Ok well I might care a little

After taking note of the advice of those who replied to my 'Mud' thread and of Terry's excellent tutorial I decided to give it all another shot with hopefully better results.

I decided to start from scratch, re-set up all my equipment and even write a ditty especially to record. The strange thing is that 'songwise' I have had a bit of a dry spell lately and trying to resolve the 'Mud' issue seems to have helped with that also! I was so eager to get recording that the song seemed to write itself and was basically written in 15 minutes!! (Ok when you hear it you might believe me )

Anyway the end result sounds much better on my sound equipment at home and in the car so have a listen and see if I am on the right track.

It is the overall 'sound' I am interested in. The song itself is not a serious project...just something I threw together. I also wanted to prove I could write something that was NOT in a minor key (Just for a change!!).

As for my voice I know all I need to in that regard....I would sacrifice my 'reputation' (a prize indeed!) to be able to sing, alas it seems I will hold on to it for a while yet

(Get on with it Tony!)....Anyway it is called 'I Don't Care and you can get it at... http://members.sniffout.com/nsymon/IDONTCARE.mp3

As always
Tony

Tony,
Had a couple of listens....the clarity is much better, 100% improved. Everything sounds crisp and clean. The only suggestion on this particular piece I would have is that the balance in the mix is just slightly off to me. The guitar is a bit loud compared to the drums and I thought the drums could use a bit more punch to them for this style of tune. So my thoughts over all would be drop the guitar back just a bit, add a bit of volume, bass and treble to the percussion track(s).

As far as the critique......well, I like your minor key pieces better myself, they're more moody and evoke more emotion in me. Not a bad tune at all, I just like the others better.
Terry

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jam on,
Terry http://imjazzed.homestead.com/Index.html

[This message has been edited by trtjazz (edited 05-23-2003).]

Hi Tony,

I had a listen to "I Don't Care". The backing tracks sounded great and there was definitely better acoustics to the sound. It sounded crisper and cleaner than Pretty Dresses and Wonderful Day. The mid range 'muddiness' as you described (although my description would have been slightly 'dull or lacking sparkle') is gone. You are on the right track for sure. The vocals are very clean sounding and at the right level imo.

Best regards,
Mike

Tony, Bravo! Your songwriting, performance, & recording skills have all reached a new higher level. Your song has a memorably catchy feel & hook line. Kinda reminds me of Boy George (1980's) with a 60's feel. The guitar & horn riffs sound crisp & punchy and your vocals are nice & clear, making it easy to understand the words. My only suggestion might be to add vocal harmony during the chorus of the song, or just on the words: "I Don't Care"

Ok Tony, please tell us which keyboard (I assume the Yamaha 9000pro, right?) as well as the other recording equipment (mic, soundcard, rec software, etc) used , what arranger 'style' was used, and what your recording procedure was. - Scott

Hello Terry, Mike and Scott

I am really pleased you all agree that the sound is crisper and more clear.

Terry I tend to agree that the Guitar is kind of overpowering in the mix. I still have not bought any decent monitors yet and it did not sound too bad through the hi-fi (connected to the pc) but in the car I noticed it more. Then I played it on my brothers system and noticed it even more! Also I do prefer to write in minor keys but am concious that some of my stuff of late has begun to sound similar (or maybe I am settling in to a 'style' )

Mike, Thanks for listening and for giving your comments. I do appreciate it. I think the clearer vocals are due to my new Audio Technica Midnight Blue 4000c condenser mic. I did intend to buy an AKG c1000s but my dealer had none in stock and I hate waiting for anything! I am really pleased with the mic I got though and think it makes a huge difference.

Scott, Boy George eh?? He is one of my hero's! I think his voice is amazing it is just a shame that he does not put it to as much use these days. It is funny you should mention the vocal harmony. Originally the chorus did have harmony but it sounded bad! I have not yet mastered the harmoniser on the 9000pro to it's best. My voice is a bit weak I think and the backing girls get a wobble on half way through a line!!(Bad Girls!)I Need to practice my breathing I think

To answer your questions re the equipment,
9000PRO
AT 4000c mic
all routed through a behringer mixer. (I am having fun using the sub outs on the pro. Cables everywhere!!!)
Cool edit pro
The style was 60's rock 3 from the flash styles in the pro (So that must be where you got the sixties feel from )
I was using an EDIROL UA-1A usb interface because the Lexicon Studio Core 2 soundcard I recently bought really does not like my Athlon processor (I really should research these things before I jump in and buy them) so that is back on sale on ebay

The UA-1A is only 16 bit and so I am considering buying a 24 bit usb interface. I really like the ease of use of the usb interface and am considering stripping down my music pc anyway and using a dedicated laptop instead. Part of the reason for this is space and the other big consideration is that I have two pc's in my 'music room' and when they are both on it sounds like Heathrow airport it is that noisy.

