tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-72692947287000814282024-03-13T15:46:46.838-04:00Re View: Reviews, Thoughts, Mixes of an Aspiring MusicianIlia Ilievhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04397568130056080926noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7269294728700081428.post-90269275223612155632010-06-24T22:15:00.002-04:002010-06-24T22:17:45.294-04:00Side VentureI bought a web site over the weekend called <a href="http://www.ox-eye.com">ox-eye.com</a>. I spent upwards of 2k on it when you include some minor stuff like hosting and renewing the domain and whatnot. The goal is to eventually get my money back, but we'll see how slow or if that happens at all.<div><br /></div><div>OTHERWISE, if you have your own web site then it's in your best interest to check this site out. It provides social bookmarking for other sites, so you can register (it's free no worries) and link your own site there.</div>Ilia Ilievhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04397568130056080926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7269294728700081428.post-16902658346839501292010-06-24T22:02:00.002-04:002010-06-24T22:10:00.569-04:00More recent thoughtsIt's been some time since I've posted. Believe it or not it's because I've been relatively busy with everything. This, luckily, includes DJ'ing and related shenanigans.<div><br /></div><div>A terrible mishap: my laptop died. the problem was a hard drive failure. The solution was a new hard drive, but the old one could not be recovered. Luckily, this only lost me about a month or two worth of new music, since all the stuff before that was backed up. Unluckily, this cost me a month or two of new music and I lost all my other new shit on my computer as well, like my resume (god that's a pain to create) and other documents and videos and probably porn.</div><div><br /></div><div>Here's an interesting thought, I sure hope that my serato scratch live crates and overviews are backed up on my external. I actually use an external for my serato library anyway, since it's the only thing big enough for my music, so I'm hoping all the structure for the library is on there as well. I'll probably post again with those results, which will possibly be after tomorrow since I have a biochem exam in the morning I'm not ready for.</div><div><br /></div><div>For other dj's out there that also prioritize school, you know where I'm at right now. I still do some parties for friends and shit, but other than that I'm all about the grades. I actually tried to get a job or two and the local "clubs," but if anyone else knows about Charlottesville, again you know where I'm at. This town is nice and all for living, but there's just about no club scene to speak of. There are a couple, but they're either not hiring or they're not hiring real dj's. One owner insists he can dj the place himself most nights. I'm friends with the manager there and it turns out he can't, but w/e he refuses to increase his costs and hire someone legit. Pretty much every other place just hires wack ass guys that have the gear but lack the talent/skill and just do bad mixes and bad crowd reads. They probably only want peanuts in exchange though, so I guess it makes the world go round (really fucks up my partying though). If there's one thing I hate is going to a club where I know the dj is getting paid and hearing him fuck shit up. Everyone makes mistakes I get it, but within reason AMIRIGHT. I wouldn't be fucking up my mixes up there that's for sure.</div>Ilia Ilievhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04397568130056080926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7269294728700081428.post-6402472459599208622009-01-25T19:24:00.000-05:002009-01-25T19:25:56.100-05:00Best Freestyle RappersLately been looking up freestyle raps. This guy has a good description of his favorites which I dig.<br /><br />http://listlunatic.com/top-10-best-freestyle-rappers/<br /><br />Look up some Big L freestyles, that guy is dope.Ilia Ilievhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04397568130056080926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7269294728700081428.post-88809664363745912872008-12-11T11:42:00.002-05:002008-12-11T11:53:32.457-05:00Girl Talk's Feed The AnimalsWhen Girl Talk released his newest album titled Feed The Animals you could download it from his website in exchange for any donation and a donation of over $10 would net you a flesh-and-blood copy in the mail. My copy came recently, and by recently I mean it came probably a few months ago but being in college I didn't actually get to hear it until I found it in my stack of mail at home the other day. <br /><br />The mixes are good, everything is clean, sounds good together. Overall, Greg's done it again. But what would a blog entry be without a little bit of criticism, eh? Compared to his previous album, Night Ripper, I'd have to say I like this one a little less. <br /><br />Actually, I like the first part of Feed The Animals, but once it starts trailing off into obscure songs and everything starts sounding the same I lose interest. That's one thing Night Ripper didn't do: for almost all of its duration the album kept me focused on the music. <br /><br />Even though both albums feature songs blended into each other very well, to me the songs blended in Night Ripper just flow very well, while the FTA songs seem to be themed so differently at times that even though mathematically they work. . . they just don't. Metallica and that lip gloss song come to mind, as well as a few others: yes they were perfectly mixed but seriously. . .