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So I've been struggling for several days now (to no avail) to make a particular sound. You know that sound of a dozen people clapping? Yeah... I want it to sound like multiple claps together. I've been trying to layer different claps on top of one another, separating them by brief delays and EQ, but I get a one mush of a sound that does not sound realistic at all. Adding affects does not work either.

Does anybody have any tips? Thanks!

get a bunch of people together and record them clapping

or sample it from somewhere

I dont know this is at the top of my head and I havent tried it, but what about stretching a clap and putting a gate on it? Possible or am I just too high and need to sleep

Just turn off grid snap and shift them around by milliseconds, pan and adjust velocity to taste.

This might help, its for Tremor but helps with drum synthesis in general as the principles are the same.

wormcode wrote:Just turn off grid snap and shift them around by milliseconds, pan and adjust velocity to taste.

I would say this, also get a sample of crunching potato chips or a sound of stepping on branches, maybe some granular stretching and control each sound with an envelope so you can easily keep what sounds good.

?

Thanks everybody, the envelope idea helped a lot.

http://loopsdelacreme.bandcamp.com/album/clap-pack

this is my favourite clap library, got some nice staggered layered samples in thurr

samurai wrote:http://loopsdelacreme.bandcamp.com/album/clap-pack

this is my favourite clap library, got some nice staggered layered samples in thurr

neat. I figured it worked best with natural, "organic" claps, the modified ones stopped sounding like claps when I was putting them together.

Put a clean crisp high freq clap in a sampler, and play it on a keyboard with like 8 fingers stretched out (golden eagle claw technique). Sample that output, hi pass that if necessary. Consider the stereo field. Layer that with a few other claps that are panned around. Sample that. Layer with crunching anything that crunches. Consider a transient shaper anywhere in that process or a low threshold, slow attack fast release compressor for that matter, adjust the ticky tacky attack sound, emphasize it or demphasize it.

Making these kind of sounds is helluv fun. Just let your imagination run wild.

Change your expectations though, not every sound can you really learn in a day or two. Spend time with it, from project to project. The more you work at it, the better and more unique sounds you'll be getting. Love this sound. I literally cannot get sick of it. Really wet washy drawn out claps and too much sidechain, and I'm good.

samurai wrote:this is my favourite clap library

Thanks for this. A little too much room reverb on these (for my taste), but with transient shaping, or even without these will sound good.

In ableton, apply a groove, chorus, and randomize the pan a little bit? Don't know if this is helpful but worth a try.

in FL Studio is pretty easy
you need to write a clap chord, with 4 or 5 notes, then add/tweak the 'strum' effect in the tools menu, then profit.

in ableton you can sound more precise and organic, just turn off the grid quantization in the piano roll

alt key and you are off the grid in fl, come on.

?

just buy a live album of anything & sample the applause

sample Queen.

go to your local ghetto
play some hip hop
record black bitches' asses clappin
done

nowaysj wrote:Put a clean crisp high freq clap in a sampler, and play it on a keyboard with like 8 fingers stretched out (golden eagle claw technique). Sample that output, hi pass that if necessary. Consider the stereo field. Layer that with a few other claps that are panned around. Sample that. Layer with crunching anything that crunches. Consider a transient shaper anywhere in that process or a low threshold, slow attack fast release compressor for that matter, adjust the ticky tacky attack sound, emphasize it or demphasize it.

this is great. I've been using this technique for the past couple of days. I'm getting closer to creating a layered staggered clap sound which I'm really happy with.