How to create a fat kick drum ( Great Guide )

Nice Azz Read Pimp...Im gonna read it again...and that roland TR-808 goes for bout' a grand....I think I'd rather borrow some sugar and custimize it as you stress in yo' article........At least for now...

But I sho' would'nt mind that Roland TR-808 Drum Machine....Maybe One Day..
 
I dont see how layering and adjusting asdr's is overprocessing but i thought all that compression/eq is considered post-production.
 
Finding the right kick goes a long way in making everything sound good in the end. Sometimes the right sound could be a 707 kick with little bass and a lot of mid-range, or an 808 kick with a lot of bass, or an 808kick that doesn't have a lot of bass. Maybe an orchestral bass drum is the right sound.

If you're doing a lot of processing on a kick to later find that it doesn't sound good in a mix it was all a waste of time. It's best to have what you're going for in mind, then choosing the right sound for it. If the kick doesn't sound right to begin and you don't know how to use your tools then anything you do will change the sound but not necessarily make it better. If you have the right kick, and you know it sounds right, most of the mixing work later on is almost done.

Thing is, using the right sounds will go a long way and takes less time than learning how to use processors. Not that you shouldn't learn to process well but if for whatever reason you can never get compression and eq right, then finding the right sounds negates most of the need of processing.

In the article of the original post, if a person doesn't know how to pick the right sound to begin with, I wouldn't be suggesting they use a multi-band compressor or any other processor.
 
Before I Started Making Beats, I Used To Hear Mufukkas Cry Over How To Get Good Kicks...how Do I Get Better Kicks...
It Aint Really That Hard If You Know What A Effin' Bass Drum Sounds Like!! **** I Hear Old Recordings All The Time With Some Of The Worst Sounding Recorded Instruments...but They Are Legendary Because It's About The Overall Music, Not How Precise Every Little Thing Is!!!
Relax!
 
RewindMinez2x said:
Before I Started Making Beats, I Used To Hear Mufukkas Cry Over How To Get Good Kicks...how Do I Get Better Kicks...
It Aint Really That Hard If You Know What A Effin' Bass Drum Sounds Like!! **** I Hear Old Recordings All The Time With Some Of The Worst Sounding Recorded Instruments...but They Are Legendary Because It's About The Overall Music, Not How Precise Every Little Thing Is!!!
Relax!
Click to expand...
I think most people think it's that hard simply because they don't have good monitors. Good monitors = no surprises, then you start realizing a lil pitch adjust or raising a vol. knob is all most drums will ever need.
 
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I have to agree with derange, moses and sleepy on this one. There is an easy way and a hard way to get your drums to hit hard. I use to try the hard way but I eventually started using good samples, turning the volume down on eveyrhting else except the kick, an it did wonders. Add a little eq an maybe a little compression, if needed, and your good to go. There's no need to overprocess or waste a lot of time on stuff like that.
 
I've read every comment in this post because I am having the same concerns about making good drums. Personally, I don't get any enjoyment out of jacking drums straight off Dre or Em's CD's... I like to create when it comes to making music. Not to say you're lame if you do that, it's just my opinion. Now I also know that all samples had to come from somewhere so you might say that unless you record it yourself, you're jacking sounds anyway. Well... it's a little different in my book but whatever.

How about this, for all of you (and there were many) that said to use GOOD samples to begin with.... where are we suppsoed to get these good samples? Do these samples come from from Motif's and Fantom's? Do these samples come from sample websites? Do these samples come from libraries that come with samplers? I bought Battery 3 because it got good reviews for drums but I still am not happy with them no matter what I do.... and trust me, I've tried a lot of techniques..

I also saw that people mentioned good monitoring... What kind of monitors do you use for sub bass? Would you reccommend a subwoofer from one of the many pro audio names? Do you use club speakers? Do you use just near field monitors? How bout some more info on that? Let's expound on these suggestions...
 
Zacobe said:
How about this, for all of you (and there were many) that said to use GOOD samples to begin with.... where are we suppsoed to get these good samples? Do these samples come from from Motif's and Fantom's? Do these samples come from sample websites? Do these samples come from libraries that come with samplers? I bought Battery 3 because it got good reviews for drums but I still am not happy with them no matter what I do.... and trust me, I've tried a lot of techniques..

I also saw that people mentioned good monitoring... What kind of monitors do you use for sub bass? Would you reccommend a subwoofer from one of the many pro audio names? Do you use club speakers? Do you use just near field monitors? How bout some more info on that? Let's expound on these suggestions...
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"Good Drums" are subjective to the music you make. You should be able to find a retail set created by professionals that won't need much processing, but you have to look into what sound fits what you're trying to do.

The reason i don't recommend slurping drums from songs or "DR. Dre Kits" from eBay, is because they're ultimately the same sound you can get stock off an SP1200, MPC, Triton, Battery, ect. repackaged. The original source will most likely provide you a clean less compromised version of the exact same sound.

In all honesty, if you own the soundbank from Battery 3 and can't find any good drums in it, you most likely need monitoring to give perspective to the sounds you have.

Monitoring is essential in production. When dealing with hip hop and wanting to make drums :"knock" you're going to need to hear frequencies the "knock" appears on. If you're using small monitors the woofer most likely isn't wide enough to process low frequencies so you're hearing "pops" for really good drums while anything distinctive in your monitoring would most likely lack bass when played in anything else.

You want a freq range of at least 40hz-20khz but the wider the better. I'd invest into any audio outputs that have that range(bookshelves, PA Speakers, computer gaming speakers, ect.) before I invested in something that said "monitors" on the box that fell outside that range.
 
deRaNged 4 Phuk'dup said:
"Good Drums" are subjective to the music you make. You should be able to find a retail set created by professionals that won't need much processing, but you have to look into what sound fits what you're trying to do.

