The Musician's Gig Room Chat V1 - Songwriting and Sound Design for all! - Creationism Corner

[QUOTE=paindoc;49430377]I like this a lot, really like this. I do wish I had production advice, but I don't have much to say. Its well put together and each section is well endowed, and the transitions are articulated nicely. Its a good song, and I like this style. Sorry I don't have more to say- I hate leaving comments like this as much as I hate it when others leave it on my tracks haha. I hope you produce more like it![/QUOTE] Thanks a bunch, comments like these really push me forward. Definitely sticking to this kind of stuff, it's a nice change of pace from all the pretentious prog metal I used to write before. [QUOTE=4yourmalice]I came up with this little track today. I had originally wanted to make something a little more upbeat and energetic, but I'm okay with the atmospheric vibe that came out of it. Listen to Soundcloud recording [media]https://soundcloud.com/travis-cumming-3/cyborg-punkmp3[/media] [/QUOTE] Damn that's a real fat and punchy pluck synth you've got there, I'm a sucker for those. Although on the lowest note (like at 0:24) the plucks seem to be making a bit of a mush with the ambient synth. The flow and atmoshpere of the piece make it sound like a film score for a dark sci-fi flick, I like it!

:snip:

[QUOTE=Llamalord;49436060]I really like the build up at the beginning of the song, it reminds me of The Flaming Lips or Panda Bear, I don't usually like dubstep-esk music but I could definitely bang to this. The bass is pretty on point and I can't really spot any mixing problems. I was testing out my new monitor speakers and made some kind of FF7/Zelda fusion music. [URL="https://facepunch.com/"]Listen to Soundcloud recording[/URL] [URL]https://soundcloud.com/user-546421060/the-last-adventure[/URL] [/QUOTE] I quite like this - i feel like it could benefit from a little less fidelity in a way to get it more like video game music. Gets pretty heavy on the bass towards the end as well. Stands to get a bit muddy [QUOTE=CupUp;49426381]A darn solid sound you've got there! Really loving the ambience of the instruments. Is this a library or live instruments? And here's a psychedelic post-rock piece tinged with electronica and dance elements. In other words I have no idea what genre I'm writing in nowadays. Any feedback on song structure and production greatly appreciated! [URL="https://facepunch.com/"]Listen to Soundcloud recording[/URL] [URL]https://soundcloud.com/haharijs/vietsedis-potato[/URL] [/QUOTE] this is so damn good. So much character and imagination in this and so much style. I don't even have anything to say except really good job. No criticisms from a production angle at all anyway you guys should totally listen to this song because its the fucking epitome of stereotypical cafe music like imagine yourself in a trendy modern joint sipping a martini with your favourite opposite gender accessory [media]http://soundcloud.com/teacarp/music-for-cafes[/media] pretty sure i took like....an hour or so to make it hahaha

[QUOTE=CupUp;49426381] And here's a psychedelic post-rock piece tinged with electronica and dance elements. In other words I have no idea what genre I'm writing in nowadays. Any feedback on song structure and production greatly appreciated! [media]https://soundcloud.com/haharijs/vietsedis-potato[/media][/QUOTE] I've listened to this so, so many times over the past few days. The first and last minutes are my absolute favorite simply for the energy, and I love the way it evolves and bridges the change in tone. [QUOTE=4yourmalice;49441839] I came up with this little track today. I had originally wanted to make something a little more upbeat and energetic, but I'm okay with the atmospheric vibe that came out of it. [media]https://soundcloud.com/travis-cumming-3/cyborg-punkmp3[/media][/QUOTE] The title really fits. I'm a fan of anvil hits, and it really pulls the song together; it gives it a real presence. [QUOTE=PelPix123;49452789]Fucking love it. I'll see your tremendous track and shoot back my most recent one: [media]http://soundcloud.com/kaybeccab/avatarstudy5[/media] [U]It's a study on the motifs in Avatar: the Last Airbender[/U][/QUOTE] You've done an awesome job of doing so. The layering and variety of instruments is very nice. Only thing I'd say it's missing is another bell sound (like the one 9 seconds in) a bit after the end to really sell the Avatar:TLA feel. Anyways I havent slept since yesterday and I wanted to play with the drum samples I found [media]https://soundcloud.com/riftskan/deprived[/media] Also experimented a bit with playing around with my voice.

