timaeus222 Posted April 5, 2011 Share Posted April 5, 2011 Yeah, it's been remixed a lot now, but I just wanted to see if this sounded any good and if this needs any improvement(probably does). I'd like to actually submit this sometime later if it gets good enough. http://tindeck.com/listen/vmic ------------- I uh... suck. I don't have a remixing studio or anything like that, this is all FL Studio. Dx I can play piano well, but no synthesizer. :/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaMonz Posted April 5, 2011 Share Posted April 5, 2011 This is an excellent first mix, but I think there is still much work to be done. This is extremely close to the original. You should work on that (mess around with the structure of the song, the melodies, the chords, etc.) although your solos and counter-melodies are a great start. Also, some of your sound choices turned me off (especially the guitar synth) but not all of them (the synths you used for the solos are great!) I also think you should rethink the drum parts, or make them vary a bit more. That same beat over and over again sounds stale pretty fast IMO. Keep it up! This has great potential. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timaeus222 Posted April 5, 2011 Author Share Posted April 5, 2011 Guitar synth? So, at 00:47? (the melody) And sure, I'll do some stuff with variations on the drums and structure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaMonz Posted April 5, 2011 Share Posted April 5, 2011 Guitar synth? So, at 00:47? Exactly. ^^ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timaeus222 Posted April 5, 2011 Author Share Posted April 5, 2011 Exactly. ^^ Oh, good. Because I was hoping to use it either better or less. xD ------ At first, I thought the synth I used for the last solo that carried on as the lead would be a bit annoying to the ears near the end, but maybe it isn't that bad. EDIT: I ended up adding enough harmony to that synth so that it's better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blazerh44 Posted April 6, 2011 Share Posted April 6, 2011 This is pretty good. Definitely could be improved, but for what you got so far this is tight! The guitar synth like you mentioned is a bit unsettling to me. Perhaps find a better synth for it or use a different instrument altogether Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timaeus222 Posted April 6, 2011 Author Share Posted April 6, 2011 Thanks! ...I get the feeling I'll never find a free, truly nice-sounding lead guitar plugin. So, for like the past... 6-9 hours I did a lot with this remix. I finished: - re-mixing the balance of instruments - replacing the lead of the first instance of the melody with a new--and more ear-pleasing--synth - replacing the guitar synth section with a piano improv section - varying the drums - adding automation clips for the panning and volume of the basses - fixing the solos up a bit - changing up the bass at the bridge before the last solo so that it wasn't the same (boring?) organ pattern (more easily noticeable when wearing earphones!). Instead, there is something interesting going on with the bass for once. And some other minor changes. xD v1: http://tindeck.com/listen/vmic v2: http://tindeck.com/listen/rxem Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LordGavin Posted April 8, 2011 Share Posted April 8, 2011 You're going to have to get used to being ignored at times. I'm also new and find the same happens to me at times, or if I do get help/attention, it's short lived. Anyway, to your mix (version 2). In terms of complexity, the second version does sound better than your first. I wont comment on your quality, as you say you don't have a good studio for remixing (still good enough for the listen though). I know this song well and I can see you don't stray too far from the original, but still retain segments of original solos and additions. I personally don't like original additions in remixes, mainly because they distract from the song being remixed (especially solos). However, you keep the song rooted enough to the original song enough so for it not to really bug me (I believe myself a rare case for what I've just said, as a lot of people here will tell you to keep adding original arrangements, so listen to those points if you wish). The genre you've chosen appears to be a wide blend. There isn't too much of a focus on each genre element in your song, but that doesn't take anything away from it really. Some of the sounds you've chosen I think I quite good, mainly those being the leads for the original song. Again, with your remixing not being great quality, it's hard to nit-pick for "better" sounds since they're all a little bellow the bar. Still, you seem to be grasping the idea of taking a song, remixing it, and adding original segments and alterations enough so to make a good, flowing song. If you really want to take this further, I recommend asking around for other programs to remix with. That may help you a great deal there, if you do so. Otherwise, I wouldn't worry any longer on trying to improve this one song right now. Try your hand at remixing some other songs and come back to this one when you have further understanding and a clear head to start with. Perhaps then, you'll be able to make further improvements that will make a greater difference. Hope my words have helped in any way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timaeus222 Posted April 8, 2011 Author Share Posted April 8, 2011 or if I do get help/attention, it's short lived. Yep, pretty much. Well, I finished v3 now, and thanks for the critique. I understand, there is a strange blend of genres, but it seemed to click for me. Yeah, I like it too when a song is recognizable, at least. If there's too much originality, it becomes your own song, really. Don't worry though, I've been re-editing it with a fresh mind each morning this week, so I always have been remixing with a "clear head". In v3: - Added a 33 second transition after the last solo (transition starts at 3:11) v3: http://tindeck.com/listen/nyuw v2: http://tindeck.com/listen/rxem v1: http://tindeck.com/listen/vmic Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timaeus222 Posted April 13, 2011 Author Share Posted April 13, 2011 I guess this is ready now, then. I don't think anyone would have noticed this topic anymore anyway. Bump for mod review. EDIT: Sorry. Here's the source. