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drum sound problems

Posted: Wed Nov 28, 2012 4:20 pm
by david.barker
Hi there :D

Been using Live for a year now,(time has flown by) 8O.But still having trouble setting up a good drum beat,this is so embarrassing :oops:

I came from Reason,previously,and had the same problem,lol

My music is ambient style,so tends to be chilled out.BPM is usually around 80 to 100, with 4/4 time.Im ok with using the midi editor,but maybe its my choice of drum sound? I dunno

Its no excuse,I know.But as I work shifts I don't get time to play around much.If I do, maybe I should focus on drum beats for a while to get a feel for that, :lol:

any help or advice,I would be greatful

Cheers

Re: drum sound problems

Posted: Wed Nov 28, 2012 4:43 pm
by simmerdown
not getting what the problem is, do you need some drum hits?

Re: drum sound problems

Posted: Wed Nov 28, 2012 5:01 pm
by david.barker
simmerdown wrote:not getting what the problem is, do you need some drum hits?
Hi Simmerdown

Im not good at explaining myself,signs of getting old,he,he :roll:

What I looking at is maybe my techniques of laying out beats and selection or choice of sounds?

or maybe Im using too much drum sounds together?

Re: drum sound problems

Posted: Wed Nov 28, 2012 5:07 pm
by simmerdown
do you have something up online, lets hear it, otherwise its just too hard to say anything

Re: drum sound problems

Posted: Wed Nov 28, 2012 6:25 pm
by david.barker
simmerdown wrote:do you have something up online, lets hear it, otherwise its just too hard to say anything
Not yet Simmerdown

When I get a minute I will sort out a link for my dropbox,and put the ALS file and MP3 there

Thanks for your help

Re: drum sound problems

Posted: Wed Nov 28, 2012 6:34 pm
by simmerdown
i suggest you just start a soundcloud, not many will take the time to download your track, comment, etc. (sorry but, me included)

Re: drum sound problems

Posted: Wed Nov 28, 2012 7:31 pm
by david.barker
simmerdown wrote:i suggest you just start a soundcloud, not many will take the time to download your track, comment, etc. (sorry but, me included)

I got a Soundcloud account already running :D

http://soundcloud.com/ambientdave

I have some completed tracks here,but tend not to make a public announcement of them. :D

Re: drum sound problems

Posted: Thu Nov 29, 2012 5:13 am
by wjbuchanan
Alright Dave, I learnt about creating drum tracks with a hardware step sequencer and I still find this much easier than using Live's MIDI editor.

I'm quite happy using the piano roll for chords or melody, but for some reason I just can't get a good beat down with software.

It's probably because there's a more physical element, and I can quickly edit the rhythm to my liking.

The "TR" style of step sequencer is really easy to understand (so called due to the famous Roland TR drums) as it's split up into 16 steps. Entering steps 1, 5, 9 and 13 would create a 4/4 kick drum

I would suggest having a look at something like the Electribe ER-1 or EMX, you could sync this up to Live using a USB MIDI adaptor and input the audio using the External Audio plugin.

The EMX comes with some good sounds already, the ER-1 is more of a drum synth.

Also, keep in mind that Ableton 9 will have "Audio to MIDI", which might allow you to use drum beats you hear elsewhere with your own kits.

Hope this helps...

Re: drum sound problems

Posted: Thu Nov 29, 2012 8:18 am
by david.barker
wjbuchanan wrote:Alright Dave, I learnt about creating drum tracks with a hardware step sequencer and I still find this much easier than using Live's MIDI editor.

I'm quite happy using the piano roll for chords or melody, but for some reason I just can't get a good beat down with software.

It's probably because there's a more physical element, and I can quickly edit the rhythm to my liking.

The "TR" style of step sequencer is really easy to understand (so called due to the famous Roland TR drums) as it's split up into 16 steps. Entering steps 1, 5, 9 and 13 would create a 4/4 kick drum

I would suggest having a look at something like the Electribe ER-1 or EMX, you could sync this up to Live using a USB MIDI adaptor and input the audio using the External Audio plugin.

The EMX comes with some good sounds already, the ER-1 is more of a drum synth.

Also, keep in mind that Ableton 9 will have "Audio to MIDI", which might allow you to use drum beats you hear elsewhere with your own kits.

Hope this helps...

Hi Buddy and thanks for that

Being a hobbyist musician,money is really tight,as well as space.I use Live rewired to Reason,sometimes.

In there is the Redrum,a step sequencer type drum machine.Maybe I could come off that,and use the midi in Live?

Looking forward to Live 9.The Audio to Midi is going to be a great help, (going to take a bit of saving to get the upgrade)

Going to focus on my drum stuff,like setting up,techniques etc,for a bit.See how things go.

Re: drum sound problems

Posted: Thu Nov 29, 2012 5:18 pm
by wjbuchanan
Tell me about it!

Yeah you could "rewire" Reason into Ableton, I did this once but wasn't very happy with the workflow...I try keep everything Ableton these days.

Have a look at this at this, I've heard people mention that it's good.

http://www.kvraudio.com/product/easy_dr ... _easytoolz

Re: drum sound problems

Posted: Thu Nov 29, 2012 6:12 pm
by simmerdown
heard your whole sc page...not the drums i would have chosen either, or many of the voices...but there are some very interesting sections to the tracks...not feelin it so much when 'dark' starts to cross over into...spooky

just one pov, just one listen...anyway, following now

Re: drum sound problems

Posted: Thu Nov 29, 2012 7:25 pm
by david.barker
simmerdown wrote:heard your whole sc page...not the drums i would have chosen either, or many of the voices...but there are some very interesting sections to the tracks...not feelin it so much when 'dark' starts to cross over into...spooky

just one pov, just one listen...anyway, following now
Thanks for visiting my Soundcloud page, this work is a first for me,as a non musician,the tracks are not for everyone,sure.
But any comments are always welcome,

Re: drum sound problems

Posted: Thu Nov 29, 2012 8:35 pm
by cpyatak
Hey there,

I also often rewire Live into Reason and some of the best beats I've written have been with the ReDrum. I also like to take, and tweak, beats found in Dr Rex.

That said, I'm with you, my achilles heel in production seems to be drums. You're not alone.

That said, I'm going to check out your sc page and see if I can make any suggestions.

Chris

Re: drum sound problems

Posted: Thu Nov 29, 2012 8:50 pm
by cpyatak
So I gave the stuff on your soundcloud page a listen and, well, there weren't many drums in there. Cool soundscapes, and the drums -- mostly kicks from what I heard -- seemed to work out well with the overall vibe of the tracks.

Dark ambient isn't really what I do, but I'm not sure what it is you'd like to be different.

Can you be more specific?

Chris

Re: drum sound problems

Posted: Thu Nov 29, 2012 8:53 pm
by simmerdown
(hope that dint come across to sharp,all filters off today, lol)