MIX CHALLENGE - MC090 February 2023 - Winners announced

[Mister Fox]

Hello and welcome to the Mix Challenge 090 - February 2023

!

Bonus Info

For the first game this year, you have the chance to to work on a "Pop" production, kindly provided to us by singer/songwriter Cristian Condrea (@cristian_condrea). The song is called "Big Eyes". The Mix(ing) Challenge was always about learning something new, offering a chance to try something new, be bold, to be creative, try to find your own groove and develop your personal sonic fingerprint -- within given parameters of the game of course (e.g. maximum loudness, no drum sample replacement, etc). This song has already been released in June 2022. However, with getting access to the multi-tracks for "learning purposes", this gives you one of the rare opportunities to not only work on a sizeable pop production, but to also push yourself to step beyond possible comfort zones. Most notably the one of "trying to get as close to the original version as possible". Did we pique your interest? Then please take special note of the attached TXT files in the Mix Pack, and please read about the details and special requirements for handling this mix further down below.

BEFORE WE GET STARTED:

• Please consult the official "Rules and Guidelines" for the Mix Challenge regarding principles of the game, upload/submission guidelines, the concept of documenting your edits, and maximum allowed loudness values (see Rule Book - post #6)
• The focus of this game is "mixing". Try to create a mix in your own style that complements this production and can stand on it's own, no matter the playback medium. Edit/Mix in such a way, that barely any after-touches other than proper fade in/out and finalizing for distribution (incl. loudness adjustments e.g. for release on Streaming, Vinyl, Tape, CD) is needed for a possible follow-up mastering step.
• The "Mix Pack" and additional information for this months production can be found in in post #002
• Render the edited material in the same sampling rate and bitrate as originally provided (MC090 / February => 44/24)
• Filename Template: MC090__Cristian_Condrea__Big_Eyes__ForumUsername.wav

Failing to adhere to the rules will result in disqualification. There will be no additional reminders given.
If you got any question, please also reach out on Discord



.
MIX(ING) CHALLENGE THREAD INDEX

Post #001 -- Introduction post and index for the various stages of the Songwriting Competition. Will be updated as we progress
Post #002 -- Submission Period: General Information, Source Material, License Sponsors
Post #110 -- Mix Round 1 Statistics/Data Sheet: Overview of Submissions - is your entry within given parameters?
Post #142 -- Mix Round 2: Global Feedback and Round 2 Participant Announcement
Post #000 -- Mix Round 3: <optional>/<not happening this game>
Post #160 -- Results: Winner announcement

[Mister Fox]

CURRENT CHALLENGE - GENERAL INFORMATION

Time Frame: Wednesday, 01st February 2023 to Tuesday, 21st February 2023 (21 days)

Challenge submission will end on 21-FEB-2023, 23:59 UTC+1/CET (Germany) - until further notice.

Want to find out if you're still within the deadline, please either consult the Global Countdown (dedicated page), or the countdown on the landing site. There will also be short reminders on Social Media and on Discord.



Song Provider: Cristian Condrea
Song Name and Length: Big Eyes, 3:00 min
Song Information: 85 BPM / Signature: 4/4
File Format: WAV, 44kHz, 24bit

GENRE: Pop


Preview of the Song (Demo Mix):

phpBB [media]

INFORMATION: This version might sound different from the provided multi-tracks.


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SOURCE FILES:

Main Mix Package - full package (411,09 MB, LZMA compressed, zip)
IMPORTANT NOTE: download window might show a smaller file size, file unavailable after 21-FEB-2023


The provided files were packed as ZIP with LZMA compression (specs from 2015).
File size extracted: 1263,62 MB, packed 411,09 MB (ZIP, LZMA)


In order to extract the files, we can recommend these programs / apps:

► Show Spoiler

macOS:
The Unarchiver - get it here
Keka (open source) - get it here (please take note of the file extraction guide)

Windows:
7zip - Installation / Portable

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A word from the song provider:

This song came to be as a result of a personal life event. Music-wise, it didn't had any source of inspiration. I just went with my gut.

From my perspective, the most important elements of this song are the drums, the bass guitar and the lead vocal. So, this is were I would
start.

Regarding my expectations:
considering that the song has already been released, I'm curious to hear some different approaches to the mix.

I specifically don't want to provide reference tracks because, well, I didn't had one for myself and I don't want to limit the potential of being creative for any of you.

That being said, do whatever you feel like is helping the song to become its best version possible.

A few words by the Mix Challenge staff:

Although this month's production does not feature a multitude of stacked vocal recordings, or many doubled tracks, it still does offer quite the challenge of handling multiple layers of sounds to create a modern coherent mix.

