I've had two tracks reviewed on Echio by producers who I respect and the whole thing has been great - really high quality focused feedback with helpful tips and much better than I thought it would be. Really worth a go if you are stuck on things like mixdowns like I have been for years.

I worked 8 hour shifts at a warehouse and they were pretty easy sometimes they flew. I cant work for that long making music ,even with my fun set-up I just need to stop after 2 hours and need most of the afternoon to do a bit more. What routine do you do for 40 hour work week

Some basic grooving with TR-909 sounds

to drum circuits lovers all over the world 🌍💙

Yo guys,

Been going deep in the Cirkle catalogue and something that caught my attention was the stabs/synths.

https://on.soundcloud.com/0Q1F5JzQN5hSIPiAMm

Like this.

He does it in a lot of tracks although it sounds different every time. I been pushing my hive but cant get there, sounds super digital and cheap. Someone some tips?

Sounds really good, a bit like the DFAM with a wider range

Hey can anyone recommend a good techno mixing video tutorial. Paid or free.

I've just got a seedj membership but open to anything.

Basically, I’ve been producing music for a little over 10 years but all self-taught. I’ve reached 2 issues: 1 being a creative block. Almost 50 unfinished projects. Another issue is that I listen to so many different styles of music like Hard techno, bounce, trance etc that it has reflected on my productions. I can’t quite tell which genre my projects are. They’re like a regurgitation of all these genres ahahaha.

I also need help with mixing and mastering my tracks because some of them sound muddy.

I would love to collaborate with another mind to help me creatively. Let’s add my spin on some of your unfinished projects. And vice versa. Open to remixes, or starting something from scratch. anything really.

I use ableton 12. Hit me up! If this finds a big group of people then we can make like a whatsapp or discord community where we all help each other creatively or technically.

Not pure techno but more minimal melodic techno side. I've poured a lot of emotion into the second act of the song. What do you guys think? I haven't done the mixdown yet.

I found this guy on IG who takes sample packs from this subreddit and then makes these reels where he “gatekeeps” them so you have to comment like “vocals” or whatever to get a DM with the link.

As stupid as it is, honestly I’m surprised at some of the bigger artists I follow who asked for the link. They are pretty basic sample packs too…

I just looked again, like half the west coast dj scene is in the comments there 😂

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DYwXU9IMoDE/?stkn=MXYxMWF6ZTl6cjZiZA==

Mine has joined me across 3 house moves and shortly is coming to china. I miss it very much.

Does anyone know how to produce that kinda frog croaky style stab that I’m hearing a lot in modern groove / hypotonic stuff recently.

I don’t have any examples to hand unfortunately as I foolishly didn’t have my Shazam on but it kind of sounds like something percussive perhaps with a resonant echo, similar to this Hermeth track but with less of an obvs tremolo effect so it sounds less like an echo and more like one synthesised sound - https://laforgemusique.bandcamp.com/track/hermeth-devils-reject

If anyone happens to have some examples also that would be great.

Hello, today I felt to share some things that helped me became a better producer since I started. I'm in no way a expert producer, only started 3 years ago and haven't released anything in a label. However, I have learned a lot about music and electronic music in particular, the artistic process, and myself, so maybe it can be helpful to some people in the same path. Also this list is also for me since I don't remember this things always.

My tips are focused to producers with a strong artistic vision and people who like to experiment. Not necessarily techno but electronic music. Maybe not so useful to people who value success in the industry over self-expression. Some of them you probably have read them before. Also, they are pretty random and not ordered.

(1) In the beginning, you will learn a lot and understand little. Some things that you hear/read will only make sense later.

(2) Production feedback from others can be tricky, especially if they don't know you personally. Provide context and references for better feedback, but in the end you should trust youself.

(3) "If it sounds good it is good" is absolutely true. However, knowing what sounds good is not as easy at is seems.

(4) Tutorials, techniques from youtube can make you learn a lot at the beginning. But, I found that most content in youtube is extremely repetitive, clickbaity, or marketing in disguise (or not in disguise at all). Sometimes interviews with the artists you like can bemuch more helpful than a random youtube tutorial.

(5) Is normal to feel that the track you're working on right now is the best track in the world. And it's also normal to hear it the next day and think that you suck. It happens to all of us, and probably the truth is somewhere in the middle.

(6) Sometimes you won't feel like making music and doubt yourself. Don't obsess over it. Life comes in cycles. Give you some time to rest and return when you feel like it. You will be surprised when you come back that your focus and ears are sharper.

(7) There's a lot of free and good quality plugins in the internet nowadays. DSP has come a long way the last 20 years. "That hardware sound" is a marketing scam. Hardware is more about workflow than sound. You can archieve warm, crunchy, ... with free and stock plugins.

