One Synth Challenge #108: Diodow by HrastProgrammer (Schiing Wins!)

[mostlyjustj]

I just voted!

Wow. Strong field this month... I was really thinking that my entry improved enough this month over last month to maybe achieve my goal of making it into the middle 3rd of OSC voting. Now I have my doubts, haha!

My votes landed differently this month because of my appreciation for this set of songs... have a BIG glut of 4's, a smaller number of 3's - and just a few 2's and 2 5's. The only "1" is me.

Good luck everybody, and thanks for all of the sharing of your efforts... very humbling!

[mostlyjustj]

Also...

Question: Does anybody have an opinion or guidance on voting for songs that are obviously amazing, but don't strike an emotional chord with any real intensity? Some of the most skilled OSC'ers work in styles that just aren't my cup of tea, and I can be inspired by the sounds/melodies/mixing, but not be carried off by the music.

I guess I just don't want to skew the voting too much for those who are truly and rightfully competing for top spots because of my musical taste, but I also *really* want to reserve the 5's for songs that hook me with some sort of real emotional connection, whatever that is. Even if they are technically not as good as some of the others.

[zarf]

Also...

Question: Does anybody have an opinion or guidance on voting for songs that are obviously amazing, but don't strike an emotional chord with any real intensity? Some of the most skilled OSC'ers work in styles that just aren't my cup of tea, and I can be inspired by the sounds/melodies/mixing, but not be carried off by the music.

I guess I just don't want to skew the voting too much for those who are truly and rightfully competing for top spots because of my musical taste, but I also *really* want to reserve the 5's for songs that hook me with some sort of real emotional connection, whatever that is. Even if they are technically not as good as some of the others.

I have felt this way often and here is how I approach it - just as some input, not saying this is 'best' - just sharing my way:

'How much I genuinely like it' is one of the criteria I use, but I treat all of these with equal weight:
* Sound design
* Composition / arrangement (interesting, musical, believable, genre-appropriate plus surprises, twists and turns etc)
* Mixing / production
* How much I like it and connect to it (both genre and the track itself - my feeling response)

...and if a track really excels in one or more of those, but not others, I'll often give it more points. Sometimes I'll have a few 5s where some are the usual suspects with their amazing sounds and composition and pro mixing and production, alongside one that I just had to give a 5 to because it really struck me as a great track that I loved to listen to, even if some of the other qualities were not as good as the OSC-elite This isn't *just* a technical challenge, it's also a musical one and that is unavoidably subjective and emotional too!

I think without any real official voting criteria, how much you love it is a totally legit thing to include, but like you say, good to not over-reward that and also try to give credit where it is due even if you don't personally appreciate the style or even like the track. So to me, sounds like your approach is very appropriate. Just IMHO

[doctorbob]

Hard one that! I personally *try* to be as objective as possible and recognise talent - e.g. DnB not my thing, but sometimes the skill in those tracks is stonking amazing, so has to have high marks. At the subjective level, in the end, I go with my *heart*. I do find that when I listen to my categories once a first pass is done, the tracks in the middle do sound/feel the same to me, and the outliers (above an below) stick out for some reason. I then go in more critically and shove them around a bit.

Just do what you feel personally about the music etc

And yes, wot zarf says!! 100%

dB

[Taron]

Thanks, TNS, on that earlier post!
I'm so sorry we sometimes have to deal with people, who are ill-equipped to be in public. Luckily it's rarely that dramatic and luckily that was way past his last strike.

As for voting, I used to be impressed by DnB (or rather dubstep), but in some cases I have begun to notice a certain "toolkit", which really becomes something like a "paint by numbers" matter that just can't dazzle me as much anymore. It's similar to what lens-flares used to be to 3d art or any digital art. At some point you realize it's more or less just a button and an understanding on where to place them. The only saving grace then is, if the rest of the track is clever enough or musical or emotionally charged or -infectious enough.
To be clear, I haven't listened to any of the tracks of this month, yet, except early on, I think...just some quick listens. I'm not talking about anything of this month's batch, because I don't know them, yet. But even some of our well respected and powerful heroes can tumble into the toolkit mode at times and if the rest of the track is lacking, I prefer to balance their score to give more weight to those, who did fantastic in other aspects, especially musical, or inventive ways.

