WIPs/unfinished tunes for feedback * no finished tunes *

[BASSFACE]

Heres an unfinshed I'm working on atm Clips taken outta the movie fifth element Soundcloud

[jakedubber]

@almostskate100 - Cheers for the feedback I'm fucking loving your tune dude! Really reminds me of stuff by Heyoka and Vibe Squad. Your drums and percussion sounds are spot on. I reckon you need to stick in a bit more sub in that main bass sound though. I can hear that there's a bit, but when it's really in your face, the glitchy-ness of the synth will sound so much cooler. In the breakdown I think it'd be nice to take out the drums for a bit. They're pretty hard-hitting, and it'd be nice to have a break for a bit before we go back in for some more. Just like 8 bars before the first drop. Excited to see where you take this!

@jimbeaux - Fuck me mate! Those bass sounds are filthy as shit. Love it. Your kick and snare are really far back in the mix. Should bring them out by 3-4 dB. The cymbals are fine at that level, but I reckon you don't need them when the bass drops out leaving just the drums - would be cool to get a few moments of total silence in there, inbetween the kick and snare, to make the rest seem even more heavy. Reckon some reverb on the cymbals would sound nice to, they're pretty dry at the moment. Apart from that, it's just the obvious things really - melody, structure etc... Looking forward to this.

@GuitarJon - Cheers for the feedback! I really enjoy what you've done with this, but a lot of my feedback from last time still applies. The drums need beefing up, especially the snare like @BudSpencertron says. The tune is still SUPER-compressed/limited. At least have the tune start a little quieter that it does. Nearly breaks my ears everytime. Even a fade in would be fine (although not ideal). Just something to ease you into how loud the tune is. The bass sounds could still do with some work. Sounding simple and a little presetty (sorry). Still need some more sub in there and , personal taste though this is, I'm really not a fan of the vocal bass sound (ie-ie-ie!). I'm a big fan of the synths rising in pitch, and the melody in general. The vocals fit in really well and work with dubstep perfectly. Looking forward to hearing the next update on this

@BudSpencertron - This is heavy, man! LOVE that bass sound. The slightly out-of-time drums are a really nice touch. Can't tell if the drums fading out are bart of the tune or the video. If it's for the tune, I really don't think it works. Fade-outs on stuff like drums is pretty much always weird. Hard to give much feedback as I haven't got the whole tune to listen to. Looking forward to this being up on Soundcloud. I think what you have is fucking awesome, so if you just do more of that I'll be happy

@BASSFACE - Could you please kindly post at least three pieces of feedback on people's posted tunes here before asking people to give feedback on yours? Them's the rules...

Thanks for all the feedback on my tune, it really helped get this done. You can click here to go to the finished tune which is up for free download. Enjoy.

[ZankUSA]

@almostskate100 -Really really really diggin' your tune right now!! Diggin' the vibes as well.. Drums and perc are nice too. Sub > Midrange bass, people wanna feel bass, nice hear it.

@jimbeaux - Filthy bass line, love it. The kick and snare is veryyyy quiet.. sits way to far back in the mix.

@GuitarJon - Not a fan of the vocal bass but it's sounding very good I like where you are going with this idea keep it up man and happy producing!

@BudSpencertron - Very heavy, turning out very nice keep working on it!

Just a WIP I've been working on, feedback anyone?!

Soundcloud

[almostskate100]

@ZankUSA I really like the plucks synths you use throughout the piece. The drop is fuckin beauty dude, I chilled with it sooo hard haha. And the vocal sample is perfect. My two main suggestions are: 1) I'd work on your snare -- it sounds really thin. I feel like there's a certain type of sound you might be working towards with it, but i think it's not 100% polished yet. The other drum parts sound great. 2) I'd speed up your hats about halfway through the drop to give it some nice, groovy flow. The bassline is so perfect and works so well, but the energy kinda dies down towards the middle of the drop. I think some quicker hi hat patterns might solve that. Also, a minor issue, but I might add some reverb on the bongo drums to give some more space to the drum kit you're using. But it's up to you man -- overall, it's a really cool start. Keep me updated on the finished song! I wish I could make chill ass songs like that haha!

