Dad3353

Thanks, lads. The year gets off to a bad start, I'd say (so it must get better, no..?).

[quote name='CamdenRob' timestamp='1454494465' post='2970182'] What we need is a leader... Someone to proudly fly the flag for recording any old sh**e and submitting it for peer review. [/quote] Where's Lenny when you need him..? OK, I'll see if I can post something later on today. It's my speciality to be 'First Ninny', usually. I'll not be cross if someone else pinches that spot, though; it's not a good time for me, really.

[quote name='Skol303' timestamp='1454453577' post='2969992']... Maybe there's some mojo in the method after all [/quote] I would seriously dissuade any from experimenting with ill health as a creative stimulus, it's not been all that successful for me over the last year or so..:! OK, I struck lucky this time (but even then, a close call with all that heat from Lenny, and others close behind...). No; more a case of not really being capable of doing much else, and having a hard time sleeping at all..! I will admit that having spent more attention to details through repeated, critical, listening, I was able to hone the piece to a finer result, as each time it could get it just that little bit closer to what I heard in my head. I'll admit, too, that having more experience with the wide range of tools I now have, including a fine pair of monitors and a very much improved PC platform has boosted the quality stakes, too, so those investments have not been in vain. Now for the hard bit, of course. Following it up with monthly masterpieces is out of the question, naturally, more especially as the adversaries are more than capable of [s]kicking arse[/s] creating wonderful works, but I'll just have to be a bit more precise in my processes and give the best shot every time. It's winter, nowt on 'telly and the print version of the Game of Thrones I'm going through is a bit too small for long reading stints, so what else should I do of an evening..? I don't drink (tea doesn't count, does it..?), the drugs wore off decades ago and I've no partners for bridge, so... Onward and upward..! Footnote: the sudden death of my elder brother has just come through, so I'll be spending a bit more time in the next couple of weeks off line, with family affairs. Luckily, I'd chosen the picture beforehand; I'm glad now that I chose a cheery one.

[quote name='elephantgrey' timestamp='1454439117' post='2969788'] Is that a wooden box with a pickup in it? Thats actually quite cleaver. [/quote] No; this is a cleaver ... ... but, yes, it's just a box with a captor in it (a piezo, or just a cheap dynamic mic capsule; it matters little...). A cheap mic in a butter tub would do, too..!

There's these, too, of course ... [url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/McCabe-Stompbox-Stomp-Box-Foot-Drum-Stomper-Walnut-/252272830024?hash=item3abca1e648:g:xNAAAOSw-zxWo9u-"]Wooden Stomp Box ...[/url]

[quote name='blue' timestamp='1454364111' post='2969090']... Question, do English people have any appreciation for any of your legendary bands that in terms of pop music put England on the map?... [/quote]

For a 'one off' gig, I doubt that any expense more than 'scrap box' would be worth it. It's fun, too (for some folks, anyway...) to mess around with a few odd experiments, and one can come up with all sorts of surprising results that way. I'd gig a mic in a marge tub with no qualms, and smile to myself when breaking down the kit afterwards. I doubt anyone would even notice, if the tub was 'gaffered' black.

[quote name='cheddatom' timestamp='1454412966' post='2969427']...I'm after a cheap and easy solution... [/quote] Here you go ... [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oX6S6D657g8[/media] Long ago, I split the batter head with no spare, and had to play with a square foot of plywood nailed to each side of the split head. It was the first time I'd ever played with a mic on the bass drum. Suitably eq'd it was fine for the whole night, although it sounded better for the more disco-type numbers. I've also had a very convincing reggae bass drum using a giant ladybird toy/pillow stuffed into a plastic bucket, beat with a wooden spoon. Think 'out of the box' and the sky's the limit. Eq is your saviour, here. Hope this helps.

Ah, good. That leaves the trombone door wide open for me. Hmm... ([i]Taps toe a few times[/i]...) Ouch..! That hurt..! Too fast a tempo; I'll have to reign in the bongos a bit...

[quote name='the boy' timestamp='1454324609' post='2968504'] I love the picture and I have a chorus already. Well done Dad. [/quote] My, my..! I'm stalled in the starting blocks, meself..! Too much, too fast. No, no, you go on ahead; I'll just sit here and 'noodle' for a while. I'll still be here on your way back. Yes, another shawl and I'll be fine; off you run, now...

