Junebuggo's audio Reviews on Newgrounds

[Cylriel, Piedkies - Anxiety]

This is amazing. Some of the best sound design work I've seen on here! I think the reese would be cool if it had a portamento between notes.

CylrielOfficial responds:

thank you broo :D

[FarLand]

It's pretty nice. You'd ought to work on your mixing and mastering a bit more. Overall it feels rather empty, but mostly because there's not one thing to focus on that truly cuts through the chords and the free-sounding almost ambience-like quality of Synthwave. I also think that whether it's the kick you used, or simply the compressor plugin quality, that sidechain has a ton of nasty artifacts that muddy it and for a few ms after give it some flutter. I recommend using a midi-triggered volume automation tool such as Cableguy's VolumeShaper product.

entropicvoxels responds:

Thanks for the feedback, I really do need to work on my sidechaining. I usually use my DAW's stock compressor for the sidechain which isn't the best, and creates a lot of weird bits here and there. I think it sounds okay for some songs but just sounds a bit fluttery in this song. Also I think the sidechain is way too strong, and sidechain isn't extremely necessary for synthwave.

[diZZy - Entry Gate]

This is so unique I gotta give that to you! You sound design is really fun and different, and your mix is extremely clean!

dizzyOfficial responds:

Tysm!

[Rising Hero]

Orchestration, mix, and everything top notch as everything, my friend :)

Bosa responds:

Thank you! I wanted to finish it completely, but honestly I am getting tired of strictly classical, I am ready to work on some cinematic stuff again.

[OmegaT - Crypt]

This is pretty nice! Sound design is here and the beat is infectious. Just remember to compress your mids and run a final mastering. For a track with so much going on, I recommend using a volume automation software like CableGuy's Volume Shaper for sidechain. That kick has artifacts than sounds weird when applied to sidechain.

OmegaT responds:

Will keep that in mind before uploading it to spotify, thanks!

[Short Orchestra]

What libraries are you using? There's a lot of clipping here. Don't use FL's default limiter, and if you do, don't use the default setting. The orchestration here is actually pretty damn nice, but you gotta work on that mix. The mid range frequencies drown everything out.

TemnaiMusic responds:

I used a kontakt library called Jaeger for my instruments, also yeah I kinda just accidentally leave FL limiter in the master because it's in the default template. I should fix that soon..

[Colliding Worlds]

I also like how this turned out. Just watch that sidechain. The kick seems to have a few small artifacts on it that make the compression a little fluffy occassionally. The mix is actually quite clean here and oh my gosh I LOVED that switch up at 2:40. That was so good. I'd suggest a more prominent bassline here, but otherwise, the composition is on point. The only thing I'd have to say is that those strings just sound so synthetic and off. I mean... that's only because it's a one shot sample, but it takes me out of the song a bit, and I find myself focused on 'these strings just sound so fake' when I should be thinking "holy cow this is one catchy melody" (which believe me... I was doing for most of the song). Overall, good work.
PS: for better strings, if you don't want to invest a ton into Kontakt libraries, there are some decent freebies with at least a round robin sampling system that while don't cut it for purely orchestral works, would totally work in something like this. Check out: Alpine Collection, and VCSO2 Orchestra.

RedSkiesOfficial responds:

Thanks for the amazing feedback! The strings I used were the Flex String and they probably sound bad because I squeezed em through a soundgoodizer, what altered the sound probably. I'll look into the strings you suggested. Thank you very much!

[Corex - Fell in Love (Ft. RoundRobin) (OLD)]

These chords are INFECTIOUS. Thanks to you, I will now be humming this. However, I wish there was some more definition to the drums. Definitely use a sidechain. There is zero sidechain here. That'd really make this next level. ALSO this is just a suggestion but I'd love if you have a detune modulation on those saws. That'd be so awesome. Absolutely loved that acoustic guitar, however at the drop, make sure to make use of a limiter. You need to eliminate quite a lot of mid-range clipping. I got some heavy Coldplay vibes here. Nice work!
PS did I mention those chords are stuck in my head now... because they totally are.

CorexMusic responds:

Lol, Actually since this is an old track,
This was when I didn't even know how to sidechain.
But thank you so much for the kind words!

[Bottom Kek- U.N. Owen was Her? Remix]

This was really fun just make sure to balance your mix. That lead at around 1:44 had actually painful high-end. Like... I'm not lying when I say that it hurt. It had those dog-whistle frequencies while the mid frequencies all throughout kind of drowned out all the bass frequencies except for the kick. Bring out that fun gated bassline more! Otherwise, this is an incredibly solid track.

BottomKek responds:

this is the first genuine and helpful criticism ive recived. thank you so much for this input! i may actually try and fix this stuff and reupload! thanks again