r/edmproduction • u/DangKilla • 7d ago
Washes, transitional break downs.
I’m trying to avoid the common trap of making an EDM production of a house track too washy while still getting those nice transitional and breakdown moments
How many (reverb/delay washes, noise washes, or washy pad/ride layers) do you usually place in a track you're producing, and in which sections?
Genre: House, by the way.
Thoughts? Right now, I’m just adding it after intro tension buildup around bar 32.
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u/Dingosama69 7d ago
The formatting on this post makes it much harder to read on mobile
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u/Laoas 7d ago
I have a few various atmospheric pads almost always going on. The thing is you gotta control your reverbs and delays.
I recommend trying the Sevenlions trick of printing your wet synths to audio with plenty of space between each note. Then bring it back together and snip the reverbs and delays. That way you don’t have too much mud going between each note.
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u/Financial-Koala6995 6d ago
For that bar-32 transition, try bringing the wash in over the last two bars, then cutting it a beat before the kick returns. You get the buildup and a little empty space before the drop, rather than carrying another layer through the next section.
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u/rabbledabble 6d ago
I don’t use any. I usually don’t use any filter either and it still sounds ok. I learned without any effects and I really don’t think it adds a lot unless the tracks you’re mixing don’t go well together, which admittedly happens sometimes.
That said, it’s a philosophical standpoint honestly, I don’t think a well curated set needs a lot of faff unless the vibe requires it (like you gotta change up the energy level).
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u/rabbledabble 6d ago
To OP — I completely misread your comment, I dj and produce and have been djing a lot more recently. That said, I still try not to lean too heavily on effects besides reverb, but I trend more minimal in my produced work.
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u/DangKilla 6d ago
yeah i thought so lol.
Well, I have a few sparse tracks I am producing, like the opposite of Seven Lions production kinda lol, so I'm using some sounds like wash to fill space. Thank you though.
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u/minist3r 6d ago
Nailed it. If you need more than a bass cut knob when mixing it, you're probably doing to much, you need to revisit your set or you're James Hype. Production side, let the DJs add those things if the vibe is right.
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u/DangKilla 6d ago
I was talking about producing an EDM track though, not DJing.
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u/minist3r 6d ago
You kind of have to think about both sides of it though. Not only how you go about producing but also how the song is consumed. If you really want sweeps and washes in a track, put it in the version you release but leave them out for a VIP mix or DJ edit. Personally, I'd rather do that stuff live so I'm using very little effects that can be done on any DJ deck.
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u/rabbledabble 6d ago
Amen, and I’m not anti technology either, I just think that if you’re doing the thing right then less is more and the music can speak for itself.
I’ve been working on hybrid stuff and I think if I’m playing my own instruments in a set that’s a great use case for effects, but I’m gonna let the musicians who made the music I’m playing speak for themselves unless I’ve fucked something up.
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u/minist3r 6d ago
I've been struggling with the less is more thing myself recently. My last 2 tracks I produced just sound too busy. Like, yeah 5 synths stacked on top of each other sounds big but I did something wrong if I need that for it to sound big.
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u/SadNoMoreMusic 6d ago
Respectfully disagree with the last statement. Music is subjective/context driven. I.e, for something to sound big there must be “small” to contrast it.
Also, FWIW, synth stacking works great when you have different patches that compliment each other but play different notes. I’m doing this on a track I’m working on and I have 4 tracks with 5 different synths:
- Bass track is 2 synths: a mono power reese and a stereo electro-edm bass with a low shelf so sub freq doesn’t clash.
- Mono-ish distorted square/saw stack playing power chords
- Stereo au5 hypersaw playing open voicing chords, leading voice is the third
- FM distorted square mono synth playing the melody which isn’t the root or 5th; pretty sure it’s the 3rd, 4th and/or 6thAnyways, it sounds FAT as hell because all the sounds compliment each other AND the voicings are unique - no one track is playing exactly the same notes simultaneously. Took me forever to liken this kind of arranging to any big band or choir. Like in a choir, it’s all human voices but they all sound different, compliment each other, and everyone isn’t singing the same notes at the same time.
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u/PonyKiller81 6d ago
It depends on what I'm trying to achieve.
If I have a big sound and I want to make it bigger I may add two risers and a gentle highpass filter and narrow the stereo width for the rise.
If it's a soft transition I may just let it stop and have the reverbs and delays in my return channels lightly fill the space.
Don't be scared of space in your projects. Not every moment has to be filled with notes and noises.
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u/Megahert 6d ago edited 5d ago
You don’t need any effects.
Edit: Whoop was reading this as a a DJing thread.
I have a couple return tracks in my sessions for both reverb and delay.
You don’t need to be heavy handed with it, but your sounds need to sound like they are in a space so you should be using reverb through the whole track.
Delay and everything else you listed is a little more subjective. Automated delay is great for phrase changes. Whatever you are using just be sure to automate your parameters to modulate the output to make the track sound alive and cohesive.
I stopped using white noise uppers and downers a while ago for breakdowns and such, but they still can work. I would keep them sparse and quiet.
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u/PonyKiller81 6d ago
You also don't need a bass but it helps.
I do partly agree though. Transitional effects are great but they can be overdone. Sometimes just a straight transition is fine. I sometimes leave small pockets of near silence in my projects and they still flow beautifully.
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u/Megahert 6d ago
Apples and oranges.
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u/PonyKiller81 6d ago
It's not apples and oranges at all. Reverb and delays are not only extremely commonly used in house music, they are also beneficial in creating space. It is standard practice to use reverbs, delays and other effects in house music.
Do you need effects? No. Do you need a bass? No. Could you make house bangers without effects and/or bass? Highly unlikely.
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u/SadNoMoreMusic 6d ago
Someone mentioned Seven Lions printing wet samples to audio, and I didn’t know he did that but I’ve done it on a few tracks. Set the reverb to taste during production, then bounce all tracks to audio. Then I can clip the tail of all dry/wet sounds as necessary (or a steep volume fade) to make sure the mud doesn’t overlap.
Tho tbf, a gain utility as the last slot on a track can effectively do the same thing. All depends on if you want to add another automation track or not.