Solo Receptive

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HowieRis
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Solo Receptive

Post by HowieRis »

This didn't take too long but it was really fun to make - it's pretty much me getting to grips with Microtonic and trying to get things a bit looser arrangement wise, it's messy in places but I'd love some feedback on the general mix.

Here's a download link :)

https://we.tl/3Dac9eOoJH

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kostas
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Re: Solo Receptive

Post by kostas »

the mono signal is very dominating. the subs specially are taking over not letting me concentrate on the track itself. stereo signal a bit weak work on the stereo to make it sit and can be heard. I would reverse the overall effect of the m/s image more predominant stereo and less mono. it is a good idea with nice elements help each of it manifest itself without toil. even if you have to discard things.
''We all have the equal amount of now. Got it? ... now go and make some good techno.''

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HowieRis
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Re: Solo Receptive

Post by HowieRis »

Hi Kostas thanks for taking the time to listen and give feedback, by the way I really like the track you put up - Panelipsis.

Interesting thought, I've been focusing on mono compatibility quite a bit and making sure my phase correlation is ok, maybe that's led me to make a very mono-focused track here.

The lows are mono'd right up to 100hz, I suppose I could relax that a little bit. How would you go about making the M/S relationship more balanced... just simply edge the overall volume of the mid signal down and leave the stereo as it?

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kostas
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Re: Solo Receptive

Post by kostas »

well you could left in mono even 200 hz area or higher. thats not the case. I think that working on the individual tracks is what is needed here. the mix is far from ready to apply stereo effects as a whole, in the mixbus for example.
work on the levels instead and emphasize the side elements on the tracks that ‘’naturally’’ belong to the sides while taming the mono signal on those tracks. taming not cutting off completetly. incorporate some stereo effects on some of the elements, you have plenty to decide, what really need to be completely stereo (haas effect or s1 waves-like stereo effects). so my input is to just emphasize more what is already there.
try combinations of different positions of the sounds.
and go beyond the traditional approach that the higher the signal the more stereo have to be. make a bell shape boost on the sides with an m/s eq on every track and take a listen how it sounds . is this making some parts of the sounds more profound and helping the overall feeling? or it s causing more problems?
it is though difficult to understand the whole stereo image on low level or even entry level systems. but don t get discouraged by that. our music is not meant too be played on calibrated opera theaters!
one thing to have in mind is not overdoing it with sides. it can make the sound seems brighter but nothing will sound bright if everything is bright. don’t make the track thin. decide which of the element will be bright.
just don t go crazy on the m/s eq
m/s eq can make you or break you.
after that you can make minor adjustments on the overall image.
and kill some of the sub!
and thanks for the good word on Panelipsis ))
''We all have the equal amount of now. Got it? ... now go and make some good techno.''

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HowieRis
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Re: Solo Receptive

Post by HowieRis »

Thanks for the detailed advice

Updated mix - https://we.tl/rEhRm0PECH

Sub bass - Pulled back the overall level and tidied up the rumble with EQ - left the mono threshold at 100hz

Tom parts - panned them slightly off centre, raised the volume of the sides and adjusted the reverb to tame the "air" a little bit. Gently EQ'd the lower tom to slope off some frequencies that we're wooling up the kick transient too.

Quick panning rattle thing - I evened out the nature of the panning and widened slightly like the toms. Also made it fade in a bit over the first 16 bars so it's not so intrusive right away. Tamed some of the decay time automation that I had previously recorded "live" and gone a bit OTT with. Also added a bandpass filter on a very slow LFO mixed into the dry signal to add movement.

White noise/shaker - Brightened up the verb, sent the whole signal to an aux and panned them both to about 9 and 3 'o' clock, then delayed one side by 100ms or so to accentuate the width without going any further from the middle and further screwing up the phase correlation.

Whispering vocals - I actually found some horrible low end in here that was probably causing issues so I HP'd and reduced the 'mid' signal a touch.

Hat - Brought in a little more of the "ting" of the osc to add presence, kept the dry signal totally mono but adjusted the reverb to give it some more stereo information.

Whole stereo - Very minor nudge in favour of the side signal.

It's not the greatest track but to my ears there's a lot more space now and the balance feels more natural. Do you think I've gone overboard?

Cheers!

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HowieRis
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Re: Solo Receptive

Post by HowieRis »

Forget the link in the above post, there was a little balance issue in the toms.

This is better - https://we.tl/uYvieD2HVE

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kostas
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Re: Solo Receptive

Post by kostas »

much much better!
I feel like I gave basic advice to a guy that already have skills! hehe
do you have a link on other tracks of yours?
this track is dope!
''We all have the equal amount of now. Got it? ... now go and make some good techno.''

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HowieRis
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Re: Solo Receptive

Post by HowieRis »

kostas wrote:much much better!
I feel like I gave basic advice to a guy that already have skills! hehe
do you have a link on other tracks of yours?
this track is dope!
Well, basic mistakes warrant basic advice I guess!

Not at the moment, I have quite a few tracks now but I'm trying to embrace a period of learning without the pressure of an online presence for a while.

Thanks... Really helpful feedback and I'll be keeping an eye on your SC for sure!


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