Any suggestions for converting my accusic songs into RW

[vad1er]

I have written aleast 15 songs on my 12 string.. But every time I try to record them into riffworks I find myself with 2 problems I can't seem to solve.. How do I get the clean accustic sound into riffworks..My song Heaven (the only one I have done through riffworks so far) I did with my 4-track and ran it into riffworks..
The other problem I have run into is I have found that I change tempo in almost 75 percent of my tunes.. When I do the instant drums on it the change sounds terrible..
On my Metal and Rap tunes I have found ways to put fills in to integrate the changes but that doesn't really work with accustic songs any suggestions?????

[blue4u]

One approach that may help your transitions between riffs is to record with another pre-recorded riff as the "lead in". Instead of using the metronome or drummer part as a lead in before you record, have RiffWorks use one of the riffs you've already recorded. Then it will record over BOTH riffs as separate layers and when you put these riffs side by side on the time line the transition will be smooth.

From the RiffWorks manual:

Riff As Lead-In

"Under the LEAD IN section of the Riff Recorder, you have the option of selecting any one of your Riffs as a LEAD IN. When you select a Riff as a LEAD IN, you will be able to record a layer on that Riff before that Riff Recorder switches over to your current active Riff. This is very useful if you want to record a few pickup notes from one section to another. It will make your transitions much more seamless."

Also, learn about and experiment with song layers: http://www.sonomawireworks.com/guide/index.php/SongLayers

Also, here's a good tip from [URL=http://www.sonomawireworks.com/forums/profile.php?id=1364][URL]Pooter on transitions: - for leads, add some *slight* delay or reverb in Riffworks to your lead Layer. This will help the end of one riff "bleed" into the next just a little, making things a little more seamless. If you add delay or reverb on your tone patches you won't get the same effect.

[blue4u]

It's tricky to translate songs written with acoustic guitar into a RiffWorks format. They are almost two different worlds for me. RW is based on loops so it changes how I would write a song as opposed to playing with just an acoustic guitar and singing a part. I'd love to see what other people have to say about this too!

It's best to use a small condenser mic (large condenser will work otherwise) to get clean acoustic recordings. Place the mic about 4 to 6 inches from the twelfth fret of the guitar and you should get a pretty balanced tone. Make sure you aren't clipping in RiffWorks, record yourself close to the center of the room where there's not too much flutter echo and try to keep the mic volume down low enough that you aren't picking up too much of the sound from the room itself. If the bass is too boomy then use the EQ in RiffWorks to cut out some of the bass with the high pass filter. Some experimenting is necessary here. I always end up using the Line 6 Variax acoustic just because it's easier that setting all of this up but you'll get a better tone with a real acoustic guitar and a decent small condenser mic!

[blue4u]

As for your tempo changes, record first with a metronome set to different BPMs for each part and add the instant drummer parts later. Somtimes a break with just bass and drums, no drums or a sustaining chord ringing out helps the transition between time changes go smoother.

One approach that may help your transitions between riffs is to record with another pre-recorded riff as the "lead in". Instead of using the metronome or drummer part as a lead in before you record, have RiffWorks use one of the riffs you've already recorded. Then it will record to BOTH riffs as separate layers. When you place these riffs side by side on the time line the transition will be smoother.

From the RiffWorks manual:

Riff As Lead-In

"Under the LEAD IN section of the Riff Recorder, you have the option of selecting any one of your Riffs as a LEAD IN. When you select a Riff as a LEAD IN, you will be able to record a layer on that Riff before that Riff Recorder switches over to your current active Riff. This is very useful if you want to record a few pickup notes from one section to another. It will make your transitions much more seamless."

Also, learn about and experiment with song layers: http://www.sonomawireworks.com/guide/index.php/SongLayers

Also, here's a good tip from Pooter on transitions: Add some *slight* delay or reverb in Riffworks to your lead Layer. This will help the end of one riff "bleed" into the next just a little, making things a little more seamless. If you add delay or reverb on your tone patches you won't get the same effect.

[cwight]

Yeah another good thing to try with Riff transitions, is if you maybe end a riff on a particular note, or chord, and you want that note to sustain over into the next section of the song, just record it on the beginning of the next riff. However, when you are recording it, you strike the note or chord slightly before the entry point for the riff. This way you don't get the attack on the note or chord. Then all you have to do is make sure your levels are mixed right. Sounds more complicated than it is....

[blue4u]

.... when you are recording it, you strike the note or chord slightly before the entry point for the riff. This way you don't get the attack on the note or chord. Then all you have to do is make sure your levels are mixed right.

Cool tip! Keep 'em comin'!!

[vad1er]

ya thanks guys some great ideas to try so far..

[JouniL]

Yeah another good thing to try with Riff transitions, is if you maybe end a riff on a particular note, or chord, and you want that note to sustain over into the next section of the song, just record it on the beginning of the next riff. However, when you are recording it, you strike the note or chord slightly before the entry point for the riff. This way you don't get the attack on the note or chord. Then all you have to do is make sure your levels are mixed right. Sounds more complicated than it is....

I have another pitch on this, it is very important also to end a riff properly so that you don't stop playing in the end of it or accidently mute it 1/10 of a second, here is how I do it:

Assume you wanna do a riff that should be repeated several times in a row. First of all I practice it until it really sounds good. Then I record it three (3) times in a row so that I get three complete layers of the same riff. The final step is to delete the first and the third layer.

If it is done properly you can repeat the remaining riff layer without hearing any strange transitions in the beginning or end of the riff.

[cwight]

Yeah but I'm talking about those instances when you do want a note/chord to span two riffs but don't/can't use songlayers. If you could always end a riff properly then there wouldn't be a problem, But phrasing in music doesn't always match the riff length.