Do you think that using loops/presets/sample packs is 'lazy'

[3za]

clever spamming

Mutha fuqqa got me

[MassAphekt]

Why does it have to be an A versus B proposition?

Well there are those who creatively use a single sample or two into something unique, but then there are plenty of "producers" who simply take the lazy and lame route by building songs out of them and calling it their own. I've had a fair share of experiences collaborating with small timers in my city, and they'd already be digging through sample packs for melody loops and other premade phrases to work with; I simply can't work with that kind of approach personally. I'm sure I'm not the only one here who would respect an actual hard working creative producer rather than someone who relys on the work of others (whether it's ethical or not) to create something and call it their own. I don't know, just my two cents. I can't take someone seriously if they don't take the creative process serious enough

[alphacat]

A)

clever spamming

Mutha fuqqa got me

Me too.

B)

Why does it have to be an A versus B proposition?

Well there are those who creatively use a single sample or two into something unique, but then there are plenty of "producers" who simply take the lazy and lame route by building songs out of them and calling it their own. I've had a fair share of experiences collaborating with small timers in my city, and they'd already be digging through sample packs for melody loops and other premade phrases to work with; I simply can't work with that kind of approach personally. I'm sure I'm not the only one here who would respect an actual hard working creative producer rather than someone who relys on the work of others (whether it's ethical or not) to create something and call it their own. I don't know, just my two cents. I can't take someone seriously if they don't take the creative process serious enough

Absolutely: the potential for abuse is pretty self-apparent here, too. Personally I've found that overwhelmingly it's all about the original stuff. Once in a while you'll hear a sound in a samplepack that's calling out to be worked with, but even then by the time I'm done mangling it it probably won't sound anything like the original. The arguments for doing things on your own are well known and compelling, and yet... more people buy their loops than ever before.

However, it's a dangerous path to head down when people start making black or white categorical assertions about "producers who use ______ are shit while producers who do it the other way are teh bestz." Aside from crap like tUnE-yArDs, there really does seem to be a category of producers whose primary talent is good taste more than generative/creative approaches. Mind you, there's 100 times as many godawful producers who pretend to be this but don't even have good taste or appreciation for craft. But just as all of the blanket decrees about "FL studio is terrible and anyone who uses it should be shot" or "no audio pros use Windows," it's important to exercise restraint about being glib and writing off an entire approach because it's not yours or not perceived to be cool.

That said:

Lock this bitch.

[MassAphekt]

Why does it have to be an A versus B proposition?

Absolutely: the potential for abuse is pretty self-apparent here, too. Personally I've found that overwhelmingly it's all about the original stuff. Once in a while you'll hear a sound in a samplepack that's calling out to be worked with, but even then by the time I'm done mangling it it probably won't sound anything like the original. The arguments for doing things on your own are well known and compelling, and yet... more people buy their loops than ever before.

However, it's a dangerous path to head down when people start making black or white categorical assertions about "producers who use ______ are shit while producers who do it the other way are teh bestz." Aside from crap like tUnE-yArDs, there really does seem to be a category of producers whose primary talent is good taste more than generative/creative approaches. Mind you, there's 100 times as many godawful producers who pretend to be this but don't even have good taste or appreciation for craft. But just as all of the blanket decrees about "FL studio is terrible and anyone who uses it should be shot" or "no audio pros use Windows," it's important to exercise restraint about being glib and writing off an entire approach because it's not yours or not perceived to be cool.

That said:

Lock this bitch.

Sorry dude, I wasn't intentionally labelling other's approaches to that degree but what I mean is those who solely build an entire piece of nothing but samples rather than simply writing themselves are taking the piss out of producing and the creative process. I can understand we are all on a different journey and some may be closer to their ideal standard of success while other's struggle or simply hold no interest in actually pursuing this as a career, but it's the idea of taking complete phrases or a multitude of pre made samples and calling it your own written piece. But I guess it really does all come down to the producer/artist's approach, whether casual, hobby, career, or lifestyle.The only thing I don't see a problem with sampling is the drum element aspect of it all. But coming back to this whole loop thing, I remember a couple people who would project this as their life and career and failed to hold any true or original content of their own. I'm not hating or simply ranting out of spite, I just simply don't respect people who take this easy shortcut to create "commercial" material, hence when I say commercial too..

