Can someone help me fix this painful Euro Lead?

  • Hi,
    I'm a newbie in sound design, but maybe this is a good time to learn.


    The following Euro Trance preset, which I got from somewhere long ago, is too painful; it somehow hurts the ears when I listen to it. However, it sits well in the current mix, and I don't have time to completely replace it with something new. I need to preserve this current lead with its full and rich quality, but just tweak it somehow so it's not so painful and bright and raw. It's probably not the EQ - if I change the EQ it will lose its richness and the way it sits in the mix. Something else is the culprit here.


    Here's the audio sample:
    http://www.sendspace.com/file/76mdxc
    http://www62.zippyshare.com/v/23324618/file.html (please download in full quality to hear the true sound)


    Screenshots:


    [Blockierte Grafik: http://i60.tinypic.com/2rfgcug.jpg]


    [Blockierte Grafik: http://i57.tinypic.com/90mtfa.jpg]


    [Blockierte Grafik: http://i62.tinypic.com/2nl4f3a.jpg]


    [Blockierte Grafik: http://i59.tinypic.com/2rnbsic.jpg]


    Thanks for any help, I appreciate it.


    P.S.: Just as a sidenote, I've had real trouble finding good-quality standalone Euro Trance leads for the TI. When I say "standalone" I mean a preset that is loud, rich, and doesn't need additional layers to sound complete. I've tried everything including the Vengeance Incubation series, 7 Skies, Ummet Ozcan, etc. All these banks focus on "stab-ish" or "pluck-ish" or too spacey sounds that can't support a standalone melody at all. The closest I've found is this and a couple other sounds. Nexus VST has a variety of trance leads but its built-in filter and controls are bad. Is it really so hard to create a full-body, constant (not plucky) trance lead that can stand on its own?

  • Hi Eugenebalt,


    Well the things i would try to cure the harshness of the sound would be these..


    First thing is get an eq and boost a narrow notch and sweep the spectrum until you find that nasty frequencies that hurts your ears, once you find those you could then use the internal eq or the eq your using to analyze with and cut those frequencies out.


    1. Turn down the Amp Volume a little as this is at Max, i think your driving your sound too much.
    2. have you tried changing the ENV AMT slightly so your not having the filter fully open.
    3. you say it's not Eq but i would reduce the amount of gain for the mid and high's, remember you have the Q on the Mid gain so use this to get a narrow width.
    4. Osc 3 i would turn the volume slightly down, your using a square and a pulse this itself will sound harsh when loud, maybe change the waveform.


    Last note. if you think your loosing the fullness of the sound just layer the sound.


    Also the sound doesn't have to be full to fit nice in the mix sometimes less is more.


    Hope this helps you.


    waza

  • Thanks Warren. These suggestions helped but made the lead thinner. I tried inserting another Hypersaw instead of that Filter Sqr but that didn't improve the sound. I guess I'll have to spend some time learning the basics of Trance stacks/saws.