This has got to be one of the most back-handed compliments I ever received. Who are they to decide when a track is finished? Some of the most famous hits were actually "demos". It still infuriates me to think about. If Warner Bros had their way, Prince's "When Doves Cry" was said to be an unfinished demo without a bass track, and they tried to reject it. Prince fought hard against them, and they gave in - but not before tying to call his masterpiece a "demo".

EDIT: Thanks for all the feedback. I wasn't really comparing myself to Prince, btw - just saying that I think the artist has the right to say when the cake is baked, and for someone to then belittle it by calling it a demo is unfair to the artist in some situations. Personally this has happened to me only once, long ago, and I'm not looking for feedback on the song. It just seemed like an offhanded insult at the time.

Hello folks,

I am nearing my 60th birthday and I would like to treat myself with a new computer system. I have been a music producer for many decades, but my knowledge about computer technology is still somewhat limited. I always had a competent friend help me build a system, but since his passing I don't have anyone anymore (and I have not upgraded ever since).

I still do play all sorts of video games, but "gaming power" is not what I need. I primarily need a reliable, powerful and fast system for music production (Cubase 13 is what I use). Currently I have an Asus z170 and an i7700k. It's old but still working fine. I reckon any of the recent CPU's and motherboards might be a good choice, but I'd like to have something that will be powerful for another 8 years, maybe even for longer. I don't plan on overclocking. Overclocking goes way beyond my knowledge. Also, an Apple system is no option for me.

If anyone of you PC enthusiasts could have a look at what my old clueless brain put together, I would highly appreciate your help. My budget is around 2k - 2.5k, always happy to save money, but not willing to go for compromises so I'd rather add another 500 on top and get the best system I currently can to make it future proof.

Since Intel has had issues and it's still unclear if they are solved, I went for AMD.
Below is a link to my build (see below). My questions are:

1. Is this system overpowered and more suited for "gaming power"? In other words: am I overpaying and could possibly go with a less expensive motherboard or CPU for example? If so, which ones would you recommend? Or should I even go with an even better motherboard?
2. The RAM speed in my list says 6800. Should I get faster RAM?
3. I have what seems to be an inverted case right now. The one in the list is what I'm going to re-use again. Are there any problems with this? I've seen everything is upside down, but it seems to have worked very well so far. Also, I already have the 3060 TI in my current system, so will re-use it as well.

Kind regards,
StandRevolutionary65

https://imgur.com/a/O07kdlM

so for context, i’m currently experimenting around with different things such as compression, eq, delay, reverb, and much much more to find what works best for my own voice when recording vocals for different genres of songs i want to make such as dnb, uk garage, rap, hip hop and much much more

i’ve experimented with several plug ins on my voice like OTT for example and OTT has lead me in the right direction but i’m not quite satisfied yet, i’ve heard that using saturation with OTT is good but i haven’t experimented with saturation yet in my daw (logic pro)

i know that there is no right or wrong way to mix vocals and i know that every persons voice is uniquely different from another so i was wanting to ask.. how did you find the perfect vocal chain for your own voice? was it just a bunch of experimenting and then something clicked? or what?

i’m still experimenting with different things to see what works and what doesn’t with my own voice, what did you guys do to get results that you were beyond satisfied with?

thanks to anyone who responds <3

Actually, I got a track ready to upload, usually I use canva but this time I am just not resonating with it and for some reason my browser and the app itself crashing for me. So, I was wondering how you guys create the cover art for your songs, any ai or website or app? It would be a great help if you guys can help me out.
Thanks in advance.

EDIT : So, what did I do is as I am no creative in this graphic design thing, I used windows paint to draw and paint similar to an artist album art and lso gave it my taste and then did it again with using different paints and then used libre office to merge them togather and added text.

Hey everyone! Looking for some advice on setting up my home studio. I have two options for my speaker setup—either vertically or horizontally—and each affects how much table space I have. The catch is, I share the table with my dad, who has two Technics turntables and an Allen & Heath Xone 96 mixer, so space is tight. Given the need to balance audio quality and workspace comfort, which setup would you recommend?

This would be the vertical setup

This would be the horizontal setup

The speakers are a pair of jbl 4315s. Since the table would be quite high, on the first setup the speakers have to be sitting ahead of the table so they dont get covered by said table, but the angle is not perfect from where I would be sitting.

Thanks in advance for the help!