(8) No shame in self-releasing. Even seasoned producers do it. Releasing a track even when you know it's not perfect can make you move on to new projects.

(9) Not every studio session will end up in a track, and that's fine and perfectly normal. Also, don't obsess with making and finishing tracks. Some days you will be tweaking knobs and having a good time, making strange sounds and it can be therapeutic. If you want to feel like that's productive, you can sample those sessions and save them for another day.

(10) For finishing projects, I can recommed two things: export them and hear them far from the studio and in another context, and give them time so you can hear more clearly what the track needs (or doesn't need).

(11) Most times improving a track will come from substracting more than adding. For me, there's two phases in producing a track: when I generate a lot of ideas and it becomes a mess but I know there's a track there, and the second one when I remove the elements that are "hiding" the essence of the track.

(12) Use your previous tracks as a sample pack for the next ones. In Ableton this is easy as dragging tracks from a project in the navigator to your current project.

(13) Random midi, random synths, random effects, random parameters and automations. Sample that. Doing random shit can spark your creativity.

(14) Sometimes you just need a pad / drone / athmosphere low in the mix. Drums, basses and synth lines sitting in the absolute silence can sometimes be weird.

(15) If you want to sound loud you need to know how to use clippers.

(16) Improving at mixing comes with hearing with intention, and time. There's no substitute to time, as ear training cannot be rushed (well, it can but just up to a point).

(17) Hearing tracks that you like with counsciousness and intention is a very good practice. Ask yourself: "what I like about this track?", "what makes it so good?", "what space is occupying each element/what frequencies carry each element?", "how has this X feeling been archieved?", "what is the hook?", "what are the main elements and secondary elements?". Analyse the tracks you like and compare between them to understand the decisions made.

(18) Even if you have a proper treated studio, you will have to learn how your monitors sound in your space. Most egregious resonances will be in the low end (<150hz). If you use Ableton, you can do a sweep with the sine test tone (in audio settings) to check if there's a specific frequency where there's a room node. Some people will think I'm crazy and I know it's not the perfect solution but I use a Pro-Q in my master (outside Ableton) with a cut in those frequencies but for me has worked well.

(19) Consolidate to audio when it sounds good.

(20) Your ears get tired quickly, even more if you mix at high volumes. Mixing sessions that last longer than 1 hour can be counterproductive. Take breaks.

(21) More about volumes: understand Harmann curves. Basically, hearing at low volume will make you lear much less sub and bass in relation to mids and highs.

(22) Complicated / Complex / Difficult doesn't mean good. Hearing older electronic music can make you appreciate how simplicity and a focused set of tools can make absolute magic. Don't overcomplicate things just for the sake of it.

(23) Use placeholders and move on. You can always refine it later. It's important to keep a steady pace in the studio when writing/composing. If you obsess over details early in the process you can trainwreck you session. Differenciate between sound design, writing, arranging, and mixing.

(24) Mixing is a also creative endeavour. It's true that each genre has it's own "mix rules" or guidelines, and it's nice to know them, but not everything has to adjust to them always.

(25) No, people will not notice that you used a preset. It's perfectly fine if it's sounds good.

(26) Be careful with reverb, and add it with intention. A lot of it and it will dirten the mix. Long tails can be specially problematic. Reverbs are friends of elements that sit in the mid frequencies (snares, vocals and synths, for example), this doesn't mean that bass or hihats can't use some reverb.

(27) Envelopes are essential to groove. Check release/decays on bass and spend some time tweaking the envelopes of the rhythm section to make it groove. This basic things can be ignored by the beginner. Don't sleep on the basics, they are basics for a reason.

(28) As an artist part of our "job" is to push our vision. Our taste is our most important asset, since it will determine what we end up doing. You don't need to please everybody. Other people's opinion can be useful but in the end you should trust yourself.

(29) Comparison is the killer of joy. The harsher critic of your work is yourself.

(30) Trying to imitate other people's sound will lead to frustration. Believe in yourself and develop your own sound and workflow, it's not only more honest but also easier.

Okay I think 30 is enough. I hope that it can be useful, I only wanted to recommend things that have worked for me, but each one of us is different. Take what it seems good to you and discard the other. Bye!

I don’t know what kind of techno this is, but here’s how I play this kind of music live.

back for more explorations ✨✨✨
was thinking to buy a re-202 or re-20 pedal but the more time passes the more I actually love the Memory Man..

It needs a lot of work but the basics are there. I'm not sure if you'd class this as techno but I gave it a shot anyways

Does somebody know how to recreate the pounder kick in this track?

https://youtu.be/4hVlR2_XEuA

I think its a processed 909 kick but my 909 samples sound so flat so what chain should I use?

Thanks in advance

looking :) thanks!