BASSFACE You could use some more sub I think. The midrange bass sounds are a little thin sounding too, so I think you could give them some more beef / stereo width, perhaps with some chorus'ing or something? Also, you might want to try introducing some other midrange sounds in the second half of the drop to vary things up a bit. The vocal samples are cool, but I don't think you need to use them as frequently as you do. You've definitely got some cool rhythms and drum patterns going on, so keep that up. I especially like the part at 1:03 where it's super syncopated or something for a few seconds haha. But yeah, its a cool start to what I'm sure will be a bangin track -- just work on the mixdown a bit more to clear things up a bit, and add some beef to that midrange bass!

BudSpencerTron I think you should try adding some reverb on certain elements to give your track a little more depth cuz right now it kinda seems like everything is sort of competing for space. I'm not sure what it is, but I think the sub bass might be a little too loud too. I totally dig the part starting at 1:27 and wish it didn't cut out haha! That part was fuckin mean muggin'. In terms of drum patterns, I think I would prefer a simpler, straight 16th note hi hat pattern to give it more flow, cuz right now the sort of triplet pattern you got going on seems a little out of place...but i think it could work. It might just need a little more variation. Up to you though. Overally a pretty heavy, powerful track. I like where it's going, I just think it needs a bit of mixing work, which is always the hard part! The video is cool too and worked pretty well with your tune lol

jimbeaux Dude, I love how it just goes right into the drop lol, I don't know if you intended for it to be like that in the final product, but I totally think you should leave it like that lol. The patterns are really cool and I think it's a solid foundation for a track. I would try automating certain parameters on your main bass sound so that at certain points it "opens" up (stereo width), cuz right now it's got a good wobbling motion, but I think you could take it to the next level by giving it some added width at certain parts. Also, you're kinda losing your snare in the mix, but that might just be a matter of adjusting the levels a bit. Definitely a cool bass patch though man

------------
Thanks so much for the feedback so far on my "Line Work" track guys, it means a lot to me -- I'll be working on some changes soon Here's another WIP: Soundcloud

[jetpack]

@ BudSpencertron

I actually liked the 1st track in your sig the most...Beast of a sub. I could jam this any time.

@ BASSFACE

Yeah, definitely could use more sub bass, but :30-on, total banger. I would suggest throwing in different crashes and beef up that snare.

@ ZankUSA

Great pads and feel. Heavy and chill. Some of those stabs (:57-on) could benefit from some delay and/or more reverb (my opinion)


Here's a new one. I seem to like the 80-85 BPM more and more. Don't worry about criticizing or hurting my feelings, it's why I post WIPs here.

Soundcloud

[aeherts12]

sorry for not being able to say things like "boost the levels at such and such" or "your mixdown is perfect" as I really don't feel qualified yet to comment on those things. just starting out haha

@Zank USA: I really love the vibes I get from this! its so chill and relaxed, and I love that vocal sample. the perussion works perfectly. keep this up man

@subfect: is that drake? lol I think so? never was a fan of the guy if it is him but I like how he fits in this track. it's very subtle. And just like Zank USA, its very chill. I enjoy how you sneak that little growl like bass in there, and the reverb on the background synth fills the track out perfectly. great work.

@lightshapers: this track is the perfect fusion of that dubstep bass sound with housy synth chords. I also am really digging the drum loop. shit's epic.

Here's a little something I've been throwing together over the past day or so. Trying to learn Massive. Still needs a breakdown and final drop. No EQ'ing or other shit.. yet (I'm learning). And before you say "those drums suck," I will have you know that I hate them, too. I'm just broke

Soundcloud

[Aufnahmewindwuschel]

BudSpencerTron I think you should try adding some reverb on certain elements to give your track a little more depth cuz right now it kinda seems like everything is sort of competing for space. I'm not sure what it is, but I think the sub bass might be a little too loud too. I totally dig the part starting at 1:27 and wish it didn't cut out haha! That part was fuckin mean muggin'. In terms of drum patterns, I think I would prefer a simpler, straight 16th note hi hat pattern to give it more flow, cuz right now the sort of triplet pattern you got going on seems a little out of place...but i think it could work. It might just need a little more variation. Up to you though. Overally a pretty heavy, powerful track. I like where it's going, I just think it needs a bit of mixing work, which is always the hard part! The video is cool too and worked pretty well with your tune lol

thx for going into detail
i will try some reverb on some part for sure haha but i didnt make the hi hats myself i just copied the midi of the melody which i made with a midi note creator haha but i see your point
hm its always hard to please everybody some might actually like the anti shuffle hm but i didnt heard the sub overpowering could be my headphones

and thanks for the kind words from the others hope i can present a longer version soon

[jimbeaux]

thank you to - Guitarjon, Budspencertron, Jakedubber, zankUSA, and almostskate100


@guitarjon - sonasty - songs about females in motion never fail. lol. overall track is very well produced in my opinion. mixdown sounds good on my end. synths are very 'synthy' lol i like the contrast, very skrillish. good job sir.

