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And I think I have the beginnings of something lyrics wise for that funky sounding track I made last week.

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"This is that human freedom, which all boast that they possess, and which consists solely in the fact, that men are conscious of their own desire, but are ignorant of the causes whereby that desire has been determined." -Baruch Spinoza



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Another awful vocal take



I know there’s something great in me somewhere. Just gotta dig deep enough to find it. You only need one song to change your life. For real.



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I gotta say I really love this lofi **** sound I’ve been onto of late. Learning a lot, too. Very trial and error. Screw with it until it sounds horrible, make notes, and try again till I hear something I like.

I need to get another single together since the last one bombed hard.



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Probably the last one of these till the new year, but I definitely think I will need to revisit this one and make a single from it. I have a lot more to say, but this bit was the highlight of what I got so far.

I love hip-hop, but I hate the industry.




Probably the last one of these till the new year, but I definitely think I will need to revisit this one and make a single from it. I have a lot more to say, but this bit was the highlight of what I got so far.

I love hip-hop, but I hate the industry.

This one doesn't work for me now, but it was awesome when I heard it earlier. The gritty production really helped it. I'd definitely be interested in a fuller version. Your production chops sound like they're improving.



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This one doesn't work for me now, but it was awesome when I heard it earlier. The gritty production really helped it. I'd definitely be interested in a fuller version. Your production chops sound like they're improving.
I archived it, so it’s not public anymore. I hold a lot of my darker stuff back. Put it up for a few days to gauge response to the sound. But yeah, I really liked that one. Kick is from one of the newer kits GarageBand added. Both their keyboard and new drum kits have opened up my possibilities even more now. However, I am approaching the limits for what I want to do and it is time to commit to another DAW.

@ynwtf already knows I been wrestling with this decision for awhile now. I have narrowed it down to two options: StudioOne 5 and Waveform 11.

I want to like StudioOne. I really do. Every time I read the feature list it makes me feel overwhelmed by all the **** I gotta learn to get to the professional sound. And since everything looks the same I can’t distinguish stuff, so the interface intimidates me.

Then there’s Waveform which is just beautiful to me. Visually I can understand how things work. The EQ tools and mastering tools aren’t as overwhelming. Plus, it’s half the cost of StudioOne but still affords me access to Melodyne, AutoTune, and timewarping tools. There instruments seem far more expressive, too. I just get the distinct feeling that I will create faster and better in Waveform.

I still see myself using GarageBand but the EQ and effects plug-in chain is starting to limit me.



I archived it, so it’s not public anymore. I hold a lot of my darker stuff back. Put it up for a few days to gauge response to the sound. But yeah, I really liked that one. Kick is from one of the newer kits GarageBand added. Both their keyboard and new drum kits have opened up my possibilities even more now. However, I am approaching the limits for what I want to do and it is time to commit to another DAW.

@ynwtf already knows I been wrestling with this decision for awhile now. I have narrowed it down to two options: StudioOne 5 and Waveform 11.

I want to like StudioOne. I really do. Every time I read the feature list it makes me feel overwhelmed by all the **** I gotta learn to get to the professional sound. And since everything looks the same I can’t distinguish stuff, so the interface intimidates me.

Then there’s Waveform which is just beautiful to me. Visually I can understand how things work. The EQ tools and mastering tools aren’t as overwhelming. Plus, it’s half the cost of StudioOne but still affords me access to Melodyne, AutoTune, and timewarping tools. There instruments seem far more expressive, too. I just get the distinct feeling that I will create faster and better in Waveform.

I still see myself using GarageBand but the EQ and effects plug-in chain is starting to limit me.

I'm definitely drawn more to the darker stuff, but I get you. I've put a year into an entire album, and withheld it because it was too personal.

I think some people place too much emphasis on competing DAWs (akin to tribal PS/Xbox folks). They're sound canvasses, and the flagship ones all pretty much do the same fundamental things. I think the main thing to consider is workflow, and the best way to know for sure which DAW has the most desirable layout/key commands for you is to experiment with them.

I'm far from an expert or pro, but I would recommend against choosing a DAW just based on what plugins they come with, because as time goes by, you'll probably want to start using better third party plugins anyway. They'll likely have a much bigger impact on your sound than choice of DAW.

I use the infamous FL Studio (almost entirely with third party plugins and samples). It was the first DAW I'd even heard of years ago, and I immediately downloaded it (I own it now) without bothering to research any alternatives. The reason I'm still using it is because I know the workflow like the back of my hand. A few years ago I thought FL may have been no good just because of the reputation, so I tried the lauded Ableton, expecting it to do my laundry and repair the dishwasher, but was disappointed when I realized that they essentially do the same stuff in slightly different ways. My music sounded the same either way.

