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Wobbly problem Posted September 17th, 2012 in Audio

I like wobbles. I can make a plethora of them. I have samples to chop up. My problem... I'm having the hardest time incorporating them. I could be over thinking it (or under thinking), as when I'm layering I notice the kick, snare etc is fine (especially with side chaining) with the wobble, but anything else added seems to either clutter it up, or just sound weird.

So, my query is this... is it better just to leave a wobble by itself with bass and or drum line? In most the music I'm hearing these days, it's almost like an accent more than anything that stays with the song very long, and if it does, only softer sounds can be heard beneath it. Perhaps it just rips up the frequencies too badly to be paired with anything?

Thanks~

Response to: Let's have some fun! * Collabo Posted September 12th, 2012 in Audio

At 9/12/12 08:35 AM, EternalXIII wrote: If anyone is interested in collaborating I'm down for pretty much any genre. The only rule being that we have to have tons o' fun!!

I have no ego. I've also never done a collab. I'm not very good yet, but wouldn't mind trying.
Also, fun~!

Response to: Dubstep Kicks Snares Hats etc Posted September 12th, 2012 in Audio

At 9/11/12 07:07 PM, Deshiel wrote: Dupstep sounds are quite useless if you don't know how to do dubpsep at all... Just supersaying 8D

Never useless. Because it's good to have them at the ready, if you ever do learn to do dubstep. ;)

Response to: Dubstep Kicks Snares Hats etc Posted September 11th, 2012 in Audio

I'm not sure if it's best for dubstep, but I found this to be a very sexy drum vst (plus it's free)-

http://tactilesounds.blogspot.com/p/tactile-synthesizers.htm l

Response to: Awaiting Audio Approval? Posted September 10th, 2012 in Audio

Poor mods, having to trudge through this stuff. Shame there isn't already a system place that can automatically detect/block stolen content, like there seems to be on youtube.

Still, it's to be expected with TONS of songs coming in and only limited resources to check them... and what to check them against? You guys have my sympathy and I wish I could help somehow.

I'm stacked 3 songs in queue & never rip content. For someone seeking constructive criticism on genuine work (even if it's not great), it can get discouraging.

Response to: Instruments? Posted September 10th, 2012 in Audio

TAL is your friend. :)

Response to: Audio Advertisements! Posted September 10th, 2012 in Audio

Because it'll never be seen otherwise. Constructive criticism welcome.

Response to: Something I learned about Copyright Posted September 10th, 2012 in Audio

At 9/7/12 11:58 PM, stunkel wrote: So I was in class today. And my teacher told us that making a self copyright by emailing the song to yourself or posting it online isn't good enough anymore because in court, if someone shows up with the legal documentation, that will override anything else that you might have to prove that it is yours.

You're sure they didn't mean snail-mailing? I'd heard years ago if you sealed an envelope with 'proof' inside, that it would somehow be a valid document to use in court...

...not sure how valid that is, only rumor.

Response to: need features to be added to my son Posted August 31st, 2012 in Audio

Sorry, I giggled at the title.
"need features to be added to my son"

Like you're turning him into a robot or something. XD

Response to: Advanced? Music Theory Posted August 31st, 2012 in Audio

I just posted this in another thread, but since you're talking about music theory... check out this FREE site on it.

http://www.musictheory.net

I wish I knew about it earlier. I knew the VERY basics from middle/high school classics, but this appears to go pretty far into advanced.

Response to: Wanna start composing, but how? Posted August 31st, 2012 in Audio

At 8/31/12 01:08 PM, Middlefield wrote: I'm a huge fan of classical music, and I would really like to produce some (In FL Studio). This is what I own atm.

FL Studio
A pair of Audio-Technica ath-m50
Nexus Plug-in with some orchestral presets etc.
And ofc, a pc.

I know nothing about classical music. And I'm not gonna lie now... But I don't even know what each node means, sub-genres etc. So, is there any books, guides, tutorials etc etc etc, that you can recommend. Ehm, i think that's it. Hope you can help me.

Going from the ground up? Check this out-
http://www.musictheory.net/

Beyond that, it's working the piano rolls & drums (if applicable).

Response to: If not Nexus, then what? Posted August 29th, 2012 in Audio

What do you guys use for drums then?

Response to: Ableton vs FL studio vs Logic Posted August 27th, 2012 in Audio

At 8/25/12 01:19 AM, Omegeist wrote: Which is all around best?

The winner is you. :)

Response to: Just a simple question. Posted August 27th, 2012 in Audio

At 8/27/12 10:42 AM, RampantMusik wrote: By voting on Flash games and movies. I don't think you'll ever get experience for voting on Art and Audio portal submissions.

Oh well, guess I'm level 1 forever then. lol
I only vote/rate/submit, and help out in the audio portal / forum...

