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SPAK

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    BIG JOHN

    in Songs

    Posted

     

    15 hours ago, David Sprouse said:

    This would be great to play live.  This is good old fashioned song writing.  It really gets to the crux of the matter.  I really liked your version.

     

    9 hours ago, bjornpdx said:

    Steve,
    One of those songs that's so ingrained you never think of anyone else doing it, but gotta say I really liked your version. I can't put it any better than James did regarding the musical bed and pattering percussion underneath the lyrics. Really effective. Well done!

     

    8 hours ago, Leadfoot said:

    Nice job on this Spak. Definitely a cool interpretation. My dad's name is John, and he used to play this 45 all the time when I was little. I always pretended the song was about him. I just downloaded the original song about a month ago. First time I've heard it in close to 40 years. Your version takes it in a whole different direction. Very imaginative interpretation!

    Thanks guys, amazing response! This song holds a lot of good memories and I thought it might draw some negative feedback.. As David said 'this is good old fashioned song writing' and given the feedback from Bjorn, of it being so ingrained' I think you know where my concern lay. Thanks for the back story Leadfoot  as said my dad loved it too ... the main reason for the revamp !

    Steve

    BIG JOHN

    in Songs

    Posted

    3 hours ago, James G said:

    Nice version, always liked that song. I like the atmosphere from the musical bed and the pattering percussion.

    Thanks for the comment M8. I listened to this as a boy and still remember him (Jimmy Dean) singing it a the Royal Command Performance with my folks when they were alive, My Dad loved it, so I thought I'd just have some fun doing it 2019 style.

    Stay Well

    Steve

    ...

    in Songs

    Posted · Edited by SPAK

    Great mix, love the timing interlaced with an overall feel of warmth from the synths ... so profesh ( I'd love to have the skills to do this ) well done Tom

     

    Steve

    Flurry68

    in Songs

    Posted

    I liked this Bjorn it really numbs the senses, unlike so many other instrumentals similar to this, it hold your interest ... it's really very good indeed 

    Best Regards

    Steve

    • Like 1

    SPEND MY LIFE MAKIN LOVE

    in Songs

    Posted

    8 hours ago, noynekker said:

    . . . since there's a few here who seem to know the Tascam 688 Midstudio pretty well . . . anyone know where you can buy that little motor that makes the wheels all spin on this device ('cause without it, it's just a really great mixer, but no playback or recording)

    I would love to re-capture some of the stuff I recorded on the 688 back to digital world.

    As far as I know the C/motors for the 688 are obsolete or at least no longer available. I have purchased two machines over the years as donors to keep my 688 in great condition. I also have the cct diagrams/ official manual for the 688 .... Give me a couple of weeks at most and I'll get back to you and see if I can help. BTW it's a real fiddle to do this replacement and you'll def need a new drive belt .. it's not a job for t he faint hearted so you may need to re-asses. Anyway as said lets see what I can come up with.

     

    SPEND MY LIFE MAKIN LOVE

    in Songs

    Posted

    8 hours ago, msmcleod said:

    The 688 was great as it had the MTC encoder/decoder built in, so you could stripe your timecode on to a track and use the MIDI out directly.

    I used the Yamaha MT8X which didn't have this facility, so I used a Philip Rees PPS100 for striping tracks/syncing to MIDI.

    I found for small projects or things like automation using Cakewalk was fine, but for projects with a lot of MIDI information, Cakewalk struggled to keep up - especially if starting mid way through a song. I think in those days I still ran a Cirrus P166 which probably explains this!

    To solve this I recorded the whole MIDI song to a Alesis DataDisk. On playback this received MTC/SongPointer information from the PPS100 (with the timecode coming from track 8 of my MTX8) and played my sound modules in time with the audio. I also used this method in the studio when working with an ADAT/BRC : the BRC would send the sync information to the DataDisk and everything would play in time, regardless of where I started in a song.

