MIX CHALLENGE - MC33 June 2017 - Winners announced

[Mister Fox]

Hello and welcome to the Mix Challenge 33 - June 2017


This is the introduction post, where we directly link to the challenge corresponding files (source files, submission information, sponsors), start of the evaluation process and the first post for re-submissions for Mix Round 2.



This month we not only got an interesting blend of two genres, but also the era where this could have been produced/recorded in. With the current Mix Challenge, you get the chance to work on a British Pop / Rock production written by Nick P Murray and produced by Gary Regnier (the client). The song is called "My Way Is The Highway".



Please take note of the following

• IMPORTANT: the forum design is still a Work-in-Progress. It doesn't have influence on the functionality of the forum though
• IMPORTANT: please take note that the rule set was slightly altered. It is now mandatory to provide WAV files (FLAC bar minimum on low internet bandwidth), files need to be accessible/downloadable, try to work within suitable work levels, document your edits (as simple or as detailed as you like)
  IMPORTANT: please use the following naming convention from now on: MC000_-_ArtistName_-_TrankName_-_ContestanttName.wav/mp3 and MC000_-_ArtistName_-_TrankName_-_ContestanttName_R2.wav/mp3 for Mix Round 2. The order of the tags might change in upcoming challenges - though this is up for debate

Also please take note of the following

• We're desperately looking for new source material for future Mix Challenges. Please follow our official campaign. No new tracks mean no more challenges! Please reach out!
• our Twitter account can be found via the handle @MixChallenge - throw us a Tweet and we add you to the participant lists
• you can now support us with a voluntary monthly donation on Patreon. Some interesting bonus perks await you there, and patrons get a special rank on the forum

This post will be updated with the corresponding links as we progress, and of course the suitable thread headlines. So please watch this spot:


Submission Period: General Information, Source Files, Sponsors
Mix Round 2: Global Feedback and Round 2 Participant Announcement
Results of the Mix Challenge 33: Winners announced

[Mister Fox]

CURRENT CHALLENGE - GENERAL INFORMATION

Time Frame: Thursday, 01st June 2017 to Wednesday, 21st June 2017 (21 days)

Challenge submission will end on 21-06-2017, 11:59pm CEST/GMT+1 (Germany) - until further notice.
Want to find out if you're still within the deadline, please consult the Global Timer on the Mix Challenge home page or the World Clock at the top of the forum. We do post reminders via our Twitter account

Alternatively (especially for Mix Round 2), please consult the World Clock at the top of the forum or use the following tool and and select "Berlin (Germany)" as location 1, and your location as location 2:
http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/meeting.html



Song Provider: Nick P Murray and Gary Regnier
Song Name and Length: My Way Is The Highway, 3:38min
Song Information: 174 bpm / Signature: 4/4, Key of Dm (D Maj)
File Format: WAV, 44kHz, 24bit

GENRE: Pop / Rock


Preview of the Song:
Old version:
[mediares=560,50]https://soundcloud.com/user-902329301/m ... he-highway[/mediares]

New version:

phpBB [media]

A word from the song provider:

This started life as a simple guitar bass and drums song without the 'old style' middle section. Nick's focus is very much centered upon vocals and harmonies and my re-arrangement of his song came as a surprise to him which thankfully he liked.

Nick had his first songs published back in the 1960's and doesn't go in for technical details but is blessed with being able to listen as a consumer of music more than a producer so the winner will be the one who manages to create a catchy radio mix that sounds bright and cheery.

Equally I will be looking at technical aspects of the finished mix for a good spectral balance and retention of the songs dynamics. Nick is a fan of the old ADT effect so maybe that will be an edge if you can make it work well.

The vocals have all been tuned already and some liberties taken with pitch shifting and speeding up and slowing down the DAW when recording
to hit some high notes so if some sound odd then you know why. The guitars were processed using Waves GTR as I recall and the bass is amped via my Helix. Drums are Slate and strings were from EastWest.

Be creative and have fun with it but please do not change the format/arrangement.

Good luck to all. Gary

A few words by the Mix Challenge staff:

This production is is an interesting blend of british pop and rock music from mid 70ies to mid 80ies. Just 20s of the song set you instantly back to that time period. However, it could also fit well into our modern music days.

In fact, judging by the lyrics of the track, this could easily fit into the 70s short-lived "Pub Rock" genre, but it also delves into Brit Pop and New Wave from the early 80s. It's really hard to place, IMO.


