Plugin-wizard competition

op76

New Metal Member
Sep 29, 2008
21
0
1
How about little competition for plugin-wizards? Or actually, don't consider this as a competition, but more like sharing you knowledge for a good sound, and somebody will pay you few bucks for doing it, while you still get all credits.

As much as I like to tweak sound for my own, and look for information, it takes way too much of my time, still never getting sound I want. I'm a familyman. I have a day job, I'd love to have some time for my hobbies, my kids and my wife...and still there's only 24 hours in my day.

I know that there are many of us, who just can't find that missing part for getting killersound, so at least I'm willing to pay something to have it. And if it's okay with winner, I will share it with all of you, so this is not just for me. Maybe we can that way learn something new also. I'm not rich guy, so I can't pay much, but maybe I could buy you some gift or something.

Many of you wizards are already helping us for free, but you don't reveal whole concept, only half of it. At least in my case, sound hardly never get even close to that sample I'm trying, something is definetely missing there. It can be my sloppy playing, or my guitar, it can be my amateur mastering skills, or just about anything.

I will post here some tracks in few days, which I'd like you to mix and maybe even master. I'm so busy at the moment, but I try to get those in a week. I set the rules on this one, and choose the winner, but I definetely like to hear other opinions. I put lot of weight on guitars and bass on judging.

You are allowed to use all free samples, impulses and programs, which are available for pc. And because I own some progs, you can use iZotope Ozone 3 and Addictive Drums. I believe that DAW won't affect the sound, I have Reaper? I will deliver drum tracks as midi and 'dry' mp3. You can use use whatever program you like with drum tracks, but that can be 'con' in final judgement.

So I hope you want to participate on this, and help me along with many others. I want add, that this won't be used on any commercial purposes, and if possible, try to stick free plugins, because I really want this to be helpful for everyone, also those who can't afford spend one single penny for plugins.
 
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im not sure how people are gonna react to this. One person i will say is great with amp sims and such is Dandelium

I must say, that I was quite sure how you guys will react, but I needed to try :loco: I'm just so bored to this shit. I found an absolutely great sample with a list of plugins, and sometimes even picture about whole fx-chain, then I try it and it doesn't come even close to that. Can't force anyone to do anything, if you're not interested, then you're not interested.

I might still post my tracks here, and do my own mix. Maybe someone then start work it out and we can make this some kind of tutorial...wishful thinking here, but I desperately need someone to tell me, what I do wrong.
 
That is what this forum is... start by posting in the Rate Mix/Tone section.

One thing I will say is that getting things to sound good doesn't happen overnight and if you dont have the time/ability to dedicate to it, then you're probably better off paying someone else to record and just use what knowledge you have to write/demo your songs... of course, while learning along the way... its a journey, not a destination. Remember that.
 
Overnight? If you guys think that I haven't tried of my own, there you go wrong. I have dedicated almost all of my free time for this, and I really like to my kids to know me...not just "that guy who occasionally sleeps here", but as a father :(

Anyway, I will track some guitars, and do my own mix, so maybe you can the tell me, what is that I do wrong. First replier was right, Dandeliums work is quite impressive, I should start to look, if he has posted some fx-chains.
 
op76: your solution is: track your shit, choose a guy whose mixes you like, pay him to mix it, be happy, get to know your kids. Done.

Or you can search for the Eternal Plugin of Avalon's Grace and the Might of Steel to get to Joey's POD TACT!!!
 
Yeah dude you really wont get far by doing 1 mix and having someone give you a bunch of setting for that one mix. How do you know its going to translate to every other mix you do? It most likely wont. The BEST way you can learn is to start from the ground up.

Do a mix, Post it, Listen to the critiques you get. And there WILL be a few bad ones but you have to take it with a grain of salt. Good or bad criticism on a mix is still almost always constructive.

Your better off reading through the billions of posts on this forum that way you can take the advice and adapt it to your work flow. Not everyone works the same way so what may work for the person mixing your track may not work for you.
 
I don´t see nothing wrong here. The guys with know-how share their knowledge (which usually feels good), win some bucks (which always feels good), op76 "buys" something that he is willing to pay (which is great) and the other forum members leech the information for free (which is even better). Everybody wins and, as he said, if you´re not interested, you´re not interested.

Deppending on his style of writting, one good tone for guitar and one for bass is enough. How many bands tracked entire albums using only one tone (or with slightly changes)?
 
I don´t see nothing wrong here. The guys with know-how share their knowledge (which usually feels good), win some bucks (which always feels good), op76 "buys" something that he is willing to pay (which is great) and the other forum members leech the information for free (which is even better). Everybody wins and, as he said, if you´re not interested, you´re not interested.

