ADR3-N's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Bob has appeared in the Dungeon]

Interesting bassline -- but it sounds like it's either been artificially stereo expanded/chorused/reverbed, or recorded with a bad room. It's also super loud compared to the rest of your synths.

If you're looking for a more realistic bass, Ample Sound ABPL is free, comes with key switches for slaps, mutes, and slides, and is a great entry level instrument. I used it on one of my previous tracks, 'Old Wounds,' and it apparently was good enough for a front page. There are also free amp and cab sims like Emissary amp and NadIR cab. Plenty of tutorials on using them effectively.

Mixing is probably the weakest aspect of your piece. I'd recommend seeing some tutorials for your DAW. Sections like 1:40 onward sound nice and clean, spaced out well, and not overly centered.

It sounds like all your drums bar toms are centered. Pan your hats and cymbals around a bit more to give the track some space. I would do the same with most of your orchestral elements as well, since they would sound very directional in a live setting.

Arrangement wise, great piece, sound melodies, rockin' grooves. Sound design is what's killing you. There's tons of information out there in the internet spheres to patch that up though. Fix that, and you've got what it takes to go pro. :)

Thanks for coming out to NGUAC! And here's hoping your internet issues get fixed soon too. I know the feeling.

[Take A Rest Here]

12 minutes, wow, that's long. It's actually taking me a bit to load.

Your background string synths sound like they've been Paul-Stretched.

Piano stabs in the intro could probably stand to come down in velocity or volume, either one. They're a lot louder than other elements of the track, including the lead voice.

As the track is 12 minutes long, understandably, it develops very slowly. At some points, I find myself not relaxing but getting very impatient, haha. Perhaps though, this would be a good menu or credit theme.

Arrangement wise, it's not as repetitive as it would seem, and the modulations between different sections make sense harmonically. Once I get used to it, stop focusing on individual elements, it /does/ become a bit more relaxing. I'm not sure whether I'm actually starting to get sleepy from last night, or calm.

3:30 section has a nice progression.

I really wish there were a ride cymbal in here somewhere, birds twittering, w/e.

4:26 feels really empty.

5:00 elements probably could have gone well there.

6:03, I feel like we're hearing a repeat of earlier elements, complete with 6:21. By 7:21, I am starting to get a little tired, wishing maybe we'd move to a different key or something.

8:48, my internet is so slow that it actually failed to load this far. Sigh. Refresh... aaaand it won't load any further. I really don't want to spent another 30 minutes trying to leave you a review, but suffice to say I think I really could have gone for a track half this length or less. My technical issues/NG's HTML5 player are not your problem but-

Wait, it started actually loading again. Going to listen through.

Yeah, I definitely could have gone for a track half this length. It almost seems like portions of have been copied and pasted or the piece has been artificially slowed down. I know you mentioned not having a lot of time for the contest and having some personal issues. I think those may have contributed to the composition. By all means, if it helps you relax, it helps you relax. Just not my cup of tea.

Thanks for coming out to NGUAC! Hope to see you next time under better circumstances.

[Niko - It's not that easy.]

Great use of opening SFX -- narrator sounds almost like Brian Head Welch.

Intro at 0:32 is compelling. I would take down the bass just a bit here, fade the volume up to 0:53. Don't want to rely entirely on adding new instruments to increase volume. 1:16 needs a short crescendo right there to lead effectively into the next big section.

Watch the velocity on those snare parts. Sounds like the last 3 hits on the roll are the same velocity. You can also try using something like the free Black Noh Snare for a more realistic concert snare sound. It's got adjustable top and bottom mics.

Drop sounds great, a bit like being in a tin-can though, with everything sort of artificially stereo expanded. Also sounds brick wall limited or hard compressed here. Your kick sample is distorting/overdriving a little bit here. I would back off your basses just slightly with the same level of compression to get just a bit more clean in that nasty.

Also, I hate that hey sample. Everyone has it. Including me. But I also use it, so no points docked. I would just try to use it a bit more creatively -- some FX, maybe double track it 40% left and right, one pitched and stretched slightly longer.

Sections after drop are approached more faithfully, snare velocity excluded. :P

I'd like to hear a bit more high end on your piano.

2nd drop is cleaner sounding than the first. I can also see through the waveform more. Definitely see what the difference between the two is.

Very pretty noises fam.

Thanks for coming out to NGUAC!

[Kirefyx - Season 6 (NGUAC entry)]

Great writing with this piece, but your synths, velocity, and modulation are squashing whatever musicality you could have had with that intro. I will note there are plenty of free harps, strings, etc. in the free Kontakt library thread in the audio forum. Do go check it out.

Velocity wise, at 1:03, do you hear how each note on that harp/koto sounds exactly the same, machine gun? Try to vary the velocity of your notes on most everything, but especially instruments that are supposed to sound any degree of real.

0:49, this may be the most interesting instrument I've heard used for a drop. I'm not liking those high plinky notes. As a music producer, that's the sound I try to avoid. That said, these orchestral runs are taking me back to better days, haha.

I don't like your ride cymbal. It sounds like an old china being used in the place of a ride. Velocity is also the same on each hit. Protip, you could probably use a quarter-note ping-pong delay panned to the left to make that sound way cooler.

I also notice you have a ton of reverb on your keys and low strings. I would caution against that. Solo'ed, that sounds fine, but in an ensemble, the reverb is always there, tossing tin-can sounding mud on your mix, getting in the way of compression and other master FX. Using reverb is fine, but whenever you do use it, try to keep a relatively short release time, a high low cut value, and a fairly low wet value. I'm a fan of only using it on certain send tracks when I can get away with it, rather than putting it on each individual instrument.

