How do you program your drums?

[if6was9]

I've not done any full songs yet but what I do is tap them into a mic then convert to midi afterwards, its a little messy though, I play drums a bit so it's annoying not being able to just friggin' play the thing

 

[Genius Gone Insane]

I play guitar to a click and then program the drums by hand after. For parts with a groove, I look at how close my guitar peaks are to the grid, then adjust the drum midi hits to be in a similar spot. I've found this to be crucial in trying to make a believable drum track.

Also, I'll hand tap in midi for long double bass parts then quantize a little to make it less machine gunnish.

 

[Metaltastic]

Also, I'll hand tap in midi for long double bass parts then quantize a little to make it less machine gunnish.

How do you quantize a little? (not being sarcastic, I always thought MIDI quantization was an all-or-nothing deal)

 

[slashvanyoung]

I often used to do the basic programming right in guitar pro, while I was still working with that. Tweaking the midis in Cubase...

 

[James Murphy]

How do you quantize a little? (not being sarcastic, I always thought MIDI quantization was an all-or-nothing deal)

nope... then you were always wrong. you can quantize to any degree you want, choosing a setting expressed as a percentage. e.g., at 50%, the midi notes will all move closer to their "correct" grid locations by half of the distance they reside prior to the quantize operation. you can choose any percentage you want. you can even make it swing, or even apply a "groove" as well.

 

[Morgan C]

I play the part recording with an overhead and kick (I can only have 2 mics at a time atm..) and then program the part from that in Sibelius.

 

[Eschatologist]

nope... then you were always wrong. you can quantize to any degree you want, choosing a setting expressed as a percentage. e.g., at 50%, the midi notes will all move closer to their "correct" grid locations by half of the distance they reside prior to the quantize operation. you can choose any percentage you want. you can even make it swing, or even apply a "groove" as well.

In sonar you can add randomization to quantization, in a set percentage...depending on the drum line, this can yield realistic results, especially on fast double kicks to break up the machine effect.

 

[Eschatologist]

http://www.soundclick.com/bands/default.cfm?bandID=902816

Here's a couple tunes I've been working on lately, not mixed very well and nowhere near complete. But for both I did most of the programing of the kicks and snare with the mouse and piano roll, then the padkontrol for almost all the cymbals and most tom fills.

 

[Erkan]

I worked on a project last summer and for that one, I didn't even bother with programming drums. All I did was record ALL my riffs into a single project, then start new projects based on that one and picked out parts that fit together. Then when I had done a rough layout of the song, I programmed a klicktrack and then re-recorded the riffs to tighten things up a little. I then used that track to play the real drums along to it.

But now, for my next stuff, I'm actually programming drums to get a better idea/feel for the songs. But in 95% of the time, my creativity starts at the guitar. I almost exclusively use the guitar to come up with rhythms, melodies, weird stuff etc etc. Then I record a rough version of it, then I program drums and then re-record.

Currently considering if I should just stick to programmed drums 100% for my next project... would save me from a lot of hassle with micing up my kit and all that

 

[MetalMan_99]

When I'm writing, I nearly always come up with a riff on guitar first, record it to a click, then program a basic beat in the Cubase drum editor. When I'm happy with that I'll generally re-record the riff (and double track it) to the drum track to tighten it up. Then when I've built up an entire song like this I'll go back over it and add fills, make it more interesting etc.

nope... then you were always wrong. you can quantize to any degree you want, choosing a setting expressed as a percentage. e.g., at 50%, the midi notes will all move closer to their "correct" grid locations by half of the distance they reside prior to the quantize operation. you can choose any percentage you want. you can even make it swing, or even apply a "groove" as well.

In cubase, it's the 'Iterative Quantize' function that does this. I think it's set at 60% as default but you can adjust it in Quantize Setup > Iterative Strength.

 

[doclegion]

I just open DFH, pick a beat, and start rockin out.....and when its time i open cubase drag and drop my beats record guitar

BAM done!!! Then later on i add fills and such!!!

 

[Genius Gone Insane]

Originally Posted by Genius Gone Insane
Also, I'll hand tap in midi for long double bass parts then quantize a little to make it less machine gunnish.

How do you quantize a little? (not being sarcastic, I always thought MIDI quantization was an all-or-nothing deal)

In Nuendo you can quantize to a certain percentage. I think I usually do 80% and click it a few times. This preserves the feel while keeping it tight.

Of course there are some riffs that shouldn't be on time anyway, where you want to play ahead of the click. If that's the case, then you really want to look at your DI guitar track.

If it's a real drummer on an electric kit I usually do no more than two 80% quantizes.

In sonar you can add randomization to quantization, in a set percentage...depending on the drum line, this can yield realistic results, especially on fast double kicks to break up the machine effect.

Randomize is good if you initially programmed the drums to grid. But it is inferior to methods mentioned above.

 

[James Murphy]

In sonar you can add randomization to quantization, in a set percentage...depending on the drum line, this can yield realistic results, especially on fast double kicks to break up the machine effect.

yeah, pro tools has that option as well.... randomization/humanization.

 

[JeffTD]

Cubase drum grid + Superior 2.0.

 

[NNotN-ENN]

How are the PadKontrols? I'm thinking of either grabbing one of those shortly, or forking out a bit more cash and getting a cheapish e-kit to run straight through to Superior 2 or possibly AD (ie. not using the brain except for it's midi-through, which will hopefully negate a bit of the "cheap" factor). Obviously the e-kit has the advantage of me being able to practice drums, whereas the PadKontrol is cheaper and should get the job done...

 

[James Murphy]

If the DrumTracker really work I will probably use it with the audio output of Roland HD-1, as the MIDI output lags sometimes.

well that would be quite the long way around the fence to get the same result as just quantizing after you make a pass on your e-drums.

 

[NNotN-ENN]

Do you think that's a problem with your DAW/PC processing ability/interface, or more a problem with the midi output of the Roland kit?

 

[colonel kurtz]

I nearly always come up with a riff on guitar first, record it to a click, then program a basic beat in the Cubase drum editor. When I'm happy with that I'll generally re-record the riff (and double track it) to the drum track to tighten it up

same here, but take out the "nearly"

 

[kaomao]

nope... then you were always wrong. you can quantize to any degree you want, choosing a setting expressed as a percentage. e.g., at 50%, the midi notes will all move closer to their "correct" grid locations by half of the distance they reside prior to the quantize operation. you can choose any percentage you want. you can even make it swing, or even apply a "groove" as well.

Ha protools midi quantizing... and people say it useless....
I love that menu saved my ass a lot of times with shitty drummers and edrums