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Forums > Music: Beats

why are beats so damn hard to make?

MickeyBreezy	Date: November 27, 2004 @ 8:48 PM good god, i can mess w/ fruity loops 4ever, n still cant make a tite beat. im sick of always havin 2 ask ppl 4 beats, but damn, its hard 2 make 'em.
RaXDaCapo	Date: December 1, 2004 @ 2:52 PM I dont use computers. I make my beats all on Triton, until I can get a hand on the MPC. I might try Fruity Loops when I get my other computer back. But for now, I'm just going to stick with the Triton.
mikenomn	Date: December 1, 2004 @ 4:05 PM Don't use Fruity Loops... Fruity Loops in particular has a bad habit of making most of your beats sound the same. Try Tracktion and download some of the free VST instruments found on tracktionfaction.com and kvr-vst.com http://www.musicplayer.com/freetracktion.htm http://www.tracktionfaction.com/ http://kvr-vst.com
ronnie71	Date: December 1, 2004 @ 4:11 PM more you do it the easier it gets... so keep on keeping on
TransAutobot	Date: December 2, 2004 @ 1:49 PM well put ronnie Yea it takes time, but gets easier when you learn more about the program your usin and how to tweak things to how you want it to sound.
blacklieder	Date: December 2, 2004 @ 2:03 PM I can emphasize with that. Until I started to listen to drummers very carefully, my own beats were raggedy. All these computer programs have a tendency to make drum patterns too robotic sounding. Simplify - do the 808 or Kick and a snare, Kick on the 1, snare/snap/clap on the 2 and 4, and try doing some other sounds manually. Listen to the top pop stuff. I'll admit... some programs are better than others, I'm getting used to Reason for quick stuff, and their Redrum rack is awesome. Still, any of these programs can be manipulated, as long as you keep at it. RaXDaCapo: A Triton?!? I'm jealous! You could write anything with a Triton! SnomaN: keep making beats bro! If Keith Sweat can do it, anybody can!
iluminati	Date: December 2, 2004 @ 3:22 PM To make extremely interesting beats you might want to create some basic beats in FL Studio then sample different variations of the beat. Import these samples as waves into the granulizer or sampler, or other waveform synth plugin. Then tweak away. For example you can get an interesting effect by taking 2 of the same loop samples, dropping all the bass on one, and all the high end on the other, and mixing them over each other with slightly different effect processing. It really requires time, patience and practice but you can definitely create some infinitely interesting loops. Most important, do not stick to the stock FL Studio samples. Rip percussive sounds off of commercial CD's, online free libaries, or buy some sample CDs. There are a ton of free drum vsts that may also be helpfull for generating interesting sounds. I also find hot beat creation to be a challenge, but it is doable with FL Studio and a bit of work.
iluminati	Date: December 2, 2004 @ 3:25 PM If you want to see an example of what I am talking about check out the beginning of my track "What Lies Beneath the Ring" at http://iluminati.dmusic.com. I use FL Studio exclusively on that track, and the intro has some interesting use of effects + loop variations.
iluminati	Date: December 2, 2004 @ 4:56 PM If you want to see an example of what I am talking about check out the beginning of my track "What Lies Beneath the Ring" at http://iluminati.dmusic.com. I use FL Studio exclusively on that track, and the intro has some interesting use of effects + loop variations.
djfacemachine	Date: December 2, 2004 @ 6:41 PM fruity loops is awesome. the only problem with it is that the sounds they give you to make beats are teh terrible. download fruity loops instrument packs and you can expand your sound and really get something that sounds awesome.
TruGangstaZ	Date: December 2, 2004 @ 7:52 PM "What Lies Beneath the Ring" isnt really a good example... He needs a beat, more specifically a hip hop beat made with fruity loops.
MickeyBreezy	Date: December 2, 2004 @ 11:15 PM thanx 2 erry1 4 ur help, i'll mos def try 2 use those tricks u guys told me, n also just play w/ it more. but 4 now i guess i still gotta beg 4 beats. thanx again.