@Budspencertron - raiden waxon - im liking those tormented sounds in your basses. i feel like the bottom end of this track seems a bit strong. the kick is alot louder than the snare, an the sub is a bit strong. im liking the groove alot. just do a few more rounds on your mix, this will be solid.

@zankUSA - pikne - lovely intro, progression is solid. totally didn't expect the drop, so glad it's a chill tune! i'd say the foundation is laid on this one, make it longer, an introduce bits to foreshadow the second drop. great work!

@almostskate100 - theoutliner - very unique sounding. almost kinda crazy. but it like it! lol. its so out of place for me i can't really suggest what you could add. the main basses sound kinda thin to me, definitely wet sounding. keep it up man.

@jetpack - dream - interesting vibes in this. i like the progression you've got going on. the top synths are kinda standing out more than your basses. i'd try a low mid scoop on your bass group. just a little bend can go a long way. some risers an sweeps could really help tie this together.

@aeherts12 - thundersmash - pretty nice for learning a new synth. i'd say you've got your structure an foundation under wraps. as far as drums, money shouldn't matter.. there are tons of free samples out there, and tons of tutorials on layers drums to get those results your after. it took a good while before i made a kit i was happy with... and im still not quite happy, those snares keep me up at night. mix this down, an polish'er up.

so what are some of your guys techniques for getting a wider stereo image on your mono basses?? i've been leaving out dimension expander, an reverbs from massive so i can post process stereo imaging after resampling. i've tried stereo imaging vst's set up on sends, with eq in the chain first, to only allow the top freqs to be affected by the widening an then the signal pushed back to the dry. but i can't seem to be happy with the fact that most of these widening vst's push the sound to on side or the other with no pan compensation. any help with this??
Soundcloud

[jakedubber]

@jimbeaux - I normally have the sub on one synth and the main grit of the sound on another. Allows me to go a bit mental with distortion and stereo width while keeping a nice clean mono sub. A bit of chorus before some stereo distortion can get good results. I sometimes like to group three synths for the main grit of my sound. One is the really low/low mid grumble and set to center, while the other two are panned left and right (as far as you like, as long as they're equidistant to the center). I'll start with these two being clone synths and then change small things about them - even just detuning them a little from each other (only about 5 centitones each, in opposite directions). If they're exactly the same and panned equally left and right, they just come through as mono. Once I've done that I normally pitch them both up a couple octaves and bring them down about 5/6 db so they aren't the main sound, they just add stereo width. It can sometimes sound cool to just have the two panned and detuned, without the center one. The sub will fill out the center for you. Hope that helps. I'm really interested to find out what techniques the other producers on here use. Can always learn something right?

[filtersnake]

@jimbeaux - i normally freq split my basses and have the lows set at about 50% width using abletons utility plugin. the mids 100% and highs 150% I change these depending on the sound i want. Then process each band seperately to give it a more fuller sound. Also i use izotopes ozone's stereo width plugin as well if needed. Also duplicating the bass and maybe having one playing at a lower octave with less width compared to one in a higher register sometimes works.

@ jetpack - liking the top synth on this, keeps the melody going. fits really well with the track. Though some of the heavier synths that come in dont quite fit as well. If you spend a bit of time mixing these in it will sound dope! I think the snare could use a little bit of work, maybe add a deeper snare that gives it more weight, with a bit of tail. Also as someone said before risers and impacts are the order of the day when it comes to your transitions between sections and ideas. hope that helps

@almostskate100 - squelchstep? i think you might have come up with a new subgenre haha. reminds me of some primus for some reason. really unique and cheeky sounding. def got the groove going here. maybe you could add some hat movements to really get a bounce going.

@BudSpencertron - awesome game that vid fits so well with your song! i need to try this with one of my tracks i think! nice groove bass sounds heavy and those kicks are really booming. i presume the fade in and out is only there for vid purposes? after it comes back in maybe you could add some little incidentals in now and again? sounding tight though can't really say much more than good job!

kinda changed this track a bit since i last posted I've cut the drums out at the beginning to give it a more epic build up. hope its worked! vocal samples i've decided to keep the same. but if anyone can direct me to some better/similar ones that would be awesome.

