Zafrece's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Minimal Techno Attempt]

I really had a hard time following the majority of this song. The key changes sounded like they were all over the place in the first half. I didn't hear much on the end of transitional phrases, they just kind of droped you off with a new segment. A simple remedy is to place something a measure before a shift happens to let the listener feel that something is about to happen. Be it reverse snare, drum roll, vacant kicks etc.I couldn't tell if the kick was peaking at times or if it was the sound of the kick with that 16 bit sound to it. ( leaving that out)I am uncertain if the linux program you are using is compatible with vst's. However if i recall i believe it is, I would suggest getting Native instruments massive to make your synths in. Some others you might want to look into would me sylenth1, Zebra , Dune, ReFx nexus, z3ta2.

I also noticed that the kick drum vanishes when other sounds come in, that problem is due to mixing. Make sure your chans arent peaking, give them at very least -3 db room to master with. You never want each channel to hit its db cap then add another sound in.

Over all however its pretty good for what it is. It reminded me allot of mother load music at times. I was having a nostalgia trip in some parts lol.

FightingSeraph responds:

Thank you for the well-written, insightful review. Now, an explanation for a few of the faults:
1. The kick was from Laserblade's sample pack:
http://www.youtube.com/user/lzrbld
2. It just so happens that LMMS is compatible with third-party VSTs including those that you just mentioned.
3. I added TAP scaling limiters to each channel, but you are right: I'm not very good at mixing and did notice some clipping with the pad.
4. I was originally going to submit this as a loop, but then I noticed that it didn't loop properly at the end.

[So Sexy]

Not bad for what it is. Some general eq work is needed. I find myself saying this allot so forgive me when i copy this from previous posts i have made for others

- Your kick should generally always be the loudest part of a mix with in electronic music. A simple rule of thumb ( give or take) is the kick should not exceed -8db, and the bass is the 2nd loudest part of the mix. everything else should not exceed the db of the kicks. ( this is pre master of course) This way it leaves you some room to throw in something like maximus( or another mastering type plugin/program) and give it a little master before shipping it out. Param eq 2 is your best friend( or any spectrometer type eqing plug in), on each chan you have a sound set to, make sure to clip off all the useless harmonics of a sound before finishing with it. ( allot of it depends on what you find useless, or what sound you are going for.)

The whole song is a tad repetitive seeing as it sounds like a 4 bar repeat through out the entire song. I didn't really hear a bass which i would have liked to hear at some point. The instrument choice was minimalistic, but purposeful props on that.

Over all not bad, the whole song sounded a tad too heavy on the higher hertz ranges and high mid.However this isn't anything too major.

[Pluto]

This almost sounds like you used old school famisynth.

Pitfall responds:

Haha, no, but I guess I can see that...

[Simple Loop (Space 2)]

Not bad but , mixing and hertz blending is an issue i hear on this one as well. I adressed hertz ranges in another review. So heres one for generic mixing tips.
- Your kick should generally always be the loudest part of a mix with in electronic music. A simple rule of thumb ( give or take) is the kick should not exceed -8db, and the bass is the 2nd loudest part of the mix. everything else should not exceed the db of the kicks. ( this is pre master of course) This way it leaves you some room to throw in something like maximus and give it a little master before shipping it out. Param eq 2 is your best friend, on each chan you have a sound set to, make sure to clip off all the useless harmonics of a sound before finishing with it. ( allot of it depends on what you find useless, or what sound you are going for.)

Since i'm fairly certain you are using fl at this point based on the sounds i;m hearing. I feel it's safe to assume and leave tips accordingly.

Although i may come across as blunt or rude, i assure you i write these not for the sake of trolling or being a hater, but hopefully to help in some way. ( disclaimer) =p

IBelisarius responds:

Woah! Thanks for all the great info! I don't regularly work on creating loops since I'm pretty busy other things but next time I work on a few I'll have to try to keep all of this in mind!

[Wood Loop]

I'm starting to notice a pattern with your songs.( no pun intended about the loops) They are decent loops, they simply are too short and tend to get repetitive rather quickly. Try elongating the loop to an 8 bar or 16 bar even pattern. Another helpful thing that is often done in loops to help blend the repeats is a circle progression. The best way to describe this is... every one of weebles songs. A quick google should answer any other questions about it.

[Space Loop 3]

Decent loop however missing a good deal of direction and general varaity in sounds( i do understand its 18 seconds) however I've said this several times recently so copy pasta ftw-

The whole song seemed rather empty, you had allot of vacant hertz ranges going on at any given time. The following hertz ranges aid with the following things. 30-140 give or take, add body to a song. It gives it a flow if you will and helps blend tones and establish a feel. 140 htz to 400 htz this is your tonal bass or the bass that you generally hear that helps set the key or mode of a song. This is also where songs can tend to get muddy if not eqd correctly. mid range 400-2.5k give or take on taste, this is mostly where lower ranged chords go in to set the key in which something is being played. Upper mid, 2.5k -5.3k- Higher chords can be placed in here to help establish a mode of a said key along with leads. If chords are placed here they usually accompany the drums to emphasis the beat or add to syncopation. 5.2k-18k ( not much use going into 19-20k as those simply mud up the mix for the most part) this range is your high hats, harmonic tones of melodies and the crispness of the song all rest in this range.

[Borderline Insanity Loop]

Not bad for what it is. I saw you were using quite a few presets. One thing will suggest to you that i wish had been told to me a while back is use the following vsts. sylenth1, native instruments massive, Dune, nexus, zeta 2. Those will be your best friends in the future once you get your hands on them.