One Synth Challenge #68: Synth1 by Ichiro Toda

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excessional wrote:I felt that, in the absence of being able to add vocals to the song, it seemed a little 'samey' throughout, so I threw together a 8 bar break section and have inserted it to add some more melodic variety...
Nice :-) That part is a good addition to the song.
Perhaps you should also re-check your EQ on that "glockenspiel"-instrument coming in around 0:50. It has some high frequencies that really hurt my ears.

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I actually turned it down a tad in the last version...to me it just sounds clean but it does cur thru the mix a bit. It's actually the same patch as the other leads rather than a different instrument, just a different instance, so should be easy to fix..
I'll get SPAN out and have a good look at it...
Thanks. .
Sonar Platinum, Ignite and Ableton Live 9 DAWS
AIR Hybrid 3, Synthmaster, Z3ta+2, Addictive Drums 2, True Piano Amber, Rapture, Dim Pro, BFD Eco, AAS Strum, Addictive Keys, Synth 1 VSTs
Nektar LX61, Korg MicroKey and Akai Pro LPD8 Pad

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excessional wrote:to me it just sounds clean but it does cur thru the mix a bit.
Just loaded your track into renoise and took a look at the frequencies. There are strong peaks between 9000 and 12000+ Hz. This range is always a bit tricky, because if you have too less of it, it will sound dull on a linear setup (probably in your mixing enviroment), but if you have too much, the frequencies pop out heavily on "normal" stereo systems with "loudness" on, like the one I use for everyday listening.
Also not everyone seems to be so sensitive to those frequencies like I am.

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spider-j wrote:Also not everyone seems to be so sensitive to those frequencies like I am.
Also, different headphones and/or monitor speakers (and of course all kinds of consumer listening devices) can sound very different. I got a couple pairs of semi-expensive headphones and found they have VERY different sound. One (the more expensive one, Audio-Technica M50-x) had way too much high-end to be worth mixing on, or even listening on, really.

Out of curiosity, what are you guys using to listen to the track on?

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fantastic subject

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My entry for this month, mixed on my trusty Sennheiser HD600 headphones :-)

https://soundcloud.com/pedalsteeldrummer/shambhala
"Shambhala"
In Tibetan Buddhist and Indian Hindu/Buddhist traditions, "Shambhala" is a mythical hidden kingdom.

TRACK NOTES:

Created for the KVR One-Synth-Challenge 68: Synth1.

All sounds from Ichiro Toda's Synth1 VSTi synth. I used a few of the included presets but mostly my own custom patches. Some of the drum sounds are built from several patches layered together.

28 instances of "Synth1". Mixed/mastered in Cockos Reaper 4.71 with the following fx:

TRACKING:
(EQ) Cockos ReaEQ
(Compression/Limiting) Cockos ReaComp, VOS ThrillSeeker VBL
(Stereo Width) Cockos ReaDelay

BUS FX:
(Delay/Echo) Cockos ReaDelay, arcDev ET-301
(Reverb) VOS epicVerb (1 x hall, 1 x room and 1 x plate)

MIX BUS:
Klanghelm DC1A, Cockos ReaXComp, Cockos ReaEQ, Voxengo Marvel GEQ, VOS FerricTDS, TDR VOS SlickEQ, TLs Maximizer

DR10
http://www.pleasurizemusic.com/en/our-aim
better and more dynamic sound

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I'm strictly at the budget end and tend to do this stuff late at night when the wife and kids are asleep...so I use Sennheiser 205's. Also my old ears probably aren't that sensitive to high end stuff. .
Sonar Platinum, Ignite and Ableton Live 9 DAWS
AIR Hybrid 3, Synthmaster, Z3ta+2, Addictive Drums 2, True Piano Amber, Rapture, Dim Pro, BFD Eco, AAS Strum, Addictive Keys, Synth 1 VSTs
Nektar LX61, Korg MicroKey and Akai Pro LPD8 Pad

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Nice... I mix on even-older modded Senn HD 555s and test (and vote, sorry) on HD 428s. Often get bass surprises when I play on the stereo. Need to watch that spectrum meter more closely, maybe switch to SPAN.

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OK - SPAN showed some nasty harmonics up above 10k there - I stuck a filter on it to take them out..

Is this any better?

https://soundcloud.com/andy-mcnish/exce ... unners-2-1
Sonar Platinum, Ignite and Ableton Live 9 DAWS
AIR Hybrid 3, Synthmaster, Z3ta+2, Addictive Drums 2, True Piano Amber, Rapture, Dim Pro, BFD Eco, AAS Strum, Addictive Keys, Synth 1 VSTs
Nektar LX61, Korg MicroKey and Akai Pro LPD8 Pad

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excessional wrote:Is this any better?
Yes, it's very smooth now. Still a good, clear sound, but no more disturbing frequencies.

My home audio setup: Pioneer a-10k amplifier, "cheap" 3-way speakers, SuperluxHD681 phones.
For everyday listening I have loudness on. I usually don't mix "important" stuff (for others) at home, but the amp also has a "direct" button which is a pretty nice feature. My entry was mixed here.
At the recording studio: Genelec 8260 APM

But my ultimate reference setup is my notebook with ultra-cheap Logitech z120 ;-) If it sounds good there, it probably will everywhere else.