The reason i don't recommend slurping drums from songs or "DR. Dre Kits" from eBay, is because they're ultimately the same sound you can get stock off an SP1200, MPC, Triton, Battery, ect. repackaged. The original source will most likely provide you a clean less compromised version of the exact same sound.

In all honesty, if you own the soundbank from Battery 3 and can't find any good drums in it, you most likely need monitoring to give perspective to the sounds you have.

Monitoring is essential in production. When dealing with hip hop and wanting to make drums :"knock" you're going to need to hear frequencies the "knock" appears on. If you're using small monitors the woofer most likely isn't wide enough to process low frequencies so you're hearing "pops" for really good drums while anything distinctive in your monitoring would most likely lack bass when played in anything else.

You want a freq range of at least 40hz-20khz but the wider the better. I'd invest into any audio outputs that have that range(bookshelves, PA Speakers, computer gaming speakers, ect.) before I invested in something that said "monitors" on the box that fell outside that range.
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Thanks for your input. I've always wondered, and don't chastise me for this, but, the MPC comes with sounds? I never knew because I can't afford any decent hardware yet. I've been using VST's (all paid for) and a midi keyboard thus far.

As far as bass monitoring goes, I just replaced my tiny Samson 45a's for Samson A8's because it was the biggest woofer I could buy for the money I was going to spend. I also have a 12" Yamaha home theater sub hooked up to give me a "ball park" idea of what the sub bass is doing, but I don't know if it's helping me or hurting me (bc I've heard home theater audio's frequency response is tailored for movies/recreational listening). Not to mention I am doing all this in my room which is far from a good monitoring environment.

Looks like I've gone off on a tangent but my point can be explained by this: One day I cut a drum sample out of a song I liked, threw it on the track and analyzed it to see if I could reproduce it. My thinking was, if I could get close using all the techniques I know then I will have a good idea of how to get that knock I'm looking for on my own. I spent prob 5 hours doing this and just could not figure it out. I got kind of close but there was just this quality of the punch in the sampled drum I could not for the life of me reproduce and I couldn't figure out if it was because of the drums I decided to layer or if I didn't know how to properly process them to get the desired result. I even studied the wave form and looked for kicks in my sound bank that had similar qualities and went from there.

To make a long story longer, I refuse to quit! I'll get the sound I want sooner or later and I want to thank everyone who has contributed their knowledge to this website, because I have learned a lot from it. Keep on grinding!
 
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Breal: Way to keep an open mind

the other members of the 1k+ post club: smh, nothing wrong with beliefs, knowledge, or experience, however there is something wrong with forgetting you didn't know what a gate was when you started (or before). Nor have you NEVER got caught up on various hyped up buzzwords. It happens to all of us and some point in time, for some it still does....I could write a 20 page dissertation on another local producer I know. Derranged was right saying "knowing too much can make you appear stupid", but thats only because know it alls have closed minds because they know everything (or think they do). Whereas the beginners mind is constantly learning and evolving and therefore can surpass those who do have "too much knowledge" in the long run.

Besides music is just a form of expression and preference, both ideals can't be qualified as either "right" or "wrong" because its based on the creators feelings, beliefs, and theories. To trash someone else's inputs and contributions is a hostile action of ignorance and doesn't make you look, sound, or in this case write better than anyone else.

oh yeah heres a fun link that supports both sides though

http://www.google.com/search?rlz=1C...urceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8&q=using+gates+on+drums

Doesn't matter what you use, just make sure you use what you have to the best of your ability and to the fullest of its potential.

-CruX
 
Zacobe said:
I've read every comment in this post because I am having the same concerns about making good drums. Personally, I don't get any enjoyment out of jacking drums straight off Dre or Em's CD's... I like to create when it comes to making music. Not to say you're lame if you do that, it's just my opinion. Now I also know that all samples had to come from somewhere so you might say that unless you record it yourself, you're jacking sounds anyway. Well... it's a little different in my book but whatever.

How about this, for all of you (and there were many) that said to use GOOD samples to begin with.... where are we suppsoed to get these good samples? Do these samples come from from Motif's and Fantom's? Do these samples come from sample websites? Do these samples come from libraries that come with samplers? I bought Battery 3 because it got good reviews for drums but I still am not happy with them no matter what I do.... and trust me, I've tried a lot of techniques..

I also saw that people mentioned good monitoring... What kind of monitors do you use for sub bass? Would you reccommend a subwoofer from one of the many pro audio names? Do you use club speakers? Do you use just near field monitors? How bout some more info on that? Let's expound on these suggestions...
Click to expand...

Battery 3 comes with dope sounds...But IMO they are not your bread and butter type sounds for hip hop...There are some great percussion sounds and of course some nice kicks....But the stock library is not suited for head knocking hip hop...But you can find the best kicks in the weirdest places...Go through all the producers kits, everything u got...There are some jewels in there....
 
Axxe said:
Battery 3 comes with dope sounds...But IMO they are not your bread and butter type sounds for hip hop...There are some great percussion sounds and of course some nice kicks....But the stock library is not suited for head knocking hip hop...But you can find the best kicks in the weirdest places...Go through all the producers kits, everything u got...There are some jewels in there....
Click to expand...

I see. So where might I be able to find the bread and butter sounds fpr hip hop? It seems like people are avoiding the answer to that question lol Is that a key secret to producer success? The location of these sounds??
 
I only use stock drums. Filter, shorten and pitch my kicks when needed, no comp/eq/ect.). Ain't a "sound" I can't get.

Battery 3
FL Studio
Reason 4
Akai MPC
Korg Triton
MTV Music Genrator

That's my entire "stash" of drums.
 
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