From what else I know, Pro Tools is industry standard (if you feel like sending project files to other pro engineers and whatnot), Ableton is popular with electronic musicians, and Cubase is popular with orchestral composers (I think it has staff notation software). Logic, Reason, and Studio One are other big ones I hear tossed around. After a quick youtube peek at Waveform, it looks cool too. Whatever you get, you will make dope sh*t.



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@re93animator: Agreed. I have been down the rabbit hole so many times over the last year trying to decide on a DAW, but it has mainly just been a cost to benefit issue. Stock plugins is how I do the majority of my work (aside from all the Native Instruments stuff I got). Most of my sound design comes from using the stock EQ tools and the like to morph a kick from weak to peak, and the Waveforms EQ tools make sense to my eyes.

In the end, a truly professional sound is going to require a good sound engineer. No question about it. There’s just no competing with the quality of mixing/mastering that can be achieved by some dude that only does that, so I instead focused on the creative side. I wanted something that says to me “create!” I really wish I had a MacBook because I’d be on Logic and this whole conversation would be moot. Alas, I is broke.

I do already have a few third party plugins for recreating the sound of tape. I love the sound of hiss and warping sound. I also have the chipsynth from Plogue which is outstanding, and has sat unused until today.

Another reason I went with Waveform is that there isn’t a shortage of free training videos from the company and other streamers. There’s this one streamer actually who I found who’s method of explaining **** just clicks. Nothing pains me more than watching a ten minutes video trying to learning something and at the end I’m more confused and pissed than when I started.

My mild understanding of FL Studio’s infamous streetcred is because people think it’s difficult or not very powerful, which is far from the truth. I see more independents using FL to make some awesome stuff. Must be a hold over from the old days because FL is pretty powerful when I glance at it.

TL; DR - I bought Waveform and am fiddling with it now and it has clicked and holy ****, I am a convert. This software is amazing at this price

Here's a quick sample I made with Waveform just to get a feel for it. That's ROLI's Blade Runner preset with the Cassette the tape plugin I was talking about.

https://1drv.ms/u/s!AhxlAqRf3_HPvQuCA8Ba3MbyVH2i



@re93animator: Agreed. I have been down the rabbit hole so many times over the last year trying to decide on a DAW, but it has mainly just been a cost to benefit issue. Stock plugins is how I do the majority of my work (aside from all the Native Instruments stuff I got). Most of my sound design comes from using the stock EQ tools and the like to morph a kick from weak to peak, and the Waveforms EQ tools make sense to my eyes.
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I focus on the creative side more as well, but learn production along the way out of necessity. I try not to focus on professionalism or loudness too much, and often think of production as an extension of creativity.

I recommend creating a pluginboutique or loopmasters account. They have good deals that pop up every now and then. Unfortunately the end of year ones seem mostly over now.

FL started as a pretty non-serious, fun little piece of bum-tiss-bum-tiss software called Fruity Loops, but it's been updated up the wazoo and is now as powerful as any other DAW as far as I know. The lifetime free updates give me more confidence in the security of that investment.

I like the old tape plugins too. I just got AudioThing's Wires and have been spamming it in most of my recent work.



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@re93animator: yup, I have a pluginboutique account. I want to say I used it to get iZotope but I can’t remember. I’ll need to check on that.

But I was fiddling with Waveform yesterday and the work flow clicked. I really do love this interface. Now if I only knew how to be creative by just clicking midi notes in. Time to learn a new way of producing.



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https://1drv.ms/u/s!AhxlAqRf3_HPvTPLbYYSvpiFWTld

https://1drv.ms/u/s!AhxlAqRf3_HPvTQ7RIkGTj-K2pfV

Me trying my hand at a WHOLE bunch of new stuff I learned today. They are the same file but one has been exported at -12 RMS so I could see how it compared. I love this DAW. Once I get it figured out totally I think the creative bug will come back, but it works amazingly with my ROLI Seaboard. Lots of MPE instruments already builtin to their Collective VST.



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I'm sorry ya'll but I am just too excited by what I can do now that I find some software I am comfortable with so bare with the ear spam.

https://1drv.ms/u/s!AhxlAqRf3_HPvVKbFyL_IaJf8ySq

I dunno. Do I have enough kick? xD



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First beat of 2021. Could be worse I suppose. 😅

EDIT: This post just became my most popular post ever. Holy crap, I need to get this knocked out as a single soon.



The call & response vocals fit you really well, and I'm liking your instrumental mixing a little bit more every time I hear it.

I especially like the instrumental you posted 4 days ago. Sounds akin to late-70s synth scores.