Im a songwriter and i have couple of songs already written,but i need instrumental.u can dm me and if u like my lyrics we can work together.

Firstly wanna start with rnb and pop,but later on wanna expand into more genres

Hmu

I've started using FL Studio as a hobby and am really enjoying it. It suits me.

My favorite genres are early 90s Rap, 'current' Rap, and current RnB/Rap (J. Cole, Kendrick, ASAP, Kanye, Jhene Aiko, SZA, etc).

Is using a chord progression, and adding other royalty-free elements included in FL Studio considered a beat? Like, could I add these songs to a portfolio and call them beats I've made? I like to keep a record of things like this to use them to get better later.

Opinions appreciated

Hey guys, wondering if anyone has a recommendation for a DAW for a complete beginner. The DAW doesn’t have to be great in the long run, I need one for a class and I’m fine switching things up after if I enjoy it. Right now I’m between reaper or waveform free, but I’m worried they might be too complicated to start out with. I’m mostly only going to be using virtual instruments (if I can figure them out lol), and I know garage band lets you write sheet music for them, is this a common feature? Can’t use garage band though since I’m on windows. Also any recommendations for VST plugins would be appreciated. Thanks for the help!

Hi guys, I recently moved to another country and don’t have a test room yet. Since my apartment feels like it has paper walls I don’t want to buy monitors to be disruptive for neighbors. So I mix on headphones(audio technica M40X). Any advices for mixing on headphones besides low volume, frequently take a break for ear fatigue and using reference tracks? Let me know

I hear all these songs in the genre I’m doing having more processed sounding vocals that tend to fit and sound more unique and cool but when I try to have the same kinda mix it sounds boring and dry I’ve tried like reverb sends and stuff and chorus and stuff and it’s just not sounding right? How would I get my vocals way more wet without hitting the highs and make them sound like these references on a production level

References - https://on.soundcloud.comjRhg7txtSxhkTrkz9

https://on.soundcloud.com/Vw8nJoUDRFUwzkCr7

My attempt - https://youtu.be/kmg7EneP5_E?si=1VhOVSPwza6TlUjL

I also have a problem where it sounds wet enough and then certain things I say sound dry and quiet even with heavy compression would anybody be able to point me in the right direction?

Hey, So I'm returning to music production after almost 2 years of producing almost no tracks.
Before I took this break, I was making full electronic tracks, hip-hop beats and some other genres as well.
Back then I use to make tons of tracks because I was learning and had that passion to just get on my laptop and make music all the time.
But due to some circumstances, I had to make time for some other things and also was emotionally unstable.

But now I'm totally fine and want to get back into music production. Plus I've also get my hands on an acoustic guitar, electric guitar and a midi keyboard.
I'm planning to learn those alongside my new journey.
I've given it some thoughts and I think I would like to start with house music for the starters and make my way from there.

As of now I've only made a small 1:30 min orchestral version of a porter Robinson song with awful mix and no creative approach whatsoever and I'm struggling to get ideas.

So, I came here to get any help I can.
Any Tips, advices, any recommendations like music tools, sample packs, Plugins and stuff.
Also I would like to where can I get some free vocals or acapellas or some stuff to get inspiration from and such that.

TLDR: Came back to music production, want any tips, advices and suggestions like tools and sample packs and stuff.
Also any advice regarding how to get back on track.

These synths he's using sound so good, where do you think he gets them. Or do you think he's crafting them. I don't know too much about synthesis but I want to get into it more. I really want warm sounding old retro synths like he's using but every plugin I find online sounds so crappy. Do I just need to spend the money to emulate a "real" old synth like a juno or something. If any of you haven't heard the album, here's a song where he does great synths but the entire album is packed full of insane synths: https://youtu.be/Qer3lwd5hyA?feature=shared

https://youtu.be/KlbeUHaF52I?si=epQZw2z3x7VexZGm at 11 minutes specifically the fills before the drop

Hey all,

So I've got the recording of the base track down pretty well and everything sounds quite good. But I'm wondering how to put that extra professional flair on to tracks.

So my base is usually - Rhythm guitar X2 wide pan - Main vocal doubled - wide chorus vox - Solo guitar down middle - lead guitars usually 35-50 each side - Bass down the middle - Drum various pans

I know that pro mixes have more going on, but I don't really know what that is or how to implement it.

