>/prod/ general - I don't have the OP edition
post what you're working on, post WIPs, post resources, ask for advice, give advice, etc. no soundcloud links - this thread isn't for self promotion, it's for self improvement. clyp.it is preferred, you know the deal.
Here's a WIP clyp.it
hello
guess the inspiration
I lost my copy of Reason.
What's some free software that's like Reason, but isn't Reason?
>clyp.it
The beginning stuff sounds like very artificial violins, it sounds a little too artificial, and even though the other artificial sounding stuff is alright, I think the piece as a whole would benefit from the violin sounding stuff to sound a little less artificial.
Also, the stuff at the end is a little sharp.
>clyp.it
I thought it was going to turn into a hip hop beat, but it never did.
recommendations for pirating Native Instruments/Omnisphere for Mac.
Also tips for Cloudrap/Atmospheric RnB production?
Reason with the UNLIMITED free trial?
Can anyone recommend VST, VSTi's, or samples for chamber pop/baroque pop/dream pop? Specifically horns and strings, though really anything that can get me a step closer to the sound I'm looking for. Some albums that have the aesthetic I'm looking for:
Illinois and Michigan by Sufjan Stevens
Have you in My wilderness by Julia Holter
In the aeroplane over the sea by Neutral Milk Hotel
Andrew Bird's The mysterious production of eggs
You Knew by Mother Falcon
Teen Dream and/or Bloom by Beach House
Someone suggested I look into some sample packs sourced from public domain film. Can anyone shed some light on a good place to search these up?
Thoughts?
I posted earlier, just trying to see if anyone can shed light on more.
look for a torrent of an older version of komplete, the session horns are very solid
strings are alright I guess, but definitely better than stuff that's intended to be free
Learn to sidechain
Put a saturator on literally everything
Reverb is your best friend
You're better off recording everything manually, sample packs will only get you so much. DSK Overture is half decent for demos tho
I can play guitar, a bit of piano, but that's it. I can't really afford, nor have the time to learn a bunch of instruments, at least not in the near future. I make music alone, which doesn't help matters
Sorry I'm too drunk to listen to all the things you listed. I read strings and horns though, and I know this field well. What I need to know is- are you comfortable with the prospect of writing the midi for the individual instruments? The violins, the violas, the cellos, the french horns, what not? Or are you looking for loops and samples of said instruments that you can chop and manipulate?
If your goal is to write midi driven orchestration in any form, then you need not look further than Kontakt. It has the monopoly on multisampled, sampler instruments of real instruments.
If you are willing to go hardcore mode in the pursuit of realism, you need to get extremely comfortable with setting up virtual sound stages using dry midi orchestral instruments, putting them 'in a room' with reverb techniques, and actually orchestrating them & giving them automation that reflects the way their real world counterparts are played.
For hard mode, i would recommend Sample modeling's instruments for brass and horns, Spitfire Audio Sable strings (volumes one through three) for the dry strings, and altiverb (or comparably sophisticated convolution reverb that has sampled reflections of real orchestral recording spaces).
For less-than-hard mode, (for 'out of the box' usable orchestral sounds), check out 8dio's orch libraries, or Cinesamples' string & brass libraries, or Spitfire Albion. Orchestral Tools Berlin Strings is good too.
Albion is probably the best all around sketchpad- good sounding but master of none.
Anyway. You will require lots of ram. 4GB will not do so bring your RAM game when you fuck with any orchestral libraries. They are big. You need lots of hard drive real estate as well. The good news is a lot of these libraries have multiple mic positions to choose from, and you can get a wide range of tones. Hard mode would be ignoring these mics except the dry / close mics and 'putting the instruments in the same space' using reverb techniques.
Thanks. The main problem I see with a lot of samples, such as strings, is that they come off as too processed or cinematic. A lot of the artists I listed are more stripped down. You can almost hear the singular instruments in the ensembles
>working on this song for hours
>just now realize one of the samples i used sounds like fucking Bane
im keeping it
So, when is the next Sup Forums makes an album thread? Not trying to start one, just wondering
What's going to be doable with virtual instruments / sample library based orchestral: the big lush ensembles playing big ass chords.
What's not going to be doable: solo instruments, think: solo fiddle, playing delicately and dancing around daintily with lots of expression.
The last scenario is one that will reveal the weaknesses inherent in a sample based approach. You can fudge it more with a big ensemble that has slow dynamic swells, or relatively simple staccato or spicatto sections.
My advice: play to the strengths of the sampler library. Avoid the other shit. It sounds like you have found yourself a genre that is pretty comfy with respect to the strengths of modern sampler libraries.
Part of what you will need to emulate or at least pay attention to, is emulating (or at least considering) the way you WOULD record a group of strings players. With stereo mics in the front, where the violins 1 and two be? where are the Cello and Contrabass? The violas?
The 'spatial placement' as I'd call it, is half of the deal. The way real orchestras are setup on a scoring stage has the functionality that the "mix" might have in a purely electronic environment. Now, when pop indie band gets their strings players in the studio, they have a similar consideration, maybe not as involved as recording a fuckin' performance of Mozart, but it still matters. Try to pay attention to the way panning is used in your 'target' reference songs.
A lot of what helps you discern individual instruments in orchestral anything is spatial placement. How far away, where in the stereo spectrum.
The other half of this is REVERB, this is a fucking huge topic that will require shit loads of posts and im not sure I'm going to be awake.
If skeleton jelly guy is still here
>I just checked your song out man, I love the buzzy synths and the cold "lead" that comes in, as well as the loud bassy part after 2 minutes, I think a really simple percussion arrangement would sound good with this even though it's ambient, even just a shaker or something.
Thought of it i'll try some things
Shaker is an option or some things more like the very light percussion on stone in focus
>I called it poison village because it reminded me of classic rpgs when you return to your home town and it's been destroyed.
I can get that vibe yeha
S Y N T H W A V E
i'd like one too. maybe some noisy hib hob with 1-1:30 minute songs limit
Managed to cram my setup into a 2x3 (meter, ~10x6.5 feet) room in a temporary place. Didn't have room for either of my MIDI controllers but I'll work that out later. How'd I do?
Got a few sets of headphones that I've pretty much been using exclusively since I don't have enough room to aim those speakers. Monitors need new cones. Fun times trying to find cones for speakers from a defunct brand.
Also thinking of getting an Alesis Midiverb 4, Lexicon MX200, Peavey Valverb, or all of the above. Anyone have experience with any of them?
>vista
>Vista
What? It's Windows 7 using small icons and taskbar buttons set to never combine.
ah sorry that ugly-ass aero theme confused me.
also
>taskbar buttons set to never combine.
fucking why?
>ah sorry that ugly-ass aero theme confused me.
Doesn't really bother me.
>fucking why?
The delay in changing windows in the same program annoys me.
how much you think for all that equipment in OP's pic?
Does such a magnificent thing exist? If so, I was not aware.
Its easy to find on torrent sites. Omnisphere 2 i downloaded ftom proaudiotorrents (just leeched the hell out of it and got my account blocked) its a powerful sample based machine and is used a lot by Oneohtrix Point Never
Maybe about 5-6 grand, including computer related shit.
damn. that's actually fairly cheap. not the user you are replying to but im about to come across 1000s of dollars in neetbux backpay so i know what im spending as much as i can on
If you don't throw money into the fucking wet hole that is eurorack modular synth gear like the OP guy did, you will be able to build a much more advanced setup. That is, unless you are so hung up on avant garde bleep bloop that you can truly justify the purchase of the modular shit.
What I would buy if starting over->
Computer with epic shit loads of ram, several external hard drives for 2x or 3x redundancy. Solid Studio monitors. Solid Audio Interface. Medium Tier mic (unless you are a vocal guy.), Upper middle tier midi keyboard, that doesnt skimp on the number of keys.
Beyond that everything else is a bonus. headphones, a fun toy like a hardware synth. Sound treatment (you can build 6 bass traps for under 200 bucks- go to atsacoustics.com owens corning 703 2 inch with SHITTY LOWES WOOD frame on wire to hang)
like this user suggested if I was starting over with more cash I'd be getting a top of the range computer, audio interface, monitors, control keyboard & mixing desk. A decent production desk/workstation with some nice outboard effects units and compressors
hello i can make great drummings with my teeth and tongue sounds buy how to put them into music?
help me learn, /prod/
I'm trying to play the blues. Piano and guitar were both recorded by me, drums are MIDI (and shitty)
Record them into a Sampler and arrange them with a sequencer inside a DAW
Record yourself
Put together some samples that sound like your mouth noises
out
of
time
dl addictive drums 2 and use pre-made blues beats if you want to train
yes, the problem is they only work with mouth closed, so can't record it. i was wondering if i could easily recreate the patterns in a daw (with real drum samples), but no need to ask because i know the answer - i have to learn more about drumming in general, no ez way
Godspeed user
thanks. i hope to do it fast because my teeth hurt
>the problem is they only work with mouth closed, so can't record it.
try some contact mics.
>i was wondering if i could easily recreate the patterns in a daw (with real drum samples), but no need to ask because i know the answer
yes you can, you could even find some beatbox samples and use those if you like, or find a recording of someone beat boxing chop up the drum sounds from the recording and recreate the same beat in your DAW (this will help you learn some basics of drum arrangement) then you can move the samples about to make your own drum rhythms.
Have a look at some youtube tutorials on things like how to chop classic funk and soul breakbeats, there should be lots of info out there on such breaks as the "Amen" break and you can have lots of fun using just one break , chopping and arranging it, but like I said chopping the break and re-creating the original break will give you a good insight to how those breaks are arranged. I'd recommend something like Maschine as it would be ideal for this sort of thing, but most DAWs are more than capable.
woah nice post, thanks
I need a little bit of help guys. I want to get into producing some music, although I have absolutely no background on this.
I've never played an instrument before, and I've never used a DAW before (have downloaded Ableton Suite). Is Ableton a good choice to start off with?
How do I even go about making music? And what kind of music can I make with only a DAW?
Ableton is good all round, not a bad choice
Watch SadowickProductions to learn how to use it
Buy the book Music Theory for Computer Musicians
Read that book
Experiment with VST's (virtual instruments) and sample packs (drums), you will find with torrents and on audioz website, making shit that sounds cool to you not what others find cool (don't make generic shit)
Don't try to make 'songs', get that shit out of your head, just focus on making cool snippets
When you have enough of these little motifs, buy the book Mixing Secrets for the Small Studio, arrange and mix these snippets into demos
Every little part you make, make it groove, fundamentally change it/make it weird/make it interesting while keeping a groove
After making a few of these and experimenting, ask yourself did you have fun and do you want to do it seriously
If yes, do this constantly for 2 years while picking up new techniques along the way, you will be good enough to take your music further after time
Make this your main hobby, immerse yourself in the culture of music production
If this feels like work, this isnt for you, you should enjoy making your music and experimenting
Don't expect to be shit hot at the start, everybody starts from the bottom
If it was easy and didn't take time, effort, dedication we'd be all famous by now, only the dedicated prevail
Avoid the SoundCloud thread at all costs
>And what kind of music can I make with only a DAW?
Everything. Literally
Forgot to say, don't go in thinking 'im going to make a hip hop beat', 'im going to make a house track', do shit that sounds cool and interesting to you, and let the genre come out of it ie. don't force the genre into it
That's where most people go fundamentally wrong
Thanks user, this is really helpful. How important are the books in the overall learning experience for using DAWs? I know Music Theory is really important, so I'll most likely have to read that, but what about the other one?
Use the YouTube channel SadowickProductions for physically working the DAW, it won't teach you any thing musically
The Music Theory book will teach you stuff like notes, chords, rhythm, the fundamentals
The Mixing Secrets book will teach you step by step to take your musical snippets and motifs to professional sounding songs
The Golden Rule again: Make something that grooves, twist it and make it your own while keeping that groove
And never never ever touch something in your DAW unless you know what it's doing
Take a step back, learn what it is and go back to where you were
Thanks again for the help, I appreciate it.
I had an MX200 because "lol lo-fi" and it had some nice sounds/well built, all that, but it was just way too noisy to be useable
Maybe I got mad unit tho
Pretty sure the Alesis was used by Mac for all of 2 if that's any help
As well don't mind if your tracks arn't as good as other stuff you hear
Every single track you finish you learn stuff better, learn a new trick, do something faster so the key is finishing tracks
Make a render, keep every one, go back and see where you've improved
This isn't a waste of time because your improving with every single track, and if ever your stuck for inspiration, you can take cool bits you've already done and make them again better to build around
Also if writers block is a problem, don't think about making a full snippet or song, just make a cool drum beat, or a soundscape, or some FX, or just a cool bass line, just make one small thing, so the next time you sit down to work, you arn't looking at a blank screen on Ableton
lol yeah it's called a torrent
left speaker against the wall = wall reflection. bad
that power bar on the desk = possible transformer hum from those power supplies. move it
speakers are pointing at the distance and not slightly inwards towars your listening position. stereo field, dude
you should put some sort of sound dampening in front of the speakers, to avoid sound reflection off the desk
It's still a wor ik progress but i have no clue in what sort of genre i'll put this
thoughts?
I want a MIDI controller to control couple hardware synths I have. I don't want a keyboard but I want to be able to play notes duh
The Launchpad pro is able to control MIDI gear but its obvs oriented towards DAW performance, so I'd be buying it to use a single one of its functions.
Is there anything that comes close to it (ie a pad style controller that focuses on MIDI)
thank you
The Launchpad Pro is very very good at doing what you want and will do the job you ask and more so there is no reason not to get it
If you want something a little more high end, get an Octatrack. A beautiful, beautiful piece of gear
>wor ik
*work in
Jesus
alright yeah I think I will just go for it.
I have an Analog Four, if I wasn't upgrading a few of my other stuff (FX, a second synth, controllers etc) I would've gotten one by now.
elektron workflow = god tier
can someone tell me if it's okay to use ableton lite 9 (not the suite/standard version) to make a beat?
Use whatever you want, you'll just have a lot less features available to you. If you want your stuff sounding good, you need to either spend money or turn into an internet somalian.
>clyp.it
I was gonna say this, also maybe add some lower sounding drums. They're not bad they just sounded a bit too high IMO unless thats what you were going for
>clyp.it
Practice with a metronome and record drums first if you have to
please please give feedback. really could use producer ears on this (most of my friends dont/cant).
will return any feedback given to me.
track i've started the other day (3 hours)
track i've been working on for 5 hours or so
>experimental
>ambient
>electronic
>inspiration: oneohtrix point never, four tet, jon hopkins
I have been producing music since I was 12 when my brother asked me to pirate him a copy of FL studio. I delete and throw away more stuff than I share because its easier to just not have the bags, you know what I mean?
I recently started taking my music seriously two months ago when I bought an MPC to compliment the keyboard I have been using (along with a guitar and other stuff too).
I am in summer school ATM
forgot to add second link like an idiot:
clyp.it
drums sound pretty out of place, maybe make the bells and hi hats a bit lower, and look up the haas effect it can really help bring out different parts that you want more emphasis on. The synth part was pretty cool sounding maybe add more reverb and polish it up a bit more, and have fun with it man
needs more textures, sound design. very flat feeling overall right now, could also use some compression. Try layering your sounds and panning some of your elements to give it a "room" feeling.
opn im guessing?
You've gotta give these samples some variety. Try moving your samples start position slightly during the loop. Also add some stereo depth. Make the samples pop around
already gave you advice
okay, heres my crash course to learning music prod
1. most people on the internet giving advice have NO idea what they're talking about (see /r/edmproduction)
2. your most powerful tools are an EQ you can understand and a compressor that you understand. These are cornerstones to a good sounding mix.
3. your song is only as good as your samples/instruments
4. finish your songs, even if they suck.
nice, your one of the better producers here (no offense anons)
You need more substance to your track. Its too flat and too still. Give it some momentum and (as I've said like 3 times now) depth. A lot of these tracks on this board dont take advantage of how amazing panning is for electronic. look up binural panners and use them. add a random pan to your high hats, make a return track that filters out the high end and put an autopan on it with a dimension expander (before or after the autopan, both sound cool), adjust stereo width with a utility (ableton) hell automate it during the chorus.
okay anyone else need some honest advice?
requesting feedback on
anyone know of any really comfy /prod/ chairs. the cheap office chair I'm using is fucking killing me?
>buy a book
>but torrent shit
wow
does the book cover exactly what 'something that grooves' is? (i assume it's a language barrier that prevents me from understanding)
No that can only come from you
Theres stuff that 'works' and that 'doesent work' but the groove and magic has to come from you
yes, but can you explain what 'the groove' is?
Motifs that flows and works well together
Stuff that keeps you listening
Good music that you want to listen to
I have the launchpad pro, its awesome with ableton.
Can't speak for using it as an external midi controller for other gear... but from what i remember it split the 8x8 pad grid into 4 - 4x4 quadrants. Each quadrant is it's own midi channel, so it might be better for multiple external drum machines than trying to play a wide range of notes on one device. They might have updated the firmware to allow you to use all 64 pads on one device, but you might want to check first.
i've had this one for 10 year
highly recommend!
Ok thanks for the feedback m8, i really appreciate it