rchecka

Anyone peep this? Curious about yer thoughts, holler when yall get a chance to peep it.

I got all Pantera's albums and I would put this as my favorite since it's the hardest and most pissed off. The best act? Not sure, I've seen Pantera live several times and I'd say they put on the best show by far. Also saw Black Sabbath w/ Ozzy at Oz Fest 1 which was absolutely amazing. Also saw White Zombie, Deftones and a few others mentioned here live as well all of em put on fantastic shows, but I'd say Pantera did the best out of all of em each time.

Gayers?? What a gay thing to say. I ain't talking cock rock, I'm talking metal. Sabbath is timeless, but if I had to pick my current top three I'd go in this order. 1. Pantera - Great Southern Trendkill 2. Megadeth - Countdown to Extinction 3. White Zombie - La Sexorcisto: Devil Music Vol. 1 This list would be different if you asked me next week, I can never decide about all time. a few of yall mentioned some dope shit like rage, metallica, deftones, tool, anthrax, I love those albums, good call. I really want all those on wax but records like those are few and far between.

If you are a man who has read this thread, you are not a man unless you answer this thread, because this thread is about man music. Heavy ass metal. And/or Hard rock if you are picky about labels. Yall go first. EDIT: Name Your Top three Heavy Metal Albums, not bands.

Actually, that's for headphones, I mean this...

So you normalize last, huh. I wonder if it even makes a difference in which order you do those things, I suppose it does. I'm gonna throw one more worm into the can... Regarding the loss of "warmth" going from vinyl to digital, I've seen some newer tube compressors with pre amps out there, seems like they are pretty reasonably priced compared to what they used to be. Does anyone ever mess around with that kind of thing that can comment? Like this. Would putting that in the chain before burning bring back enough of the warmth to make a difference? Making digital sound "warm" is perdnt ner impossible.

I agree that it has already been mastered, and that standing alone each song can't hardly ever be improved on. But when you are recording a live mix (or a non-live mix for that matter) the DJ changes all that. Think about how many variables we are talking about with mixing records only for example. So many different pressings, the equipment it's mixed on, the weight on the tone arms, etc. The DJ is going to either consciously or unconsciously crank the volume on his or her favorite tracks. Blending 2 songs takes EQing to keep the blend more balanced. Not to mention, you would be going from analog to digital, that changes everything. All of these variables and a lot more take the original masterer's work and basically tosses it out the window IMO. And each song is more then likely mastered by someone else so some tracks will sound hotter bassier, whatever. You can't just not touch it at all and burn it to CD or turn it into an mp3 if you want it to sound professional (Good enough to sell) That's just talking about mixing with strictly records too, imagine throwing mp3s and CDs into that same mix, talk about a lot of variables. I got some old ass (from 1980s) CDs that sound so much worse then their record counterpart because when CDs came out engineers didn't even know how to master on them properly. So, I agree, the original mastering engineer can't be beat unless a DJ enters the picture, then you gotta compensate for the DJ by remastering the mix. If I could afford to, I'd hire someone else to do it, but this is a DIY thread for broke asses like me LOL. I also agree that if you are going to compress the mix, you gotta be subtle with the effect. But if you record it at a lower volume it can do magic for the mix. I guess I should clarify one thing, what I mean by "Professional Sounding". I don't know how many of you guys have heard any "Global Underground" but I would use their mastering techniques as the gold standard. I got a lot of those mixes and there is no way in HELL the DJ mixed any of those without someone getting behind the boards after the effect and making each song blend perfectly all at the right volume with the perfect amount of bass despite all the numerous crazy underground record labels used in the mix. I got a lot of respect for those jet-set DJs and their ability to mix live, but those mixes got lovingly tweaked by some highly paid sound geniuses. I must have hundreds of paid for CD mixes that don't even come close to the sound quality Global Underground mixes have. That being said, I'll never have their music degrees, experience in mastering, nor their budget for studio gear. So what's the best way to get as close as you can get to that caliber using basic professional software tricks and techniques? Back to normalizing, do you guys use it? I don't, I find that it kills the crescendos completely, makes it all sound too unchanging. Seems like there is TONS of mixes out there that I have heard that are as loud as they can possibly be, either over compressed or over normalized. (Especially for Hip Hop) It doesn't have to be that loud all the way through, I can't bear those mixes for more then a few minutes. You can play some pretty cool tricks on the listener by starting your mix out quietly so they have to turn it loud right away, then just gradually build the volume as the songs get better and or faster. Then when shit gets mellow you can let it back down a hair and then bring em back up again. These tricks work when done subtly and not drastically, but it ultimately sounds more "human" in the end. I usually use the these plug-ins accordingly in this order 1. I clean any overwhelming hiss or clicks or pops in the individual tracks. Only if it's very obvious, I kind of like that if it's not overly loud. Plus I like how It reminds the listener I'm mixing with records and an occasional click or slight pop is kind of romantic IMO. 2. If I normalize at all I do that next but on a very conservative setting. 3. Then I use the "volume" plug in to get the mix highs and lows somewhere between -1db and -4db if possible. 4. Then I check for clips that occurred after those 2 plug ins were run and correct if necessary using less of a volume boost or the "clip and peak repair" plug in if I must. 5. Then if it still sounds a little too quiet I use very conservative compression OR the Wave Hammer Plug in (which limits to -6 db, then maximizes the volume) This step can DEFINITELY kill the crescendos if the DJ didn't purposefully make some tracks louder then others, so again I do this only if absolutely necessary. Usually it is necessary for my Hip Hop mixes since I like the boom bap and if done subtle like then it still sounds dynamic. After all that, I listen to my mix again, and even if I am happy with the mix, it NEVER EVER sounds as good my gold standard Global Underground mixes. Even if I love the final mastering results of the wav file that I then burn to CD, if I take that same wav file and convert it to mp3, using a reasonable bitrate, I feel like it changed it again, and I have to add a touch more bass using an EQ plugin to the whole mix. I think people that professionally master mp3s have a different technique for mp3 mastering then they do for mastering for CD or for vinyl, they all must be mastered differently if they are each going to sound professional. So, this is why I asked incidentally, what do you guys do before you drop a mix on people?

