How To Make - Dark Room Techno with Kirk Degiorgio / 550

[Beatler]

I love the way you do arrangement!
Only thing I don't understand is why you Normalize when exporting. Doesn't that compress the tracks?

[benmen]

Awesome course! Very inspiring Merci

[SETIfx]

Fantastic course. Excellent track. Tremendous mixing techniques and great pointers in the right direction. Loved all of it!

[SETIfx]

I really learned a lot about mixing and getting all the sounds to fit properly within the mix. Kirk also provided great insight into plugins he uses and how to use them.

[Tekalight]

Hey @SETIfx

If you love Kirk Degiorgio courses, here is a link to all his tuts on S.A
https://www.sonicacademy.com/courses/tutors/17

Be sure to check the latest one from Kirk BTW, really worth it !!
https://www.sonicacademy.com/courses/loudness-and-metering-with-kirk-degiorgio

[SETIfx]

I do plan on taking the course you highlighted and the modular synthesis courses. Thx. I also just finished the Dark Techno by Christian Vance and liked it as well. Any possibilities of getting Chris Lieibing or Ritchie Hawtin to do a course?

[Tekalight]

Any possibilities of getting Chris Lieibing or Ritchie Hawtin to do a course?

You should better submit a new topic in this category here on the forums
https://forums.sonicacademy.com/c/tutorial-requests

Or even better on the new FB Discussion Group you just joined, there's a dedicated "Tutorial Request" topic too and it might have more impact there https://www.facebook.com/groups/295362341294315/post_tags/?post_tag_id=296326684531214

[SETIfx]

Great course and I will be watching it again as there is a lot to digest - it's really in depth and he shares a lot of great software which is a big help - and black Friday is coming up!

[OvisAries]

good

[Hakkon]

Como se nota la profesionalidad de este gran Dj/Productor. He aprendido muchisimo con este tutorial.

Moderator Edit: ( English translation )

"As you can see the professionalism of this great Dj / Producer. I have learned a lot with this tutorial."

[Tonair]

bleep bloop

[fireapplered]

Great course. Does anyone have any tips for emulating that Studer tape plugin? What would be the nearest settings for something accessible to many, like Saturn, for instance.

I have the idea of a chain in Ableton being: VUMT -18db > Saturn > VUMT -0db to meter the amount of drive being adding by Saturn.

Also was there anything to gain by normalising the stems?

[Tekalight]

Yes, it's possible to replicate the Studer tape saturation using plugins such as Fab Filter "Saturn" or Sound Toys "Decapitator" which is also well regarded to achieve this. Now to get proper tips about the settings to use, you have to either be able to A/B the 2 and tweak it for some time to get there or getting feedback & tips from someone who tried it.

Therefore, might be worth to post the question on the S.A Face Book Discussion Group https://www.facebook.com/groups/295362341294315/?ref=group_header you might have more chance to get some hints.

Now about normalizing the stems, to what I understood, that was done to have consistent levels for each track before reaching the API ( if I recall well ) channel strip in the next stage, but maybe @Kirk_Degiorgio could answer this better.

Cheers !

[fireapplered]

Thanks for replying @Tekalight.

Yes, the normalising thing, the penny dropped for me a little while after posting.

Kirk, if you're reading, this was such a helpful course for a newbie like myself. I have adopted your mixdown techniques and it's been a great help, I really like the end results and it was also an excellent starting point for much more research. And I was just in time to snag the API collection from Waves in Black Friday sale, perfect!

[llama]

Thanks for a very inspiring tutorial. This kind of workflow seems to make me get less stuck in details.

Speaking of details, any suggestions on alternatives to the UAD plugins? I used the Waves Abbey Road J37 (formula 815, speed 15) , instead of the UAD Studer. I don’t think it sounds as good as the UAD plug, but it is at least acceptable. I haven’t found any good alternative to the UAD API channel strip, so I have been using the Waves SSL E-channel. UAD Neve 33609 was substituted with T-Racks Precision Comp/Limiter.

[Tekalight]

Hey @llama

Waves emulates the compressor section of the API channel strip with the API 2500 Bus Compressor, separately they also emulate the 500 series EQs. ( EQ Also emulated by IK Multimedia and Overloud BTW ), but in this case, you're more after the compressor, the goal to use the UAD API channel strip was to glue and give compression & analog saturation to the mix. Another alternative could be to use something like OMEGA A from Kush Audio.

Next to UAD, the other very good one ( and complete ) API Channel Strip IMO would be Softube American Class A, it's the first Console 1 channel strip emulation that does not requires users to own Softube Console 1, it will work as a native plugin.

Slate Digital and the Everything Bundle offers also some API modules to work with.

That said, you do not have to use specific API to achieve the goal explained in the tutorial, the importance here is to glue, compress & saturate the all mix, which can be done with any channel strip and fine adjustments, but of course you won't have the exact same coloration & sound by the end, it's a matter of taste I think.

Hope that could help

Cheers !

[LitFam]

are all those software plug ins essential to the course?

[Tekalight]

Hey @LitFam

IMO, there no "essential" plug-ins when it's about How To Make or How To Sound Like tutorials here.

Of course, using the same DAW & tools as the tutors will make it easy to "replicate" and reference the track against your work, but using your own DAW and tools is also a very efficient way to progress and learn your own tools. The philosophy here is more about understanding what effect, goal was the tutor aiming at when using a specific plug-in and trying to recreate a similar effect/sound with what's at your disposal is not the most easy way but surely a great one to learn and progress.

So in general, my tip about SA courses would be that you don't have to think it's not for you just because you don't own the same material

Cheers !

[LitFam]

Good points! Cheers

[cmcdon17]

Amazing tutorial, learned a lot from this.