The ONE Trick the PROS Actually Use & You Don't!

[@brzi4459]

this was maybe the most helpful thing i ever saw on your channel. this topic is so underrated, yet so determining in whether somebody becomes a pro or not. thank you.

[@Projektor_music]

you're welcome! hope covering these things helps people learn better...

[@DashGlitch]

Really good video! awesome topic and production, I think the "just one trick" feeds into some deep human nature in us to make excuses instead of actually progress, I think a lot of G.A.S and consumerism in general is based around this

[@Projektor_music]

yeah true, I kinda went with a same presentation in terms of thumbnail/title to tap into the same psychological idea...

[@arnusion]

It's not 'human nature', its a conditioned response from growing up under capitalism. We are always taught there's a magic solution so they can keep selling us stuff.

[@MrZensphere]

This is good advice. Art doesn't exist in a vacuum, and especially if you're trying to work in a specific genre, it really helps to listen to the tastemakers and top quality artists. There is some danger of losing originality when emulating others, but if you have already found your sound and have something to say creatively, this advice is golden 🌟

[@robsch1473]

One thing will help me for sure... watching this video every (other) day to persue myself that i will get better. Thanks!

[@DSWL_]

great video on a really important often overlooked topic. thanks

[@marcus268]

Solid tipp! This is also what i do, i listen and ask myself - how is this done, and then try it out. I often put a track in my daw, and put midi clips below it , and write into the clip name, what is happening - so i can open up the session and then see on a macro and micro level, what has been done, what is the story that is being told.

[@Projektor_music]

yeah that's good analysis too, getting a bit deeper into a structure or a single part of the track!

[@johnymst]

It's funny you uploaded this today - I started producing 3 years ago and only yesterday for the first time ever, I managed to reference a track based on hearing and create something professional sounding (or sound like my ref hehe) - the whole 7min track completely done in less than 2 days which for me just last week was an impossible achievement. All of the things you mentioned I did in the past 3 years, got frustrated, bought new stuff and failed. Now I know it was always time and experience that I was missing. With that being said, it is crucial to have a good mentor who you can ask anything. A lot of time it's questioning your decisions so that was definitely a big trick for my progress overtime. I know it's not the end yet, but I can finally see this going somewhere hehe! Thanks for your videos! They definitely accompanied me in my learning journey 😊

[@Projektor_music]

ahh nice to hear! glad I was able to help a bit with that!

[@fionaskittle]

I've done this for years and yes it has definitely helped me a lot! I must say tho that one of my issues is something you definitely don't have. In that I actually DO genuinely enjoy my music, it's a real problem because I feel incapable of listening to it objectively. I tend to have to put down a project for a few days and then listen to it in a different environment with different headphones/speakers to be able to figure out exactly what I want to change. Sometimes I feel like i can only make music for an audience of 1, which is kinda sweet I guess.

[@Projektor_music]

I do have it when I'm actively working on a production so putting it away does also allow me to be mor eobjective. But when just listening to the music I've released I can definitly hear where improvements should be made...

[@simex909]

I think it's good to like your music. Why would anyone else like it if you don't think it's good? If you have an audience of one, at least you know you're not a slave to trends. This might sound silly but when I'm listening back to my music to find problems, sometimes I turn off the screen, turn off the lights in the room, actively pretend I'm someone else, pretend I'm at a music festival, my monitors are loudspeakers, and I've never heard the track before. Surprisingly this works for me. Just turning the screen off changes the listening experience because you can't see the elements/mixer/levels, it forces you to listen.

[@anattaevergreen]

Yes, being able to wear different hats and choose different perspectives at will is trully powerful for music production and life in general Knowing what you REALLY want and refining the things you REALLY like

[@FabioDerBali]

I guess Floki found his heart in music and not coastal raids anymore 🙏🏼

[@Projektor_music]

ahahahah yes

[@moritz8727]

Thank you for that crazy motivation 🚀❤️‍🔥🫶🏼

[@Projektor_music]

you're welcome!