[] Peter:H []

@Wagtunes: Thanks for the 5! Wow, I did not expect that...And I think your truely "disturbing" sci fi track is one of your best in your OSC history...though your vocaloid stuff is not bad either!
And many, many thanks to all who have put comments on my track. I receive so much positive feedback. I'm seriously baffled. Just wow. Anyway, I want to let you now Soudcloud has some kind of hickup, meaning all your nice comments don't show up neither in the waveform display nor in the comments section. I don't know why...BUT be assured they are all visible to me (the 'bell' rings a lot). And I will answer all...

About Voting - please just go ahead with whatever is importand for you. Bob Ross says: It's all up to you where you put your nice trees and your tiny little bushes...In the end it's art and it's subjective and it's hard to tell what a 5 means, I mean in terms objective, reliable and comprehensible measurement. And let's hope for the law of big numbers (okay 20 is not big...) that evens out the different voting schemes of all participants a bit. Sorry to say that I cannot give you any advice apart form trust your feelings (and I'm an IT guy...it's hard for me to say that

[doctorbob]

I agree T that dubstep/DnD has become formulaic and it's those tracks that bring something to the table which shine, whatever their genre! In the end we are judging by what we hear, and know little of the trials and tribulations people have had making their tracks other than our own experience. But we know that things like "dammit, that kick sure knocks mine for 6!" or "those cymbals just ring out" when we sometimes compare our tracks to others. Skills are there for sure, and not always where we come to expect them.

I am always amazed at the difference between the tacks, and have to remind myself that they are all made with the same synth! I do believe mixing skills have got better, so we really need awesome compositions as well. Personally, I like those tracks which have been physically played in the main! They somehow have that comfortable feeling. Don't get me wrong though, I also like the EDM stuff, which again can be formulaic as well.

dB

[schiing]

Question: Does anybody have an opinion or guidance on voting for songs that are obviously amazing, but don't strike an emotional chord with any real intensity? Some of the most skilled OSC'ers work in styles that just aren't my cup of tea, and I can be inspired by the sounds/melodies/mixing, but not be carried off by the music.

I guess I just don't want to skew the voting too much for those who are truly and rightfully competing for top spots because of my musical taste, but I also *really* want to reserve the 5's for songs that hook me with some sort of real emotional connection, whatever that is. Even if they are technically not as good as some of the others.

Heh, I just gave you some "advice" on Soundcloud when you mentioned something to the same effect in my track comments. So please don't take this as a hidden plea for a four or a five!

But I totally understand where you're coming from. Sorry to say this, but I was a bit disappointed with the overall quality in January. Still, it was pretty easy to pick the standouts and award them with a five.

This month is so much better all over, so I had to pick a different strategy.

But my new strategy means that I'm giving five points to tracks that I would hate with a passion if anyone forced me to listen to them repeatedly (I don't actually *hate* any music, but you get my point) because they're so well put together. Other fives are purely based on musical charm. Or, at least that's what lifts them up from a four. But a lot of fives in my book this month! And who knows, maybe I need to re-evaluate my strategy once again next month?

[Taron]

Voted!
Yep, except for two tracks early on, I haven't heard any of those before voting. That was quite at trip!
Ted (schiing), I'm sorry, but you've delivered something so far above and beyond all of us in terms of professional quality in every aspect...I mean, it sounds very common in the world of professional easy-listening, but for us lot...this is enormously impressive, especially using Diodow. You've mastered it with a sense of ease that is awe-inspiring.

Wag, what in the world is happening? I'm very excited for you, because you've just now made a massive leap forward into a new phase of yours, I'm sure. I hope, you will grab the experiences you've made, especially with complex chord progressions, and let this sink into your intuition so that you can use these devices consciously in your coming compositions. I think, you've done most excellently!

I'm tempted to go on, because there were a whole bunch of really impressive tracks. I've broken my own principles by singling out those two already, but both were outstanding reasons, I find. Again, though, there were a whole bunch of outstanding moments in the entire batch. Plus...I did love only having to vote for 20 entries. Maybe I should make myself a rule not to vote for more than 20 songs in one day. It feels great!