Since the only subgroup of synthesizers I've never been able to get a nice sound out of is wavetable synths (I blame massive for all the super thin sounds that have turned me away. Like I know people who make full sounds with that synth but I've never gotten anything nice out of it so I've never used it on a record) I decided to just buckle down and buy a Waldorf Blofeld. Its quickly becoming my new favorite piece of hardware for its ease of making super stellar ambient pads/cold digital sounds (it can also make some pretty convincing anologue sounds, so much so that when I made a bass patch my dad thought it was my moog making the sound.) It is a very welcomed piece to my current set up (now all I need is a buchla and a phase distortion synth...)

[QUOTE=splenda;49457088]Since the only subgroup of synthesizers I've never been able to get a nice sound out of is wavetable synths (I blame massive for all the super thin sounds that have turned me away. Like I know people who make full sounds with that synth but I've never gotten anything nice out of it so I've never used it on a record) I decided to just buckle down and buy a Waldorf Blofeld. Its quickly becoming my new favorite piece of hardware for its ease of making super stellar ambient pads/cold digital sounds (it can also make some pretty convincing anologue sounds, so much so that when I made a bass patch my dad thought it was my moog making the sound.) It is a very welcomed piece to my current set up (now all I need is a buchla and a phase distortion synth...)[/QUOTE] get a casio cz-101 off ebay, best phase distortion synth

[QUOTE=killerteacup;49457257]get a casio cz-101 off ebay, best phase distortion synth[/QUOTE] Yea I always mean to do that but once I get synth money I always conveniently forget about the cz-101, or in my case the cz-1000 because while mini-keys, or at least modern mini keys, are not as bad as a lot of people think I still prefer full sized ones. I have no clue why I always forget since they are all <$300 so it is not like trying to save up for a cs-80 or whatever.

[QUOTE=splenda;49457310]Yea I always mean to do that but once I get synth money I always conveniently forget about the cz-101, or in my case the cz-1000 because while mini-keys, or at least modern mini keys, are not as bad as a lot of people think I still prefer full sized ones. I have no clue why I always forget since they are all <$300 so it is not like trying to save up for a cs-80 or whatever.[/QUOTE] its cos they're casio and not many people think casio is any good. They've only released like, 3 good sets of synths in their time and the rest is entry level keyboards so it drives down prices

[QUOTE=killerteacup;49457316]its cos they're casio and not many people think casio is any good. They've only released like, 3 good sets of synths in their time and the rest is entry level keyboards so it drives down prices[/QUOTE] Yea yea I know. Funny thing was I found a cz-101 at a thrift store a few months ago for like $15 but it wouldn't power on and I was feeling sad that day so instead of thinking that it might be an easy fix I just didn't buy it.

I'm thinking of selling my JD-Xi, tbh. I use my JV-1080 for most of what i used to use the Xi for, which is pads and the 1080 may be 90s cheesy rompler to the core but its stupendously powerful and has a ton of really useable acoustic instrument patches. Not going to get any more expansion cards though, they're skyrocketing in price. Idk if the next fad is 90's machines or what, but it's weird. I do want a Waldorf though, I like most of their machines and the Blofeld seems neat but the Streichfett seems like a ton of fun and I [I]loooooove[/I] cheesy string sounds and the phaser on that is so lush it isn't even funny. [editline]4th January 2016[/editline] music theory thingy partially written btw so i'll post it when im done spending days before school goes full bore not working super hard, tbh