[@fallenleaf24]

Just putting this here for new producers confirming what you said & adding some good advice to get you going! Yes. Learn your room!!!!!! Learn your speakers in your room!!!!!!! This takes time! you cant rush! Sound design is key, by this I mean after doing it more you know where you need things to be. so you get to know how to EQ the hats & the snare, your bass & all the rest! the little things like where to auto set the cutoff for which type of sound you are going for, building the blocks of things you don't have to think about. Like what the Fcuk am I doing xD I was told AGES ago to pick out 10 hats 10 snares 10 Kicks you like that are all different & just use them, learn how to EQ them, compress them.. learn how to use gates, shapers all on the same files. Over time you end up with a collection of edited versions of them files & then you have a library of your own sounds which are already edited to your liking.. then when you go into the blackhole of samples on your other drive you already have the knowledge to make them sounds fit, & what to listen out for! (successfully having trained you ears) this way you don't need 25gb of drum hits taking up space. & hours of sample diving wondering which ones are the good ones! Reduce your sample collection! have one drive with it all on.. then another with your samples & the few bits you will actually use! (kicks, hats, snares & some crashes, rides, FX) this way you don't get lost when you dive in mid production! & you don't mes up your ears hearing things that are not in theme with what you are actually making! for perspective I have 85k drum hits on a drive.... you will never find what you are looking for because there is no way to go over them! yes I have waves Cosmos & I made an app to randomly get samples so I don't have to choose.. but... less is MORE! Stick to one synth! Learn it! Use one compressor, EQ ect! learn them (stock ones are normally fine) Until you can hear the nuance of the other available options there is no point in using them! This boils down to your monitoring equipment & your hearing.. do you have amazing monitors but don't know what to hear?? awesome till will fix that. Amazing ears but monitors suck??? invest in headphones!!! then save up for speakers! Hope this helps! I am in the process of making a new sample drive! because I have faaaar to many been collecting since 1999

[@Maradnus]

I agree in the beginning to keep your sample collection low! It's VERY overwhelming with all the things! I have had issues with this & have recently started to slim down the plugins that I can see in my DAW what do I need? vs things I want. I am not at a point where the nuance of plugins is what im shopping for so so I need the 8 saturators I have?? no.. I got a copy of Saturn2 as I see this used a lot & personally I like the control you have. I kept Gsat the free saturator as I really like it! done. Do I need all 12 compressors?? LOL hell no I use the stock one 99% of the time. I use the Minimal Audio one for multi band & then Logics stock.. DO I need all that many Distortions? no.. lol I have a few that I will keep as distortion is a thing that "you cant have to many" as each one is different. I have Rift... & Logics bit crusher & then waves berserk which I really like! the rest are hidden. so yeah there is a lot to be said for getting less of the right tools than having many that are ok. There are so many great free options that if you are careful with what you get you don't need to spend a lot to get what you need, saving you money for the things that actually are with buying to top dog.. & then you only buy once! (why I brought Saturn) I have just over 500 plugins installed. LOL Find the ones that you like to use & sound good & then just use them. you don't need FabFilters £800 bundle.. Toneboosters EQ pro is incredible & is £50 ZEQ is free & just as good! they may not always look amazing.. but its not what they look like its what you do with them that matters! Cheers for this Projector Its been on my mind a lot lately. & thanks to FallenLeaf here for commenting, I totally resonate with what's being said!

[@HartwigMusic]

Nice vid! & Good perspective.

[@BenDiGedigMusic]

There was a comment under a James Hype video asking how he could write a tune on his laptop on a flight and then be confident it was club ready to play as soon as he got off the flight and his response was just knowing what it should sound like. This can be learned, but it takes time

[@Projektor_music]

yeah exactly it takes a lot of time but you just know at some point...

[@Maradnus]

& remember people like hype use a lot of presets!! its very simple music his stuff, so when he knows that this bass was amazing he just has to load that up & bass is done! same with hats, snare etc etc. so by the time it comes to actually making a track he already knows that all his components just work.. so the new stuff he adds wont be far off as hes made all his other stuff. its a time thing!

[@stelthtenau]

Couldn't agree more

[@wesleywild-s9x]

That eq is a maag emulation . The boost is the air band and sounds good on most things 👌

[@Projektor_music]

yeah knew that, I've seen people use more faithfull emulations in terms of looks but this is a nice free one.

[@Adam92326]

I think I am stuck on such a low level of music production that I can actually enjoy my music. I do not know if it is a good thing or a bad thing, but while I do sometimes analyze my music like "I would be doing this and that differently", I can also really enjoy it. I think it comes from the acceptance that this is only a hobby for me, so the only motivation for me to keep going is just the hobby itself. Anyway, solid advices, thanks!

