Wizkid Sound - Latest Comments

Re: Slate Digital’s FG-X Mastering Processor Rocks

pimpfresh — Mon, 18 Oct 2010 12:16:10 -0000

I keep hearing about the Voxengo and Elephant and hear nothing but good stuff. Rob and I tried out a whole slew of mastering plug demos on a session a few months back and tried to be as clinical as possible (with our limited time). Rob got some very good results out of the McDsp ML4000....and I discovered that I absolutely hate using Multi-band compressor/limiters. Just couldn't get a hang of it. I'm with you on the L316 too....why do you need to compress so many frequencies? My best results have come from using just a little Linear EQ and a limiter or the Slate plug (my best results aren't that awesome though :) Rob's definitely got the better mastering ear.

Re: Slate Digital’s FG-X Mastering Processor Rocks

Atheist — Mon, 18 Oct 2010 10:02:57 -0000

Will try it :D

I tried the previous Ozone and found it very aggressive, even on conservative settings.
T-racks is too "coloring" for a transparent mix.

For now, i use Voxengo Soniformer to "lush" the dynamic and frequencies at the same time.
And Elephant, as final limiter/brickwall.

Elephant already included adaptive limiting for years now ;)
But it was not based on transients (unlike Slate design), but more on classic levels.

A sort of classic (very good) auto adaptive limiter, combined with a brickwall : they work together, this is not like putting them one after the other ;)
Try Elephant :D

And try Soniformer, instead of the stupid L16 Waves : nothing more stupid than a 16 bands maximizer that destroy transients on all 16 bands ;)
What is the point of maximizing even the high frequencies ? Most energy is in the bass domain...
Who said "loudness war" ?
You gain peanut by clipping high frequencies with a 3.5 - 4.5 dB / Octave slope master.

That's why i prefer the Slate/Voxengo way : transients to the end and bass under control ;)

Re: The Top 10 Albums of the ’90s

Lightlinemusic — Fri, 15 Oct 2010 20:28:42 -0000

My top ten albums of the 90s, in no particular order:

Pearl Jam - Ten
Soundgarden - Badmotorfinger
Alice in Chains - Dirt
Nirvana - Nevermind
Smashing Pumpkins - Siamese Dream
Faith No More - Angel Dust
Massive Attack - Mezzanine
Rage Against the Machine - Rage Against the Machine
The Cure - Show
Pink Floyd - Division Bell

These albums inspired me then and still do today. When I listen to them I feel the urge to get in the studio and lay down some tracks….

Re: Nickelback: The Band Everybody Loves to Hate

Lightlinemusic — Fri, 15 Oct 2010 19:07:05 -0000

Wow. Someone out there putting into words the thoughts I've had when a Nickelback tune comes on the radio. I stumbled across this while researching how Nickleback uses the NTK.

You know, I just don't like their songs and would never purchase one of their CDs, but most of the time I'll listen to their music when it comes on my car radio because it has a PLEASING sound quality. The guitars are pumping, the vocals are pleasantly in your face, and there's a sheen and fullness of the whole that has to be appreciated.

However, much like Daughtry's first CD, I'm willing to bet that hearing starts to deteriorate after ten minutes of continuous listening. I'd guess that the waveform of every song looks like a rectangle. In some rare cases this kind of compression and limiting can work ("Black Gives Way to Blue" in my opinion), most of the time it's only effective for acts that are focused on releasing radio friendly singles. People hear one of these songs on the radio or MP3, the brilliant impact of the song grabs the listener's attention, and they go buy the CD.

Re: Introduction to Tuning Vocals with Melodyne

Wizkid Sound — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 21:29:32 -0000

Thanks! We're working on Part II of the tutorial. Good to hear it's being used!

Re: Introduction to Tuning Vocals with Melodyne

The Track Studio — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 13:46:21 -0000

this is great information, i will guide all of our interns over here to learn from your blog! we actually only use melodyne here at the studio and not autotune. thanks again!

Re: Our Best Work Yet

Tim — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 18:08:39 -0000

Nice job, Daniel! I like this guy's sound and I'm looking forward to hearing more of your work!

Re: Audio Engineering School is a Waste of Time and Money

pimpfresh — Sun, 20 Jun 2010 18:37:48 -0000

Thanks for the kudos! It's good to hear people that have been through it being objective about their situation. Obviously anyone with talent and drive is going to succeed regardless. I checked out your stuff and it's awesome! Make sure to let us know if you're ever in ATL!