SilverShining	Date: December 2, 2004 @ 11:38 PM Hey mikenonm, what VSTs do you use for Tracktion? I use Crystal plus the Claw and that's about it for VSTs on the Mac side....
pancreaspuppet	Date: December 3, 2004 @ 3:49 AM 1. Learn the rules of "real" drumming, THEN break them. 2. "Groove" comes from irregularities in rhythm. Perfect quantisation destroys groove. Shift things about slightly to bring them to life, and change the volume/velocity of each hit to create accents. 3. Keep an open mind. Try random things. Put your thing down flip it and reverse it. Kick it old-school. Put your hands in the air like you just don't care. Actually, ignore the last bit.
anubisweater	Date: December 3, 2004 @ 12:30 PM i use fruity loops primarily and i like the output i get, yeah for awhile they all did sound the same, and i'm sure some people will argue that they still do, but you really can improve in that program if you put the hours into it. just like anything else i guess, maybe you should try another program like reason or something.
anubisweater	Date: December 3, 2004 @ 12:33 PM i use fruity loops primarily and i like the output i get, yeah for awhile they all did sound the same, and i'm sure some people will argue that they still do, but you really can improve in that program if you put the hours into it. just like anything else i guess, maybe you should try another program like reason or something.
ronnie71	Date: December 3, 2004 @ 3:25 PM tell you what i hate FL ... i guess its easier for me anyway to record a beat or sample off some one else and either slow down speed it up... if all else fails do P. Diddy thing and flow over a track that you really like... but man there are plenty of folks nowadays amking stuff on computers and stuff ... you might also go to the creative commons sight where people want you to mish and mash with thier beats. I think the site is http://www.creativecommons.org they got lots of stuff you can use
DaarcPhantom	Date: December 3, 2004 @ 4:32 PM This shit is even teachin me a lot!
JesusIzed	Date: December 4, 2004 @ 12:03 AM Uh, maybe it's just me, but I love Fl Studio. In fact, I make all my songs with the demo. As for the beats, mess around with the sounds they do give you. I think taking sample beats is...horribly lame. Maybe it's just easier for me, because I actually am a drummer, but beats come naturally. Most techno beats are exactly the same, and nothing about fruity loops makes them sound the same (as mikenomn says it does). Here's some tips: Most drum beats have snare hits on beats "2" and "4" of a 4-beat measure (4/4 time), that's the first rule of drum-set drumming. So break it. Try putting the second main snare hit on the "and of 4" (i.e. the eighth note after beat 4). The second rule of drum-set drumming is that the hat/ride runs are every eighth note (so eight of them per measure, 2 per beat). DEFINITELY break this rule. Try some paradiddles on the hat, or even synthesized ruffs. Mess around with 32nd notes (to be able to make these in FL, double the tempo, and then make the measure 8 beats per, then double the value of each note) randomly in your beats, it adds some of what "pancreaspuppet" calls "groove". The third rule that doesn't exist for drumset drummers, but seems to be a given for almost every techno beat, is that the kick hits come on beats "1" and "3". Not only BREAK this, but RARELY adhere to it. Try some double-kick hits (2 consecutive 16th notes on the kick), and delayed hits (instead of beat "3", land it on the "and of 3", or the eighth note after beat 3). These are really simple tips, but I assure you they'll add an amazing amount of variety and versatility to your beats.
Evolved	Date: December 5, 2004 @ 10:25 PM HEH... seems like the whole theory of beats and how to brake and groove them just ran through here.. I don't have nothing new to say about all this. aside from 2 importants facts: 1. Use different quantization of notes in your Fourth bar grooved/break beat. this gives kind of "choppiness" to the beat. 2. Compress and EQ and Layer your drums. prefferably each of the drum components seperated in it own mixer channel. This one gives you the PHAT sound of your drums, for Bone Thrubbing beats and all. of course, if you want, rex your drumloop and start manipulating it, for more intersting results.