My first complete RealStrat tune!

[J van E]

It was time for a complete composition, so I made this up this morning while beta-testing RS once more. It's a simple, laidback tune, so some of you might not call it 'complete', but I have to say I like things small and (kinda) straightforward, so don't expect tons of bridges, timechanges or whatever.

If someone knows where to upload this file more permanently, please let me know or just do so. (Rapidshare often don't hold files too long...)

Okay, here it is:

http://rapidshare.com/files/45720833/Walking.mp3.html

I've used a total of five instances of RealStrat, each with it's own NI Guitar Combo, plus a soundfont bass and Session Drummer (I won't go into drums very much until the awesome Jamstix 2 is released, so the drum is pretty basic).

BTW The CPU load didn't come beyond 25% (on a X-Fi Xtreme Gamer at a latency of 10!!! How cool is that! (I'm still in doubt wether to get a Edirol FA-66 or not...) I did have some timing issues: one RealStrat seemed a bit late, so I had to nudge the midi a bit: it's still not perfect. But this might also be due to the Guitar Combo I used there.

And o yes, quite important: I played the guitar rather straightforward: I had Neil Young in mind, so I only used a few bends (some keyswitched and some pitchbend) and (automatic) hammer-ons and play most notes quite straight. (Added modulation too of course.) It just suited the tune imho. I just didn't want to make it too clean.

Well, I'm really curious what you think of it (it being the tune but certainly also RealStrat!).

[OldGeezer]

In one thread you say:

[CosmicD]

lol, the sonar board is a refference?

Anyways: I don't think beta testers should be mixers, engineers, fine tuners, programmers.. You don't need to be an all in package.

Sometimes the whole point of beta testers is to hand your children out to people who 'use' it and don't always know 100% what they are doing (cause of lack of documentation or something like that), and then the company gets feedback from those user and realize they might improve on some things.

There will always be people who give out more technical feedback than others. And the more hosts it's tested on, the more situations can be tewted simply because of situations where people will say 'it doesn't work".

THe developer know exactly what they made. THey should be able to immediately filter the feedback on validity.
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[OldGeezer]

[J van E]

Well, the fact that I don't really care if others think it's no good, does not have to mean I am not interested in what others say! I don't see a problem with that and it certainly doesn't mean I have a split personality.
Apart from that (and I don't say this because I need compliments) I've been posting several examples here so those who are not beta-testers can have a taste of what is coming. This is just one of those examples: it's jst a more sort of finished tune than my previous examples. I didn't post this as a 'look how good I am' effort, I just posted it so you all could hear what RS can do in the hands of a mediocre keyboard player.

And the fact that I only worked a morning on it, doesn't make it better or good or whatever: there was no meaning at all behind those words. Apart from that, some songs take weeks to get right, some take hours: I wouldn't write off a song purely because it was made in a short time, why should I? That would be plain stupid, if you ask me, and it wouldn't make sense at all!

BTW I've posted songs on the SONAR forum a long time ago, so I know the kinds of reactions you can get there. And you are absolutely right about critisicm making you better.

Anyway, this post is just another example of what can be done with RS and nothing more. No hidden meanings or whatever!

About the fact that you have to know guitar techniques in order to use RS effectively: I also said that elsewehre. And for what it's worth, I've been playing guitar for almost 30 years, but mostly acoustic and not heavy metal stuff. But I do know what's possible with a guitar. If that's not apparent in the tune I made, well, too bad. But I am quite happy with RS.

[OldGeezer]

Well, I promised I'd say no more on that particular subject, and I definitely don't want to be a downer, so, I'm glad you're happy with it.
Cheers!

[CosmicD]

hmm, i see what you're saying, but, it's an instrument made for people that have no clue about playing guitar as a primary audience no? (real guitarists will use a real guitar)

To me it's a thing that enables me to emulate a guitarist pure on sound. Which or what technique is used for that, doesnt matter really as long as it's not too hard

My point is: Somehow I don't even think that many guitarists will conciously want 'a feedback' sound or constantly have 'a chugga chugga weep chugga chugga" in their music, it just happens because of the dynamics of guitar playing. (some will do their recording again untill they hear this or achieve this using playing techniques, but some dont)

People like me who don't have a clue about playing guitar will have to mimic it purely by listening, analyzing the guitarist and know

Before i started anticipating to buy realstrat (or MOR: wasn't sure yet). I didn't know what chugga chugga was and that you could describe heavy metal chuckling untill i asked someone who plays a guitar. Then, I can decide if a library will allow me to do that i'd like it to be perfect.

