zircon

For a trance arrangement, I think the sounds aren't too bad - the dullness is probably more due to the 128kbps encoding. However, I agree that some of the synths could be a little sharper or better designed - the unison effect on some of them makes it so that the attack is really loud. You might want to put a slight attack - out of 127, maybe 10-15 or so, so that it doesn't make the volume spike when the synth hits. Also, the arpeggio thing you've got going for half the track kind of gets old considering it's playing the same notes over and over. So, I do partially agree with Larry that the execution needs some more tweaking.. if you're using a VST-capable sequencer, check out all the new VSTs over at www.kvr-vst.com; many of the ones that came out recently are really great for adding unique and fresh sounds to a mix. I think the arrangement is solid considering how simplistic and short the source is. Nonetheless, considering that the mix is almost 5 mins, I think it could be tightened. Perhaps changing some of the original material to be a little more related to the source tune would help, or cutting out some of the repeats entirely. I always think that putting in breaks of some sort, eg. a thick saw pad chorale, or a breakbeat/dnb interlude, really helps to breathe life into a dance song while keeping the energy up. Try experimenting with stuff like this and I think you will like the results. Overall, this is an enjoyable song, it just doesn't quite meet our standards in its current form. To reiterate, there are a few issues with the production, and the structure could use some fine-tuning. I would encourage a resubmit. NO

This is an enjoyable ReMix overall, let me say that at first. I can hear the improvements in the sound of the drums right off the bat, as compared with the original version that was submitted - they're still a little bland as all bd/snare hits are basically the same, but with free stuff there's not a lot you can do about that. However, extra processing on the drums, such as some thick saturation, compression, and reverb would certainly kick the sound up a notch and give it a more energetic feel to compare with the guitar. On that note, I thought the guitar playing was excellent on all fronts, and the bass playing was good too. Arrangement seemed good overall - lots of variation and the original additions were sensible too. I did think it might have dragged on just a *little* too long. Some of the repetition could be cut out, and because there are few changes to the dynamics or the instrumentation, it does get less interesting over the course of the song. This is a tough vote for me, for sure. The production is still weak - the 'energy' of the drums and guitars just seems to be lacking, because the mastering is sort of quiet. I would really like to try re-mastering this myself, if you want to give it a shot. I think the mix needs more punch and polish to give it a nice and rich sound that I think more people will appreciate - and you probably will also! Lemme know if you're interested (check my profile for contact info). Anyway, besides that, as I mentioned above, the lack of instrument changes or dynamic changes, combined with the length of the mix and the simplicity of the original theme, makes this ReMix feel sort of dragged out by the end. Cutting out even 15-20 seconds would really help, I think. Regardless of what you do, this is a cool song. Just one more resub with a LITTLE more tweaking would make this passable in my book. NO

Pretty interesting mix, at least compared to most techno mixes we get. One thing I gotta say.. the voice clips were REALLY REALLY lame. Please ditch them. A lot of the sounds were kind of cheesy, also, like the ethnic percussion and 'booms', as well as the ultra-basic bassline and portamento octaved supersaws. It's almost a parody of the genre in how "poppy" it sounds for lack of a better word. That's not a terrible thing, but I do think more could have been done in the way of production and sound selection to make it less cheesy and more 'serious', perhaps. That said, the arrangement is pretty solid. The original theme (or parts of it) are apparent in different areas of the mix. Nonetheless, keeping more of the original progression, rather than relying on the goofy cliche stuff, would have been nice. Not to say that original material is bad. I very often encourage it, and I think that the variations made on the original theme are good. However, original material should be sensible in how it fits in with the source tune and the rest of the arrangement. I felt like for a song that wasn't even 4 minutes, a lot of time was spent on stuff that didn't really advance the arrangement and that didn't have to do with the original. Overall, this is a good effort, but I feel like it needs more cohesiveness of arrangement. The interpretation factor is there, and the production elements aren't too bad - but more tuning and polish would really help. NO

To be honest, after listening to both versions several times and comparing them side by side, I can't hear ANY significant differences at all, or even minor ones. My original decision still stands. Dunno what's up with this one. NO

Yeah.. this is clearly a beginner submission. Sound quality issues (by your own admission), very bland sounds, poor execution (instrument combinations were weird), straightforward arrangement with little energy, lack of a real unique interpretive element. But don't be discouraged. As Larry said, go to the Remixing forum and the Works in Progress forum to get help. Keep practicing and working at it. We all start somewhere. NO

Did anyone else notice lots of default Reason drumloops here? I thought that was sort of disappointing.. I mean I don't even use Reason and I can still hear all the presets being used. The rest of the sounds are good, minus the brass, which other people have pointed out as well - pretty creative synthwork, and the overall mixing/mastering seems solid to me. However, a higher VBR encoding wouldn't have hurt, as it makes it seem like the mix is lacking in brightness (when it was probably there initially). Despite all the Reason percussion being used, there were some nice variations and slicings in there that made them more interesting to listen to, so props there. One little production nitpick that I heard was that when you had the dual layer percussion in the middle it sounded like there was slight phasing on some of the drums, and the kicks were almost causing clipping. This created a sort of weird effect that I'm not sure you wanted. 3:49 felt a little weak in its sparseness and lack of the same interesting/layered sounds you brought in before. The lofi percussion and the flute felt particularly exposed when they came in too. I thought perhaps as a transition section, it was a little too long. Considering the length of the mix and very abrupt ending (just completely cuts off!) I think you could have cut down on this section, and probably some of the repetition from the earlier parts, and worked on a stronger resolution. Arrangement seemed very good overall, with an intelligent structure that I only had a few problems with (see above). So while I think this mix could have used some tightening in a few places and a bit more polish, the overall strength of the production and rearrangement makes it passable in my book. YES

