about:blank Posted December 16, 2006 Share Posted December 16, 2006 ------------------------------------------------------ After reading the judges decisions, I made an outline of the things I should work on, some of them I think I've accomplished, and some of them I think I still need work with. 1. Piano and synthetic instruments sound mechanical/fake. This is something I'm having a bit of trouble with. I've read tutorials about how to make samples sound more realistic (zircon's was especially helpful) but I still seem to be having trouble. I'm adjusting the velocities of every note, not to the point where there's a huge difference between them, but enough so they don't sound all exactly the same. I've also added reverb/stereo separation to some of my samples, which can also potentially make a more realistic sound. Even though I've done all this, I still think they sound fake. If anyone listens to this and sees what I'm doing wrong, or what I should do in order to make them sound more realistic, it would be much appreciated. 2. Add more low end to the drums and create a better supporting arrangement. I'm pretty confident that I've accomplished this goal for the most part. I've added a really low bass part, as well as a string part, and fattened up the drums a bit as well. Still though, I've listened to this countless times, and it would help to have an opinion from someone who hasn't heard it as much. 3. The drums are repetetive, and at times, off-beat The part that I think the drums were the most off beat was where the guitar first starts to stutter. I stripped down the drum part here siginificantly, so it doesn't sound like the two are clashing/offbeat. Other than that, though, I haven't done too much, and plan on making the drums a little less repetetive once I'm happy with everything else in the song. 4. The transition between the main part of the song and the breakdown with synths/piano/strings is awkward. Well, I think I've made it a little smoother, but then again, I've listened to this track countless times, and some outside opinions would be really helpful. 5. "When the track ends, it feels like it could be only half done. It's just begging for some lead to come in and rock you right in half." Those that have heard the first version of this should be (hopefully) pleasantly surprised with the new ending. I've also added about 50 seconds to this newer version. ------------------------------------------------------ I'm actually still working on this, and this latest version is by no means my "final" mix. I'm just posting it here in hopes of getting some feedback/advice in terms of what I should do next, or if there are any problems with the mix. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Scheule Posted December 16, 2006 Share Posted December 16, 2006 Didn't hear your first sub, but I'm enjoying this. Guitar work is nice--strange echo effect, but not unpleasant. Piano entrance is just fine. Percussion is interesting and--no idea what this sound is. Mmm, falling in love with this. This is good. It sounds like minimalism--the good John Adams kind--in that, every new phrase is adding something more. This isn't a complaint of mine, but I can imagine others not liking how it builds the entire time but never seems to crest anywhere. Just more, more, MORE, MORE, MORE!!! and done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chickenwarlord Posted December 16, 2006 Share Posted December 16, 2006 Wasn't this called Falling before? Nice background pad. Might want to make it a little more subdued. I liked the relaxed atmosphere you had there, and the shift is a little unsettling. Maybe a tad more gradual on the buildup. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MtM0201 Posted December 16, 2006 Share Posted December 16, 2006 make that background pad louder, it should be right up there with the guitar, but not completely. like if the guitar volume is 90%, then make the pad volume about 85% and change the bass to something else. nice job Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
about:blank Posted December 16, 2006 Author Share Posted December 16, 2006 Wasn't this called Falling before? Yeah, but back then I had much different ideas of where I was going to take it, if you remember some of the early WIPs, I tried making it ambient/orchestral among other things. When I finally decided to take it in this direction, I decided to change the title too. change the bass to something else. A very big portion of the time I put into resubbing this was mostly just me playing with bass patches. After trying about 10 - 15 different bass synths, I found that the one I have now is the least bad sounding, but if you, or anyone else has an idea of a better sounding bass sample/soundfont/synth/vst don't hesitate to tell me! I've had a lot of trouble finding the right sound for the bass. Thanks for all of the feedback so far guys! I've made an update and posted a newer version at the top of the thread, let me know what you think! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MtM0201 Posted December 18, 2006 Share Posted December 18, 2006 piano is nice, add some more reverb to it though. It's coming along nicely and I like that FX at 3:14 about that bass, try adding some compressor/stereo enhancer to it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dash Myoku Posted December 18, 2006 Share Posted December 18, 2006 Hm, I don't really know what to say. I'm not a stickler for quality (though I should be). I figure, if it fits the mood and style of the song, then it's fine. Other than that, I think it could use some more "drive." And make the ending bigger. Make us feel like it's really the end and you're going to give us all the emotion in the song at the same time. I think that'd make this remix pretty friggin' good. :3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plasmaigus Posted December 18, 2006 Share Posted December 18, 2006 yah man u gut sum right RAD beats layin down in this track...yeah lay em, lay baby...yeah right there thats the spot...cmon keep er cummin yeah yeah...awww...eeyaah...ahh srry...yeah that saw synth on 1:45 was doptastic dawg it rly left me stunned...nigawha? yeah dats wight. cmon lay them beats out for me. that kawaii neko synth on 5:67 was totally goin trick or treatin at the candy shop if ya know what i mean ...all in all kriptastic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
about:blank Posted December 19, 2006 Author Share Posted December 19, 2006 about that bass, try adding some compressor/stereo enhancer to it? Hmm... I'll have to try that and see what I can do. Make us feel like it's really the end and you're going to give us all the emotion in the song at the same time. I'm still debating what to do there. On one hand I want to do like you said and make the end have more "drive", but on the other hand, I think that everything would sound cluttered if I added anymore to the end. that kawaii neko synth on 5:67 was totally goin trick or treatin at the candy shop if ya know what i mean I know what you mean. Other than the fixing the bass and potentially extending/changing the ending, I think I'm going to go and mess with the percussion a bit so it sounds less repetetive. Thanks for the feedback so far! Any more comments/crits are welcome! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dash Myoku Posted December 19, 2006 Share Posted December 19, 2006 I didn't mean add more... (or atleast a whole lot). Just make it bigger, louder, more forceful if this is making any sense... xD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avaris Posted December 19, 2006 Share Posted December 19, 2006 I didn't mean add more... (or atleast a whole lot). Just make it bigger, louder, more forceful if this is making any sense... xD While i get where your coming from, i think keeping it the way it is, is prob fine. The composition has a very laid back kinda feel. IMO the soundscape and production should match and enhance the emotions in the composition. Ooh drums in that 1st section sound much better! Overall make sure the "crunch" of the drums doesn't muddy everything up too much. It's not too inherent, but def something to be wary of. Backing at 1:50 sounds a lil thin. See if you can't give if some more depth, of course there might not be any sonic space left. Also do something within ur writing to lead into the backing entrance. Just something very small, like an xtra snare hit or something simple. 2:26 sweet idea for the transition. I notice overall that some of ur lower frequencies(maybe 120hz and below) are peaking a lil bit higher than everything else. Also the breakout section at the end is sweet. That crazy thing u got that swells up before everything kicks back in is def the right idea. But I'd say have it start coming comining in a lil bit sooner. A longer more gradual raise until the breakout. Also make the breakout section twice as long and ur golden dude. This song has def come a long way. You've made some huge very noticeable improvements in terms of ur mastering and production abilities. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MtM0201 Posted December 21, 2006 Share Posted December 21, 2006 how's the song coming along? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
about:blank Posted December 27, 2006 Author Share Posted December 27, 2006 how's the song coming along? It's coming along quite nicely. I've made an update, and you can find it in my first post. This version is very close to the version I'm gonna resubmit. I put a lot more work into making the percussion less repetetive, maybe it was just because I've listened to this a thousand times, but I was starting to think that the drums in the previous versions were kinda boring. Aside from that, I've made some other small changes, such as adding a new ending. Backing at 1:50 sounds a lil thin. See if you can't give if some more depth, of course there might not be any sonic space left. I think I might have solved this problem, but I might have made them a bit loud as well. notice overall that some of ur lower frequencies(maybe 120hz and below) are peaking a lil bit higher than everything else. I toned down the bass drum, low end, and bass sounds slightly. If that didn't help, then I'll run the finished song through the equalizer in Adobe Audition and try to fix it that way. Also the breakout section at the end is sweet. That crazy thing u got that swells up before everything kicks back in is def the right idea. But I'd say have it start coming comining in a lil bit sooner. A longer more gradual raise until the breakout. Actually, I got that sound that swells up from that folder of sounds you sent me for my xenogears remix. I can't remember what it was called, but I reversed it and it sounded pretty awesome. Anyways, I tried to make it a little longer, but slowing it down changed how it sounded and IMO it didn't sound half as cool as it did at regular speed. I also made changed the ending a little bit as well. Overall I think that this needs just a little bit more work before I resubmit. Thanks for all of the feedback so far, guys! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
