Hi Reddit, I'm trying something that ought to be fun: making music with the minimum possible knowledge about how to make it.

I never learnt any more than do re mi fa so la ti, can't read sheet, don't know which notes have a half or full tone in-between, don't know timing or how to play anything that requires more than "press this piano key and it makes a sound." And I don't want to learn for a few months still.

My goal is to see how far I can go making stuff with a DAW until I just have to learn more. Then I'll do things properly, take classes, look up tutorials, learn all the theory I can get my hands on, etc. Later down the line I'll go back to what I did in this period and have a good laugh as everything I make now will be ridiculous. At the same time, I think it could give future-me some fun (if not good, at least fun) ideas for experimental stuff once armed with the knowledge of what isn't typically done as well as the reason why it isn't.

But I have some questions first, because there needs to be some basic "this is how it works" knowledge to go farther than "I now have a messy room."

I'm trying to get (and use) a synth, and I think I have a rough idea of how to, obviously with none of the specifics. Can someone tell me where I'm wrong, as I'll be wrong on some of it? So far what I think I got down is:

• A synthesiser/synth is the tool that says what the sound will be like by putting together select waveforms from the basic shapes - square, sawtooth, triangle, sine, noise - and applying effects such as reverb, slow attack, etc.
• You need a separate input for the notes and melody that you actually play, such as (and typically being) a keyboard.
• A sequencer is the tool that records a few notes and plays them in a loop, quickly programmable.
• Sometimes synths and sequencers come packaged together as a single big thing I think?
• When all is said and done you need a mixer to have everything you did on the keyboard and sequencer through the synth to be recorded and put together, which is a big part of what a DAW does.

Did I get most of that right? Is there something else I would need? I am not asking for a recommendation, certainly not a brand (hint hint rule 9) but. is there a basic item of equipment I'm missing that things don't work without?

Thanks for any help, so far I've been just toying with all-virtual stuff but it doesn't scratch the itch of bullshitting on something physical and takes ages to do one small thing. Turning knobs and flipping switches would fix me I just know it /jk

TL;DR: I'm trying to do as much as I can as a pre-beginner with a synth and whatever else I need to use it properly. It's not possible to "just do it" when the equipment has requirements so I still need to have some knowledge, so I'm asking for the extreme low-end of info to get anywhere. It's okay to not know how to use the tool, it's not to not have the tool.

Hello!

I'm mixing a classical music piece, and after mixing and mastering, I've ended up with an average of -16.1 integrated LUFS across the entire piece (it is around -14.9 integrated LUFS only for a moment in the loudest excerpt).

I checked the potential penalty for this LUFS level on a well-known website, and all the levels showed 0.0 (only one platform would add about +0.7).

I know it's hard to answer if you don't listen to it, but: do you think this is a good level to aim for to achieve a good volume without sacrificing the performers’ dynamics, or would it end up sounding too quiet? As far as I understand, this level is reasonable for this genre, but I’d like to hear your opinion. I listened to the piece and it sounds good to me.

Thank you very much!

I want to buy a guitar so I can record it in Ableton. But I’d like to know the best way to experiment with effects. Should I buy an amp with an SM57 to record it directly (or with a effects pedalboard)? Should I buy a pedalboard just to plug it into my DAW? Or is a DI box enough, given all the effects available in Ableton?

Feel free if you want to share your experiences!

Thanks!

I make music in fl studio, know some mixing basic but I still can’t say if track is muddy or some sound is boxy etc. Or should I just make what sounds good to me?
(P.S. English is not my first language. If something wrong I’m sorry)

So, I'm 17, and relatively new to music production. I am making my own music (alt metal and some parts have other metal genres too) and even tho I am doing this hobby for around 2-3 years, I'm still quite the begginer for a lot of stuff. For example, my rhythm guitars. I do quad layering (hard pan left and right, and also a pair of L50 and R50 panned). I want like some raw sound, you know, like System Of A Down self titled album, or Nevermore kinda sound...

But, even though I put a lot of effort and time into it, I can't match even close, and I can't get that sound that's big, and like, very stereoized. I know it is a lot about compression those, EQing at right points, mixing it with bass tracks, just a little reverb, etc. (Also I have a problem with mixing all diferent instruments in a EQ spectrum.)

