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Post by mrholmes on Aug 27, 2015 2:19:11 GMT -6
Every time I visit a friends studio, who composes for films, I go back home and I do optimize my own workflow. In the last three days I did use some time to create a Logic 9 Template that makes totale sense in terms of premixed sounds. With this template I can go from Blues to modern Pop. I minimized the options I do track guitars. With this I can have a good premix of the guitars, to a certain degree, too. I even created a standard for LV tracking. I did create presets for time depending fxs for diffrent bpms.
Its like cocaine for writeing, its fun and super fast.
All sounds in front of you, one click away.
I never get lost when creativty hits me.
!!!! - I do not waste live-time anymore doing the same things over and over again - !!!!
No searching for sounds anymore, no endless editing of fx chains....
Thats great I love it.
Amen to the invention of the DAW.
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Post by jazznoise on Aug 27, 2015 2:52:20 GMT -6
I'd love to say I HAVE a workflow. But actually most music I don't write anywhere near a computer. It'll be me, my guitar and if I plugged it in maybe a few pedals and my amp. I have an SM57 always on a small stand to mic it up and then usually a 58 into my mixer if I want to try some vocal ideas over a particularly noisy idea.
If I'm doing something electronic or more DAW based I just follow my nose. I have my MIDI keyboard and I'll use my usual set of softsynths - Mono/Poly, MS20, U-NO-62, Mellotron, Stringsynth and then maybe some drum machines like Tromine's 606 or 808 and the TX16WX VSTi for sampling whatever. I have a few monotrons I can plug in, some rack and some guitar pedals like my Memory Boy I might bus stuff out to. I also have a CASIO CS-1 for extreme lo-fi sampling. Sometimes I'll sing into it or use the onboard sounds for really grity nasty effects. The organ or flute sound into my guitar amp sounds pretty cool!
I guess for me the important thing is to not end up repeating myself. Composing stuff like that is more of an excersize for myself, and also a good workout for figuring out new production tricks. Sometimes this stuff comes up in a session and makes you look like a genius..or a maniac..or both!
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Post by tonycamphd on Aug 27, 2015 7:49:40 GMT -6
My creative mecca= a towel, a toilet seat, a cup of joe, and an iphone, i'll let you figure out the rest 8)
and don't lie, you probably do the same...., talk about "workflow" 8)
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Post by mrholmes on Aug 27, 2015 9:15:26 GMT -6
Soemetimes I use the I phone for tracking ideas with guitar or piano and voice.... maybe in the bathroom too"..  |
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Post by svart on Aug 27, 2015 11:28:47 GMT -6
I don't do composing, but I do have a specific workflow that I use.
For the DAW I have one template, with 24 tracks to match the SSL Alphalink streams. I typically add more tracks and just link their streams with other tracks to make virtual busses. I almost always have certain outboard gear inserted on specific mixer channels. I almost always have the same types of instruments on the same track numbers too.
I typically use similar settings on amps, and use similar mics and positioning too. I know what works, and I stick with it.
I guess I have a "sound" based on all these similarities, and it seems bands are now starting to come to me for that "sound", which is pretty much where everyone who does pro recording wants to be.
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Post by popmann on Aug 27, 2015 11:41:52 GMT -6
I'm a firm believer in the separation the writing process from the recording process. I do have a mix template. Because I HAVE to....otherwise, it's the equivalent of someone UNwiring my studio every time I switch songs! The DAW took AWAY the traditional "template" of "leaving stuff plugged in and good patchbay normalization design". Anyhoo....they aren't really related. If they were, I'd be sitting here a some lyrics and cutting a vocal with them away from a whole new album. But, these are demos. This whole idea that now there are no demos....we're keeping everything and massaging it to work....has been flawed. Mind you--making a record isn't exactly an enjoyable process in total, so--if you're just doing it for fun, no reason to ever make a record. But, if you DO want to make a record, job #1 is have the material written and rehearsed before you START. I "wrote" a tune in the DAW last year....I didn't get lyric one until I sat this week at the piano playing it solo and singing it. coincidence? Maybe, but it won't be the first time. But, I sure did have a groovy sounding tempo mapped demo of the backing track and my la, la, la melody sure did sound sweet!....tread lightly on that "cocaine for creativity"--it might be about as good for you in the long run.  |
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Post by Deleted on Aug 27, 2015 13:55:39 GMT -6
Hm,
I just thought about how my workflow really is, or if i even have one.
One thing is, i do content creation like drum and synth lines programming, harmonies etc. in Sonar, also tracking. I make alot of use of track templates, complete track folder templates (i.e. drums) and also effect templates.
Also, in sound creation i try synth presets first. For some special sounds i tweak them until i am happy with it for this piece of music.
All this makes it really easy to prototype a good rough mix with very little effort.
Here writing and recording are not always splitted, this is the workflow for my own music.
Now, since i have OTB mixing possibility again, i decide what to use at mixing time: the analog console or Mixbus. Makes two quite different types of flavour, but nearly same workflow. I export everything as audio from Sonar and throw it into Mixbus, at this stage i also decide which DAW effects from Sonar i want to keep in the final mix because they are essential, and which ones maybe not (i like the Harrison reverb and delay, bought the essential package).
If i decide to go OTB with the mix, i do the same decisions about essential effects, and throw the printed tracks in a mix project template, where the outputs for console and monitoring and inputs for recording are readily assigned.
The actual mix i do pretty intuitively. If i am in doubt about something, i ask my brother for his second pair of ears, we share quite some musical taste.
Mixing OTB is really similar to Mixbus and the other way round. It is fast, faster than staying in Sonar or other DAWs. After a very short amount of time i am maybe 90% there. I try to mix like i would mix a live gig without soundcheck in the first round.
Then i do some fine tuning, and last i make final decisions that are more about really small changes, so i go mostly 3x through the mix. The last one takes the most time, often only 1-2 dB changes here and there.
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