I have also got a bid in on ebay for a Behringer ultra voice pro vocal processor. I am hoping that along with the new mic this will help keep my vocals clean and maybe make them sound a little more passable.

All I need then is to find some monitor speakers that do a half decent job and I might be happy for a little while Then again those 'Buy it Now' buttons on ebay are just too much of a temptation!!

All the best
Tony

Tony.
Have a look at these monitors...
http://www.midiman.com/products/m-audio/studiophilebx5.php

I bought a pair under $300.00 and now my Alesis Mi's are sitting in a corner....they are SUPERB for a flat response (which is what we want in the studio) and made a huge difference in my mix....what I hear is what I get.
Terry

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jam on,
Terry http://imjazzed.homestead.com/Index.html

Tony, you might want to check out Yamaha's MSP5 Studio Monitors. I just bought a pair and I have to say I am quite pleased with them. Quality near field Monitors are rather expensive but they have come down in price over the last 2 or 3 years. Here is the links to the Yamaha MSP5 and a review of the same: http://www.music123.com/item/?itemno=64534 http://www.yamaha.co.jp/product/proaudio/homeenglish/topic/magazine/stdsnd/99_2/

Also you might check out the Behringer Truth B2031 Monitors. They are sold in pairs and the reviews on them have been very good. Here is the link to the Behringers: http://www.music123.com/item/?itemno=10213

PS: Please be advised that George Kaye of Kaye's Music Scene also carries the Behringer Truths and I believe he also sells them for $399 a pair. Note: I am not sure George ships overseas though.

Kaye's Music Scene
Reseda, California USA
(818) 881-5566

Best regards,
Mike

No offense to Mike, but I tried both those monitors and did not like either for an uncolored true flat response.

The problem as I see it is this, as with my Alesis M1 actives...they are great monitors but sound way different than any other speakers I play my cds on and that is because of the color that they add to the sound. That is why as flat a response as possible is necessary, because no one is going to listen to your cds on your monitors but you.

Of course you need to have a listen for yourself.
Terry

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jam on,
Terry http://imjazzed.homestead.com/Index.html

[This message has been edited by trtjazz (edited 05-25-2003).]

I agree Terry in that to achieve the best recording possible you need the flatest frequency reponse Monitors possible. But I think the Yamaha MSP5's fall within that category; ie., "flat frequency response". The nice thing about the MSP5's is there is enough bass response or Low End to give the Artist a true feel for the music and what is actually "present in the sound". If you are not able to get a good picture of what is happening at the bottom end your recordings and masterings will be affected for the worse not the better most likely.

On the High End frequency the truth is most adult humans cannot hear any sound frequency above 10kHz anyway. But it is nice to know the MSP5's range all the way up to 40kHz! (Just in case your dog or cat happen to be in the audience).

I have listened to the BX5's and I concluded they did not have the necessary Bass response LF needed to get a true "sense" of what was going on in the Mix to be able to actuate the Mastering accordingly and appropriately.

Plus when I am just playing my Keyboard or listening to Midi's through the Keyboard etc., it is nice to have that great Bass response I get from my MSP5's. And if you want to rattle a few windows the MSP5's are able to deliver up to 101 dB SPL at one metre on axis unlike the rather paltry 90 dB output of the BX5's. Also have you noticed that Midiman does not reveal the THD=% in the list of the BX5's specs on their web site? Could it be that they would rather a person not know perhaps because it is less than stellar? Just wondering I guess as to why they don't post it.

Best regards,
Mike

PS: I agree also with Terry that a person needs to demo the Monitors in question or any other Monitor for that matter, to determine if they are up to a person's expectations and satisfaction before purchasing it/them.

I think that I will try to audition your reccomendations at my dealers providing he has them all in stock. It is bank holiday over here on Monday so I have to wait until Tuesday to find out what he has. If past experience is anything to go by he will have a choice of two, expensive and ludicrously expensive!

The problem is I know what I am like, if there is no choice I will end up grabbing what I can just so that I don't have to wait. As far as I am concerned patience is just a card game

Mind you anything would be better than what I am using at the moment I am sure.
Best to you all
Tony

I'm convinced .... NO ONE knows what "flat" sounds like. I listened to dozens of speakers taht are advertised as "flat" and they each have their own particular sound. Best thing to do is listen to something that is VERY familiar to you .... bring it to the stores, and listen to THAT material on each set of monitors. Buy the one that sounds the best for THAT material.
I happen to love the sound of these yamaha MSP5's but I prefer using the Non powered approach so I can listen to what the general public will use. My Sony 100watt stereo is my mixdown amp and I use Event 2020's as the main speakers.

Buy what sounds right .... forget the ads and the recommendations. use your ears .... and ONLY your ears.