KVR Audio

VitaminD · Post by **VitaminD** » Sun Oct 24, 2004 6:37 pm

hehe I just came back to recommend tranceport I

it has some really nice examples (imo).. my top picks from tranceport are 'someone' by ascension, 'gamemaster' by lost tribe, 'purple' by gus gus (really its a sasha vs. the light remix), and '1998' by binary finary. all good stuff in my book.

also check out terra ferma.. his last album "the Adventures of..." is phenomenal.. terra ferma is really Claudio Giussani.. (half of Union Jack) they had some hits in the early 90s ....old, 'vintage' trance/acid stuff.. so there no supersaws if you're scared away by them, just driving, intelligent, well produced trance.

The Chase · Post by **The Chase** » Sun Oct 24, 2004 6:50 pm

VitaminD wrote:hehe I just came back to recommend tranceport I

it has some really nice examples (imo).. my top picks from tranceport are 'someone' by ascension, 'gamemaster' by lost tribe, 'purple' by gus gus (really its a sasha vs. the light remix), and '1998' by binary finary. all good stuff in my book.

How can you leave out "Cafe Del Mar"? Anyways, i think "purple" is by far the best track on there.

oblagon · Post by **oblagon** » Sun Oct 24, 2004 6:54 pm

tate's 'prayer for god' is very good. other stuff i've heard from him was incredibly weak. all well produced though

Armadillo · Post by **Armadillo** » Sun Oct 24, 2004 7:07 pm

wow, it's really nice to see a tarnce thread on kvr with out a lot of bashing.
I totally agree, it's damn hard to mix, that's why I've started doing more minimal styles like Trip hop, Big Beat and RnB

ralf_c · Post by **ralf_c** » Sun Oct 24, 2004 7:40 pm

cheers all. very productive thread.

perhaps the guys in the know can formulate a good sticky with good mixing tips, it would help the community alot.

tee boy · Post by **tee boy** » Mon Oct 25, 2004 1:37 am

Indeed, I think basic step by step tutorials for making the typical sounds would be nice. I mean, how many threads have gotten blasted for asking how to make a certain 'German' bass sound

Yet, Iv still to see anyone provide a decent answer to this question. I think everyone here would benefit from a sticky of this nature, even those who dislike the music. How about kick drums, how do you make yours? Beats? Synths?

Would be nice if we could do a post with all this info in for beginners to consult. Not only that, it would be great to for the more experienced of us to get an insight into how others work. I'll happily start with my receipe for nice trance kicks -

- Take a typical round 909 samples, some perfect ones in Reason and Rebirth.

- Seperate it onto three audio tracks, all sent to a buss

- On the first track, leave un processed

- On the second, compress and EQ some that the middle freq's dominate. You should aim for a nice punchy sound with no sub 150Hz.

- On the third, compress heavily and remove all the bottom end (if any has survived). Might also help if you boost at 8 - 10kHz.

- Mix the three tracks to taste.

This method allows you to control all the elements of the sound with out sacrificing anything. Sometimes if you compress a kick to get punch, you can also loose some 'umph' and body. Not with this method, just push the fader up of the high end track. Instant high compression 'pop'.

You can also get a more powerful sound by using brick wall compression and saturation on the buss. For example, Vintage Warmer is perfect for driving up an electronic kick. So is L3. 10:1, short attack, chort release compression is also great to for providing balls without loosing bottom end.

Another tip is to replace the high end kick with a sample. A nice punchy house or hip hop kick works great - something with a more 'real' sound. Use this as the high end to get a more contemporary trance kick sound.

If you want more of killer hard trance kick, stomp boxes are worth a lookin. Run a nice punching kick sound through an analog distortion box and tweak. These sounds tend to be the more heavily compressed to, and are usually the product of further layering. For example, layer a distorted top kick onto a nice big clean bottom kick.

Freeware VST's are great for making trance kicks, no lie! They sound a bit boring on there own, but if you use them to create the bottom end element of your kick, then use samples to get the upper end you can get good results. I did a really nice on using Ersdrum for the bottom, then some 909 sample for the top / mid.

