THE PERFECT KICK DRUM
Computer Music|September 2020
A good drum track starts with the bass drum – find out here how to make sure yours kicks ass
THE PERFECT KICK DRUM

The kick drum, or bass drum, is the powerhouse behind the music. In a club, it’s the kick that’s nailing the four to the floor, and at a rock gig it’s the kick that’s making your chest compress.

The kick started life as a hollow log being whacked by one of Dave Grohl’s ancestors about 60,000 years ago and evolved via marching bands to its current status as the logo-bearing centerpiece of the modern drum kit. Now, of course, it also exists as a sequence of zeros and ones, filed away in your sample collection.

The kick drum is all about low frequencies. It has mids and highs, but its full weight can be felt from 150Hz all the way down to 45Hz, where your speaker cones (and possibly you if it’s too loud) will start farting uncontrollably. This ‘bottom end’ is a wild beast – it’s the hardest element to contain within a mix, demands the most power to deliver live through a big sound system, and is the area in which most rooms will misbehave when monitoring or performing.

The spice of life Of course, despite our snappy title, there’s no such thing as the ‘perfect’ kick drum – a subby 808 from a minimalist electro-house anthem won’t work in a metal track. We have the basic acoustic kicks that the drummer plays using his foot and a pedal. We also have electronically synthesised kicks like those of the classic Roland TR-808 and 909. Then we have amazing hybrid kicks sampled from acoustic kits, machines, and records then blended and resampled into infinite variations on the bass drum theme. Context is key, as anyone who’s trawled through 300 kick drum samples and still not found the right one will know. So how do you control and perfect all these different sounds?

Esta historia es de la edición September 2020 de Computer Music.

Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.

Esta historia es de la edición September 2020 de Computer Music.

Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.

MÁS HISTORIAS DE COMPUTER MUSICVer todo
Sonuscore The Score $399 PC MAC
Computer Music

Sonuscore The Score $399 PC MAC

The Score comes up with a film soundtrack based on your stylistic choices, but that’s just the start of it. Andy Jones scores The Score

time-read
3 minutos  |
November 2024
Baby Audio Humanoid $129 PC MAC
Computer Music

Baby Audio Humanoid $129 PC MAC

Humanoid brings the ‘extreme’ and ‘radical’ to the world of vocals, but is also one of the easiest plugins to use and abuse, says Andy Jones

time-read
4 minutos  |
November 2024
The Synth Factory Horizen $129 PC MAC
Computer Music

The Synth Factory Horizen $129 PC MAC

A synth/sampler that packs in a lot of power at an almost silly price - despite its low profile, Andy Jones gazes at Horizen...

time-read
3 minutos  |
November 2024
Flow Mastering Suite $15/month PC MAC
Computer Music

Flow Mastering Suite $15/month PC MAC

Mastering your music just got as easy or as complex as you want. But, Andy Jones asks, is it worth yet another monthly subscription?

time-read
3 minutos  |
November 2024
Universal Audio LA-6176 $299 PC MAC
Computer Music

Universal Audio LA-6176 $299 PC MAC

UA has bundled three of its classic emulations into one channel strip. Is this analogue dream your ideal plugin team? Andy Jones finds out

time-read
4 minutos  |
November 2024
Rack'em up...
Computer Music

Rack'em up...

IK Multimedia has announced a comprehensive update to its mixing and mastering software, T-RackS, that brings some smart mastering additions

time-read
1 min  |
November 2024
FX Collection 5 €499
Computer Music

FX Collection 5 €499

Arturia's huge bundle of effects gets its regular update and it's still easily as essential as the company's V Collection

time-read
3 minutos  |
November 2024
Make a pulsing bass with GForce Axxess
Computer Music

Make a pulsing bass with GForce Axxess

Get mechanical, with a garage-inspired bass patch, which gets right to the pulsing heart of the Axxess synthesiser

time-read
4 minutos  |
November 2024
The software that shaped us
Computer Music

The software that shaped us

Computer Music has had a 25-year history, and over the life of this magazine, the technology behind music production has changed beyond recognition. Here are the products that set the stage for the modern world…

time-read
5 minutos  |
November 2024
PERFECT VIRTUAL GUITAR!
Computer Music

PERFECT VIRTUAL GUITAR!

Need a great guitar sound, but lacking any guitar-playing contacts, or the skills to play it yourself? Have no fear, your computer is here! With a few pointers, buying advice and hands-on tips, you and your PC or Mac can emulate the greatest guitarists in the world…

time-read
6 minutos  |
November 2024