[sharedmedia=core:attachments:167485] Thanks, all... [quote name='Skol303' timestamp='1454320680' post='2968455']...And a round of applause to everyone else too.... [/quote] [size=4][color="#222222"][font="Arial, sans-serif"][sharedmedia=core:attachments:167486][/font][/color][/size] [font=Arial, sans-serif]... for all the fine entries, including Lenny's.[/font]

[quote name='Kairyu' timestamp='1454283901' post='2968308']...the phantom power for the mic preamps work in groups of 4... [/quote] Yes, there are many consoles and other gear that switch phantom in groups, or even just globally 'on - off'. It won't worry a dynamic mic to have phantom power present, although it's not highly recommended to switch it on and off when they're present. The 'biggy' is ribbon mics; they won't appreciate phantom power at all (we're talking probable destroy, here...), but I don't suppose you're using those (well, not yet, at least...)..? My Fostex has global phantom, and I mix large-diaphragm condenser mics with dynamics (Sennheiser, Shure, AKG... whatever...) with no issues. I've had other consoles with the same, and never a worry. Be a bit sensible in your switching and you'll have no problems. Edit: I've just noticed that they warn, in the manual, of +48v fed to[b] un[/b]balanced mics. I might be inclined to agree with them there, as this could damage the phantom power..! I'd assume however, that all your mics are balanced, in which case, I'd maintain that it's OK.

[quote name='Twincam' timestamp='1454291613' post='2968345']...I might just plonk an iPad or phone near the amp and no fx, or I might record direct and add a bit of fx. [/quote] ... or both, to illustrate the difference..?

So... The winning compo this month, eh..? Considering the extremely high standard of all the others, how not to be extremely flattered..? It wasn't looking good at the start. I've not been on top form of late, and last month was lower even than usual. Not very promising for inspiration and concentration, but having sen the pictures, and unable to sleep much, stuff kept turning around and around between my ears. Once I'd merged the pics into one, I 'heard' the same theme, backed by two different, yet compatible backings (or so I imagined...). A first mouture went quite rapidly into the bin, but it kept nagging at me, so I pulled up EZKeys and sketched out the chord sequence. Originally with a 'gospel' feel, it needed more kneading. This is where the time-line starts, really; 2nd Feb, 02h10. The EZKeys was rendered, but the sound quality is not as good as I had in my head, and so MIDI exports were taken. An export through MIDI to BIAB, where several styles were considered, from which I retained two; the first somewhat sedate and stately, the second with a bit more tempo and spark. Time to open up Reaper, around 04h00. Finally, only the string bass was retained from EZKeys, and a short section of an orchestral pad. The piano part was confided to Kontakt, through an excellent, but resource-hungry, Pearl piano. Some tweaking, as Pearl has much more dynamic possibility than EZKeys. BIAB had thrown up a second piano part, equally converted for a second Pearl piano (yes, more resources eaten up, but it's a really fine piano...). Daylight has broken and the day has passed. It's now 20h30; I'm shattered, but I need to get this down whilst it's fresh. I've got the first part taking shape, and can't put it down now; I wouldn't be able to sleep, anyway. The plodding, marching thunderstorm timpani, panned and faded to give a 'surround' effect, inspired by the storm layer from the picture (I saw it as a shipwreck on a reef, but I wasn't seeing things that clearly, to be honest...). Then the main 'melody' needed to be expressed. In my delusion, I was thinking fretless, [i]à la[/i] Jaco, and so naturally invoked Ruby, from Spectrasonics (Trilian...). Again, heavyweight, especially when using all the variance and 'round robins' of which it is capable, but needs must when the devil drives. It's more or less 'in the box' as a rough draft by 01h00. That's just about 24 hours so far, but it's far from finished, in fact it's only just starting to take shape. On to the second half. I've got a semblance of transition in place, but transition to what..? Well, firstly, a change of colour, taking the basis of the melody theme and handing it over to a pair of disto guitars, in a high and lower register. The second piano steps up, too, to a much more lively cadence, and accentuating the major, positive, elements of the edifice in order to dilute the slightly oppressive ambiance so far created. The 'star' of the show is still, for the moment, the bass, however, which is brought back in, but doubled up with a thickly-toned synth bass, playing in unison [i]à la[/i] Zawinul (yes, I' was that sick..!). A different beat is required, to push this forward, and, in playing around with my drum Vst, I go for a very fast-paced samba, far too rapid to dance to, but capable, I thought, of discreetly building up pressure. It's now 16h00, 3rd Feb. Not entirely sleepless, as I've been dozing off, on and off, in my armchair, woken by fresh tea, hot soup and calls of nature. Still, now that the crude form has been hewn, the refining and polishing begin. Strings are brought in, each section with a role to play in underlining the tone, firstly sombre, then increasingly frantic as the pace hots up. Brass, to fill out and help induce a sense of 19th century, Yorkshire, brass bands, another world. The original rendered bass was found to be a little weak, and another Ruby struck up to double it; Jaco's fretless was equally doubled and subtly chorused. Much listening through, modulating the piano volumes, tweaking much more than is my wont, and each time thinking 'It's nearly there; just another spot of [insert tiny adjustment here...] and it'll be finished. The nodding off helped in this, final, phase, by allowing at least a modicum of rest to the pretty over-strained ears. The final, 8th version was put down on the 4th Feb, at 21h01. That's somewhere around 60 hours; not continuous, but not far short. Maybe 45 or so, when adjusted for naps and breaks. 'Twas a relief to be able to sign it off, and I would admit that, having listened through since, several times, I'll not be changing anything in there. Once achieved, I could sleep a bit more, and, although still not on top form, I'm much better than I was then. I honestly would claim that, in having this to occupy me, I was unconciously pulled up from a steeper slope than I would want to dwell upon. My thanks, then, to Messieurs Alibabu and Bleat for their choice of pictures, and to Skol303 for organising and overseeing this Challenge. It should, in my opinion, be formally recognised as having true therapeutic value. Onward and upward..!

