Rozovian

Done. Now just waiting on the music. Everyone on the project (and nobody els here ), happy (and productive) new year!

More removals here.

"The Galaxy Is at Peace" is the name of the mix? Really? And I agree, not the best for a Ridley mix.

http://ocremix.org/forums/member.php?u=31605 This bastard even quoted me. ME.

Just fyi, soundfonts _are_ samples. The difference is that a soundfont can contain multiple samples mapped over the keyboard (and possibly with different samples for different velocity, idunno), whilst a sample is just _one_ sample. Everything from old trackers to QLSO and VSL are based on samples. Also, neblix mentioned native instruments, most of what they make are commercial products, but their KORE Player is free. IIRC there was a free expansion for it, too, but I'm not sure.

I'm surprised the Music Creator pages barely mention the midi functionality, but as it can support up to 128 midi track, I assume that's just not something they think ppl care about when they buy their software. Or when parents buy it. From what I can tell, it's an ok program. It's a place to start, and that's always good. Ultimately, it's all about whether you can make music with it. Try it out. (oh and make sure it has a piano roll or other midi editing interface. I still don't get why they don't even mention that on the product site. Also check if you can export midi, the lack of which is one of the mac-only GarageBand's biggest flaws. You'll need to export midi if you switch to a program by another developer.) And you don't _need_ a keyboard. It helps (at least if you know how to play it) by making the writing/recording process faster, and if not else you can at least work out the melodies you want with it, but it's not necessary. iirc I've only used mine on one mix, and it's not posted yet anyway. Then again, I can't really play keyboards, so using it isn't necessarily an improvement. In any case, you now have a music making tool. Learn to use it. Even if you switch to something else, it's a good idea to know how other tools work. Have fun.

Prob. one of the perks of being a judge. They can panel their subs directly.

Looks good, DLing. However... http://ocremix.org/forums/www.comedownthechimney.com Not the right url.

As long as whatever you choose doesn't encode to under 120kbps the quality will be fine for most listening. Unless you're on a really good sound system you shouldn't hear a difference on speakers. On headphones, the difference is a little more apparent, but even then 120 is passable (even when you compare to the wav). Encoding to VBR might also be a good idea. Might. I guess most hardware and software that plays mp3s nowadays can handle VBR. Unless you're playing them with old tech (like an mp3-cd player) VBR should be fine too. But really, it's not so much the converter as it's what you convert it to. Converting to mp3 will _ALWAYS_ make you lose quality, but most of it can't really be noticed by human ears anyway. At 300kbps you can hear subtle differences in low-volume and/or background sounds and some high-frequency stuff, but thats about it. They're not apparent unless you're doing side-by-side comparisons with 120kbps stuff. I write long. Pick any converter you like. Don't convert to less than 120kbps.

If ppl can get remixes done in GB (even in older versions) on ocr, it's good enough for ocr. GB uses a lot of command-click and double-clicking, plus a neat single-window interface (which works for GB but _NOT_ for Logic. esp. on a laptop). Yes you can load AU format plugins, yes you can import midi, yes you can write your own notes. It's limited, but it's not a looping toy. You can make your own music with it. That is, btw, one of my personal challenges - get a remix on ocr using only GB and free or GB-included plugins.

Sounds empty for most part, or simple. The mixing is ok, but the sounds are either not interesting, or a little weird. The wide open aahs are an interesting choice, but they sound a little too... airy, or white... or something. Try giving them some low/mid EQ boosting and/or another voice an octave down. Your bg pad is boring, even some subtle detune/chorus/flanger/phaser/vibrato/tremolo stuff would improve it, perhaps more so with more complex effects (like a wah or a tempo-synced filter) and some delay/reverb. Not sure if any of that is a good idea, you might be better off picking a better sound to start with, but it's worth experimenting with. Drums sound mixed fine (at least on my speakers), except for that weirdly panned short little crash. The rhythms aren't very interesting tho, an additional rhythm pattern wouldn't hurt, just don't make it too loud. I still think the interpretation is the biggest concern the Js would have if you subbed it. The source is there, but the parts I recognized are used verbatim. There's the chords leading into the melodies, there's the part with the melodies, that's it, the rest is just unrelated bass drum thumping. Building on the melodies, give the source-less parts some derived source material to fill it up. You should also consider how you're using the source where you do use it. Don't remember the source exactly, but isn't this a form of midi-rip in that it's basically source verbatim+drums?

Listened through it, good stuff. Thanks everybody for your contributions to it. (it's also a good reminder I should learn to master my stuff. and mix it better. waay too much bass, not enough staccato strings) Also, merry xmas ppl.

http://ocremix.org/forums/member.php?u=31580 Probably another "smart" one. Looks like a human spammer, but the sig link gives it away. It also posted a torrent link. Could be a helpful n00b that doesn't know that it's not a good idea to advertise your tattoo removal business on a random forum, esp. in a sig link. I think it's a bot, tho.

Happy... BirtheDay! Seriously, I'm the first to say that?

25. Not spectacular, but one for each day of the month ain't bad either. That's what I'm aiming to exceed, anyway. Also, will there be an episode 2 of the podcast thing?

