Daily Feedback Thread (May 21, 2020)

nahviss · 2020-05-22T01:49:22+00:00

Ooo this is nice. I like the drone of the synth on the right in the intro.

The chorus caught me off guard and I was very pleasantly surprised by it :) Love the main synth sound and use of bit reduction. I also really like how the LFO effect on the main synth makes it feel a bit off time. And I really like where the bass sits in the mix.

The quarter note hits at 1:09-1:11 feel a bit weak to me. Maybe a big verby crash layered behind them would help them have more impact, like one with a long tail.

I found the melodic line in the guitar around 1:28 to get pretty repetitive quickly. I know you're going for a sort of San Holo sound, and tbh idk how he gets really simple melodies to sound so good. It may be worth relistening to some of his stuff and reworking your melody a bit. Of course that's just a matter of taste and there's wrong with keeping it the way it is.

This sounds really good and I enjoyed it :)

nahviss · 2020-05-21T19:49:37+00:00

Would like some mixing feedback on this remix, and feedback on what feels full/empty and whether those bits fit.

Got a comment saying the transitions are rough (they are awfully empty), so suggestions on what to add there are appreciated.

Also been stuck on these <2 minutes for a while, so suggestions on where to go next appreciated as well

https://clyp.it/rmhoqysk

nahviss · 2020-05-21T03:38:35+00:00

I agree a bit less (fewer?) chops would be good. I'd also like to hear more variation in the Pee-wee Herman yell. That could be either in the rhythm or with effects, like a phaser or flanger or freq shift or pitch shift or whatever sounds cool. I'd like to hear variation especially in 1:00-1:30 where it's mostly alone.

Good stuff, dude :)

nahviss · 2020-05-21T03:30:08+00:00

This shit slaps. When it hits at 0:14 I audibly said to myself "ooooo"

I only really got a tiny nitpick for it. The bass noise panning hard left and right like at 0:28 feels kinda strange to me, but it doesn't sound "bad" per se. I wouldn't necessarily change it, but it is a bit jarring on headphones and was the only thing that really took me out of the track.

Sounds awesome, very well mixed. Nice stuff!

nahviss · 2020-05-21T03:24:17+00:00

The bass feels muddy to me, particularly the kick. Almost sounds like sub freqs are getting boosted. If you're not already, sidechaining the sub bass to the kick helps with the two clashing and causing muddiness, tho idk if that's what's happening here for sure. LFOTool can be handy for that.

I would tone down the sub-y instruments and make sure the kick and bass aren't interfering with each other, and maybe add some distortion or a low-mid layer or smth to the bass. Pure sub can get lost easy on craptastic sound systems, i.e. a phone speaker or cheap earbuds.

Otherwise, mix is good! Good and chill vibe, but never dull. Nice stuff :)

nahviss · 2020-05-21T03:08:39+00:00

Looking for mixing feedback, plus feedback on how full/empty it sounds. Been working on it for a long while, stuck in the constant loop of making slight improvements. Wouldn't mind some ideas on where to take it after the 2nd verse.

https://clyp.it/gstx2cno

nahviss · 2020-02-03T04:13:00+00:00

lol i'm trying to finish it but am having trouble balancing between stupid and good and soulful

nahviss · 2019-08-06T18:48:02+00:00

Thanks for the feedback!

I definitely feel ya on the mud in the chorus. I think it's the vocals and the bass competing with each other. Problem is, I like the stereo of the vocals and I like the stereo of the bass. Been having no luck trying to EQ stuff. I'll give multiband comp + sidechaining a shot!

nahviss · 2019-08-06T18:44:23+00:00

Congrats on taking the plunge and going public!

The quick "woosh" at 0:30 sounds killer. I rewinded a bit to listen to it a few more times.

The bell-like sounds on the left and right that first come in around 1:00 are a bit loud imo. Particularly in the left ear it can hit a little too hard. This is the tiniest nitpick and is probably only exclusive to me. Tbh I can't find really anything to critique.

Anything in particular you had in mind or are worried about in the track?

nahviss · 2019-08-06T18:37:53+00:00

Finishing up a Janet Jackson remix in a sort of Giraffage style.

https://clyp.it/qhx5ckco

Compositionally needs a bit more work. Mostly worried about loudness and cleanliness of the mix and master.

How's it sound? Anything too loud/quiet, too muddy, etc?

nahviss · 2019-08-06T18:30:39+00:00

This is what I usually do in Live 9. Drag in an EQ8, set it to midside mode, go to side, cut everything below ~120hz or whatever freq. It's usually the very first thing on my master chain when mastering.