<br /><br />Here's a link to the Illegal Art site where you can find Girl Talk's work:<br /><br />http://illegalart.net/mainindex.htmlIlia Ilievhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04397568130056080926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7269294728700081428.post-46194599730683145082008-12-07T12:18:00.003-05:002008-12-07T12:32:27.052-05:00Numark DXM09 Digital DJ MixerI've gone through a period of time where I've been saving up for new stuff. Here is one of those recent purchases:<br /><br />Numark DXM09 Digital DJ Mixer<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8lmVoL2ydSq1Vd_S1IvHCI7xVmebhhWK2sRSQ2_F7ZonAzdQFi3ElFVx7Vvw6MMSz7Xn-up2Vwz3zZ4Ejdjov20vURDwEx_PzCC_FyTReYtVpoyo8Zo8R2JtxKVfRtVsYZrg-fh6NhW4/s1600-h/233894jpg.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 264px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg8lmVoL2ydSq1Vd_S1IvHCI7xVmebhhWK2sRSQ2_F7ZonAzdQFi3ElFVx7Vvw6MMSz7Xn-up2Vwz3zZ4Ejdjov20vURDwEx_PzCC_FyTReYtVpoyo8Zo8R2JtxKVfRtVsYZrg-fh6NhW4/s320/233894jpg.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5277100147746062738" border="0" /></a>Some specs:<br />3 channels<br />3 band EQ with kills<br />RCA and 1/4" balanced outputs<br />RCA inputs<br />lots of headphone functions<br />smooth crossfader<br />several effects like echo, flange, phaser, etc.<br /><br />I purchased this Numark as a sort of entry-level mixer. In the short time I've had to play with it I believe it's a quality product for its price. The fader is smooth and the knobs and functions are all easy to find and get used to. Sound output also seems good. Since I don't have a more expensive mixer to compare to I can't make that comparison, but I doubt the difference in quality would be anything to write home about. <br /><br />I'm also trying to get better at scratching and this mixer is keeping up with that goal. As smoothly as everything runs the only limiter at this point is my own ability. <br /><br />Overall: Great mixer for the price. Not as many effects as the higher versions but quality built in to everything it does have, which is enough for me at the moment.Ilia Ilievhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04397568130056080926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7269294728700081428.post-77115236072618968132008-11-19T15:46:00.002-05:002008-11-19T15:54:55.815-05:00Guess What Sucks Now: The iPod ClassicI recently got an 80GB iPod Classic to have a second backup of all my music, and be able to listen to stuff on the go. Bad choice.<br /><br />Seems like all the new classics that came out after the touch was released are a little quirky... and not in a cool way either. The wheel is very insensitive and there's no way to really fix that. Especially when you have 80/80GB filled like on mine, sometimes I spend ridiculously long trying to get from one end of a list to the other because the wheel keeps screwing up and the iPod never goes into that fast scrolling mode. Also, some of the screens take a while to load sometimes and a few times it even just froze on the main screen and I had to reset it. All in all, definitely not terrible, but if you have other options then they're probably much better.Ilia Ilievhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04397568130056080926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7269294728700081428.post-66902460011879137192008-11-18T15:09:00.002-05:002008-11-18T15:18:08.836-05:00Serato Scratch LiveI recently had the chance to try out a setup that was using Scratch Live and all I can say is 'awesome.'<br /><br />I'm not going to go into details; you can find that stuff anywhere on the web. Instead, here's why I'm about to buy Serato.<br /><br />So far I've been using cd's to mix, but this is getting really tiresome. Sure, it beats carrying around crates of vinyl, but binders of cd's isn't that cool either. Also, I've always had a craving to spin vinyl. Also, the price of Scratch has gone down and I recently made some extra cash subjecting myself to health studies, so what the hell. No more needing a good cd burner to put all my music in discs separated by genre's and all that; hell, no more needing to constantly waste my time on cd's at all. <br /><br />I know you can get Scratch to work with Vista and all, but honestly, Vista has been causing me enough problems as it is. Random crashes and bugs... can't have that if my laptop is going to be vital to the show. Going to downgrade to XP soon. Luckily I have two external drives I can use to back up my music twice, but maybe I'm going to have to dump the most used folders onto the laptops drive just in case latency becomes an issue. Honestly I have no idea if running music off