CURRENT CHALLENGE - GENERAL INFORMATION
Time Frame: Friday, 01st June 2018 to Thursday, 21st June 2018 (21 days)
Challenge submission will end on 21-06-2018, 11:59pm CET/GMT+1 (Germany) - until further notice.
Want to find out if you're still within the deadline, please consult the following options:
The
Global Countdown on it's dedicated page or the countdown on the
home page. You can also consult the World Clock at the top of the forum or alternatively the following tool - in this case please select "Berlin (Germany)" as location 1, and your location as location 2:
Time and Date - World Clock Meeting Planner. We do post reminders via our
Twitter account and
Facebook page.
Song Provider: Leonardo Badinella
Song Name and Length: Kat Kat Katan, 5:05min
Song Information: varying BPM / Signature: 4/4, D maj (according to Hornet Plugins SongKey mk2)
File Format: WAV, 44kHz, 24bit
GENRE: Instrumental Metal
Preview of the Song:
https://leobadinella.bandcamp.com/track/kat-kat-katan
A word from the song provider:
Leonardo Badinella wrote:This track was written in an effort to make a simpler, catchier number in an otherwise dense album. It was recorded using budget recording equipment but with very nice instruments in a treated room, if somewhat small (5 x 4 mts give or take).
The drum mic layout is pretty straightforward. I have attached the samples that were used to enhance the sound, notice the snare sample has the reverb baked in. The track labeled DrRoom is a makeshift Stereo Room, the real ambience track is labeled just Room and is mono. The track labeled Percussion was set at the left of the kit (drummer’s perspective), it was there to pick up assorted percussion the drummer had on his left, but he didn’t use any of it in this cue and I am only including it for experimentation purposes, it was recorded throughout the whole song and it can be used as an additional overall mic, or to give perspective to the mono room, or fx, or whatever.
The same room was used to record the Guitar tracks, main mics are SM57, MD421 and e609. The tracks labeled C01 carry the ambience. You may want to use them or not, it’s up to you. I have included the bounced Rhythm Guitar tracks in case you may want to skip blending the mics to build a new sound and just want to get to using your tools. These are clean tracks, with no EQ, no Compression and no editing.
The Lead Guitar tracks were recorded using the same Mic array, but different settings on the amp (Peavey 5150). I also included the reference mic blends in case you want to reference them or beat the sound. These are again clean tracks, with no EQ and no compression, no editing, only the mic blend that I liked for the Lead sound.
The DI tracks pick up the guitar sound after a couple of pedals, it’s a Les Paul with altered tuning, going through a Boss DS-1 Distortion setup to boost the amp and a Whammy pedal. The DS-1 might give the impression the tracks are clipping. But this shouldn’t be a problem if you try running through an amp sim or reamping, as this was exactly the sound the real amp was getting.
The Bass was recorded through an ART Tube Preamp and then passed through Guitar Rig with an Ampeg module.
Much care was taken at mic setup to prevent any phase issues so everything should line up properly and sound punchy right from the get go. This was recorded in my formation years and I was a bit apprehensive about recording with EQ or Compression engaged. As a result, the recording may initially sound spectrally underwhelming, probably mid heavy and it will be necessary to clean up the low mids. Nowadays I would do it differently, I would get the sound with the mics recording to one track and would add EQ and Compression if necessary and within reason.
The idea behind the mix was to get a produced, glossy sound, modern and full. One of the precious toys I had at the time was an Eventide H3000 DSE. The tracks Drum Processor and H3000 are exactly that. The unit was setup as an Aux and the OHs were passed through the Drum Processor preset for that track, add it in behind the drums for sheen and dimension, or leave it out if you don’t like it. The H3000 track has the Lead Guitar from the chorus section to add depth. Sadly I don’t recall if this was a preset or was something I setup on the spot. It sounds like a simple delay, but nothing is simple with an H3000.
And I think that would be it. I am including the unmastered final mix for you to beat, as well as a .mid file with the tempo map. Thank you very much for participating and I hope you like the track.
Best,
Leonardo Badinella
A few words by the Mix Challenge staff:
Staff (Mister Fox) wrote:I can't add much this time around, as the concept of the project if fairly detailed. The client is after a clean, yet "thick" sounding production. How you get there, doesn't matter.
There are even "drum trigger" tracks this time around for the kick and the snare, as added support for the overall drum set sound. These tracks might need some sound shaping though.
You can also decide whether or not you use the already amped tracks (individual microphones per distorted guitar: C01, e609, MD421, SM57), or just use the DI tracks with similar microphones on the cabinet.
To those that can't make a sense out of the bundled MIDI file, just load the multi-track project into your host, and set the following bpm values at the following bars:
Track starts with 86bpm at 1.1.1.0
Switches to 172bpm at 46.1.1.0
Drops down to 68bpm at 70.1.1.0
Goes up to 86bpm at 78.1.1.0
Track remains at 4/4
Summing Bus treatment is allowed, as long as it's in a musical content. No mastering(!) - stay within known boundaries.
Have fun!
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 or pitch shifting of the song structure, with the exception of the following add-on rules
- PRODUCTION RELATED: the "drum trigger" tracks can be used if you think they add to the production (they were originally mixed along in subtle form to add more flavor), but do not(!) use own triggering mechanics
- summing bus processing is allowed, as long as the dynamic range (average signal strength to maximum signal strength) doesn't suffer - use of this method is artistically!
- try to not(!) pre-master the track (please no overuse of mix bus treatment, no loudness adjustments / limiting) - read: NO MASTERING
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Source Files:
Main Mix Package - Mirror on the Mix Challenge Homepage (1280,68 MB, LZMA compressed, zip)
The provided files were packed as ZIP with LZMA compression.
File size extracted: 2317,48 MB, packed 1680,68 MB (ZIP, LZMA)
In order to extract the files, we can recommend these programs:
Macintosh:
The Unarchiver -
get it here
Keka (open source) -
get it here
Windows:
7zip -
Installation /
Portable
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SPONSORS (Prizes):
Prizes for Mix Challenge 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
Black Rooster Audio is kind enough to give away one bundle of all currently available plugins to the winner
License will turn into NFR
More info on Black Rooster Audio:
http://blackroosteraudio.com/
Hornet Plugins is kind enough give away one license from the depicted tools (see image) to the winner
License will turn into NFR
More info on Hornet Plugins:
http://www.hornetplugins.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:
http://mhsecure.com/metric_halo/
MuTools is kind enough give away one license of MUX Modular 7 of winner's choice (until End of 2018)
License will turn into NFR
More info on MuTools:
http://www.mutools.com/
NOS Audio is kind enough give away one license of NOS Roomer to the winner
License will turn into NFR
More info on NOS Audio:
http://www.nosaudio.com/
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/
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 Spring of 2018)
License will not turn into NFR
More info on Two Notes:
http://www.two-notes.com/en/
THANKS FOR THE LICENSE 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 or
Facebook Page
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Good luck to all participants.
And most importantly, have fun!