By the way, after mastering all my mixes for years, I know how much of an artform it is and how hard it is to get it to sound just right. Now I know why music mastering engineers get paid so much, it is really a specialized skill. But, we can't all afford a professional engineer, so that's why I asked. cool. Link me to any other relevant posts, I couldn't find any.

Let's say you just finished a mix, now you want to share it with everyone but you want it to sound very professional and nice and loud (but not too loud)... Let's also say that you were on point with the recording and there really aren't any overly loud parts to the mix, it's relatively well balanced as far as volumes go. (Frankly you gotta be really good to have that kind of luck, there always seems to be one or 2 tracks that are too loud compared to the rest of the mix that you don't even notice until you hear the recording.) Last thing... You were smart and you didn't clip any songs they all live happily below zero DB. What do you do next?? Here's the problem I run into. Sometimes, with certain genres, (like a rock mix for example) you want to have quieter parts for the natural crescendo effect. With those kind of mixes I am careful to not compress the whole mix. Other times, (like with a heavy Techno mix for example) you want all the songs pretty darn loud and fairly close in volume. Those are the times I use my Wave Hammer plug-in to drop all volumes to -6 db and then it maximizes the entire mixes volume. IMO, this can cause listener fatigue, sometimes people want highs and lows, not all one conformed volume throughout. Do you normalize? Do you normalize first, or second after adding compression, or does it matter which order you do it in? After you master the wav file, do you again remaster it differently for the mp3 file that online listeners will hear? It seems to me that I have to tweak the mix slightly after changing the file to mp3, I usually ad just a touch more bass before uploading it to the world. What are some of your tips? How do you do a loud but not overly loud mix? Do you maximize it all or do you leave the wav files in their natural state without any compression?

By now I've noticed there are a lot of DJs in here that have some real fire on the back burner. Here's your chance to share or re-share your best work. Post your *best mix in mp3 format here. *best = Everyone that heard it agrees it is your best mix, even though you may have a favorite mix that doesn't get as much love as you would like it to. Parameters: ONLY ONE Mix Submission per member is allowed on this thread so make it count Can be newer or older mixes, age of the mix doesn't matter (unless it's brand new and no one heard it yet) Any genre **allowed. **except Polka mixes. Provide full mp3 download not snippets. Artwork appreciated Tracklisting appreciated but not required for DJs that cross out.

Last 2 records I bought... (Still waiting for the mailman) and...

Nice, no doubt! He knows his low ends, I've always been addicted to that kind of sheet. BTW: My apologies for the earlier link, for some reason it didn't have the quality bit-rate that the new link has, which is why it downloaded so quickly and perhaps why Symatec got a partial file. If you DLed it earlier yesterday and want slightly better sound you might want to download it again using the link I posted yesterday afternoon. Thanks to all that listen, and I hope yall enjoy it.

Alternate Link, just in case. Editing first post. DOWNLOAD

Hmm, not sure why that is I just DLed it and it was the whole mix. I'll post an alternate link after I get home, but hopefully that one worked out OK. and thanks jopa, hope u dig it. It's always good when a fellow Wisconsinite drops some words.

