timaeus222

That's the weird part. Some songs that look too loud could actually be softer, and some that look too loud could actually be the same or louder. In this case it's softer. I actually ripped the audio directly and that's what I saw.

Just wanted to make an important point here, and I'm surprised you said that--- Soundcloud does not have an accurate waveform representation. One time I downloaded a track that didn't look overloaded, and it was practically all 0dB.

I agree, that's why I suggested lowering the guitar and/or bass so the kick doesn't *have* to be that loud. ;D

From what I've read, the judges generally don't like extremely similar instrumentation, but if there's maybe one or two instruments similar and the others are not, there's a better chance they'll be okay with it (i.e. 2 similar and 5 different is great, but 4 similar and 2 different should be reworked). Of course, a really amazing arrangement will blow them away.

Weird, I guess it's something else then. Maybe you can try making the guitar and bass amplitude in the waveform lower while keeping it sounding loud enough. I've just managed to do it on one of my own tracks just now. Remember that stacking waveforms does amplify the final waveform, and it's definitely possible to minimize that amplification. If you do that, it'll allow you to lower the kick a little more. It'll help if you use a spectral analyzer as well to see what the kick waveform looks like. Right now it might actually be hitting the limiter too hard, even under soft knee. I don't know if it's the sample or if it's just how loud it is under the limiter. Or maybe it's the limiter's ability to limit. What limiter are you using?

I guess, but from the looks of the waveform it seems hard knee compressed. The threshold also isn't the only possibility. The compression curve or ratio is always a good option...

The drums aren't bad, but everything sounds like it's clipping. Everything's way too loud and transients are cut out. Aren't you using a limiter of any sort? Looks like soft knee limiting, but everything is bumped at least 3dB above the max. The bass is really good though. You should replace the snare. It's too powerful in the low mids. It needs more in the highs. There's also no sense of dynamics. Everything's just maxed out. Really think about what you want to be soft or loud.

This is very quiet. Bump it up 6dB. As you do so, lower the bass by about 20%.

It still sounds a bit overcompressed. Check your levels.

See if you can get the melody stuck in your head. Maybe then you can start modifying it in your head before you write it out, and when you get something good, write it out.

Hm, well, I'm not home yet, but did you try out a spectral analyzer? That should help you to make things look right. It's important to know that most of the time, stacking waveforms will additively amplify the resultant waveform. Good dynamics is stacking waveforms such that the result after is not so much louder than before. Oh, and you'll need external speakers to hear bass, so trust your headphones, at least if you are questioning the bass.

It sounds a bit better, but I actually don't hear much of a bass yet (it might just be because the track is soft). The entire track is actually a bit soft (it's at about -7dB - -4dB, as compared to the typical -4dB - -1dB) aside from the drums, though the drums should be loudest in terms of amplitude. As far as the intensity I was imagining for the bass, it was kind of like this, but not quite as awesome (because it's your first track for feedback ): The bass in that track is actually a tad louder than the guitar. See if you can make it so the guitar and bass can sound loud even when the amplitude is low. I suggest using a tool like s(M)exoscope to check your waveform as you go. I'd also suggest taking a look online for a good free soft knee compressor/limiter. It'll give you lots more flexibility on pumping tracks to be as loud as possible without overcompression. You just have to make sure things aren't too loud or it'll clutter the song and make it hard to hear some things.

This actually sounds like a straight MIDI remix, and I didn't listen to the source.

It feels hollow and bare without a bass. At least, I don't hear a bass. The entire drum kit is too soft. Drums need to be at about -0.2dB when playing alone. When they stack with other instruments they'll bump up to 0dB. Fix that, and it'll sound much better.

I agree, the beginning sync lead needs more reverb and delay. It feels dry. The synth at 0:36 is really loud compared to the rest of the instruments and it's overpowering everything. Set its volume to 0 and raise it up again until you just hear it loud enough. It's also dry and lacks expression. There's no reverb/delay or any vibrato. The arrangement as a whole is extremely repetitive. Some sparse sections include the gaps in the intro, and the spots 0:35-1:05 and 2:44-2:48 are the most obviously sparse sections. The entire track is actually sparse because I only hear a bass, a lead, a really, really, really quiet arpeggio, and the drums, which are ultimately overpowering everything. That's probably why you think your lead needs to be so loud. It doesn't. It just needs to be heard well enough to sound like it's leading.

The stuff here isn't bad. http://smatni.tripod.com/safwanmatnivstplugins/ Takim has some good middle-eastern percussion, so you'll find a taiko drum in there. Oh, and I checked out vst4free.com. GTG DPC3 is probably really nice.

Yep, it's still a little overcompressed, and the majority of it is because of the kick. I suggest using some sort of spectral analyzer to check what the kick waveform looks like, and adjust the volume to make it just barely reach about -0.2dB, because it'll stack to reach 0dB for the most part. Also, if it's compressing like that, you probably are still using hard knee compression right now. A good soft knee compressor/limiter could be TLs-Pocket Limiter, which is free. Soft knee compression lowers the chance of overcompression, but then you really have to watch what's too loud and what's too soft, because there's a chance it can get so packed that some things are hard to hear, but it isn't actually truly overcompressed. I personally feel like that's a more flexible method. This does sound a lot better, though.

The somewhat bitcrushed synth that comes in right away feels weird. It doesn't seem to have a pleasing tone. To me it feels like the kick is clashing with the bass. Maybe EQ out some of the sub frequencies on the kick (just a bit), and sidechain if you haven't already? Overall, it sounds slightly muddy, but probably fixing that up and doing soft knee compression on the master will be the only thing that is needed to fix this up. I know for sure that you used hard knee compression.

Thanks a lot! EDIT: There we go, now everything's edited and set!

Alright, sweet! I think I'll also address an issue I believe I have with dynamics. I remember how you said when sounds stack, they might additively create a louder waveform, so I'll see if I can fix that up keeping that in mind.

It's actually too quiet. I ripped a short clip of it at a section where it should be at its loudest, and it's actually peaking at about -4dB-ish. You need to get that up to or near 0dB. Another thing is that this mix probably has too much reverb going on in total. The majority of it seems to be in the strings. The rest of it "appears" to be there because of the quietness of the instruments and possibly the dry signal being too low at times.

Well, basically gather new, better sounding ones and replace your old ones. Listen to what kind of sound you actually want and try to determine which sounds better, and choose the better one.

You should try soft knee compression before you finalize it. It'll make a huge difference.

Okay, I'm sure I've addressed lots of issues now! Everything should be much clearer (the bell lead is the most evident), more powerful and wide, now soft knee compressed, and more awesome. There are some new drum samples, too (like the TR-808 snare at 2:11) and smoother transitions between dynamics. I tried something completely new: purposefully duplicating a note so that there are 6-8 notes in the piano roll layered in the same spot. I did that to "create" a new, louder cymbal sound (i.e. at 1:35) from one of the softer RR samples from EWQL. I'm hearing something I didn't hear before, on my own mix no less, at 0:11-0:12 (the weooohhh). xD Also noticing that the kick might need to be louder at 1:11 - 1:41 and 3:07 - 3:15, and the piano reverb might need to be adjusted. Ready for mod review! https://www.box.com/s/pa8az3lhy0mhegj6kf2z - V5 https://www.box.com/s/y52h5refxuc8381z1vxs - V4 https://www.box.com/s/nwc9c2a97t1mksy96edm - V3 https://www.box.com/s/51902283176a34f60bbe - V2/V1 - Source Mirror 1 - Source Mirror 2

Did you know... my math professor wrote "use your p and geometric series mad skillz!" on the board when he wrote down strategies to test for series convergence. xD