There's not much to say. If you need to boost a bass frequency, you set one band to that. At the same time, if you want to roll off about 7khz, you use the other band for that. Or you could use one band to boost vocal clarity in the 8khz-10khz range and another one to minimize the 4-6khz range. Whatever you want to do.

Uh, no. We're talking about parametric equalization. A 2 band equalizer with set bands would be idiotic in the world of pro audio. Set band equalizers are not very useful. Use a parametric EQ. Why would it NOT be useful, is the better question? Do people here not know how to use parametric EQs, or what? They are the most powerful tools around.

Most pro EQs actually have LESS sliders, not more. For instances, the Waves EQ has only 2 bands. More does not equal better. Use multiple EQs if you have to.

Generally, you shouldn't HAVE to use EQ on the master track. Maybe to give things a *slight* bass boost or rolloff, or a little more brightness. But with the proper steps taken in the production phase, you should not need to do much correction at all. The fruity parametric EQ has as much 'flexibility' as pretty much any other parametric EQ..

My second album (www.cdbaby.com/zircon2) used FL effects for about 90% of the processing I had to do.

This isn't really an FL issue. It's about samples, production, and most importantly, arrangement.

I've played 8 matches or so. It rocks. It gives PUGs a LITTLE more of a chance against organized guild groups.. it's not as much gear vs gear as WSG is right now, but not so NPC-based as AV (in fact, no NPCs at all). However, strategy can play a big part. What's really nice is that there is *essentially* a time limit because you're ALWAYS gaining resources. You won't be able to win a match in just minutes, but it won't last for an hour either.

I don't play RP because I don't want to RP in WoW. I only play on normal PVP servers.

This sounds awfully similar to your Super Mario World remix.. some sections are nearly identical! :32 to :38 for instance is almost a carbon copy of part of the intro to your SMW mix, with a few minor changes. Not that it's bad, but overall I felt this didn't really bring anything new to the table. I have to agree with Larry that the mix seems like a step down from your other work which is a bit disappointing. The arrangement seemed good to me overall though it stayed in the same general style as the original arrangement in structure (waltz -> waltz). Sound quality was solid, no better or worse than Grand Valse. It's hard to exactly put my finger on what I think this is missing.. but it seems like it's just lacking something. I wish I could qualify it more, but I simply don't feel comfortable passing this. NO

I was going to, until I realized it's RP-PVP. The last thing I want to do is that. If it were just PVP, I'd play.

I have to agree that this is pretty simplistic as an arrangement, and the execution leaves a lot to be desired. Not to mention that the gated synth and some of the other sounds (like the kick) sound slightly out-of-time. Generally the production is on the muddy side with lots of low and low-mid stuff; consider researching the art of EQ and mastering a bit more. As for your synths and percussion, the best advice I can offer is to venture to the ReMixing forum and read my tutorials on the topic. I think they'll help you to craft some more interesting sounds that fit better, too. Keep at it. NO

Yeah, I can actually beat most Paladins.. it just takes forever. Mana Burn, Mana Burn, Mana Burn, Mana Burn, Mindblast/Mindflay and level 1 Shadow Word: Pain to build up Shadow Vulnerability and also to waste their mana on Cleanse.