Deppending on his style of writting, one good tone for guitar and one for bass is enough. How many bands tracked entire albums using only one tone (or with slightly changes)?

Yeah but your just reffering to the tone...There's so much more that goes into the mix then just a sweet guitar tone.
 
I managed to get some "pretty good" tunes out today. I played with old JCM900 plugin, and realized, that you can actually put cabinet after it!? http://www.tormen.org/Symphony_jcm.mp3 .There is a lot of mistakes, while I just quickly quad tracked this few days ago, for testing other plugins (only used two of them now). My most common problem is lack of tightness. I can have some without mastering, but that little will disappear while mastering the track. I'm pretty sure it is not all my playing there. And when I copy someones fx-chain, I get too harsh sound almost for sure. I need to bring highend down, and turn less gain.

No-one interested this "competition" yet :-/
 
I'm going to throw you a bone here at the expense of the amusement of many.

You're looking for a magic solution, there isn't one. Work hard, read ALL of the sticky threads posted here, pick a problem and focus on it.

When you get stuck ask a sensible question. If you need to ask more than one then do so in different threads. Don't come it here and ask:

"I've just recorded this and it sounds shit. Please tell me how to fix it. Also could you please tell me all the plugins that you use and the presets and how do you master my mix. Also could you send me all of your presets plus how do mix drums?"

This is what you have been doing and then you get angry at the response.

If you're not happy with that then you will continue to get the responses you are getting.

If you want to pay someone to work on your mix then they will tell you what it costs. If it is too expensive for you then you can't have it. I'd like a Ferrari but I can't afford it. That's the way it is.

The same goes for your time. We all have to work, have families, and other commitments. You have to make the time, if you can't then you don't get to record that day. looking for the easy answer isn't going to save you any time. Think of the time you've already wasted.

I don´t see nothing wrong here.

Please, if you want to help him then help him. If you have a question then ask it.

I managed to get some "pretty good" tunes out today. I played with old JCM900 plugin, and realized, that you can actually put cabinet after it!?

See, you can make a lot a progress when you make the right commitment.

Good luck with your project.
 
Please, if you want to help him then help him. If you have a question then ask it.

I´m not interested in this and I don´t even think I have "what it takes". I just think that there´s nothing wrong with it. As far as I understood he´s basically saying: "I'll pay you to mix my stuff, but with my own gear, so I can try to make it myself later using your know-how as a starting point that I know it´s good."

He wasn´t unpolite and asking anything indecent. No reason to be offended or bash. Hell, who wouldn't love to to see what someone like Andy, Eric, Mischa, Bob, Matt or any other ampsim ninjas here would do using your own gear?
 

I have no idea if an A+ is good or bad anymore! lol http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=A+

I´m not interested in this and I don´t even think I have "what it takes". I just think that there´s nothing wrong with it. As far as I understood he´s basically saying: "I'll pay you to mix my stuff, but with my own gear, so I can try to make it myself later using your know-how as a starting point that I know it´s good."

He wasn´t unpolite and asking anything indecent. No reason to be offended or bash. Hell, who wouldn't love to to see what someone like Andy, Eric, Mischa, Bob, Matt or any other ampsim ninjas here would do using your own gear?

You should read my post more carefully. I was helping him not flaming him. I was edifying him as to why he's not getting any responses.
 
I see your point (almost all of them)...

So, is it illegal to ask here some advice. Why is that I can't get guitar sound tight enough? I usually reduce gain a lot, I'm not clipping anywhere in signal chain (at least before mastering), and I just can't get tight sound, even if I try to play something really easy. I listened some clips from this forum, I think they were those ampsim ninjas, those bastards, and I tried to copy their fx-chains, but it just didn't sound the same. Even if I reduce gain, I can't get it tight enough. Here is some samples of X30 and VoxBoogex (GHack's edge straight -10). First has two guitar tracks, and latter has four. Everything hard panned.

http://www.tormen.org/wash1_8.mp3
http://www.tormen.org/symps1_1.mp3

So is my problem in the mastering, or post-processing? What kind of signal chain you guys have from guitar to post-processing? Also, what kind of settings(ratios,treshold's, attacks and releases) u use in mastering multiband compressor? Do you use stereo widener at all, or how about exciter? I didn't use exciter here, because it fizzies things IMO. Please give me something. And don't tell me to read...I have read a lot, but nothing gives me anything useful, it's all just trial and error :(
 
two things:
1.) almost no spare time + learning how to mix/master = doesn't work! there is NO short cut!
2.) It probably IS your playing indeed. you're complaining about tightness. Tone comes from you fingers mostly