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Ambient/Post-Rock/Textural bass playing thread
- Thread starter ttasselm
- Start date
Probably what most people would call Downtempo or Psychill/Psybient. I have a piece we did at the synth show that I'm waiting for the video on, in that mold.
Funny you should mention that, because the synth duo is taking a two-pronged approach... we're having the more abstract, classic 'ambient' stuff, and considering we actually want to play in front of other humans on a semi-regular basis, we're also putting together a set of more beat-based downtempo stuff, kind of in the Carbon Based Lifeforms/Kick Bong/Zero Cult kind of style. We'll do the ambient stuff at artsy places, and hopefully the beat stuff in regular clubs. Still a long way off, though, we have much more of the former than the latter.
I've accepted my drum skills are weak and that I use drum loops. I'm also doing covers, so I've got some creative constraints I've accepted as part of this project.
Edit - this project is becoming more about my production skills and developing a workflow. I'll cross-apply to Ambient stuff as needed. I'm already hearing the subtlety of 1 dB changes and compression and limiting. Stuff I didn't get before.
If you like live electro check this out:
Keys, bass, drums.
Imo it is an freakn awesome idea to split the band in 2. One "nerd" one "shake ya booty.
I'd go to both!!!
If you like live electro check this out:
Keys, bass, drums.
Imo it is an freakn awesome idea to split the band in 2. One "nerd" one "shake ya booty.
I'd go to both!!!
Oh, I know all about the ND.. They opened up for Herbie Hancock up here back when he did that electronic Future2Future album. My fave from that album...
I spent a lot of time programming a Sequential Prophet VS back in the late 80s, and so when the Korg Wavestation came out it was on my GAS list.
At this point the Wavestate will have to satisfy my jones.
Did you get one? I think it has some samples from the VS on it.I spent a lot of time programming a Sequential Prophet VS back in the late 80s, and so when the Korg Wavestation came out it was on my GAS list.
At this point the Wavestate will have to satisfy my jones.
You can actually hear 1 dB difference. Wow.
I'm freakin impressed. I sure as hell cant.
Blind Testing a 1 dB Level Difference
Well, maybe not exactly 1 dB, but I'm hearing how 1 dB changes elements the mix, particularly as you plug the mix bounce into a mastering chain. I'm getting better at estimating how the limiters will react to EQ changes in certain frequency bands.
I've got a long way to go, but I've opened my ears a bunch.
do you think it's possible to "perceive/feel" rather than "hear" a 1db (or even 0.5) change?
for certain things, i think it's possible—and better. sometimes you mayb want something with a little bit more presence rather than it being noticeably louder . . . well that's my thought anyway.
for certain things, i think it's possible—and better. sometimes you mayb want something with a little bit more presence rather than it being noticeably louder . . . well that's my thought anyway.
wouldn't that additional perception/feel be "hearing" the change? like, that little adjustment is all you need and the difference is noticeable, thus that is what the dB is. i certainly couldn't listen to two sounds and say one is 1 dB off from the other. but i could listen to my mix and "guess" that a 1 dB adjustment would get me what I'm after, and be reasonably close. whereas, i used to move in 3 to 6 dB adjustments to think i was changing anything.
IME, a global change of 1db is not easy to discern. But if you have two sounds, and you change one of them, I can more easily discern the change in their relationship.
i have records where i've done a +0.5db bump (actually a fair amount) to an instrument that's doubling or in counterpoint where 1db felt like it was too much. the engineer and i went around on it (we've worked together on 16 or more albums, so he's used to me
), it made the line jump a little bit more or things moosh together, but not like "holy crap" . . . i understand parsing the word "hearing" gets into subliminal vs. obvious levels of perception. but there are so many things in mixes that we don't really "hear" in the sense of "knowing" that they're there rather that "feeling" that they're there.
anyway, my guess is that we're talking about the same thing . . .
dunno, it's probably all voodoo.
I imagine it's kind of like the Loudness Wars and compression, where you hear a new song by a band you like, and you think, "It's a cool song, but why does it give me a headache to listen to it?"
(I'm looking at you, Metallica's Death Magnetic)
(I'm looking at you, Metallica's Death Magnetic)
I'm seriously impressed.i have records where i've done a +0.5db bump (actually a fair amount) to an instrument that's doubling or in counterpoint where 1db felt like it was too much. the engineer and i went around on it (we've worked together on 16 or more albums, so he's used to me
i understand parsing the word "hearing" gets into subliminal vs. obvious levels of perception. but there are so many things in mixes that we don't really "hear" in the sense of "knowing" that they're there rather that "feeling" that they're there.
anyway, my guess is that we're talking about the same thing . . .
dunno, it's probably all voodoo.
0.5 dB adjustments....in a mix....
........that is insane.
Wow.
i have records where i've done a +0.5db bump (actually a fair amount) to an instrument that's doubling or in counterpoint where 1db felt like it was too much. the engineer and i went around on it (we've worked together on 16 or more albums, so he's used to me
i understand parsing the word "hearing" gets into subliminal vs. obvious levels of perception. but there are so many things in mixes that we don't really "hear" in the sense of "knowing" that they're there rather that "feeling" that they're there.
anyway, my guess is that we're talking about the same thing . . .
dunno, it's probably all voodoo.
Subtle changes are probably all magnified by the application of a limiter on the mastering chain. Moving the fader 1 dB on a 500 Hz fundamental synth line is going to pop more when you compress it, particularly with how the ear hears in that range.
I'm sure we're on a very similar page, if not the same one, on this issue.
