daw-music

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┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐

│ DAW COMPARISON │

├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤

│ REAPER: │

│ Price: $60 │ Best for: Game audio, flexibility │

│ Pros: Lightweight, customizable, great for stems │

├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤

│ ABLETON LIVE: │

│ Price: $99-749 │ Best for: Electronic, live performance │

│ Pros: Session view, great for layered music │

├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤

│ FL STUDIO: │

│ Price: $99-499 │ Best for: Electronic, hip-hop │

│ Pros: Pattern-based, lifetime updates │

├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤

│ LOGIC PRO: │

│ Price: $199 │ Best for: Film, orchestral (Mac only) │

│ Pros: Great instruments, Apple ecosystem │

└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

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INTERACTIVE MUSIC LAYERS:

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐

│ Layer 1 (Base): Percussion/rhythm - always playing │

│ Layer 2 (Harmony): Pads/strings - calm moments │

│ Layer 3 (Melody): Main theme - exploration │

│ Layer 4 (Tension): Dissonance - approaching danger │

│ Layer 5 (Combat): Intense - full orchestra/drums │

└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

MUSIC STATE TRANSITIONS:

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐

│ [EXPLORATION] → detect enemy → [TENSION] │

│ ↑ ↓ │

│ └── no enemy ←───────── [COMBAT] ←── engage │

│ ↓ │

│ enemy defeated │

│ ↓ │

│ [VICTORY] │

│ ↓ │

│ → [EXPLORATION] │

└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

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GAME MUSIC PRODUCTION PIPELINE:

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐

│ 1. CONCEPT: │

│ • Reference tracks │

│ • Mood boards │

│ • Discuss with team │

├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤

│ 2. SKETCH: │

│ • Quick mockup (piano/synth) │

│ • Establish tempo, key, theme │

│ • 30-second demo for approval │

├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤

│ 3. PRODUCTION: │

│ • Full instrumentation │

│ • Create stems for interactivity │

│ • Multiple intensity versions │

├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤

│ 4. MIXING: │

│ • Balance levels │

│ • EQ and compression │

│ • Leave headroom for SFX │

├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤

│ 5. EXPORT: │

│ • Loop points (seamless) │

│ • Stems for middleware │

│ • Multiple quality versions │

└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

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LOOP TECHNIQUES:

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐

│ 1. MEASURE-ALIGNED: │

│ • Start/end on exact bar boundaries │

│ • Ensure reverb tails don't extend past end │

│ • Crossfade at loop point if needed │

├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤

│ 2. INTRO + LOOP: │

│ • Separate intro section │

│ • Main loop starts after intro │

│ • Mark loop start/end points in metadata │

├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤

│ 3. STINGER TRANSITIONS: │

│ • Short musical phrases for state changes │

│ • Victory fanfares │

│ • Death/failure sounds │

└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

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| Format | Use Case | Settings |

|--------|----------|----------|

| WAV | Master/Stems | 48kHz, 24-bit |

| OGG | Game runtime | 128-192 kbps |

| MP3 | Backup/Preview | 320 kbps |

| MIDI | Interactive | Standard MIDI |

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┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐

│ PROBLEM: Loop has audible click/pop │

├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤

│ SOLUTIONS: │

│ → Ensure loop points are at zero-crossing │

│ → Add small crossfade (5-10ms) │

│ → Check reverb/delay tails │

│ → Verify exact sample alignment │

└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐

│ PROBLEM: Music doesn't fit game mood │

├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤

│ SOLUTIONS: │

│ → Create reference playlist with team │

│ → Start with temp music to establish mood │

│ → Get feedback on sketches before full production │

│ → Consider genre conventions │

└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐

│ PROBLEM: Transitions between music states jarring │

├─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤

│ SOLUTIONS: │

│ → Use same key/tempo across states │

│ → Add transition stingers │

│ → Crossfade on musical boundaries (bars) │

│ → Use stems to gradually add/remove layers │

└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

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MIDDLEWARE INTEGRATION:

┌─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐

│ DAW → Export Stems → Wwise/FMOD → Game Engine │

│ │

│ Stems typically: │

│ • Percussion │

│ • Bass │

│ • Harmony │

│ • Melody │

│ • FX/Stingers │

└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

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Use this skill: When composing game music, implementing audio systems, or creating interactive soundtracks.