[@Projektor_music]

yeah if you are not really trying to go pro I guess there is more of a relaxation factor to is like a hobby should be tbh

[@melange78]

Good video. Also psycho acoustics affect much more than you think as a beginner. Something that I have come to realize is that occasionally you need to de-train your ears by changing around the listening environment completely. Listen to your tracks in shitty gear only for a while (not producing in shitty gear but listening to it in shitty gear), also don't just listen to like Spotify, also listen to for instance MP3s and FLACs because the algorithms are different and they don't sound the same. That will make mixing easier because you will understand for what demographic you will do what in the mix.

[@Projektor_music]

the details between MP3, flac & spotify do not matter to the extend that they will need to be examined in a closer way...

[@melange78]

@@Projektor_music To the extent that it matters for your mixes yes it does. If you think that you will sound like a certain spotify track it does come down to what that mix sound like on your specific gear that you listen to as they will alter the sound levels, sometims qutie haphazardly depending on the average loudness of the mix and what not which is not at all the case if you listen to a non-streamed mix.

[@Projektor_music]

​@@melange78 I am talking about beginners and intemediary producers getting to a level that they hear on spotify. For them the issue isn't that little detail in MP3, that's the same as that one little trick that get's you to a pro level. It is about learning your listening environment and what music should sound like on it & then getting to know your tools to the point where you can get there...

[@melange78]

@@Projektor_music My point is that Spotify changes the sound between that you send it to them and that you listen to it and it seems like they change the algorithm rather frequently. For instance a few years ago they would cut the LUFS down to like -14 if you had it above -12 or so for a certain average in the track. I think they stopped doing that but last time I checked their upload specs they still stated that they did. Also Warner Music is now one of the major shareholders in Spotify and given their shenanigans in the past it wouldn't surprise me at all if Spotify treat music files differently depending on the distributor.

[@auroratranceaudio7465]

Man your beard is inspirational

[@Projektor_music]

lol thanks. it still has a bit to grow before I'm happy but it's getting there...

[@ghuinink]

People agree that it takes 10 years to develop a good backhand in tennis, but refuse to accept that it takes 10 years to develop your ears. there are no shortcuts for being really good and unique. Sound is a very complex beast a trick that works on one track can not work at all on another. You have to put in the work and the hours. Just like tennis ;)

[@Projektor_music]

ohh yeah most certainly it takes time. I do think 10 years is exaggerated since I think you can accelerate the process...

[@ghuinink]

@@Projektor_music Producing Game music Soundtracks, World music, Jazz etc, trust me it takes at least 10 years before you are able to produce, mix and master everything.

[@Projektor_music]

@@ghuinink well that's not the goal for most. Most people learn one genre and try to explore that...

[@ghuinink]

@@Projektor_music yeah true, but why only make pizza when there are a 100 more dishes to cook ;)

[@Projektor_music]

@@ghuinink cus pizza is the best

[@yeah-I-know]

it's not a trick boys - it's the good old talent :) you don't need anything else

[@Projektor_music]

nah it's not talent, it's training... everyone starts as a beginner

[@yeah-I-know]

@@Projektor_music I disagree, you can train and train while the guy with talent is making it big... it's one truth no youtuber will ever admit :)

[@Projektor_music]

@@yeah-I-know there is imperical evidence against your claim, like the Polgár daughters in chess for example. Don't let anyone tell you creativity is just for a select few to succeed in, because it will depend on what you determine success to be!

[@SuckeroftheYear]

@@Projektor_musici think the same if you work you will get results or put some enregy in it or call it passion :)

[@Maradnus]

@@yeah-I-know talent only changed the person mind set to the task.. if you don't train your talent you wont be much better than anyone else. some people are just good cooks.. what ever they make tastes good. you can follow their recipe to the T & its not the same. YOU can however learn it. the more of it you do the more of get a feel for what you are doing. the more of a feel you have for it the faster you arrive at the sweet spots. this is perceived as talent. in terms of cooking, having a feel for when to turn down the heat or add more salt or extra this or that is a feeling which is learned by doing. The same way as tweeting a synth. someone who is "Talented" has more of a feel for that particular thing than others do making it "easier" to reach the sweet spot. the more you love what you do the more you will subconsciously "do the right thing" what's the right thing?? well you have to put the hours in to discover that! What people forget about "KZbinrs" or anyone that only does the thing that they do with their time is just that.. they are not coming home & doing it for a hour a day.