KVR Audio

dewgong · Post by **dewgong** » Thu May 28, 2015 11:26 am

I have a piece which uses hardware instruments primarily but I need to fill in spaces with digital synths. Problem is they just dont sit in the mix. The contrast is jarring for me. Im working ITB primarily and I dont have access to an amp anymore so I cant reamp my synths. Any advice on successfully combining software and hardware instruments?

chk071 · Post by **chk071** » Thu May 28, 2015 11:29 am

What do you mean with "hardware instruments"? Analog hardware synths?

BertKoor · Post by **BertKoor** » Thu May 28, 2015 11:49 am

dewgong wrote:Problem is they just dont sit in the mix.

Probably you just need to tweak the presets (or maybe even pick another VSTi) so the patch itself fits better with the arrangement. You could add some compression & EQ and whatever you usually put on a channel, but it all starts with the appropriate patch. If that is chosen right, mixing it so it blends in is not difficult.

dewgong · Post by **dewgong** » Thu May 28, 2015 11:56 am

BertKoor wrote:
dewgong wrote:Problem is they just dont sit in the mix.
Probably you just need to tweak the presets (or maybe even pick another VSTi) so the patch itself fits better with the arrangement. You could add some compression & EQ and whatever you usually put on a channel, but it all starts with the appropriate patch. If that is chosen right, mixing it so it blends in is not difficult.

I programme everything from scratch really and i'll spend absolutely ages layering things to no avail. I mean they just sound really pristine and a little synthetic. Its probably not fair to compare though as the sampled analog synths have been mastered and put through various engines

soul_junkie · Post by **soul_junkie** » Thu May 28, 2015 12:50 pm

Get some warmth on there

Vintage Warmer
Decapitator
Saturn
Warmifier

etc, etc, etc

dewgong · Post by **dewgong** » Thu May 28, 2015 3:54 pm

soul_junkie wrote:Get some warmth on there

Vintage Warmer
Decapitator
Saturn
Warmifier

etc, etc, etc

Yeah I have the sound toys bundle. I dont have anything else apart from Camel Crusher which is stripped down Camelphat. its still great though

Do I ideally need to have several saturation effects going at once? My solution is to use Alchemy's onboard effects which sound great. The filter and distortion system is first rate!

UncleAge · Post by **UncleAge** » Thu May 28, 2015 4:05 pm

Convolution plugin using speaker cab or microphone IR files might be an option as well.

dewgong · Post by **dewgong** » Thu May 28, 2015 4:09 pm

UncleAge wrote:Convolution plugin using speaker cab or microphone IR files might be an option as well.

Ah thanks for the reminder ^_^ I have some really nice chorus amp cabinet impulses. I might use that as a send at some stage in the chain to add some more warmth.

soul_junkie · Post by **soul_junkie** » Thu May 28, 2015 7:47 pm

dewgong wrote:Do I ideally need to have several saturation effects going at once?

I wouldn't think so, one should be enough!
(I was just listing good plugins!)

SPUN_prod · Post by **SPUN_prod** » Fri May 29, 2015 4:47 pm

Being that you had mentioned not being able to re-amp them, I would honestly try using an amp simulation plugin first and see if you can get any results with that. If it's warmth you're looking for, try some more analog-style synths being that any hard synth plugins will probably sound too synthetic and bright. Could always try EQing some of the brightness out too if you do find one that sits well aside from the synthetic aesthetic of it. Is this like a specific request for hardware synths to fill in the gaps? Maybe using a sampler with actual instruments samples might be a better fit? Any chance we could hear what you're working on? Would be easier to give advice with some context..

DJ Warmonger · Post by **DJ Warmonger** » Fri May 29, 2015 5:32 pm

Well, you get different sounds with different techniques, where's the problem with that?

A lot can be done just with EQ or running all sounds through same effect chain (especially reverb).

Digital synths and mix sitting