philblackpool
gamelanstep
Need that guy Rashad Becker on the case X-D
wileys devils mixes
- Thread starter yyaldrin
- Start date
Simon78
Well-known member
I got a scratched CD of old vocals and that had some glitches on it but I managed to get rid of a few by copying to the desktop instead of itunes so I'm going to try that first. Then I've got to get in touch with Waifer (pretty impossible), then I have to see if they sound good enough when mastered to cut to vinyl. Even if they still had the song file the whole song was made with a Korg Triton which they don't own any more so the patches are gone. Same with lots of the old producers, they used hardware and very few of them would have recorded that in as a stem.
I'll keep trying though as the tunes are incredible
Oh and sorry if I'm sounding negative but I have tried with some other tunes and its always come to nothing.
Simon78
Well-known member
They have amazing compressors that make stuff sound great. Same with Rinse.
Some of the tunes I put out sound pretty weak so I have to get the stems and take them to my mates to mix down in pro tools. When they're mastered by the pressing plant they then sound great, then the process of pressing to vinyl adds a touch of distortion and they sound better still.
The difference between tunes straight off the computer and mastered is huge.
philblackpool
gamelanstep
I think I read one or two of the remaining dub cutting houses do a lot of mastering to CD - one would imagine they would be perfect people for getting the best out of grime from dodgy MP3s, vinyl rips etc.
Whilst we're on mastering, this guy is a bit of a legend in UK reggae - you can see him on one of the old docus - http://www.discogs.com/artist/John+Hassell . I've got a folk record on his own custom label (ie its rare as) but its quite crackly so difficult to bathe in the beauty of his low end!
Whilst we're on mastering, this guy is a bit of a legend in UK reggae - you can see him on one of the old docus - http://www.discogs.com/artist/John+Hassell . I've got a folk record on his own custom label (ie its rare as) but its quite crackly so difficult to bathe in the beauty of his low end!
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Simon78
Well-known member
Doing mixdowns is an art form in itself tbh. With the stuff I put out it varies, some of them I take the WAV straight from the producer to be mastered, some of it I just go back to them and ask for a few changes in volume or more sub but some of them I have to get the stems and get the whole thing mixed in pro tools.
Not all Grime producers use monitors, they write it in headphones or using those shit speakers you get free with a PC. Spooky uses headphones but he's got his technique sorted and I never have to do anything to his tunes they go straight to be mastered.
Music House use quite old equipment but the difference in sound quality when I get the masters back is huge, you can really tell the difference.
Not all Grime producers use monitors, they write it in headphones or using those shit speakers you get free with a PC. Spooky uses headphones but he's got his technique sorted and I never have to do anything to his tunes they go straight to be mastered.
Music House use quite old equipment but the difference in sound quality when I get the masters back is huge, you can really tell the difference.
philblackpool
gamelanstep
I totally can't understand why anyone doing serious music would not plumb their PC sound into a proper stereo set-up. Monitors do make all the difference - the handful of tunes I've made round my mates' on his computer sound fine on CD - he's experienced back to the days of tape, he listens to bits back loud on the monitor, no probs...
4linehaiku
Repetitive
I'd use EAC to rip it off the CD http://www.exactaudiocopy.de/
It's quite a hassle to set up properly but if you do all the steps it does what it says on the tin and gives you a exact copy of the wav.
Yeah it's really easy with a spectral analyser, mp3's have an obvious cut off above a certain frequency, 16khz I think, though it's been ages since I've checked. You can even take a pretty good guess at what bitrate it was encoded at if it was an mp3. http://spek.cc/ is free and looks like it would do the job, though I've never used it personally.
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Simon78
Well-known member
Yeah when I go round my mates he uses KRK monitors with a Genelec sub. Once he's got it sounding good on that he switches to Genelec monitors which are really flat. When you switch between the two it doesn't sound as good on the Genelecs (I think the KRKs alter the sound slightly) so he then goes back in monitoring on the Genelecs until it sounds sick on those. Then when you switch back to the KRKs it sounds amazing.
Its why a lot of people still use those really old Yamaha monitors. If you can get your tune sounding good on those it will sound good on anything.
My mate also checks the final mix on a laptop and out a phone to make sure its sounding good on those as well.
Like I said though, its an art form and he's spent years learning how to do it + those monitors aren't cheap. With the 2 sets and sub he's probably spent £2500 on them? Mixing a tune in FL or Reason is different to putting it in Pro Tools with Oxford plug ins as well. Not saying that some people can't rinse it using FL or Reason because they do. I think listening to your mixes on laptops, phones, different stereos and out in a club is really important when you're learning to mixdown.
Its why a lot of people still use those really old Yamaha monitors. If you can get your tune sounding good on those it will sound good on anything.
My mate also checks the final mix on a laptop and out a phone to make sure its sounding good on those as well.
Like I said though, its an art form and he's spent years learning how to do it + those monitors aren't cheap. With the 2 sets and sub he's probably spent £2500 on them? Mixing a tune in FL or Reason is different to putting it in Pro Tools with Oxford plug ins as well. Not saying that some people can't rinse it using FL or Reason because they do. I think listening to your mixes on laptops, phones, different stereos and out in a club is really important when you're learning to mixdown.
