Why does my mix sound unprofessional?

WTF? why'd you post a video? and whats this about sidechain compression? its a way to achieve certain effects while mixing, but it ain't got nothing to do with WRITING MUSIC

you seriously don't make sense a lot of the time but I don't think its your English, you're head is just allover the place and you are in a rush with everything all the time.... SLOW DOWN, SPEEDY. Where's the fire? Take your time, enjoy the process (music is fun, remember?) and do the best you can on every part no matter how many months it takes

ohh, yea...I was in a hurry to finish the song 😅 So I'm gonna think slowly. And that's not the song I made btw, it's someone else's idk who they are...

https://www.ableton.com/en/manual/editing-midi-notes-and-velocities/

http://www.musicradar.com/tuition/tech/8-essential-synthesis-tips-for-beginners-245904

http://synth1.com/

https://www.udemy.com/synthesis-101-a-beginners-introduction-to-synthesis/

I didn't listen to the youtube video.... I posted some beginners articles for you now that I am home that may help you give your arrangement/sequences a shot in the arm when you wrap your head around them and I also hooked you up with a versatile, freeware instrument to work with learning to make different sections of a sound responsive to note velocity data from the piano roll (synth1 sounds decent, is a low CPU hit and the filter and amplifier are both responsive to velocity in a 100% tweakable way via knobs and buttons)

get to work, stop rushing and have more fun

try this guy too....

https://www.u-he.com/cms/tyrelln6

really comprehensive modulation capabilities and velocity/key sensitivity fully variable for amp, filter etc... sounds damned good in the virtual analog vein but is a big CPU hit

hands off the presets

https://youtu.be/1FQ_Hpyh7rs

sorry to spoil the fun, but I think ableton live lite doesn't have a synthesizer 😅

then what's making your sounds? samples? I haven't used live since it came out, I don't really like it

I will be back in 15-20mins need to go to the store...order's given from the authority😂

it has some samples and I just leaded it into midi

I gotta get dressed fo work and hit it.... when you get home download synth1 and tyrell, they are freeware and sound quite good and are VERY complex synths that can be used to inject a lot of variety and dynamics into boring parts when you get your head around the finer points of sequencing and figure out how to exploit the features of these virtual synths

they will help you add more textural variation and interest to individual parts if you spend some time reading some of the beginner articles I posted.... this will take you awhile to digest and apply, don't rush

😄 okay

Interesting fact: I just came to know that I can install plugins in ableton live lite 😂

now on arrangement I am going to use one of my more developed pieces that's all MIDI to illustrate a number of prnciples not because I am the best at anything but because I am intimately familiar with every nuance of its musical underpinnings

now, the 'verse A' section is just 2 chords and the 'verse b' or turnaround section is a couple more chords that introduce a key shift that's a little less modal and justs traight minor to slightly lighten the mood but not too much.... the 'chorus' section is a series of 4 chords followed by a retard utilizing a varied 2nd chord to add tension and demand a return to the initial motif (in the last key changed choruses there is NO retard because the chord sequence resolves onto itself fine for repetition).... note that I establish the groove without drums relying on bass and that the bass sound has no volume dynamics but the dynamics are expressed through changes in note texture and decay even when playing the same note repeatedly, this was achieved by creating a sequence with varying note velocity and then programming bass sounds (there are 3 or 4 layers of bass) that respond to those velocity changes by changing their oscillator shaped, filter cutoff, resonance and other synthesizer parameters based on the velocity nd aftertouch, how hard the note is truck and how abruptly or gently its released... though I quantized the aprt to get tight with the core drum loop, kick and snare programming I DID PLAY IT initially and then set that data as a master sequence for multiple channels of MIDI send info to hardware as well as 1 or 2 virtual synths all carefully programmed to work together and then run thru a songle mixer track to meld them with sympathetic mixdown processing.... you will also note that a strong theme is the DX7 part played thru a guitar amp that is cotantly playing chord arpeggiations at the top of each change even in the chorus, this is the glue, but in the breakdowns you will notice I use other isntruments to answer these arpeggiations either identically or as slight variations to develop that theme and add interest and depth.... also note how I am not slavishly devoted to playing the whole chord on one instrument all the way thru and that instruments that stay consistent might only be responsible for a diatonic portion of each chrd in some sections while other isntruments pick up other elements of the chords.... note the piano's slow 'counter bassline'.... then also note the respone melodies on various synths that contain the same notes as well as occasional diatonic harmonies on sympathetic sounds , that part begins with a soft but percussive key sound but in other parts is represented by sustained sounds that have a slightly horn like or organ-like quality and that's where multing theisntruments pops in because I intiially played the diatonics on 1 instrument but later play it across 2, 1 part per soundthan.... then there's the high whine from the alpha juno following the secondary and teriary notes in the chord with some passing tones but always monophonic..... the glissando effect gives a little more looseness to a song that's very mechanically programmed and was a alte addition designed to reduce stiffness -- also note how all these aprts sit in very different piano registers so with very little mix effort they separated cleanly other than doubled parts and close diatonic harmonies that were meant to gel thru a phenomenon known as frequency masking....

get any of this?

I didn't even finish this mix, its mostly levels, a smidge of subtractive EQ to clear the mids and move sounds back a bit, some boosting EQ on some percussion to brighten it and a little reverb and early reflection on individual FX sends as well as timed echoes on busses to vary how the reverb sits against the drum groove. I can make it sound a lot better than this but I need to get to the vocal part first so I'm mixing 'big picture' -- no buss compression or sidechaining or other endgame techniques to embiggen it, which is why I chose to us this as an example as it sounds quite decent with minimal mixing! the arrangement helpsit shine in a half-finished form despite its utter musical simplicity... really listen to it while considering my comments on WHY I did what I did and HOW! because also in the background of my mind was to mask intent and make it music that just happens to you in an inexplicable way and if people's feedback is any yardstick to emasure my success at that I nailed it with this ne ebcauxe no one has the faintest idea whats really happening or that any planning went into making it happen and they just enjoy the ride and get transported to an imaginary environment of my choosing

reading...

it's really cool...this music gets a mysterious mood...I liked the simplicity of it. As I'm reading I'm slowly understanding what you are saying. And I get the simplicity of diatonic chords and harmonies...I would like to try it. I think synthesizers is a vast topic to be covered but, I love learning and will learn some stuff which is useful. 😄 btw which DAW do you use?

there's no such thing as a diatonic chord, a chord is 3 notes or more, but any chord can be divided into diatonics across polyphonous isntruments, on 3 note chords (triads) you can duplicate the root across both sounds but on more complex harmonies one can divide them 2 notes ata time like a hooligan and also add additional melodic touches inbetween changes

this is way more intricate than you thought it was, but someone is ging to tell you about it and it might as well be me

take your time, be patient and let the rt of it overtake you

I made this in fl studio but also use protools for mostly live performances without midi sequences... I have also donesimilar stuff in Cubase, sonar,logic... atever works over the years! I am almost 40 so I have been around my young padawan

Yes i get that, it might time but ill try my level best..I have to sleep early from now on because my college has started and I have to get up early 😁 and try not to miss my bus again. I will see the links you have sent me and learn from them...if i have any doubts I'll just drop in and ask... it's time to hit the bed good night 😄

P.S: it was pretty hard to figure out what to download on tyrell synth's website 😂

vst2 format works with everything vst

good luck my young friend, you will need it! this is a rabbit hole of questions and possibilities that devours many

still looking to have your faith examined micospically under the lense of historio-archreology? I have chatroom debate time for a few hours, super-chief!

how ya makin' out musically?

let's start, freenode...##Godhelps...