an external will be noticeably different from running it straight off the laptop, but we'll find out.Ilia Ilievhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04397568130056080926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7269294728700081428.post-22646542549033053162008-05-02T13:37:00.002-04:002008-05-02T13:40:32.956-04:00Yes it has been a whileHere's something I put together last night while delaying studying for finals. It's Usher's love in this club with a (i think) better intro from Three 6 Mafia's I'd Rather. I'd love criticism or comments; it's not done per say but I probably won't finish it anytime soon. <br /><br />Also, don't play this anywhere or sell it or whatever else you may do. I made this for enjoyment and don't especially want to get in trouble over it.<br /><br />http://rapidshare.com/files/112042198/i_d_rather_have_some_love.mp3.htmlIlia Ilievhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04397568130056080926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7269294728700081428.post-64661910444386375112008-01-31T11:49:00.000-05:002008-01-31T11:51:44.351-05:00Timbaland vs Ciara vs Kanye vs Missy ElliottI decided to add onto the mix I made yesterday. So far it sounds pretty good; the only thing I have a serious issue with is the fact that the version of Lose Control I have has lower volume vocals than the rest of the songs so I'll have to fix that, but school is temporarily more important so it'll be in a bit maybe...<br /><br />Here's what I have so far. It changes to what I did today at around 3:30<br />http://rapidshare.com/files/88105835/timbaland_v_ciara_v_kanye_v_missy_elliott.mp3.html<br /><br />If the link goes dead (after a month of inactivity) just leave a comment and I'll fix it right away.Ilia Ilievhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04397568130056080926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7269294728700081428.post-65972449597625773502008-01-30T20:03:00.001-05:002008-01-30T20:06:09.206-05:00Timbaland vs. CiaraHere's my newest concoction of The Way I Are and 1, 2 Step. It sounds good... but at the same time I feel like something isn't right. Guess my skills just need some work.<br /><br />http://rapidshare.com/files/87958968/timbaland_vs._ciara.mp3.html<br /><br />If the file isn't downloaded for over a month Rapidshare deletes it; if this happens just email me or post a comment and I'll upload it probably within the day.Ilia Ilievhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04397568130056080926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7269294728700081428.post-19341167683972722008-01-29T18:16:00.000-05:002008-01-29T19:05:49.341-05:00The Verve vs. The Yin Yang TwinsI was just in the mood to mix some music and wasn't sure what I felt like mashing up. Anyway, if you've ever listened to Girl Talk you probably know that on the first track of Night Ripper there are a few seconds of these two songs together and it sounds awesome so I decided to make it a fullout mix.<br /><br />You can download the file here:<br />http://rapidshare.com/files/87689952/bittersweet_whisper_song_v2.mp3.html<br /><br />As always, the link goes dead after a month of no downloads so just email me and I'll put it right back up as well as send you the file over email. I check my email very regularly so there's no worries there... or you could leave a comment here I check this blog often too...Ilia Ilievhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04397568130056080926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7269294728700081428.post-90414936908778673162008-01-17T16:22:00.000-05:002008-12-09T13:38:46.122-05:00Review: Behringer Europower EP2500<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixz-UFmOcJyAAa1eW5_9-6hoaZ03dn86zy-6ycXRMMSiZako_RtEE1Vlk3yLTif_5X6qRTC9pt2Chln_xP_NWmFI1lBy83zxEAgY6VzkZvmCguUjdesw5cUhKgZvZr97SwQPOEY0hj_uk/s1600-h/633165952074333986.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixz-UFmOcJyAAa1eW5_9-6hoaZ03dn86zy-6ycXRMMSiZako_RtEE1Vlk3yLTif_5X6qRTC9pt2Chln_xP_NWmFI1lBy83zxEAgY6VzkZvmCguUjdesw5cUhKgZvZr97SwQPOEY0hj_uk/s320/633165952074333986.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5156566702278048018" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><br />The Behringer EP2500 constitutes my most recent audio purchase. Here are some quick stats on it that are straight from the booklet that came with it:<br /><br />20 Hz - 20 kHz @.1% THD, both channels driven:<br />8 ohms per channel: 450 W<br />4 ohms per channel: 650 W<br />Bridged Mono:<br />8 ohms per channel, 20 Hz - 20 kHz: 1300 W<br /><br />You can find the rest of the specifications, as well as much more, in the .pdf version of the manual here: http://rapidshare.com/files/84609418/Behringer_Power_Amps.pdf.html<br />(If this file becomes removed, which it will after a month of no downloads, simply send me an email and I'll re-up it and send you a copy. Alternatively, you can probably find it easily if you search.)