I partially agree to what you said: - I know you don't like it, but quantized drums are an industry standard nowadays; the regular beat should be on the grid, with the exception being when multiple shells are played at the same time; - Randomizing the velocity is good, but the best way is to go by hand on every fill or roll. There are many ways to do it, the important is you have intention in that (I like your approach on the hi hat); - Another dead giveaway you're using programmed drums is using only those sounds that everybody uses. I always blend a kick sample and 2/3 snare samples: those samples I blend always change depending on the song. And also: commit to those sounds! Don't get 3 hours into your mix and change the drum sounds because it'll mess you up! - Many drum sample libraries have room sounds with the close mics: use those instead of reverb! It'll sound less plasticky and more real! Especially a super underrated track is the mono room: a good mono room, if heavily compressed, EQed and saturated, can add a lot of character to the snare! Let me know what you think: as always I'm open to discussion 🙃
What I'm trying out recently is programming everything except hi hats and keeping a pair of real hats next to my desk. I think the hats are the hardest to emulate because of how many different ways there are to hit them and how the opening and closing mechanic interacts with the sound. I guess it depends on what the part is too.
Very true! EZ Drummer has a bunch of different hi-hat hits at different velocities, so if you're using an E-kit you can take advantage of those, and it sounds pretty damn real. Recording a real hi-hat over midi drums is pretty genius, I'll have to give it a try!
Thank you. I was a drummer before when I had free time. Now I have about one hour after work before I must go to sleep. I like your videos in my short free time.
Thanks Spencer, another great video as always. I am loving your channel. I come away every time inspired to try new things out. I do play drums, but I often don't have access to a kit for recording. I will give this a go. Thank you sir.
Good stuff Spencer! Really thought out and well presented. I think keyboard drumming is a real art form, and If you can get good at that, you're doing most of the heavy lifting whilst you're playing (like a real drummer obvs)
From a sound perspective even programmed drums can be made to sound vastly different by adding channel compression, EQ, reverb, or other effects (try a guitar flanger on a cymbal) or multiple sounds (add a live mic'd snare or kick or whatever or other snare/drum sound from a different library). From a performance perspective while mostly everything is ON THE GRID these days when I write/record a song and start with drums, I will live play pads that trigger the Superior Drummer, etc. that helps me get a real vibe groove. I can quantize if I need it more "modern" or leave if I want more loose drums. Then I play bass, guitars, keys, etc. pretty much to the "live" drum tracks. BUT WAIT... my secret weapon is tempo. Let's say the song has a base of 125 BPMs. Taking the drum tracks (before any other instruments tracks are added or recorded), slow the temp 1-2 BPMs on the verse, and speed them up again on a chorus or outro - you might even get an outro that is 126 BPM's but the slight push gives it a real live feel. While the end result will not be ON THE GRID, the feel of the song will be more real and live. I do that on about half of the songs I record. Try it out next time you record. Or leave everything on the grid and sound like a drum machine. Whatever the song calls for.
Superior Drummer is awesome. It's just a more complex version of EZ Drummer (both are made by Toon Track). If you can afford it, Superior Drummer is the way to go- but EZ Drummer is absolutely incredible in it's own right. I have no complaints!
It definitely can be. Learning to play drums on a midi controller is an absolutely game changer- but it's obviously pretty complicated. Maybe I'll do a video on it someday!
..... I adopted an idea from Phil Spector, and make a big pile of kicks, snares and hi hats using Superior Drummer, BFD, Addictive Drums or some Kontakt libraries (watch out the mapping!). I render everyone separately, then I import, we say, the snares, with some automation you can give "a starring role" each one here and there and voila!. Drumagog is very good too, but sometimes had strange behaviours and tends to displace some hits. The results are not 100 % human but not bad at all.
I wasn't sure which phrasing I should use, so I asked ChatGPT. It sound Round Robins and Multi-Sample Rotation. The latter sounded a bit more descriptive so I went with it! Thanks for watching and the kind words. It means more than you know!
Id try to align them to the flow of the rest of the song. Like if the song picks up energy, maybe have everything start to ‘rush’ a little bit. In most professional recordings they don’t align them perfectly, just enough to have each instrument follow the same energy within the tempo. When they align it perfectly it indeed sounds robotic and unnatural. Which is fine if that’s what you’re going for. Just my opinion tho
If you're programming them so they're perfectly to the grid, they'll likely sound too perfect. In this case, I recommend humanizing them so they're slightly off the grid.