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nutritious Posted April 13, 2011 Share Posted April 13, 2011 For future reference, please provide a link to the source when using Mod Review. Thanks Arrangement wise, this was very conservative for a majority of the mix. I do here where you've done some liberties on soloing and changeups, but I think you could also bring some personalization to the more coverish sections. Transition at :46 to the piano felt very awkward - like you just crossfaded two different takes on bloody tears together. On the production side, this mix suffers from a lot of crowding and excessive... noise I guess. It's mixed pretty loud and there are a lot of competing parts interfering with each other. Many of the sounds felt pretty low quality - the piano, for example, had a very thin sound. The synth leads were also bland and mixed very loudly into the song. I'd try replacing them with some more interesting/nuanced synths and pull back on the volume. Drum writing was very repetative for much of the mix and frequently gets drowned out by everything else. The samples sounded pretty lofi for the drums in general, especially considering it appears you're going for an acoustic kit. It sounds like you're pretty new at this, so I hope this crit doesn't come off as too negative or overwhelming. Personally, I'd leave this mix alone and start some new things. Don't focus too much on a single song at this point, instead, try lots of new songs and ideas. Go to the competitions board and try your hand at the PRC and other weekly competitions to get yourself trying new things and new songs quickly. Once you get a solid amount of experience under your belt, working on mixes for OCR becomes a lot easier. Good luck to you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timaeus222 Posted April 13, 2011 Author Share Posted April 13, 2011 Transition at :46 to the piano felt very awkward - like you just crossfaded two different takes on bloody tears together. True, I didn't know how I could connect the piano section and the section before it. What I did was fade out the section before it just enough to match the volume of the accompaniment of the piano. On the production side, this mix suffers from a lot of crowding and excessive... noise I guess. It's mixed pretty loud and there are a lot of competing parts interfering with each other. Can you give me some examples of which parts are conflicting? Many of the sounds felt pretty low quality - the piano, for example, had a very thin sound. The synth leads were also bland and mixed very loudly into the song. I'd try replacing them with some more interesting/nuanced synths and pull back on the volume. - Should I give the piano more presence? - What types of synths would you consider "interesting"? Drum writing was very repetative for much of the mix and frequently gets drowned out by everything else. The samples sounded pretty lofi for the drums in general, especially considering it appears you're going for an acoustic kit. I felt that way too, and I did try to vary it more often on v2, and I guess it wasn't enough variation. Well, the drums were Groove Bias with compression and distortion effects. Go to the competitions board and try your hand at the PRC and other weekly competitions to get yourself trying new things and new songs quickly. Once you get a solid amount of experience under your belt, working on mixes for OCR becomes a lot easier. Personally, I don't like remixing songs I don't particularly enjoy, because usually a good idea doesn't pop into my head unless the thing is interesting, thereby making me quit in the middle of the remix because it just sucks, and I go choose a different song to try. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timaeus222 Posted April 15, 2011 Author Share Posted April 15, 2011 I know you said work on something else, but I just wanted to finalize this. I balanced the instruments some more, and I hope it's easier to hear most instruments this time. I also gave some more presence to the synths and piano. v4: http://tindeck.com/listen/chvo v3: http://tindeck.com/listen/nyuw v2: http://tindeck.com/listen/rxem v1: http://tindeck.com/listen/vmic Source: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timaeus222 Posted September 19, 2011 Author Share Posted September 19, 2011 Well, for some reason I decided to come back to this one and fix it up, so here's a V5. It may not be the best out there, but it's definitely improved significantly, amirite? xD V5: http://www.box.net/shared/pm4sc3pq3j9aiarmeksd V4: http://tindeck.com/listen/chvo V3: http://tindeck.com/listen/nyuw V2: http://tindeck.com/listen/rxem V1: http://tindeck.com/listen/vmic Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MindWanderer Posted September 19, 2011 Share Posted September 19, 2011 I'm new too, but that doesn't mean I'm without opinions! Pros: You do have some creativity going on here, it's no longer just a cover. Switching up the pace works reasonably well. And the original solo at around 2:50 is actually quite good. Cons: There's still some dissonance at times, and the samples still sound pretty bad. I know it's supposed to be pure synth sounds and not "real" instruments, but that's a handicap to be working with. It's also a handicap that you've chosen a song that's been done to death--not just by some of the best composers at OCR but by Konami itself. My advice is to find yourself some new samples (I like Fluid R3, a free soundfont) and, as Nutritious said, work on something else before coming back to this. It's going in a good direction, but I think you could use some practice before you can take this one all the way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timaeus222 Posted September 20, 2011 Author Share Posted September 20, 2011 I did work on something else before coming back to this. I worked on something else, whatever it may be, for 5 months. I also have lots of samples. =/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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