The biggest focus for this production should be "vibe". There are plenty of routes how this song can sound in the end. Your task is to create a new and interesting listening experience, based upon your current skill-set. Remember, this production has been released already. Copying 1:1 wouldn't be that much fun. Be bold, add your own spin, your personal "fingerprint" -- within given parameters of course. The worst that can happen, is that the client asks you to "adjust things".

I unfortunately also can not provide you with any possible song references for this month's challenge. If you however do want to find some inspiration, you could visit your go-to streaming service, and try to listen to "Alternative Pop" music from South East Europe from the last 10-15 years.

Have fun mixing!

More technical details in the Mix Pack bundled TXTs. In there you can find the lyrics of the song (incl. a translation to English), more information about the individual files, possible changes to the time signature, and maybe even additional tips and tricks relevant to this production.

Rule Summary / Add-On Rules:

► Show Spoiler

• try to create a mix that complements this production (in your own style)
• the focus of this game is "mixing" - NO MASTERING. Edit/Mix in such a way, that barely any after-touches other than proper fade in/out and finalizing for distribution (incl. loudness adjustments e.g. for release on Streaming, Vinyl, Tape, CD) is needed for a possible follow-up mastering step.
• Clean / Alternative versions can be used if you need more flexibility over a certain sound (if present for this production)
• make the best out of the provided audio material (EQ, compression, transient tools, etc), no "drum sample triggering / replacement", neither any changes to the arrangement (copy/add/move/remove parts)! (unless otherwise stated)
• please only provide WAV files, files need to be accessible/downloadable from your preferred cloud storage space (no SoundCloud, WeTransfer or similar!)
• render the edited material in the same sampling rate and bitrate as originally provided (MC090 / February => 44/24)
• ADD-ON RULES - PRODUCTION RELATED:
  • Filename Template: MC090__Cristian_Condrea__Big_Eyes__ForumUsername.wav
  • no (more) add-on rules specified

Please consult the official Rules and Guidelines for a more detailed set of rules, including how to document your edits, maximum loudness values and delivery formats (see Rule Book - Post #6). Failing to adhere to the rules will result in disqualification. There will be no additional reminders given.

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LICENSE SPONSORS (Bonus Prizes):

A huge thank you goes to our very generous License Sponsors for this month's game. Those being (in alphabetical order):
Acon Digital, Hornet Plugins, IK Multimedia, Metric Halo, NOS Audio, NUGEN Audio and Tone2


A detailed list of offerings can be found in the following information block.

► Show Spoiler

Available Bonus Prizes for Mix Challenge participants:

Note: All licenses are NFR (Not-For-Resale), except where noted.
Changes to available prizes on short notice may be possible and will be announced separately.



Acon Digital is kind enough to give away a single plugin of winner's choice (exception: Verberate Immersive)
License will turn into NFR
More info on Acon Digital: https://acondigital.com/



Hornet Plugins is kind enough to give away one license from the depicted tools (see image) to the winner
License will turn into NFR
More info on Hornet Plugins: https://www.hornetplugins.com/



IK Multimedia is kind enough to give away one license of T-RackS Tape Machine Collection to the winner
License will turn into NFR
More info on IK Multimedia: https://www.ikmultimedia.com



Metric Halo is kind enough to give away a single plugin of winner's choice
License will turn into NFR
More info about Metric Halo: https://mhsecure.com/metric_halo/



NOS Audio is kind enough to give away one license of NOS Roomer to the winner
License will turn into NFR
More info on NOS Audio: https://www.nosaudio.com/



NUGEN Audio is kind enough to give away one license from the depicted tools (see image) to the winner
License will turn into NFR
More info on NUGEN Audio: https://nugenaudio.com/



Tone2 is kind enough to donate a license of Ultraspace to the winner
License will turn into NFR
More info on Tone2: https://tone2.com



THANKS FOR THE LICENSE DONATIONS!
And also a thank you to all former contributors as well.

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Good luck to all participants.
And most importantly, have fun!

[scottfitz]

Great track, I love Rhodes playing like this, so I'm gonna start with that part and let's see where it goes. Have fun all

[WideRangeEchoes]

This will be fun... Completely out of my "comfort-zone" since I am more into heavy metal an rock. But this will be something new to me. Challenge accepted

[Coiled_Ear]

Yeah, track is challenging while fun to mix!
So here we go with the description -
DRUM BUSS - Ghz Faraday Limiter 3, TB_Reelbus, Kelvin, ThrillseekerX, Pro-q3, Spectre. All fx to have solid punch and clarity of every drum hit
Hihat - just eq
Kick has no punch so - AA Lovend, PRo-q3, khs transient shaper to remove attack a bit
Room - you know that famous effect that is called "mute button". I don't like room, I added TR5 Sunset Reverb room in FX buss instead.
Snare - PROq3, AA Fetish 1176
TOMS - Pro-q3 and Soundtoys Little Radiator