I stopped trusting my ears when it comes to EQ. As I said I'm very sensitive to high freqs and always tended to cut them down too much and had too much mid freqs. My friend with whom I run the recording studio had it the other way around. We often ended like: "man, your mix sounds like crap" but the other couldn't really hear what was disturbing. So we spent a lot of time analysing and comparing our mixes with professional mixes. We came to the conclusion that to achieve a balanced mix, we better stop EQing things that they sound "good" in our ears, but take a look at the spectrum meter more often.

@pedalsteeldrummer:
Nice, chilling track. I wonder about "noise" though. Did you really add a track with white noise to make it sound more natural? If yes -> nice idea :-) I did something similar in my intro by not having "note off" command after the first HiHat sound.

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My home low budget setup is recorded and mixed thus:

For basic mix and stereo placement I use my old Sennheiser open ms100 phones, great for mid+highs. I also chuck on my closed RED5 RVH90's for another check. After that it's mixing at high and low volumes on my el-cheapo Ms40's (don't laugh!). Signal path is all digital (fibre) to the speakers/phones. Then once I have a mix I sort of like I play it on my hi-fi systems - 100 watt NAD amp + small Mission speakers and then for a final blast on my 200 watt NAD amp + big Mission 770's, you can "feel" the low end on these.

... and repeat until just right to me ...

dB

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doctorbob wrote:...For basic mix and stereo placement I use my old Sennheiser open ms100 phones, great for mid+highs. I also chuck on my closed RED5 RVH90's for another check. After that it's mixing at high and low volumes on my el-cheapo Ms40's (don't laugh!). Signal path is all digital (fibre) to the speakers/phones. Then once I have a mix I sort of like I play it on my hi-fi systems - 100 watt NAD amp + small Mission speakers and then for a final blast on my 200 watt NAD amp + big Mission 770's, you can "feel" the low end on these...
Wow, that's a lot of stuff that sounds all kinds of high-fidelity!

Well, as I live out of my car, I just connect up my laptop to the trusty 1/8"-to-tape converter, and mix and master on my car speakers. This actually works great, since I listen to the most music in my car, I know the frequency response the speakers will give like the back of my hand. But, when it gets cold, the speakers tend to have a lot less bass... I guess because they're very old and there is very little insulation. This can be difficult to deal with when trying to get a consistent mix. Occasionally, the sounds stops altogether if the temperature drops below 28F/-2C. This may be related to the battery failing at those temperatures.

At this point, I have to use SPAN to entirely listen to and mix my track.

To top it off, one of the rear speakers is out and there is a strange noise that has developed, so I'm constantly muting tracks to try to find the culprit and make it stop, only to realize it was just the car stereo all along. And there is a problem with the stereo that periodically picks up the radio and mixes the signal back into the tape send, so I think I've added vocals to my tracks. Needless to say, this can become very confusing.

Anyway, I guess whatever works, right?

Here's a picture:
crappy-car.jpg
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Last edited by z.prime on Thu Jan 17, 2019 1:44 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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z.prime wrote: Well, as I live out of my car, I just connect up my laptop to the trusty 1/8"-to-tape converter, and mix and master on my car speakers. This actually works great, since I listen to the most music in my car, I know the frequency response the speakers will give like the back of my hand. But, when it gets cold, the speakers tend to have a lot less bass... I guess because they're very old and there is very little insulation. This can be difficult to deal with when trying to get a consistent mix. Occasionally, the sounds stops altogether if the temperature drops below 28F/-2C. This may be related to the battery failing at those temperatures.

At this point, I have to use SPAN to entirely listen to and mix my track.

To top it off, one of the rear speakers is out and there is a strange noise that has developed, so I'm constantly muting tracks to try to find the culprit and make it stop, only to realize it was just the car stereo all along. And there is a problem with the stereo that periodically picks up the radio and mixes the signal back into the tape send, so I think I've added vocals to my tracks. Needless to say, this can become very confusing.

Anyway, I guess whatever works, right?

Here's a picture:
Image
You're an artist after my own heart, Zprime!
I read more than post = I listen more than I talk

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Too funny... reminds me of back when I used to bum rides to school with my brother. His car only had a tape deck, and it could only play backwards. So we listened to all our old faves from a new perspective, playing a bit of name that tune, with a twist. Other passengers weren't amused.

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My entry for One-Synth-Challenge 68: Synth1
Crossing the Brooklyn Bridge

https://soundcloud.com/peter-macmurchy/ ... dge-synth1

Inspired by crossing the Brooklyn Bridge by foot from Manhattan to Brooklyn. The Brooklyn Bridge is a hybrid bridge, so expect cable-stay strings, suspension snares, and towers of dubstep. You know what happened to the people who worked on the Brooklyn Bridge? THEY DIED, many from The Bends. Happy Halloween!

Photo courtesy my wife.

Made in Studio One Producer 2.6.3 x64
27 Synth1 instances

Presonus FX:
Mixverb x 3
Room Reverb x 2
Compressor x 4
Tricomp x 2
Pro EQ x 12
Spectrum Meter x 1
Limiter x 4
Ampire x 1
Analog Delay x 2
Beat Delay x 3

AudioDamage RoughRider x64 x 2
Greywolf BlueArp x 7
DCAM FreeComp x 3
Voxengo Tube Amp x 3
Limiter6-x64 x 1
Molot03-x64 x 3
LeXtac x 1
Klanghelm DC1A2 x 2
DR 6

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