[wagtunes]

Voted!
Yep, except for two tracks early on, I haven't heard any of those before voting. That was quite at trip!
Ted (schiing), I'm sorry, but you've delivered something so far above and beyond all of us in terms of professional quality in every aspect...I mean, it sounds very common in the world of professional easy-listening, but for us lot...this is enormously impressive, especially using Diodow. You've mastered it with a sense of ease that is awe-inspiring.

Wag, what in the world is happening? I'm very excited for you, because you've just now made a massive leap forward into a new phase of yours, I'm sure. I hope, you will grab the experiences you've made, especially with complex chord progressions, and let this sink into your intuition so that you can use these devices consciously in your coming compositions. I think, you've done most excellently!

I'm tempted to go on, because there were a whole bunch of really impressive tracks. I've broken my own principles by singling out those two already, but both were outstanding reasons, I find. Again, though, there were a whole bunch of outstanding moments in the entire batch. Plus...I did love only having to vote for 20 entries. Maybe I should make myself a rule not to vote for more than 20 songs in one day. It feels great!

I think what happened is I needed to really become excited about a synth. That doesn't happen often with paid synths let alone free ones. But this synth I really identified with. I knew exactly what I wanted to do with it and exactly how I wanted to pull it off.

Sadly, for those who have been so supportive and encouraging of me this month, the entry is still going to find itself towards the bottom of the standings. It is something I have come to accept. Like I said, I didn't enter this month's contest for any recognition. I did it because I could not let this synth pass me by. If I had more time to work with Tranzistow (now that I have the full version) I would probably spend all my time with that beast. But work and other responsibilities make it impossible. Still, I try to sneak in a few minutes when I can.

Anyway, in a week or so, we'll see how well I do. But trust me, I am not expecting any miracles.

[schiing]

Ted (schiing), I'm sorry, but you've delivered something so far above and beyond all of us in terms of professional quality in every aspect...I mean, it sounds very common in the world of professional easy-listening, but for us lot...this is enormously impressive, especially using Diodow. You've mastered it with a sense of ease that is awe-inspiring.

Hehe, thanks so much - your kind words mean a lot to me. Ted is actually my boss, but I'm perfectly cool with being called Ted! No one outside of my native country is able to pronounce my real name anyway!

(In fact, The Ted Mountainé Orchestra is an umbrella moniker for all my internet nicks and favorite mock names - there's Ted, the band leader; schiing, percussionist; the White twins: Maurice Reilly-White and Max White; Fusiognomy, my backing band; The Nightliners, my backing vocal group; The Mountainé Strings; Ted Lewis' Hat, my manager. So it's all quite narcissistic and schizophrenic. But fun!)

[Taron]

@wag Just stop doing that, Steve! Stop with the ... just wait until the results are there! You don't have to predict "failure", you know. It shouldn't be about sympathy anyway, even if it is to some extend. Just hold back, when ever you feel the impulse to share your worries about yourself! You'll be fine.

@schiing ....

[TheNeverScene]

I would think with so few tracks, voting would be a breeze....nope, not at all.

I'm finding myself leaning more towards the experimental tracks than ever before. Both Peter's and Wagtunes' tracks have a lot of character and are a great listen so thank you for that.

I feel like we've all been through some sort of blood initiation with Diodow. It's a great synth with a mind of it's own at times.

My current votes are ridiculously top heavy. I keep trying to spread things out, but it's not working. I may just have to cut the cord and shift everything for my absolute favorites, or just leave it like it is. I dunno.

So far, my only 1's are me and Taron.....

[TheNeverScene]

[zarf]

My current votes are ridiculously top heavy. I keep trying to spread things out, but it's not working. I may just have to cut the cord and shift everything for my absolute favorites, or just leave it like it is. I dunno.

Man, I so often feel like I want to do that.
Sometimes I do.
But often I don't because I know that despite however many times I say that my votes are relative and there is no absolute meaning to a score from me, there are still enough people who seem to believe that anything below a 3 means that it is being judged as some kind of 'bad' that I don't do it! Even though to me it doesn't mean that, if I know that the person seeing their score is going to believe that, I often choose to not use the full range, or even 2-5. Sigh.