Bass - bass here is a pure ear candy part. So a lot effects should be applied to hear it all
QuickBass, Pro-q3, soothe (even don't rememba why), Pro-q3 again (still don't), Kelvin, Pulsar 1178 (finally almost here), LittleRadiator (becoming an addictive one), AA LALA (more glue), Basslane (the end)

VOX lead - another super important track
AA LALA, NI Supercharger GT (aha, here we go to hear that nicely), Proq3, Audiority Pre x7 (a new one for me but adds top end like there's no tomorrow) and Spectre to add around 1k to pronounce more

Guitar Solo - proq3, PRo-mb, Microshift (two actually, one in the send...suppose different settings slighly), Pro-q3 (oh, again?!), Spectre (yeah another addictive tool, maybe because...I don't good at automation?)

Acoustic - AA fetish, PRoq3, Spectre, Softube transient shaper

VOX back 1 - proq3, Expanse3d, proq3 (well, not hehe...just be in the flow)
Percussion clap - Proq3, transient shaper, Decapitator
Percussion tamb - Proq3, Decapitator, Transient shaper, Proq3
Rhodes - Proq3, Expanse3d (yeah, ahother addictive tool here)

Aux - ValhallaPlate, ValhallaVintageverb, TR5 sunset reverb, ValhallaPlate, Microshift

MixBuss - Ableton's GLue compressor, Proq3 (cut lows and some dynamic eq in low end, TR5 Tape Machine 24, Soothe only to tame super high resonances just a bit, and Kclip to suit -1db clip)

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1DF9Cmf ... share_link

[Mister Fox]

Let me quickly step in, before this goes out of hand once more.


As announced in October 2022, and made everyone aware multiple times over since then, including the newsletter from 01-FEB-2023...

⚠	Moderation Message from Mister Fox
	Starting with MC089 / December 2022, but no later than MC090 / February 2023, I am enforcing the adherence to the given filename template.

I've explained in extensive detail as to why.


The filename template is:
MC090__Cristian_Condrea__Big_Eyes__ForumUsername.wav

I always post the current filename template in both post #001 and post #002. I've been doing that since February 2020.


Copy, Paste, Change "ForumUsername" to your own, Save, Upload. It really is that simple. Please pay attention to detail. I will declare your entry as "tagged disqualified" for not doing that from now on. Remember, your initial entry is final, please don't put your submission at risk. Unfortunately, we already have one entry that is not adhering to the established Rules and Guidelines.

I will not give any further reminders.

[tcheck10]

Hi,
My personal approach
EQ every track
COMP DRUMS, VOCAL BASS, GTR AND BACK
COMP ON MASTER AND CLIP @-0.1

Nice track

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1_OZ1tn ... share_link

[scottfitz]

Hi,
My personal approach
EQ every track
COMP DRUMS, VOCAL BASS, GTR AND BACK
COMP ON MASTER AND CLIP @-0.1

Nice track

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1_OZ1tn ... share_link

Hi tcheck10
Please could you give a little more detail in your notes?
Cheers,
Scott

[PauPeu]

Hi everybody! very well recorded tracks, it was a pleasure and a fast mixing job.

I used quite a lot of saturation in almost all the tracks, I used a lot of Psp plugins (mixsaturator, classiceqX, and oldtimerME) trying to achieve that warm analog saturation.

Drums, quite processing and at the end a touch of the MJUC that gives that special "punchy" effect. I also double timed the hi-hat in the verse section for more rhythmic presence.

Bass, 400hz cut, saturation and a bump at 2k for more presence.

The acoustic guitar i heavy eq'd (classiceqX) and opened with the Ozone stereo image, (no reverb) i like the rhythmic and present vibe of it

Electric guitar (solo and chorus section) I re-amped the clean takes to give a more aggressive crunchy sound. Quite dry and mono just a touch of delay.

Vox, saturation and eq a little high bump with the Rule Tec (pultec simulation) and a lowpass slap delay.

BV, opened again with izotope stereo imager and saturated with the Blackeq v2 frome tone empire.

The final strings (strings) heavily processed (lfo, flanger, saturation) looking for a more artificial and filtered sound, and a bump a 12k with rule tech.

In the mix bus, sitral eq, Slick eq, and totape5 from Airwindows. At the end 1 or 2db of limiting

edit: I forgot the claps, I didn't like the artificiality of the track and removed them In almost all the sections, except the chorus and final part.

The -16lufs limit is still current isn't it?

Good luck to Everyone

here's the mix

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1LpoSeJ ... share_link

[Mister Fox]

Yes, -16LUFS Ilk max and -1,00dBTP max is still the upper limit for submitting your entry.



Short "preliminary result" -- 3 entries so far, none of them use the filename template.
Please see my previous post.

Everyone, please do not "copy/paste" the template from the previous entry. Always check in with post #001, post #002 and now also post #006.