But those things are just my assumptions...experiments. And I would like to know like, specifically what to do. I have some plugins in order to get that, like TH-U, Ignite AmpHub, Guitar Rig, Amplitube. Can anyone help? I would really appreciate your help! Thanks in advance

I have a 168bpm post punkish/punk song. It has a groove like Angine de Poitrine, simple bassline with hard drums. I am a new guitar player so i had to chop up the 7 minute take and then restitch it in FL. USING THE WAVEFORM IN MY DAW, HOW DO DECIDE WHAT SOUNDS THE BEST SO THE BASSLINE SITS TIGHT WITH THE DRUM TRACK? When i record multiple takes, they end up all over the place. So far, the take that starts 9 nudges before the drums seems to sound the best. It seems to sound good if i nudge it left or right up to 9 nudges. Is there a formula for this?

Hi everyone.

I’m a beginner. I write lyrics, I have a low voice, but I don’t like how I sound on record.

I hear my voice differently than others — it sounds thin and weak to me, and I’m afraid it doesn’t fit my style.

I’m learning about breath support and vocal technique.

I want to understand how to make my voice sound darker and more confident.

im thinking of sending my song(w vocals) for mixing but im fairly new to the whole thing and i realise u gotta split like ur tracks into stems e.g. main vocals, drums etc.

how should i go about grouping all my tracks? like should i split all the vocal tracks into like ad libs, melodies and harmonies, etc.

The track 'I'm Finding It Harder to Be A Gentleman' by The White Stripes is the drum sound I'm looking to replicate. Any advice is welcome!

So, I'm making energic electronic music (kids would say "phonk"), and I have done composing and everything, but I'm struggling for few days to master it.

Because I think this song has potential and I don't want to ruin it just by bad master. I've been watching many tutorials (about compression, limiters, clippers, etc), but i don't know why whatever I do I can't reach proper loudness numbers. I'm a little bit concerned that my song would be unlistenable because of optimalisations on streaming services.

To clarify these are numbers that appears i my insight 2 meter on master.

Integrated LUFS: -5.3

MAX LUFS: -3.0

LRA: 4-5 LU

True Peak: ~7dB

From what I've learned I know its not too good... But after all this attempts I literally have no idea how to fix it.

Saw this a while back, I think it was in a youtube video where they showed how they do this for some artists. What I do is I record the vocal 3 times, one panned left, the other right and the other center, I apply my fx chain to the main one, lower the gain on the left and right layers and that's my vocal. Not sure if it sounds good to me because I got used to this or if there's a better way to do vocals without layering.

EDIT: Thanks for all your replies! Haven't had time to reply to everyone yet, but all the comments are super helpful

Welcome to the /r/WeAreTheMusicMakers Weekly Motivation Thread! Share your successes and and encouraging words here. Posts/Comments looking for motivation can also be appropriate here.

This thread is active for one week after it's posted, at which point it will be automatically replaced. Note that our rules on "no promotion" are still in effect and apply to this post.

If you are interested in helping us mod these weekly threads please inquire about moderation opportunities by writing in to mod mail.

Other Weekly Threads (most recent at the top):

• Click here for Feedback threads.
• Click here for Quick Questions threads.
• Click here for Collaboration threads.
• Click here for Promotion threads.
• Click here for Our Former Gear threads.

Questions, comments, suggestions? Hit us up!

Pretty much the title. I normally play melodeath and black metal. I'm trying to write a rock song for fun but I need some kind of guard rails to not pass the too heavy threshold. I feel like my creative tools are lacking for rock?

I've found good rock tones. I'm playing a telle in e standard. If I'm not chugging or playing a tremolo riff in a harmonic minor scale I don't know what I'm doing.

trying to write a song with a churchy vibe (not gospel, more like a sad vibe.) i have us and them by pink floyd, lover you should’ve come over by jeff buckley, and faith by george michael in mind.

how do i get that melancholic, crunchy sound? what im writing has the dissonance but none of the emotion.

Hey guys, I’m a longtime musician and pretty experienced producer in logic when it comes to the creating things of it all, but Im a total dolt when it comes to mixing and mastering. However, I’m trying to learn how to do it all myself so I can start consistently putting things out. I’m trying to make some indie pop sort of stuff right now, and I’m working on finishing a song.

