timaeus222   Members

Yep; sometimes people like someone else's music because they like the person. I couldn't imagine finding a youtube video of a live concert without people screaming, i.e. they come to the concert for that famous person. So, it can be hard to predict how people "receive" your music. I try not to think about that and just make what I like to make, and if people like it, then great! I stay motivated to write music because it keeps me happy. ----- I have some nice reference mixes that tells me how much bass is too boomy (http://ocremix.org/remix/OCR02093), how much treble is too piercing (http://ocremix.org/remix/OCR02177), and what loudness is too loud (https://soundcloud.com/zircon-1/level-bounce). That's what I used to calibrate my headphones, anyways.

Yeah, this recent comparison sounds hardly any different. I do SEE the difference in the waveform, but as before, I can chalk it up to a phase offset difference. At this point, based on how without the sub oscillator, the difference is even smaller, if I wanted to be even more sure, I would turn off Fruity Limiter and see if that then fixes the problem. If that does, then I would believe that there is a change in amplitude in the sub oscillator that triggers the limiter more heavily, causing a greater duck in volume via overcompression. If that doesn't, then that's an interesting issue you got there. I never really continued using Fruity Limiter, and switched to a soft-knee limiter about 3 years ago because of the overcompression. ----- I actually was aware of the high impedance (a kind of "collective resistance") of my Beyerdynamic DT880s (250 ohms), which led me to realize that I needed to amplify them to get a reasonable volume and frequency response to them. Afterwards, I found that they have good bass relative to my Grado SR-60i's that I owned previously, and they have certainly improved my bass mixing drastically (for instance, something full in bass that would normally take me 8 hours on my previous pair of headphones can take me less than an hour to mix on these). ----- This kind of phase difference can bother people if it's in an exposed context, but if you fill in the soundscape with more elements that encompass the stereo field, the phase difference becomes a minor issue in the big picture, because it sinks beneath the more prominent elements in the soundscape. For instance, I used Serum in writing this remix a few months ago (submitted to OCR already), and I really don't hear any issues with the Serum bass because the soundscape is filled out as much as I could make it. I realize that that explanation of "minor issue in the big picture" is kind of "covering up" what is labeled as an issue, but in my honest opinion, and with all due respect, I don't think people will really care about an issue of this small magnitude. This is something that you honed in on because you know how your mix is supposed to sound, and I think it sounds worse to you because of that. A lot of sound design is quite personal because over time, you get used to how you prefer to move the synth knobs to hear what you want. So, just because you really love how a specific sound that you made turned out doesn't mean that in context, it will make for a final mix that others will find amazing. Similarly, just because you don't like how the sound design seems a little inconsistent on live playback doesn't mean people will suddenly find that to be the major issue that they arbitrarily choose to be the reason they don't like the song. More likely, I think it would be the collective observation that they make of the entire soundscape (the vertical layering), coupled with the length of the song that they choose to hear (the horizontal progression), and the overall arrangement excellence (soundscape + note interplay), that might tell you how much they like or don't like the song.

Have you had this "problem" since you bought Serum? It seems like a natural phase difference to me. If in Serum you have a running phase (i.e. it doesn't reset upon playing a new note), then each time you render the same segment, it's going to sound slightly different because a different phase offset is being rendered and so a different output is heard based on a different phase cancellation result between the sub oscillator, OSC1, and OSC2. I do hear what you think is a problem, as I have the same headphones, but it seems like a natural result of using a synth with a running phase. Did you try unlinking the sub oscillator in Serum from the internal processing (i.e. a raw/unfiltered sub oscillator output layered with [OSC1 and OSC2 running through the filter])? I'm guessing the sub oscillator got high passed by a slow running-phase LFO? See if that's the issue by muting OSC1 and OSC2 and listening to the processed vs. raw sub oscillator. I've never had this issue before with my copy of Serum in FL 12, so it might just be a sound design issue.

Okay, about the mixing, I would say the kick can be a little more noticeable (I barely feel it). The rimshot and snare could also be louder; they're kind of present, but not really enough in the front. They don't need to be super punchy, but they shouldn't be so quiet. I agree about the trombone needing a bit more expression, or simply a live recording; the legato notes are what's not quite convincing me, and a touch of vibrato on some notes can help. The bass is a touch loud, and that's mostly noticeable in the bass solo, and it's not a big deal IMO, but maybe reduce the EQ at about 100~150 Hz by 1~3 dB.

I'm simply wondering if you have a difference between a WAV file constructed from recording real-time playback vs. a WAV file constructed from rendering. There isn't for me, but is there for you?.

Maybe you can try the following comparison: Using SilverSpike's TapeIt to record what you hear in FL Studio at full speed (no lag is recorded) Using FL Studio to render a specific segment where this problem seems to occur. Then, see if there is a difference in these waveforms. They tend to not be different (other than due to synth phase differences), but it could happen.

