STUDIO STRATEGIES

Design bespoke kick drums with pro producer Ed:it

Drum programming is a fun part of the track-making process, especially when starting a new tune from scratch. Creating the right percussion early on will influence my choice of other sounds, and shape how other instruments fit the production, so I spend a lot of time digging into my sample library to find perfect drum kit sounds. While finding those perfect one-shots can be time-consuming, it’s equally true that using ready-made sounds from sample packs can feel a tad less ‘exclusive’. That’s why, in this month’s

Studio Strategies tutorial, I’m going to be taking you through the creation of a bespoke bass drum. I’ll use basic subtractive synthesis techniques to construct a powerful, four-to-thefloor kick loop fit for a house or techno track.

I’ll be using my Arturia MiniBrute analogue hardware synthesiser to design the kick. This particular instrument really excels at colourful, weighty percussion sounds, but you shouldn’t be worrying if you don’t own any hardware, as there are countless softsynths on the market that produce similar tones which will yield excellent results.

Once I’m happy with the raw sound, I’ll record the signal into my DAW, then manipulate the audio with dynamics processing and other effects. I suggest you follow along and cultivate your own percussive individuality.