[QUOTE=paindoc;49457490]I'm thinking of selling my JD-Xi, tbh. I use my JV-1080 for most of what i used to use the Xi for, which is pads and the 1080 may be 90s cheesy rompler to the core but its stupendously powerful and has a ton of really useable acoustic instrument patches. Not going to get any more expansion cards though, they're skyrocketing in price. Idk if the next fad is 90's machines or what, but it's weird. I do want a Waldorf though, I like most of their machines and the Blofeld seems neat but the Streichfett seems like a ton of fun and I [I]loooooove[/I] cheesy string sounds and the phaser on that is so lush it isn't even funny. [editline]4th January 2016[/editline] music theory thingy partially written btw so i'll post it when im done spending days before school goes full bore not working super hard, tbh[/QUOTE] My friend has a Streichfett and it is indeed as wonderfully cheesy as its porno color scheme would imply. Also the form factor of that thing, along with their rocket and 2-pole, is so nice, especially for space conscious people. My main complaints with the Blofeld so far, keep in mind I've had it for about a week so I'm not totally fluent with it yet, is that it's reverb is kind of meh and it is easy to get lost in the menus and tweak modulation parameters more than actually playing the thing, guess that is not really much of a complaint but is still a thing I should bring up. The blofeld's phaser is not as lush as the streichfett, but it does have a chorus that I have been kind of using on everything, and I'm not really that big of a fan of choruses to begin with. Overall both are really nice for pads. Also look into FM synthesis for pads too, it is usually what I like to use alongside granular synthesis for cold backing sounds for tracks. If you want to learn about FM synthesis, it's very different from subtractive, check out the book/essay/whatever "FM Theory & Applications By Musicians for Musicians" by Dr. John Chowning and David Bristow. (Dr. Chowning is the inventor of FM synthesis so he should know what he is talking about.) I would link it here but I do not remember if it was behind an academic paywall or not so I don't want to be caught up in warez. If you are a student at a university though it should be easy enough to find for free through your school's library or whatever. Also there is a free vst called "Dexed" that is a really good DX7 emulation, and its open source too I believe, so check that out to get a taste of it before jumping in and buying a DX7 or FM8 or any other FM synthesis thing.

FM synthesis is so unnecessarily complicated. Dexed is highly recommended though because it can load up original dx7 patches, but FM is good for thin 80s sounds mostly

[QUOTE=killerteacup;49457677]FM synthesis is so unnecessarily complicated. Dexed is highly recommended though because it can load up original dx7 patches, but FM is good for thin 80s sounds mostly[/QUOTE] It's complicated but once you learn it you can make patches pretty fast, at least on non DX-esque "one data slider" type control surfaces.

[QUOTE=PelPix123;49458347]FM synthesis isn't best used alone, it's best composited. Like the celeste from Harry Potter. That's a DX7 bell and a celeste mixed together Check it: [url]https://clyp.it/yxuftrxu[/url][/QUOTE] Thats really cool actually

[QUOTE=PelPix123;49458347]FM synthesis isn't best used alone, it's best composited. Like the celeste from Harry Potter. That's a DX7 bell and a celeste mixed together Check it: [url]https://clyp.it/yxuftrxu[/url][/QUOTE] Yea I usually combine it with other junk too. Usually my FM pads are supported with string machines or granular pads as well. The FM is used to deliver the "temperature" of the sound, basically giving the digital coldness that I wanted.

[QUOTE=Llamalord;49436060] I was testing out my new monitor speakers and made some kind of FF7/Zelda fusion music. [media]https://soundcloud.com/user-546421060/the-last-adventure[/media][/QUOTE] I think it's a really great and melancholic melody, however the choir synth at 1:03 sounds a bit off at some parts. If you were trying to go for an uneasy feeling at that part then it might fit. The part from 0:49 to 0:54 sounds a bit out of place for me, I guess because I was expecting the drop earlier there haha. The staccato sounding part at 1:31 doesn't seem like it's in time with the song. Good work, I like it despite those little details :) [media]https://soundcloud.com/kid64/dynamically-typed[/media] here's a song i just crammed out. i sampled two covers of the same song and i really messed up because i didnt realize the covers were in different keys.. i dont know how to fix it at this point but i think its a small enough difference that people wont notice... i hope x_x

I have a lot of songs i would love to get some feedback on! I know I should comment others before posting, but I'll be looking through the posts now! :) [url]https://soundcloud.com/bok306[/url]

Every time I look at my waldorf synth I'm reminded about the time I passed up the most wonderfully cheesy waldorf jacket at some thrift store months ago, like it had a rhinestoned waldorf logo on it it was all I ever needed.

