Rozovian

Thanks to everyone who have answered my questions so far, I'm seeing a pattern when it comes to the kind of feedback y'all want, but I want more answers to question #3. If you haven't answered the questions yet - do it now! The questions, and my list of problems with the wip board and possible solutions, are in this post. Help us improve the wip board.

You know, I didn't pay any attention to it before, but the delay on the melody synth... COuld you move it a step either slower or faster, I think it's just playing on top of itself. I think the master track needs more highs. Raise the 4th band EQ on the multiband compressor if you're using it. If not - USE IT. 3:12, don't hit the same crash over and over. Works for real, but not really with samples, it just becomes glaringly obvious that it's sampled. Check the other (non-electronic) drums kits for alternate crashes to use. 4:13 - great additions and changes. Aside from having the same chord progressions throughout, you've managed to reduce the repetitiveness of it. Kudos. It's still a bit repetitive as it's following the progression of the source, but it's not as annoying as it used to. I do recommend cutting up the source, replacing parts of it with original writing. Not just moving notes up and down. If you're too concerned about doing that, see if you can change the chord progression slightly, modifying it. Take a backup before doing any rewriting, tho. Making good progress, man. Good job. Please take the time to answer the questions in this post.

Just two words to describe this: Repetitive. Beautiful. One thing tho. You could raise the volume for the tracks in the background before 3:01, the guitars aren't letting me hear much of them.

No source link, no source comment. Not much I can say. It does get repetitive, so you better mix it up enough when you do the real version, or rewrite it to be a bit more engaging, whether that means nuance and soundscaping, or exciting additions and a faster tempo. Please take the time to answer the questions in this post.

That saw instrument you started this version with needs to be a little softer. Lead is a bit unprocessed, could use some faint reverb/delay, something. Also, your additional (and better processed) melodies that you tossed in before 1:20 are loud enough to distract from the lead. process the lead, send the other melodies to the bg. I think you should work on separating the tracks and carving space for them using EQ. Make a list of which instruments are important, check what frequency ranges they occupy, and carve a few dB out of the less important instruments. Well, it's an improvement. Good progress, man. Please take the time to answer the questions in this post.

It's quiet. Well, after 1:22 it gets louder. Too loud, in comparison. But you should raise stuff, most of it is too quiet. Your additional drums at 1:46 are way too loud by comparison, they're the only one needing to be toned down. Overall, volume balance and velocities need work. Heh, took me 1:22 'til I recognized it. And it was right there all along. The progression until then is, btw, repetitive. It also gets repetitive thereafter. I don't have a problem with the changing styles, but others might find it less than cohesive. As for source/interpretation, I'm fine with this, I think it's in the green, but the repetitiveness is gonna be a problem. Piano is really lacking in definition, needs more highs and lows. Raising velocity could fix that too. The koto sounds very dry, and there's something fishy about the timing when it comes in. It's also panned a bit too far to sound balanced. At 1:08 I'm once again reminded of how the piano sound is just... cut off towards its highs. The woodwind you've got there sounds like it's got more highs than the piano. There's a shaker/hihat, some hi-range rhythm thing coming in during the 0:20 section, and it just feels like arbitrary filler that's neither rhythm nor soundscaping, just noise. Your percussion ain't very good here, imo. The one panned far left is especially exposed and just... bad. You could improve it with finding the right balance of reverb, EQ, and not panning it that hard. By the way, you should use drums to emphasize beats, not serve as just soundscape and fills. Without it, the track gets weak in the latter half when it's supposed get stronger. Overall, I like this, but I'm not surprised it was rejected back when. It could be good, tho. Good luck reworking it, if you do. Please take the time to answer the questions in this post.

Thanks man. It's nice to know I'm appreciated. Some credit for this feedback goes to just64, he's the one that told me to critique the projects here. Yours was shorter, so I finished it before his. Anyway, I'm surprised the J's aren't on wip board, considering how important they repeatedly say it is. Chick, please take the time to answer the questions in this post.

