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1. Let's see a source link so we can compare properly! 2. This is not drum 'n bass. DnB is characterized by chopped breakbeats, punchy drums, and tight bass, and unfortunately this has none of those things. Here are a few good examples of well-made DnB if you'd like a reference point: - https://soundcloud.com/netsky/give-and-take - https://soundcloud.com/logisticsmusic/we-need-nothing-to-collide-logistics-remix-preview - https://soundcloud.com/madukdnb/maduk-ft-veela-ghost-assassin-vip 3. I can tell you're pushing a limiter incredibly hard here--if you're starting from the default place in FL Studio, the Fruity Limiter is automatically loaded on your master channel, and it can make proper mixing very hard to do. You'll want to remove that and then go from there. It's easy to tell there's something there because of the ducking and pumping effects throughout the song when certain things kick in, and it's not helping your sound at all. 4. Your synths all occupy roughly the same sonic spectrum. You'll want to separate them clearly by EQing out any frequencies that aren't necessary, such as anything below 120hz or so for anything that isn't a bass instrument. There's a whole lot more to say, but I don't want to waste the effort if you're going to leave this one alone. If you do want to improve this track, start with those things, and then come back to the workshop--there's a lot of folks in here who can teach you about arrangement, instrument selection, and all kinds of fun stuff like that! EDIT: Whoops, looks like Timaeus beat me to the punch.

Cool, peacefule, pleasant to listen ! I really love the instrument playing the melody. Great job

Those soundfonts are already processed to have a cohesive sound when used together, and they'll fit a less realistic aesthetic anyway. The more realistic you make things, the more you have to worry about sounds fitting together. Some people can tell when you're using different reverbs on different instruments, and this would be a problem for them listening to an otherwise realistic piece, but one made of soundfonts won't bother them as much because it's not trying to be realistic. Maybe a soundfont aesthetic is what you should be shooting for. Maybe you should sketch out your ideas with a single instrument (I use a Rhodes sound for my sketches). If you're looking to construct higher-quality sounds, look at the spectrum of a single note, and try to recreate that. Look at the waveform. An organ sound could probably be recreated with an additive synth. I would probably try Absynth, if I didn't find any good sampled instruments to work with. I could also look at the waveforms available in ES2 and try a combination of oscillators in FM8, even make something out of Pianoteq that resembles that kind of organ. But first I have to know the component frequencies of the sound, and that's best seen with a good spectrum analyzer looking at a single note. Comparing that single note and a single note from your replacement instrument will be very useful in getting the balance just right. Then you'd have to match other qualities of its sound, such as envelope, resonances, and reverb. Though the idea of making a synth sound realistic might seem super difficult, it's actually not as hard as it sounds... depending on the sound. Strings, especially solo? Very difficult. Woodwinds? Easy. An organ isn't that different from a woodwind, it just has more component frequencies. If the idea of component frequencies is too foreign for you, know that they will most likely be multiples of the note's fundamental frequency. If that's 100Hz, the next frequency is (assuming full set of harmonics) is at 200Hz, the next at 300Hz, the next at 400Hz... Am I making it too complicated? In an additive synth, you'd likely have this series listed in order, and you'd see an ascending set of frequencies in the spectrum analyzer, too. For the organ, I would probably synthesize it. Other sounds I might find in sample libraries. Some sounds I might not find or be able to make a similar instrument of, but could swap it out for something with a different sound that still sounds okay in the mix. You get used to the sound you've got. That's why I don't use low-quality sounds to sketch out my music - I don't want to get used to that sound and struggle to break away from it, as you now do.