The recorded guitars however, both in how they were played and how they sound, definitely took inspiration from Brian May (Queen). Especially if you listen to the harmonies and doubles. While the orchestra and harpsichord could have easily been taken out of a British comedy/sitcom soundtrack (in a good way) or upbeat pop productions from the 2000s.


If you want to dive into the topic of "Music of the United Kingdom", here is a starting point:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Music_of_ ... om_(1980s)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Music_of_ ... om_(1970s)


Personally, I'd work with limited equipment form that era to support the general feel of the production. Also considering that a lot of tracks have that "Printed to tape" feel already due to the way the material has been provided. Maybe an old, slightly dirty sounding mix console, tape delays, chambers and plate reverbs, etc. Or you can turn all that up on it's head and go a completely(!) modern route.

There is basically no limit to your creativity.

Please also consult the TXT files that are bundled in the source files package below. There you can find more information about the individual files and changes to the time signature.

Special Add-On Rules:

• try to create a mix that complements this production (in your own style)
• Clean / Alternative versions can be used if you need more flexibility over a certain sound (if present in this production)
• No rearrangement of the song structure, with the exception of the following add-on rules
• the production needs a proper fade out
• summing bus processing is allowed, as long as the dynamic range (average signal strength to maximum signal strength) doesn't suffer - use is artistically!
• try to not(!) pre-master the track (please no overuse of mix bus treatment, no loudness adjustments / limiting)

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Source Files:

Main Mix Package - Mirror on the Mix Challenge Homepage (389,23 MB, LZMA compressed)


The provided files were packed as ZIP with LZMA compression.
File size extracted: 1826,85 MB, packed 389,23 MB (ZIP, LZMA)
In order to extract the files, we can recommend these programs:

Macintosh:
The Unarchiver - get it here

Windows:
7zip - Installation / Portable


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Please take note of the official rules - they can be found at the following thread:
Mix Challenge - Official Rules and Guidelines

Please address any OT question in the official Gossip thread:
Mix Challenge - Gossip and Discussion

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SPONSORS (Prizes):

Prizes for mix participants:

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



Acon Digital is kind enough give away a single plugin of winner's choice.
License will turn into NFR
More info on Acon Digital: http://acondigital.com



Ghostwave Audio (Vincent Bastiat) is kind enough to donate MixRight (a Reaktor Ensemble) to the winner (until further notice)
License won't turn into NFR, you need Native Instruments Reaktor 5.8+ for this
More info on Ghostwave Audio: http://ghostwaveaudio.com/



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



Nyrv Systems offers AGENT incl. all currently available NyrvDevices and free update to at least v1.5 of winner's choice (until further notice)
License will turn into NFR
More info about Nyrv Systems: http://www.nyrvsystems.com/



Sound / Graphic Designer, and Mix Challenge staff satYatunes is donating one commercial product of winner's choice (until further notice)
More info on satYatune's page: http://www.satyatunes.com/



Tone2 is kind enough to donate either a bundle consisting of AkustiX Enhancer and WarmVerb, or a license of Ultraspace to the winner (until further notice)
License will turn into NFR
More info on Tone2: https://tone2.com



Two Notes Audio Engineering is kind enough to donate one license of Torpedo Wall of Sound III to the winner, loaded with 57 cabinets (equivalent to "Torpedo WoS II") (donation until Summer 2017)
License will not turn into NFR
More info on Two Notes: http://www.two-notes.com/en/



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

If you want to sponsor content (please have a focus on mix plugins, bundles and the likes), please get in touch with the Mix Challenge staff.

Please spread the word of the challenge on social media.
For example with our dedicated Twitter Account: https://twitter.com/MixChallenge

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

[FixInTheMix]

Hi Mister Fox and Gary!

I started mixing yesterday and I´m almost finished but I have a doubt about the arrengment rules, there´s an explosion sample used at the end of the bridge that connects it with the next Chorus, unfortunately this sample was completely squashed and brickwalled with a lmiter and doesn´t sounds pleasing at all, it actually distorts.
I understand that this specific sound is important to the overall sctructure of the song but I´m wondering if it will be allowed to be replaced with a better sounding one.
There´s also the vinyl sound effect which sounds okay but I was hoping to replace it with a new one.

Thanks in advance , I´m waiting for your reply!

