8 Sound Design Mistakes to Avoid (and how to fix them) 😭

▶▶ Download my free Sound Design Bible (FREE) to learn expert sound design: bit.ly/3IGM492. In this sound design tutorial, I show you the 8 most common sound design mistakes I see producers making - and how to avoid or fix them.
Sound design - whether by using audio, samples or a synth - is a key skill for all music producers to learn. In this tutorial, we’ll go through some basic sound design workflow techniques, as well as digging into the nuts and bolts of analysing and creating sounds using Serum.
You can use these exact techniques in Vital as well as Serum - and follow the sound design principals in pretty much any synthesiser or sampler - including those that come with your DAW.
You’ll learn some synth basics, some sound design principals as well as some more advanced sound design techniques.
🎧 Shout out to my Accelerator student, Zoya, who’s track “In My Mind” just hit 500,000 streams! Listen here and support if you dig: spoti.fi/3uRdtQ2
💪 Want to make music that sounds THAT good within 8 weeks? Check out my Accelerator program here:
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👍 If you enjoyed this video, please hit the “like” button and consider subscribing to this channel!
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Here’s what we cover in this video:
00:00 - Overview
01:21 - Thinking you have to design everything from scratch
03:04 - Not splitting your sessions
04:00 - Not batching
04:50 - Not referencing (the right way)
07:53 - Not breaking it down
15:11 - Making it too complicated
15:44 - Thinking you can “fix it in a mix”
16:49 - Not experimenting: Do NOT switch it out like for like
Gear I use in this video (some of these affiliate links, and by using them I get a small commission which helps me keep making these videos. I only promote gear I both use and love, so these are all personally recommended by me. Thank you for supporting the channel!):
🔈 My Audio Gear:
Monitors: bit.ly/AdamTV8
Headphones 1: bit.ly/MyHeadphones650
Headphones 2: bit.ly/TMA2Headphones
Audio Interface: bit.ly/ApolloInterface
MIDI Keyboard 1: bit.ly/ArturiaKeyLab61
MIDI Keyboard 2: bit.ly/AKAILPK25
Microphone 1: bit.ly/RodeUSB
Microphone 2: bit.ly/ShureSM7
Computer: amzn.to/3uYU28J
🎛 Discounted Plugin Deals:
bit.ly/2NGRIgL
💻 …And some of my Favourite Software…
🎤 Vocal Processing (I use all of these):
Celemony Melodyne: bit.ly/3l5cmaA
Antares Autotune: bit.ly/3MeBY0a
Waves CLA Vocals: bit.ly/3aGx4LM
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Cheers, and happy producing!
Will
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• 8 Sound Design Mistake...
#musicproduction #sounddesign #tutorial

[@kozy.2671]

That sound design part, where you recreated a sound of a track was pretty amazing. A lot to learn there 👍🏼

[@EDMTips]

Thank you! If you use my 12-step framework and are able to answer every question, it becomes way easier :)

[@mageprometheus]

Having separate sound design and production sessions is a great tip. Sadly, I've been in the former since time began.

[@HOLLASOUNDS]

I can usually find the sound I want in presets so why waste time making it Myself.

[@tk380514]

@@HOLLASOUNDS modifying presets manually or with further plugins is a really good tip 👍

[@AKAtAGG]

I've been designing sounds since I bought my first Korg M1 back in the olden days. I still learn stuff off you every time I watch a video. top class. Edit: I agree about using presets to start with, but I think most people then end up scrolling through every single preset without realising they already went past the one they needed that just needed a small tweak.

[@milesymusician1760]

Hell Yeah.. Another great video Will and just what I needed at the moment. I'm working to create more of my own sounds/ presets so this really helps.

[@EDMTips]

BOOM! 🙌🙌 Glad it helped, man :)

[@guitarie]

your sound design on the end of the video is cool for sound changes in the arrangement too. just great vid this is ! thanks for the share

[@EDMTips]

You're welcome, and thanks for watching! 🙂

[@Tranceformer]

Great video as always Will .thank you 👏👏👏

[@EDMTips]

You're welcome, glad you enjoyed it!