Re: Audio Engineering School is a Waste of Time and Money

JUKETASTRAFE — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 22:27:04 -0000

i Luv this post... i am 20 years old and i am breaking my fucking neck and almost saling my soul for money to pay for a tuiton at columbia college or flashpoint academy chicago $50,000 fucking dollars. i have been into engineering my own music sense age 15 i am into urban House, Electro Euro House And Now Im a Hardstyle Addict, particulary Living in Chicago I'm known for My Ghetto House Creations I Have a couple of ep/lps on itunes, rhapsody, amazon music.com yahoo etc (Search:Juke It Hard Vol.) Now many people and fellow muscians i know in my particular desired field of music all say i have high potential to be a great producer and recording engineer and i know much for my age for not ever attending any schooling yet. but the majority of them still say i still should go to school to get a little more knowledge and to get a certification certificate or degree just so i can have it on my back ground. But although i havn't attended any engineering schooling yet it feels as though if i finally do, it would be a waste of time now that i have been researching former students and people who have attended school and have completed. and the majority of them say the same thing majority you can learn your self for the amount of money and it is about hands on experience. I mean i have been around some pretty locally known big name House producers and house djs from the likes of Ghetto House Creator Dj Deeon, Dj Funk, Dj Slugo, Terry Hunter, Traxster, and many more i mean local chicago wize. And I know for a fact they havnt attended any prior schooling and they are doing fairly well and are saling out internationaly and are constantly touring and doing shows out of the country witch is my Dream to go to Europe, and they all have pretty decent studios minus the pro tools $100,000 Hd Set Up.But Being Around Them I have learned Alot now that i think about it. But for me until i get the $50,000 for Engineering school i will be attending realworld hands on training and you tube school
witch in fact has brought me this far oh and P.S TO THE GUY WHO POSTED THIS BLOG THANK YOU AND MUCH RESPECT I THOUGHT I WAS THE ONLY ONE FEELING THIS WAY AND FOR ANY ONE WHO NEEDS TO KNOW I AM JUKETASTRAFE ALSO KNOW AS DJ PIERRE CHICAGO AKA MR WHATZ JUKING!! GOOGLE SEARCH: JUKE IT HARD VOL. FACEBOOK ME.MYSPACE ETC I LUV MEETING NEW PEOPLE IN MY PARTICULAR FIELD
AND ALSO HOW BIZZAR IS THIS: I AM A 20 YEAR OLD URBAN "BLACK AMERICAN HARD HOUSE/HARD STYLE/ELECTRO FINATIC RESIDING ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF CHICAGO ILLINOIS ENGLEWOOD AREA!!! MUSIC IS COLOR BLIND AND IN MUSIC RACE DOESNT MATTER!!! AND IS THE ONLY THING THAT IS KEEPONG THIS COUNTRY UNITED AND TOGETHER MUSIC IS GOD!!

Re: Our Best Work Yet

Nick — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 22:39:48 -0000

Excellent write-up. Great tunes. "Let It Go" isn't so bad either!

Re: Brandi Carlile, New Setup, Projects Update

Wizkid Sound — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 16:01:56 -0000

Hey Joseph!

Thanks for stopping by. We have a bunch of mixes on our Bandcamp page, which you can access by clicking on the red speaker on our site, or by going directly to http://wizkidsound.bandcamp.co....

We'll email you with some other stuff we're working on, too.

Rob and Dan

Re: Brandi Carlile, New Setup, Projects Update

wildbluezebra — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 15:48:23 -0000

I would like to hear some more mixes from you guys.
Got anymore I can check out?
Joseph

Re: Owl City is Awesome

Wizkid Sound — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 22:02:13 -0000

you obviously waste time reading blogs that don't interest you

Re: Owl City is Awesome

Wizkid Sound — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 22:01:58 -0000

I AM A RETARDED CHILDREN

Re: Owl City is Awesome

Milky Joe — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 16:16:58 -0000

this is a bad bad place. Owl city totally ripped off the postal service sound and turnned it into a disney sing along. The lyrics make me cringe because they are so generic and thoughtless. This is the music that retarded children listen to. Relient K sucks too. LISTEN TO ANIMAL COLLECTIVE

Re: Owl City is Awesome

Name — Fri, 23 Apr 2010 16:11:31 -0000

you obviously dont listen to good music

Re: Audio Engineering School is a Waste of Time and Money

pimpfresh — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 11:50:04 -0000

Really dude? Really? You write like a 13-year-old girl on MySpace. Apparently they don't have any entry level English classes at SAE. I almost feel like you have a point in here somewhere but as in most professions, nobody is going to take you seriously when you sound like a washed-up rapper using Instant Messenger.

And for all your cockiness I'd just like to point out something that you readily admit: You're still an intern. Sure you may get to sit in the lobby of a major commercial studio all night and go make food runs for "big time engineers," but you're still an intern. While I definitely recommend an internship for people wanting to get started in the professional recording business, you don't need to spend $150,000 to get one, even at a major studio.

$150,000 isn't going to get you on a split sheet either. If you ever get to put your name on one I hope for your sake that you can figure out how to do basic math and spell your name correctly. Your response indicates that might be a problem. Fortunately as of now that's not a problem because interns don't get on split sheets....songwriters and producers do. I hope you know something about music.