[GaryRegnier]

Hi, feel free to change any sounds that you want. The arrangement in terms of verse/chorus etc needs to stay the same otherwise you could replace anything. Look forward to hearing your mix. Good luck, Gary

[davemcisaac]

Hi, feel free to change any sounds that you want. The arrangement in terms of verse/chorus etc needs to stay the same otherwise you could replace anything. Look forward to hearing your mix. Good luck, Gary

I have to question this after re-reading the Mix Challenge - Rules and Guidelines, which states "The participants are limited to the provided source material". It might be a good idea to run this by our host prior to replacing any sounds. Otherwise, we would be free to change any sounds we want - drum replacement, etc. (which I know isn't allowed).

[FixInTheMix]

Hi, feel free to change any sounds that you want. The arrangement in terms of verse/chorus etc needs to stay the same otherwise you could replace anything. Look forward to hearing your mix. Good luck, Gary

Thank you for your quick response Gary!

It might be a good idea to run this by our host prior to replacing any sounds.

Agreed!

[Mister Fox]

I'd say "work with what you have".

In fact, this is part of this particular challenge. For example: the "behind the scenes" work also covered possible acquiring of clean tracks (e.g. DI tracks, non-printed ones, etc). As it turns out, this project has to be considered "Printed to tape" already, which is ultimately the source from which he have to work from.

Exchanging sounds would also mean "changing the arrangement". So please let us not touch that particular topic.



Maybe a Declipper works regarding "fixing" this particular sound.

[FixInTheMix]

I'd say "work with what you have".

In fact, this is part of this particular challenge. For example: the "behind the scenes" work also covered possible acquiring of clean tracks (e.g. DI tracks, non-printed ones, etc). As it turns out, this project has to be considered "Printed to tape" already, which is ultimately the source from which he have to work from.

Exchanging sounds would also mean "changing the arrangement". So please let us not touch that particular topic.



Maybe a Declipper works regarding "fixing" this particular sound.

Understood

I didn´t know that such a thing as a declipper even existed so I´ll try with that.

Thanks!

[Mister Fox]

Three tools that come to mind from the top of my head:
iZotope RX Elements, Acon Digital Restoration Suite, Hans van Zutphen Stereo Tools

Worth a try...

[Photonic]

Hi,

Here comes my mix. It seems, that I am breaking the ice again
This song was real fun for me. Thank you so much for providing it for our challenge!

To bring more diversification in the arrangement, I muted or lowewerd the volume of strings an organ in the first two verse, so that I got a build up in densitiy.
And I split the lead vox in verse and chorus. Verse got only reverb, chorus got tape delay added.

MP3: https://www.dropbox.com/s/2gsrq9bh66s2r ... ..mp3?dl=0
WAV: https://www.dropbox.com/s/5b36nj1s57ymq ... c.wav?dl=0

Drums: Beside some ReaEQs for the single tracks I only used FerricTDS on the drum-bus. The dynamic knob (amount of compression) was automated, to always increase the energy in the chorus. No additional reverb for drums. Just the room track was used.

Bass: ReaEQ and BassProfessor II (Sonic Anomaly)

Guitar Low: ReaEQ and Transpire (Sonic Anomaly) for harder attack, reverb.
Guitar Sus 1&2: ReaEQ, reverb.
Guitar Fill 1&2: ReaEQ, Satin (in tape delay mode), reverb.
Guitar Chorus: ReaEQ, reverb.
Guitar CH h,m,l: ReaEQ, Satin (in tape delay mode), reverb.

Intro Strings: ReaEQ, reverb.
Strings: ReaEQ and Transpire (Sonic Anomaly) for harder attack, reverb.
Organ: ReaEQ, reverb.
Harpsichord: ReaEQ, reverb.
Flute: ReaEQ, reverb.
Brass: ReaEQ, reverb.

Lead Vox verse: ReaEQ, S.LAX (compressor by Sonic Anomaly), reverb
Lead Vox chosrus: ReaEQ, S.LAX (compressor by Sonic Anomaly), Satin, reverb
2nd and 3rd Vox: ReaEQ, S.LAX (compressor by Sonic Anomaly), reverb
Old voices: ReaEQ, S.LAX (compressor by Sonic Anomaly), QX24 (satturation), reverb
All Backing voisces: ReaEQ, S.LAX (compressor by Sonic Anomaly), reverb

Explosion: ReaEQ, Transpire (Sonic Anomaly) for harder attack, reverb.
Vinyl: ReaEQ

All reverbs: Acon Digital Verberate

Master: MQ57 (Master EQ), Satin (in Master Tape mode), Span

DR according TT-DR-Meter: 9