Mix Challenge

Mister Fox wrote: ↑

Sun May 23, 2021 00:10 CEST

Quick feedback to the entries.
[...]
@alavault -- while this entry is good, it's reaching more towards "1980s synthwave/rock". Maybe have a bit more focus on more "pulsing synths" than the guitar being the sole lead.
[...]

Thank you for the feedback @Mister Fox !

However, I have a few questions.

First, what do you mean by "pulsing synths" ? And how could I do that ?
Second, I used a guitar lead because I don't have a pitch bend wheel on my keyboard. Do you have any ideas on how to program the lead while keeping the "guitary" vibe ?
Third, the feedback should be given before or after the submission deadline ?

Thanks again for taking the time to listen to my submission !

To quickly answer your questions, @alavault :

1) maybe re-balance the instruments just a bit, and/or use an EQ to "push out" the synths a bit more (especially the synth bass). Recommendation: listen to synth rock from the 1980s

2) sorry, can't help you there... The guitar is fine and a nice touch (I really like the tone, although maybe raise the reverb here and there just a tad), the overall concept is fine, I am just a bit picky about the overall instrument balance.

3) the concept of the SWC for quite a while now is to encourage conversation. Not only after the game (as final feedback to the finished "product"), but also during the game (as in: give feedback to each other what to maybe improve, or maybe redo).

Hope this helps




@EsteveCorbera -- your new version is a drastic improvement on the percussion part (although the hat is maybe a tad too loud). Finding the right frequency balance for certain instruments is now down to experience (and personal taste). Keep it up!




@becsei_gyorgy -- glad to see you back and experimenting. I really like your production so far.

A couple of things you might maybe like to address: the kick - if you got control over the layers, maybe play with them a bit, shift the "click" (attack) part into another frequency range. And a hint from an old friend of mine on the "hats" to keep them interesting... pan them out a bit in certain sections. The main driving force is still the kick and clap... but if you want to get some more movement on top of the synths, then maybe use some panning. Also... highly cliche (I know), but maybe "crash cymbals" (with 1/4th delay "fading out" over 1-2 bars) ever so often might be of interest. Most notably at harsh transitions (like the 4min mark, once the kick sets in again).

I'd actually reach for a 909 crash cymbal, and then not only pitch it as needed, but also blend it so that it isn't as obnoxious and out of place (volume, and the aforementioned delay). But it's your call.
https://www.facebook.com/sterlingmossuk ... 783088648/
https://youtu.be/5WB3NFX2tro

The "scraping synth" in the 3:30 part clashes a bit frequency wise with the other synth sounds... but that's also personal preference.




Looking forward to more entries

A friendly reminder:
We're in the final 24 hours to submit your production.


Can we exceed 15 participants this month?

Hello

New update!!

Thanks for the feedback!

Hey there,

here is my entry:

https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/ ... sp=sharing

I don´t know how close this is to "electronic music", this is what I think "drum and bass" sounds like, and I don´t know why but it has also a little "2step" touch. I think it is more on the "melodic/soft" side of electronic music, so this could be some sort of chill lounge music but I could be totally wrong.
In fact, I wanted something really grimey and dirty but I struggled with an aggressive style, so I focused on a more relaxed chord pattern.

Vsts:
Drums: Logic Drum Machine Designer
Bass1+ Arp: Sylenth1
Bass2: Waves Element
Synth Keys, Pads, Lead, Bell, Fx: Analog Lab Intro



Fx:
Instachord
UAD Pultec
UAD Fairchild 670
Logic Compressor
Logic Channel EQ
Waves F6
Kush Omega TWK
Soundtoys Sie-Q
A1StereoControl
Valhalla SuperMassive
Arturia Rev-Plate 140
Ozone 9 Elements
SPAN
Youlean Loudness Meter

Will give feedback really soon!

Revision Alert. I hope this still meets the protocol.

Mister Fox wrote: ↑

Sun May 23, 2021 00:10 CEST

Quick feedback to the entries.


