REAPER Contest - February 2017 (RESULTS)

[DaveKeehl]

REAPER CONTEST - FEBRUARY 2017
(ONLY REAPER PLUGINS ALLOWED)




MIXING: 5-19 February
VOTING: 20-26 February
RESULTS: 28 February

Febrary 2017 winner: Fergler
January 2017 winner: Indiscipline
December 2016 winner: Fergler
November 2016 winner: zacki
October 2016 winner: Indiscipline


Click here to download all the submissions.

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Before anything else I want to introduce you to 2 new things! The first one is pretty cool.

Basically the winner has the priviledge to choose the song (or at least the genre) for the following month's contest.

Besides that, at the end of the year the person with more wins be nominated the REAPER Contest Champion for 2017!

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Welcome to the February 2017 REAPER Contest! This contest is open to everyone, so don't be shy and join us... you won't regret it


This time I've chosen a more rock tune. The song is called What Have You Done To Me by the band Signe Jakobsen.

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Conditions and steps to follow:

1) Download the source files from this link.

2) When you’ve mixed it send a zip file to reaper.contest@gmail.com with:

• Your Reaper project
• any reverb impulses you’ve used
• any custom JSFX you’ve used (put them in an effect subfolder (project_path/Effects/))
• a master mix (limited to -0.2 dB and at -14 LUFS): FLAC, 44.1 kHz, 24 bit
• a note containing your username and your reaper profile URL
• GLUED FILES ARE NOT ACCEPTED ANYMORE AND CAN COMPROMISE YOUR SUBMISSION.

3) Go to http://bit.ly/2ktDEXm to listen to the submissions. Pick your 3 favourite mixes and take note of their ID numbers (look the track titles). You can also download the zip file "SUBMISSIONS" with an RPP containing all the files.

4) Go to this link and vote your 3 favourite mixes.

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A few VERY important notes:

• DON'T RENAME the source files and the source folder.
• DON'T SEND ME the source files.
• READ TWICE this post before sending me your zip file. If I ask for a FLAC don't send me an MP3 or a WAV. Please, it's not that difficult and it would make my life a lot easier!
• DON'T GLUE ANY FILE. AGAIN, YOU COULD COMPROMISE YOUR SUBMISSION.

[trevlyns]

Thanks for bringing this to my attention in the forums - I'm in!

[martinmadero]

yeaaaaa
im in!!

[wyleegee]

Can we make the flac stems into wavs? Kills the performance.

[karbomusic]

Originally Posted by wyleegee

Can we make the flac stems into wavs? Kills the performance.

You are only submitting a final mix as flac + and a project minus the original track media so yes, you can do what you want locally - you'll need to switch track back to flac when done so that the project file aligns with the original media. Just don't do any gluing etc. because when people access the projects after the contest is over, we need the original media files to match.

I didn't have any issues with performance so make sure you aren't decompressing AND converting sample rates on the fly which is shown by the blue 'i' on the media items.

[DaveKeehl]

Originally Posted by wyleegee

Can we make the flac stems into wavs? Kills the performance.

Hi, what do you mean by saying that it kills the performance?

[karbomusic]

Originally Posted by DaveKeehl

Hi, what do you mean by saying that it kills the performance?

For some, it's a problem because reaper is decompressing on the fly?

[wyleegee]

Originally Posted by karbomusic

You are only submitting a final mix as flac + and a project minus the original track media so yes, you can do what you want locally - you'll need to switch track back to flac when done so that the project file aligns with the original media. Just don't do any gluing etc. because when people access the projects after the contest is over, we need the original media files to match.

I didn't have any issues with performance so make sure you aren't decompressing AND converting sample rates on the fly which is shown by the blue 'i' on the media items.

Ahh, I'm with you. Will pick this up this week :-)

[wyleegee]

Originally Posted by DaveKeehl

Hi, what do you mean by saying that it kills the performance?

