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Settling on a sound
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| cl0ckw3rk |
So, I'm in the middle of arranging a track, when all of a sudden I say to myself...what if I tweak that pad just a little bit? And maybe distort that bass a little more? Next thing I know, I've drowned my ears in hours of playing the same loop, constantly changing the entire sounds altogether. Saws turn to squares, triangles to sines, etc. My arranging session just backtracked to a sound design session. At some point I just get annoyed and don't know what I'm even aiming for any more. How do you prevent going tweak-happy?
With the endless possibilities that lie in tweaking millions of parameters, at what point can you really say: "this is what I was going for, and this is the way it's going to stay?" It's really here that my production inexperience shines through - I really don't know what sound I'm going for. I don't have a "sonic vision" if you will, and I don't know how to set out for one other than listening to several of my favorite artists and kind of draw from what they do (and we know where this leads).
I only know to stop when the sound "seems to fit." But then down the road something happens - I get tired of it, or it doesn't seem to fit anymore with the new sounds I introduce in the arrangement.
Do you have any pointers that could help me alleviate this? |
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| sixofour.604 |
| When you get "the sound that fits" you need to just brute force yourself into not changing it. If it takes a bit of time to make a track chances are you will get tired of hearing it, and will want to change it, and try something different. You need to either force yourself to not change it and finish this project, or simply start another one. Id suggest the former, Ive "started another one" too many times and now I have hundreds of unfinished tracks. |
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| cl0ckw3rk |
| quote: | Originally posted by sixofour.604
Ive "started another one" too many times and now I have hundreds of unfinished tracks. |
Yeah, this is the route I usually take. There's something about the novelty of a groove that's motivating. But once I get used to that groove, I run smack into a dead end, which only leads me to go around and start anew. For that reason, I've never even finished a track. Not one. Lots of good starts though... I'm just hoping that hours and hours of effing around will eventually prove useful. |
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| cryophonik |
| Make sure that you save the first version, so you can go back to it for comparison, then save copies of the tweaked version at various stages. Then, you can let it sit for a day or two and come back with a fresh perspective and compare to see if you like the changes better than the original. |
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| sixofour.604 |
| quote: | Originally posted by cryophonik
Make sure that you save the first version, so you can go back to it for comparison, then save copies of the tweaked version at various stages. Then, you can let it sit for a day or two and come back with a fresh perspective and compare to see if you like the changes better than the original. |
This is what I do, some tracks I have go up to version 30. And I have some tracks that go to version 10 or so, and each version inbetween is atleast 70% different. |
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| Subtle |
This is just something that comes with time and experience.
Good idea is to save the sound if you are unsure by just muting the channel, come up with new sounds and then compare them. |
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| meriter |
This is a huge problem and I think it's pretty common. I've got so many unfinished pieces it's not even funny. There are things I listen to now and wonder why I never completed them. I must've been wasted.
What happens to me is I'll come up with something I like in about an hour or so, then spend the rest of the time stuck just listening to it over and over again nit-picking and wondering what to do next. In most cases I've ended up doing nothing.
Other times things seem to fall into place naturally and I don't have to think about it at all. With some music, probably the stuff that's most honest, things are easier to translate. Sometimes you'll end up with something pretty bizarre, but that's just being yourself. I think when you pigeonhole into a specific genre or expectation, problems occur. Just be yourself and things will happen naturally. Knowing what you want to hear is knowing yourself, where you came from, and where you're going.
I've been trying to work on this track for weeks now, and it's just simply not happening, because it's not me. I'm trying to make electro and thinking about what other people want to hear. I don't know why I thought that'd be a good idea but now I know better. (wait yeah I remember, $$$)
Settling on a sound is really difficult for me but it might be easier for other producers who typically stick to one genre. If you're a "trance" producer you probably won't end up deviating too far from the formula and get lost in a sound-design hell. Having rules help a lot, but sometime it's a barrier for the creative process. It's just a matter of feeling it.
I'm at a point right now where I have no idea wtf to do anymore. |
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| sixofour.604 |
meriter just said what I feel. Often I open a track and play the loop that I have, and stare blankly at it. Then I close FL and do something else. Rinse Repeate.
I even have tracks named "I will finish this" and "Hope", lol.
I suppose this is the fault of me not spending time on composition. I can get short peices working nicly, but I can hardly get peices working together. And often, I do get blocked by the sound design stage. I open my 3osc or z3ta with a blank preset. Set a saw wave or something, then just stare, wondering what to do next. When ever I hear the song in my head, its always a wall of sound. Nothing specific. |
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| meriter |
| quote: | Originally posted by sixofour.604
I suppose this is the fault of me not spending time on composition. I can get short peices working nicly, but I can hardly get peices working together. |
Yeah this is something I have a real problem with. I'm going to try approaching things differently from now on... Instead of building a loop, start from what would be the beginning, and then add to that in a linear fashion. With that method everything you add should sound good independent of the other parts. |
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| Subtle |
| quote: | Originally posted by meriter
Yeah this is something I have a real problem with. I'm going to try approaching things differently from now on... Instead of building a loop, start from what would be the beginning, and then add to that in a linear fashion. With that method everything you add should sound good independent of the other parts. |
This definitely works for me. |
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| Evolve140 |
I spent about 3-5 years producing before I created anything worth while that would work on the dance floor. I have about 200 unfinished tracks. Let me suggest a few things:
* Take a creative break, even a few weeks if you need it. I always feel fresh and motivated after a good break. Find a sexy girl and hang out with her to take your mind off music, once you know it you will be all creatively juiced up.
* Listen to new styles of EDM. You'll be surprised how many good styles are out there and how many great sounds there are and this could be inspiring to you.
* Watch studio videos from Swedish House Mafia, D. Ramirez, SVD, it always helps to get a vision for what the true professionals do.
* Don't be afraid to make accidents or mistakes. Some of the best synths or sound designs can come purely by accident, so if you are afraid of making mistakes you should become more condifent.
* Research and study key production concepts. Make sure you have all of them perfected to the best of your personal ability. The amount technique you have in your arsenal is proportionate to the variety of sounds you will be able to offer a song.
* Never hound on one or 2 VSTs if you are strictly relying on them and are becoming frustrated by these and the results they offer, it might be time to introduce yourself to another instrument(s). Find out what some of the major production players are using in their studio and see if you can work similiar magic.
* A&B comparison. Find a track you absolutely love (the mixdown stands out, the percs are perfect, amazing synths, etc) and then try to produce your own track with an A&B.
* Identify your production weaknesses. You can do this yourself if you A&B with another track with honesty, however veteran producers and DJs are invaluable resources when trying to improve your sound through critical feedback. There is always something to improve.
* Evaluate your production approach. If you are achieving similar results each time that you are unhappy with, it's probably time to renew your approach and develop a new attack (New DAW, new sample packs, new synths, production help videos, producer interviews, anything to find inspiration). |
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| david.michael |
| quote: | Originally posted by Evolve140
Find a sexy girl and hang out with her to take your mind off music, once you know it you will be all creatively juiced up. |
So to speak. |
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