neBSounds's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Melodic DnB/Drumstep]

synths, melodies and FX sound great! not my style of dnb but still good although it does seem a bit empty in the middle. The main thing letting the tune down is the drums. they sound really flat and squashed like fuck. Also I'm not really hearing much low end. The drums and bass are essential in DnB!

Anyway I can tell it's a work in progress so all this can be fixed! keep it up mate. Would love to hear the finished thing.

sYrge responds:

Now that I listen to this again, there is definitely not enough bass, so I completely agree with you. The mastering issues and the drums should be fixed in the end. Thanks so much for the feedback! :)

[Chill Out Bro]

Loved everything up until 1:30! great vibe and lots of interesting stuff going on.

Scouted

Dylpex responds:

I appreciate it. And I'm glad you liked it. I also agree with you on the transition in 1:30, don't know what I was thinking

[Sins of Zeal - Chrono Trigger]

Lovely bit I think it could do with a bit more work!

I think the piano sounds great, the reverb you used is brilliant and everything is mixed great.

I think the tune would've benefited with some large impact sounds do go with the reverse crashes.

The choir sounds great though I wish the notes were legato and slided into eachother or had some strings in the back to compliment them.

I like the polyrhythmic shakers but I personally wouldn't of panned them hard left and right, though it still works.

Still a great job though mate.

NyxTheShield responds:

I am still searching for a good reeverbkick for the reverse crashes (My HDD crapped and i lost all of my VEC/VEH amples :c)

I will touch up the chorus a bit now that you mention it, i think i can use legato (Still new to knotak samples hahaha)

[Leaving]

You make some really beautiful music man.That cello is sublime. So much detail to the expression of all your solo instruments. The one thing i would improve is the way that crash fits in the mix. Everything else is flawless.

You have a new fan

Ylmir responds:

Thanks a lot !
Actually, now that some time has passed, there are some elements in the mix that I'd like to change a little bit. I learned some new mixing techniques (M/S mixing/mastering) that could have been useful for this track.

I wasn't really thinking about changing the volume & EQ of the cymbals, but this is mainly because it probably wouldn't do any good if I try to do something about it. My current headphones have little to no highs, meaning I can't control it precisely.

I had the same issue with Dark Nebulae, for which I had to send a "work in progress" version to a friend to know if the cymbals (which had to be in front of the mix, but not too much) were loud enough. On the first version I sent him, while it sounded all good to me, he actually told me he couldn't hear the orchestra because of the cymbals. xD

I might invest in new headphones soon, but since I also have to upgrade my computer (I reached its limits many times lately), I'll have to wait for it.

Thanks again for your review !

[Home]

Yes Yes very nice, sounds very professional, and absolutely sublime. I love how perfectly it loops! Practically unnoticeable! I really need some decent orchestral libraries like you have!

One day....

hope everything is fine with you and your family and good job with this one

Ylmir responds:

I have a little tip to make a quiet track loop : Using a fade-out on the reverb at the end of the track. Of course, it works better if you have about 1 second without any instrument playing, but it works most of the time. I haven't tried on action cues though, I always try to avoid the issue instead.

About orchestral libraries, EWQLSO is a good entry line product, and is quite often at -50%, but you'll very soon feel really limited with it. CineSymphony LITE is $400, but you can get a -50% discount if you're a student, and even if it's a cut-down version of CineSamples' other orchestral libraries, it's awesome, especially compared to EWQLSO. There are more velocity & dynamic layers, which helps to get a more "alive" sound.

But actually, more than using good orchestral sound libraries, the most important thing is to make them sound right. And everything helps : The orchestration and context is at least as important as the rest. In Home, the orchestra is actually almost drowned into solo instruments - and this is these solo instruments that make this track live. They bring all the attention to them, and you don't even notice that the orchestra behind doesn't have a true legato, for example. Of course, it works only if your solo instruments are able to deliver a convincing sound.

Embertone solo strings are great, but have their weaknesses as well (the controllable vibrato, for example, is great for expression, but not always for realism). I highly recommend them, but before purchasing something else, I'd wait to see how CineStrings SOLO will sound like - it's been announced some days ago by CineSamples, and since the legato cello patch from Tina Guo already had an awesome sound, I expect something incredible.

And for the flutes from Embertone... Well, if you're looking for great, cheap instruments, go for it. The Shire Whistle that you can hear in both Home and Leaving is among my favorite instruments, and I bought it for only $5, because I received a discount code some days before purchasing it. And I'd happily buy it again, even at its full price ($20). You'll need the full version of Kontakt to use it, though, as well as most of their less expensive instruments.

Oh, and about the bad news I talked about in the description of the track, things seemed to get a little bit better lately, but well.. When someone in your family has cancer, you already know that most of the time, things will only get worse over time.

Anyway, thanks for your message ! ;)

[Riding Away From Time I]

very dark and eerie atmosphere here, I love it. The glitched up spanish guitar is a really nice touch.

Kelpalots responds:

:D Thanks!

[Better Believe It]

Dat flanger indeed.

I like this! Reminds me of something of aphex twins "I care because you do" I love the jittery programming of the drums, you can tell there's lots.of attention to detail. I only downloads because I really didn't like the two sections where the rough synth comes in. I felt the timbre didn't match everything else that was in the mix and just holding onto two notes felt a bit disappointing and I felt something a bit more creative could've really complemented all the other clever tricks you had going on at the back of the mix.

Kelpalots responds:

Well, I took your ideas and came out with http://www.newgrounds.com/audio/listen/627424 Hope you enjoy.

[So it is]

Nice, I like the vibe your going for! Reminds me of the cure mixed with boards of Canada. Everything's well.mixed and the arrangement was good however o think you could've added a bit more instrumentation as some sections felt empty to me. I liked all the fills you programmed with the drums but I personally would've used a different high hat. One with a bit more high end sparkle.

Nice job, I liked it :)

IndustryStandard responds:

Yeah the instrumentation is a little lacking because i want to add some vocals, but I'm thinking i might just make this a little more pretty instrumentally and release a different version when I manage to find someone to rap for me, whenever that will be. And now that you mention it, the high hats so sound too... big, and deep. That'll be an easy way to spice up the track for sure.

Thanks for the suggestions