    So what I ended up with was the melodic MIDI information being played by the DataDisk, automation of my Fostex DCM100/MixTab  mixer being controlled by Cakewalk and the PPS100 acting as the master clock.

    As the MIDI instruments were basically live, I then had 7 tracks left on my MT8X for audio. The 7 audio tracks, and sound module output were fed into my DCM100 so I could automate my final mix.

    So interesting even though off topic, it's reassuring to know someone out there had amazing lash ups that worked fine too ... but thank the lord we eventually used DAWs to sync everything up ... a   l o n  g    way out from a CV click LOL .....

    SPEND MY LIFE MAKIN LOVE

    in Songs

    Posted

    16 hours ago, cheap_guitar said:

    One of the cool things about the 688 is that it has SMPTE timecode built in. You can stripe track 8 (I think.. haven't owned mine for years) and then sync it to a PC via an interface that understands SMPTE. I used to record all my audio parts on a 688, and MIDI on the PC via Cakewalk version 1.0 for Windows. Once I got all of the MIDI parts like I wanted them, I'd master it all down to and analog 2 track. I loved the 688. Honestly I love doing everything in the box more these days though. I still have the PCI card with the SMPTE I/O if anyone wants to go old school. B|

     

    Also, that's a good tune. I'm really impressed that you got that quality using the 688. Old school cool!

    Off topic but nerdy

    Yep you'd have to have a card of sorts as the 688 only sends MTC not SMPTE , MTC ( and CV ) has  all but disappeared these days so I agree in the box creations are less problematic ... that said I have the odd client that has D/speed cassettes that need a mix down/mastering so I'll keep the 688 going + it's good to try new things with old tech 😉

     

    RECIPE OF THE WORLD

    in Songs

    Posted

    11 hours ago, Accidental Engineer said:

    Hi, I really enjoyed the lyrics in particular, but also the melody and your vocals. You have a relaxed and distinctive vocal style that has a lot of appeal.

    I'm listening on headphones, so I can't give as comprehensive feedback on the mix/production as I'd like, but one thing I would suggest trying is filtering the high end out of your reverbs/ambience.  That will really help to bring your vocals forward in the mix and make them sound more personal an intimate.  It also means that you don't need to push the high end as much to make the vocals come up front.

    Sweet song! 👍

     

     

    Many thanks for the time/comment. I did remix this as Will thought the mids were making the  high end was a little keen, and I was happy with the result but I had mixed it in the wrong format for YT .... having read the comments I left it as is but I agree with you and observation, so thanks for listening. 

    SPAK

    Behringer X-Touch One

    in Cakewalk by BandLab

    Posted

    Not sure if this is of any help, I invested in the X touch control surface as my old FW1082 was causing problems. At the time Cakewalk was in the throws of imploding so I invested in Cubase 9.5 and purchased C10 when it came out. The many controllers out today, in the main, are dedicated to a certain DAW although they will work with other DAW's after a fashion. Regarding MACKIE control protocol, this refers to a set of instructions that a DAW manufacturer may or may not follow, the result being that the buttons on the controller will not always adhere to the function of the chosen DAW. 

    My post is to advise that you should be aware of these shortcomings as it can cause frustration after the purchase. The good news is that there are 'overlays' that have printed functions for different DAW'S that you can place on the controller, thereby changing the instruction on the buttons, but not all ... at the time of post the Behringer Universal X touch does not have an overlay for either Sonar or Cubase.

    This post is by my experience only and does not reflect on the Mackie hardware desk as  mentioned above.

    I finally finished my album!

    in Songs

    Posted

    1 minute ago, Will said:

    Reminds me of a cross between Jude Cole and Wishbone Ash. Loved every bit of it. I can't believe the quality of some of the songs I'm hearing in this forum today. Maybe I should just quit. xD

    NO YA DON'T

    • Like 1

    SPEND MY LIFE MAKIN LOVE

    in Songs

    Posted

    Great stuff ! I'm intrigued how you managed to sync a 688 via midi to the cakewalk DAW . I have a 688 in the studio which I still think has a fantastic spec. Your recording has a 'tape' almost warm sound, and although I use Plat/Bandlab / Cubase 10 , and because I'm old school I wouldn't change this recording. Like David I have to say that your voice fits it so well ... all good thanks for the post

    A song written by 'The Browns' back in the 1950's

    in Songs

    Posted

    On 1/14/2019 at 5:57 PM, Kevin Walsh said:

    I really enjoyed this take on that song. Completely different but honoring what the song is. Very imaginative and inspiring.

