This week we proudly welcome previous Sonic Academy student and now a new course tutor - minimal techno master Bruce Mac Vaughn.
In this detailed course you’ll get to learn all the ins and outs of creating a dark, brooding techno track that takes you on an ominous journey - from the initial kick to the intricate unearthly sound design, right through to mixing and mastering, this course has everything you need to know to get that awesome and formidable dark techno sound.
A successful artist, DJ, remixer, and producer, Mac Vaughn has had over 8 tracks charted in the Beatport minimal top 100. After coming in at #15 with his first single on Minicoffee Records, “Dark In Here”, he has continued to be in the charts, including 6 #1’s in the top 100 Beatport releases. With a constantly growing global fan base, the Mac Vaughn sound is spreading…fast.
It may be called ‘minimal’ techno but Mac Vaughn has a hell of a lot of techniques and tips to share, so go check it out!
But that’s not all!
Also with this course, we are running yet another fantastic remix competition! - The How To Make Minimal Techno Remix Contest is exclusive, here on Sonic Academy and you could be in with a chance of winning some cool prizes and ultimately getting a release on Mac Vaughn’s own label Fierce Animal Recordings.
After the success of our previous remix competitions, we know we have one of the best music-making communities anywhere, and the level of production skillz coming through the forums is truly amazing.
So, ourselves and Mac Vaughn are super excited to see what you guys can come up with - we know you can smash it. You can now download the stems from this awesome tune and start working your magic!
We have shown you how to make the tune, now it’s over to you to get creative, make a dope remix of this track and show the world your production talent.
Just click the ‘Enter Remix Comp’ button above to find out more!
Hello Mac Vaughn here. Excited to be apart of Sonic Academy. I’ll be here to answer any questions. I look forward to the remix competition and feedback on the course! Cheers
Hi Mac,
Loved this course, very helpfull information in here.
One question, is there a reason why you don’t route your return tracks to your premix channel?
Not really .
You guys @sonic academy made it happen .
I just pestered you and Mr Vaughn to make it a reality … lol .
So glad you guys got him on board .
Its great to see all the differing sound tools. But not all of us have the gear being used. Would be nice to see one of these tute’s just using Ableton live…
I hear you GDubYa. For this course I was asked to use half/half between 3rd party and what Sonic Academy has available on the site. The course is definitely intermediate/advanced for that reason. Truth be told it would be very difficult for any producer to produce a track like that one I did with stock Ableton plugs and samples only. I’m sure one could come close but definitely not as sonically advanced as the one I’ve produced in my videos.
Really enjoyed this course! I think by not having the plug ins that Mac uses will challenge you to think laterally so don’t be put off by the stuff that you might not have. I am nearly finished my remix and will up load for the comp in the next few days! Thanks Mac you I genuinely believe that you have helped me to get to another level.
Man that is so cool to hear! I’m happy it helped. You are correct in your thinking. It’s not the plug ins that make the track, it’s your use of your imagination to improvise and pull off the same techniques with what you’ve got. You’re one step ahead friend - Cheers
