Kick / Bass Setup - (Am I doing this right?)

[itsHAZED]

I have been messing around trying to get my 808's sounding good lately, but I just can't get there.

I am trying to get them to sound like, as clean as these: https://soundcloud.com/slanderofficial/ ... ettin-down

Usually I use a 808 Sample, typically Gold Baby's Tape 808. I put it in Ableton's sampler, crank up the dB. Put an EQ on it, cut it at 30hz and at 80hz. Then I compress it, and slightly side-chain a kick drum to it. I have also tried with just a plain, non saturated or distorted 808 sample.

This is what it usually looks like:



Does that all look relatively right?

Thanks in advanced guys!

P.S:

Thought I might as well knock out 2 birds with 1 stone.

If something is clipping, showing up red in the little meter to the side shown here, whether it be on an EQ, Sampler, Impulse, or a Compressor:



Does that mean that it is going to be distorted?

[titchbit]

I don't really see why you're sidechaining anything.... Are you just trying to layer that 707 sample and the 808 sample? Why would you sidechain? Or are you using the 808 sample to make a bassline?

Yes, if it is clipping, it will be distorted. It generally isn't a huge problem unless the channel volume itself is in the red. For example, if it's slightly over the red in your eq, but the channel's volume is -12, and it doesn't pass 0 dB in the output from the channel, then it's not a huge problem. But generally a perfect mix should not have anything in the red. Just turn down the volume in impulse/sampler and then turn up the channel volume to bring it back up. That is, unless you're trying to get distortion, in which case go ahead and clip it. But I still wouldn't let the channel volume go above 0 dB regardless. It'll fuck up your mix.

Is that clear? And btw, when I say channel, I mean the volume of that individual track in the mixer. Not sure whether the correct name for it is channel/track/whatever.

[itsHAZED]

I don't really see why you're sidechaining anything.... Are you just trying to layer that 707 sample and the 808 sample? Why would you sidechain? Or are you using the 808 sample to make a bassline?

Yes, if it is clipping, it will be distorted. It generally isn't a huge problem unless the channel volume itself is in the red. For example, if it's slightly over the red in your eq, but the channel's volume is -12, and it doesn't pass 0 dB in the output from the channel, then it's not a huge problem. But generally a perfect mix should not have anything in the red. Just turn down the volume in impulse/sampler and then turn up the channel volume to bring it back up. That is, unless you're trying to get distortion, in which case go ahead and clip it. But I still wouldn't let the channel volume go above 0 dB regardless. It'll fuck up your mix.

Is that clear? And btw, when I say channel, I mean the volume of that individual track in the mixer. Not sure whether the correct name for it is channel/track/whatever.

I'm making a trap track, I know a lot of people here don't like trap all that much but you guys give great feedback and help most of the time.

I was using the 808 for a bassline and using the 707 kick to give it a punch. I wanted them to sound like they were a single element though.

You totally cleared up the clipping thing as well, I appreciate that a lot.

[Clutchkick]

I would just play both kicks together and adjust the attack on the 808 until they aren't conflicting, It shouldn't take much if the kick you are layering is short. How are you EQing the kick layer?

Edit: Is there any particular reason all my posts show up as blue text instead of black?

[titchbit]

Are you trying to clip it to get distortion? Because if you are, I would suggest resampling. If you do that (in Ableton at least), it will retain the sound of the distortion, but cut the volume off at 0 dB, so it won't be in the red, and thus will no longer be clipping after the resampling is done.

Anyway, yeah that's what you're supposed to do when sidechaining a kick to a bassline. But for something like trap, I wouldn't suggest it. You likely have an irregular kick pattern (ie not 4 on the floor), and so the rhythm created from the sidechaining will sound a little weird when combined with the bassline (although I can't tell what the bassline sounds like so I can't say for sure). Personally, I would rather arrange the bassline so that it doesn't interfere with the kick, or EQ them so that they take up separate frequency ranges and then can be played at the same time (ie high pass the kick around 60 dB and maybe tune it up a little).

Alternatively, you could use EQ automation instead of sidechain compression.

[itsHAZED]

Are you trying to clip it to get distortion? Because if you are, I would suggest resampling. If you do that (in Ableton at least), it will retain the sound of the distortion, but cut the volume off at 0 dB, so it won't be in the red, and thus will no longer be clipping after the resampling is done.

Anyway, yeah that's what you're supposed to do when sidechaining a kick to a bassline. But for something like trap, I wouldn't suggest it. You likely have an irregular kick pattern (ie not 4 on the floor), and so the rhythm created from the sidechaining will sound a little weird when combined with the bassline (although I can't tell what the bassline sounds like so I can't say for sure). Personally, I would rather arrange the bassline so that it doesn't interfere with the kick, or EQ them so that they take up separate frequency ranges and then can be played at the same time (ie high pass the kick around 60 dB and maybe tune it up a little).

Alternatively, you could use EQ automation instead of sidechain compression.

Sorry for the confusion, I wasn't trying to get any distortion what so ever I was just asking about the clipping instead of opening a new thread. Thought I could knock out both questions at the same time.

Thank you again for the long response and I will definitely try just EQing them to separate frequencies rather than side chaining.

[titchbit]

anytime m8 good luck