 10k worth of plugins and hardware at a song.

Honestly I hate this starting out learning something artistic phase, my critical taste far surpasses my ability to produce something that is going to live up to that standard.

 

[FantasticMrFoxdie]

I'd love to do this as well but I'm not sure where to start or what questions to ask others.

But what kind of monitors do you guys use? I'm on Yamaha HS7's. Tested a lot of monitors in a shop with an a/b/c/... switch and these came up best for me (within the price range). I think that was a really big step up for my mixes because for the first time I could actually very well hear what the hell some effects were doing.

Heh. I asked this a few pages back too because I was shopping around and hoping to get some tips. I've gotten pretty busy with projects so I haven't gotten to do much shopping though. I'm currently on M-audio BX5s with a shitty Altec Lansing sub, but its not cutting it for me. I mean its serviceable, but Its hard for me to get an accurate mix on the lows so im constantly jumping between my headphones and speakers.

I know Fusebox posted this about his monitors:

At the moment I'm using HS80s but I've used the eq switches on the back to roll bass, boost mids and roll highs effectively making them sound closer to an NS10/HS50 speaker response. Because of the way my room responds to bass its way to easy to get booming bass if I don't aggressively cut on my HS80, and that easy booming bass energy never translates onto other systems. Now I have to work to get an energetic, booming bass and I can be fairly confident it's going to sound similar to that on other systems, just gotta keep checking my sub bass in a spectrum analyzer and my headphones.

I'm curious... what Headphones are you guys using? I recently got ATH-M50s and they've been great.

 

[thezerofire]

I use a pair of sennheisers 555's, I should buy monitors but I'm completely clueless and fairly broke. I also live in an apartment and don't want to get noise complaints filed against me so I'm not sure if using monitors 24/7 is a smart thing to do. I do try to check my mixes on a variety of things though(they sound pretty bad on all of them). I've been checking out pensado's place videos to try and remedy my disability but it's sort of frustrating watching him throw 10k worth of plugins and hardware at a song.

Honestly I hate this starting out learning something artistic phase, my critical taste far surpasses my ability to produce something that is going to live up to that standard.

I'm pretty sure there's a quote relating to that last part, not sure how to find it right now.

I'm using Presonus Eris E5's. Really happy with them.

 

[collige]

I use a pair of sennheisers 555's, I should buy monitors but I'm completely clueless and fairly broke. I also live in an apartment and don't want to get noise complaints filed against me so I'm not sure if using monitors 24/7 is a smart thing to do. I do try to check my mixes on a variety of things though(they sound pretty bad on all of them). I've been checking out pensado's place videos to try and remedy my disability but it's sort of frustrating watching him throw 10k worth of plugins and hardware at a song.

Honestly I hate this starting out learning something artistic phase, my critical taste far surpasses my ability to produce something that is going to live up to that standard.

I wouldn't worry about it too much. I've been producing on HD-600s since 2009 and apart from the practical problems you mentioned, I have no desire to buy fancy monitors. It's more important to have your ears be used to your current speakers and use good references than just have expensive gear imo. Monitors are a lot more expensive than headphones for the same quality anyway.

 

[Professor Chaos]

I use a pair of sennheisers 555's, I should buy monitors but I'm completely clueless and fairly broke. I also live in an apartment and don't want to get noise complaints filed against me so I'm not sure if using monitors 24/7 is a smart thing to do. I do try to check my mixes on a variety of things though(they sound pretty bad on all of them). I've been checking out pensado's place videos to try and remedy my disability but it's sort of frustrating watching him throw 10k worth of plugins and hardware at a song.

Yeah, there is some pretty blatant advertising and plugging going on on Pensado's. Most of the time the info is still applicable no matter what gear you have - the fundamentals are the same.

I'm pretty sure there's a quote relating to that last part, not sure how to find it right now.

Do you mean this one?

I still struggle with this.

 

[thezerofire]

Yeah, there is some pretty blatant advertising and plugging going on on Pensado's. Most of the time the info is still applicable no matter what gear you have - the fundamentals are the same.

I watched Headhunterz video and it was essentially him just saying "Use Virus"

Do you mean this one?

I still struggle with this.

Yep that's the one. Keeps me motivated.

 

[Outdoor Miner]

I don't want to discourage folks posting their demos because GAFers sharing their creations is a beautiful thing, but Fuse is right. We need more talk about gear and techniques in here.

Such an amazing quote and so true. Count me as one of those casualties, but I still follow gear and read up on it cuz I'm a nerd like that!

 

[VariantX04]

Whoah those are awesome news Whiskers, you deserved it all.
I wish you the best, you are a great composer!

Thanks man!

It's extremely hard to get a foot in the door here so I'm really grateful for the amount of support i've been given so far.

I'm still working to my years-in-the making FF7 remix, but i'm having hard time on mixing the instruments, fitting a piano between a big sawpad and another saw synth seems to be over my skills

If I find myself taking a while to complete a project, I just move along until I improve enough to tackle old projects again. Take things in moderation without pushing yourself too far to the point where you feel you can no longer work on something. I can't tell you the amount of unfinished projects I have (dozens) so try not to get discouraged if you can't find the right tone because practice makes perfect and eventually it'll come to you and you won't believe how easy it was.

 

[Xrenity]

I've been checking out pensado's place videos to try and remedy my disability but it's sort of frustrating watching him throw 10k worth of plugins and hardware at a song.

Yeah I always think it's kinda bullshit though.

There's plenty of free VST's out there that will do a lot of the things you probably want. And Ableton itself also has lots of good stuff I think if you know how to use it.

Guitar Rig is a must though for me. That can spice up so many synths/recordings it's not even funny.

