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Clue is in the title.

Imo if you have a solid, unique signature sound then you're half-way there. It's all about individuality in the whacky world of wobble. Just about anyone can make the wobbly bass but you have to make your tracks stand out. Zomby for example is what I would call a unique producer because not many people nail or even produce that sort of sound.

Marshy made a thread about Tomba's uniqueness....and I think the consensus is that he's a decent producer.

However, not all "big" producers are unique. Just that if you listen to their tracks you should instantly recognise their sound and it resonates with people and they try to imitate it etc etc.

Nowadays I can listen to a Reso/Rusko/Cookie Monsta etc track and know it's by them and I think it's a big part of building that profile. The downside is you get the imitators and then ironically the sound you created which was unique becomes a pastiche....I don't know though, what makes a dubstep track unique these days??

Discuss.

I think great producers understand when simplicity is needed... I fell in love with dubstep through loefah tracks. I like simple basslines that are on the sparse side, but can still drive a tune, and I believe what makes a tune deep/heavy/good is usually when the great empty spaces are left empty and the ones that need filling are filled... Knowing the difference, I suppose. Groove and space and syncopation. And while I love dark electro music, I find most of my fav dubs maintain an organic rootsy reggae vibe somehow.

What's making dubstep tracks unique nowadays? IMO, good vocals. And new rhythms/syncopation/anything but the huge garbage-can plated snares on 3. Been listening to mad Burial and Synkro.

A great producer will have an immaculate sense of balance.

Consistency. A good producer will have that one tune you love but the rest if his output you can take or leave. A great producer may not nail it every single time but they have a list of hits.

Edit: nvm

abZ wrote:Consistency. A good producer will have that one tune you love but the rest if his output you can take or leave. A great producer may not nail it every single time but they have a list of hits.

This.

Polish imo.

Great producers don't send you a tune and say 'this is pre-master'

Even if you don't enjoy the tune itself, a great producers tunes always meet a certain quality that the average producer just doesn't seem to understand.

pkay wrote:Money

Rich producers don't send you a tune and say 'this is pre-master' because they can afford 50 quid every time they finish a track.

Thats what you meant, really isn't it?

If your label only signs tracks based on the demo's mastering then thats jokes.

A producer who can make 3/4 tracks using their signature sound and make each track stand out from the rest imo is great

Jaydot, Reso was the worst example of a signature sound you could have picked. He goes from deep to the hardest of brostep. I can honestly say that just about anything I listen to could be by him if he would have been in the mood that night.

And I understand where your going with it. But I cant help but disaggree, even with those you said have that sig sound. Cookie for example. Love his tunes when Im brockin out in my bedroom. You ever put him on mono in a club? ...right because you cant.

And Rusko... well hes got even more variety then Resolast time I listened to anything by hi... then again last track I listened to was Tru Powah so yeah. Who knows. MAybe hes changed.

But what Im getting at here, especially with cookie monsta, is that those signature sounds dont always mark greatness, in my opinion they can mark a crutch too. Look at cookie. Same bar structures. Simple melody, throw it through vibrato, scatter drums throughout, first 116 right there. Drop into midrange patch for 32 bars. Repeat intro. Drop midrange back, change modulation depth. Play intro again. Drop midrange, change modulation depth and turn on pitch LFO. Play intro again. Play intro with no drums.

IMO what makes a great producers is the ability to deliever emotion, pashion, fascinating unique sounds, and keep it all on an almost technically perfect mixown and deliver these with consistency. GWN, Loefah, Flylo, Ect.

I think a great producer is one that makes their tunes sound simple but at the same time have that under lying feel of quality that just keeps you coming back to them over and over again.

Tunnidge is a master of this. You listen to his tracks and think "I can see how he did that" or "I know what technique he used to get that sound" but the way he arranges and utilizes those simple elements is mind blowing. Its what sets the tunes apart from the rest. This is the reason "Geddeon" and "Facemelt" havent been off my decks since the day I bought em.

legend4ry wrote:

pkay wrote:Money

Rich producers don't send you a tune and say 'this is pre-master' because they can afford 50 quid every time they finish a track.

Thats what you meant, really isn't it?

If your label only signs tracks based on the demo's mastering then thats jokes.

In my opinion the distinguishing factor between a good and great producer is the attention to detail and commitment to quality.

This thread has nothing to do with my label... and if you read the third line I even talk about tunes I don't like. Talking nothing about what I sign or any of that. Talking about, to me, what distinguishes good from great.

Rock producer, pop producer, techno producer, etc.... the ones who stand out to me are the ones who you can tell put far more time into their bits.

JFK wrote:I think a great producer is one that makes their tunes sound simple but at the same time have that under lying feel of quality

amen

pkay wrote:

JFK wrote:I think a great producer is one that makes their tunes sound simple but at the same time have that under lying feel of quality

amen

I like that idea about simplicity. However, there are a number of "great" producer who are far from simple. Attention to details is vital, for these producers

Well, it doesn't seem as if a lot of producers actually discuss their personal philosophies. It has been said that great minds tend to think alike though, so here's a little gem from one of my personal favorite philosophers.



It's a little deep, I know. But art is art.


This dude named BlacKKawaru said it best:
"It means that you should focus on the meanings behind action and not the actions themselves.

If someone is pointing to the moon and you focus on the finger, you do not see the moon.

If the instruction is to kick with emotion and you focus on the command, you are listening to the instruction, not improving your kick.

Even if your kick gets stronger (i.e. through anger) it will not become better. Understanding the kick is as important as executing the kick."



And here's a few conclusions I've come to with regards to your question:

1. Focusing so much on uniqueness is equal to that poor kid staring at his finger.
2. The difference between the great producers and the imitators is their understanding of what they're doing as opposed to just following instructions.
3. Emotional Content

Siderealdb wrote: Understanding the kick is as important as executing the kick."

ace fucking quote

A great producer creates tracks where every time you listen to them, you notice something different.

1000's of soundcloud comments

if you want to do well at anything you got to put the work in first. what splits the good from the great, i think that is some thing you have, all don't have.

3za wrote:1000's of soundcloud comments

hahaha

yeah doesn't more soundcloud comments mean you are superior

JFK wrote:I think a great producer is one that makes their tunes sound simple but at the same time have that under lying feel of quality that just keeps you coming back to them over and over again.

It is this IMO you can have all the musical training, sound designing, engineering skills in the world but if you can't vibe with a few basic element that evoke an intended emotion, the track just becomes the sum of it's parts and the feeling is lost.