juankar

Thank you so much!

I'm glad to know I'm on the right track. I would have preferred the voice not to be AI, but I'm embarrassed to ask someone to sing it. However, if anyone is willing to lend their voice, I'd be happy to send them the entire project. It was created with Reaper and free VSTs.

Best regards, Juan Carlos

Thank you so much.
I wouldn't have touched the original, because I didn't even know you had to master it after creating it, haha. It didn't sound good to me, unlike what you guys compose, which sounds amazing, but I didn't know how to improve it. And thanks to the advice of the masters here, I researched what mixing and mastering involved. I'm glad you notice a difference.
Best regards, Juan Carlos

Thank you so much, Gizmo, for your kind words.

It means a lot to me that you liked it and that you noticed the improvement over the first version. And thank you for telling me what you would change; those are the kinds of things I need to learn and improve.
I'm going to see if I can make a simple, short track with the vocals of a member of the community, this time a male vocalist, to continue practicing mixing and mastering.
Best regards, Juan Carlos

Thank you so much for your kind words. At my age, it's hard to get emotional about anything, and you've managed to bring tears to my eyes.

I never thought about anyone listening to my music; it was just for myself, for my own satisfaction, something I'd wanted to do my whole life but never had the time for. A couple of months ago, I discovered Looperman while looking for samples to start creating simple things that would help me learn. I wouldn't have signed up if it weren't so I could thank Odarka for the inspiration she gave me with her voice in my first song. And this discovery, which I made by chance, has become an addiction for me; I'm hooked on you all, haha. As soon as I have a free moment from my housework (taking care of the animals), I log on to see what you've uploaded. I've discovered a whole new world here, a world of great artists who don't have advertising or big record labels behind them, but who deserve it more than others who are in the media. I haven't bought music in ages. I'm from the AC/DC, Deep Purple, and Pink Floyd era. I think the last thing I bought was R.E.M., Dire Strait, or Mike Oldfield. But when I hear what Manuela does in True Sister Band or Chris in Linear Fade, I'd buy it right now if it were in the store.

I'm glad I found this place, and I hope to keep finding time to learn and not disappoint you all.

Best regards, Juan Carlos

Thank you so much!

I'm glad that someone who knows this like you has noticed some improvements. If you see anything I'm doing wrong, please let me know so I can keep researching on YouTube how to do it.

Because to be honest, I've gone crazy with the mixing and mastering, haha.

Cheers, Juan Carlos

Thanks so much for your encouragement, but I just listened to what you posted and it's completely different, haha. Yours sounds incredible. I'm still struggling to figure out how to use these plugins for mixing and mastering properly. My progress has been small, yours is a constant of quality.
Cheers, Juan Carlos

Thank you so much for your kind words; they mean a lot to me coming from artists like yourselves. I write simple compositions to learn. Composition is difficult for me because I don't know music theory; it's all done by ear, using a Circle of Fifths to combine chords. I use Reaper and free plugins, and I barely use any effects because I don't know how to use them, haha. I've been struggling with mastering for a week now, as I had no idea how to do it. Today I'll upload the same song mastered so you can give me your opinion and I can see what I'm doing wrong.
Thanks again, and best regards, Juan Carlos

Hi Richard!
Your words are flattering, especially coming from a creator like yourself.
I've focused on this style because it's easier for me, and I like it. I think this first track was a beginner's luck; Odarka's voice inspired me, and I found a sample on Cymatics. I only added percussion, the other voice you hear, and a couple more instruments. But I'm happy just doing simple things like this and learning as I go. My biggest struggle is with effects, mixing, and mastering; it's very complicated for me. You have to dedicate a lot of time to understand it, and I don't have that kind of time, haha.
Best regards, Juan Carlos

I'm trying to understand how to improve my mixing and mastering. I'm self-taught, now and forever, haha. I learn by watching YouTube videos and experimenting, but I have a bad ear for this; I struggle to notice differences.

I just listened to "I'm a Boss," and I think it's a great composition. For me, creating something like that is very complexso many sounds, so many effects, percussion... ugh, I'm not capable of doing something like that. Besides, the sounds are incredibly clear. And I've seen that you have more great tracks; I'll listen to more when I have some time.

