Like in dance music the synth pads are generally in the background. But my synth sounds as if its punching out when im playing my track. I tried panning and even eqing but since imma noob im probably barking up the wrong tree.
Is there a specific Eq to get it to set in the background of all the music?
The synth im using is the subtle saw/string pad.
thanks
If you're talking about the typical detuned SAW/PWM type stringy synth sound used in a lot of trance stuff, there are many things you can do.
Mind you, I'd prefer to hear the actual track to be able to give more specifics, so if you can provide a short snippet, that would be great. Having said that, here are some things to try:
Basics: Sound design
1. If I interpret your "punching out" thing correctly, this may simply be an envelope (ADSR) setting thing, where you have a fast attack, quick decay and a lowish sustain. Try increasing the attack time so the sound comes in gradually, then play with the rest of the controls to make it smooth. Sometimes it's good to keep sustain at full level, sometimes you want to lower it, but make sure you decay is also on the slowish side. Also, you want a slowish release. See a pattern here? The idea is to make the start and end of the sound as smooth as possible, yet not make it too sluggish (too slow of an attack) or muddy things up (too slow a release making the sound linger on).
2. Filter/EQ. Most stringy sounding pads don't like to have too much highs in the sound. If you're going for that classic string pad, then you want to have a low pass filter on, and then close it enough to cut the highs, but not make it incredibly dull
Usually, in this scenario, you want little or no resonance. Also, if you have a spare Highpass filter on your synth/sampler, then use that to cut the lows out as well, so the pad kinda floats in the back, w/o muddying the bottom end and the lower mids. If you don't have a spare Highpass filter, then you can use an EQ afterwards.
3. Depending on the synth that you have and how the oscillators are arranged, when using detuned Sawtooth oscillators, sometimes, because of the detuning, you'll have a pronounced phasing sound in the upper range that might be unwanted (sometimes though, that's what you want). If you don't want this, then try using a single pulse oscillator with PWM, where you modulate the pulse width with a triangle LFO somewhere around 2-5 Hz region. Use your ears for the desired effect, and also adjust the modulation width to taste. This will give you that detuned/chorused effect, w/o the high pitched phasy stuff.
Arrangement/Notes/Chords
1. Make sure the part itself supports the other sounds, maybe providing harmony, or doubling some notes of a faster sequenced stuff, if that's what you have.
2. The arrangement of notes is important. Try not to use thick chords, in most cases even 1 or 2 notes maybe enough. If you use 3 note chords (triads and its inversions for example), then use open voicings, similar to what one would use when arranging for a string section in an orchestra. This will make the pad fill things out nicely, yet leave enough holes for other sounds to fit in.
3. It is also important to have contrasting sounds, sharp attac, maybe single oscillator filtered stuff, sequenced at 16th notes, etc. that will poke through the pad. Try using other synth parts with contrasting oscillators, square/pulse, triangle, etc. Thinner single oscillator sounds for this kind of stuff work better, as they will poke through the pad, yet the pad will come through w/o you needing to make it loud.
Effects/Processing
1. With pads, you usually want some sort of reverb, and you usually want it to be on the wetter side than other sounds. This will help to pull the pad into the background as well as spread the sound across the stereo field. Sometimes, it is even desirable to combine delays and reverb, either in series or parallel. Again, this depends on the sound, the rest of the arrangement and context, so you need to excersise your own judgement.
2. A lot of house/transe producers also like to make the pads "pump" with the rhythm by using
a sidechain compressor that's keyed off of a (usually) dedicated kick track. Sometimes you can even do this on the reverb as well with good effect. This does two things: a) it allows the ever important kick to come through nice and clean, b) provides an additional rhythmic interest to the pads. As another side benefit, when using a dedicated kick track to key the sidechain (in this instance this kick is not audible and is used only to trigger the compressor, while another kick track provides the actual kick sound), during breakdowns when you drop everything but the pad and other atmospheric sounds, you can keep the "silent" kick triggering the compressor, which will keep the rhythmic feel going and provide your dancers a nice anchor point, so while they relax, they'll still keep their booties shaking somewhat
That's pretty much it. For more specifics, like I said, post a short clip, and we'll see if we can help further.
