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compressing a sampled kick.

hi ppl ive just got a new sample pack and the kicks are brill but when im adding them to my tracks should i still be looking into eqing and compressing a kick which has already been compressed already???

if not then whats the best step to take to get it ready for the mastering process. thanks for your time

Re: compressing a sampled kick.

quote:

Originally posted by themonkeylover hi ppl ive just got a new sample pack and the kicks are brill but when im adding them to my tracks should i still be looking into eqing and compressing a kick which has already been compressed already??? if not then whats the best step to take to get it ready for the mastering process. thanks for your time

Its really up to you! You could always EQ it a bit but if its been compressed once I wouldnt do it again!

The answer to this question, as with so many others, is:

Experiment with it and use what sounds best to you.

Normally what I do is take 3 kicks that I like from a sample pack and turn those 3 kicks into 1. I make Kick one my "Low",kick two my "Mid", and kick three for my "High". After this I play with the EQing and drop some compression and my kick is done. Some people use more than 3 to do this and im sure there is a million other ways to do it.

thanks for the tip, yeah i do eq it abit but im just wondering if i should now set the kick to the -8db level ready for mastering as its been through the mixing down process already???

and also teh kick and the base should be compressed together shouldnt they? well im just wondering if im messing the whole process up by not including the beat in the compression kick/bass group??

im thinking about making my own beats from fresh but the ones with the sample pack have got everything im looking for at the mo.

any tips would be great thanks.

Your kick and bass dont HAVE to be compressed together. Its really up to you and how it sounds. There are no rules when your creating music. Ok well maybe a few, but whatever sounds best to you! All I can say is just try to get experience on your own and soon you will develope your own formula! Hope this helps!

this mixing down process is the hardest thing ive ever had to try and learn without a doubt, id run round my street naked for like an hour if the powers of the mix down would implant into my brain...best get back on it then

I never understood the compress the bass and kick together thing!? Someone explain why! For me its better to compress them seperately because each one needs its own settings? By compressing both together arnt you just limiting your possibilities?

quote:

Originally posted by keithlsp Normally what I do is take 3 kicks that I like from a sample pack and turn those 3 kicks into 1. I make Kick one my "Low",kick two my "Mid", and kick three for my "High". After this I play with the EQing and drop some compression and my kick is done. Some people use more than 3 to do this and im sure there is a million other ways to do it.

+ 1

It's a bit tedious at times but I find it gets good results, you get the oomf, the snappy punch and the the thumpiness all in one.

Compressing the kick and bass together must be one of the most overrated tips I know.

Alot of people say that you shouldnt compress an already compressed kick, but it doesnt matter. What matter is what you do with it and what sounds good to you.

quote:

Originally posted by Subtle Compressing the kick and bass together must be one of the most overrated tips I know.

True - however, having them in a group can be handy, for workflow reasons, whether you compress the group or not.

themonkeylover, yes - the mixing process will take a long time to truly master. Better than running around naked in the street for an hour is sitting in your studio for a few years. It'll take time, it'll be frustrating but if you love music enough and you have enough dedication you'll get through all of that.

Your wording regarding the kick drum - the sample hasn't been through the "mixing down process" already. The mixdown is what we do as engineers when we take all our sounds and mix them into a song. The kick drum has been compressed, but it hasn't been "mixed down". Set the level of the kick where it sounds good to you, based on your experience listening to your favourite tracks.

Don't do any processing to a sound unless you're clear what you want to do to the sound. Don't just eq and compress a kick because someone else said that you should always do that.

quote:

Originally posted by derail Don't just eq and compress a kick because someone else said that you should always do that.

What he said.

i hardly do much compression at all these days, other than drums and mix!

if i have a lot of layers to a sound, then i will compress that a bit too sometimes.

quote:

Originally posted by Subtle Compressing the kick and bass together must be one of the most overrated tips I know. Alot of people say that you shouldnt compress an already compressed kick, but it doesnt matter. What matter is what you do with it and what sounds good to you.

I remember so many artists that did the CM interviews and master classes would literally just take a track and isolate the kick, and just continue to use that kick in a new track. Undoubtedly using more compression after they have set up the basic drums.

quote:

Originally posted by derail themonkeylover, yes - the mixing process will take a long time to truly master. Better than running around naked in the street for an hour is sitting in your studio for a few years. It'll take time, it'll be frustrating but if you love music enough and you have enough dedication you'll get through all of that.

yeah im still here 4 years on, i use to think id just pay someone else to mix down so for ages ive just been making tunes etc and fine tunes these skills but then i realised that its the mixing down process that as a producer i really want to master. i know it'll take time and im just a bit frustered that i havent mastered it as soon as the tune making, i still would run round my street naked thou.

quote:

Originally posted by derail Your wording regarding the kick drum - the sample hasn't been through the "mixing down process" already. The mixdown is what we do as engineers when we take all our sounds and mix them into a song. The kick drum has been compressed, but it hasn't been "mixed down". Set the level of the kick where it sounds good to you, based on your experience listening to your favourite tracks.

yeah that was my 1st question, the sampled kick has defo been eqq'd and compressed becuase it sounds so complete so i was just wondering where i set the level now and is there anything else i could add to it. so ill just have to find the right level for the kick and check it out on a few stereos etc see what the results are, thanks
Don't do any processing to a sound unless you're clear what you want to do to the sound. Don't just eq and compress a kick because someone else said that you should always do that.

I use sampled kicks and when I first started, I always stuck compressors on them and eq'ued them thinking that I SHOULD do this.

Now, I just pick a kick I like and do absolute nothing to it.

I set it at -7db which for me is a good level to work the rest of the track around and thats it.

I may do some light compression with the kick and bass together but not always.

Its actually a relief to no longer stress and spend time over trying to process the kick. Now I can just get on with the bloody track itself

fookin brill, thats exactly what i wanna hear, thanks for the tip.

g con, from the looks of things you've had a couple of releases and they sound really good. were they also from using sampled kicks and setting it at -7db??

i used to do the same as G con - now because I use midi lines for my kicks once the track is finished I find a kick that sounds well with it in and don;t compress or EQ, well maybe a splash of EQ if it;s needed but generally not.

I also compress the kick and bass together, this works well in some instances and some not. It works better if you don;t have many lines going on in the track otherwise it can get mushy

quote:

Originally posted by themonkeylover g con, from the looks of things you've had a couple of releases and they sound really good. were they also from using sampled kicks and setting it at -7db??

Thanks

Yes they were from sampled kicks untouched. Can't remember exactly if they were set at -7db as I only started doing this routinely after those two tracks. It would have been in that region though, -6db, -8db?

If it needs more punch/click, yes. or if you need to reduce punch. that simple.

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