Response to: Audio Advertisements! Posted August 27th, 2012 in Audio

Check me out-
http://ectohelix.newgrounds.com/

Constructive criticism welcome. I'm brand-spanking-new at this and could use any advice I can get! :)

Response to: Just a simple question. Posted August 27th, 2012 in Audio

At 8/26/12 01:31 AM, TheMino wrote: I was just wondering,
How does one obtain the rank of Audiophile?
Thanks
-Mino

How does one even level up? lol
I've been level 1 for the past 3 weeks... this is hard. XD

Response to: lol-fi Posted August 27th, 2012 in Audio

At 8/27/12 05:07 AM, mulitplerayguns wrote: Here's the thing, I like lo-fi music and producing lo-fi music, lo-fi basically means that the music sounds damaged or distorted. BUT, terrible production does not a lo-fi make, so what are some techniques you guys use to get specific vocals and sounds? For me, I get the cleanest tone possible, and layer that with reverb, overdrive and distortion and EQ the living shit out of it, I've also recorded vocals using a phone once, that was fun.
So, what do you do, if you do do it.

When I think "lo-fi" I think chiptunes. Which brings me to another thought... why not chiptunes section (in the categories)? I know lots of amazing artists who really mix it up playing on gameboys. :)

Response to: The use of sampling in songs... Posted August 27th, 2012 in Audio

At 8/26/12 11:05 PM, JackRocker wrote: As long as some effort is put into it, I enjoy sample-based music. Some of my favorite music is sampled. What I don't like is when an "artist" just samples a melody, adds drums and loops it repeatedly and calls it a song. I try to chop it up some, use different effects, and add some of my own things to it to make it my own.

Sampling can either be a great art form, or it can just be the lazy way out. It all depends on the amount of effort. Depending on how you use sampling, you either end up with an awesome tribute to the original song, or just a cheap copy.

I've thought long and hard about this, and this is only my take/opinion...

Single hits-
It seems if you sample only a strum of a guitar, single wobble, drum hit, bass kick, hi-hat smash, etc... you get the point... you're probably going to use those single 0.5 second samples to create something completely new. I don't see anything wrong with this, albeit I won't do it myself ... but only because I have too much fun making my own sounds.

Even so, if you take LOTS of recognizable sounds (or in some cases, reproduce them), people will still call you out on it. Look how much grief Zomboy gets because he 'apparently' (I can't say for sure) does precisely what I'm talking about with Skrillex sounds. Yet their arranged in such a way, that they're entirely new songs. Where do you draw the line?

Longer loops-
If you pull entire "sections", riffs, etc. It's still going to be directly likened to the original artist. Therefor you might as well consider it a "remix" or at least give the original artist attribution for their contribution to your work. Personally, I'd never do this unless I really was doing a remix, and would give credit (still not post here per their rules), but for my own stuff... I'd rather stay original.

... to me, without giving attribution at this point or calling it a remix, it could be likened to mixing up large fragments of songs, then telling your friends YOU made it all, when in fact ... YOU didn't. Even if it sounds good, it wouldn't be right to not attribute the original author(s). In any case, I can understand Newgrounds for not allowing such long-clip sampling. There's a whole legality thing, I can imagine...

Response to: Uploading into the audio portal ??? Posted August 24th, 2012 in Audio

At 8/24/12 04:04 PM, oookorthsooo wrote: Hey there,
I uploaded a project from FL Studios that I created ( not anything impressive by my guess) about 4 weeks ago and it still doesn't show up in the audio portal

I'm having the same problem with my song, can't be searched or anything. Which means no ratings, reviews, etc.
....which is fine I guess as I might resubmit it (with improvements) without this format:
"Name - Songtitle" but rather , "Songtitle"
I don't know what I was thinking...

Response to: List of samples/instrumen ts? Posted August 24th, 2012 in Audio

At 8/24/12 01:00 PM, 4urentertainment wrote: I'm guessing asking for ready made 1-2 second musical samples is too much?

Not really. It only takes a second to go into a program and pull 1-2 samples out. It can get time consuming if you're pulling lots of samples, however. I've got buckets full of tiny .wav files (that are just single instrument hits/strums/etc.), and I wasn't even trying... comes with a lot of software packages and sample sets I've found.

Glad you found what you're looking for.
But, If you want more or me to send you some of these these files I have (the ones I got free), let me know, and we'll figure something out.

Response to: Mastering? Posted August 24th, 2012 in Audio

At 8/24/12 01:12 PM, lnitroburstl wrote: So I was wondering, how important is mastering? I was never really good at it, so I just ignore it for the most part. My tracks sound clean enough due to they're simplicity, but I feel as though I'm behind because I don't work on mastering.

Very important as it brings your levels in check.
Unfortunately, I still suck at it. Checking tutorials when I get time.

Response to: List of samples/instrumen ts? Posted August 24th, 2012 in Audio

At 8/24/12 11:39 AM, 4urentertainment wrote: So an idea just popped into my head, to make a game with dynamically created music. Whether it sucks or not, I think it'd be fun to try.

So does anyone know where I can get like sounds of instruments and various other stuff that like that that could be put together to make a song?

