DRUM TECHNIQUES 4 DA MPC

@Charles your approach is different from mines. Yeah l thought you went 12bit on our azzez lol But it sounded dope.

The Diana Ross sample l gave had so many chops throughout it, it was a dream to work with. The loop l had, l had to chop that and put it together. If dudes think that it was like that they are wrong. It had to be modified and fixed smoothly. Put my own drums in it and go. I was shocked it came out good cause l aint did no real choppin since like 2004, l do musuc so much it didn't makeba difference l guess.

The sample you gave l had a field day on. Im always choppin drums. Yours were nice l chopped them and kept them thanks for the free drums Now l did have to clean them up. I had fun doing it. Reason time stretch OMG is dope!

For the kick l did a sign chaun but on the second kick l used an effect called THUMP. I rolled off the highs and tweaked the lower frequencies until it sounded like bass. Then blended it with the kick so tge kick would have thump to it and it worked. I just had figured. that out from the battle. I usually play my bass out but that was easier. Fabfilter Pro EQ 2 is the best. You're able to pull up a piano roll in it so you can adjust the frequency of your sound to the pitch of that music is in. Dope! Funny thing is l even put a regular bass in it. EQed that and the frequencies never crashed. People but bass rider so the bass can duck when the kick comes in..... Man you don't need all that. Knowing how to EQ the kick and bass make it sound better.

That's why l am all DAW. Im inspired by what l have and you're right its faster. Reason's sequencer has caught up to the MPC's sequencer.

Danoc wrote:For the kick l did a sign chaun but on the second kick l used an effect called THUMP. I rolled off the highs and tweaked the lower frequencies until it sounded like bass. Then blended it with the kick so tge kick would have thump to it and it worked. I just had figured. that out from the battle. I usually play my bass out but that was easier. Fabfilter Pro EQ 2 is the best. You're able to pull up a piano roll in it so you can adjust the frequency of your sound to the pitch of that music is in. Dope! Funny thing is l even put a regular bass in it. EQed that and the frequencies never crashed. People but bass rider so the bass can duck when the kick comes in..... Man you don't need all that. Knowing how to EQ the kick and bass make it sound better.

That's why l am all DAW. Im inspired by what l have and you're right its faster. Reason's sequencer has caught up to the MPC's sequencer.

Yeah I don't do all that ducking stuff, I just write the bass and drum so they go together. Select the proper drum and bass tones then everything just fits. I like the Fabfilter Pro EQ.

When l saw all that ducking crap l was like nah there's a better way and it is. You can have the bass duck the kick through EQing. But its smoother. We have to teach the younger gen some of these techniques.

MIXING DRUM TECHNIQUES: By Rah Da N.O.C.
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Here are the steps ine should follow if you're all over the place mixing and need guidance to have an in order mixing technique.
My list below in order:

1. Kick, when you start off mixing start with the kick. Solo it, it should be mono because its the main backbone along with the snare and helps get an even level when mono. Cut high frequencies of the kick to set the tone you want. I use Peak/RMS And aim for 0.00db. Pic below:

Illustration 1. A


Your main goal is to build everything around the kick as best as possible. This will take time to get this just to adjust your ears to.

2. Snare, adjust your snare never equal or above the kick. It should be at least -3 db below the kick. EQ it if you have experience doing so. Use your ears. It ciuld be mono or stereo.

3. Bass, this should be mono to help the kick drive the drum rhythm. You can add a little reverb to preceive as though it's stereo. The bass should not be louder than the kick. If your kick us at 0.00db your bass should be somewhere around - 13db. Use your ears. If the kick us not hiting constantly throughout the drums that kick should be louder. If the kick has more presence in the drum you should give the bass a preceived loudness over the kick. Balance is key.

4. Vocals, you mix all your vocals i.e. main vocals, ablibs, background stacks etc around the kick, snare and bass. If you don't have vocals skip this step and go to #5.