[QUOTE=killerteacup;49457677]FM synthesis is so unnecessarily complicated. Dexed is highly recommended though because it can load up original dx7 patches, but FM is good for thin 80s sounds mostly[/QUOTE] What's complicated about it? At a base level, one oscillator controls the frequency of another oscillator. It's essentially just [B]really[/B] fast vibrato. That's it. More fun when you add more oscillators, of course, but doing that doesn't really increase the complexity of what's happening under the hood.

[QUOTE=KmartSqrl;49464961]What's complicated about it? At a base level, one oscillator controls the frequency of another oscillator. It's essentially just [B]really[/B] fast vibrato. That's it. More fun when you add more oscillators, of course, but doing that doesn't really increase the complexity of what's happening under the hood.[/QUOTE] Having to deal with algorithms and envelopes for 6+ oscillators is somewhat of a pain in the ass. And that's after figuring out how the frequencies affect eachother which is a challenge in itself. I fucking love the sounds you can get out of FM, but it's easy to see how it's off-putting to try to learn it when you're used to tweaking knobs and listening to what it affects.

[video=youtube;HU_4pf8BSQw]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HU_4pf8BSQw[/video] would anybody happen to know if there's any sort of library that could get a guitar sound similar to the one that starts appearing at around 0:21 of this song? i know this specific part itself sampled from another song but was wondering if there was any sort of guitar library that had something similar to this sort of smooth/groovy feel to it

[QUOTE=Hentie;49459204]I think it's a really great and melancholic melody, however the choir synth at 1:03 sounds a bit off at some parts. If you were trying to go for an uneasy feeling at that part then it might fit. The part from 0:49 to 0:54 sounds a bit out of place for me, I guess because I was expecting the drop earlier there haha. The staccato sounding part at 1:31 doesn't seem like it's in time with the song. Good work, I like it despite those little details :) [media]https://soundcloud.com/kid64/dynamically-typed[/media] here's a song i just crammed out. i sampled two covers of the same song and i really messed up because i didnt realize the covers were in different keys.. i dont know how to fix it at this point but i think its a small enough difference that people wont notice... i hope x_x[/QUOTE] i'm in love with this, it's fucking fantastic that fucking steroid line oh christ this is a song i wrote a long ass time ago, some of you might remember me posting it i hated the lyrics and trashed it for years, but now i'm slowly figuring out how to use FL studio, and i wrote new lyrics i don't hate! [media]https://soundcloud.com/sharkalarm/smile-on[/media]

[QUOTE=Hentie;49459204]I think it's a really great and melancholic melody, however the choir synth at 1:03 sounds a bit off at some parts. If you were trying to go for an uneasy feeling at that part then it might fit. The part from 0:49 to 0:54 sounds a bit out of place for me, I guess because I was expecting the drop earlier there haha. The staccato sounding part at 1:31 doesn't seem like it's in time with the song. Good work, I like it despite those little details :) [media]https://soundcloud.com/kid64/dynamically-typed[/media] here's a song i just crammed out. i sampled two covers of the same song and i really messed up because i didnt realize the covers were in different keys.. i dont know how to fix it at this point but i think its a small enough difference that people wont notice... i hope x_x[/QUOTE] Maybe I just have a terrible ear for it, but I couldn't tell that they were in different keys. [media]https://soundcloud.com/riftskan/settle-1[/media] Made a calm-ish song to celebrate the fact that it's actually raining.