Sounds kind of like Punk-o-matic. However, it'd be interesting to throw in different instruments and/or patterns... or just the instruments alone, and let people make their own patterns.

I know you can get sound samples from a lot of places. When I demo'd Ableton for the first time, I got tons of free instruments .wav files (with individual sounds), and they also had this free "partners instruments" which had more of the same.

Then there's Looperman. Tons of loops and samples to get from there, and most are free under the same CC license as newgrounds material.

If you know how to strip out your own samples... well there's more. I'm not necessarily talking about completely dissecting a song, but maybe just a drum/snare/symbol hit, a weird sound, or other single element.

Lots of ways to go about this I'd imagine.

Response to: Scoring games/ Letting theft slide? Posted August 24th, 2012 in Audio

At 8/18/12 05:58 PM, BlazingDragon wrote: So my questions: Should I let game developers use my music in sponsored games for free, even though they didn't ask me and I'm not getting paid? After all, I'm getting credit and exposure. Or should I seek these developers out and demand compensation? Would it be bad to burn those bridges?

It depends on how badly you want exposure. If you're already well known, you could afford to be a little more demanding/abrasive (just don't kill your image in the process). If you aren't known or well known, you can just chalk it up to really expensive, yet effective, advertising. I'd definitely contact them and let them know your feelings though.

If you've invested the time to become skilled/talented at what you do, I agree with people when they say you deserve recognition and perhaps compensation as well.

It's also important to be kind to those who do bring you exposure (especially for the first time).
It really depends on the circumstance I guess.

Of course this is coming from an untalented nice guy, who'd probably not care if people use his music as long as there was attribution...
Would I like to make money? Sure, but I don't care, as I already make enough to make most ends meet, so I'm happy.
Would I rather people just enjoy my art? Absolutely. I'll feel it was all worth it, if even 1 person enjoys my stuff.
Will I be the type to get crapped on if I did become talented? ... probably. XD

Response to: Books on audio Posted August 24th, 2012 in Audio

At 8/18/12 09:14 AM, The-iMortal wrote: Books on mixing audio:

I like you.

Response to: Coming up with a producer name? Posted August 24th, 2012 in Audio

At 8/19/12 10:46 PM, Jurgen wrote: So I'm looking for information. Tell me, how did you come up with your name/what does it mean to you? I'm really quite curious.

Most people go with screen names. Personally I'd been using the same screen name for years and got tired of it. Figured I'd start using a new one when I rebooted and started making music.

My name Ectohelix comes from Ecto, meaning "outer" or "ghost" and Helix, which is a single spiral (half of a double helix). Which resembles a wave form in music. Plus I thought it sounded cool, so why the hell not...

So why not just stick with Jurgen (if it's not already taken)? Sounds alright to me.

Response to: Do listen to your own music? Posted August 24th, 2012 in Audio

At 8/18/12 05:44 AM, DJVI wrote: So do you listen to your own music and why?

I listen to my own stuff, then listen to what other's make... which is usually 10x better. I do this to hopefully try and figure out what I'm doing wrong. Since "You suck" is hardly constructive criticism, I have no formal education in the software I'm using, and I might be creative but new on HOW to be creative (good methods).

So, I'm left with the only option of being my own worst critic, trying to reverse engineer the methods others use for composition, mixing, and sound 'blending'.

It'd be so much easier if I had a mentor or a study buddy (to learn/use Ableton Live with), but we do what we can with the cards we're dealt.

Response to: Content Unpublishing: DONE! Posted August 24th, 2012 in NG News

At 8/22/12 12:34 PM, TomFulp wrote:
That's actually about fixed too.

Thank you Mr. Fulp. Manipulation of them databases.

Response to: DAW Posted August 23rd, 2012 in Audio

At 8/21/12 07:19 PM, BB-7 wrote: Well wow what the hell already?

Look. I'm tired of FL Studio and it's difficult to control effects and continuous crashes. There. Not thinking it will make me beast at music. I just hate it now.

This could be a hardware issue. You sure your CPU is packing the juice to push FL studio? If you've purchased it, might contact customer support, or google around for a solution to the crash. Chances are it's happened before to someone and they've complained about it and got an answer on some forum out there somewhere.

Effects control is never exactly an easy trip without hurdles... just different methods.

Response to: Selling Keys For Fm8 & Massive Posted August 23rd, 2012 in Audio

At 8/18/12 05:12 AM, jarrydn wrote: it is NOT illegal to resell Native Instruments licenses.

you send customer service an email, along with the serial number which you want removed from your account. once it has cleared, you are then 100% allowed to sell it on to anyone else, for whatever price you want.

This. I was curious about the issue myself (if I ever wanted to resell my product), and they simply unlock it from your account. It's only illegal if you don't do so before selling it, heh.

Response to: How long does it take? Posted August 23rd, 2012 in Audio

At 8/23/12 06:41 AM, ForeverBound wrote: How long does it take you to make a full Track?

TOO long. Usually because I'm messing around with sounds. Trying to create something new/unique, which is downright impossible really. Still... I like to be creative, so why the hell not.