x_loto

I still haven't addressed the clicking that timaeus heard (but I will!), but I've gone ahead with varying up the arrangement a bit and added an 808. I posted a new wip is posted and took down the alternate version (the one with the drumkit samples). I don't think I'll load any more updates until I have more questions (as I'm sure I will!), probably after I start to add the live instruments.

Of course, of course! When I said I did it right, I merely meant that someone liked it, lol. And I assure you I am not one to change something based on advice alone; I've been known to do the exact opposite of advice on occasion! ("What's that? You say there's too much distortion on the rhythm guitar?" /give it three more listens to be sure /turn up the drive by 20% more*) For the bell, I discovered that the strongest overtones are usually a m3 and P5, so it's still a little out of tune with its surroundings but not so much as before. I've actually been doing music a long time, but I know there's always something more to learn, especially since this is a new style for me to write in. I just wish my playing skills would keep up with my writing! I always hated relying on sequencing because I couldn't play parts cleanly.... I'm a bit better now than the old days though. A bit. *True story!

I used to do all of my writing in notation, especially back when I was studying music theory. I wrote a lot of songs on staff paper during that period, and I still use it from time to time for writing down melodies that I think of while I'm away from an instrument or computer. I think it makes it easier to see how harmonies and supporting melodies line up, and can sometimes lead to happy accidents (like the time I accidentally pasted a drumkit into the bass guitar staff in Finale and kept it exactly as it ended up, heh). I mean, in the previous millennium the only concern was writing the music so that others could perform it. Now, most often the goal is a recorded end-product which can be endlessly distributed. Therefore a lot of stuff is electronic now, a lot of filters and resonance and panning and EQ and whathaveyou are involved in writing and recording a piece of music, but still at the core of that are the tones which are heard. It's not necessary to write those down, but as you quoted, "You find things."

Clem: Thank you! I'm going to record a bass guitar part for this, but an extra bass layer might not be a bad idea. As for those high notes, I still need to do some EQ or something on the newer version so they're clearer. I feel like that part is just bit muddy, but this is just the barest outline of a song so there's time. Kanthos: Very true, I don't need to know where the word comes from. But I like to know, and now it makes perfect sense. Thanks! And thanks also for the input on it; it's nice to know I'm doing at least one thing right from the start! For the negatives you mentioned, a real bell will have some non-harmonic overtones, but I agree that these are turned up too high. I'll do some more research (and experimentation) to see if I should maybe use different overtones altogether, and I'll definitely lower the volume. Edit: After some more reading it seems I misunderstood the inharmonics of bells, and I've adjusted the tones accordingly. The result is a lot less jarring! But the octave jump in the arpeggio...that's entirely intentional, and is an aspect of the song I plan to keep. The original FFI version does actually have that shifting in it. Some call it a bug, and it just seems odd that only notes below C4 would be shifted up, wherever they are; some chords had three notes shifted, others only one. Whatever the reason, despite the fact every version of the Prelude since has had a straight four-octave arp, this is always the version that I hear when I think of it. That's what I wanted to homage specifically. timaeus222: The clicking may be coming out of the light flange effects. There was some more audible stuff early on that went away when I changed the settings on it; I'll hunt it down! evktalo: When you said 2:11, I knew exactly which note you meant! The pad is playing a four-part harmony, and since each chord is 10 sec long (when I said downtempo, I meant it, ja? lol), I have two or more of the voices vary their notes to create some extra motion and tension. Most of the bass notes I used were A, and simply drop down to a G# as the arp descends before leading back to another A (except in the E chord, where the bass stays at G#). But the FM7 bit sounds a bit different. I kept the same A in the bass, let it come down to that same G#, and then led it down to G-natural for the GM7, so it's a chromatic passing tone. It clashes a lot, since it's enharmonic with Ab so there's a "split third" thing going on in the FM7. I'm on the fence about whether I like it, since the theory is sound (pun intended), but not all theories sound well. I'm not sure about changing the arpeggio though, since part of the idea was to create tension.... Of course, in the end it depends on how it sounds, so I'll try it and see what happens! Thanks to all four of you for your input!

Hiya! I'm working on something I hope to eventually submit, using Buzz Tracker for the first time in 12 years. I used to use Impulse Tracker and MODPlug a lot for guitar alt-rock tracks; they were never great mixes, but I learned to use the programs pretty well I guess. I only used Buzz for one song, which I thought turned out okay (again, not great) but I really didn't know what I was doing at the time. Now, I still don't, but I'm going to figure it out! The thing is, I really want to do this song primarily in, I dunno, you could call it kind of a dreamy down-tempo synth-pop style. I also want to shy away from samples, and stick with live instruments along with virtual synths (which is why I'm using Buzz; new tools, but familiar workspace), but I know next to nothing about tone synthesis. I've managed to set up three tones to form the basis of the song: 1) Meant to resemble a plucked string. -Ish. 2) Meant to be a dark, warm pad with a super-slow attack for long sustained chords. Darkness and warmness debatable. (Why is it called a "pad," anyway? Not knowing what things are makes them hard for me to work with....) 3) A bell-like tone with some inharmonic...harmonics, which fades in and out of the mix. I know all three of these need heavy tweaking, but I'm not sure what I need to tweak. Assistance is much appreciated! You can find the outline of the track here: https://soundcloud.com/the_road_ends/phoenix-prelude-wip-buzz ...Yes, it's that Prelude. Also in the playlist is a previous outline for the same song done in MODPlug Tracker using GM MIDI samples and some old drum samps, if you feel like looking at that too, but it has served its purpose and I won't be working on that one. /shrug Let me know if I need to supply any extra info!

This also reminds me of Leitbur. Those were two of my favorite tracks from B&R, but the pumping is so harsh it's hard to listen on headphones; I definitely agree about the compression. Still very nice! Lovin the groove.

Wow, a lot of motion in this thread yesterday. Cool! I can definitely see why Sugiyama's music is off putting. Looking over the music for DQI-Battle, I can say I have never seen so many diminished chords on the same page in my life. Still, I know it can be done, and seeing "weird" chording doesn't change any of the ideas I've had. I'm still going to try to work on this. I'll have to see what I can do for recording, since I've never had much success recording hard rock or metal (I haven't had access to any actual effects and have had to add them in production, which makes it difficult to tell how anything will sound), but those problems will be fixed if I borrow an amp...anyway, I'm out of time, but I'm glad to see even a little movement here!

The Children of Erdrick never die!...They just respawn at the last save point. ;-P Is Monobrow still in charge of this? She hasn't posted in here for 18 months.... I have only posted once before, about a non-remix song (but Dragon Warrior themed, as it happens), but I heard of this project after Balance and Ruin hit and I was intrigued. I'm shocked at how few songs have been claimed and how many cuts have been made due to inactivity, but conceptually I can't imagine this working as three albums, since DQI is so short for instance, and the three are so inextricably linked plotwise (at least I and III). Longstoryshort, I'd like to say I have some ideas for DQI - Battle, possibly probably sprinkled with some overworld and underworld. I know I'm completely unknown here so I'm not going to try to "lay claim" to anything without a WIP, but maybe bumping this up and showing some enthusiasm will get some attention. Don't let this die, guys!

Hello there! I labelled this as WIP, it's more like a demo I suppose...all I really want to do with it is redo the vocals. Lyrics were written by a friend for a forum-based RPG I was running based loosely on Dragon Quest I, and the song is basically about the game. https://soundcloud.com/wizards_of_englishe/the-descendants-of-that-man Hope you like it! That is all. *zoom~*