[QUOTE=UnknownDude;49465289]Having to deal with algorithms and envelopes for 6+ oscillators is somewhat of a pain in the ass. And that's after figuring out how the frequencies affect eachother which is a challenge in itself.[/QUOTE] Keep the patches more simple, particularly while you're learning. There aren't many sounds where you really need every oscillator modulating every other oscillator. It's easy to get carried away and try to improve a patch by throwing more in to it, when oftentimes, you just need to refine what's already there. [QUOTE=UnknownDude;49465289]I fucking love the sounds you can get out of FM, but it's easy to see how it's off-putting to try to learn it when you're used to tweaking knobs and listening to what it affects.[/QUOTE] I've never felt like FM synthesis made the tweaking knobs and listening method of learning impossible at all. I think that's another keep the patches simple while you're learning thing though.

[QUOTE=KmartSqrl;49473238]Keep the patches more simple, particularly while you're learning. There aren't many sounds where you really need every oscillator modulating every other oscillator. It's easy to get carried away and try to improve a patch by throwing more in to it, when oftentimes, you just need to refine what's already there. I've never felt like FM synthesis made the tweaking knobs and listening method of learning impossible at all. I think that's another keep the patches simple while you're learning thing though.[/QUOTE] Operator in Ableton is one of my favorite synths, it's tons of fun to just turn knobs with and experiment around. I have half a mind to make a track entirely with it, it does everything. I've used it for leads, FX, pads, arts, bass synths (it goes HARD), but haven't tried fm drum synthesis yet Also random tip I just learned: using light pitch envelope on snares/kicks can make them sound a lot punchier. Using fm synthesis in abletons sampler over a snare sample is also super neat [editline]6th January 2016[/editline] Honestly abletons stock subtractive synth is terrible (Spire is my new waifu), but the sampler and Operator plugins make up for it

[QUOTE=paindoc;49473258] Honestly abletons stock subtractive synth is terrible (Spire is my new waifu), but the sampler and Operator plugins make up for it[/QUOTE] Idk I have made some quite convincing analogue tones with analog. Like it's not my go to by any means, not even in the software instrument realm, but like it has its place as a semi-decent, low resource intensive, 2-osc VA. I usually use it for super cold pads or as a layering piece. I do agree with operator being wonderful. It's basically ableton's workhorse; it can really fill any role. Tbh the only "stock" Ableton instrument that is basically useless is Tension. Like you can get one good bass sound out of it, and the bouncing hammer exciter is useful for weird sound effects, but other than that it is outclassed by a lot of physical modeling synths. I guess it's more or less a product of its time, and I would love to see Ableton and Applied Acoustic Systems update it, but in it's current state it really has no place. AAS's newer physical modeling synth in Ableton, Collision, is brilliant so I know they can bring Tension to a much better state if they got on it. [editline]6th January 2016[/editline] O also the reason snappy pitch envelopes make drums sound punchier is because it allows your electronic drum to sound much more acoustic. If you ever record say a kick, you will notice the initial strike of the beater is a lot higher pitch then the resulting "thump." Same goes for snares and toms too. Also it allows your kick/snare/whatever to cut through the mix more, because your brain will essentially be like "O wow this part is changing pitch really fast let's focus in on that more," rather than "O this kick is just hitting between 30-500ish Hz, well that is boring." Basically clicky envelopes are a must for drum synthesis, for example without a click, an 808 bass drum sounds dull and boring. [editline]6th January 2016[/editline] Like all the great drum machines of past: the 808,909, cr-78 (my favorite), Linn drum, etc all tried to emulate real drums, some obviously doing better jobs than others. That is basically what you want to strive for in drum synthesis; you want to try to make a real drum, but in a way that it doesn't sound like one if that makes any sense. That actually applies for a lot of things. Arguably the most famous "bass synth" (not counting the minimoog because it wasn't really marketed as a bass synth) is the tb-303, which literally was made to be an accompaniment for an acoustic band as an electric bass emultor.