Soundcloud

[almostskate100]

so what are some of your guys techniques for getting a wider stereo image on your mono basses?? i've been leaving out dimension expander, an reverbs from massive so i can post process stereo imaging after resampling. i've tried stereo imaging vst's set up on sends, with eq in the chain first, to only allow the top freqs to be affected by the widening an then the signal pushed back to the dry. but i can't seem to be happy with the fact that most of these widening vst's push the sound to on side or the other with no pan compensation. any help with this??

No problem, thanks for your feedback too! Crazy is what I aim for haha.

Have you tried using multiple voices in Massive and then turning on the "Pan Position" parameter and making it wider? That sometimes works pretty well. Other times it'll just completely fuck up your original sound...but give that a try. Dimension Expander is ok...sometimes, it just makes stuff really muddy though imo. I usually widen everything above around 150 Hz to leave ample room for my kicks and snares

[Warlokk]

*NVM I DELETED THIS POST*

[nzym]

@BudSpencertron big one! going with jakedubber comments on this one: great bass and the slightly out of time drums are indeed a nice touch.

@almostskate100 Tune gave me a smile. Like the slimey wobble sound. I think taking some kicks and hats off beat would be something to consider. Pretty sure it would fit and give it a bit more special.

@filtersnake would leave the high passed kicks/snare out at the beginning and maybe low-pass instead of high pass the kicks right before the drop. to give a bit more weight to the intro, imho i think that should give it a bit more epicness But overall nice build up!

My latest WIP titled Flux:
Currently working on the intro so it starts right away It needs some subtle variation still but wanted to check with others before it gets finished this weekend.
Soundcloud

[almostskate100]

Thanks Jim, Nzym, and Filter for the feedback. Always helpful. I'm workin' on developing that style, so hopefully I can put up some re-edits soon.

Nzym The bass / subbass is beautiful man - very spacey and unique. I like how it pans around the stereo field. That was a good touch. The kicks sound a little weak and could use a little more low end I think (without interfering with your sub, of course). The snare is alright, but I think it'd be better with a little bit of reverb on it, just cuz it sounds a little flat right now. The hats are perfect though. I'd also like to hear a couple subtle cymbal crashes here and there to break things up, but that's up to you. Overall, this is really sick though, and I'm excited to see how it drops in the final mix. Keep me updated!

Filtersnake Definitely dig the vocal samples. There's a ton of cool sounds going on in this song. I gigged out hard at the drop, its SICK! I think some of your midrange bass sounds (especially the first one that hits at the drop, which is my favorite) could use a little but more high end though to add some definition and crispness. It kinda sounds like there's a low pass filter or something on it. The end is cool too, you should definitely leave those couple synth hits in there haha. I have a folder of vocal samples sort of similar to that one I think...if i find it I can send it to you -- but you might already have it. Anyways, cool track so far man. I also love the little drum fill at 1:42. Good touch

aeherts12 Yeah dude, for just learning Massive, these sounds are pretty cool man. The vocal sample is hilarious at the beginning, I lost it in the coffee shop I'm at right now ahhaha. I agree with Jimbeaux -- don't waste money on drum samples. There's sooo many free ones out there that are just as good. Just work on getting the levels of individual drum hits right. If you want some basic tips (I don't claim to be an expert at all, though):
-Group all of your drum hits into a single Drum Bus so that you can process all of the individual sounds as a collective unit. Add some saturation to the
entire drum bus
-Set up a couple sends that you can route your Drum Bus too... I like to use 4 sends: short reverb, long reverb, dub delay (triplets), and 'loop' delay
(quarter notes). If you use these properly, they help out a ton.
-Learn which frequencies are 'muddy' in your drums. I usually cut frequencies below 90-100 hZ and a notch at around 400 hZ it my kicks. I usually cut
frequencies below 250 hZ in my snares and add a little emphasis at around 1k hZ. I also like to add a little emphasis on the very high frequencies in my
hats to make them crisp sounding. Just use your ears though, cuz these are just general guidelines, not rules.
-If you want to have super heavy hitting drums, learn about stuff like parallel processing and shit, but I never really do that. You can also layer sounds together, but I only really ever do that for snares. It requires much more careful EQing, and honestly, I don't think it's really necessary most of the time if you start out with good samples.