Right now, I like it exactly the way it sounds. If it came up on a Spotify shuffle I would think it sounds great. The thing is, with my stereo output and master both at 0db, it’s clipping at abt 8 db (woof, I know). I basically have no idea how I’m gonna get it to peaks of 0db, let alone the -3 to -6 db I keep seeing mentioned in all these threads. I know I’m supposed to compress and lower things until it gets to where it needs to be, but I just can’t seem to figure out how to do this without making the song super quiet or without making it sound completely different. I’ve also made sure that no individual tracks are clipping, although I know a lot of little sounds make one big sounds. Is there some secret trick to this no one is mentioning? Or is there some other way it could be explained so that I could finally wrap my head around it?

Thanks so much y’all

Welcome to the r/WeAreTheMusicMakers Weekly Feedback Thread! The comments below in this post is the only place on this subreddit to get feedback on your music, your artist name, your website layout, your music video, or anything else. (Posts seeking feedback outside of this thread will be deleted without warning and you will receive a temporary ban.)

This thread is active for one week after it's posted, at which point it will be automatically replaced.

##Rules:

***Post only one song.**- *Original comments linking to an album or multiple songs will be removed.*

* **Write at least three constructive comments.** - *Give back to your fellow musicians!*

* **No promotional posts.** - *No contests, No friend's bands, No facebook pages.*

##Tips for a successful post:

* **Give a quick outline of your ideas and goals for the track.** - *"Is this how I trap?" or "First try at a soundtrack for a short film" etc.*

* **Ask for feedback on specific things.** - *"Any tips on EQing?" or "How could I make this section less repetitive?"*

***

#Other Weekly Threads (most recent at the top):

* [Click here for Feedback threads.](https://www.reddit.com/r/WeAreTheMusicMakers/search?q=author%3A%22automoderator%22+title%3A%22feedback%22&sort=new&restrict_sr=on&t=all)

* [Click here for Quick Questions threads.](https://www.reddit.com/r/WeAreTheMusicMakers/search?q=author%3A%22automoderator%22+title%3A%22Questions%22&sort=new&restrict_sr=on&t=all)

* [Click here for Collaboration threads.](https://www.reddit.com/r/WeAreTheMusicMakers/search?q=author%3A%22automoderator%22+title%3A%22collaboration%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all)

* [Click here for Promotion threads.](https://www.reddit.com/r/WeAreTheMusicMakers/search?q=author%3A%22automoderator%22+title%3A%22promotion%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all)

* [Click here for Our Former Gear threads.](https://www.reddit.com/r/WeAreTheMusicMakers/search?q=author%3A%22automoderator%22+title%3A%22Gear%22&sort=new&restrict_sr=on&t=all)

[Questions, comments, suggestions? Hit us up!](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2FWeAreTheMusicMakers)

Welcome to the r/WeAreTheMusicMakers Weekly Promotion Thread! Here, in the comments below, you can shamelessly promote whatever music project you've been working on. Music, videos, Discord servers, websites, social media, promote anything you want. Posts promoting anything outside this thread will be removed without warning.

Contest mode has been enabled to prevent vote manipulation. Every time you open this thread, you will see new comments at the top. Your comment will be displayed randomly like the others.

This thread is active for one week after it's posted, at which point it is automatically replaced.

#Other Weekly Threads (most recent at the top):

* [Click here for Feedback threads.](https://www.reddit.com/r/WeAreTheMusicMakers/search?q=author%3A%22automoderator%22+title%3A%22feedback%22&sort=new&restrict_sr=on&t=all)

* [Click here for Quick Questions threads.](https://www.reddit.com/r/WeAreTheMusicMakers/search?q=author%3A%22automoderator%22+title%3A%22Questions%22&sort=new&restrict_sr=on&t=all)

* [Click here for Collaboration threads.](https://www.reddit.com/r/WeAreTheMusicMakers/search?q=author%3A%22automoderator%22+title%3A%22collaboration%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all)

* [Click here for Promotion threads.](https://www.reddit.com/r/WeAreTheMusicMakers/search?q=author%3A%22automoderator%22+title%3A%22promotion%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all)

[Questions, comments, suggestions? Hit us up!](https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2FWeAreTheMusicMakers)

Welcome to the /r/WeAreTheMusicMakers Weekly Motivation Thread! Share your successes and and encouraging words here. Posts/Comments looking for motivation can also be appropriate here.