At 48, you have half your life ahead of you to keep learning. I'm turning 62, I started at Christmas, and I see that I'm not making much progress; it's very difficult for me. But it was something I always wanted to do: create music. I decided to learn, but only for myself, for my own satisfaction. I wouldn't have signed up here or anywhere else if I hadn't realized it was the right thing to do to thank Odarka for letting me download her voice. But I'm embarrassed to share what I do without knowing anything about music; I use a Circle of Fifths to help me with the chords, haha.

Best regards, Juan Carlos

Thank you so much for your time. The idea of creating two drum tracks came to me because I saw a video explaining how to combine two different kick drums to achieve a more open sound. And since I still don't know how to make sounds more or less stereo, I thought I'd try it out. As you say, it's probably not the best approach due to the resources used, but it's an experiment; I'm learning. I still have a lot to learn about mixing and especially mastering, because I've never done it before. And the best part, as you say, is learning. It's something I regret, never having had the time to learn all this, because unfortunately, time waits for no one, and I won't have the time to learn everything I'd like. But we'll keep trying.

Best regards, and thank you very much for your comments.

Juan Carlos

I'm glad you liked it. With Odarka's voice, it's hard not to like something. I also used Odarka's voice for the second song, and for the third, I decided to create my own voice with AI, both for testing purposes and to express what I had in mind.

Best regards.

Thank you so much, I'm glad you liked it. But there's still a lot of room for improvement.

Best regards

Thank you so much for your comment. The voice is Odarka's, a member of this community who sings spectacularly. Listening to her inspired me to create this, my first song. My favorite genres are Rock, Blues Rock, and Heavy Metal, but this genre is easier for me to learn. It would be impossible for me to make Rock music with a keyboard in a DAW, haha.
Best regards, Juan Carlos

Thank you so much for your kind words; they encourage me to keep learning. All of this is a learning experience. I made the first two songs using Odarka's voice, which I think is incredible and inspired me to create the music. But now I wanted to try it without relying on someone else's lyrics. I wanted to express what was on my mind, and that's why I turned to Suno. Suno is a real headache, but it was the only option I had. The other option is a plugin I've seen that's very good for creating voices, but it's a paid plugin. Right now, all I want is to learn to pass the time and distract myself in the few free moments I have, so I'm doing everything without investing in expensive tools. What I create is just for my own enjoyment, my closest friends, and you all, who are a bit like my new little family, haha.

I'd like to take this opportunity to say that if anyone wants to use their own voice instead of using artificial intelligence, it would be a great honor for me to send them the MIDI file along with the free plugins I've used, so they can change it.

All the best.

Thank you for your comment and for taking the time to listen. I was happy to see that you even downloaded it. It means a lot to me to see that people like what I'm doing enough to download it.

Best regards.

I use Reaper. I create each track with the different instruments and adjust their volumes as I go. In this case, for example, the drums have no effects. What I did was create two identical percussion tracks with different sounds for kick, hi-hat, snare, etc. - very similar but distinct - and I tilted one track more towards the right channel and the other towards the left. This way, I had a more open percussion sound.

The vocals are completely untouched, just as the AI generated them with a slight reverb.

And the rest of the tracks - bass, violins, synths, etc. - only have their volume and panning adjusted, nothing else. Since using equalizers, reverb, delay, etc. was too complex for me, I found a VST called "Neutron 5 Elements by Izotope" which seemed simpler. By simply indicating the type of instrument playing on the track, it presets some parameters, making it easy to open up the stereo effect, apply dynamics, and so on. But I've realized that's not the solution. If I want it to sound good, I have to use specific effects for each element. This track hasn't been mastered at all. When it sounded good to me, I just rendered it to WAV and MP3, and that was it.

To learn how to master, I've downloaded Limited Z as a limiter, Youlean Loudness Meter to adjust the LUFS, and I'm undecided between two spectrum analyzers (Spectrum Analyzer and FreqAnalyst by Blue Cat). I'm also planning to use TDR Nova for equalization.

Seriously, don't waste your time with me. If I can't understand things by watching YouTube videos, I'm certainly not going to understand them this way, haha. Just your intention alone makes me feel like I'm on cloud nine, that artists like you dedicate your time to amateurs like me.

Thank you so much, Chris, really. I'll learn little by little. Besides, I take care of many very old animals (between 10 and 15 years old) that take up almost all my time. Each day I have a little time to see what's been uploaded here (I've become addicted to listening to all of you) and then watch YouTube videos to learn.