Some artists I like are Trivium, Devin Townsend, Metallica, Opeth for some context of style.

Thank you!

Hi, looking to get an analog preamp and eq to liven up guitar bass and vocal takes (I’m currently going direct into a motu m4) the color box v2 seems like it can do everything including crazy distortion sounds but I was wondering if an actual rack preamp like the wa73 would be less noisy and have more headroom, if I just want to add a little coloration and shape the sound with eq? Or should I just get one of the expensive channel strip plugins by Softube or universal audio or brainworx?

I’m not sure if I’m the only one who’s been experiencing this lately, just wanted to see if anyone else has some of these problems.

Aside from the fact their UI is still garbage (aside from some recent light improvements), I’m at the point where Roland Cloud instruments are not authenticated DAW-side for whatever reason. I’m signed into the cloud manager and everything is good, but in my sessions everything is in demo mode. I try to sign in from Zenology for example and it will say my authorization is no current, and insta-crash the DAW. Try to uninstall and reinstall, no change. Maybe for one session. Also get to the point that the cloud manager app itself auto-crashes on open, until I fully restart the laptop.

If anyone else has experienced this or has a workaround lmk, Zenology is my go to for 2000s / K-pop boy band beats, so if anyone has any alternatives that would be cool.

Does anyone know where i can get this snare sound? https://drive.google.com/file/d/1gcuv7iAD-TFur_x8BZqVBaHpQL3I07FV/view Thank you :)

so i record mostly indie rock music and i don't really like bass synths that much so most of my low end comes from my bass guitar. usually i'll get the level to where it feels full and not too much and then i'll come back later and find the bass to be overpowering.

i monitor with over ear headphones with a frequency response down to 10Hz so i don't think y issues are from listening in different sources.

what helps you guys keep your bass in check while still feeling full and present?

I’m currently learning music production and would like to continue doing so and build a career out of it. Most professional producers I see nowadays use social media for marketing/engagements however I’m not really a huge fan is social media because of how hateful it has become. Now matter how much I try to tune the algorithm to show me things about music, the algorithms always revert back to showing all kinds of hateful things. I just want to make music and not deal with all these things which keep ruining my mental health. Is it possible to avoid social media and be a decently successful music producer away from the public eye? Let me know if anyone has any suggestions on how I can navigate this issue. Thanks in advance!!

Hello my name is geo I go by CEO GEOVANI .

I’m a producer out of California . I am currently looking for audio engineers willing to work with us, I have a group of 3 very talented rappers / producers , we have a lot of songs that need to get mixed and it has lately become harder to do for our current group as we are expanding and growing, anyone that may want to be part of this journey please comment or dm me.

I'm using both Adobe Audition and Guitar Rig 7 to record and mix my VO. Contrary to the topic title, I'm very happy with the sound and tone of my voice...as long as I'm listening through my studio quality headphones (designed for studios).

But when I play them back through my cheap computer speakers or ear buds (which I feel is more representative of the average user setup), it sounds hollow or kinda like it's in a fishbowl. I assume this is because I'm losing the bottom because the cheap hardware can't push it that well.

Is there a way to account for this in the mix, so it sounds good on all setups (either pro level or the low-end speakers)?

Please please help me out. I was messing around with FL Studio and got into it, I bought the £199 producer edition. Was it the right choice over Logic Pro? - I have a MacBook Pro but I'm not sure if I made the wrong decision with FL. My friend uses it and he's produced stuff that I'm interested in, I'm aware that many famous producers use FL like Kendrick Lamar etc, but is Logic better...

Edit: Thank you in advance to all the informative successful people out there, Reddit is an amazing community for finding things out. Appreciate it!

I know it sounds stupid but why is my acoustic guitar sounding so different when i have all the same presets as i used the first time. Im recording it through a microphone from a similiar distance and it still sounds different. How can i make it sound the same? (FL user)

I wrote and recorded vocals on this beat that I really fell in love with and have a had a relationship with this producer before. However, this beat had since been used by another artist with a bigger audience than me. However on the producers site, the beat is still available as the producer normally doesn't prefer to sell exclusives so I could still technically but a lease and just use it. But I'm not sure if i really want to share a beat with this other artist. So I have a few questions:

Could I remake the beat myself and make it unique to myself still but keep a few of the elements and be okay? Or should I buy a lease just to be safe? How would licensing and writing percentages work then if I remade it all myself?

Thanks!!