Does't kill the performance of the play back, just there's added latency when starting playing back, which when you're trying to A/B etc, it's a pain.

Plus, the compression advantage really isn't worth the performance hit.

[trevlyns]

... so stems should not be interfered with? On this example there is quite a gap before the music starts; so no trimming the start and re-aligning to bar 1?

[REAmix]

Originally Posted by trevlyns

... so stems should not be interfered with? On this example there is quite a gap before the music starts; so no trimming the start and re-aligning to bar 1?

You can edit any of the files any way you want. You can split them, copy them, rearrange them, whatever you want. Every item is just accessing that file. If you cut an item, it just has only that part of that file in your project. If you copy it, then you have two instances of that file.

If you GLUE that file after you split it, then it re-saves the file under a different filename, and THAT's bad.

Regarding performance:

I did have issues with performance on the last project. When I went to re-time the first hit of the drums, I had to select every part, and ALT+drag the content of those items, the performance was really poor. It was bad enough where I had trouble lining them up. I'd never seen that before, and my computer is powerful enough. I haven't noticed issues yet on this project, and already did similar treatments. I don't see and 'i' on any items, and didn't see that on last project either.

I get it that flac makes downloading easier, and takes less space on my PC, but maybe WAV would be better, or maybe 320 kbps mp3.

[REAmix]

It's as if they recorded the lead vocals in 10 different rooms, and then mixed and matched the takes, and she's still off pitch in some parts. Though it's better than the last vocalist.

[karbomusic]

Originally Posted by REAmix

I get it that flac makes downloading easier, and takes less space on my PC, but maybe WAV would be better, or maybe 320 kbps mp3.

Been there and back in earlier contests, flac has thus far been the better option other than the occasional user needing to swap them out. I would keep an eye out that it isn't flac AND a different sample rate in the project. That will change per user since each person has differing default settings per install if I'm thinking about this correctly - my default project rate is 48k and when I entered the contest last month, I had to manually change the sample rate to 44k when I opened the project.

[martinmadero]

las frecuencias del bajo me estan volviendo loco!

[karbomusic]

Originally Posted by martinmadero

las frecuencias del bajo me estan volviendo loco!

Sounds like this one might be a repair job!

[Indiscipline]

Wow, there's so much wrong with the recordings! Quite a sloppy job. Too bad, since the performance is pretty decent.

[trevlyns]

^^^

My thoughts entirely! Nice challenge to sort out though...

[REAmix]

Originally Posted by Indiscipline

Wow, there's so much wrong with the recordings! Quite a sloppy job. Too bad, since the performance is pretty decent.

Well, the vocals do go off key pretty badly at some parts, and you can tell they've already been through a take selection process. The bassist on the second verse is not really ready for that slap technique yet either. Which is too bad, because that might have been pretty cool otherwise.

But other than that, I thought it was pretty good. I like the arrangement for a number of the parts. The hooks are good, and the guitars I find sound quite nice, and are playing nice parts. Aside from the vocals being recorded in multiple takes at multiple distances from the mic, and that clipping in the kick, I don't find the recordings too bad, personally.

But I know there are things I don't how to listen for, or hear yet.

I find the song is almost really good, too, but some things are a bit odd about it.

[REAmix]

Is pre-fader envelope after take envelopes? I'm assuming it is, would make sense. That's pretty cool actually, to have 2 pre-fader volume envelopes. Idk how often I will make use of that, but it's definitely a nice feature.

[bls]

How did that happen to the kick?

[REAmix]

Originally Posted by bls

How did that happen to the kick?

My guess is that something about the way it was setup created a situation where the mic would knock on something, probably the kick itself. It only really seemed to happen on bigger hits, and didn't get progressively worse. So, maybe the rig wasn't very sturdy, and on bigger hits the air flow may have rocked it, and back skin moved more. Maybe something like this sort of setup.

I have literally zero experience with mic'ing up drums though, so I don't know from experience, just that's what I was thinking.

