Equiptment:
I used the Rode Nt1-a for both of my productions. I used this mic as it is a good condensor and picks up my voice well as it is softer and lower. I also used a pop filter and a se reflection filter to enclose my sound and get a better quality recording. I used a midi keyboard to record my melodies. I also used krk monitors in order to mix and produce my music to a high quality. I also used headphones when mixing after the whole piece was done to see how it would sound through headphones aswell. Before recording i would setup the mic with headphones so i can hear the feedback. Without this it would be hard to have a good take as i would not be able to hear myself. When setting up the mic this would consist of me plugging in the xlr cable provided into the audio interface which is linked to the computer. In logic the input would always be input 1 and i would have to tick 'enable record'. I would also adjust the stand and se reflection filter to a position which was comfortable (height of the stand for me, and distance away from the computer so there would be enough space to record and not pick up me hitting the stand ect). The Midi keyboard was already connected to the mac through a usb cable.
I used the Rode Nt1-a for both of my productions. I used this mic as it is a good condensor and picks up my voice well as it is softer and lower. I also used a pop filter and a se reflection filter to enclose my sound and get a better quality recording. I used a midi keyboard to record my melodies. I also used krk monitors in order to mix and produce my music to a high quality. I also used headphones when mixing after the whole piece was done to see how it would sound through headphones aswell. Before recording i would setup the mic with headphones so i can hear the feedback. Without this it would be hard to have a good take as i would not be able to hear myself. When setting up the mic this would consist of me plugging in the xlr cable provided into the audio interface which is linked to the computer. In logic the input would always be input 1 and i would have to tick 'enable record'. I would also adjust the stand and se reflection filter to a position which was comfortable (height of the stand for me, and distance away from the computer so there would be enough space to record and not pick up me hitting the stand ect). The Midi keyboard was already connected to the mac through a usb cable.
Recording/production:
Both of my tracks melodic/rhythmic and harmonic structure is created through the midi keyboard. Only the vocals are audio. By using the midi keyboard i was able to manipulate the notes and velocity afterwards much easier than if it was audio. Also, there are a wider range of instruments i can use freely as i can change the instrument on logic and when i record using the keyboard it would have the sound i have chosen. I could also edit the score in the piano roll which i did to adjust my pieces slightly. I can also quantise my work to get it on time and sound professional. However, in fire i used the piano roll to slightly adjust an improvisation i recorded. Where as, if using audio i would have to be pitch perfect otherwise the audio clip cannot be used. Considering the fact that "grime pills" is mostly synth based i can get away with just using midi as synths are electronic. When i was producing grime pills i started with the rhymic section as this is fundamental for a rap/grime song.
However, for "fire" the basis of the song are the melodies and harmonics. I started with an intro melodic line which would emerge into something bigger and develop. I then added a simple drum pattern to complete it as a rap song. By recording chords comping along with the song it gave more texture.
Both of my tracks melodic/rhythmic and harmonic structure is created through the midi keyboard. Only the vocals are audio. By using the midi keyboard i was able to manipulate the notes and velocity afterwards much easier than if it was audio. Also, there are a wider range of instruments i can use freely as i can change the instrument on logic and when i record using the keyboard it would have the sound i have chosen. I could also edit the score in the piano roll which i did to adjust my pieces slightly. I can also quantise my work to get it on time and sound professional. However, in fire i used the piano roll to slightly adjust an improvisation i recorded. Where as, if using audio i would have to be pitch perfect otherwise the audio clip cannot be used. Considering the fact that "grime pills" is mostly synth based i can get away with just using midi as synths are electronic. When i was producing grime pills i started with the rhymic section as this is fundamental for a rap/grime song.
However, for "fire" the basis of the song are the melodies and harmonics. I started with an intro melodic line which would emerge into something bigger and develop. I then added a simple drum pattern to complete it as a rap song. By recording chords comping along with the song it gave more texture.
Mixing:
When mixing grime pills i struggled to get the vocals to sound professional. So the original vocals for both the chorus and verse - i just added a compressor and a verb in order for them to be clear and stand out from the backing vocals. By using a verb it gave my vocals more acoustics. I had two layers of backing vocals which gave my song more dynamics in terms of vocals. I therefore added similar but different effects to them in order to create a new sound and mix together nicely. This is especially evident in the chorus. I used effects such as echo, bitcrusher, goldverb, tape delay and fuzz-wah in order to completely change the sound of my backing vocals as if they were too similar to the original they would just give the vocals more depth and not a different sound and make them interesting. Panning helped me seperate my vocals. The main vocals were central and the others were panned left and right. The other tracks were also panned appropriatly (main melody was central, bass drums). The other melodic lines were close however on either side. I also changed the gain structure in order to sepearate the tracks so the song as a whole is clear.