As a Metroid fan, the Metroid remixes were the first I got from the site. This became a favorite. It has a weird, almost inappropriate feel for the source, and yet feels completely appropriate. I mean... arpeggios? In MY hellish magma-filled underworld!? I guess the only explanation is that the remix is hot. No matter how I reason, this feels completely appropriate for the source. Doesn't feel as dark, but there's more to Metroid than darkness and a need for a Varia Suit. And there's more to life.

One of my recent favorites on VotL. The intro used to bother me, could never really get out of that 4-2 rhythm I thought I heard until the bass drum came in, now I can easily hear the 3-3 rhythm, or a 4-2 if I'm so inclined. The breakdown half way through is extreme, even to the point where it bothers me. Me, as in mr. predictable breakdown half way through the song -me. Of course, the solo guitar and build-up from there is great. Fav part would still have to around 2:00 when the e-piano like synth comes in. That melody is just so evocative. Overall great track, but that one part... awesome.

Feels cinematic. Has a good scifi vibe to it, without resorting to loads of synth stuff for that "future sound". Source feels broken up into something of an orchestral mosaic than just turned into an orchestral mix. Heroic, epic, and yet... makes Metroid feel realistic.

Reminds me I should finish my SoM game I started this summer. Short but sweet. Great use of two great sources, really evocative, beautiful music. Feels grounded in real emotion and not just playing on the source.

Creepy. The strength of the SM music was the atmosphere it evoked, and this remix takes that one step further. Perhaps not as aquatic as I'd expect, but definitely sells the cold, damp, dark, and alone vibe appropriate for the source. I need to make a list of tracks I should learn from, and this ought to be on it.

SMG had some awesome music. Probably the first time I played a game and the music didn't sneak up and grow on me - it jumped at me... and then grew on me. This is a great source. Some velocity editing, and velocity-sensitive attack (not too much) on the guitar would make it a little more realistic. Guitar samples stand out a little too much now. Glitchy effects? Me likey. That section starts sounding like there's some harsh frequencies in the bg, you might want to do an eq pass over that, check if there's any resonances you could reduce. The kick drum sample is a bit heavy, gets especially noticeable in the end. Source seems to be there, at least on the guitar the sine whistle in the bg. Too early in the morning to do any better analysis than that. Yeah, this is cool. Keep at it.

The earlier Ridley parts sound more like they're just derived from the the background of the Prime menu tune. Except the stuff half way through. No matter, source is source. Towards the end, you've got some clashing going on withe the menu source stuff. Too lazy to download and look at exact times, but you shouldn't have any trouble hearing it yourself. Guitar tone could use some work, lead guitar works fine, but the rhythm parts sound... boxy. Could just be too loud or compressed weird or something. Something about it bothers me, not sure what. Hihat is pretty loud imo. Good luck, this is a cool concept so make sure to finish it.

Arrangement works for me. The drum writing and the out-of-key notes would have to be dealt with, but the erst I'm fine with. After 4 minutes it feels like it's run its course and should have ended. The 4:54-5:08 part would be a decent ending, sans drums and with some minor changes to the writing of its second half. Anyway, the beginning works for me, tho the drum mixing (and writing) needs some work. Toms need more bass. The bass has some clashing notes. It's a cool bassline, but it clashes with the other stuff. Not sure your bass sound is right either, sounds like a synth where just about everything else are samples. Church bells are a little too loud. Drums aren't loud enough (or t least snot strong enough), and the hihat pattern doesn't feel right to me (and it's not realistic to have that hihat pattern playing over the toms). Clashing notes a little everywhere, like in your lead at 2:18 and 2:34. 1:58-2:57 section sounds ok to me, it's not as directionless as you said you thought it was in your pm. You could cut some filler melodies from the lead, it's okay to have pauses in the lead. To keep it from dragging out, you could end it with the 3:42-3:55 part, but the part that follows could be the best in the whole mix. 3:55-4:10, I mean. Seems like putting the parts in a different order could help this mix a lot, you've got a lot of cool parts here. Repetitive within the sections and not stitched together in the best order, clashing notes and some mixing problems, some weird transitions and key problems. That said, there's enough good stuff here to make it worth sticking with, like 0:00-0:29, 0:38-1:14, 1:29... Okay screw it, I'm gonna cut it apart and stitch it together myself and show you what I mean. edit: screw that, all I did was cut a minute of repetition and fail to piece it together it any better order. Cutting that minute out did help tho (mostly just repetition). Maybe the problem is that there's no real lift, no "big" part. It has a lot of mysterious builds and grooves, so when I say "big" I don't mean a full-out crash into awesome-type section. That would probably change the style too much. Cut the repetition, add a finale, a "big" (not too big) part after the builds, and deal with the aforementioned issues, and you should have a pretty cool mix on your hands. Hope my early in the morning ramblings are helpful to you. Good luck.

http://ocremix.org/forums/member.php?u=31529 Not sure it's a spambot, but it' definitely worth a look. Its posts are vaguely related to the threads, my guess is that it's a keyword-sensitive spambot or a lazy human spammer.

Someone's older? They deserve to have my post count increased by one. I mean, happy one year closer to retirement day.