[@nathanbryers]

Thankyou for the book. Much appreciated

[@EDMTips]

You're welcome! 🙂

[@neilmccourt259]

Great video Will 👌 you make it look so fecking easy

[@EDMTips]

I am glad you enjoyed it! 🙌🏻

[@isaacanthonydj4124]

thanks again, Will, appreciated!

[@EDMTips]

A pleasure! Thanks for watching :)

[@vdub4216]

Bang on Will !

[@EDMTips]

Thanks!

[@iwasaqDJ]

great like always ✌️🔥😊

[@EDMTips]

Thank you! I appreciate that :)

[@MadazzaMusik]

I love making sound samples and drums I love that part of the creative process thanks mate I love videos like this it's confirmation I'm doing something right

[@EDMTips]

You're welcome! Glad you enjoyed :)

[@tape_end_productions]

Another great tutorial 👌

[@EDMTips]

Thank you!

[@AndreyLevinn]

Thanks bro!

[@EDMTips]

You're welcome, glad it was useful :)

[@JayVucci]

Thanks man. I love locking myself away and getting this out and playing with it for hours!

[@EDMTips]

My pleasure! Good luck and have fun! :)

[@JayVucci]

Enjoy playing with yours @@EDMTips

[@fernandofreitas6017]

bom trabalho irmão, obrigado!

[@EDMTips]

You're welcome!

[@PineappleCrusher21]

This is one of your best videos ever.

[@EDMTips]

Thank you! Glad you found it useful :) Is there anything else you’d like to see me cover?

[@Keroser1983]

AMAZING!!!!

[@EDMTips]

Thank you, I am glad you enjoyed! 🙌🏻

[@stephanechataignie]

Man you're the best no matter what 🤩

[@EDMTips]

Thank you, really appreciate the support 🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻

[@stephanechataignie]

@@EDMTips Hell yeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah 🤟 Amen brother 🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻

[@busktheworld5658]

thanks for the tips ....

[@EDMTips]

You're welcome, glad you found them useful! 🙌🏻

[@TheWaspist]

I will join your masterclass Will. Soon. Cause your videos really helped my producing a lot. You and Vorwerk’s books. Honestly I dont wanna release before I become your masterclass student. And one day I wanna say all because of this guy’s awesome teaching skills:) It know course will help me to do the final touch. I appreciate all this work. Thank you again for another great video. 🙏

[@EDMTips]

You're welcome, and looking forward to working with you!

[@dogboyauckland]

I have been through EDM Tips courses - you will love them! Great tutors, and a great community that sits behind it to support you as you develop!

[@ill2skillz]

Goooooood~~

[@heck.6184]

I'd like to add a third session to this process: the ideation session! Sometimes I want to crank out some ideas or test myself with a timer, so I will do a couple hours where I'm setting a 10/15/30 minute timer and try to create one core idea (or a cohesive A/B section) in that time-frame. When its time to start a new track, now there is a backlog of inspiration to work from!

[@EDMTips]

Love it, great tip! 👍🏻🙌🏻

[@TRiley]

Awesome video fam💪 I wish I would have gotten some feedback on the song we had to do for the competition, but I understand you couldn't get to all of them. Thanks for everything you do man. Do you have monthly payment plan for your class?

[@EDMTips]

Send me an email with this message to [e-mail] and I'll get back to you on Monday!

[@TRiley]

@@EDMTips will do thanks 🎶🎼

[@roy-josh]

I have a goosbumps from the sound wow 💥💥

[@EDMTips]

BOOM! 🙌🙌 😎

[@HOLLASOUNDS]

I usually do sound desighn on it's own not while making music. Sound desighn is experimental for Me as I dont really know what I'm doing but if it sounds good it sounds good. The rest is EQ, Reverb delay and effects.

