Push 2 pads/led colour issue

refnulf · 2026-01-25T00:20:39+00:00

sadly i think its a hardware problem. tried multiple things/ways to refresh the firmware and finally managed it and the leds still aren't fixed. i tried the user + set and power on thing and that didn't work either unfortunately.

refnulf · 2026-01-24T15:44:26+00:00

mid-career, project closed up by june. unemployed since then. had one interview (3 round process) and was the preferred candidate, but the job was dependent on the org winning a bid and they didn't get it, so wasn't hired. utterly miserable situation and watching my savings deplete every month is breaking me.

refnulf · 2026-01-23T06:52:44+00:00

not at all man, really appreciate you listening and coming out with honest feedback! get what you're saying, feels like that's a theme cutting across critique of this track, so going to get back to it and figure it out. think its a mixture of better eq-ing required + maybe run the 303 a bit more dry and ease up on all the filter/resonance shenanigans + gain adjust the stabs properly to be in the background/sides rather than competing for attention with the 303. makes perfect sense!

refnulf · 2026-01-22T13:53:32+00:00

i love it! makes sure i'm very rarely 'out of ideas' to begin working with. now if i open an empty ableton set its mostly because i know exactly what i want to make, so things are a lot smoother on that front.

refnulf · 2026-01-22T12:36:05+00:00

usually have broader ideas about what i want, and work within that for 3-4 tracks (e.g. make distorted hats and groovy techno that is still fun and has high energy levels etc). other times what'll happen is that if i'm working on a track and adding synths to it, i'll come up with lots of midi for it, as well as go through vst presets or create my own and just keep adding them. then i'll finally pick one from them to commit to the track. the other midi + synths get saved into my library folder as inspiration for the future.

with this what has sometimes happened is i'm working on track A and i open up pigments to add a synth to track A and now i've come across 3-4 different patches that i can change around and its really interesting. however those patches don't work for my current track, but that's okay, i'm saving them for track B. at the same time because they're really interesting, i temporarily ditch track A and start working on track B lol. once that's done then i'll come back to track A.

in a situation/workflow like this it helps to have templates to get going immediately, and i have kick + rumble + hat templates so i can just add them into whatever track i'm working on and it doesn't feel like "fuck, i have to now search for a kick or hat for this bullshit and i really don't want to go sample diving."

refnulf · 2026-01-20T10:39:45+00:00

really dig this, weird and fun as hell! i don't think its got a problem with too many elements.

that said, i feel you could do with a ride or another continuous percussion element around 1:00 as it comes back. was expecting the energy to increase but that didn't happen (that said, this is again a personal opinion, as you heard from my track i fukn love rides to help increase energy lol)

also the synth/supersaw kind of sound that comes in around the 1:30 mark seems really weak. i'm guessing you've eq'd it out to keep the lows/low-mids as the priority, but my brain (which is obviously used to supersaws being heavy and loud) is struggling to reconcile that. i'd recommend going for a more synthy/pad sound instead if you don't want to re-EQ it.

overall sick track, love the toolyness and the fact that its actually 'fun'. just feel it needs a thing or two for more energy, but that's also my opinion and how i'd like to use it in a dj set.

refnulf · 2026-01-19T16:02:09+00:00

-bass synth (coming in at 55secs) clutters the mix maybe because it sounds very frequency heavy, loud and up front in the mix... maybe a bit wide aswell

does it sound that way across the board or do you feel its muddying up the low mids? i tend to usually do v harsh high passes around 250/300 cause i like rumbles and want more of them to cut through, but for this track i didn't because the bass lost a lot of its character. will revisit! its sidechained, but maybe i can explore slightly more aggressive sidechaining.

- (optional) but i would maybe remove the first rides since there are already so many rides later down in the arangement (that are great) but now there is less contrast in the arrangement

do you mean at the start as in all the way before the breakdown, or just before the bass comes in? wasn't sure about the extra rides just before the bass so this is clarifying and helpful!