[QUOTE=killerteacup;49450476] anyway you guys should totally listen to this song because its the fucking epitome of stereotypical cafe music like imagine yourself in a trendy modern joint sipping a martini with your favourite opposite gender accessory [media]http://soundcloud.com/teacarp/music-for-cafes[/media] pretty sure i took like....an hour or so to make it hahaha[/QUOTE] This is pretty cool actually, I really like the guitary lead. Also like the mixing on this, everything is super clean. It gets a bit boring after a while but it does fit the cafe theme perfectly. [QUOTE=PelPix123;49452789]Fucking love it. I'll see your tremendous track and shoot back my most recent one: [media]http://soundcloud.com/kaybeccab/avatarstudy5[/media] It's a study on the motifs in Avatar: the Last Airbender [/QUOTE] I really like this, it feels a bit short but the build at the end is fantastic. [QUOTE=Minelayer;49453366] Anyways I havent slept since yesterday and I wanted to play with the drum samples I found [media]https://soundcloud.com/riftskan/deprived[/media] Also experimented a bit with playing around with my voice.[/QUOTE] I don't like the processing on the vocal sample, on headphones it has some ear piercing frequencies. Drum work kind of reminds me of some weird moderat stuff. ___________________________ I haven't really made anything in ages and I finally got the inspiration to open up ableton again [media]https://soundcloud.com/philmaah/prog3[/media]

[QUOTE=Hentie;49459204]I think it's a really great and melancholic melody, however the choir synth at 1:03 sounds a bit off at some parts. If you were trying to go for an uneasy feeling at that part then it might fit. The part from 0:49 to 0:54 sounds a bit out of place for me, I guess because I was expecting the drop earlier there haha. The staccato sounding part at 1:31 doesn't seem like it's in time with the song. Good work, I like it despite those little details :) [media]https://soundcloud.com/kid64/dynamically-typed[/media] here's a song i just crammed out. i sampled two covers of the same song and i really messed up because i didnt realize the covers were in different keys.. i dont know how to fix it at this point but i think its a small enough difference that people wont notice... i hope x_x[/QUOTE] To be honest, it's only slightly noticeable at a few times that some chords doesn't quite fit, but considering how it only happens like 2-3 times throughout the song it becomes pretty nice. I really enjoy the detuned synth you're using, what is it? From a mixing perspective the only thing I'd probably change is the reverb, it can get a bit distracting if it is too much, all the time. If you want to create space and give the singing (and other instruments) some volume I'd recommend using delays, two channels with hardpanned left and right with different (but the same, as in 1000ms and 500ms for instance) times. Mix it so that it is only barely audible if you're really searching for it and it'll make stuff pop out real good. :) It's been a long time since I last was here, have there been another facepunch collaborative? If not, how about we get one rolling? :) I rearranged an old track of mine, cut out about two minutes of it and added some more organs, some smaller percussive stuff and a complete new ending to make it more like a climax. [media]https://soundcloud.com/skriket/blackest-magic[/media]

[QUOTE=Skeeter;49484098]To be honest, it's only slightly noticeable at a few times that some chords doesn't quite fit, but considering how it only happens like 2-3 times throughout the song it becomes pretty nice. I really enjoy the detuned synth you're using, what is it? From a mixing perspective the only thing I'd probably change is the reverb, it can get a bit distracting if it is too much, all the time. If you want to create space and give the singing (and other instruments) some volume I'd recommend using delays, two channels with hardpanned left and right with different (but the same, as in 1000ms and 500ms for instance) times. Mix it so that it is only barely audible if you're really searching for it and it'll make stuff pop out real good. :) It's been a long time since I last was here, have there been another facepunch collaborative? If not, how about we get one rolling? :) I rearranged an old track of mine, cut out about two minutes of it and added some more organs, some smaller percussive stuff and a complete new ending to make it more like a climax. [media]https://soundcloud.com/skriket/blackest-magic[/media][/QUOTE] I like! Rather long of course, but that's what you were going for so alls good. It's interesting enough for the length so I think you pulled that off. I find the drums a little muffled, if the snare was a little brighter I think it may help. There's a tad too much reverb throughout for my taste. I like the percussion that comes in throughout. Just made a silly trap kinda thing quickly: [media]https://soundcloud.com/prizymmusic/trappy[/media]

i'd be up for another collab album, as always