[@rubenrojano78]

As always fantastic, but, what happened to the “In The Style of” videos?, I’ve been waiting for an Afterlife tutorial 😁

[@EDMTips]

I will be doing those from time to time too :)

[@mediaeverything8581]

Hey Man I would love to tune into a livestream when you make a house track.

[@EDMTips]

I have many house tutorials you can follow along :)

[@TheWaspist]

I had a teacher years ago in NY at a Music production school, who kept telling us that we are not producers if we dont design every single sounds from scratch. He even made us design all the drum elements. Overall his music sounded terrible and he kept saying we are not producers if we dont design from scratch 😝you gotto teach that dude. Btw i would want him to follow this channel and subscribe so he can also learn to be modest and finally make a track that actually sounds good😁

[@EDMTips]

That's like saying a chef isn't a chef if he doesn't raise the chickens that lay the eggs or slaughter the cattle for the beef he uses....ridiculous!

[@tony714]

Mr. Darling, what kind of head phones are those? Thanks in advance! 🙏

[@EDMTips]

Hi Anthony! I have two main pairs, and in this video I'm using my AIAIAI TMA-2 Studio Wireless Headphones. Here is the cheapest place to buy them: bit.ly/TMA2Headphones

[@kevinstoneham1245]

I would love a sound design session (you may have already done this already) on bass, particularly the type that are a bit like a bass guitar. I am thinking of the type Daft Punk use.

[@HOLLASOUNDS]

Most DAWs have a full manual for every device so read that and implement it.

[@rickybingham3409]

Thanks for the help! In the future can yo do a in the sound of Omer Gigi?! I need to make sounds like that please and thank you! Amen and hell yeah brother!

[@EDMTips]

Great suggestion! What's your favourite track of his?

[@rickybingham3409]

It’s like a pure and bodzin love child! Lol Honestly I just discovered him About a week ago! I’m liking all his stuff so far. I been on the set he made 11 months ago, Ben bohmer-Above and beyond -monolink-lane 8-yotto-deadmau5. It almost ensures a good day! I had some headphones on when I first heard the set And I was hooked from the beginning baseline! For me the set is like flowing bubbles with a sunrise! Lol that sounds goofy! But i know you get it! Five seconds before sunrise-u hide….. Honestly you probably know him better than me I’m still researching! I love how his sets are smooth and rounded off..like flowing bubbles or something lol I find it quite healing! I would love to produce something like that. Your the best have a fantastic day! Rick

[@rickybingham3409]

And also I’ll have to add that the tips that I’ve learned from you so far he’s got me along pretty good! The tips in this video was very helpful I was able to get a lot closer🤟

[@rickybingham3409]

thank you!

[@emilyalberts7875]

Great videos man but I don't just make EDM tracks ( i do make some EDM tracks but not all of my tracks are EDM) i make all sorts of genres of music and i write my own lyrics a lot of the time and do covers of different songs, does that mean I should be following different guides and different videos? (hope that makes sense)

[@EDMTips]

No problem, you can apply these techniques to any genre of music :)

[@melissabeahm]

Do you ever do vids on non-dance music? Yacht Rock, Pop, Latin, Easy Listening Vocals ... Don't get me wrong, I love your vids and most of them still have a lot of applicable info, but speaking of getting the maximum out of my time, it'd be great not to have to wade through, say, sound creation. I mean, 4 or 5 piano sounds is all you need to start. Any rate, keep on keeping on.

[@EDMTips]

Great suggestions! I will take them into account but I do love electronic dance music so I'd rather stick to it :)

[@djeleonora]

Your channel really help me a lot.. ❤️❤️ Hoping for tutor how to produce Trance Music like BT, Matt Fax & Nation of One - Walking into The Water (Heatbeat Remix)

[@EDMTips]

Thanks for watching and supporting the channel! I might do one of them in the future, depending on how many people will vote for it!

