Same Boat + new song (18/1)

voh · Fri 13/01/2006 12:49:11

I wrote this song the day my grandpa was cremated (after, of course) and I've been chafing away at it, re-recording instruments and trying to get it all working together.

Same Boat (2.36 meg)

Things I know I need to fix: guitar is unsynched at some points, voice is shaky sometimes, and I'm not too sure about the cheesy little solo bit around 1:17.

Comments anyone?

Helm · Fri 13/01/2006 13:05:13

although the music's not my type of music, I don't have much to say composition-wise. What you need is a better production for this. I suggest warezing a host program like Cubase or Sonar and then downloading Battery 2 and the freeware NS kit for drums, and Native Instruments Guitar Rig 2 for recording line-in guitars. The only thing that sounds semi-ok as it is now in my opinion is the bass guitar and the vocals, somewhat. The mix is really quite clear, it's the pure signal that you've got that suffers a lot.

voh · Fri 13/01/2006 13:07:14

I SO want to use my 16-track mixer to record, but I can't get it to work... Having to use a 2 dollar microphone limits production quality to... low. Very low.

But that I can live with until I've got the problem with the mixer not wanting to send a signal to my soundcard (more likely soundcard not accepting signal) solved.

DoorKnobHandle · Fri 13/01/2006 13:11:10

Hey that was actually pretty sweet!!

The vocals are very good (quality-wise and the quality seems great too).

You just need better recording quality (as Helm said before) for both guitars and drums.

You can always buy an 1/4 inch to mic-jack adaptor for a few dollars and then plug your guitars directly into your pc (I do it this way for now, and I was able to produce tracks like those!

voh · Fri 13/01/2006 13:35:02

Shouldn't a microphone (singing one) work through that setup as well?

ManicMatt · Fri 13/01/2006 17:29:43

I like the song, it's good and instantly accessible, and the vocals are like-able, but those drums...

Is it just the recording process, because they sound like a metronome or something. Even some digitally composed beats would work way better than what you got now, like what I do. (that is, not play a single instrument except my voice,)

DoorKnobHandle · Fri 13/01/2006 17:34:41

Quote from: voh on Fri 13/01/2006 13:35:02
Shouldn't a microphone (singing one) work through that setup as well?

Unfortunately not, because of XLR (or phantom power) problems. You'd need a mixer or a mic preamp inbetween. There are also adaptors out there, but those don't sound too good eitehr, I heard.

But your vocals sound really good and professional. It's just the guitars (that I would plug into the pc directly - this can sound pretty decent without spending +200â,¬ for a good mic and even more for pre-amps/mixers) and then add digital drums (use a drumcomputer or your pc).

voh · Fri 13/01/2006 18:12:52

I'm a total n00b when it comes to stuff like drums on the computer. I'm a drummer m'self, so I prefer doing it on a drumkit. My problem is I don't currently own one, or have a place to play/record them.

The drums currently, are... *drumroll* my thumbs on my acoustic guitar

And that confirms my thoughts about the mic. I tried that before, and figured it was a problem with phantom power as well. Means I'll get a jack switch thing and try to plug my guitar right in

Thank you for the tip!

Peter Bear · Sat 14/01/2006 09:10:43

Unlike some others this is more like my kind of tastes in music

I like the work you've done. Neat

I send you PM about something else then

voh · Mon 16/01/2006 14:31:10

Quote from: dkh on Fri 13/01/2006 13:11:10
You can always buy an 1/4 inch to mic-jack adaptor for a few dollars and then plug your guitars directly into your pc (I do it this way for now, and I was able to produce tracks like those!

I've bought a mini to regular jack adapter, mono (as the bass and guitar are also mono) but I get NO signal. Not on this machine, nor on my father's machine, nor on the imac.

I've tried a stereo adapter before, but had the same problem. I can't get any signal from any of my instruments. Plugging it into the amp directly works fine, so it's not the cable or the instrument, plugging it into my damn cheapass home stereo also works (though I can't do anything withOUT distortion on that thing

)

I'm stumped

voh · Wed 18/01/2006 19:45:22

Recorded the old-fashion way, guitar + bass over amp, into mic, into audacity, but with Beatcraft for cheap computer drum effects.

Vietnam Love (889K)

Does the guitar sound better this way? Are the drums cheap enough?

DoorKnobHandle · Wed 18/01/2006 19:50:55

Did you plug your guitar into the "line-in" input or the "mic-in" input from your soundcard? You need to use the "mic-in" one, because it has an amplifier behind it. If you choose the other one, the signal won't be amplified.

But to make your sound better when recording this way, I'd suggest to look into Multi-Effects Processors such as the Behringer V-Amp 2. You can get it new for 95â,¬ and even cheaper at ebay. Those sound amazingly good for their price and not only give you effects (wah, gain, phaser, flanger, delay, compressor, chorus... you name it.) but also simulate an amp with fitting cabinet (so you can "play" through your normal amp or right into your pc but it will sound like you play through a Mesa Boogie Mark II Dual Rectifier or a Marshall Cyber Twin Reverb amp or whatever). This is very useful for live gigs, jam sessions and a very handy recording tool.

Anyways, am downloading your stuff right away. Just wanted to tell you that I start to really love the lyrics and the melody of "Same boat". The more I listen to the song, the better it gets. Great!

voh · Wed 18/01/2006 20:08:19

Ah, well, this song is of a totally different caliber

But I'm going to be redoing same boat as well, as my grandpappy deserves drums.

Nikolas · Fri 20/01/2006 10:52:01

I actually like the guitar! I like the sound and the playing. And there are no errors there...

What I don't like is the drums. Very poor. I have no idea how you did them (haven't got time to read the thread now to see if you have mentioned that), but they sound very poor. Low voice, no compression, not reverb...

The mixxing overall is rather poor.

I love th songs.

I love your voice and I highly enjoyed Vietnam love!

You have a very nice style...

How are you working these songs? With which sofware? How did you go about making them drums? Oh, btw, the bass is too low, in both songs.

But I love the songs!

Work on them, please!