That might be it, but I recall it being called exactly "Loudness Equalization". Maybe you have a different version of windows, but this is what I'm thinking of, which is in the same spot on Windows I believe (this is not from my computer):

The CPU issues are expected. Serum is just not extremely efficient in that regard. Did you check your Windows Sounds settings? I had to turn off "loudness equalization" to avoid inconsistencies with sound playback volume.

3:45 didgefart --- CANNOT UNHEAR!

I can't comment on the mixing right now, but the arrangement definitely knocks it out of the park. I will say though, that the happier outtro feels like it's missing a cleaner transition into it. Maybe the organ could trail a bit into the next measure? And I think I kind of hear a bass note starting that outtro, but if it decayed more slowly, I think that could help on the transition.

HAH, we got like half a second in before the big drums already hit. Definitely keeps up the high energy with drumwork that doesn't let up much. All the individual components come together to keep things frantic. I will say that I would have liked a greater low-mids bass presence to the main bass (that is, more upfront-and-grimy filter motion), as having primarily subs got a bit tiring to my ears. But that's a minor nitpick in the big picture. Crank this up in the car, but not when your grandparents are around!

I wasn't too excited about the synth design, but I did think the metal components played around with the rhythm well. The tight playing is another highlight, and that, along with the rhythmic creativity, kept the pacing from getting too repetitive. It's one of those situations where an interesting rhythm keeps things not overly predictable, so you keep wanting to listen to see how it turns out. Nice work! Great solos too.

I like the way the piano was played; it sounded like it was improvised, and then later used anyways because you thought it sounded good in context, and I love it whenever that happens to me as well. Similarly, the looseness to the rhythm feels slightly sloppy, but still tight enough that it's as if you made a few happy-accidental mistakes during improvisation and fixed them. The strings samples were a bit slow on the attack, but besides that, I liked the "controlled chaos" you have going on. Somehow it makes sense and came together here.

They should - and they did: essentially, it wasn't interpretive enough, and the second half was too similar to the first half. In other words, the arrangement could have been more different from the original to illustrate that you tried to inject your own original ideas into the remix as well as those from the original track, and there could have been more variation in the second half to reduce the repetition and show that you made a lot of effort to not simply copy and paste. To be fair, they did note that it sounds good on its own merits, and encouraged expansion and resubmission.

I feel like I've heard this in the WIP forums before, but I can't find it. :/ That bass solo though, so good! One of your funkiest tracks yet!

April 15 is coming up soon! Please get something a-brewin' if somehow this slipped your mind!

@Winning900 If you want more helpful help, then post your effort at making the music that is relevant to the question. If you don't give proof that you are trying, then it's hard to believe that you actually want to learn.

Generally that implies expression controls, so any of the following might help: vibrato, filter envelope (evolving filter), oscillator sync (one oscillator stays still, the other keeps moving forward, creating a dynamic phase offset), etc. Basically, filter and pitch motion.

I think it does work despite not having an overt melody. It still uses a clear motif that is repeated in various contexts, and that is sufficient in many cases.

Well, not amazing, but it still manages to successfully introduce a fresh interpretation without using too many cliches. Could have used slightly more sophisticated sound design for the leads. But still pretty cool. At least there weren't low pitch-shifted vocals.

Fuck yeah, that's rad, man! #outofcharacter

I think this is so out there that it's actually inspiring. It's a bit minimalistic in the textures, but it works. Crunchy, distorted mixes are hard to come by, and this accomplishes grunge, distortion, and lofi in an enjoyable, standout way.

It starts out pretty conservative arrangement-wise, but it does get more interpretive later on. I like the mallet percussion that is in the background, and I think it would be interesting to feature those in a section with quieter dynamics. I'm not entirely convinced the drums work though; they seem to be out-of-place in terms of how upfront and aggressive they are, while on the other hand, the brass is kinda trying to be funny (and not aggressive). Not a huge deal but I thought I'd mention that. 1:56 starts to introduce some noodling in the drums and melody (the melody seems to meander), and the lead is pretty piercing in the upper treble (metallic, almost like you cranked up the FM depth). The tempo change starting near 2:40 is a bit weird IMO, and I'm not sure it works. By the time we reach 3:00 - 4:25, the low-mids, and soon the entire soundscape, gets quite cluttered and loud. Personally I found this arrangement to drag longer than it needs to, not because of its length but because of how meandering it was. If you try to dissect the structure today, I think you might have a hard time. The production is OK, but still (like in past remixes of yours) has that issue where you layer a lot of elements without taking many out, and you just get a bunch of clutter from sounds that don't add anything to the mix. At this state, I hate to say it, but it's too rough for OCR. :/

All he's doing is resting his hand on the snare and hitting the rim (with the drumstick). It gives a woody impact, rather than a regular snare hit, but whatever the sound of the knuckle hitting the snare is, it doesn't matter since it's more subtle, and giving a hard hit on the hi hat layers on top and obscures the sound anyways. The result is more of a punchy splashy sound overall: the splash from the hi hat and a "punchy" layer containing ~200 Hz frequency content from the rim hit (rimshot).

Did you read the manual?