Sampling your own kit

Discuss the various methods you use in music production, from compressor settings to equipment type.
 Reply Share on Facebook

Sampling your own kit

By HamboneJr Wed Dec 07, 2011 8:32 pm
I'd like to build my own drum kit with my own samples but I'm having a hard time. I cant get a good snare sample, or any drum sample for that matter. There's always something else going on with it or another drum hitting right after making the sample sound shitty. How do professional producers get perfect samples from recorded music? A tutorial would help a lot if you know one.
User avatar

Re: Sampling your own kit

By mr_debauch Wed Dec 07, 2011 8:37 pm
because they dont have to sound perfect... sometimes raw and rugged... is the way to go.

you can layer snares or any drum sounds together also so it sort of makes you a new original sound also... for example, the midrange thick sound from one snare.. mixed with the cracking high from another snare might make you that all around smacking snare drum for the track..

another example is.. you got that kick that sounds great except it lacks the low end bass to make the track thump... so layer it with an 808 kick/BD and you might get that perfect balanced bassy kick.

it just takes practice and experimentation.

Re: Sampling your own kit

By dtaa pla muk Wed Dec 07, 2011 9:07 pm
it just takes practice and experimentation.


don't get discouraged. you'll make loads of crappy drums before you get something you like.

Re: Sampling your own kit

By HamboneJr Wed Dec 07, 2011 10:35 pm
I guess my main question was, how do I sample a snare or any sound without getting all that background noise?
Most of the time it has a piece of the melody or some other noise behind it, how do I filter this out? Can I use mainly the MPC it's self or do I need to have some other piece of gear? I'm also sampling off my computer with a 1/4 cord.

Re: Sampling your own kit

By tyrone_biggums Thu Dec 08, 2011 12:28 am
you cant sample a snare with a string stab or a guitar stab behind it and exect it to be a nice sample. You need to look for open drums. Sample any open sounds you hear, chop em up, and see if you like em. If not, dump them and move on. Mess with the attack and decay to deal with reverb and "white noise". Seperate the channels to see if the right or left sound better, more the not a mono drum hit will hit harder then a stereo.

theres way to many techniques that we all develope while chopping drums, you need to experiment yourself. Experience is your best teacher! go buy some classic breaks on wax!

Re: Sampling your own kit

By tyrone_biggums Thu Dec 08, 2011 12:31 am
and if your looking to have nice drums, like the "pro's" dont sample mp3s off your computer. Go buy a turntable and nice stack of records. You think pete, dilla, rza, scratch, primo, chop up mp3 drums? no they make hip hop music, therefore they sample wax...do yourself a favor and get a turntable as soon as you can.
User avatar

Re: Sampling your own kit

By thx Thu Dec 08, 2011 12:33 am
you got to hunt for open samples digging in the record crates,
if you're lucky and you know your records you'll surely find something useful.
usually at the start of the song there's an open snare or kick or guitar chord or bassline or whatever...
search for those sounds on your records collection
and then layer, filter, tune, add effects to the sounds...
or you can sample a real drum kit
:wink:
User avatar

Re: Sampling your own kit

By thx Thu Dec 08, 2011 12:46 am
2 Hambone:
i've sent you a PM
User avatar

Re: Sampling your own kit

By Lampdog Thu Dec 08, 2011 12:52 am
tyrone_biggums wrote:and if your looking to have nice drums, like the "pro's" dont sample mp3s off your computer. Go buy a turntable and nice stack of records. You think pete, dilla, rza, scratch, primo, chop up mp3 drums? no they make hip hop music, therefore they sample wax...do yourself a favor and get a turntable as soon as you can.

You don't NEED a turntable and wax, that's a purist thing to say.
While yes, it's the foundation and all that I know, but it's not a NEED and
requirement.
User avatar

Re: Sampling your own kit

By thx Thu Dec 08, 2011 1:03 am
^
+1

Re: Sampling your own kit

By tyrone_biggums Thu Dec 08, 2011 3:08 am
Lampdog wrote:
tyrone_biggums wrote:and if your looking to have nice drums, like the "pro's" dont sample mp3s off your computer. Go buy a turntable and nice stack of records. You think pete, dilla, rza, scratch, primo, chop up mp3 drums? no they make hip hop music, therefore they sample wax...do yourself a favor and get a turntable as soon as you can.

You don't NEED a turntable and wax, that's a purist thing to say.
While yes, it's the foundation and all that I know, but it's not a NEED and
requirement.


personally i dont really look at it as being a "purist" thing to say. He asked how he can get drum samples like pros and im saying almost all of them sample drums off vinyl....just get a cheap pt01 and startr hittin the dollar bins.
User avatar

Re: Sampling your own kit

By b.read Thu Dec 08, 2011 3:24 am
tyrone_biggums wrote:
personally i dont really look at it as being a "purist" thing to say. He asked how he can get drum samples like pros and im saying almost all of them sample drums off vinyl....just get a cheap pt01 and startr hittin the dollar bins.



"You think pete, dilla, rza, scratch, primo, chop up mp3 drums? no they make hip hop music, therefore they sample wax..."


Yes, that's a purist thing to say... :?

I wasn't going to chime in, but felt the need to call bullshit here. :lol:

Hambone is asking for advice about selecting samples off of a certain song and get a clean drum hit without other instruments, not which medium to sample from. The process would be the same if he were searching a 12" for a clean break, a 45, a cd, an mp3, or a tape. And YES hip hop can be made with all of them. 8)
User avatar

Re: Sampling your own kit

By mr_debauch Thu Dec 08, 2011 4:39 am
i think seeing an example of what people are calling "open drums" will help too.. you know the michael jackson song billie jean? well the drums at the start of that are open with no melodies... many songs have this, and it's your job to find them.
 Reply
Return to Production Techniques