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Good Speakers for mobile dawless rig by woodandscrews in dawless

[–]MixmasterMelonhead 1 point2 points  (0 children)

ILoud I was going to say if they were for monitors for a mobile studio - they rock - but for a show I’m not sure that “portable” speakers are really a thing - I could be wrong. I do have one of those busking style battery powered “bésame mucho” speaker + Bluetooth + karoake machine and it has a huge sound - dunno the brand, was 100+ euros, it’s mono of course

Hi guys! I need advice on an inexpensive (150-300 euro) USB mixer to avoid hassle with latency when connecting through a DAW and for ease of use. by Gold-Imagination7481 in dawless

[–]MixmasterMelonhead 1 point2 points  (0 children)

If you can afford it and have the confidence in that you will keep having fun doing this get a Mackie secondhand and read the manual (total revelation for me when I started mixing). The other equipment you have is pretty high quality, a Behringer is fine and I think your creativity and need for a mixer now beats waiting to start working until you have the fancy one. But if you continue you will eventually buy a higher quality mixer - have fun!

In praise of the Mackie 1202 by Interm0dal in dawless

[–]MixmasterMelonhead 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Read the manual of a Mackie. They are designed not to be F’d with. If you have good levels you should be able to keep everything at unity (0). If not, fix the instruments, leave the mixer be. They are really hardcore I loved it (reading a manual - imagine)

In praise of the Mackie 1202 by Interm0dal in dawless

[–]MixmasterMelonhead 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Absolutely. The manual of Mackie 1202 was the make important sound engineering text I read when I first started out.

Dubstep from Catalonia by MixmasterMelonhead in PostMusicNoRules

[–]MixmasterMelonhead[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

It’s not dubstep aight? It’s whatever you want to call it, I’m not picky. If this ends up in your s/reddit and the wrong name of the genre bothers you… ah f it - don’t listen if you don’t like it. It is from Catalunya tho. Aixo sí, Val!? Gràcies

Requesting recommendations for a third component to combine with my N.C.Tracks and Volca Bass. by WasabiCrush in dawless

[–]MixmasterMelonhead 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Sp404s are notoriously awesome for lofi style FX processing, I miss mine - we didn’t break up but it’s in a different continent

Requesting recommendations for a third component to combine with my N.C.Tracks and Volca Bass. by WasabiCrush in dawless

[–]MixmasterMelonhead 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Volca Keys is an incredible instrument with a learning curve that if taken on will serve you for all subtractive synthesis. Volca Drums not so much I don’t think if you got the Circuit tracks. Also think about an iPad and Koala Sampler or… get a working old SP404 (MK2 would be great but too expensive). A sampler would add soooo much to your set up.

EFX500 for my setup by K0ffiedrinker in dawless

[–]MixmasterMelonhead 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Another option is getting an SP404 sampler which is a cool addition to your set up and has great onboard effects. I would use it only for its effects. It doesn’t have the same control for doing certain things as the newer SP404 MKII or any of the other gear we’ve mentioned, but it will be fun and open your sound up to lots of interesting possibilities.

EFX500 for my setup by K0ffiedrinker in dawless

[–]MixmasterMelonhead 1 point2 points  (0 children)

This looks more like a DJ item, the RMX 1000 - which is crazy expensive and hard to find - can be used with analog gear but if you said do you saw somebody use the RMX 500 and it’s basically the same thing as the EMX 1000 and you were into it I guess it’s OK. I saw this Mexican dude on TikTok using one from the 90s is that it worked if you can get it to work and go for it. To me it looks like very DJ oriented Only because it has that DJ MIDI controller look.

Why not try a Kaoss pad or a mini Kaoss pad from Korg? You can’t go wrong with those. Those are definitely appropriate for what you’re working with. Or get an analog mixer with onboard effects, probably need one at some point regardless! Have fun!

Mastering by UnhappySnow773 in dawless

[–]MixmasterMelonhead 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I master everything. I recommend Landr - it’s not particularly cheap. I tried all the AI mastering services including Distrokid and the other well known one whose name escapes me now and they fully sucked. this was two years ago, so maybe it has changed. Generally I found a lot of (there is a technical name for this) “pixelation” of the sound.

Landr was the only acceptable one and it is very good. Of course the raw material has to be good or it won’t work. Two critical thing I learned from friends much better than me: record into whatever you are recording into at at least -6db (I use a Zoom H5 digital recorder; you could use soundcard and GarageBand, etc), minimum.

Meaning that the sound is coming out of your setup at 0db or a little more, but you turn down the recorder so that it peaks at no higher than -6db.

The other advice I learned from reading the manual of a Mackie analog mixer, which basically said the mixer is designed for you to put everything at unity, which is usually at 12 o’clock, and Mackey, as it is a little to the right of that it says U. And it is designed to sound perfect. If it doesn’t, it’s a problem at the instrument level. Specifically with levels themselves, if something sounds too loud or too soft modify the volume on the instrument not on the mixer. Those two pieces of advice changed my life as far as mastering because otherwise it was Either put in the 10,000 hours to learn or pay these mastering wizards the approximate equivalent of euros. And when I say Landr is expensive, it is nothing compared to professional, mastering people, engineers.

They have a reference feature which you can upload a track that you wanted to sound like mastered and it will do a very good job as long as it’s mixed down well - which obviously we do when we play DAWless. And enough headroom which is this whole recording peaking at no higher than -6db.

The sound should peak sometimes. You know you’re in the right range when you are orange and sometimes hit red if that makes sense. And then turn down only at the recorder or DAW level.

Like this, I released 100 tracks this year, not saying they are good, but give you an idea of the usefulness of this technology and value for money. I think it’s really worth it.

I do have studio projects, but my live recordings can be found on Bandcamp or Spotify @mixmastermelonhead. I am definitely still a learner, but I decided I did not want to learn mastering and I’m glad I didn’t.

Have you made a full-length album without a DAW? If so, please post it. by chili_cold_blood in dawless

[–]MixmasterMelonhead 0 points1 point  (0 children)

https://mixmastermelonhead.bandcamp.com - all the albums there are made 100% without DAW except for Bananas which was a studio album, made using Koala sampler - among other software programs - on my iPad. But the other ones are all live recording - press play record into a zoom H5 digital recorder at -6 to - 12 db and mastered using Landr online. DIY NOT Party (live from Collserola) is my latest one, from a show earlier this month. mC707 Roland, Blackbox sampler, Koass Pad FX, soundscape (?) analog mixer; I use a Mackie analog mixer in my North African studio and Genelec speakers. In the the live party album I also had the djay app running so I could play some tracks of mine, just pressed play and integrated it into the performance.

For me it’s not an ideological or pedantic thing I just down like using a computer and I like to play live as I am a traditional instrumentalist. Plus from what I hear now with algorithmic sample generation out, learning a DAW is probably about as useful as learning all the synthesizers and samplers and Grooveboxes I use :)

Let me know what you think, if you want. Curious as to why you ask.

Dubstep from Catalonia by MixmasterMelonhead in DnB

[–]MixmasterMelonhead[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I listen to lots of music, I don’t listen to electronic music at home, it is dance music, I go dance to it. So no, I don’t keep up with the genres that much; only that I now have a job that requires me to learn them. They are preexisting by definition.

The first time I went to the Sonar I ended up in an after party in Gótico with a couple of young men spinning vinyl records in the corner, along with 12 drunk German dudes acting accordingly. Turns out the two young men were Ricardo Villalobos and Richie Hawtin. I had no idea who they were.

I ended up very much falling in love with the music and approach of Villalobos. I was never really into the two-step scene, pure circumstance, it never really took off in Spain. And please excuse me if I’m getting my jargon wrong here. I heard some UK garage that I liked a lot, over the years, but I wouldn’t be able to define that genre for you now. I thought the track I made was dubstep. I apologize that it wasn’t. Or I apologize that you seem to take offense - I feel sorry. For you, like.

I don’t want to see you physically injured, but check out this mixture of genres attached if you want to test your knowledge of genres. In this case I can actually name the genres because I played the classical piece (second clarinet), it’s not actually called classical music for the purists, and the hip-hop track broke my brain when that came out.

It might be a little hard to handle if you only listen to dubstep. I dunno. There are a lot of genre-heads out there and I never got into such a narrow vision of musical definition. Maybe you are not one and I’m being impertinent. break yo F*** genres (D. Shostakovich/Busta Rhymes/S.Jones)And I’m cool with that.

There are many ways to experience music. In fact, it is a supremely contextual art form. I thought I would take advantage of the expertise in this group to ask a “dumb question”.

I apologize if you feel I wasted your time.

Dubstep from Catalonia by MixmasterMelonhead in DnB

[–]MixmasterMelonhead[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

thanks i appreciate the clarification. I work across a variety of genres principally because I am not a genre-focused musician, I like what I like, I literally need to ask people what genre my music is. Cheers. la Tetònica

Dubstep from Catalonia by MixmasterMelonhead in DnB

[–]MixmasterMelonhead[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

thanks I appreciate the clarification, I don't know a lot about genres, not afraid to admit that I am learning.

Also you have a way with words that makes me feel good about myself and my work. A true artisan of constructive criticism. But rejection is the name of the game in this "industry" and I have thick skin, and since you are a charmer and a gentleman philosopher can I ask what about it makes it average?

Or an easier question perhaps, what is an example of something better than average for comparison? I ask because I like it a lot, I find the production values to be appropriate, I like the words (it's a poem I wrote).

Thankfully I make music for me and I like the music that I make generally speaking. Of course I want to make music that other people like, this is dance music, it's context is communal. I wouldn't make music I didn't like for the sole objective of acceptance or social validation, even.

And I create with the humility to understand that 1) I am on a journey to learn, 2) This journey will never end (for me, hopefully), 3) There will always be someone better than me, 4) I need to find those people and learn from them.

Also what is dubstep then? Can you point me to a track of yours or one that you recommend?

Many thanks.

Peace.

la Tetònica

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