4 or 8bar seqences

D

dolla bill

Guest
wat up fam just wondering if do any one think its better to structure your beat with 8bar sequences ive been doing in 4bar and it seem to they stay kinda plain if i go up to 8 will it give me more to be flexible with my drums......thank in advance
 
It doesn;t matter really...if you're worried about variation in the drums, you can always use 4 bars and just make a few different patterns. Or you can do a few 8 bar patterns. Personally, in the last few months I started doing 32 bars. This gives me a whole lot of flexibility!
 
What's wrong with a bunch of 1bar loops, 2bar loops even 3 bars? the amount of bars you use doesn't dictate how plain a track is. You do.

Look at premo, dude has made sick beats just looping 2 Bars.
 
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O ok thanks for the feed back just do different in what i been doing i think ill try 8 bars
 
the most important thing is.....does it sound right to you? I usually always start off with 4 bar loops but if it starts sounding crazy or the melody im using dont sound right with it than ill move it up to a 8 bar. but like homey said it really dont matter and the most important thing is.....have fun!!!
 
I do what I feel is right for the particular track. I place my drums last most of the time. Reason being is when I start off, I'll have something particular going for everything, but as I place my adlibs in, I'll find that things end up being a little different than what I pictured in the first place. Then, I place my drums, and make my patterns however I feel they should be. Sometimes 4, sometimes 8... etc. It's just whatever goes with what I'm looking for.
 
when i originally started out...so many eons ago...i didn't even use patterns. i would just make the whole beat using one pattern, and freak it like you would using the piano roll on mtv music generator 1! (yeah...i know right) after i finally started using the patterns to make the beat...i was initially using just 4 bar patterns...but quickly learned that the 8 bar pattern was more to my liking. if you use the 8 bar pattern, it does give you more options as well as space to do more variations. so...it's really up to you, and what you feel would work best!
 
zionproductions said:
It doesn;t matter really...if you're worried about variation in the drums, you can always use 4 bars and just make a few different patterns. Or you can do a few 8 bar patterns. Personally, in the last few months I started doing 32 bars. This gives me a whole lot of flexibility!
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32 bars!?! god damn dude, thats crazy, 16 should be more than enough
 
honestly, it all depends on what you are trying to make and what effect you are trying to get....

remember...just because you use all the crayons in your box does not mean that your picture will be pretty...

-Lodger
 
^^Agreed. Although most of the "foundation" of your beat won't really ever go beyond 16 bars (and in most cases 8), it really just depends on where you let your composition take you.
 
i use to do 4 also but found it was a tad bit more werk for me to make a whole buncha patterns for snares and breaks so i start doing 8s and having like 4 patterns for snares if i wanna get my drummer on real quick.. but yeh i try to stick to 8 but it all depends on the track. this guy in my area wanted me to make him a beat in 12 so u never kno jus keep it funky
 
Try a combo of 4, 8, 16 and 32 bars for a more flowing feel. Having all the tracks in your song the same amount of bars will make it sound rigid, even if they are all 32 bars long.
 
what i tend to do lately is take a 4 or 8 bar loop, copy paste it then change the end of the new part. then copy all that and change that end. so youll end up with a 16 or 32 bar sequence with differences in places.
 
dolla bill said:
wat up fam just wondering if do any one think its better to structure your beat with 8bar sequences ive been doing in 4bar and it seem to they stay kinda plain if i go up to 8 will it give me more to be flexible with my drums......thank in advance
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i loop four bars........but that's just me.

then dump >>>into my HD3 rig from my sequencer....depending on which mode on the workstation(s) i am sequenceing in. Motif , Triton
use what you feel comfortable with...there is no "right" bar count.

if you feel comfortable sequencing 8, 16 or 32 then that's what makes you happy.

i use 4 because its alot easier for me to compose an entire melody quickly.

then once i am complete, dump them over all at once.

.
 
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My personal way for bars is i find my clap i wanna use, set up a 4 bar loop, then kick is either 4 or 8 depending on song type(house/techno no point going beyond 4) and then I like to use 4 bar main melodies butt other voices in the mix can have any range of bars to make it fresh.
 
Yeah, it doesn't matter. 4 or 8 bars. Depends on a couple things for me. Some days it's 4, some days it's 8. I hardly ever do 16 anymore. If you're composing hip hop, then I would suggest 4 bars. This kind of ensures that you don't over do it, especially when beginning a piece. Hip hop is best when it's simple. Less is more.

www.myspace.com/mastamndbeats
 
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xtrordinare said:
32 bars!?! god damn dude, thats crazy, 16 should be more than enough
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you're actually right...they are 16 "normal bars", but I use double normal rap tempos...my fav tempos are 150 (75) - 190 (90)...it's 32 bars at this tempo, though...and you're right, that is plenty.

I don't know why, but I get better grooves going on the Triton when doubling the tempo...
 
ThaBeastman said:
house/techno no point going beyond 4
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bad house/techno won't go beyond 4 bars lol

If you wish to avoid sounding repetitive/computerish then going beyond is vital ;)
 
VexaDJ said:
bad house/techno won't go beyond 4 bars lol

If you wish to avoid sounding repetitive/computerish then going beyond is vital ;)
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It depends what instrument, if you ask me.

Kicks/Claps etc....why bother having a 9 bar loop of k/kc/k/kc.....
but for the various synths etc and hats obviously dont use the same 4 bar loops!!!!

The one way I like using 4 bar loop is in a break down..but the 4 bar loop slowly ups in tempo until it reaches a crescendo and breaks into the next section. Pumps the club up like hell....E-heads love their buildups :D
 
easiest way really is a four bar loop copy paste add a few changes here there, copy paste again and do the same thing...now you have 16 bar drumloop to work with...

if you using computer you can do it in a few minutes
 
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