sgulley
Superstar
If you really like music and recording it then never stop trying to get better at it.
Posts: 2,994
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Post by sgulley on Dec 2, 2005 19:56:36 GMT
I went back to the basics on this one: Just a ballad-style drum pattern, a couple of miced acoustic guitar tracks, and vocals. The compressor-mic picked up the low-end pretty well so no bass was added in.
I also post lyrics due to the listener otherwise needing a "Texas Vocal Filter" to understand (no actually you might be able to understand them this time).
Anyway, dedicated this to wife for putting up with me for this long.
In 'Stan's Band' link at bottom of post.
C.A.A. (comments always appreciated) Stan
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Post by nikonbob55 on Dec 2, 2005 23:18:50 GMT
Stan, I really enjoyed this piece - very well written, guitar work was impeccable, as always. Some of your chord voicings made me remember the "acoustic set" that Zeppelin would always do in concert. John Paul Jones would man a triple necked instrument (6 string, 12 string, and a mandolin, as I recall) and do some really nice voicings, just as you've done in this one. Nice! Bob PS - I peeked at the lyric cheat sheet, but didn't need the "filter" - your vocal was nice and clear
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sgulley
Superstar
If you really like music and recording it then never stop trying to get better at it.
Posts: 2,994
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Post by sgulley on Dec 4, 2005 3:14:34 GMT
Bob, I don't what to say except thanks! again, and the time you always take to listen. I figure that if you keep writing & recording then sooner or later things will start becoming more natural (I would tend to hope so anyway)
I saw that Charlie has posted one so I'm heading over to listen to his song.
Thanks again, Stan
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Post by mcarp555 on Dec 4, 2005 9:16:43 GMT
I agree with Bob about the Zep-ish acoustic sound. I think of all the 'regulars' who post here (including myself), you are blessed most with the gift of melody. Very whistle-able. I like the overall feel, the amount of instrumentation is just about right, the vocals are probably one of your best.
Technical suggestions: Get Audacity or something to further process your final mixes. You can cut out the drum intro which detracts from the overall feel of the beginning. Audacity also does fades, so you can play on and then put in a nice long fade, instead of the usual abrupt/run out of steam ending. There's some kind of percussion coming in around the middle, which either needs more work or removal.
Every now and then Stan, in the midst of 'not bad' and 'interesting' tunes you post, a real winner pops up. This is one of them.
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sgulley
Superstar
If you really like music and recording it then never stop trying to get better at it.
Posts: 2,994
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Post by sgulley on Dec 5, 2005 1:36:45 GMT
Thanks Mike for your comments. I have Audacity but have only used the Amplify feature. Need to start using it more and get use to it.
The 2488 drums have messed me up several times because I just dial changes in some of the parts & they never sync together well. At least not for me. I think Bob has mentioned changing drum styles on just the fill sections only which adds to a better live sound.
BIAB has some smarts, so if you change drum styles it seems to blend them in nicely. But the BIAB SMF files lack something or get too busy to blend into a mix easily, and they don't sound live at all.
Stan
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Post by nikonbob55 on Dec 5, 2005 10:35:57 GMT
Hiya Stan, I always start a new song with the drum patterns - I'll spend quite a while listening to the "sample" as you select a pattern, to see which seems to fit best. Then, I'll program the whole song (sections, fills, etc.). At this point, I'll usually put down a scratch rhythm against the pattern, to see how it fits together. This is where I'll go into the pattern editor and tweak a bit - let's say I've chosen Rock 10....every other Fill AB, I may dial in Rock 29 or Ballad 6 for those....it all depends on the song, and where I want to try to mix it up or add a bit of emphasis. Also remember, that if you have a pattern you like, but you don't care for the kit that's in use, you simply press "Shift and Enter" while in the pattern editor, and you can assign the kit of your choice - you're not stuck with the default selection. Once I get the program to sound pretty much where I want it to, I mute that scratch rhythm, go to Bounce mode, and record the TG pattern to tracks 23/24. Next, I'll use the effect sends to take those tracks out to the rack, run them through the BBE, perhaps add a bit of ambience, and finally through the compressor en route to tracks 21/22. Finally, I'll blend the dry on 23/24 and the "wet" on 21/22 in order to get as good a drum sound as I can. That's where I'll either keep or replace that scratch rhythm track, and start tracking all the rest of the instruments. Hopefully this blow by blow of what I do may give you some new ideas to try and experiment with. Over on the Tascam forums, I recall Sound Chaser making a comment about "Midnight Train", where he was surprised to learn that the drums were actually the 2488's patterns - that made me feel that taking the extra time was well worth the result! Hope some of this is useful for you, Stan!
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sgulley
Superstar
If you really like music and recording it then never stop trying to get better at it.
Posts: 2,994
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Post by sgulley on Dec 5, 2005 16:11:47 GMT
Bob, Your drum ideas are great! I didn't know about the "shift/enter" key combo for changing kits but I knew the 2488 provided this.
I don't have a BBE unit yet but did use one borrowed from a friend last month (really liked what I heard). I guess my plan will be to use BIAB SMFs some, and the 2488 patterns the rest of the time. So, my future choice will probably be the BBE 482i software plugin ($89), or the 482i rack which has dropped from $179 to under $150.
Drums & vocals seem to be the tracks with the highest priority in a mix so it does make a lot of sense to get them both sounding the best you can.
Thanks for the tips. Stan
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holzra
Superstar
is that any way to treat an expensive musical instrument?!?!?!?!?
Posts: 879
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Post by holzra on Dec 8, 2005 3:43:08 GMT
stan, stan, stan . . . . major leaps! you have always been proficient, but it seems like you are playing and singing from a more relaxed place . . . . no forcing, letting the moment carry it . . . . huzzah, huzzah, huzzah!!!
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sgulley
Superstar
If you really like music and recording it then never stop trying to get better at it.
Posts: 2,994
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Post by sgulley on Dec 9, 2005 1:40:59 GMT
Roger. I do have to admit I'm a pretty persistant character sometimes... basically the vocal chords I was born with. Thanks for listening & your complements. I can't wait to start a project where I hear someelse's vocals for a change. Stan
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