Just four tracks. Oh good, then I can get them all done at once. Haven't played the game, and am too lazy to listen to source. Ricochet. Sounds like Zelda... uh, at least the melodies. One of your early hihat samples is a bit too loud. You've got strangely few high frequencies. Around 2:30 it starts having something of a latino sound, then goes into something more like jazz. All without breaking the overall style. Good work. Ending was executed well. Ripples of Time. Starts off with the promise of being epic. Doesn't quite progress the way I would have wanted, but it turns into something nice and groovy. There's a weird blurp-ish sound in there that I'd get rid of if I were you. A style like this would be awesome for an sd3 track that we need. I'll get you the details in a pm. After 2 mins it starts sounding familiar. Probbaly from a remix, tho could be from a previous wip, could have been used in another Zelda game. Anyway, ending felt sudden, so you either gotta let it unwind for longer or let it crash into a bigger finale. Bipolar Bird. PIano intro feels very unpolished. Too much reverb, too long release, idunno. Piano could lose some high mids. Progression certainly fits what you said about the source, mostly. Transition into electronic around 1:33 didn't quite work, imo. At 2:07 it takes another cool turn, somewhat reminiscent of a part of the castle theme from SMW. Then it turns into lofi chiptune sounds, and that didn't feel appropriate. Work on the transitions and blend them together more. I'd rather not have the chippy ending, but it's your track. There was a lot of really cool bits and pieces in this, but it becomes medleyitic... too much so even for this track. Essence of Lime. Strings feel pad-ish. If you'd make that more obvious, you could get away with it more easily. Primitive waveform leads work in this track, tho I'd give them a few overtones, they sound too primitive. The reverse rhythm thing you've got about half way through works well, but I was expecting a stronger bass drum to come in somewhere around there. You've got a few pretty cool sections in here, and the transitions were interesting. Ending was funny. Overall, this sounds promising. Good stuff, man.

Instruction Manual. Yeah, source is there. And the track is funny. The slow bass notes are a bit too loud, and the whole track feels kind'a heavy on the lows and low mids. It's lacking in the high range. A ride or shaker could work. Your lead sounds a bit too heavy on the cutoff, it needs them higher frequencies. Pick a weaker filter. It's kind'a sparse, so you might want to layer it a bit more, something in the high mids and highs, very soft, kind'a like what you've got at 1:11. See if you can toss in additional references to source in isntruments like that. The heavy cutoff and lack of highs takes away from the enjoyability of the track. I like the pacing, but not the mixing. We'll see when I'll get back to you on the other tracks. There's a lot of tracks. Please take the time to answer the questions in this post.

Whoa, it's trippy. Nah man, we're trying to go for a less synthetic sound. The strings in there could fit nicely onto the project, but the noise and many synths don't quite fit. It's great, tho. btw ppl, expect an update about the project some time real soon. We're _not_ dead just ebcause you haven't seen anything the past few months.

The hardness comes from two things: amplitude and frequency. You can modify the amplitude somewhat by making the attack longer, which makes the sample less loud when the note it struck but still fades up to normal volume. Frequencies only need volume changes, so EQ works well, cutoff might also work. Hard struck piano keys produce a long of rpominent high frequencies, and the punch of any instrument is usually at under 200Hz. Drop the lows somewhat and cut the highs by a few dB and you should have a softer sound. Using both techniques together is probably gonne get the job done, you just gotta experiment to find the right balance between them. Ideally, you'd have both attack and cutoff controlled by velocity in the sampler, but I don't know what routing options you've got.

Bass is a bit too powerful. Drop it a few dB, I think it's clipping. Either that, or my subpar headphones can't handle it. They also don't seem to play the full strength of bass frequencies (as concluded from the J's comments on my recently judged submission). In other word, turn down that bass a bit. The MP series' music has never been as good as Super Metroid's, and the sound they've employed makes a lot of it sound the same. That's my opinion. That's also one of the reasons I can't easily identify source in your remix. Still, I recognized more this time. Not counting the one from MP1, which I'm far more familiar with, perhaps because it's so much more memorable. Bass, exposed instruments... That's the crits. You've got some really interesting soundscaping here, and it feels so much more balanced than the last one, at least from what I can read in my last post. Good stuff. EDIT: Hm, I suppose this is for one version back, then., btw, please take the time to answer the questions in this post.

np. btw, please take the time to answer the questions in this post.