Sadly, I don't know much about Paladins. I do, of course, know a lot about Priests as I have over 30 days of playing time on mine. They are generally very easy to level up because they are good at soloing and have lots of 'escape' skills (Shield, Fear, Renew - all instants) to boot. While they won't be taking anything WAY above their level, they can pull off some of the highest single-target damage in the game if they are Shadow specced. Surprisingly, specializing this way does not impair your healing ability much at all - I spent a great deal of time in instances too, at all levels. In 1v1 PVP they are one of the most feared classes in the game, and in group PVP they are a great asset. A Discipline/Holy specialization makes you an even more powerful support class or healer, though you lose lots of damage dealing power. The job of a Priest in instances consists of basically knowing when to use your different healing and battle-saving abilities. You won't be doing much damage, especially not in the later instances. What you WILL need to do is keep the right people alive at the right times. You need to know when to use a Flash Heal (weaker, fast-casting heal) vs. a Renew (instant cast regeneration), vs. a Greater Heal (very powerful, but slow heal) vs. a Prayer of Healing (slow casting group heal of moderate power) - how to use Fear to control mobs if necessary, when to throw a Mind Control on a humanoid, or when to Shield a tank or even yourself. It's challenging, but a lot of fun. Boss fights where you're constantly healing, drinking potions, using trinkets, manuevering around, and hitting a whole bunch of buttons is just great fun, and it's very rewarding IMO to know you were the one that saved the party from a wipe. In PVP, the plus sides are that you are RELATIVELY durable in comparison to other casters. You have the "Power Word: Shield" spell which will protect you from a fair amount of damage and ensure your casts don't get interrupted, an AREA Fear that casts instantly and cools down fairly fast, Shadowform if you are shadow-specced (which brings your damage reduction closer to a Mail wearing class with a shield then a cloth wbearer), and your fast heals/regeneration. I have survived beatdowns for extended periods of time and even beaten some people 2v1 before. However a Priest relies HEAVILY on mana and we have no special way to regain it. Mages can use Evocate in a pinch, Druids have Innervate (sometimes), Shamans can get Mana Tide totem or just melee when they are low - when a Priest is low on mana, we can't do anything. We are sitting ducks and we die FAST when that time comes. You will very often be the first target of mana burns, viper stings (mana drain over time), Warrior charges, rogue stuns, and Mage polymorphs. But on the bright side, YOU are the one that keeps the Mage alive that teleports into a group of enemies and nukes them to death. YOU are the one that throws that area fear down just in time so that the graveyard can be captured. YOU are the one that stops the full epic-wearing Rogue dead in his tracks with the most powerful single-target damage spells in the game. Sure, it's not the easiest class, and maybe not the most 'direct' (that would be Warrior or Mage), but it's a blast to me. As for Paladins.. I gather that they are really more healbots than anything else. They really can't spec for damage, like a Priest. They are, however, the ultimate combat healers because of their shield, Plate armor, and generally high HP. They have a bubble of invulnerability and a once-a-day Lay on Hands that can basically give them up to three extra lifebars, and with a very powerful 2H weapon, they can actually wear down casters pretty fast. Nonetheless, they are primarily support, even moreso than Priests.

Not a lot of changes. They basically got a new ability, a ranged attack spell that can only be cast if your target is below a certain amount of health - a ranged Execute if you will.

ARATHI BASIN IS FUCKING AWESOME! I just finished my 5th or 6th match today and it RULES. It's NOT gear vs. gear, it's not small enough so that a guild "organized" group will auto-dominate, but it's not so large that it's overwhelming. It's perfect if you ask me. Honor is nice too.

Maybe it's just me, but I didn't really hear all that much of Overworld Theme 2 - "Casually" seemed to be the thing that was most present here, especially in the underlying progression and overall mood. I think the arrangement is good here, with some nice (albeit subtle) changes, the addition of a solo section, and assorted variations. It's clearly not an 'epic' mix, nor does it try to be - it's chill, with a solid structure and smooth production. The originals were very similar in style, so I'm tempted to say that this is more like an 'upgrade' than a complete reinterpretation; however, there are clearly differences between the sources and the ReMix, and we've passed guitar mixes with less new/varied material than this. Of course, as I'd expect from Mr. Morse and po!, the execution of the mix is great. Tight, groovy percussion with realistic, well-played key and harmony parts. YES

See, the problem I have is that there are all these new players, and players that have MAINS around level 30 (or lower). To me, levelling a character to 30 is nothing. I made the mistake of not playing with all my friends on Shattered Hand because I had a character up to 25 and I thought that was SO HIGH.. and now I regret it. So just keep that in mind.

This is actually a very interesting mix, and I have to say that you made pretty good use of the tools you had available. I know it's tough working with mostly free stuff (I'm assuming that's the case, as I recognized some of the soundfonts) and I was in that same position for a long time too. What's most important is that you have a very unique, creative, and interpretive arrangement. The source was tastefully rearranged with lots of new material and variations to fill it out. However.. that alone isn't enough to get a mix on to the site, which brings me to some of the negative points. The intro is REALLY nice, for one thing. The phasing seems a bit heavy at times, and the piano/pizzicato strings seem a little too reverbed, though I commend you in general on your reverb/panning usage. By 2:03 it feels like the intro has been dragging on a bit long, as there's still not really much of a build or structure forming. Structure is really a key part to any good ReMix, as without a cohesive one, even the best rearrangement and production goes to waste. 2:54 seems like where things begin to pick up, but I gotta say, that sequenced snare kind of hurts (the rolls are nice at least). 3:18 is sort of a drop in quality. As Liontamer mentioned, stuff begins to sound very mechanical, most notably the drums and some of the synth-type stuff. I just wasn't really feeling this section or what was past it. Maybe it's because it was too sudden of a jump from the previous, relaxed, mostly-orchestral sections, I'm not sure. Either way, I would look into changing it. 4:07 begins a sort of transition section which is written well (though I would go for a little more reverb to mask the sample) - but it again loses the energy that was just built up, and then all of it fades away into a very weak ending, surprisingly. It started so well, why give up like that? Give it a REAL resolution, you're more than capable! Overall it seems to me like the first half of the mix or so is superb, albeit perhaps a bit slow to build, and the second half is too abrupt and not polished enough, with a lame ending. You DEFINITELY have a good handle on things here, and I was seriously enjoying this, so please refine + resubmit! NO

PLAY GOREFIEND, HORDE! Come on, people!