5. Melodic sounds, main chords mix this with the drums. Shouldn't be louder than the drums. Your melodies should be mixed around the drums and chords. Guitars, Harps, apprigators, synths, Strings etc.

6. Percussion sounds, Hihats, cabasa, congas, chimes, crash cymbals etc is done last. Pan these in pockets of the track in the stereo field to give balance to the track. Your kick, snare and bass should always reside in the middle of the track.

Gain staging is the best results for a great mix, that's another technique that helps with mixing. Balance is the key to a great mix.

CharlesRandolph wrote:They have that long ass low pass filter piano loop, over some thin ass drums, with a high passed filtered horn with a delay effect. Don't forget that same, pitched down bass sound with rolled off highs.

Damn, this almost sounds like me

Danoc wrote:When l saw all that ducking **** l was like nah there's a better way and it is. You can have the bass duck the kick through EQing. But its smoother. We have to teach the younger gen some of these techniques.

Yes, proper arrangement and instrument selection makes mixing a much easier process.

CharlesRandolph wrote:They have that long ass low pass filter piano loop, over some thin ass drums, with a high passed filtered horn with a delay effect. Don't forget that same, pitched down bass sound with rolled off highs.

Menco wrote:Damn, this almost sounds like me

Many prescribe to that technique, which works but it can become formulaic and predictable. The key is to be artistically aware and throw in some twist and turns. Refine, Maintain, and Evolve.

CharlesRandolph wrote:

Menco wrote:Damn, this almost sounds like me

Many prescribe to that technique, which works but it can become formulaic and predictable. The key is to be artistically aware and throw in some twist and turns. Refine, Maintain, and Evolve.

This goes basically for any technique.

Eventhough I love to work in that realm, I intentionally take sidesteps when walking that path, like ‘oh, here most people would lay down delayed horn stabs. Let me try to mess with some guitar plucks, or lay down a complete horn melody’.

"Yes, proper arrangement and instrument selection makes mixing a much easier process."

Indeed. I hope to give out certain steps at a time. I'd feed a baby , baby food not meat yet.
Not over instrument a track keep it simple. I have a guaranteed formula for that. Works every time.

Menco wrote:This goes basically for any technique.

Eventhough I love to work in that realm, I intentionally take sidesteps when walking that path, like ‘oh, here most people would lay down delayed horn stabs. Let me try to mess with some guitar plucks, or lay down a complete horn melody’.

Yes it does. That is what it takes for a person to develop their own sonic signature. I was shown that basic technique from soul and jazz producer. Which is basically what people are trying to reproduce, but it really depends on the listening format, because Tape, Vinyl, Digital, all respond differently.

Danoc wrote:Indeed. I hope to give out certain steps at a time. I'd feed a baby , baby food not meat yet.
Not over instrument a track keep it simple. I have a guaranteed formula for that. Works every time.

Funny thing is that where I start. Instrument Selection, Compositions, and Arrangement. Master that and mixing becomes a simple process. Personally, I feel the majority of music is over processed now. Knowing when to leave something alone and when to tweak it.

Eyalc wrote: General rule of thumb for some mixing approaches, you should hear the hi hat hit on top of the kick, but not on top of the snare. If you do, chances are your hi hat is too loud, or needs high end rolled off. Once I have all three done, I bring back in the bass to reference them together.

This right here. +1000

"Funny thing is that where I start. Instrument Selection, Compositions, and Arrangement. Master that and mixing becomes a simple process. Personally, I feel the majority of music is over processed now. Knowing when to leave something alone and when to tweak it".


Also where those instruments should be i the stereo field. Whether they should be i.e. upfront or sitting in the back etc. A person should study the position of instruments of a band looking towards the crowd. Study an orchestra and all the instruments. From the Timpani, Bassons, Violins, Clarinet, flutes, Harps etc.

Adding space using reverbs is important also.