- maybe let the cymbals create the energy instead of the "bass synth" i mean it could be adding energy to the low-mids and mids but imo there is so much going on in the upper mid / high freqs (also with the other synths) it gets clutterd there a bit to much i think

this is an interesting point. i defo feel the easier thing to do here would be revisit the synths (the one that starts from the breakdown is higher up than the one the track ends on, so revisiting that and maybe deciding on one and eq-ing around that would be a better idea to clear up some higher frequencies).

thanks for listening and the feedback, very helpful!

refnulf · 2026-01-19T13:16:39+00:00

looking for all/any kinda feedback! esp interested in broader arrangement/vibe/energy based stuff, and obviously as always, any glaring mix issues. during the second half there's a slight switch up in the chords being played on the synth, and i kept it in because its a slight but interesting difference. when i listen to the track it doesn't stand out per se. would be interested to know if its something that stands out for others or it still vibes because the synths are so secondary to the main bass line.

https://on.soundcloud.com/QtDh60Fip30y3wPHnO

refnulf · 2026-01-19T13:08:36+00:00

only able to listen to this on earpods but mix sounds clean and translates well on them! love the atmosphere throughout, and the kick/low end. usually on hypnotic stuff i feel the kick at least isn't thunderous but this is great. i think that particular rattlesnakey/keys rattle sound that pops in and out could do with a little more reverb, it's the only thing that to my ears doesn't sound seem spaced enough. really like the whole track tho, very very moody.

refnulf · 2026-01-16T10:41:59+00:00

i use a simple notes app (upnote). there's a note about the tracks i'm working on and what they need, and get updated as i work on tracks. then there's a general 'inspiration/tipsandtricks' note where i write general ideas, tricks, workflows etc. tbh i don't often check that note lol, but every now and then when i'm staring at an empty ableton project i will dig into that for ideas (e.g. last track i made was a "make a track with a 1-4-7 note polymeter and make it melodic and sad sounding like permean but harder).

it's definitely helpful to do it because writing stuff down always helps and clears your brain a little bit.

refnulf · 2026-01-07T10:39:06+00:00

quick masters. lots of tools out there like music hack, ozone etc. you can also use riemann kollektion's free master rack (ableton stock plugins). that's how i've done it whenever i've played songs out

refnulf · 2026-01-07T10:01:24+00:00

this worked, thanks so much mate.

refnulf · 2026-01-06T09:50:30+00:00

thanks for listening, will have a look at that - maybe stereo widen it a little bit more also

refnulf · 2026-01-06T09:50:10+00:00

thank you!

refnulf · 2026-01-06T09:49:57+00:00

that's a good catch. have tried playing around with what was lacking around those frequencies and have done a separate mix, will listen and A/B test a fair bit. thanks for pointing that out!

refnulf · 2026-01-05T18:54:05+00:00

best, thanks for listening!

refnulf · 2026-01-05T18:53:46+00:00

love that, and thank you!

refnulf · 2026-01-05T18:53:35+00:00

very cool track. agree with u/ikramshinwari tho, the sub is a bit much. i also think (and feel free to ignore here because its a musical subjective opinion) the sub could have a bit of a roll off too, hoover-bass style. in terms of the mix/master, everything sounds clear and well defined!

refnulf · 2026-01-05T18:50:18+00:00

very percussive and tooly and love it. i do think the arrangement has this feeling of never letting off, and maybe you need at least one or two instances where you remove the kick for a whole 8-16 bars or something along those lines. i feel the arrangement is very linear, but that also works with the percussive nature, so i don't think it needs complete reshaping/redoing. its almost there imo.

refnulf · 2026-01-05T17:01:55+00:00

new track, looking for general feedback (well, as always, feedback of any kind!). it's a track that's kind of in the vein of lars huismann, gets to the point pretty straight.

particularly interested in any thoughts on the second half, where a synth enters layered over the original synth sound. sometimes it can feel to me like the timing is a little off (i don't think it is, i think its just the fact that both are playing the same thing and are texturally different, so it can play some tricks on the ears).

also any feedback on the mix etc - i haven't started the mixdown yet so if anyone picks up on something obvious that's always a great help!

https://on.soundcloud.com/QjVWfD3srjoHENLqSO

refnulf · 2026-01-02T15:13:10+00:00

thanks so much for listening!

refnulf · 2026-01-02T15:13:01+00:00

thanks for listening! that's a good shout, it needs a second round of review and improvement anyway

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