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Anyone here familiar with MML and Yamaha FM synthesis? I've gotten into SiON MML recently, and I want to try my hand at making FM music. I'm a big fan of video game music like the kind you see on the NES, the Genesis, PC-98 and most anything in the OPX line. I've played around with VMML a little, but the details of some things kind of escape me. I know that there's such a thing as a "table" - in this case, it's a table that represents...something. I don't really know what they're for or I would use one; all I really know is that I can mess with the pitch and volume of a note somewhat, but that's not very useful to me. Maybe it's because I'm untrained - is there some sort of series on analyzing FM tracks and what techniques are used in them? I'm also wondering if there's a known "list" of patches used in things like the Genesis and some PC-98 games. The only way I've ever seen them specified is as the MML tables I mentioned earlier. However, a lot of stuff floating around the internet is in some sort of binary format. Nothing that I can use. 
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Oct 29, 2015 23:59
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Laserjet 4P posted:Is there a particular reason you want to do this via the most torturous, difficult way possible, or...? Well, mostly because I don't have to muck around with a DAW and installing VSTs and stuff, but I installed a demo version of Renoise, so that's in the clear for now. quote:Because using something like http://www.kvraudio.com/product/vopm-by-sam and Renoise is probably a few magnitudes easier. Or even this: http://www.alyjameslab.com/alyjameslabfmdrive.html I tried to use VOPMex and it seemed to screw up Renoise, somehow, but maybe I need to try again. VOPM itself has a rather outdated version of the OSX-compatible VST, but I can try using that instead. FMDrive is Windows-only, sadly. I'm mostly just looking for something to mimic OPNx/PC-98 FM synthesis and the NES, and some guides on implementing them in Renoise would be an awesome bonus. quote:Authenticity is mostly a matter of staying within the constraints of the chip and using certain tropes and techniques. I like to try and stay within the constraints of the chip 'cause it reduces analysis paralysis. That said, I'm certainly not stuck to them. And I want to learn FM synthesis too - no idea where I'd start, though. Maybe a book...
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Nov 16, 2015 00:01
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I'm going to ask a stupid question - how do you "get better" at music? I don't mean technically, like being more proficient at piano, I mean in terms of composing and making it. It's not something with a clear right answer like math or science have, and it's very subjective and varied. How do you know that you're improving and going in the right direction?
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Feb 1, 2016 15:28
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Is there a thread about mixing, production, EQ, instrumentation, etc.? I’m at the point where I can put notes on a page and make a nice little tune, but i don’t know best practices for how it should sound or what instruments I should use/how to make them play nice. I’d like to learn more about that, cause AFAICT it’s really important to get that right.
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Oct 6, 2021 18:58
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Dunno where to post this, so I figure I'll try here. I use Renoise as my DAW, and while tracking out some random garbage I found this really weird effect. I suspect it has something to do with how MIDI, using the same instrument on multiple tracks, and Renoise's FX column play together. But what's happening seems too familiar to me to just be an annoying bug. Does anyone know what exactly is happening in this clip... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gTFSfoIkqXE ...and how I can replicate it without relying on undefined behavior? Because it is absolutely sick.
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Oct 21, 2021 15:50
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I suspect that what's happening is related to using the same instrument on all the tracks. The third track from the left has a delay effect on it, and it seems to be applying to the second and first tracks too. It's a sampled instrument, so my guess is that there's some sort of max (for whatever reason) on how many samples in the instrument can play at a time. Might be due to its keyzones or how its chopped up. Utterly fascinating and now I want to figure out how to replicate it. timp posted:I can't help you but IMO just record that for 25 minutes and call it Piano Phase 2: Phase Harder yooooooooooooooooooooooooo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=57TuvksMR70 this is dope (edit: also the piano is a placeholder for other instruments, prolly a bass and some guitar too, so  )
Pollyanna fucked around with this message at 16:24 on Oct 21, 2021 |
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Oct 21, 2021 16:21
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cruft posted:Max Voices was a thing, like, 25 years ago. I wouldn't expect it to show up now. I would expect notes on Backup Harmony to play as normal after the OFF signal has been received for Lead Melody or Counterpoint Melody. Instead, you get a short pop for that note - which is probably the attack TMA's talking about - and you're left with just the delay from the previous Backup Harmony note. Except for the final F, which simply cuts its entire track. Why, I don't know. Speaking of, I would also expect the delay effect to only apply to Lead Melody, since it's applied. Instead, I also hear the delay effect on Backup Harmony when FX is turned off for its group. Delay is not present in Backup Harmony when FX is on for its group. It's possible that it uses the other group's FX for some reason. (Reverb and delay are different, right?) Don't get me wrong, none of this is bad. It's a really cool effect! I'm just curious about why and how it's happening. Pollyanna fucked around with this message at 19:22 on Oct 21, 2021 |
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Oct 21, 2021 19:18
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The good news is that it’s pretty easy to avoid, I only found it cause I muted the wrong column. Plus, it inspired the first verse of the song!
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Oct 21, 2021 19:55
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Did someone say my name?
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May 18, 2022 02:23
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Do we have a general music writing, composition, and production thread? I’ve spent a lot of time delving into details like the instruments I can use (synths and VSTs) and techniques to use when writing (music theory, using filters/FX on synths, a little bit of mixing advice), but nothing on the high level (how to write, what to write first, how to write something good, how to know you’re finished). If not, would a thread where we discuss the process and share tips/tutorials on doing so be valuable? I’ll admit to wanting this thread for my own purposes - I get analysis paralysis real easily and freeze up a lot with a blank page.