[Electric_Head]

I use samples a lot.
Nothing wrong with it.
It's about how you wield the sword.

[Huts]

Samples that have a sound I'm after save me the time of trying (failing) to replicate a worse version of something I can just sample. All of Hip-Hop says hello

[InternetSlaveMaster]

Hmm dubloopsfreak, you have me thinking now. Only problem is I don't know where to find loops... you wouldn't have any ideas, would you?

[wub]

I edited the OP to remove the

[Efrafa11]

Hmm dubloopsfreak, you have me thinking now. Only problem is I don't know where to find loops... you wouldn't have any ideas, would you?

Music radar

[outdropt]

Bass patches piss me off, like the main focus of the song should be developed by you.... yet your using Noisia's Massive patches or whatever... That makes the whole industry sterile

[Mr 50]

Just mix it up. If your goal is to ‘make it big’ then it’s unlikely to will get to the top without something original.

By all means use sample packs, by all means take inspiration from types of sounds and try to emulate them, but fuck with them and use them creatively.

But at the end of the day, if you don’t want to understand how a lot of shit works then you’re probably not best suited to being an electronic producer.

RJD2, Flying Lotus, Skrillex, Noisia etc all did something different, something… new.

Surely that’s all you need to know.

[Genevieve]

I use samples a lot.
Nothing wrong with it.
It's about how you wield the sword.

Some vasline and a box of tissues!

[Electric_Head]

I use samples a lot.
Nothing wrong with it.
It's about how you wield the sword.

Some vasline and a box of tissues!

I'm not following you here.
Do you want to lather my naked body in Vaseline and cover me with tissues?

[axxessdenied]

I do both. I use samples when I'm not sure what kind of element I want to add to a certain part of a song. So i'll just listen to random things and throw them and see what happens. Sometimes the sample will need tons of mashing up to make it fit, other times just a slight EQ or a tiny bit of distortion for some grit.
The end justifies the means

[nameless133]

I mostly use only samplers to make music. I manipulate the samples and also I make samples too. But I hate loops.

[yeolechap]

Loops are cool until you figure out what your actually doing. LOL! its true though.

[Electric_Head]

So much Bullshit in this thread.
Yeolechap - I sure as hell know what I'm doing but I still choose to use samples when it suites me.

Get over the feeling that you're doing something wrong and make music.

[ehbes]

who gives a fuck where you get your sounds...

[alphacat]

Like I said: sound is sound. If it sounds good, it sounds good. The question of provenance is not a first-order consideration, period.

[moot0ne]

Just mix it up. If your goal is to ‘make it big’ then it’s unlikely to will get to the top without something original.

By all means use sample packs, by all means take inspiration from types of sounds and try to emulate them, but fuck with them and use them creatively.

But at the end of the day, if you don’t want to understand how a lot of shit works then you’re probably not best suited to being an electronic producer.

RJD2, Flying Lotus, Skrillex, Noisia etc all did something different, something… new.

Surely that’s all you need to know.

I agree here, not that it matters who the hell am I (?), I started just like everyone else (I imagine) with "How the hell did they make that sound!?". I could have just grabbed some samples and been done with it. Unfortunately, or not, that is not part of my constitution. I've downloaded PLENTY of samples, but in the end it was only as a reference as it usually takes more work to get a sample to fit into my creative process. I will say this though, the reason for quoting Mr 50, I would never have come to understand my DAW or any of its synths or synthesis in general (or 3rd party synths) if I hadn't made my own sounds. I'm nobody in particular, but if you're just starting out, I say, you could be BIG someday, but only if you come to KNOW your craft and IMHO that can't really be done by patching together other people's sounds.

Forgive me if I offend.