It occurs late, not on the hit, so, that's why I was thinking the air might have been pushing it out, and when it rushes back in, that might cause a rocking movement, which caused it to make contact with the edge of the hole.

whatever it was, it's annoying that nobody noticed until this sort of stage.

[karbomusic]

Originally Posted by REAmix

My guess is that something about the way it was setup created a situation where the mic would knock on something, probably the kick itself.

I haven't had a chance to listen yet, it could be what you explain or the mic diaphragm distorting, loose head or bad placement. Whenever I get a chance to listen, I'll guess at which one it is. This might be a good lesson at just how important it is to fix it before mix time.

[bls]

Originally Posted by karbomusic

I haven't had a chance to listen yet, it could be what you explain or the mic diaphragm distorting, loose head or bad placement. Whenever I get a chance to listen, I'll guess at which one it is. This might be a good lesson at just how important it is to fix it before mix time.

That is, more or less, my question (which is, more or less, rhetorical).heard bad set ups like this before, but there is some savvy going on with the rest of this tune. There's just some bone headed stuff that goes down in the tracking.

Sounds like bad placement outside the kick and a broken mic as well.

[karbomusic]

Originally Posted by bls

Sounds like bad placement outside the kick and a broken mic as well.

I can't wait to listen. My drummer got a new fab Gretsch kit the other day so I threw a few mics up as a very quick test since I'll be recording us soon. I got back home and immediately noticed the kick sounded like flabby crap, something was seriously wrong. It sounded like someone forgot to tighten the front head.

Showed up at the next rehearsal, walked right over to the kick and placed my hand on the front head, that's exactly what it was LOL. "Guys can you finish setting up the kit?"

[Tod]

I did take a look at some of the tracks, especially the drum tracks and the first thing I noticed was the bleed through on the drums, tons of it. However, as I listened to the snare tracks, that bleed through might actually help. Heh heh, there was only one tom hit that I could find.

I did notice some flabby kiks but I don't think there were all that many of them. Not enough to make for a bad mix. And if you want to, you can fix them, well sort of.

One thing that I did notice is that there is a guitar and vocal at the front that is not in any of the on line mixes. Heh heh, here again I have to say that the mix is better without it and there is a reason the online mixes are the way that they are.

I'm hoping I can be a part of this months mix, but I do have a lot on my plate at the moment, so I'm not sure. If not I'll continue to fallow it and maybe even vote, even though I dislike that part the most.

[DaveKeehl]

oh god you were right guys, the recordings are really bad are you going to use samples to replace the kick or do you think to leave it as it is?

shit I should really be listening the songs I choose more carefully oh boy this month is gonna be fun

[wyleegee]

Back to the flac thing.

If I make new stem WAVs from the originals; how's that going to work with the original flacs when I submit the song?

[karbomusic]

Originally Posted by wyleegee

Back to the flac thing.

If I make new stem WAVs from the originals; how's that going to work with the original flacs when I submit the song?

I'd be willing to bet you could just open the RPP file in a text editor and do a find/replace .flac/.wav then the reverse before submitting.

[bls]

Originally Posted by DaveKeehl

oh god you were right guys, the recordings are really bad are you going to use samples to replace the kick or do you think to leave it as it is?

I'm going to keep it. I appreciate the challenge in this.

[trevlyns]

Originally Posted by DaveKeehl

oh god you were right guys, the recordings are really bad are you going to use samples to replace the kick or do you think to leave it as it is?

I got a reasonable sound for the kick, and the rest of the kit too by using a combination of the bleed from the other mics

[wyleegee]

Originally Posted by karbomusic

I'd be willing to bet you could just open the RPP file in a text editor and do a find/replace .flac/.wav then the reverse before submitting.

I have a cold. Brain fuzzy. Not thinking. Cracking idea.

I mean, I used to have a script that took the word 'stem' out of track names.

Thanks mate.