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May 18, 2022 15:15
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Seconding that. I think it’d be good to start with the classical approach to orchestration/instrumentation, since it’s got hundreds of years of development and harmonics are harmonics regardless of whether they come from a tuba or a modular synth. That said, it’s still Calvinball in the end. There are no explicit prescriptions for what does what. Your best bet is to pay attention to and ask questions about what instruments play what range of tones, rhythms, and envelopes, and why the composers chose them for the job. And also learning about what a melody is, what a countermelody is, what harmony is, what a bassline is and why it’s used, etc. I try to do all this and I haven’t succeeded in learning anything yet, but it’ll happen someday!!!
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Jun 30, 2022 20:44
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Say I’ve got a ~1m30s loop with relatively comprehensive harmonic content. A few synth patch lines and a BD+SD. The loop would be 5~6 tracks worth in Ableton something. It sounds good, but I am not sure it stands on its own. Is a loop like this worth dropping straight into a project and layering things on top, or is it better to treat it like a demo and recreate parts of it from scratch as desired? My gut feeling says the latter is better in the long run because you have more control over DAW sequenced instruments than a a single sample, but maybe I just don’t know how to work with loops.
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Nov 3, 2022 21:23
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Out of curiosity, what are charts?
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Dec 22, 2022 18:25
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Arpeggios! The notes in a chord don’t all have to be played at the same time. A C-E-G chord over one bar can also be a C-E-G-E arpeggio over one bar. A 303 with an arpeggiator is a magical thing.
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Dec 23, 2022 00:14
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CaptainViolence posted:that equalizer is good for making surgical adjustments around problem frequencies, but not as good at making overall adjustments. What is a problem frequency?
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Feb 4, 2023 15:14
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I’ve got about $200 to burn. I wanna spend it on my music hobby, specifically making music. Ideally I’d like to invest in my music-making abilities and experience, and in streamlining my music-making process. I don’t need hardware synthesizers and I’m sitting relatively pretty on software (Renoise for my DAW, various free softsynths and effects for VSTs). As someone who wants to make music and get better at making music, what is this money best spent on?
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Feb 23, 2023 16:54
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Ideally I’d like to quit my job and focus on music and actually get my executive dysfunctional rear end into some goddamn structure and organization, but that costs way more than $200. I guess that means instruments and voices aren’t high priority, so theory and praxis e.g. that competition dead pool idea would be better investments. Maybe I’ll take a class? Buy a book or two?
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Feb 23, 2023 18:22
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Problem #1 is that I’d want to bring a serious project to them (e: and understand what I want to make), so that’ll need to be done first. Problem #2 is oh god people. Maybe that’s my motivation to finish those drat projects. Would be an interesting gimmick for a double album, a before/after Oh, or classes/tutoring on the composition and production workflow. That’d help a lot, structure and organization are some of my biggest missing pieces. Pollyanna fucked around with this message at 18:47 on Feb 23, 2023 |
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Feb 23, 2023 18:31
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TooMuchAbstraction posted:Just to check, are you hoping to make money as a musician? https://youtu.be/NIgfiSzCy1o
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Feb 23, 2023 18:47
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JeffLeonard posted:Pollyanna, stop getting in your own way and just MAKE SOMETHING zzzzzzactly Yeah I figured that there wasn’t a whole lot that money can buy at this point. My blockers are internal, which is why I emphasized process and the act of making so much. Maybe I’ll spend that money on therapy.
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Feb 23, 2023 23:03
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I like to think that there is no wrong. Any tips on getting ideas out of your head? If I listen to music for a while, it’ll eventually “stick” and I’ll be primed to mentally percolate some similar tunes. But I find it weirdly hard to put pen to paper, and when it does make it into reality it doesn’t sound quite right. Voice memos on my phone aren’t quite enough, and also it’s a pain in the rear end anyway. I wonder if one problem is having to do the mental math ahead of time to program it into a DAW instead of deriving the notation from a recording. I can plonk a piano easily enough, maybe I could split the work up. Could also just use a DAW, controller, and instrument library that’s streamlined for record a bunch of loops and snippets as a rough sketch. Workflow’s a good thing to work on for sure.
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Feb 24, 2023 22:22
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That would be pretty dope!
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Jul 27, 2023 21:06
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It’s also cool to program velocity into your drum track before you decide what exactly it does to the timbre.
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Jul 27, 2023 22:10
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Yes you can and it fucken rulez
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Jul 27, 2023 22:34
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JamesKPolk posted:get renoise if you wanna be real With the caveat that I've found it easier to prototype and sketch out a musical idea in Reaper or even just a piano + audio recording, and easier to use Renoise as a later production step.
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Nov 26, 2023 16:46
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VikingofRock posted:So, I did a spare time project this year, where I learned about music composition and arrangement by composing theme music for each character in my friends' Pathfinder game, using free VSTs and Reaper. I revealed the final themes for everyone during our Christmas session, the players loved them, and now I want to post the themes somewhere online to share with our other friends and with fellow musicians. This rocks btw and I feel compelled to tell you good job 👏
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Dec 31, 2023 17:07
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