How to sequence a chopped sample smoothly...

I've been working with samples for a long time, but I have never really chopped beats and tried to organize them in my own order type of thing... So how do you sequence it and find the tempo etc. I know this is a very basic question to some, but we all got to start somewhere... I'm used to sequencing individual drum sounds where nothing had to be matched up... You see what I'm saying...

treat it the same way. people are alwaysd asking "how do i find the tempo" and worrying about that - but just stop. determine YOUR tempo after you've sequenced it. when you've chopped it, you have each note of the sample on the pads. you've heard how the original goes, you know which are quater notes, eighth notes, and less.

it doesn't matter if the tempo is 120 or 300, you can still tap it in the same pattern to the metronome just to get it in there. then adjust the tempo til it plays 90% right, then nudge notes/detune/timestretch til the sample fits and plays smoothly with no overlap

another technique i've found to be useful is to turn all samples to note on w/ alternate loop specified. this way you can actually set their duration to exactly what it should be. then add a little tiny bit of decay and the samples will blend together without bumping each other or overlapping (can also set the prog to mono not poly)

Great description, thanks Atonym! I was on the teack of locking the samples to the tempo, then programming a note on for every 1/4 or 1/8, whatever the case, but I don't always have them "locked" to tempo. Thanks a lot, when I get home, I'll set your seggestions in motion. Good lookin'...

yeah man
this is where it helps to have every note on its own pad/sample. if you don't, the sample is dictating the tempo, NOT the user.

also helps a lot to have them all on pad bank A so you don't have to switch banks when programming.

if you have more than 16 chops, no problem - just double em up on the pads and access them with velocity layers. this way you can see everything at 1 time in grid edit.

go to youtube and search for boon doc the guy is about one of the best at making hiphop with tiny chops and shows you alot of videos on how to do it flawless.

honestly man, EXPERIMENT! not to sound like an ass, but if you experiment and figure it out for yourself after some trail and error, chances are you'll have a much better sound and unique chop style. and its just oh so much more rewarding.

but a note on tempo, when you chop enough, sometimes the tempo of the original sample doesn't matter. otherwise find the tempo of the original sample (using a 4 bar loop or however u normally do it) and then use that tempo with your chops

Antonym wrote:people are alwaysd asking "how do i find the tempo" and worrying about that - but just stop. determine YOUR tempo after you've sequenced it. when you've chopped it, you have each note of the sample on the pads. you've heard how the original goes, you know which are quater notes, eighth notes, and less.

it doesn't matter if the tempo is 120 or 300, you can still tap it in the same pattern to the metronome just to get it in there. then adjust the tempo til it plays 90% right, then nudge notes/detune/timestretch til the sample fits and plays smoothly with no overlap

i've been tryin to get this into peoples heads for song long.. real talk right there..

fuuck trying to find the bpm! just make a damn beat.

You know, if I'm getting this wrong, I apologize. ButI see more people writin' negative shit on here than need be. I understand that you have your idea of what "real" hip hop is or how YOU think things should be done. IF YOU DONT LIKE THE POST YYOUR READING: DON"T REPLY. HONESTLY MAN. I am trying to learn the basics. If at that point I want to change shit up, than at least I have a firm grasp on what it is that I am truely doing.

This is related, but not an answer directly:
I really like sampling something slower than the BPM of my beat and playing the chops back like that. Sometimes it just sounds out of time, but sometimes you stumble upon weird, shuffling rhythms since parts of each phrase are cut off.

It's fun, you should try it...plus it takes the pressure of find the tempo off.

p.s. Works best if you have a sample without percussion!

es-k wrote:
fuuck trying to find the bpm! just make a damn beat.

um.

i use the parameters. i have no damn clue how to match it up. i hack at it for hours hahah im really not so knowledgable with it.

but i get somewhere. all my loops are different, i have diferent bpm across the board in a song, its messy

check it out


www.myspace.com/mgr1987

seriously experiment with your own techniques. get mad at it, then youll bre3ak free

use tap tempo. You have to tap the button at least 3 times for it to register a tempo. Wit one finger on tap tempo and the other on your pads, hit the pads as they were played originally in the song. tap the button at the same time as you're hittin the pads. tap a few times to get around the correct tempo. record the chops in the arrangement that you want then fine tune the tempo so it sounds right.

wudsiba wrote: I understand that you have your idea of what "real" hip hop is or how YOU think things should be done.

FYI... Not everybody uses an MPC to do Hip Hop...

Cheers,
Dave

mechp wrote:This is related, but not an answer directly:
I really like sampling something slower than the BPM of my beat and playing the chops back like that. Sometimes it just sounds out of time, but sometimes you stumble upon weird, shuffling rhythms since parts of each phrase are cut off.

It's fun, you should try it...plus it takes the pressure of find the tempo off.

p.s. Works best if you have a sample without percussion!

is that mechp from 411?, dope beats mech, still love that godzilla shit

if you chopped it up what does the tempo have to do with it? you would play the pad to your own tempo, right?

i found it easy to just naturally set your tempo 90.....record your drums in...chop the sample how you want it...then play it back over the drums...youll knw if the tempo needs to be slower or faster by playing the sample.....if the sample is too fast speed the drums up...and vice versa...that was the easiest way i learned on my own