How To Techno/Trance

[unholyernest]

ok rock and metal is getting boring for me.. and i have decided to try making techno..

For the start,i would like to ask how can i get those heavy bass beat?
then what about the electronic techno keyboard sound?

i googled for techno vst and i got this video on a guy doing techno stuff on cubase.. so i wan to give it a try too.. haha..
here's the link.. 30th second onwards
TECHNO!

i'm using nuendo3 and i know its not really a techno platform, but i wan to know what VST is available in the market to get the sound i wanted.

thanks!

 

[smurfpiss]

i'm using nuendo3 and i know its not really a techno platform

Huh?

Nuendo3 is just a general DAW/Sequencer it does not specialize in any one genre of music.

Nuendo3 will do just fine all you need are some VST instruments like Synthesizers and Drum machines. Or you can get 'Reason' which has a whole slew of synths, drum machine and effects.

 

[unholyernest]

oh ok.. reason4.. will looking into that..
but i was told it was a stand alone thingy.. means i can't use it with nuendo like a VST lah..
i was looking for something like amplitube.. akoustik piano.. FM8.. kinda stuff

ok but i will give reason4 a try even if its a stand alone thing..

thanks!

 

[l0u5y]

look for analog synths and emulators. Like Pro-53. great for ur sawtooth wave synth. Very impt in electronic dance music especially techno like Cascada, Groove Coverage kind of stuff. The more effects u have, the better sounding ur dance music will be. For trance, listen out for the form, check out Paul Van Dyke.

 

[unholyernest]

oh yes.. that paul van dyke guy.. hahaha.. need for speed underground 2!

ya i wanted to get those cascada kind.. lots of bass..
i wanna make those music those ah beng play inside their cars one.. hahaha..

as for the lead sound.. i still dunno what i really looking for.. but i'll experiment lah.. haha.. i'll try pro53.. thanks!


OH YES! the one i really like is NI's synthetic drums 2! hahaha.. i think thats exactly the drums i looking for.. a bit club a bit techno/trance kind..

 

[l0u5y]

haha. be sure to lemme hear when u finish it.

 

[hohoholalala]

Demo DAWs to decide which one suits your workflow the best. If you do decide to use reason,
http://www.computermusic.co.uk/page/computermusic?entry=cm_tutorial_pdfs has a great 3 part trance masterclass.

 

[unholyernest]

oh well.. techno aren't easy to make..
this is what i have after 12 hours of playing around with reason 4.
dun expect anything cool, dun laugh!

First Techno Song
Alternate download link

i'll look into the CM's trance guide.. it looks exactly like what i'm doing now..

Do u all have any idea how to do the lead lines from scratch? its not as easy as improvising on a guitar..

 

[hohoholalala]

Can use a Trance "supersaw" lead. In reason take a combinator and add like 10 subtractors each playing a saw wave at different octaves/semi/cents. Or do it juno reactor style. Just take a wave of choice, apply lots of effects, modulate change parameters, rinse and repeat until you are happy. If im not wrong the harpsichord lead used to be quite popular too. Maybe you can just take a harpsichord and run it thru a whole bunch of effects especially the scream distortion. Since you are using reason remember to flip to the back of the rack and use the CVs.

 

[unholyernest]

wa! 10 subtractors!
i used 1 thor and i'm going nuts.. soooo many things to tweak..
i'm still figuring out how to use the combinator..

i'll continue trying out some other sound.. i feel that i'm really lack of texture..

 

[kongwee]

Beside sound patch, there is this thing call arpeggio generator. It is common in hardware synth, but hard to find it on software. It is one of essential function as dance music. A lot running note is not possible by human.

 

[squarehero]

Well, not too bad for a first "techno" song. Btw, I believe your genre is called euro so do look up the genre for more ideas.

I suggest you look up sidechain compression and using a low pad to fill your mix. Also, the drum sounds, you can try layering both loops and single hits to get a fuller sound. Also, you do not use enough delay in your synths.

For bass, you can try the normal syncopated bass on the 2nd 8th note of every beat. Do that and do octaves with the notes to break up the pattern.

A lot of dance music is about rhythm, effects and loops. You probably need more of each of these.

 

[l0u5y]

ur melody line is playing too much. Juz keep it simple and repeat as much as possible. U have to learn how to use effects. Lots of them. Try to refer to songs for ideas. Most electrionic music, has simple melody line while the backing is playing a lot, with filters flying arnd etc.

 

[smurfpiss]

I agree the melody is too complex it doesn't sound like something to start with in a Techno track, perhaps somewhere in the middle as a climax it would work great. It sounds more 8-bit chiptune than techno to me.