But yeah, when you're first starting out, it's all about picking up as many decent samples as you can find, messing around, and picking up little tips and tricks from people along the way. Drum processing is a bitch and hard to master, but just keep at it...The important thing is you obviously can write songs, which is the hardest part for most people haha. Anyways, keep it up. I digged your tune man!

Here's another WIP from me, though feedback on either "Line Work" or "Flow" (posted above, or on my soundcloud) would still be greatly appreciated!

Soundcloud

[1stfiest]

@nzym pretty dam filthy, what are you using to manipulate the sound of the bass? just filters or flangers of phasers etc? bet the full version will sound dope!

@filtersnake really nice work, so much variation sounds like you have like 30 instruments playing in 1 bar. hard not to like this with so much going, i don't know what your doing at the end of the song, but a breakdown would sure be nice.

@JimBeaux pretty cool, sounds a bit too much like that skrillex dog sound though. drums and such are nice though.

Here is my WIP, guess where the samples from

Soundcloud

p.s. sorry it's a bit quiet

[Revival]

@JimBeaux Nice sound and groove you got there, the way I get my basses wide is that I bounce the synth to audio, duplicate it twice and leave one right in the center and then pan the other two hard left and hard right. I'll eq the other two that I panned with a high pass up to 500 hzish and it should give it some stereo width. I also send all my basses/lead to a bus where I have an instance of Izotope on it. I use the Stereo Imaging to make the highs and the mid-highs some more width.

@ZankUSA Nice chill vibes you have there, really digging that groove you have going on. I'd also add a bit more percussion and beef up that snare if that was my track. Maybe give that clap a little tail of reverb but really digging those bongos you have in there

@nzym nice man, loving that synth you have in there. Nice and dark and menacing Loving the drum work also. big ups!

Here's a WIP I'm working on. I know the intro is a little repetitive. It's a chillstep song and I hope you guys enjoy!


Soundcloud

[dubesteppe]

@Revival i like the arps in the begging. the piano melody is really nice too. your snare sounds a little bit too over compressed in my opinion. the uplifting synth in the drop is great. thats a really solid track! in the intro you have to make it build up into the drop some how.

@1stfiest thats some popper dub! i really like the cymbal patterns and the bass rhythm. To me, the intro was really boring. Spice it up a little!

@almostskate100 The panning of your snaps is really cool. I was almost expecting a dirty south snare roll in the intro, hahaha. I like the melody and the bass progression, but i feel like the melody is just a little bit to quiet. Also, at times when you have just bass and drums it feels really empty

@nzym those are some really cool bass sounds you have. i feel like there should be a pause in there some where, or some sort of variation.

@filtersnake thats an epic intro! also that snare is amazing!!! how did you make it? with a snare that punchy i feel like the kick should be a little punchier. that little break you put in the middle was nice. your song flows pretty well

@jimbeaux that bass rhythm is great! imo your bassline is a little bit to distorted, but it has a nice crunchyness to it. try putting "dub expander" vst on it if you are looking for some stereo width.


heres my wip. the last part is me experimenting with different variations
Soundcloud

[Burgeamon]

dubesteppe
Really liked the percussion / beats in the intro. When it drops its voice! Feel the mids / tops need to be brought forward in the mix a touch and some slight variations are needed as its pretty repetitive.

Revival
Nice intro - A little long but honestly I don't mind it that much. Drops really nicely. Love the side chaining.

1stfiest
I like the bass sound at about the minute mark. The mix down is pretty good too. I like this one!

jimbeaux
Loving the bass mate! Right - If you want width this is one thing I've been doing is parallel flanger (with a low cut at about 2k) then with a hint of saturation after. I'd also set up some parallel phaser with a tough of saturation - again with a cut at like 1 / 2k then mix to taste.



Right - I've been in hiding for a while as i got some new gear so been uber-creative but have been hammering the shit out of 100 - 110bpm. Here's my latest piece. The little vocal part with be changed as its ripped from a kill the noise remix but i'm away from my home machine so don't have as many samples on my laptop etc..

Soundcloud

[chemikalrecipe]

@Burgeamon That really has some weight which is nice. Maybe later on automate a bit more width on it. Also i think the whole top end hats are a tad too low. However, that will bang!

[lightshapers]

another wip, still a bit rough round the edges

Soundcloud

will leave some feedback on others later