Intro instrument sounds good, but the others... don't. The others being drums, and a synth string pad. Drums either need more weight or more intentional sounding softness. Can't really help you with the latter, tho I've noticed that leaving out the kick helps a lot in making drums softer. As for the former, EQ and compression. Punch (kick and snare) is around 100-200Hz, hihats don't need anything much 1kHz. String pad is too slow. I suggest separating it into two tracks - melody and backing. Backing is fine, tho it could use some more notes - chords, at least towards the end of the drums+melody+strings part. The melody should have shorter attack and release, lower sustain, and a few hundred ms of decay so the notes don't blend into each other. Rhythmic pad has a good sound, but I think it's too fast to fit in. Either the melody needs to go faster, or you should drop the tremolo effect by half (half depth or half speed). Arrangement felt ok to me. Source is definitely there. The additional melody (besides the rising/falling melody) sounds familiar, and is probably source. Dunno if this is integrpretive enough since I don't remember the source. A FF fan could probably evaluate that better. For a first remix, this sure isn't bad. I have a feeling you'll do some great stuff eventually. Good luck. Please take the time to answer the questions in this post.

Piano needs reverb. It could also use some EQing to bring out its highs and lows a bit more. I get what you're going for with guitar. Pitch controlled by mod wheel via an lfo at 6Hz (or the other way around, can't remember) should get you a nice vibrato, and pitch bends at the end of a few sustained notes should get you a little more realism. I'm more concerned with the repetitive guitar sound - doens't sound organic. COuld be the sample, could be the amp sim and effects. Setting little things (volume, pitch, cutoff) to be influenced by different lfos can get you _some_ life, but I still think you'd be better off with a synth sound. You should also drop the guitar levels, it sounds way too loud compared to everything else. The overall volume of the track is also low. Getting there... Please take the time to answer the questions in this post.

No source link, no source comment. Drums sound a little buried. The guitars are a bit too loud, and you sometimes only go to one, panned, guitar. Works if you're going for a life sound, but hardpanning them is a little extreme in that case. I really dig the rhythm here, good stuff.

Just realized that the first instrument in source has a very similar feel to a part in a wip of mine. 1:42 - NOISE! Crackling sound, repeats a little later. Sounds intentional, but doesn't sound good. I'm certainly hearing source in this now. I think it's in the green. That's what I can think of. Good track. Unless I missed something, I think this could get posted. You might want to check with a J before submitting, tho.

No source link, no source comment. This really isn't my expertise, so all I can say is that it's enjoyable, although soundwise repetitive. Going into a wah guitar somewhere (in keeping with the organ feel you've already got). There's also no clear progression (which is excuseable for a medley but not if you're gonna submit it to ocr). But I thought I'd drop a line and support a fellow finn. Please take the time to answer the questions in this post.

Bells in the intro sound modulated. Me no like them's sound. Transition at around 0:29 is still a bit too sharp. Also, there's an audible levels change there that's also too sharp. Piano sounds too dry. Noticeably in the intro and towards the end. Consider automating the reverb mix level so you can just raise it into the intro and ending. Alternately, use two pianos, one with reverb, one without. 0:47 or wherever the clashes were, they're gone now. And they're not missed. You might still be a bit too conservative with the source chord progression. I would enjoy not having to hear it over and over again (e.g. pre 1:30). Transition at 2:23 is too sharp. Introduce the drums earlier, carry the percussion a bit into the new section. That section, 2:23-> could use a low bass to back up the drums. Shaker is centered, which is a little annoying, imo. Stereo spread it and pan it somewhere. Transition out of it (3:09) works better, but could also be a little too sharp. The harp-like isntrument that comes in after that is a bit too exposed, I recommend a bit of reverb and dropping its volume a bit. It depends on the style you've got going. A synth might work in one of the more electronic sections, whereas high legato strings or a ride would work in other sections. The problem isn't "what", it's "how much". EQ or multiband compression could let you raise it. I can't find a section with _nothing_ in the high range, so you just need a little of the abovementioned effects. Besides, I think your new version already got that fixed. Left-panned piano should have an EQ cut so it's not as mid-heavy when it's there. It feels like it's pulling the foundation for the track left, leaving it vertically skewed. Drop its mids when it's there, or push it closer to the mid. You've got something in the high range centered, starting at 4:30. That could be pushed to the left, since you've got the left channel's high range covered by another melody. if you replace the panning of the piano and the 430C instrument, you don't need to EQ the piano. That's just a suggestion, of course. Drums just need longer loops, or a second loop with some slight variations. Nothing big. The drum rhythm could change as part of the transition to the next style, fixing both some of the drum repeition AND the transitions. This is a significant improvement. Good stuff. Please take the time to answer the questions in this post.