For "fire" i originally mixed the vocals wrong as the gain on them on the compressor was way too high at 23dB which lost some of the quality of the recording. I then put them down to 12dB so they were sitting just above the music and spaced out the track more. I used a compressor on all of my tracks except the bigbeat remix kit where i used a limiter instead to control the gain as i wanted the kicks to be more punchy. I did this by putting up the gain. On the glam bass i used chan eq in order to cut off the high frequencies so it was more sub. On the the new surf electric guitar i used tape delay so it sounded more live as if someone strummed the guitar very quickly as it sounds like a stutter. I also used the guitar amp pro effect in order to manipulate the sound of the guitar. This was for borh the intro melody and the chords that follow. On my vocals i used the same technique as in grime pills and only added a compressor and averb in order to keep them sounding natural and be able to mix them above the instrumental.
When mixing grime pills i struggled to get the vocals to sound professional. So the original vocals for both the chorus and verse - i just added a compressor and a verb in order for them to be clear and stand out from the backing vocals. By using a verb it gave my vocals more acoustics. I had two layers of backing vocals which gave my song more dynamics in terms of vocals. I therefore added similar but different effects to them in order to create a new sound and mix together nicely. This is especially evident in the chorus. I used effects such as echo, bitcrusher, goldverb, tape delay and fuzz-wah in order to completely change the sound of my backing vocals as if they were too similar to the original they would just give the vocals more depth and not a different sound and make them interesting. Panning helped me seperate my vocals. The main vocals were central and the others were panned left and right. The other tracks were also panned appropriatly (main melody was central, bass drums). The other melodic lines were close however on either side. I also changed the gain structure in order to sepearate the tracks so the song as a whole is clear.
For "fire" i originally mixed the vocals wrong as the gain on them on the compressor was way too high at 23dB which lost some of the quality of the recording. I then put them down to 12dB so they were sitting just above the music and spaced out the track more. I used a compressor on all of my tracks except the bigbeat remix kit where i used a limiter instead to control the gain as i wanted the kicks to be more punchy. I did this by putting up the gain. On the glam bass i used chan eq in order to cut off the high frequencies so it was more sub. On the the new surf electric guitar i used tape delay so it sounded more live as if someone strummed the guitar very quickly as it sounds like a stutter. I also used the guitar amp pro effect in order to manipulate the sound of the guitar. This was for borh the intro melody and the chords that follow. On my vocals i used the same technique as in grime pills and only added a compressor and averb in order to keep them sounding natural and be able to mix them above the instrumental.
Mastering:
On grime pills, to stop my track from clipping i put two compressors on the stereo out in the mixer ( silvercompressor and compressor). This stopped the track clipping and sounding distorted. The main channel that was clipping were the drums. Therefore that is the reason why i didnt just get the gain of them down as the rhythmic section for me is the most important in a rap instrumental and should stand out the most. I watched the the output meter and changed the settings of my compressors accordingly by putting up the threshold and putting down the gain which cut off a few dB in order to stop the track from clipping. Also, by putting the ratio up aswell as the gain down - my tracks velocity levels came under control.
However for "fire" i did not master it as i personally thought the levels achieved through mixing were fine. Through the use of panning on the mixer in logic i was able to space out the different instruments in order to produce a track of good quality as they were more spaced out and made the track sound professional. You can also hear all of the different motifs easily.
On grime pills, to stop my track from clipping i put two compressors on the stereo out in the mixer ( silvercompressor and compressor). This stopped the track clipping and sounding distorted. The main channel that was clipping were the drums. Therefore that is the reason why i didnt just get the gain of them down as the rhythmic section for me is the most important in a rap instrumental and should stand out the most. I watched the the output meter and changed the settings of my compressors accordingly by putting up the threshold and putting down the gain which cut off a few dB in order to stop the track from clipping. Also, by putting the ratio up aswell as the gain down - my tracks velocity levels came under control.
However for "fire" i did not master it as i personally thought the levels achieved through mixing were fine. Through the use of panning on the mixer in logic i was able to space out the different instruments in order to produce a track of good quality as they were more spaced out and made the track sound professional. You can also hear all of the different motifs easily.
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