An old mix I did a few years ago, thought a few of the techno fans that reside here might dig this. This one took me about a year to make, so it's definitely worth a listen if you are a fan of hard hitting electronic music. ^Love that pic. DOWNLOAD Original Description & Tracklisting: File Meat Beat Manifesto under the genre "Proto-Industrial-Techno-Hop" or under "What the fuck kind of music is this anyway?" Meat Beat Manifesto (1987 - 2006+) was formed by Jack Dangers and his band-mate from Perennial Divide, Johnny Stevens. Since its manifestation, Jack Dangers has been the brains and brawn behind the name Meat Beat Manifesto. Jack is to MBM as Trent Reznor and Robert Fripp are to Nine Inch Nails and King Crimson. Besides frequently releasing albums and singles as MBM, Jack has made countless remixes and produced several side projects including "Tino Corp." with Ben Stokes. I've been collecting MBM\Jack Dangers releases and remixes since 92'. It's been a daunting task since his numerous releases are so difficult to hunt down, however, JD has always been one of my favorite electronic musicians, so I've gone out of my way to get everything I could with his name on it. So far I have collected all the MBM releases on CD and vinyl except "Suck Hard" vinyl EP, "Nuclear Bomb" 12" (super rare), "Eccentric Objects" vinyl EP (even more rare), and a few stray JD\MBM remixes. I've made a couple of MBM mix tapes and compilation CDs in the past but I was never satisfied with the end result. My old MBM mixes were crudely mixed and compiled with few tracks. So with this mix, my goal was to cram as many MBM songs as possible into one 79 minute CD. Also included are some instrumentals I produced using various Jack Dangers samples taken from his sample CDs and LPs. (Including Jack Danger's Tape Music 10", Forbidden Planet Explored 2CD, and Loudness Clarifies 2CD) Track Listing: 01. R-Check - The Missle Knows 02. MBM - Acid Again (LP Version) 03. MBM - Acid Again (Freddy Fresh Remix) 04. Consolidated - Butyric Acid (Jack's Synthage Mix) 05. MBM - Edge of No Control Part 2 (LP Version) 06. MC 900 Foot Jesus - Killer Inside of Me (MBM Mix 1) 07. MBM - God O.D. part 3 (12" Version) 08. MBM - God O.D. part 1 (LP Version) 09. MBM - Genocide (LP Version) 10. MBM - I Got the Fear (A.A.W LP Version)(Interlude) 11. MBM - Original Control (Electro the Robot) 12. MBM - I Got the Fear Part 2 (LP Version) 13. MBM and DHS - Cease to Exist 14. MBM - I Got the Fear (Opus Remix) 15. Nine Inch Nails - Closer (Jack's Deviation Remix) 16. Tino Corp.- Basic Rudiments 17. Scorn - Silver Rain Fell (MBM Remix) 18. MBM - Simlacra Part 1 19. R-Check - The Devil's Nurtured and Fostered Beats 20. MBM - It's the Music (LP Version) 21. MBM - It's Just the Music 22. MBM - Mindstream (Orbital's Mind the Bend the Mind Remix) 23. MBM - Strap Down (Give Your Body Its Freedom 12" Mix) 24. MBM - Prime Audio Soup (Herbalizer Remix) 25. MBM - Prime Audio Soup (LP Version) 26. MBM - Strap Down Part 1 (LP Version) 27. Empirion - Narcotic Influence (MBM Remix) 28. MBM and the Orb - Insane 29. MBM - Electric People (LP Version) 30. MBM - Not This Record (Interlude) 31. MBM - Soul Driver 32. Tino Corp.- Synthetic Vibrations Dub 33. MBM - Radio Babylon (Luke Vibert Mix 2) 34. MBM - Asbestos Lead Asbestos (Mellowtrons Remix) 35. MBM - Do Not Readjust (Interlude) 36. MBM - Prime Audio Soup (Boards Of Canada Remix) 37. MBM - Radio Free Republic 38. Papa Brittle - Status Quo (Jack's Westminster Dub) 39. MBM - Retrograde Part 2 Dub We Are 1 (Dubloner Remix) 40. MBM - What Does it All Mean? (Avalon West Remix) 41. MBM - Dog Star Man\Helter Skelter (LP Version) 42. MBM - Transmission (Stately Pleasure Dub) 43. MBM - Fromage Dub 44. MBM - Echo in Space Dub (DJ Wally Remix) 45. MBM - Welcome to the Exciting World (Interlude) 46. MBM - Asbestos Lead Asbestos (Cover Version LP) 47. Let's Play - Asbestos Lead Asbestos (Original Version LP) 48. R-Check - The Deviation and Its Variation Audio Sources: Jack Dangers: Tape Music 10" w/ Flexidisc, Forbidden Planet Explored CD, Loudness Clarifies CD, Tino's Breaks vol. 1 and 2 CD, Tino's Breaks vol. 6 CD. Meat Beat Manifesto: Actual Sounds and Voices LP, Acid Again 12", Satyricon LP, God O.D Part 3 12", Storm the Studio LP, Armed Audio Warfare LP, Mindstream 12", Storm the Studio Remixes CD, It's the Music 12", Strap Down Promo 12", Battersea Shield (w/ orb) CD single, Subliminal Sandwich LP, Peel Sessions CD EP, Original Fire 2X12", Asbestos Lead Asbestos Promo 12", Lovefingers 7", Pro-File Remix Sessions CD, Echo In Space Dub 12", What Does It All Mean? Promo 12", 99% LP, Transmission 12", R.U.O.K in Dub CD. Remixes\Other: Consolidated - Butyric Acid 12", MC 900 Foot Jesus - Killer Inside of Me 12", Nine Inch Nails - Closer CD single", Scorn - Ellipsis CD, Trance Atlantic CD, Empirion - Narcotic Influence 12", Let's Play - World Domination Enterprises LP. Hope yall can dig it.

