Okay, summer is here! And I want to start producing.

I know it takes a LOT of time to get good, and I've just been playing around for the last 6 months, but no completed works. For the last 4 months, I've been taking a Music + Computers course @ school, so I have a little experience with Cubase now (although it seems pretty much useless without some hardware synths). Unfortunetely, most of the course was copying sheet music and such, no real creative assignments or lessons on music theory and composition.

So, I just need some pointers in a few areas. Nothing too detailed (I don't need anyone giving away their secrets in various areas, I like to fiddle on my own and discover my own secrets).

BTW, I am using Reason 1.0

1. Ambience
I know that nice ambient parts are created with a mixture of pads, with a hint of low volume strings. I can also usually here a sort of sub bass rumble, but it may just be off the strings. No matter how hard I try, I can't create the sound I want. (BTW, I am using the long ambient break in the middle of Perpetuous Dreamer - Dust.Wave (AvB Remix) as reference). Are there any effects I should apply, or any specific pads that NEED to be used? Just gimme the basics of creating a nice ambient part.

2. Bassline
I know it is probably impossible to duplicate the wicked bassline in AvB's remix of Seven Cities with Reason, but that's the kind of bassline sound I want. How many layers of bassline should there be? Any specific kinds of bass? Effects?

3. Lead Synth
I basically know how to do these, but I always find that the synth sounds I get sound really dry (even with filter cut turned down), and they don't sound rich. Should I add some low reverbed parts to the main synth to make it sound richer? I just need a few pointers.

4. Drum Beat
Okay, simply: how many drum layers are too many? how many are not enough?

If someone could just verify I am going in the right direction in each of these areas, that'd be great. I just feel like I am missing something.

___________________
//..

alright, I'll see what I can answer for you

1. Ambience.. it's pretty hard to get it perfect. You need afew synths running Pads, and maybe one running strings, and one for bass.
on all these, knock up the reverb and echo to about 50%, and possibly add some kind of light phaser or chorus if possible. Make sure everything has an "attack" and "release" that is not too fast.. you want to let the sounds gradually fade in and out. then just draw in long extended notes in the timeline, and be sure to put controller lanes for moving the frequency up and down slightly, and pan alittle.
This goes for the pads and strings. For the bass, just find one that has a nice deep low end, to put a constant "rumble" in the ambience.. this just helps to fill up the sound.

2. good Basslines are hard to get in reason.. alot of the great ones we hear in songs are done with "arpeggiators". Its possible to get the same sounds by drawing in notes by hand, but very difficult. I recomend just staying with a normall "off-beat" bass or something similar, if using reason. If i use reason for Bass, I have about 2 synths running at the same time, and have alittle reverb.. maybe 15-20%

3. Lead synths? One answer. GO download the "digital love" reason refill. You get two or three of the best, thickest, standard trance synths avaliable. you can download it by right click, save as
Make sure to open the sounds with the NN19 sampler.. and load the ones called "Trancey 1" etc

just be sure to add lots of reverb and echo and you've got it.

4. drums.. drums are the greatest thing. I usually have about 4 or 5 redrums going. Theres not really any trick with them, just make sure they all sound good together!

Hope this helped!

So Reason is not a bass creator?

well no.. reason is good at making certain kinds of bass.. like I said above, the off-beat traditional bass is made well with reason.. and you can get that "wap" hard house style bass too. But for the interesting bass lines in alot of trance, its hard to do with reason, but not impossible.

I've never had any problems doing complicated basslines in Reason...

...it just takes time and patience

___________________
Latest releases:
Endless Cycles [Capital Heaven]
The Charlatan [Morphosis]

What is "wap" bass-line like?

off beat is (if I remember right):
k---k---k--- <--Kick
--b---b---b- <--Bass

a "wap" bassline is the same as the off beat one, but it sounds like a wap.

Best example ever: Reflex - Babadeng

The wap bass is a simple hardish bass with a Filter running up each time the bass starts...!


And creating basslines in reason is just as easy as doing it with Fruity or anything else for that matter......

If were talking bass samples, it gets a tad harder, but generally, one with alot of treble and then a deep one thats filtered a bit, then take your standard basslines(Check the exploration of sound, page 2 i think, i posted some basic ones) and experiment......for a good driving one,i find using 2 octaves(never on top of each other) gives a great effect......

___________________
"Who is General Failure and why is he reading my A: Drive ?" - WP

"Applications programming is a race between software engineers, who strive to produce idiot_proof programs, and the Universe which strives to produce bigger idiots. So far the Universe Is Winning".

Ok