Simon78
Well-known member
Thank you. I'm going to try these out
philblackpool
gamelanstep
Wow, that sounds like a really tight method :-D
Simon78
Well-known member
Yeah he spends a week mixing his own tunes. When I take Grime round though he can do each tune in about 2 hours just using a few oxford plug ins. The Grime stuff I sign is much simpler and has fewer elements.
Having said all that though I think the tune I put out which has the most bass is Spooky's Electric Fence and that is straight out of Reason and then mastered at Music House. I played that at Cable and thought the place was going to fall down, so much sub.
Having said all that though I think the tune I put out which has the most bass is Spooky's Electric Fence and that is straight out of Reason and then mastered at Music House. I played that at Cable and thought the place was going to fall down, so much sub.
philblackpool
gamelanstep
I didn't like to ask what label you do - I've been so on & off on this board I didn't know - mucho props on "Cherryade" & I love yr graphics. Must pick some of yr vinyl up - years ago I'd have just walked in a shop & bought em by now, the internet builds little hassles as well as taking others away 
Simon78
Well-known member
Thanks! Got 2 more at the pressing plant at the moment (Splurt Diablo - J3 EP and Spooky - Coolie Joyride remixes). Should be out in a few weeks.
Got 2 more signed as well to finish the year off. JT the Goon is up after the remixes and that is an incredible EP, I think it will be hard to ever put out anything as good tbh.
+ going back to the repress thing I could have easily sold more copies of Cherryade but I always prefer to use the little money I have on putting out something new. By the time its in the shops I've had it so long that I'm ready with some new stuff.
Got 2 more signed as well to finish the year off. JT the Goon is up after the remixes and that is an incredible EP, I think it will be hard to ever put out anything as good tbh.
+ going back to the repress thing I could have easily sold more copies of Cherryade but I always prefer to use the little money I have on putting out something new. By the time its in the shops I've had it so long that I'm ready with some new stuff.
philblackpool
gamelanstep
I can understand that when you're not that many releases in yet, but also my understanding of the pressing process was always that it got loads cheaper when you repressed due to having the stamper ready, hence a few more of those in the wild may not take as much organising as the first lot & may pay for part of the newer run, but I'm guessing maybe margins aren't so good these days anyhow?
Simon78
Well-known member
Yeah I spend about £700 all in for 300 records, 10 TPs, full colour labels, a CD with mastered WAVs + a courier.
Most of the money goes on the metalwork and mastering. If I wanted to repress another 100 it would only cost £75 on black vinyl and I think £100 on coloured (can't remember the unit cost of coloured at the moment). I make a bit of money for the producer doing 300 units and make a tiny amount on mp3s (everyone DLs them for free).
The bigger the label gets then you can press more and if you can get to 500 units you make alright money but I'm not there yet. Cherryade is the only one I could have repressed so far but I quite like that it sold out and is limited. I'll be on the 8th release by the end of the year so it should be a bit better known then.
Most of the money goes on the metalwork and mastering. If I wanted to repress another 100 it would only cost £75 on black vinyl and I think £100 on coloured (can't remember the unit cost of coloured at the moment). I make a bit of money for the producer doing 300 units and make a tiny amount on mp3s (everyone DLs them for free).
The bigger the label gets then you can press more and if you can get to 500 units you make alright money but I'm not there yet. Cherryade is the only one I could have repressed so far but I quite like that it sold out and is limited. I'll be on the 8th release by the end of the year so it should be a bit better known then.
philblackpool
gamelanstep
I did a little featurette when I started on my latest station about a year or so back sorta based on Cherryade btw - all tunes in grime/dubstep/DnB etc named after drinx - Dragon Stout, Cherryade, Orangeade, Lemonade, Cream Soda, Irn Bru etc!
Are you doing any label tshirts?
Are you doing any label tshirts?
Simon78
Well-known member
Quality! I liked that little run of tunes with Cherryade/Orangeade/Lemonade etc
Not doing t-shirts or stickers at the moment. I would like to but all my spare money is going into the records at the moment, I've been broke all year because of it and haven't got any spare. I might do in the future though. I need to have a bit of a logo redesign first as the logo is taken from an old computer game (I didn't really plan or think ahead when I did the first EP). I've been slowly phasing it out and using it less and less in the artwork and I would prefer to have it 100% my own designs before I start doing things like t-shirts really.
Anyway, I've enjoyed chatting to you Phil. + its been good to have a busy thread on the forum!
Not doing t-shirts or stickers at the moment. I would like to but all my spare money is going into the records at the moment, I've been broke all year because of it and haven't got any spare. I might do in the future though. I need to have a bit of a logo redesign first as the logo is taken from an old computer game (I didn't really plan or think ahead when I did the first EP). I've been slowly phasing it out and using it less and less in the artwork and I would prefer to have it 100% my own designs before I start doing things like t-shirts really.
Anyway, I've enjoyed chatting to you Phil. + its been good to have a busy thread on the forum!
Interesting, the Ruff Sqwad CD sounds pretty poor to me. Everything is so overcompressed, I noticed it on Knightrider in particular as i've got the 12" and it just sounds horrible on the CD.
philblackpool
gamelanstep
Stop press re DMZ: Is this art from the "Most embarrassing sleeve" thread the reason they haven't budged on reishs? The necessary revamp would show up the uncomfortable proof that taste barriers had been breached the first time round ;-) http://www.discogs.com/Digital-Mystikz-Urban-Ethics/release/2585657