<br /><br />I am using this power amp to power both of my custom speakers. I'll make sure to take some pictures of them eventually, but for now you can just take my word for it. This amp is by far the best power and quality for the money. You can probably tell by now that I like to invest my money in the best item for its price range. Anyway, When I bought my speakers, the guy that made them told me they can run at up to 800 W and peak out at about 3200 W. This shows that since my speakers can handle the EP2500, any problems with sound should be coming from the other equipment or my audio source. After hooking up the amp and turning it up to just below clipping, the sound quality coming out of my speakers was great. The amp also has different settings for cutting out low frequencies that might damage speakers, etc.<br /><br />Another perk to this power amp is that it outputs both speakon and regular audio cable, which is great for me since my speakers use the latter. It also has both XLR and 1/4" inputs, an option most power amps lack. So you say that the unbalanced 1/4" connector can provide a loss of sound quality if there is interference? Yes, it can. The flip side is, most people keep their power amp very close to where they are working to begin with (I have mine right next to all my stuff), so the distance from your source to the amp is extremely small. Over a small distance like that it's very unlikely that the signal will be muddled, and, frankly, 1/4" cables are much cheaper and easier to replace should anything happen.<br /><br />Most people argue that Behringer sound quality is lower than similar products. This is true to an extent, since obviously they can't offer more power at a lower price just like that, but the fact of the matter is that the difference is almost negligent. If you have an extra couple hundred dollars to spend for a different brand power amp of the same power rating, great. Otherwise, the Behringer products are a perfect choice.<br /><br />Once I get up enough money to purchase a sub or two, you can bet that I'll be using a Behringer to power them. For the best bang for your buck I gladly give Behringer power amps a 10/10.Ilia Ilievhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04397568130056080926noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7269294728700081428.post-66895305747295092982008-01-15T13:04:00.000-05:002008-12-09T13:38:46.242-05:00Review: Alesis Multimix 8 USBFor my first post I'd like to talk about the mixer I recently purchased: the Alesis Multimix 8 USB.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAxrmi-ePG-1hLsnq_u8WpeE4K8oXXoo0gFJeU_Pz_zezIRigSUH6tzYoPu_eV33O6EFPfWrMnxcFD5jDO5gh5DrfeVDBwqa7cXLUTIAdiPqdqbZ1Rjsa-T5a4a68yeZsaJI0fDTPm_6E/s1600-h/440386jpg.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAxrmi-ePG-1hLsnq_u8WpeE4K8oXXoo0gFJeU_Pz_zezIRigSUH6tzYoPu_eV33O6EFPfWrMnxcFD5jDO5gh5DrfeVDBwqa7cXLUTIAdiPqdqbZ1Rjsa-T5a4a68yeZsaJI0fDTPm_6E/s320/440386jpg.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5155767804001253634" border="0" /></a><br />Specs:<br />8 channels (4 instrument/mic line-in with gain, 2 stereo line ins, 1 stereo aux send with 2 stereo aux returns, 1 stereo RCA in and out, headphone jack, stereo main mix out and stereo control room out)<br />USB connection to computer<br />100 options of sound effects like flange and delay<br />EQ for each channel<br />Phantom power for mic<br /><br />So I bought this mixer with the hope that I would expand my talents to controlling my up and coming band's sound output and just generally making things sound and work better. Right off the bat I have to say that this mixer is the best thing I've ever spent $150 on.<br /><br />The most important thing for me it turns out is the USB capabilities. When connected to my Dell laptop, the multimix acts as an external sound card: everything i play on my computer can be outputted straight into the mixer with no noticeable latency and any music from any device plugged into the mixer can be sent to my laptop. This opened up so opportunity for me to start making my own recordings.<br /><br />The multimix is also the reason I got into dj'ing in the first place. After realizing I could output anything from my computer with such good quality and sound control I started messing around with mixing music. I now use the multimix as my external sound card during dj shows as well as band shows (during band shows, in addition to running most of the instruments through it i sometimes use it to add flavor to the mix with sounds and effects from my laptop).<br /><br />One thing I have noticed does not work with the multimix for me is plugging a mic into any of the non XLR inputs. Technically sound does go through, but the volume is so insanely low when compared to the rest of the mix that its entirely inaudible. The only mic I currently own, however, only has a 1/4" plug so I will assume that the mixer lets mics sound good if they're plugged into their actual XLR slot.<br /><br />Compared to other more expensive mixers, the multimix 8 definitely comes with less capabilities, but for its very affordable price, nothing even comes close in terms of value. This is why I rank the multimix at...<br /><br />10/10 for quality on a budgetIlia Ilievhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04397568130056080926noreply@blogger.com0