I bought the second copy of that album on vinyl cos my first copy wasn't mint and I could get a mint one for less than a tenner. The same sort of thing with the CD, as the second copy I bought has considerably better sound quality than the first. Unless something major is different about the release (artwork, track listing, sound quality), then I wouldn't buy the same album again solely because it was released in a different country. I like owning all of the formats though, but she only put out 3 albums that came out on all 3 formats, so it's not like I'm collecting Beatles albums or something. EDIT - Actually, Stevie Wonder is even worse. I've got 29 of his albums, but only on 1 format! No matter which way you spin it, that makes you a true fan of a particular artist. Some pressings are better then others, it may be sentimental reasons, either way you are a fan. I haven't been here long but I know from what I've seen so far is that everyone here loves music. Anyone can get music casually and\or free, but if you are a true fan of an artist, I think you are gonna complete your collection of that discography using your hard earned cash, even if it seems trivial to anyone else.

Steve sets the bar by showing those pics for being a completionist. Especially when you have multiples of the exact same record just because it got pressed in a different country. I don't think there's anything wrong with that either, some pressings just sound better, and if the music makes you happy it's worth it to have everything.

Interesting read, good info. But bottom line, I think djdiggla had the right idea in the beginning with the point that vinyl is it's own archive. CDs fade, hard drives fail, even solid state drives can get corrupt, tapes break down, but records can last forever as long as they are stored properly they will last indefinitely. NASA put a gold record on Voyager because they knew it would last for an eternity, you really can't argue with NASA. Besides, once you record from vinyl to computer, no matter which way you do it or what software you use, that digital recording takes the rich analog sounds coming out your speaker and turns them into 1s and zeros literally. It's technically a file at that point, sterile and half as good as it used to be in my book.

Hoptronica? That's not really a thing, is it? I know dabrye and a few others mentioned so I get the premise, but Hoptronica? I thought it was called glitch hop.

If you like Meat Beat, you'll love my Meat Beat Manifesto mix I made a few years back called Jacked. All songs on this megamix were produced by or remixed by Jack Dangers. Forewarning... A lil brag... Jack Dangers found this mix and got me and a couple of my buddies free tickets to See Meat Beat Manifesto in Chicago, it was a real honor, so I'm particularly proud of this mix. It's got some real slamin beats, you should download it. Yeah if you got any cool tapes or live boots of MBM I'd definitely wanna check it.

^Clinton and P-Funk is a tough one to pull off. So is NIN for that matter. I used to be a NIN collector too, just shifted gears out of that stuff since it was pretty much all about him;Trent Reznor. Musically Trent is in a very dark place, I can't go there unless I am in the 'fuck society' mood. Here's a few of my 80-100 percent 'got it' artists: (random order) Meat Beat Manifesto (Jack Dangers) DJ Shadow DJ Krush Barry Adamson Rage Against the Machine King Crimson Led Zepelin Megadeth Gangstarr the Roots Some, like Digable Planets (for example) have too few releases to bother mentioning...

AKA the collectors' itch What artist(s) are so good in your book, that you simply must have everything officially (or unofficially) released in their catalog? Any genre. What nagging holes are in your collection for that artist that you can't seem to get your hands on?

Wow, this one went way off course. How'd it get here from overpriced rock records LOL.

Almost every straight MC in Hip Hop is homophobic, you gonna boycott every decent song because of their offensive language? As a straight man who listens to a lot of Hip Hop I can tell you honestly that I am only phobic of one gay man. ..and that's this guy. Let it be known I don't watch Dancing with the Stars, I saw this on Good Morning America and I was genuinely frightened.

Can't wait to get my copy. It seems like it's taking a while to get pressed, but I suppose I can wait till November. Fat Beats has a few preorders left apparently if anyone missed out. I'd ask K-Def to write: Yo Sigma, you taught me everything I know about Hip Hop. LOL Just kidding... really I'd ask him to say something simple like "Thanks Sigma!" you helped spread the word about that record, I'm sure he appreciates it.