Strong drums with impulse

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leighbeynon
Posts: 207
Joined: Sat Feb 17, 2007 9:25 am

Strong drums with impulse

Post by leighbeynon » Mon Jan 10, 2011 9:34 pm

I really would love my drums to sound strong
not lifeless and weak,
I really don't have a constant technique I just throw reverb on a snare, sone timed aux fx some times direct , I can't get mh hats to sound smooth and not harsh too metalic.
Also need a strong kick, which I'm told blend 2 kicks one with low end one with body, never comes out well ,compression is another problem
or is it all eq, I read that cutting is best not boosting.
Of course you need to start with solid quality sounds but what general tips and guideline will help tighten and make my drums feel full?
I listen to some loops that only have a small amount of hits yet the loop sound full,
sorry this is dance music where beats are very important
LPB

Trypset
Posts: 868
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Location: Horticulture Dept., Texas A&M

Re: Strong drums with impulse

Post by Trypset » Tue Jan 11, 2011 6:32 am

what style you into?

before EQing I start with filtering inside of Impulse....i soley use impulse to make my drums....all routed out to individual channels.

By filtering i mean....snares get cut around 150-200 depending on the snare....all hats and other percussion get cut around 400.

To make the loop interesting look into velocity and groove. I also find that shortening the hits make it breathe more.

I rareley use just purely "samples" like from a pack or something. I have recorded my crate of vinyl and sucked out enough hits to make my own library. I have over 50GB of samples....yet I always go to the personally sampled hits sometimes layered with Goldbaby's tape machine drums....or any of the Goldbaby samples.

Heres what my drum sound like.....http://soundcloud.com/trypset

also, http://futuregarageforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=98 .............. read that multiple times and actually try to reproduce what is being talked about

but my biggest tip really is to sample your own grooves and drums from tunes you like and muck with them

$0.02 of course

also, mix around your kick and snare....dance music like you say is drum focused, so the other sounds must be mixed around the drums with the beat the first priority.
TrypseT
Live 8 Full (not suite), ES-1 MKII, Microkorg, MPC 1000, 2 1200's, Ms. Pinky's, OSX, Edirol FA-101, and a crate 'o' wax

leighbeynon
Posts: 207
Joined: Sat Feb 17, 2007 9:25 am

Re: Strong drums with impulse

Post by leighbeynon » Fri Jan 14, 2011 10:37 pm

Good tips I can't listen at the moment iPod touch won't run soundcloud
I try to make house I'll upload a loop I just made basic but maybe it's easier for you to point out what could be altered easily from my loop
I'm a little lost with compression and never get a good balance of reverb always sounds too much or so little
you cab hardly tell it has reverb on it
LPB

yur2die4
Posts: 7154
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Location: Menasha, Wisconsin
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Re: Strong drums with impulse

Post by yur2die4 » Fri Jan 14, 2011 11:14 pm

I'd suggest some really wild experimentation with the do's and don'ts. There are reasons why people have learned not to do such and such techniques. Often times it is from experience. They've had a time where they have made the mistake of having too much compression, or EQing the shit out of something. If anything, it'd teach you how to really wreck your dynamics (Which may one day come in handy!). Then, when something sounds like it is missing, you will already know the extremity of an option that you could apply, and you could apply it with art and subtlety.

This extra bit is slightly off the mark but, when it comes to say djing, or performance, or fx, I sometimes get excited about using 'tricks' like delay, beat repeat, reverbs, feedback, whatever. And, in order for me to learn how to apply it with restraint, I have to get out of my system the annoying constant overuse of it. Eventually I'd get sick of using it as a novelty, and begin applying it as a tool for the overall bigger picture :)

I guess when I do use Impulse, I'm usually just playing around but, I usually avoid the random parameters, I make good use of the filters. If something just won't bite, I add the Sat. I avoid stretching almost always!!, I tend to retain the sample's original pitch. I usually add a compressor, and EQ3 (not good practice :P), and then another compressor. The EQ3, I pump the bass to max, adjust the other levels, I tweak the freq of the bass knob. And then I'll either add a Saturator (my ghetto-limiter), and leave the rest of the work up to my master channel and return channels.

For a return channel, one thing that I've been trying out is adding a Saturator with ridiculous distortion settings. An EQ before it that is rolled off except for the super highs. And I'll just Send a LITTLE tiny bit of a channel into that to give it a crispy top-end.

I'd not recommend the previous two paragraphs, but the first two should be helpful.

Best of luck!

Remi D
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Joined: Fri Jan 14, 2011 12:40 am
Location: San Francisco
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Re: Strong drums with impulse

Post by Remi D » Fri Jan 14, 2011 11:29 pm

Of course layering is really helpful in getting a fuller sound but also did you know you can make a "power cord kick"?
Power cords are frequencies that amply/compliment themselves.

Here is the video on how to make one:


http://edmheaven.blogspot.com/2010/11/a ... -deep.html
Last edited by Remi D on Mon Jan 24, 2011 2:51 am, edited 1 time in total.
•º•º•º•º•º• http://EDMHeaven.blogspot.com •º•º•º•º•º•

Intermediate and Advanced tutorials for Ableton Live and Serato Scratch Live.

leighbeynon
Posts: 207
Joined: Sat Feb 17, 2007 9:25 am

Re: Strong drums with impulse

Post by leighbeynon » Sat Feb 05, 2011 6:59 pm

I'll upload a loop and maybe someone can point out some tips that would help in a general way
LPB

leighbeynon
Posts: 207
Joined: Sat Feb 17, 2007 9:25 am

Re: Strong drums with impulse

Post by leighbeynon » Tue Feb 08, 2011 10:43 am

maybe i just need some really low lever tams or shakers, but
this is my loop
http://www.sendspace.com/file/ik5s41

im looking to get it more like
mix 1
http://www.traxsource.com/index.php?act ... as=upfront



thank you leigh
LPB

Guff Tong
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Location: Warminster

Re: Strong drums with impulse

Post by Guff Tong » Tue Feb 08, 2011 11:36 am

I've been old-schooling it more and more recently: dropping 24 bit drum samples into the arrangement time line.

I have noticed a significant sound quality drop when the same samples are being played by a live device.(impulse,simpler, sampler, etc..)

Try it.

Why have a device diminish the sound then have to re-EQ/Compress the hell out of it to get it back?

For fat, punchy snares I use 3 hits; low, mid and clap. I then eq cut and unwanted frequencies, turn off quantise and nudge the hits back/forward slightly by ear to get some width and group them.

(Kicks simillar: one clicky one, one mid, one low...eq cut the unwanted....

I tend not to use compression and favour manual volume automation (old school again!)

(Ive got Battery and Kontakt also and they seem to represent the original sample better than lives devices do?)

NB: Were talking samples here of course, not operator drums...

leighbeynon
Posts: 207
Joined: Sat Feb 17, 2007 9:25 am

Re: Strong drums with impulse

Post by leighbeynon » Mon Feb 21, 2011 9:40 pm

What about new sample source ? Anyone recommend good sample CDs for quality drum hits ?
I think I'm ready for some fresh hits
I never used synth drums either would it make much difference?
LPB

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