about:blank Posted December 30, 2006 Author Share Posted December 30, 2006 Alright I'm getting close to the point where I think I'm ready to resubmit this. I'd like to know if you guys think it'll get submitted by the judges this time around. If you don't think it will get submitted, please explain why so I can fix whatever problems there may be. You can find the latest version here: http://boosherd.googlepages.com/Acrophobia.mp3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avaris Posted December 30, 2006 Share Posted December 30, 2006 Oooooooooo ready for resub are weee I'll say this first off, overall your improvements have really depth and upped the quality level of the sound and the production. 2:12 that beat being off beat doesn't work. Nice Panning at 2:13 (hehe i finally have monitor headphones instead 2.1 speakers) 2:59 new high piano is def a nice arrangement idea, the backing strings should be a lil high in volume, since the piano is up an octave you got more room in the midrange for the those strings. Have em swell up a lil more. Also the ending now...IMO seems a lil too fast. Good idea, but it's too big of a jump. Trust me I know the feeling you find something cool then over do it. Def have other people chime in on this, preferably someone who hasn't heard it before. BC half of this just be me, bc i've heard this so many different times. Also for some reason the guitar right at the very very end sound a lil uhh thin. Prob just copy and paste and have the instrument playing what u got and have it octave below for a lil more depth to the sound. This is uber uber picky and prob just my opinion, but that was my gut reaction when I heard it. Also one last thing overall, look at ur winamp/WMP whatever you use. Notice how the low freq are slightly above the mid freq, and the mid freq are slightly above the high freq? There is a nice even diagnal line. Just throw a parametric eq on the master and slightly boost the high and cut the lows, so there will be on 'average' a nice even line the freq range. Besides that jazz, if I was a judge I'd PM ya and tell you to fix the beat at 2:12 and throw on the parametric eq and give this an emphatic: YES Awesome job overall, prob one the catchier and most original remixes I've heard in awhile. P.S. Out of all those samples i think i've only used one, but using those crazy sounds in reverse as build ups...genius. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
about:blank Posted December 31, 2006 Author Share Posted December 31, 2006 Alright, I think I fixed all of the problems you addressed, hopefully this is my final version of the song: http://boosherd.googlepages.com/EarthwormJimAcrophobiaOCRemix.mp3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Unsung Plumber Posted December 31, 2006 Share Posted December 31, 2006 Wow, this is really awesome. I will comment on this later. But for now :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
about:blank Posted January 2, 2007 Author Share Posted January 2, 2007 Alright, I made a few slight changes and submitted this a couple days ago. Also, I had no idea that this was in an article. If only I had read this before resubmitting! I really liked the idea of adding in audio clips from like a 1970's movie, and now I kinda wish that I had incorporated something like that with the song. Oh well, if this gets rejected (which I really hope it doesn't) I'll definitely be doing that. Well that's about all I have to say about that, wish me luck guys! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skrypnyk Posted January 2, 2007 Share Posted January 2, 2007 I probably should have mentioned something after I wrote the article. Sorry bout that. Good luck on the submission. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
avaris Posted January 2, 2007 Share Posted January 2, 2007 Considering you got 3 yes votes last time, with the vast improvements in production and sound quality I think this has a wicked good chance. Not only that, this has a real good chance of being something alotta people are gonna listen to. I def agree with what Skrypnyk said bout this being something new and original to the scene. (the WIP thing goin on at Tha Sauce was an awesome idea by whomever set it up) Good luck dude. GO WIP board junkies!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
about:blank Posted January 3, 2007 Author Share Posted January 3, 2007 Skrypnyk: Nah, don't worry about it. Actually, I thought it was pretty cool when I stumbled across the article. Besides, this probably wouldn't be where it is now if it weren't for some of the advice you gave me when this mix was in it's earlier stages. avaris: I think you're right about this having a good chance, but I'm still a little worried about it not getting submitted. For some reason I always get overwhelmed when I go to the judges decisions forum and look at all those NOs. Well, now that I'm done with this, I can focus on other things (i.e. the xenogears project BTW I'm gonna have a WIP up on the project forums in a few hours ). Thanks for the support guys! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liontamer Posted August 16, 2007 Share Posted August 16, 2007 The complete version is now available here and any further reviews can be posted here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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