[karbomusic]

Originally Posted by wyleegee

I have a cold. Brain fuzzy. Not thinking. Cracking idea.

I mean, I used to have a script that took the word 'stem' out of track names.

Thanks mate.

My pleasure, sounds like this contest will be fun.

[thunderbroom]

At the very least it's practice. And we've all been challenged similarly before I am certain. I'm in; what the hell!

[karbomusic]

Originally Posted by thunderbroom

At the very least it's practice. And we've all been challenged similarly before I am certain. I'm in; what the hell!

When I first began recording myself digitally (1990s), I was pretty depressed at just how bad I recorded across various instruments including my own main instrument. Thusly, I got pretty damn good at polishing turds in post and hiding the err of my ways.

It wasn't too long though before I realized the real problem and committed myself to fixing it at the source. Due to that initial experience, I *may* still be pretty good at the turd polishing piece, I'm kind of curious if that is still true and this seems like a good mix to find out.

[REAmix]

Originally Posted by DaveKeehl

oh god you were right guys, the recordings are really bad are you going to use samples to replace the kick or do you think to leave it as it is?

shit I should really be listening the songs I choose more carefully oh boy this month is gonna be fun

I really don't find it too bad, although the clips on the kick were a real pain. I hate kind of menial tasks like that, where it's just sort of easy, but you have to spend time doing it. I went in with a volume envelope and lowered the volume for every spike. It was not awesome.

I actually kind of like this one so far. The arrangement and writing is pretty cool. Some nice ideas, but I also didn't like some things so I changed them, and there are some other things I will change also. I found the whole beginning part was odd. I scrapped it all. I do find the bridge main vocal is rough, and there is a lot in the arrangement that is clashing musically around there, to my ears. The second verse of the bass is performed very poorly as well. I also wish I could use separate tuning tools to fix the vocals in some parts. I fixed or improved a couple vocal parts, but I won't bother too much with it other than that. The vocals are more on key here though, so that's not such a big deal, but some syllables have odd room changes/EQ changes, and idk how I could fix that. Hopefully it won't show too much.

One of the things I find most difficult about production, is how important it is to start with a good foundation, because the next step on top of that depends on it. I'm not quite there yet. I think there are things I don't hear, and ways to fix things I don't think of, and I'm still learning some of the tools, so I might do something, and then later wonder what the hell some sound is, and it was some stupid thing I did earlier. So, there is lots of back and forth for me, but I like how things are progressing with this song so far.

The REAverb is impressing me again. It's still not as good as others I like, but it has exceeded my expectations for what I thought a reaper digital reverb would be. I really like decent digital reverbs, because you can really dial in exactly what you want, rather than look through a library of impulses, and then have limited control over them after that. But I do use convolution also.

[Bass6]

Crikey.
I've been away since the stems were posted and not had the chance to listen yet. Judging by the posts below I think I might be in for a tough time getting it to sound even half-good.
Won't stop me having a punt though

[wyleegee]

Is that heavy bit at the start actually a part of this track?

Is that a bad edit or a moved mic or something half way through the first chorus? The drums go... weird.

[DaveKeehl]

Hey guys, keep an eye on the deadline for the mixing part, it's just a few days away

I also wanted to let you know that I'm having massive issues with the internet connection, so it's difficult for me to go on the forum lately. I hope I'll be able to upload your submissions on Google Drive...

[Tod]

I feel bad, I'm not going to make it this month. I knew I was going to be busy but it's even gotten worse than I expected.

Hopefully the next one.

[thunderbroom]

Originally Posted by Tod

I feel bad, I'm not going to make it this month. I knew I was going to be busy but it's even gotten worse than I expected.

Hopefully the next one.

I appreciate your hard work, Dave, but like Tod, my month is spiraling into a much more busy cycle. Plus this mix would take so much work to get it sounding "listenable" that I might try it for the sake of practice at some point, but no way will I have anywhere near the time it would take to make it work. Looking forward to hearing the other submissions though.