@@MichaelDeane-i9n has a good point, typically if you want to nudge the kick/snare before, after, or around the grid is dependent on the groove going in general, if you have the rest of the rhythm section (bass etc) keeping time straight, you can change the feel by having the kick/snare be “ahead” or “behind” the beat. not easy to pull off but yeah
It depends on the genre. Your techniques are great for many genres of handmade music. However, in some EDM genres drums have to be quantised. I also feel like modern metalcore and post metal has almost non-human sounds.
You are correct! Pop and Dance music needs to have drums aligned very tightly to the grid cause it's what the genre calls for. However, for genres where you want your midi drums to sound realistic, you gotta make them less perfect. I really don't like the drums in most modern metal. They sound so lifeless and devoid of soul because they're far too perfect.
Yes! EZ drummer has a ton of samples for every hit, AND at every single possible velocity. I can't even imagine the work that goes into recording all those samples. They have like 15 different hit types for high hats. Every possible hit from fully closed to fully open, it's wild!
lol, you said check out these drums,, and the moment I heard it I was like "sounds unnatural, probably a sloppy take" now I know, what you are about to say didn't work. No hate, I think it is just something in the performance which makes a beat good.
I partially agree to what you said:
- I know you don't like it, but quantized drums are an industry standard nowadays; the regular beat should be on the grid, with the exception being when multiple shells are played at the same time;
- Randomizing the velocity is good, but the best way is to go by hand on every fill or roll. There are many ways to do it, the important is you have intention in that (I like your approach on the hi hat);
- Another dead giveaway you're using programmed drums is using only those sounds that everybody uses. I always blend a kick sample and 2/3 snare samples: those samples I blend always change depending on the song. And also: commit to those sounds! Don't get 3 hours into your mix and change the drum sounds because it'll mess you up!
- Many drum sample libraries have room sounds with the close mics: use those instead of reverb! It'll sound less plasticky and more real! Especially a super underrated track is the mono room: a good mono room, if heavily compressed, EQed and saturated, can add a lot of character to the snare!
Let me know what you think: as always I'm open to discussion 🙃
What I'm trying out recently is programming everything except hi hats and keeping a pair of real hats next to my desk. I think the hats are the hardest to emulate because of how many different ways there are to hit them and how the opening and closing mechanic interacts with the sound. I guess it depends on what the part is too.
Interesting idea! Might give that a go
I agree! Nice idea 👍
Very true! EZ Drummer has a bunch of different hi-hat hits at different velocities, so if you're using an E-kit you can take advantage of those, and it sounds pretty damn real. Recording a real hi-hat over midi drums is pretty genius, I'll have to give it a try!
I’ve always wanted to try that. Adds a lot of nice randomness and it’s a great apartment instruments because no low end
@@MarsCapone There are some recordings where Stuart Copeland is credited just for playing hi hats. It's a whole world of its own.
Thank you. I was a drummer before when I had free time. Now I have about one hour after work before I must go to sleep. I like your videos in my short free time.
Your continued support is always appreciated. You've been there since the beginning- and I'll never forget that!
Great explanation and demos. Loved the before and after. Easy to hear the difference. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for watching! The support is always appreciated.
This video helps a ton, thanks Spencer 🔥
So glad to help!
Great advice. I've been using EZ Drummer since it first came out and it took years to learn some of these things. Love what you're doing!
Thanks for the kind words! I'm glad to here you're using EZ Drummer- it's one of my favorite plugins.
Thanks Spencer, another great video as always. I am loving your channel. I come away every time inspired to try new things out. I do play drums, but I often don't have access to a kit for recording. I will give this a go. Thank you sir.
I'm so glad you're enjoying the content! I hope these tips help
Wowwww!!!!
Thanks, dude!
Good stuff Spencer! Really thought out and well presented. I think keyboard drumming is a real art form, and If you can get good at that, you're doing most of the heavy lifting whilst you're playing (like a real drummer obvs)
Totally agree! It's a super niche skill but it's insanely valuable. I'm glad I was able to get it down.
From a sound perspective even programmed drums can be made to sound vastly different by adding channel compression, EQ, reverb, or other effects (try a guitar flanger on a cymbal) or multiple sounds (add a live mic'd snare or kick or whatever or other snare/drum sound from a different library).
From a performance perspective while mostly everything is ON THE GRID these days when I write/record a song and start with drums, I will live play pads that trigger the Superior Drummer, etc. that helps me get a real vibe groove. I can quantize if I need it more "modern" or leave if I want more loose drums. Then I play bass, guitars, keys, etc. pretty much to the "live" drum tracks. BUT WAIT... my secret weapon is tempo.