1:25, this is an example of reverb rumble clouding your mix. Another at 1:32 and 1:40... and 1:48.

I would definitely take a look at some tutorials for your DAW on mixing/mastering. I can't quite tell by the waveform, but this track looks relatively uncompressed, like very little side-chain is used, and I think your growl may not even have a sub underneath it... Wait, I hear it -- it's just up high. That, or it's low strings. I actually would cut or sidechain those from my drops.

Anyway, you've got the basic structure of your track down, and I can see you've been progressing. Tackle this and you'll be on your way to producing professionally. It shouldn't take too long. :)

Thanks for coming out to NGUAC!

Kirefyx responds:

Thanks for the constructive criticism. I don't think I can do side chaining with my software.

[Lubberly Triumphant]

Interesting concept with your intro -- I'm not sure I like the do-so-do-sodo-do-so, etc. line in your intro on that plucky synth. Just not quite my pick. Maybe it would work better if you ran two instances of the instrument and alternated channels left and right between each note, perhaps with a clock noise SFX or etc.

After this very short intro, we're greeted with the bass at 0:06, which felt soon to me. I also don't think the lo-fi crashes are doing you many favors in balancing the sound. The bass sounds like it may be too loud. That, or your percussion is just too quiet. I think it may be the latter. You can try compressing your drums harder to have them punch through, or you can drop your leads and other instruments, such as bass, down a bit. I would go back into my project, turn my volume down to 20% or so, and try these adjustments to see which sounds best.

The weakest element of this song is not writing but overall song structure. We have what sounds like several bridges and breakdowns come together in one instance. Take 1:06 for example, breakdown into a 1:20 bridge. This then goes into 1:33, which sounds like a verse, but is used like a bridge. I would either put a chorus or false chorus in between and drop in a keychange for your final chorus, or cut 1:33 to chorus and move the riser to your 1:20 bridge.

0:46 is also begging for a chorus to be laid down after it. I just realized this is another breakdown -- but 1:07 does okay. You could probably use some ride cymbals there or some SFX to keep the spacious feel of this piece.

Another comment I'd like to make. I notice you seem to have a spacious reverb/chorus on some of your instruments. This is fine but can get muddy. Most of the space in a mix comes from the room sounds on your snare and cymbal instruments, as well as your SFX. Try not to force room sound with your synths.

2:04, those horn stabs sound almost copied and pasted; try writing something like an ascending run into them -- it can be in another instrument, but swapping patterns like that is like having your listeners running down the sidewalk -- and suddenly slamming into a telephone pole out of nowhere.

I would up the 9k-15k range a bit on most of your cymbal percussion. I'm not hearing that high fizz.

Other than that, enjoyed the piece. You've got some great ideas floating around in your head, and you've got a good, consistent theme going. Thanks for coming out to NGUAC!

[Rush hour in Rave City]

Opening vibe reminds me of some old techno/trance I used to listen to. I could do without so much reverb on your bass, possibly take it down an octave.

Composition wise, this piece is fairly simple, a drone bass until 1:08, followed by a short melodic section, then proceeding into a variation on the main theme. Overall, this works well. Clear delineation of sections, a few pleasant surprises.

Weakest area of this piece is definitely mixing/mastering. The piece sounds very quiet and flat, and percussion is more or less laying there.

You may try applying a tape saturator or researching 80's massive snares, maybe even try a slight sidechain to help those elements stand out more. Hi-hats could also have been panned or stereolized. Of course, I realize this is an olskool techno piece and sidechain and stereolizing were not widespread -- it's why we wrote offbeat basslines instead.

Definitely see some mixing and mastering tools for your genre. You've got structure and writing down fairly well. Concentrate on your presentation, and it will take you to the next level.

Thanks for coming out to NGUAC!

[moltress poop]

I'm not sure what's going on here either, but that is a pretty swaggin solo. Little too bendy at times. A little more precise handling of the mod-wheel and I would be all over this.

If you're looking for a more realistic bass sound, I recommend Ample Sound ABPL bass, Emissary amp, and NadIR cab. They're all free.

[pumkin head]

I'm not sure what's going on here. I feel like my ears are drunk. Would rate higher for a longer more developed piece with like, a bassline, drums, something. Also moved to a more correct genre. If you feel this one isn't right, you can swap it to Experimental or Miscellaneous.

[blue, like the sky]

Cheerful little tune with lots of jazzy influence, sounds like. Maybe even gospel chords. Progression works well, and levels are all where they sound like they should be.

My one gripe may be a bit of almost artificial sounding stereo-widening/reverb. I would probably cut the wets down on most FX by 10% or so. That, and one of your samples sounds eerily like a metronome. Only part that took me out of the moment. This almost reminds me of a Perfume instrumental with how poppy and sweet it is.

This piece is just plain pleasant to listen to. I'm surprised you managed it without proper monitors or headphones. Maybe you should leave 'em. :P

Thanks for coming out to NGUAC!

icantpronouncethis responds:

Thank you for your critique. It took me a great deal of effort just to get the mix to the way it is. Had to listen to the song in many different sources; car, ipod, earphones, headphones, etc. I was going for a clock ticking sample in the beginning but ended up changing my mind. It does sound like a metronome a bit too much. Maybe I should've lower the pitch or something. I'll take a note of what you wrote and apply in on my next track. Thank you again for dropping by.

[Somewhere In The Future]

Made with one plugin? This beautiful? Instant 5.

AvizuraNG responds:

Thank you =)