If you've often found yourself writing music with specific instruments, and then later wanting to replace them, you should find that the notes you wrote for those instruments suits those instruments, but may not suit other instruments. That's normal. What would really help is if you learned how to adjust your partwriting and adapt it to the new instrument. To do that, I would suggest you learn the capabilities of the new instrument---know what it can and can't do, and how you should write it so that it sounds natural, logical, or "flowing". ----- For example (this is completely general and might serve as a starting point), after writing a melody on piano, it will not work if you simply swap out the piano VST for a violin VST without doing anything else, no matter how good the violin was sampled. You would have to at least check the note overlaps to see where the phrasing sounds more natural with overlapped notes, and where it sounds more natural with a re-bowed (not-overlapped) note starting a new phrase. You would also have to incorporate a variety of articulations that a violin has but a piano does not---writing a short note for violin using a legato sample doesn't make it act like true staccato, but writing a short note for piano using a "standard" sample is closer to true staccato, for instance. Another example is that violins can do a portamento, sounding almost like a pitch bend (but not quite), but pianos sure can't pitch bend in real life (even though they can still do portamentos, those sound different from violin portamento). Here is an example of a pretty cool piano melody (I know context matters, but I want you to be able to hear all the details of the instrument): https://app.box.com/s/b3iw29h1iropynzqmpk8hshejn1iqt09 Here it is with the piano VST replaced with a violin sample library (untouched MIDI notes, removed delay): https://app.box.com/s/gpc7il9sup09scuginr44re0tym5tpha Hear how disjointed and awkward it sounds? Surprisingly, it's not terrible on the fast runs because of the bow-switch legato triggering on note overlaps, but it's not good either because of all those messed up notes wherever there were harmonies for the piano. Coincidentally, the highest note is actually outside the range of the violin as well. Now here it is adapted to the violin sample library using the suitable reverb, (mostly) better notes and rhythm, and the proper articulations (re-bowing, slurs, portamento, etc.) and MIDI CC automations (CC1 for vibrato, CC11 for expression+volume, CC14 for vibrato speed): https://app.box.com/s/8roeaysu4q5zd5jno1qjsihdn4oziyyx It's not perfect, but it's much better than what you get from doing nothing to it. It's actually got the slurs, vibrato, staccato, and portamento that were previously missing. ----- For you, what I would suggest is trying to decide on your sounds/instruments as you go, rather than after you finish your arrangement. Whenever I write music in general, I often find that the first sound I pick is important. That's because whenever I pick sounds, I try to think of whatever sounds match it best, and then use those. That means if all goes well, then I'll have a track of cohesive sounds, and so the aesthetics of the first sound determines the soundscape of the finished track (at least for me it does). Furthermore, since I write parts for my sounds as I pick them, they tend to fit those sounds when I'm done. If I went through my old music that is already done and satisfactory, and I swap out some instruments for something else, it would be hard for me to pick new sounds to replace them, and I would almost certainly have to rewrite some of my notes to adapt to the new sounds (yes, even if it's a synthesized sound replaced with another synthesized sound).

Spitfire Audio is discontinuing Albion Volume #1 and selling it for £149/$230. Not sure why they're discontinuing it, but it's a steal right now. http://www.spitfireaudio.com/albion

This is a NO right out of the gate because the first 20 seconds is ripped right from the actual game audio (a no-no with Square Enix) but also this is a 100% midi-rip from 0:00 all the way to 4:08 (at which point the remix repeats the preceding section, while the source tune moves into something else). WOW that's a lot of midi rip, with unhumanized guitar and especially piano that sticks out like a sore thumb. OOF. The reason I even paneled this is that the guitar work IS EXCELLENT. The backing guitar work and leads here are REALLY GOOD. Dammit, why did you have to do such great guitar work over a MIDI RIP??? After the midi rip section is over, the remix opens up into some phenomenal guitar work, such as the section starting at 5:29. The drum work is pretty impressive as well, I'm not sure how much of the drum writing copies the midi (I suspect some is direct midi rip and some is not), but the samples you've used are working really well here. Oh man, after a lot of great guitar stuff, after I've almost FORGOTTEN about the midi rip stuff... at 5:49 that stiff midi piano drops back in and takes a crap onto the track.... BLARG... I hope we will hear from you again, with a remix that does not rely on a midi, at least not in such an obvious way. Wow, great guitar skillz. It's mixed well, too. Sadly, this is a NO

Hey all! Obligatory 20TH ANNIVERSARY OF CHRONO TRIGGER'S NA RELEASE post While we had hoped to release the album in time for the 20th anniversary of Chrono Trigger's NA release, we have some exciting updates to share! -The album titled has been officially set as Chronology: A Jazz Tribute to Chrono Trigger -All but two tracks have been sent off for post production! We are getting very close to having the music finished. -Jorik Bergman (Bowlerhat) has signed on to play flute on a tune for the album. -djpretzel will be helping us to get a website up and going for the release! That's all for now folks! We hope to be getting a trailer out to you sometime in early autumn. Stay tuned!