So if beta testers get the hang of it (you see Sergey intervene alot with info on how to do things), those adlib demos will be better.

It might be a harch statement of mine, but , he might be one of these beta testers that are enthousiastic enough to let us hear the timbre and ways of this plugin, while other "professional" betatesters are just not bothering to test something which is not in the $10.000 price range.
_________________
Cosmic Dreamer on iTunes - http://itun.es/i6D89V7

[J van E]

[OldGeezer]

[J van E]

Hm, I think we aren't talking on the same level right now... You still don't understand what I'm saying.

I was not offended by the criticism, specially since I haven't read any critisism here (apart from the "I'm not saying there isn't potential in what you've posted" part, which isn't really clear criticism), but the way you seem to frown upon non-professional musicians (which apparently are those who spend days or weeks on a song). As if people like me, who play music for fun, won't have to be taken seriously at all, nor people who fork out songs in a day. You read things in my posts which aren't there and I really don't know (right from the start) what your problem is.

And let me explain it once more: the fact that I called Walking a complete tune, doesn't necessarily mean it's a fullblown composition or whatever, as I said in my opening post! It's just how you look at it. Compared to my previous samples this IS a complete WORK, but it's still a SAMPLE. Ah, well, forget it. I'm not wasting anymore time on this. I'm having far to much fun with RS to get upset about this all.

I'll let you know when the CD is released.

[J van E]

P.S. I posted the tune on the SONAR forum: just curious what they will say and see if OldGeezer is right (if they will skin me alive or not ).

http://forum.cakewalk.com/tm.asp?m=1110788

And the file can be found on Soundclick too now:

http://www.soundclick.com/bands/songInfo.cfm?bandID=459796&songID=5607533

Better than Rapidshare. (It always took a day or so before the song was available online, but apparently things have changed since a year and a half ago.)

[OldGeezer]

Lol. I saw that. It should be interesting. Nobody's gonna skin you alive, good god! Some will likely tear your work apart though, disect it so to speak and tell you what they think of each part. What I'm curious to see, of course. is if anyone doesn't pick it out as midi. I'm staying out of it.

If you wanna hear something that made me almost fall over, did you check out Allan's Resolve on the same page? The sound quality of his mix is stunning.

And for the record, I in no way imply that you don't have talent...I can tell the music is there in your head, and for a morning's work, it's great. You've laid down the base for a cool tune, and I bet if you spend some time with it, you could refine those parts into an even cooler tune. If you say it's finished, then it's finished, which sucks coz I WOULD have looked forward to hearing the next version of Walking. Damn! I wasn't gonna say any more on the subject, but I wanted you to know, if I'm offending you, it'd better be for the right reason: I'm not calling you untalented, I guess I'm calling you lazy coz casting that first tune aside and not working on it would be a waste. Even the players of the real instruments in a band take weeks or even months to create and refine their parts in a new song. The overall bassline and rhythm style (though screaming midi in its current incarnation) and the general melody of the lead have the makings of a good tune, and I do like the sound of the drums. Shame it's finished.

But, that's just me.

[CosmicD]

I can bare critic dissection of tracks at a certain level. So I don't want to pick on individuals here, this topic just makes me thinking the following:

You know, most of it just comes down to taste and that's very individual.

I get the creeps from people who think that at 1.03, they want to hear this riff instead of that rif, and oh that break you have going on at 1.50, that should come out on 1.53.

Man, if you hear some of these critiques, you are thinking they come from another planet where everything is about measurement, absolute arithmetics and absolute length;.. everything packed into a straight jacket of absolutes that arn't tollerated to be a bit off beat.

i though making music was about bring rythm and tones out of you. Maybe not everything is suitable to be recorded or being sold to a multibilion dollar music industry but the point i have to make is: it doesnt't have' to be.

Not everyone needs to be the most respected top producer if he wants to be able to call himself 'a musician'.
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Cosmic Dreamer on iTunes - http://itun.es/i6D89V7

[J van E]

[Johannes]