SInce you're gonna record the parts with real instruments, and the others already pointed out it's too close to source, I'll just comment on the idea of using steel drums: PWNSOME if done right. Btw, the submarine pings seem a bit too frequent. Also, since you're using pings in different frequencies, you might as well play a slow melody on them, one note at a time. Also, don't make it as repetitive as you made this one. Yeah, the source isn't very long, but I've heard more done with less. I think I've done more with less, without making it repetitive, as this is. I'm looking forward to hearing how this turns out. Please take the time to answer the questions in this post.

KIND'A LOUD! Kind'a dry. Kind'a repetitive within those style sections. I noticed it in that order. They bother me in the opposite order. I'm not gonna have a re-listen to the old version, which I liked, to tell you how much better this is. Anyway, this sounds strangely like the mountain area music from FFX. And that's a good thing.

No source link, no source comment. Mostly mids. Drop the mids, raise the lows. Also, bring out the kick more, I can barely hear it, so it certainly isn't serving its purpose. Compress and EQ it. The guitar isn't always synched (0:36). Takes a little while for you to find the rhythm. Rerecord that stuff. Remake, not remix. No arrangement comment. And if it's for ocr, you need to arrange it, but Willrock already told you that. Anyway, it's a good track, and for a newcomer it's not bad. I think you'll get some great remixes done once you start working towards remixing to meet ocr's standards.

Argh, tom panned hard left. Not recommended. I think a lot of your instruments have a little too high sustain levels/too long decay levels/too long release time/too much reverb. The notes blend together. You might want to use a faster attack, unles sit's the samples. It's also a bit heavy on the mids, especially at 1:24-2:04. Most of your orchestral samples seem fat around the waist, so drop their mids a bit. Bring out the leads more. This is already on the edge of overcompressed (I heard compression a few times), so I recommend carving an EQ hole in the other channels that share frequencies with the leads. The piano you've got towards the end could come out more during that minibreak. It's clarity would make a great variation from the dark stuff in the rest of the track without taking away from the feel, imo. Also, 3:45 chord clash. Yeah, getting there... Soon. Good stuff.

Snare could use some more punch, as well as some more high frequencies. It sounds like it's pitched down. Your lead gets a bit repetitive. I suggest you raise glide, then just shorten the notes before the ones you don't want to blend together (or lengthen the ones you do, depending on how the glide works for your app and synths). It feels like it could use an EQ raise in the high mids. Hihats could use an overall +1 dB. Other than that, there's not much I can say, since you can't change much of the arrangement. Good stuff.

Your choice of sound keeps being problematic. Try an electric piano. Drums and transition from single instrument to band felt very unnatural. The drums and the organ aren't in the same tempo (becomes glaringly obvious around 2:11), making it sounds stupid. Using drums, however, isn't a bad idea. It just needs to fit, rhythmically and in tempo. For most of the track, you've got this left-hand writing that's just octaves. 0:07-0:21 could work well without it, imo, especially since you've got basically the same thing at 1:04. Not telling you how to write your track, just suggesting. I do agree that (for most part), it's better than the previous versions. You're definitely heading the right direction. Keep working on it, if you're getting better, your music is too.