[@djeleonora]

@@EDMTips Yesss!!!! I will..

[@brunobass1]

Hi how are you? Would be possible to do booka shade style?

[@EDMTips]

Depends on how many people will vote for it :)

[@djkaya9558]

Hell Yeah !! Darling your Name's more celebrity then Smith 🤣

[@EDMTips]

Marginally 😂

[@djkaya9558]

@@EDMTips i m glad you got the joke at the end :) that wasn't personal

[@yashaswirkg]

Where can i get that t-shirt?

[@EDMTips]

From my merch store! Here: edm-tips.creator-spring.com/

[@EDMTips]

Which of these did you find most useful? Are there any other sound design tips you can share in the comments?

[@CFox.7]

you got a discord or forum mate ?

[@CFox.7]

nevermind, found everything. :)

[@EDMTips]

@@CFox.7 Where did you find it?

[@HOLLASOUNDS]

6:37 When I hear a sound in someone else music I dong think "oww I need to sound desighn that My self", I think "Ahhh I know that sound, I have that preset". Most of the time I already have presets from Reason 12, Aturia Analog lab, Kontakt that I hear all the time. You know why? Because most of these mainstream artists dont sound desighn they just use presets.

[@EDMTips]

There is no shame in using presets if you use them correctly.

[@ahmtTyln]

That would be a nice Blade runner...isshh lead..😁😏

[@Ilohimushka]

Maan you Bible link never works

[@EDMTips]

Please send me an email at [e-mail] and we'll sort it out asap.

[@SeanBartleyMusic]

Just came to the comments section to say there is NO such thing as a "Sound design mistake".

[@EDMTips]

I disagree

[@EDMTips]

Thanks, though

[@SeanBartleyMusic]

This gate keeps creative freedom. I have been a senior sound designer for several years, and the #1 aspect of sound design is never following a “path” or creating the wrong way. It’s how we teach our staff, and it’s how we are so creatively successful. :)

[@constanzecontenance9045]

Tnank you for this awesome tutorial! You are a fantastic example, why electronic music in the last ten to fifteen years got so fckng boring! loopmorons, artist samplepacks, complete projects to download kills creativity. you might be a great engineer, youtuber or what ever.... but as an artist who loves this music, the ART to explore, create and combine sounds and styles you cant say to people "copy the shit out of some favorite artists loops and get famous". its ok to make some big money with stupid people and their cracked DAWs, sell them huge releases of your sample packs or what ever. i am fine with that, really! but stop kill creativity!!!

[@EDMTips]

You're welcome! 🙂

[@tredfxman]

You have *ZERO* clue how things works dude! 😄 Copying a track helps you learn how to do it. But then you can completely change it to your own liking, so it sounds nothing like the original track!

[@constanzecontenance9045]

@@tredfxman YES... no clue since mpc2000, virus b, original tb303 and the first gen of both electribe. you know such awesome labels like spielzeug schallplatten? there was movement, creativity. als the first 25 Drumcode LPs... and where we now? At Awekeings its impossible to hear big differents by the DJs. There is a huge bunch of boring sets and DJs. Look at the uninspired newer Releases of Armin van Buuren. Blahblahblah must be a big troll from a former Worldclass Trance Producer. Nowadays there are two much TimmyTrumpets and Boris Brechjas. Businesstechno which destroys more than it give to our great subculture! Why do you think, modular systems become in the past such a big impact? The people want creativity, sounddesign, happy accidents. they are tired of bullshittechno out from a sample pack! did you hear 2 month ago, that a "producer" from spain copies tracks like "the bells" and sold it on Beatport? Thats what happened, when we put brick after brick like an stupid lego duplo childplay! Its all about money, fame and attention...

[@user-vd3if4wq6m]

Designing sounds from scratch: "Know one does this" ...uuugghhh? yes they do my friend. The ability to do so aswell is a skill well learned

[@EDMTips]

Wrong. What I did say was that no one does every single sound in their track from scratch.