Quarl's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[-YRX-MindChambersMadness]

maw

I havn't checked out your stuff in a while but damn is this shit hot. i love the idm/ glitch vibe mixing in there with some serious dub/ dnb. The drums are nice and full, plus the rhythmic syncopations are sex. My only complaint is that the mix is kind of muddy. I think the choir pad is a little too loud and the track noticeably clips at one or two spots. other than that, im glad to of heard this man. stick to this style. it's sex :)

YouriX responds:

Yeah but thanks to you and nub for telling me the secrets about layering that my kicks are so darn sexy and full.
And yeah i had trouble getting the sample as less muddy as possible. Mixing is my darn weakness but im still getting there :D

[(MD2010)-phathom (demo)]

fffsdfsdfsf

cool track! I really liked this but I got a few things for you I'd think about trying...

i thought the lfo on your lead synth could have been way slower. save that lfo rate for special occasions. that drum kit sounds like it can use a few layers. Find some more kit pieces you like and layer them on top of your current sound for a really phat sound. im not a fan of the amen so much anymore. it was nice to hear a different kit in there but if those drums are midi, try swapping them out for another sound or try layering those too.

I might recommend layering a sub bass under that reese. I don't really hear too much in the way of bass frequencies. You could take the midi from the lead and just copy/ paste if your lazy like me.

Those are just some suggestions but feel free to ignore them if you want. You got a cool sound here though and I think this track would really bennefit from some of these ideas...

superuberinsaneausm responds:

thanks for the review, the drums will sound better in the final i gott eq em. and what do you mean by the reese?

[LO - Protagonished]

maw :3

The irony of your user name is that ambient dnb is called liquid :p

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liquid_f unk

Nice track you've got going here but I want to try and be a little helpful. First thing I notice is that there's no bass. All the sounds aside form the bass kick are mid to high range. You can probably turn the pads down a tad to help out the other sounds.

If you're having trouble with levels, pan things up. Panning creates the illusion that sounds are louder than they really are so after you pan things up you can turn everything down a little to give you more space. Those hats can be a little less prominent. You'll notice that a lot of pros tend to keep the aux percussion lower in favor of amplifying the kick and snare.

Another thing that can help is a trick called layering. If you like a sound but you think it needs more umpf, layer in some more sounds. That snare you have in there sounds fine and dandy but have to ever thought of maybe putting in two or three more snares? I like to have anywhere from 5 to 6 layers dedicated to just snares. Same deal with the rest of the kit... and every other instrument. Layering creates big sounds. Try it out sometime.

I'd leave you some more tips but I really have to get to bed mate. Good luck with your sound!

Oakwood responds:

Your totally running my song into the ground and gave me a 9, say what? :P

jk

I left the bass out on purpose to add that ambient feel. I didn't want this to just be drum 'n bass so I had to variate.
Those things you say about the beat are pretty much true. Yeah I've noticed how DnB producers keep their hats down and level up their snare and kick. However, this beat was made in Hammerhead which is a simple freeware beat generator and it's options are limited. But I'll think about your advice in the future.

Also, thanks for the link, it's always nice to know more about genres :P

Thanks for the review! :)

[[S,J] Mixed Junkie]

samasmdmaddmoadom

This song is fucking epic on so many levels. That Beastie Boys sample in there was tight. This dub is fucking dirty. The only thing I disagree with it the snare kind of but the bass is so tight I never really pay that much attention to the snare. Plus the kit is perfect in a lot of other respects. Peace and love.

SmithCommaJohn responds:

Everyone's on the snare, aren't they? lol

Thanks for the kindness, man. Means a lot. No srsly.

[Brutal Beauty]

murmrrmrurnrrrurrrmrrnrur

hot damn. i fucking love what you did to dubstep here. fucking brutal man. this track really has it's own flavor/ smell. The only thing I might recommend is a cow bell or a ride cymbal in there for added sex points. Other than that this song pretty damn fine C:

PERVOK responds:

I tried to add that kind of ride/cowbell/thingy feel with the open hat. I tried to make the rhythm evident starting at 2:34. I guess some more percussion will be required though.

Thanks for stoppin' by, fellow :)

[thunder shore]

dkdkjddjjdf

Great track mister! There were a few things I noticed though that kind of got to me...

The first thing I notice is the bass. It sounds like it can be a little deeper. Play with a compressor, EQ or filter to bring out its tones. Those drums can be a little more present if you bring up the levels a little and play with the dynamics a bit. In terms of how the song pans out I kind of felt like this track was missing a real climax. You might also play with throwing in a few more background intangibles. Those are auxiliary sounds that don't necessarily contribute to the songs melody or rhythm but add character and atmosphere.

Try playing with those ideas and you'll have a killer track here. Peace.

dr-vibe responds:

well thanks!
the bass could be deeper... i know about EQ and such, but it's a raw minimoog and i wasn't up to tweaking it's tone... all i did was add a little bass chorus.
i'm no master of drums, but i'll play with it, thanks.

thanks for the critique, i'll try harder next time :3

[Rucklo - Geometric Distortion]

chiptune?

rucklol you silly basturd. obviously this is heavy metal.

[SpK*) - autophiliac]

nothing bad to say.

haha, i love how craaazyyyy this shit is. the sheer far-out-ness makes me think of squarepusher man. sickkkkkk

[Accented Hope]

maw

not sure what program you're using but in reason getting that "wobble" sound is a matter of making a sawttoth synth, throwing on some distortion, then slapping on a LFO and playing with the frequency/ resonance. automation is your frieeendddd.

Kirbyfemur responds:

I know automation is my freeeenddd but i like seeing what i can do with a song with the least amount of altering of that sort. But i probably will when i decide to mess with it again. And thanks for that bit of advice too =3

[xKore - Muff]

lol, muff.

You and rig should do a mash up with his yummy muffin song.

http://www.newgrounds.com/audio/liste n/109299

T'woud be muff sex. Other than that I've got nothing to say man. Great work :)