*NO* Dragon Warrior 2 "Epic FootSteps" *RESUB*

[Rexy]

Original decision

Remixer name=Audiomancer

Real name=Eric

Email=    

 

game=Dragon Warrior 2

Arrangement name=Epic FootSteps

Name of song=First walk-about theme
Link to original= 

 

I thought I would give this tune another shot at the panel:) I've made changes based on the feedback given, and I hope that the panel finds this to be a more polished version with some better instruments, and small arrangement changes.

Edited December 20, 2019 by Liontamer
closed decision

[prophetik music]

Quote

as a whole, the arrangement was fine outside of the beginning and very end, but i felt that the sound quality really hurt the package overall. having some better lead and pad synths will really fill out the mix quite a bit and allow the fun arrangement underneath to speak through much clearer.

so, that's the gist of my original NO vote. let's see how this has been updated.

i need to admit - it's nice to see that so many of my initial criticisms were taken to heart! you clearly adjusted the headroom, you reduced the beginning, gave it more of an ending, focused on bringing out the high end in the drums...all major points i brought up. i like the ending and the beginning a lot more now, which essentially addressed my major concerns on the arrangement side, so that's great to see.

the production is still sub-par. the kit still sounds like it isn't real, but now it sounds like there's a highpass on it, cutting out all mids whatsoever. the snare is essentially a hat due to there being zero head sound, and the toms sound filtered as well. i don't hear a kick at all outside of some sub-freqs that are speaking - no beater sound whatsoever until 1:40 - and that lack really hurts the overall sound since there's nothing anchoring it. beyond that, the bass is much less quack-y, now, which is great - but it's almost unable to be heard since it's so far in the back. it needs more presence in the upper frequencies - or some adjustment to the EQ - to really speak where it is now. the whole thing is turbo-scooped too - there's nothing in the mids, it seems. there's also still what sounds like some level of distortion due to high signal at 1:30-1:31, which looks roughly like what i called out at 1:45 last time around.

i definitely think this is closer. i think if you're able to square up those drums so they sound more like a dance kit and less like the drums you use in an intro before the real kit comes in, it'll fix the issue it has right now where the EQ is really mid-lacking. cleaning up that and that spot of peaking at 1:30 will really make for a much stronger overall track.

 

 

NO

[MindWanderer]

Proph covers most of what I had to say.  It's a massive improvement but still needs more.  The percussion is really, really bright--yours has the dubious honor of being the first remix I've heard where the hats are painfully piercing.  I do hear kicks but they're exceptionally quiet.  The thunderclap in the intro sounds far too fake.  0:33-1:19 still drags, with the same lead and no change in percussion or bass; typically retro synth pieces like this feature more frequent changes in timbre.  Same for 1:38-2:17, which also has a lead that's on the piercing side.

It's so light in the mids and lows that as an experiment, I actually tried pitch-shifting the entire thing down an octave.  The resulting sound quality was awful, and the soundscape was still too thin, but the overall position was better, with thick mids and meatier (though still quiet) bass and kicks.  I don't actually recommend such a crude measure, but it gives you an idea of what the issue is, in part.

It's a fun arrangement, and I'm still very pro-LMMS, so hopefully we'll see another shot at it from you!

NO (resubmit)

[Sir_NutS]

An improvement for sure, and I'm happy that you took the advice and tried to act on it.  But there are still some issues left (and new issues) here.  First, the balance is off.  The hi-hats and snare are too bright and lack punch and the whole track feels like it has all the mids carved out.  This makes the atmosphere feel empty even when it's not the case as there are more than a couple of layers going on at the same time.  I think your bass suffers a lot from this lack of low-mids as it just sounds like it's overlapping itself in a ball of low frequency mud.  I think you could probably replace the current bassline with just legato notes for the majority of the track and there won't be much difference because the bass is just melting into itself and the notes can't punch through.  You need your bass to punch through in electronic music.  I know the bass previously had this ugly tone and you tried changing that, but now it's just lost.

Your snare also needs help to punch through.  Don't make the mistake of removing lows from a snare, you need them! the lows carry the punch of the snare, and yeah you can cut or attenuate frequencies that will interfere with the bass and kick (Usually below 150 hz or so) but stuff around 200hz and above, you need it.  It's different for each sample and pitch so I can't get into specifics but try finding the low peak of your snare, and give it a small boost.  It doesn't need to BOOM like a synthwave or dubstep track but you need its presence to be felt, not necessarily heard.  Alternatively,  reducing the highs (which there are plenty here) and then slightly bumping up the volume can have a similar and less texture-changing effect.

The track however has a cleaner sound to it and the sound quality overall has improved.  I still think the interpretative parts are leaning towards being noodly rather than expressive, and I still think the lead synth could be slightly quieter.  Anyways, you definitely have less issues to deal with this time around, but they are still significant.  My advice here would be that if you're really feeling this one, give it another go but don't get stuck with this one, as trying new things will help you grow more.

NO