Danoc wrote:"Funny thing is that where I start. Instrument Selection, Compositions, and Arrangement. Master that and mixing becomes a simple process. Personally, I feel the majority of music is over processed now. Knowing when to leave something alone and when to tweak it".


Also where those instruments should be i the stereo field. Whether they should be i.e. upfront or sitting in the back etc. A person should study the position of instruments of a band looking towards the crowd. Study an orchestra and all the instruments. From the Timpani, Bassons, Violins, Clarinet, flutes, Harps etc.

Adding space using reverbs is important also.

A + 1000 I also would like to add frequencies. Where should those instruments be frequency wise. Since I got smarter at utilising above mentioned techniques, my mixing got better and my drums started to sound way better as well. (Not yet how I want them to be, but that's another post)

I used to really, really suck at mixing. Especially drums. So much that it took away the pleasure of making beats. My drums where never present in the mix. So I always added a lot of volume to my drums, pushing back the other instruments, which I turned up louder in return and so on. Compressing all the life out of the drums in an attempt to have them cut through.

Giving every instrument it's own place in the stereo field and frequency spectrum and choosing/ shaping sounds accordingly really improved my overall sound. Probably for vets like you daily bread and butter, but very important techniques for intermediate producers to master.

I've always been a fan of Premiers drums. Definitely present and knocking without being over processed. I heard him say during an interview that he rarely uses compression on his drums while mixing, but uses mostly EQ to get desired results. When I started to experiment with that technique and saw the logic behind it a lot of things became so much more clear. Place and room instead of level.

Back in the day late 90s ect i had some producer friends that said they did not use compression rather rode the faders in the mix.Sounds very old school and pure compared to these plug in times.....

YES SIR!!!!!!

The key to a great mix is great room treatment and or flat frequency headphones.
I use Sennheiser 600 HD to mix.
I use ATH 50X headphones to make the track.

What many are missing from the most important technique of all when mixing is GAIN STAGING! The BUSSING technique , once you learn that technique you will hear a big difference.

I don't use any compression. Im inside the box my sounds won't have noise floor that's one of the reasons l have no outboard gear. My sounds are easy to mix. I heard a pro say "COMPRESSION IS THE WORSE THING INVENTED FOR MUSIC". Im going to do a complete gain staging video one day. I have ine up on YT but lve learned more and giving the proper way to EQ.

Menco wrote:
Also where those instruments should be i the stereo field. Whether they should be i.e. upfront or sitting in the back etc. A person should study the position of instruments of a band looking towards the crowd. Study an orchestra and all the instruments. From the Timpani, Bassons, Violins, Clarinet, flutes, Harps etc.

Adding space using reverbs is important also.

A + 1000 I also would like to add frequencies. Where should those instruments be frequency wise. Since I got smarter at utilising above mentioned techniques, my mixing got better and my drums started to sound way better as well. (Not yet how I want them to be, but that's another post)

I used to really, really suck at mixing. Especially drums. So much that it took away the pleasure of making beats. My drums where never present in the mix. So I always added a lot of volume to my drums, pushing back the other instruments, which I turned up louder in return and so on. Compressing all the life out of the drums in an attempt to have them cut through.

Giving every instrument it's own place in the stereo field and frequency spectrum and choosing/ shaping sounds accordingly really improved my overall sound. Probably for vets like you daily bread and butter, but very important techniques for intermediate producers to master.

I've always been a fan of Premiers drums. Definitely present and knocking without being over processed. I heard him say during an interview that he rarely uses compression on his drums while mixing, but uses mostly EQ to get desired results. When I started to experiment with that technique and saw the logic behind it a lot of things became so much more clear. Place and room instead of level.[/quote]

dryad-66 wrote:Back in the day late 90s ect i had some producer friends that said they did not use compression rather rode the faders in the mix.Sounds very old school and pure compared to these plug in times.....

Yep. I don't use it either. I did use it only to help the kick duck whenever the bass came in. Now l don't use it because l use a technique of EQing to do that. The bass and kick blend so sweet together.