Of course the expensive stuff is there for a reason but it's far from a necessity I think.

And working within limits forces creativity right

 

[soundahfekz]

Whoah those are awesome news Whiskers, you deserved it all.
I wish you the best, you are a great composer!


lol

I'm still working to my years-in-the making FF7 remix, but i'm having hard time on mixing the instruments, fitting a piano between a big sawpad and another saw synth seems to be over my skills
https://soundcloud.com/blindzoom/wip_holding-16-2

use Eq and panning to carve out space for the Piano. From the soundcloud link all the sounds appear to be operating in the same space without any panning or accomodating for other instruments.


Uploaded another snippet, Fooled around with a dubstep-ish break on a faster pace "trap" feel beat

https://soundcloud.com/soundahfekz/creep-sunlight/s-R7a17

 

[mr jones]

So, my band finally posted a video:

Wood Wings

We did all of the audio in the lyricist's basement. 3 mics on the drums, recorded and mixed in Logic.

Its pretty funny how ambitious you get when you're poor. There was SO much more that we wanted to do, but didn't have the money or time...

 

[Vincent Alexander]

So, my band finally posted a video:

Wood Wings

We did all of the audio in the lyricist's basement. 3 mics on the drums, recorded and mixed in Logic.

Its pretty funny how ambitious you get when you're poor. There was SO much more that we wanted to do, but didn't have the money or time...

Good song. I like the video too---not sure why I laughed when the singer threw open the garage door at about 1:15.

Uploaded another snippet, Fooled around with a dubstep-ish break on a faster pace "trap" feel beat

https://soundcloud.com/soundahfekz/creep-sunlight/s-R7a17

Good stuff. If I'm being honest, between 4 second mark and 17 second mark (ish), I didn't care much for the dub element, except for the quick "riff" that comes at the end of each phrase. Sorry---not sure how to describe the sounds and such. Either way, very awesome. I'm also listening to some of your other tracks on Sound Cloud. Haven't listened to many yet, but I love Levels Snipp. And that intro to Nyc to Tokyo Snipp.


When you guys/gals are making music---do you start with the beat or drums, or generally start with a melody? Whether it's in your head, or actually recording. I have 0 skills programming drums/making a beat, and it is going to be my first goal in all of this.

 

[Dorygrant]

Hey guys,
Been a long time producer/remixer and thought I'd share with you guys some of my latest stuff:
https://soundcloud.com/ws_remix

There is some originals, some video game remixes. This account is an instrumental only one just to see if there is any interest in that!

Hope you like!

 

[J10]

When you guys/gals are making music---do you start with the beat or drums, or generally start with a melody? Whether it's in your head, or actually recording. I have 0 skills programming drums/making a beat, and it is going to be my first goal in all of this.

I tend to let ideas bounce around in my head for a while before I lay them down so when I do start writing it all just kinda spills out and the order doesn't really matter.

On the rare occasion I'm just making up something from scratch with no direction it can go either way. Programming a synth like Massive can lead to one thing, cutting up and reprogramming the break on James Brown's Funky Drummer can lead to another.

I've been doing it so long it doesn't really matter how it starts anymore.

 

[Toy Soldier]

When you guys/gals are making music---do you start with the beat or drums, or generally start with a melody? Whether it's in your head, or actually recording. I have 0 skills programming drums/making a beat, and it is going to be my first goal in all of this.

I start with a melody. Always. Start with the melody, eventually build a 4-8 bar chord structure that I like, then another, then another, piece them together in a traditional pop song structure (verse - bridge - chorus - verse - bridge - chorus - middle 8 - chorus - etc). Then, once the magic is there for all of the sections and it just sounds right to me, THEN I start on the instrumentation, arrangements, all of the production itself. I just get a sheet of paper, describe to myself how I want the bass to sound, how I want the lead instruments to sound, what kind of percussion beat I want, etc...then I use those scratch notes to re-create what's in my head.

I've never been the type to be able to build a song around a beat. I get too distracted, play around with too many ideas, and by the end of it all, there's nothing but an unstructured mess of sounds. But, not doing that sort of toying around has really stunted my growth as a producer. Sticking to my 'write ideas down, and don't deviate from that' model has made a lot of my music sound the same for years...when I probably should start experimenting a lot more. Gonna start doing that more.

 

[ElectricThunder]

You lot in here might like this spoils of this little event that just recently concluded---wide variety of hardware, software, techniques, etc represented and some even have direct project files available for all to pick apart.

http://www.msx.org/news/challenges/en/game-music-cover-challenge-closed

 

[Xrenity]

I mostly start with the beat, but yeah, can start from anything really.

 

[Professor Chaos]

iZotope have released a free mixing guide. Obviously it highlights the use of their plugins to demonstrate techniques, but the info is solid regardless.

Old timers probably wont find it as helpful as beginners. But it still could be useful as a reference.

 

[neos]

iZotope have released a free mixing guide. Obviously it highlights the use of their plugins to demonstrate techniques, but the info is solid regardless.

Old timers probably wont find it as helpful as beginners. But it still could be useful as a reference.

Thank you, saved, i'll surely read it.

For Reason users (is there anyone here?), i've made a combinator that i use to check my mix in mono,hope it can be useful to anyone else. Just put it over your mixer\mastering suite and press the MONO button in the combinator:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/hde89xxjumcp9d9/Mono Checker.cmb

Don't mind the backdrop, did it with paint :\

 

[Foshy]

Did a Trap/Big Room House remix of Carmen by Lana Del Rey, tell me what you think and what I could do better

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u3tHvWrbxfE

 

[Max]

Been working on this for a few weeks for a friend to rap on, before I send it his way suggestions please!