Tips for Sound Selection

[LyleTheProducer]

I have recently become pretty good at creating drum loops that hit and sound how I want them to. I create a sick bassline (which for the most part is not hard to select as low end and drums are usually a focus for me when I'm listening), and then:

I GET MFING STUCK SO HARD. I have Predator and Omnisphere, along with Massive. But I end up looking like a big dummy sitting in front of these synths for hours trying to tweak sounds (I have read a couple synthesis books) and/or find sounds and find a direction.

It always ends up sounding way too techno-y. I have recently thought about picking up Kontakt, as it has many more REAL sounding instruments and things of that nature, much more natural feel to it.

Any tips for a guy struggling to find the right sounds/instruments? I can write melodies and harmonies well, but I can never pick a sound to reach that stage! I need to get more literal with it I think, using guitars and pianos and horns instead of synths and airy pads. Kontakt may help with this...?

 

[scrapheaper]

Do you mean you try and do sound design, but you can't design leads/synths/pads that don't sound like just a saw wave?
Or that you don't like to listen to music with lots of synthesisers in, like trance or something?

 

[Ddream]

I think that you need to think what you want to achieve firstly. You don't want "airy pads", then don't start by doing what you do when you want an airy pad. Experiment a lot with different sounds (and wave formats).

Sometimes, you won't even need a synthesizer to make a pad, as you can achieve some good results with pure audio (wav) manipulation.

 

[LyleTheProducer]

Do you mean you try and do sound design, but you can't design leads/synths/pads that don't sound like just a saw wave?
Or that you don't like to listen to music with lots of synthesisers in, like trance or something?

I can make cool sounds, but randomly. Ddream hit it on the head (I know HOW to design sounds, but its a matter of WHAT I want to design). I struggle with visualization when it comes to instrumentation. Not in melodic sense, but in the actual SOUND. I bounce between trying to tweak a preset to how I want it, or trying and develop my own sound. Either way, I spend a lot of time worried about the spectral qualities of my instruments and don't get around to exploring melodies as much as I want. I've been listening to genres I like to listen to and want to make (mostly hip hop varieties), and try to outline literally every instrument selection made so I have a better idea of what arrangements make which sounds/listening experiences/feelings, etc. But selecting instruments once I have a beat and bass have proved elusive to me thus far. I suppose I've never thought logically about arranging instruments, so naturally, I'll be a noob at it at first (this has proved true).

Ddream, do you have any advice to give me regarding deciding which instruments or pads to use (HOW you go about making these decisions)? Do you pre-produce/pre-write and put everything in written notes before you begin? I assume it just gets better with time and careful meditation. I need to plan better before studio sessions!

 

[Ddream]

Ddream, do you have any advice to give me regarding deciding which instruments or pads to use (HOW you go about making these decisions)? Do you pre-produce/pre-write and put everything in written notes before you begin? I assume it just gets better with time and careful meditation. I need to plan better before studio sessions!

first of all, I'd like to say that I'm no master when it comes to sound design, as I'm not experienced. But, what I normally do is aim for what I want to achieve with the song I'm making, what I want the listener to feel while he/she is listening to it. But I don't take any notes of it. I just sit there and let things flow naturally.

As most of my music is dark in nature, most of times an airy pad is good to set the overall mood of the track. I start designing it inside whatever synth I want to work (normally it's NI Massive), and when I feel there's nothing more to add inside the synth, I look for other sounds that I can layer with it, and create a whole new timbre. EQ, distortion and a little bit of compression helps a lot, too.

Or I search the web for free sounds (freesound.org is a good website for this), and then start manipulating it until I find something useful.