Teach me How to Ambient

[Terrealis]

Hello, I am new to the forums and to making music in general.
My style of preference is Ambient and I use Fruity Loops as my DAW. The problem that I am having with my current ambient track is that it sounds very flat. I mean, I have four different sounds playing at the same time but it still sounds too still, quiet and dull. I tried adding more pads to make it sound full and alive but all that does is make it noisy and confusing. What's the best way to add more depth, movement, sound, and power to Ambient tracks. Other tips on Ambient music are also welcome thank you.

 

[bandcoach]

trying using a slow autopan on your existing sounds.

try using a volume swell and decay on your existing sounds

try using slow or fast filter sweeps on your existing sounds

try adding sparse percussive elements

 

[krushing]

Hard to say without hearing it, really. "Ambient" is a pretty broad genre. Still, the same general "rules" apply (as with any music, basically) - the instruments need their own sonic space; you probably want to have them covering somewhat different ranges of the frequency spectrum.

 

[Ddream]

Try using panning to some sounds, auto-panning (as krushing said), fade-in and fade-out to give some parts the "space" they need, and experiment. Listen to my Dark Ambient tracks, and see if you can get some of this.

 

[Terrealis]

Thank you so much for the suggestions! So far I tweaked my main pad so that it has a very slow sweep and fade-in/fade-out. I'm also going to try to add some auto-panning to a sound like you suggested. Also, I found out that a reverse cymbal makes for an interesting riser. I'll post the finished track in the feedback thread so I can get further suggestions.

 

[Ddream]

The reversed crash cymbal is a good one, but be careful not to make it overwhelm the rest of the song. We are talking about ambient music here, not techno.

 

[EM Beats]

As far as plugins go if you're in the market. Absynth by Native instruments has awesome presets that work well for ambient sounds. Their presets are also easy to tweak to your own taste if you don't want to get fully in depth with sound design, which can beast within itself aside from making tracks.

 

[radiomanas]

I think there is no lessons how to make ambient sounds. There are many great analogs(ableton) and u have to improvise it!

 

[SkyMage]

Learn about FM synthesis and read a few tutorials on how it works.

 

[Godzen]

Watch some youtube.

 

[DrRefract]

When you have good reverb plugins on your sounds, you can automate their parameters too. (Test each parameter by hand first to make sure it doesn't create a pitch-bendy or metallic effect when moved.)

 

[D-Funkdafied]

Sound's like you just need to mix it.

Mixing is basically the most important part of the beat making process! It involves EQ, Panning, Effects, Compression, Limiting and et cetera. If you have never done it before then I suggest watching as many tutorials as possible and reading many different topics online! I would like to explain it to you BUT, we will be hear forever.. Google and Youtube Search "Basics of Mixing" or something..

Check my site for beats, info, graphics and more! Buy Beats | Hip Hop Beats for Sale | Instrumentals - D-Funkdafied Music - Buy Beats | Hip Hop Instrumentals | Beats for Sale - D-Funkdafied Music

 

[julioelgenio]

A trick I learned was to take a pad, create the progression, then export that pad, and extend it from 4/8 bars, to 8/16 bars! Bit crushing helps, reverb helps!