Megaman Zero 3- Halfway To Go!

[Nabeel Ansari]

Yes, I am willing to give this lost cause another shot. The reason I'm starting a new thread is because personal bias against very wrong things I said was slurring the amount of good advice I was getting. Thank you for giving me good advice, and if you could say it again here that would be very much appreciated.

I'm willing to work with YOU to help me make my remix musically good enough for OCR material. (Jeez, I sound like an insurance agent)

I have a good reason for starting a new thread so I shouldn't get in trouble for it.

My favorite part is 2:27, so if anything in THERE could be improved I would VERY much like to hear it because that is in my opinion the best part of the mix.

The source track is titled Crash III in the Megaman Zero 3 soundtrack.

http://neblixsaber.googlepages.com/17CrashIII.mp3

Here's my remix:

http://neblixsaber.googlepages.com/HalfwaytoGo.mp3

[AMT]

Alrighty, let's give this a listen!

First thing I notice is that the kick drum sounds like a real kick. For a song like this, try getting a more electronic sounding drum kit. It'll mix in better with all of the syths. Also, by the time you have a lot of synth pads and stuff going in the middle to end, the drums are getting drowned out by everything else and aren't driving the song like they should. Take the background pads and solo them one at a time along with each of the other instruments, and cut frequencies in the EQ of the backing pads until you can hear the front instruments better. You'll probably wind up getting rid of a decent amount of the low end from some of them. In fact, most of the synths could probably use a hi-pass filter (It only lets frequencies higher than what you select through, so it cuts off low end). Only let the bass synth and drums take up the lower frequency range, and make sure they don't overlap too much down there. The middle to end part gets a bit repetitive, so you might want to try doing something new in there. Your lead synth could stick out more, I can't tell if it's the fake electric guitar thing through the whole mix. I'd replace it with an edgy synth instead of the guitar, otherwise it'll just sound meh. That's all I can say so far, keep working on it and adding more variety!

[Nabeel Ansari]

Alrighty, let's give this a listen!

First thing I notice is that the kick drum sounds like a real kick. For a song like this, try getting a more electronic sounding drum kit. It'll mix in better with all of the syths. Also, by the time you have a lot of synth pads and stuff going in the middle to end, the drums are getting drowned out by everything else and aren't driving the song like they should. Take the background pads and solo them one at a time along with each of the other instruments, and cut frequencies in the EQ of the backing pads until you can hear the front instruments better. You'll probably wind up getting rid of a decent amount of the low end from some of them. In fact, most of the synths could probably use a hi-pass filter (It only lets frequencies higher than what you select through, so it cuts off low end). Only let the bass synth and drums take up the lower frequency range, and make sure they don't overlap too much down there. The middle to end part gets a bit repetitive, so you might want to try doing something new in there. Your lead synth could stick out more, I can't tell if it's the fake electric guitar thing through the whole mix. I'd replace it with an edgy synth instead of the guitar, otherwise it'll just sound meh. That's all I can say so far, keep working on it and adding more variety!

Yeah, I noticed it's got nothing to do with the synths, it's actually the vocals because I have them on high volumes. I should cut those back and you tell me if the problem is still there.

I suppose I could cut out two measures of the ending, I agree.

Also, it is indeed a fake guitar. If I took that out, this wouldn't really be rock anymore (BTW I was using electric guitar sounds before I replaced them with synths)... I guess I'm fine with techno, but it's kind of an overdone genre, and the bar for techno remixes are really high because there are already so many. I tried replacing it, but I need to find a good synth.

If I was gonna add a solo, it'd have to be somewhere in the middle because the ending is supposed to be the melody and the counter melody "fighting" each other.

EDIT:

I replaced the drums, but they are a little off. I gave em a little TOO much wetness.

I'll fix the minor errors at another time (maybe tomorrow)

[AMT]

I didn't even hear vocals, I'm not sure what you're talking about there. Also, I couldn't even tell the fake guitar was there until it played solo at the very end. This definitely does not have the feel of a rock remix to it, it already feels like an electronica mix. The drums shouldn't be wet at all; don't give them any reverb for a mix like this or they won't have the punch they need. Reverb on drums can work well when you're using a lot of live instruments, but for something like this, I wouldn't reccomend it, as it'll just make it mushy. If you want to make it more like a rock mix, use a bass guitar instead of a bass synth and use drums samples that sound real for the whole kit, not just the kick. Look for ns_kit7free or the mdk soundfonts for some awesome free drums. That fake guitar is really painful, so if you want to keep it rock I'd try and find a way to get real guitar or at least find a better soundfont. Also try putting the soundfont through an amp VST (Try something like Voxengo Boogex or Dirthead) to make it sound a bit more real.

[Nabeel Ansari]

I didn't even hear vocals, I'm not sure what you're talking about there. Also, I couldn't even tell the fake guitar was there until it played solo at the very end. This definitely does not have the feel of a rock remix to it, it already feels like an electronica mix. The drums shouldn't be wet at all; don't give them any reverb for a mix like this or they won't have the punch they need. Reverb on drums can work well when you're using a lot of live instruments, but for something like this, I wouldn't reccomend it, as it'll just make it mushy. If you want to make it more like a rock mix, use a bass guitar instead of a bass synth and use drums samples that sound real for the whole kit, not just the kick. Look for ns_kit7free or the mdk soundfonts for some awesome free drums. That fake guitar is really painful, so if you want to keep it rock I'd try and find a way to get real guitar or at least find a better soundfont. Also try putting the soundfont through an amp VST (Try something like Voxengo Boogex or Dirthead) to make it sound a bit more real.

I just said it USED to be rock... now it's just techno because I replaced the guitars with synths.

[AMT]

My bad, I misread.

[Nabeel Ansari]

Don't worry about it. XD

UPDATE:

I made the drums a little less annoying.

http://neblixsaber.googlepages.com/halfwaytogo.mp3

It's still just a bunch of kicks and hi hats so if you want to hear it make sure you have a subwoofer (the kicks are on a low pass filter for a little more electronic feel)

[Gario]

The sample change with the hats was excellent, and the bass drums are not nearly as harsh as they were before - Nice touch . I'd be careful when you double the bass at some parts, though - it tends to clip the sound a bit, then. Put in some velocity work with the drumline and I think the drums could work fine.

The piano sample doesn't seem to fit well with the other instruments in this song. I'd replace that sample as soon as you can (the same goes for the guitar, but you knew that already ).

I like the harmony work with the choir - I see we've been working on chords and such .

Careful when mixing levels - some instruments seem to shoot out of a quieter texture, which is jarring. Make the levels more homogeneous and you'll also be able to raise the volume of the song without clipping, so try to balance the levels out.

It's getting better, that's for sure - you could make it better still, though. Best of luck!

[Nabeel Ansari]

The sample change with the hats was excellent, and the bass drums are not nearly as harsh as they were before - Nice touch . I'd be careful when you double the bass at some parts, though - it tends to clip the sound a bit, then. Put in some velocity work with the drumline and I think the drums could work fine.

The piano sample doesn't seem to fit well with the other instruments in this song. I'd replace that sample as soon as you can (the same goes for the guitar, but you knew that already ).

I like the harmony work with the choir - I see we've been working on chords and such .

Careful when mixing levels - some instruments seem to shoot out of a quieter texture, which is jarring. Make the levels more homogeneous and you'll also be able to raise the volume of the song without clipping, so try to balance the levels out.

It's getting better, that's for sure - you could make it better still, though. Best of luck!

Thanks, I'll work on it ASAP.

Also, don't forget Boss Month. Darkesword just filled me in on what it is. XD