Let's say the song has a base of 125 BPMs. Taking the drum tracks (before any other instruments tracks are added or recorded), slow the temp 1-2 BPMs on the verse, and speed them up again on a chorus or outro - you might even get an outro that is 126 BPM's but the slight push gives it a real live feel. While the end result will not be ON THE GRID, the feel of the song will be more real and live. I do that on about half of the songs I record. Try it out next time you record.
Or leave everything on the grid and sound like a drum machine. Whatever the song calls for.
I'll have to give this a try! I've never adjusted the tempo slightly during different parts of the song but that makes a lot of sense. Great idea!
Helpful. Thank you.
You're welcome! Glad it was helpful
Excellent advice!
Thanks! I hope it's helpful
Wish I could afford that. Always wanted to make some oldschool breaks like Amen Break, Apache etc by myself.
Great video! I'm surprised you didn't mention superior drummer!
Superior Drummer is awesome. It's just a more complex version of EZ Drummer (both are made by Toon Track). If you can afford it, Superior Drummer is the way to go- but EZ Drummer is absolutely incredible in it's own right. I have no complaints!
Wow great tutorial 👍🏾💯🔥
Thanks for watching!
Very helpful 😊👍
Thanks for watching!
Love it, drum programming always stops my process because it always feels mechanical.
It definitely can be. Learning to play drums on a midi controller is an absolutely game changer- but it's obviously pretty complicated. Maybe I'll do a video on it someday!
Hot stuff here, thanks for sharing
You bet
..... I adopted an idea from Phil Spector, and make a big pile of kicks, snares and hi hats using Superior Drummer, BFD, Addictive Drums or some Kontakt libraries (watch out the mapping!). I render everyone separately, then I import, we say, the snares, with some automation you can give "a starring role" each one here and there and voila!. Drumagog is very good too, but sometimes had strange behaviours and tends to displace some hits. The results are not 100 % human but not bad at all.
I'd be interested to hear what it sounds like!
@songsbyspencer many pieces are uploaded to my RUclips channel.
I am waiting for a video on strings from you. Do you teach strings in your course?
I do not- but that would be a cool idea for a future video!
Multi sample rotation!? It's just round robins! 😊😊 drums sounded very good tho! Well done
I wasn't sure which phrasing I should use, so I asked ChatGPT. It sound Round Robins and Multi-Sample Rotation. The latter sounded a bit more descriptive so I went with it!
Thanks for watching and the kind words. It means more than you know!
Does it make sense to humanize the kick, snare, and toms? Professional recordings actually align them to the grid, right?
Id try to align them to the flow of the rest of the song. Like if the song picks up energy, maybe have everything start to ‘rush’ a little bit. In most professional recordings they don’t align them perfectly, just enough to have each instrument follow the same energy within the tempo. When they align it perfectly it indeed sounds robotic and unnatural. Which is fine if that’s what you’re going for. Just my opinion tho
If you're programming them so they're perfectly to the grid, they'll likely sound too perfect. In this case, I recommend humanizing them so they're slightly off the grid.
@@MichaelDeane-i9n has a good point, typically if you want to nudge the kick/snare before, after, or around the grid is dependent on the groove going
in general, if you have the rest of the rhythm section (bass etc) keeping time straight, you can change the feel by having the kick/snare be “ahead” or “behind” the beat. not easy to pull off but yeah
It depends on the genre. Your techniques are great for many genres of handmade music. However, in some EDM genres drums have to be quantised. I also feel like modern metalcore and post metal has almost non-human sounds.
You are correct! Pop and Dance music needs to have drums aligned very tightly to the grid cause it's what the genre calls for. However, for genres where you want your midi drums to sound realistic, you gotta make them less perfect.
I really don't like the drums in most modern metal. They sound so lifeless and devoid of soul because they're far too perfect.
@songsbyspencer I completely agree. Though I love metal I really wished they came back to the hardcore punk kind of playing style and real drumkits
Does EZDrummer also have that multiple sound for each hit kind of thing? or no? never even knew drumkits had that
Yes! EZ drummer has a ton of samples for every hit, AND at every single possible velocity. I can't even imagine the work that goes into recording all those samples. They have like 15 different hit types for high hats. Every possible hit from fully closed to fully open, it's wild!
@songsbyspencer okay! Good to know, thx for ya reply
lol, you said check out these drums,, and the moment I heard it I was like "sounds unnatural, probably a sloppy take"
now I know, what you are about to say didn't work. No hate, I think it is just something in the performance which makes a beat good.