Re: Audio Engineering School is a Waste of Time and Money

MR. SELFMADE — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 17:57:25 -0000

U sound like a straight Hater!!LOL!! tryin to make u cats that will always remain amateurs feel better!! LOL yeah audio engineering school is a waste of time if you bullshitting yaself anyway and don't have any TALENT in the first place! The only thing i agree with in this blog is real experience is necessary to start making real money in the music industry. If your trying to teach your self by buying PRO TOOLS FOR DUMMIES and MAC PRO VIDEO tutorials by the time u get a good quality sound you'll be to old to reap any benefit and probably spent the same amount of money as a graduate from a school!LOL I'm an SAE graduate!! now who has the advantage interning in a commercial studio with the big time engineers a person that has education and KNOWs the engineer lingo or a person that just bought and m-box and only knows how to open a session and press the record button..everytime one of u "I just bought an M-box jokers" show up to my studio they always asking the GRADUATE to teach them? Y's that? so if by the grace of GOD they do get to get in with a Big engineer they can at least not look like a total idiot! thats like saying I can go out and buy a stethoscope,white jacket and a perscription pad and boom! I'M A DOCTOR!! it's that simple!! Please! Its all about your hustle and what u put into it! in anything u do! The whole point is you have to LEARN!! going to a school just gets u proper education fast and more efficient than being self-taught! Not to mention the network opportunities that come around that u wouldn't have sitting at home by yaself!! And while i'm trusted by true songwriters,producers, and industry execs with upcoming major projects. The only people that'll trust what your sayin is local bands with no money to pay professionals anyway!! You'll be lucky to ever see a split sheet!! ROFLMAO

Re: Audio Engineering School is a Waste of Time and Money

toshcantel — Thu, 08 Apr 2010 15:05:27 -0000

I Love this Blog, so so true!!

Re: Today’s Modern Drums Sound Like ’80s Pop Drums

MAtt — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 06:20:51 -0000

Robert,
Thanks for discussing this. I do notice that drums today sound "perfect" (no timing fluxuation or dynamics). But also keep in mind that playing to a click has become the norm in recording, and more importantly, in rehearsal and live playing... so therefore many young drummers' timing have become spot on from an early age. But it even goes back to when these young drummers were first learning how to play by jamming along to their favorite recordings ("perfect" drums). I've seen for my own eyes how perfect and consistent some drummers can play. And Im not talking about "world class drummers" like Kenny Aronoff and Vinnie Colaiuta. But as a result, a lot of young drummers have forgotten all about using ghost notes and swelling a tom fill. But it's not their fault because the loud guitar tones these days make it useless to play anything that isnt a primary hit...because it can't be heard. Therefore very even, consistent strokes is what they get great at. I just want you to believe that near "perfect" drum tracks can be played. But...that being said...I agree that drum editing has gone too far. The problem is that to be competitive in today's top 40 and rock scene, your recording must sound like gold(unless your purposely avoiding that). And to get a mix that's as clear as the ones you mentioned above, it's necessary to have really consistent drumming. If every snare hit is the exact same than you know what frequency it's at so you can make sure the other instruments don't collide with it in the mix. And if the timing of the drums sway away from the guitar on the first note of the big chorus, it will sound mushy. Basically, you're damned if you do edit(cheating)and damned if you don't edit(weak mixes by today's standards). From a drumming standpoint I look at it like this....do your best to always give each note its value and even if you can't hear the ghost notes being played(live or in the studio), keep playing them, but always make sure to smash the primary notes. Dynamic playing makes you a better musician! But ultimately it's the engineers fault. ha ha!

Re: Dude, Hardcore Music is Getting Ridiculous

xBernestox — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 13:41:18 -0000

Listen to "For Today"! They're a Christian Hardcore band.

Re: Alternatives to Piracy

Wizkid Sound — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 17:30:57 -0000

Apparently New Zealanders think watching porn online is worse than pirating music. Interesting. http://torrentfreak.com/watchi...

Re: You have a physics degree?

mcalliboi — Fri, 08 Jan 2010 01:30:51 -0000

Did your degree in Physics assist you in your understanding when interning to become a Recording Engineer? I'm currently looking to enroll in school at the University of Utah. Sound and music is my passion, but unfortunately, they do not have a recording program. They do however have a Physics program... Or I was even considering a music composition degree...

Re: Alternatives to Piracy

robkischuk — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 02:08:42 -0000

What does Rhapsody do when I use Rhapsody To Go and sync the song onto my Sandisk Sansa player? Does the Sandisk player somehow count plays and then phone home when I sync? Or does the act of synching a song credit the artist? If the latter, am I then playing fair if I periodically synch the songs I've burned to my player to compensate the artist even as I listen to them on a burned CD?

Also, how much of this is relevant when this is the state of streaming royalties compensation: http://www.toomuchjoy.com/?p=1...

Re: Alternatives to Piracy

Robert Dyson — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 18:05:45 -0000

Currently, yes, it is piracy. Rhapsody pays royalties based on plays...you burning a copy of someone else's CD but using the excuse that it's available on Rhapsody circumvents the royalty payment. Is this ridiculous? I think so. As we move towards streaming and "music as a service" the problem of you burning a cd will become less and less relevant because your next car will have Rhapsody or Lala or Apple On-The-Go built in and you want want to fuss with CDs.

Thanks for the feedback. Sorry for the delay, that tofurkey sure packs a mean tryptophan punch.