@SoundBeing -- quirky production. I like it, very oldschool. However, it feels a bit "empty", since you barely hear the drums (mostly only the snare), especially on small speakers. Same goes for the bass. Please give this another look.

Thanks for your feedback Mister Fox. I took your advice and adjusted some frequency and tones to the bass & kick drum especially. It's funny, I spent so much time writing parts that I neglected to really focus on the overall mix. Especially the low-end.

https://www.dropbox.com/s/brnuaop4aunks ... r.wav?dl=0

Hello, this is my first time participating in the Mix Challenge. I read the rules twice, so I hope I did not miss any of the rules.

Here is a link to my entry:

The Fight For All Who Live

Even though I'm actually a gigantic fan of hardware synths and have tons of it at home, this production was made with software. However, it definitely has that electronic dance music song to it. What I wanted to do was make an "epic final boss theme" that was kind of a combination of orchestral and synthesized elements to really give it that techno drive.

DAW:

- Logic Studio X

Instrument VSTs used:

- Vital
- Zebra 2
- MASSIVE
- Damage 2
- A bunch of MASCHINE2 samples and effects
- A bunch of the stock Logic sounds, including Alchemy and Strings

Effects used:

- A bunch of default Logic plugins, including the EQ and the Compressor
- Stutter Edit 2
- Neutron 2
- Vinyl
- A bunch of SoundToys stuff
- Valhalla Shimmer

I think I could have spent more time on various aspects of this but I am close to the deadline submission and do not want to miss it! I will reserve my specific comments until after the competition.

I will go through and listen to the other entries tonight or later this week! Please enjoy.

alavault wrote: ↑

Thu May 20, 2021 19:00 CEST

Hello,
Song (title :: Scènes) : https://drive.google.com/file/d/1c5iczE ... sp=sharing
As I don't know much about electronic music genres, I just went with what I heard "in my head". Which makes the transitions more than awkward.
Hopefully, I am not off-topic too for this competition...
Anyway, here's a little walk-through :

Mixing setup : the same as any of my mix challenge posts.

Basses : 2 leads, 1 sub
Sparkly thingies : Spire + Triton (Ice Rain)
Lead : GTR + hi gain.
Pads/Keys : Spire always, Piano on scenes 2&3, P8 on scene 1, strings on scene 3
Drums : DR-660 + Superior Drummer + custom sampels
Vox : Dannasko pack + Magical Princess Gigi
Rough mix with not automation

New version :: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1c5iczE ... sp=sharing

Updated : quick review of synths EQ, bit more reverb on the lead GTR. No automation, don't have enough time....

A more detailled description of the GTR lead sound :

• Stock RG370, DI
• TH-U :: Soldano SLO100, straight, no chaser (no boost or overdrive)
• HPF, LPF, EQ + 2:1 comp + widener
• Sent into slap delay, stereo (300ms L, 500ms R), 1/4 and 1/2 delays
• Sent into plate (with ~150ms of predelay) and Valhalla Shimmer
• Sent into general flanger (Valhalla SpaceModulator) for a "wider" sound
• Sent into Parallel Comp 2 (slow attack, fast release, 10:1 ratio) into EQ (500,5k :: +6dB)

I call it "lotta cream in your butter pie" i used nothing real except a vocal . all derived from with in the box.https://drive.google.com/file/d/1YIFi3M ... sp=sharing
the kick is a combo of Boom and DOPE
I am using Vacuum Pro and Vacuum together for the fast tempo
and Xpand for the intermediate driving beat
also used Ovox with a vocal loop and a midi drum loop stolen from VDrummer .

FLAC: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1lEfvUz ... sp=sharing
MP3: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1f_D45x ... sp=sharing

It's nearly summer, but the whether seems to be not so pleasant, even in the warmest places of Earth.

So let's stay home and make music!

This entry made with Full Bucket synthesizers:

- Mono/Fury for sweeping bass and stacked saw lead.
- Fury-800 for organ-like synth and bells.
- Tricent for 8th bass riff and strings.
- ModulAir for making a soundscape.

Samples from LinnDrum were used for percussion.

Technical information: