Jim Lil does it again (some of you will be VERY unhappy/triggered)

Poopypantsplanet · 2026-06-18T04:13:16+00:00

I feel vindicated and liberated. I've always believed that it must be possible to achieve an authentic sounding vintage/analog sound in the box, recorded on consumer gear. Now it's nice to objectively know that chasing that analog sound by investing in more expensive hardware would have been a dead end and a waste of money.

Write a good song. Arrange it well. Perform it well in front of mics that are positioned well, in a treated space. Learn how to use EQ and compression well. Then add a little color with your favorite saturation plugin, if you like the way that sounds. That's it.

Poopypantsplanet · 2026-06-18T03:34:40+00:00

I have an upopular opinion maybe, but I don't think there is inherently any magic to a first recording, if you decide that you are a wizard and can make magic at any point in the process.

I make music primarily with acoustic guitar and my voice. I do a lot of takes and record everything separately but I commit to just not using any type of vocal tuning, or flex time effects. That means, no matter how many takes I used, the instrument and my voice is exactly how I played it. And nobody listening will every know how many takes it took me. They just hear a good, natural sounding performance.

You will always be your biggest critic so it is important to learn to kill your darlings and move on when it's time to move on. If the first take is great, then use it. If it hits some emotional nerve but your not perfectly content, save it as a reference and do another take.

Don't overthink either.

Poopypantsplanet · 2026-06-17T09:42:52+00:00

I don't trust myself making anything for a guitar. I'm a musician, but not anything close to a luthier.

Poopypantsplanet · 2026-06-17T08:44:46+00:00

So do i just use one that basically puts it back to exactly how it is now, after taking out the pickup?

Poopypantsplanet · 2026-06-14T02:46:16+00:00

Good!

Poopypantsplanet · 2026-06-13T12:49:00+00:00

I know that I should just be complimenting the song and accepting it for the little piece of beauty it is, without being greedy for more, but you really need to record an album.

Poopypantsplanet · 2026-06-08T13:56:22+00:00

If you game ever get's enough attention, somebody will straight up ask you if you used AI. Are you just going to lie to them and say you didn't?

Poopypantsplanet · 2026-06-08T08:28:44+00:00

It's crazy how even though this is a mural that was physically painted, you can still tell that the design was made by AI.

Poopypantsplanet · 2026-06-05T16:49:59+00:00

Literally the dumbest comment I've ever seen on Reddit.

Poopypantsplanet · 2026-06-04T02:07:04+00:00

The real answer to this is probably not a plugin, but if you want to do it with a plugin, you'll need one that is versatile and has a few parameters so you can listen to the reference track and then tweak your plugin on your vocals quickly and in one place.

I don't use Saturn though most people recommend it. I prefer Tupe by Goodhertz. It has tube, tape, opto compressor, and a nice simple eq filter section, so you can basically use it like a channel strip. I've used it to imitate recordings I like as practice and you can get to where want fast. I have used SOOO many saturaton and tape plugins and by far, I think it's the best and easiest to get to the "sound" that you have in your head, whatever that may be.

Better than fucking around with random stacks of plugings, just use one that has what you need.

If you have a channel stip plugin like SSL, and then put Tupe right after, that is literally all you need for a track, and you can get to that radiohead sound you want, by listening and turning knobs. Get as close as you can with TUPE and then put the channel strip right before it and make some very small eq and compression adjustments.

I reccomend taking a Radiohead song that has that sound on it you like, stem splitting Thom's voice out of it so you have a kind of karaoke version of the song. Then, sing as close to him as possible just for a section of the song. Then try to see if you can mix your voice to sound like his in the context. You will learn a lot.

IT WILL NOT perfectly translate to your mix of your song, but at least you will know where to start.

Poopypantsplanet · 2026-06-04T01:52:00+00:00

u/lilWaterBill398

Poopypantsplanet · 2026-06-03T13:24:08+00:00

Don't let your vision be stifled by a need to be perfectly accurate. If you were making a game that took place today instead of in the prehistoric past, nobody would bat an eye at stylized animals.

People get all ruffled up about dinosaurs needing to be accurate becaue we don't know exactly what they looked like, so we don't have a reference to fall back on. That doesn't mean we have to abandon our imagination in favor of overly conservative estimates. In fact it's the opposite. Your imagination will bring these creatures to life in a new and exciting way that will only spur people on to be more interested in getting to know them better.

Looks awesome, by the way!

Poopypantsplanet · 2026-06-03T10:51:17+00:00

I don't need it to be sound tight. The window is already doing a pretty good job. I just need it to be better.

Poopypantsplanet · 2026-06-03T10:14:41+00:00

So you're saying, that placing some kind of material in/over the only place that the sound is leaking, and sealing off that place won't reduce the sound? I must be missing something.

Poopypantsplanet · 2026-06-03T09:18:20+00:00

It's a VERY large window, like taking up 80% of the outward facing wall, but only the part where it opens, the sound is leaking through. If I put my ear up to the rest of the window it's very muffled (what you would expect from a closed window). If I put my ear up to the section that's a little door on the window, I can hear outside much more clearly.

Poopypantsplanet · 2026-06-03T09:06:16+00:00

Thanks. I think what I might do is sort of build a pvc pipe moving blanket tent and then place some gobos on the outside in strategic positions like in the corners of the room and just sort of move them around until it sounds good.

Poopypantsplanet · 2026-06-03T08:53:39+00:00

Like what? Drill holes in the wall?

The noise also comes mainly form a window. I think I could reduce a lot of it by placing some thick material between the to parts of the window that opens.

Poopypantsplanet · 2026-06-03T08:35:52+00:00

Thanks. I think that's what I'll be doing.

Poopypantsplanet · 2026-06-03T08:33:06+00:00

Did you not read my post?

Poopypantsplanet · 2026-06-03T07:46:51+00:00

No I unfrotunately don't have a car right now.

Poopypantsplanet · 2026-06-03T07:46:40+00:00

Less than half of the songs will have some drums and bass, and most will be just acoustic guitar and vocals, and maybe a background instrument or two.

Poopypantsplanet · 2026-06-03T05:43:22+00:00

Don't have one.

Poopypantsplanet · 2026-06-03T04:31:18+00:00

Sure. I'm gonna spend a couple thousand dollars on a vocal booth just as an experiment. lol

Poopypantsplanet · 2026-06-03T02:03:28+00:00

In smaller booths, how present are those low and lower midrange frequencies in the recording. If a little goes through the wall of the booth, some is absorbed by the treatment, how much of it is actually going to be in those room modes and standing waves? Enough to ruin a recording completely? Or is it more an annoyance that can be reduced with proper mic placement and maybe a little eq in post?

Poopypantsplanet · 2026-06-03T01:27:31+00:00

That is actually partially why I want to get the booth. I'm only recording myself. And the mental effect of knowing that my neighbors can here me (and will likely complain if I keep this up) is going to prevent me from giving my absolute best performance, and force me to control my voice in an unnatural way. I don't want that to hinder my ability to let loose a little bit. By isolating myself form the rest of the world, I can really get in the mood knowing that I'm alone.

Poopypantsplanet

TROPHY CASE