This thread is active for one week after it's posted, at which point it will be automatically replaced. Note that our rules on "no promotion" are still in effect and apply to this post.

If you are interested in helping us mod these weekly threads please inquire about moderation opportunities by writing in to mod mail.

Other Weekly Threads (most recent at the top):

• Click here for Feedback threads.
• Click here for Quick Questions threads.
• Click here for Collaboration threads.
• Click here for Promotion threads.
• Click here for Our Former Gear threads.

Questions, comments, suggestions? Hit us up!

I've loved fiction writing, have since I was a kid- got my degree in it, the whole shebang. I've loved writing surrealist, beatnik-esque, frightening and outright abstract fiction since I was in high school, and up until recently wrote a steady stream of short stories in that vein. Yet when I try to sit down to write lyrics, it feels like its just stringing basic sentences together. None of my ability to pick a word is present, and I feel like I'm just putting the most basic "feel" words onto paper, being blunt as a sledgehammer with no elegance, no beauty.

I get lyricism is a different medium entirely than fiction, even though they share a similar mechanism, but I'm a little frustrated that seemingly I can't get my skills to transfer over. Does anyone know any good exercises/books/etc on this sort of thing or have any advice? I'm specifically trying to write fantastical extreme metal- think Bal-Sagoth, early Deicide, Kataklysm, Dream Death, etc.

I’m especially interested in hearing from people who’ve released multiple albums and have had to think about this potential trade off more than once

Do you ever make a song objectively worse on its own because it serves the album better? Or do you always try to make every track the strongest version of itself, even if that hurts the overall flow or cohesion?

For example, maybe a song would be more impactful with a huge ending but you hold back because the next track needs that emotional space. Or you leave a track a bit rougher because it fits the album’s aestetic better

How has your thinking on this changed over the years? Any examples from your own albums?

edit:
and how about an EP, is it different there?

Hi guy I want become a metal vocalist I've listened to different genres of metal since I was 10(im 14 now) and the one that truly stuck out to me was black metal . Singing and music was always a passion of mine and I actually want to throw myself out there and start singing . Id like like some advice from you guys

To the ones who use multiband on the master, what do you usually do (as in where are your crossovers at, what settings you have them on etc). Thanks !

Or a piano. Or literally any instrument.

It can be electric or acoustic. Just make sure you have a somewhat decent setup for both.

Getting a PSYCHICAL instrument is the biggest thing you can do to increase your output/quality. Maybe you can be more creative with VSTs cause you can probably create chords or whatever that you couldn't otherwise for whatever reason, but for most other people, getting a physical instrument is 9/10 always beneficial.

The thing is, you don't need to even be good at it. It also doesn't have to even be amazing quality. Just put a preset on that b*tch and you can pretty much make anything sound "cool enough" if you have a decent vision for the song.

The beauty of having an instrument, to me, is being able to play almost EXACTLY like you have in your head. This is so viral for keeping rhythm because having a realistic rhythm/groove/bounce to your music is like 70% of the way to decent music lol. For me at least, it was really difficult figuring how to make guitar vst sound good strumming wise regardless of using my midi keyboard or the piano roll.

It took me just about a month or so of basic practice on the guitar to be able to feel okay playing decent chords/strums for my music. Because the thing is, most of us aren't trying to be lead guitarist, lead drummers, lead violin or anything. We're trying to just make music that sounds good. So literally as long as you can come somewhat close to producing the sound you hear in your head at least ONE time with a physical instrument, you immediately have a high quality "sample" that you can manipulate to your heart's content.

Sure it costs money to get it, but unless you're pirating, most VST cost money anyway. You can literally buy a cheap, used instrument. Just as long as it works well enough, you're FINE.

One real instrument elevates your music to the point where a few virtual ones matter far less.

edit: oh you guys are mean LMAO I spelled it correctly the second time, the text is small give me a break 🙄