Best regards, Juan Carlos

Hi Chris.

Thank you so much for your interest, I'm flattered.
The vocals are nothing special; I used AI because if I sang them myself, I know people would have nightmares for weeks, haha. With the help of ChatGPT, I adapted the lyrics I had in mind into English (I don't speak English) to make them sound good using different words.
Once I had the lyrics, I went to Suno.
I told the AI: "An a cappella female voice for a chill house track. The chord progression is B-Ebm-Db-G#m, tempo 120 BPM, each chord lasts 8 bars. A soft, ethereal, and sweet female voice with a warm and emotive tone. The performance is intimate and expressive, with whispered textures and clear pronunciation. Avoid excessive vibrato or an aggressive performance. Maintain a soft, calm, and hypnotic tone."

I also explained the song's structure to him and how he should interpret each part of it.
After several attempts, we came up with something I liked.

Thank you so much for your comment; it encourages me to keep trying. Right now I'm a bit stuck because for these first three songs I only worried about adjusting volumes and trying out some effects I'd downloaded. But thanks to the great advice I've received here, I've realized I have a lot to learn about mixing and especially mastering, which I've never done before. I've spent a couple of weeks watching videos about which plugins I need and how to use them, and honestly... I'm still confused; it's too complex for me.

Cheers

Thank you for your comment; it encourages me to keep dedicating time to learning. I make very simple music, but it helps me put what I'm learning into practice and have some fun at the same time. Best regards.

Thank you so much for your advice.
The vocals on the first two songs are by Odarka, whose voice I found spectacular. I created this vocal using AI because I wanted to express in the lyrics what I had in mind and adapt it to the chords I had already partially created. I find each process very complicated. Too many parameters and adjustments in the plugins. Many times I can't tell if it sounds better or worse when I change something; perhaps at my age my ear is no longer able to distinguish certain things. I started watching tutorials after Christmas, and in March I finished my first song, which I published here. In the next few days, I'll upload a new, very simple one, which I'm using to put into practice the advice you give me in the community about effects, panning, and things like that. And above all, to see what mastering is like, since I've never done it before. I'll wait for the community's advice on what I'm doing wrong.

I'm glad you liked it, and thank you for your comments.

All the best.

Hello.
I'm very flattered by your interest in my song. The vocals and lyrics belong to Odarka, a member of this community. You'll need to contact her; I'll leave the link at the end. I'm sure she'd be happy to work something out with you. The music is mine, and I have no problem with you using it. The only thing I would ask is that you let me know how you'll be using it and, if it's for any kind of publication, that you include some kind of credit to me. I don't want any financial compensation. Just knowing that you liked it would be enough for me.
I'd be happy to answer any questions you may have.
Best regards.

https://www.looperman.com/acapellas/detail/24206/echoes-by-odarka-125bpm-deep-house-acapella

Thank you so much for taking the time to explain it to me. I'll keep your advice in mind as soon as I think of something new to create. I have an acapella of MansasWorld's "Before I Go" that sounds good for doing something different. I'll try your suggestions with it.

Best regards.

In this second song, I used Odarka's voice again; it helps me create a melody. I make this kind of music because it comes most easily to me, and I also enjoy it. I'm not a musician, and I practically learn everything by ear. I use the circle of fifths to figure out which chords I can combine. At my age, I'm content simply enjoying creating and the satisfaction of having my close friends listen to what I do.

By the way, I appreciate your offer to send me the album when you release it, but I think what you do is so good that it should be paid for, which I'll gladly do.

Thank you very much for listening to my music and commenting on it.
Best regards, Juan Carlos

Thank you so much for your advice; anything that helps me learn is welcome. After reading Manuela's post, I searched on YouTube and understood that mixing is the adjustment of volume, panning, and effects (reverb, delay, etc.) that I apply while the song is still separated into tracks. And that mastering is the equalization and compression done once the track is exported to WAV. I've realized I've never mastered any of my songs; I thought that once exported to WAV, it was finished. I've tried compression with the TDR Kotelnikov VST, which is highly recommended, but I can't seem to notice any improvement no matter how many adjustments I make. I have no idea how to use it yet.

Thank you so much for your help; I'll keep trying. Best regards.

Thank you so much for your comment! Words like that mean a lot to me, especially coming from a professional like yourself. Thank you.