    Thanks for that Kevin, I did try not to loose the essence of the original.

     

    23 hours ago, daryl1968 said:

    I hadn't heard the original -  love your take on the backing vocals.

    Thanks for the comment and spotting the 'backing vox'  impressive obs there 😉   

    RECIPE OF THE WORLD

    in Songs

    Posted

    On 1/14/2019 at 5:50 PM, Kevin Walsh said:

    This is a great song. I really love  your voice and the whole vibe of the piece. Really enjoyed it and the lovely guitar work.

    Thanks Kevin for your time and comments

    22 hours ago, daryl1968 said:

    this is great - your voice reminds me of Mick Hucknell of Simply Red in this one.

    There are a couple of spots where the guitar/vocal timing run away from the drums but the overall effect is really very nice.

    I agree the timing did runaway a bit , not being a very good guitar player I find it hard to do slow stuff (and fast stuff really) .. so well spotted. Wouldn't mind Mick Hucknell's bank account though 😖

    20 hours ago, bjornpdx said:

    Another beautiful song.  I rather like the "bit toppy" effect on your voice.

    Thanks Bjorn although I have to agree with Will on this one, in that the mids are a bit lacking (That's what you get for mixing on cans at 2 in the morning LOL)

    10 hours ago, emeraldsoul said:

    Mark Knopfler in style, what a great compliment that is! How about a combo of Paul Simon and Randy Newman on the vocals?

    But that's overcomparing. I liked the video and the choices you made there. Pretty mellow all the way through. The mix was bright but didn't think too much so. Don't need drum n bass for this one. Most everything about it is understated, which works. Your guitar fill work in the vocal gaps fits well.

     

    nice job!

     

    -Tom

    Couldn't get the three of them in my studio ... but I'd have a dam good try!!! Thankyou Tom, your your observations are much appreciated

    56 minutes ago, James G said:

    What a great song Steve, never heard this one before. You're good at building the backing arrangement as the song goes on, I like that.  I could make suggestions about the mix, but actually it works just fine, it's dreamy and melancholy, suits the song perfectly.

    Hi m8 ...I have had this one on the tube for some time but it was a v. bad mix. Long to short I downloaded the vid and re-did it with Power director and Audio director and felt it was worth posting so I get it with the mix  ... thanks for listening, & your comments.

    17 hours ago, cheap_guitar said:

    Very nice. Reminds me of Mark Knopfler's style.

     

    He's another one I wouldn't mind having a similar bank account ... thanks for the compliment

    RECIPE OF THE WORLD

    in Songs

    Posted

    42 minutes ago, Will said:

    It sounds like you've dropped most of the mids out. The effect works though. I could go either way.

    I see what you mean, think it's a bit toppy and the mids could be improved ... I've done another mix which to my ear sounds better but YT didn't take the format so watch this space ... btw Thanks I don't takes your ears/time for granted

    All the Best

    New Beginning

    in Songs

    Posted · Edited by SPAK

    I agree with Will regarding synths, it does have that Scottish/Gaelic feel (which you wanted)... (also had to smile at your comment and the title of this song  ... wicked!)

    RECIPE OF THE WORLD

    in Songs

    Posted

    9 hours ago, Will said:

    Excellent!!! I haven't heard this before, have I? I don't remember it. I might warm up the vox a bit, but it's a good effect the way you have it too.

    Thanks Will, you may have heard it before but I have redone the whole track with Cubase and put it up again on the tube. How to warm up the vox ? explain and I'll do it

    Regards

    Steve

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