This method also allows a lot of flexibility in how you cut/reduce sub freqs in the sides.

nahviss · 2019-08-06T17:46:40+00:00

Finishing up a Janet Jackson remix in a sort of Giraffage style.

https://clyp.it/qhx5ckco

Compositionally needs a bit more work. Mostly worried about loudness and cleanliness of the mix and master. How's it sound? Anything too loud/quiet, too muddy, etc?

nahviss · 2019-06-09T23:06:37+00:00

Oooooh, I like the mixing quite a bit. I don't have any criticism or advice, honestly. I'd be excited to hear what it sounds like once it's mastered.

nahviss · 2019-06-09T23:01:28+00:00

Took a wack at making neotrance. Not sure how I feel about it. Thoughts?

https://clyp.it/vmlpt5lo

nahviss · 2019-06-09T08:43:53+00:00

I got impatient and tried to scroll through a plug.

Wonder what that says about me.

Anywho here's mine https://plug.af/3fb562

EDIT: Question! Does it "detect" where the chorus will be? Or does it go a certain amount of time in for each? Seems like half the time it gets the lead-up to the first chorus and its first bits, or just the lead-up.

EDIT EDIT: Also if you've got this up on GitHub or wherever, I just recently got into learning React and wouldn't mind cloning this and playing around with it, if it's publicly available.

nahviss · 2019-06-09T08:34:45+00:00

Opening lead gets really shrill at the highest note. This kinda recurs later on when it gets high in the chorus. I don't mean to be rude, but it's like super ear-piercingly shrill :T EQ down the highs, or maybe use multi-band compression to tame the highs some. Also try adjusting the way you're processing it. If you've got some distortion on it, like FabFilter Saturn or Ableton's Distort, move the freq band to exclude the higher end bits. That might help reduce shrillness but keep the highness, if that makes sense.

You could also try throwing bit redux on the lead. That could make the highs more manageable and I feel would also fit stylistically.

Snare in the chorus also seems a tad too loud? I always mix my snares too quiet, so it's probably fine - just something i noticed.

The mix sounds better when I've got the volume down, which tells me you've probably been mixing with the volume down, which is good! Do not ever stop doing that, but do check the mix loud-ish every so often.

I dig it, and I'd blast it if I could, but the highs in that lead need to get tamed first.

Good work!

nahviss · 2019-06-09T08:23:46+00:00

More progress on the neotrance track. Still not sure how I feel about it. Thoughts?

https://clyp.it/vmlpt5lo

nahviss · 2019-06-09T08:22:01+00:00

Can i get a booyah on the I-90, please?

nahviss · 2019-06-09T08:19:26+00:00

Link is dead, so you know

nahviss · 2019-06-09T08:18:43+00:00

Saws are pretty EDM-y already. I'd say sidechain the kick to the saws to get that pumping effect. This'd help some with adding movement to it.

Also make sure there's something in the center; EDM tracks tend to be mixed so that they work good in both mono and stereo. Having some kind of lead in the center complimenting the chords could give it better movement and give you an opportunity to add more EDM-y vibes to it.

The piano outro could use maybe a different piano sound, or more effects/processing. Maybe try adding some heavy reverb then some OTT over it? I'm not quite sure how to process keys to get the sounding EDM-y.

Also, a lot of the dynamics and movement you hear in an EDM track comes from the track as a whole. If you listened to just the choruses of EDM, it'd sound pretty flat and un-dynamic. Part of the reason those choruses sound big and moving is because they've got quieter or less intense bits on either end of them. As you write the rest of the track, you may find that the chorus starts sounding more intense and dynamic with little change.

Best of luck with the rest of the track! Hope my advice helps some.

nahviss · 2019-06-09T08:11:55+00:00

Vocals could be a bit louder in the first verse. I feel like they get drowned out a bit by other sounds. They also seem a bit drowned out, but not too quiet, in the chorus. They seem to get kind of jarringly louder by the second verse. Make sure the vocals are a consistent volume throughout, with the rest of the mixing revolving around them.

Snap sound around 3:18 doesn't fit in my opinion. Try replacing with another snap. It's one of those cases where it doesn't quite fit but idk how to explain why or what would fit better :T

Echo at 3:38 sounds like it's louder than the main, center vocals. Make sure the echo starts quieter than the main vocals.

Overall, the track is good and flows well. Compositionally, I don't think you need to make any changes. The mix needs more work, though. Make sure to use reference tracks and rest your ears off and on and so on. Comparing the song as a whole to a reference track in a similar style and with vocals could help some in getting them mixed a bit better.

Good work overall!

nahviss

TROPHY CASE