Good gracious..! There's a turn-up for the book..! No false modesty; I found the quality of entries this month to be particularly high (and I should know;I listened to 'em all often enough..!), so I'm particularly stunned to see the result..! Am I chuffed..? You betcha. No, I've no speech prepared, and I'll have to root out a suitable pic for Skol straight away, but I'd like to sincerely thank Lenny for his patience, his humour, and most of all his compositional talents which enabled me to scrape through. Well done, all, and special thanks to those who chose to vote for my piece. There's a bit of a background to it; I'll put that up shortly in the Challenge thread. OK, then, here's my certificate... (Yes, I prepare several when it's closely run, to be ready...). Wow..! An extra Digestive biscuit, methinks, to celebrate..! No; hang the expense. A Jaffa cake..!

[quote name='Kairyu' timestamp='1454279772' post='2968265']...direct me to more information that can clarify this for me... [/quote] See here ... [url="http://tascam.com/product/us-16x08/overview/"]Tascam US16x08 ...[/url] ... for confirmation (scroll down some...) that all 16 i/ps can be simultaneously be recorded through the USB 2.0 to any reasonable DAW. If any doubts subsist, here's where to get the Owner's Manual as Pdf... [url="http://tascam.com/content/downloads/products/859/us-16x08_om_va.pdf"]Owner's Manual ...[/url] Sounds like a good plan; Tascam interfaces are good quality (I use a more modest US-144 MkII...). For the needs you describe, I'd give this a thumbs up. Hope this helps.

[quote name='Cameronj279' timestamp='1454278930' post='2968256']...I'm basically just looking for opinions on one/some of the songs...just in-case there is anything that immediately stands out as bad to other people when they listen to it.... [/quote] Good evening, Cameron... Put your mind at rest, this is not a 'bad' song, nor does it merit any 'pish' comments. Highly polished finished product it is not, either, but you already knew that, didn't you..? The composition stands up straight, the arrangement, with the members you have, are credible, it's not the genre that would support over-production, anyway. Criticism..? Well, yes, if you insist, but nothing directly concerning the technical recording, which is not too bad for a 'live' rehearsal take. No, it's from a dynamic point of view that I'd suggest that the drums come in with much less attack, building up progressively chorus by chorus, to peak at the end, as at present. It seems that he (she..?) is using rimshots pretty much from the start. When recording, a separate mic on the snare will make it unnecessary to build a shed, and much more 'nuance' can be expressed. Similar remark for the cymbals; there are other strokes than simply hitting 'em each time; that would render the build-up more musical, in my view. In general, I would recommend that all of you get the most of the remaining time before the 'red light' goes on in running through, individually, your parts to a click track. There are a number of timing errors throughout which can, nowadays, be edited,but that's very, very time consuming, and the result is never as good as playing it 'tight' at the first take. That, I think, is the principal weakness shown here. The sound sculpting in a decent studio will make a world of difference to all, I'm sure, but it's your 'tightness' which will make the songs really shine. Good luck with the project; kudos for sharing a 'work in progress'. Hope this helps.

[quote name='colgraff' timestamp='1454276467' post='2968227'] Can it be aimless? [/quote] If you really meant 'Can Lenny enter..?', I suppose the reply must be 'Yes'. ...

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I suppose that keyboard bass lines are out..? Just 'real' basses, no Prophets, Moogs or stuff..? Just clarifying, as I do both (no, you fool; not at the same time..! ).

They turn down a little, you turn up a little; job done (depending on repertoire...).

Come on, xj, the boy, Rikki, get on the 'phone to all your relatives..! There's still time to make a rush for the line... Let's see if we can get four, five or more co-winners..! That'd be a turn-up for the book, no..? Anyway, I'm going to look an even bigger twit than usual if I have to do a winner's certificate for myself..! Please, spare me this ignominy..! At worst, you can get the neighbours in and ... [color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]Vote For Lenny..! You know it makes sense. [/font][/color] [color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif] [/font][/color]