Finally, a word on layering. Make sure that hits are lined up perfectly, and try experimenting with the phase. Not all sounds go together, but for ones that do its important that they are both on the money. Some hits have significant pre attacks, and these need to either be removed, or compensated for in order to layer things up right.

ouroboros · Post by **ouroboros** » Mon Oct 25, 2004 1:44 am

Thanks for the suggestions and tips: very helpful and interesting

tee boy · Post by **tee boy** » Mon Oct 25, 2004 1:46 am

VitaminD wrote:hehe I just came back to recommend tranceport I

it has some really nice examples (imo).. my top picks from tranceport are 'someone' by ascension, 'gamemaster' by lost tribe, 'purple' by gus gus (really its a sasha vs. the light remix), and '1998' by binary finary. all good stuff in my book.

also check out terra ferma.. his last album "the Adventures of..." is phenomenal.. terra ferma is really Claudio Giussani.. (half of Union Jack) they had some hits in the early 90s ....old, 'vintage' trance/acid stuff.. so there no supersaws if you're scared away by them, just driving, intelligent, well produced trance.

Mate, Gamemaster is QUALITY tune. I was never to keen on the vocals, but the track itself represents trance at its best for me. Unfortunately the new version is total pish...

I think 'Coast to Coast - Home' is another brilliant track. Once again, let down by a horrific vocal.

Another couple that stick out in my mind:

- Three Drives - Air traffic (Bobina remix)

- Accadia - Into the Dawn (James Holden Rremix)

- BT - Mercury and Sollace

ouroboros · Post by **ouroboros** » Mon Oct 25, 2004 1:47 am

tee boy wrote: Finally, a word on layering. Make sure that hits are lined up perfectly, and try experimenting with the phase.

sorry

what does this do?

tee boy · Post by **tee boy** » Mon Oct 25, 2004 1:53 am

When you stick two sounds with very similar freq's on top of each other, they can tend to phase each other out. This can be a tool if you use it right. For example, you might layer to full sounding kicks and get a very feebie thin one back. Reason being all the lowend has been phased out. Reverse the phase on one track and you find a very different result.

The reason lining up is so important is because you really dont want the two sounds to flam. This sounds horrible and really gives the game away. When you layer perfectly, the two sounds become completely intergrated into a single composite sound.

Layeing like this is a little different from the 'three tracks' technique, because you are actually aiming for freq's to conflict. Its an unpredictable technique so experimentation is the order of the day. Sometimes it sounds like shit, other times you get brilliant and totally unexpected results!

quincy · Post by **quincy** » Mon Oct 25, 2004 2:01 am

The other day i had a happy accident with Ableton Live.

I had a drum loop from a CD, and i somehow accidentally ended up with it on 2 tracks, one with a very heavy compression setting, really pumping the sound it was.

I adjusted the volumes of the 2 tracks to taste, and it really sounded pretty good, really fattened up the sound.

I reckon with some crafty EQ-ing in there too you could get some good results, or only pass certain slices of the loop through the compressor while the dry loop remians untouched.

Something to try anyway

tee boy · Post by **tee boy** » Mon Oct 25, 2004 2:04 am

This is something they do with rock and metal drums alot. Having a super compressed buss and mixing it with the dry and room mic busses. Works for anything though, as you pointed out. With this method you literally get have your cake and eat it!

ouroboros · Post by **ouroboros** » Mon Oct 25, 2004 2:08 am

thanks Tee Boy

tee boy · Post by **tee boy** » Mon Oct 25, 2004 2:13 am

NFP mate. If anyone else has any tips to share Im all ears! I have some kick samples mad by someone on here that are really top notch, cant remember who though

.

Anyone got anything to add on the 'kick drum' issue? Any favorite technique, source material, signal chains etc?

tee boy · Post by **tee boy** » Mon Oct 25, 2004 3:44 am

Ok, i got another couple for ya.

- Try cross fading to exsisting samples. For example, say you have a kick with a really nice attack, and another with a great 'umph'. Layer the two sounds, but crossfade them some that the one attack moves seamlessly into the second sound. Records are great as source material for this, since they tend to have these elements already emphasized.

- Dont be affraid to use already processed hits in your own sounds. Just cuz it aint a kick drum dont mean it cant be used. Acoustic and electronic toms, snare and percussion can all be used to form different parts of new kick sounds.

A word on trance