Help with drum edits (please)

[Lephrenic]

Generally when I'm chopping breaks, I prefer to let the end of a hit go right up to the start of the next hit (or even overlap if separating kicks/hats/snares) so as the 'room' sound from the break is continuous throughout the pattern.

One thing I've never quite worked out is what to do when a drum hit isn't long enough and you get a tiny gap of silence between hits. Even though it's only a few milliseconds, it still sticks out like nuts.

One example is a drum loop I'd written ages ago with the "Let The Music Take Your Mind" break. I suppose it was an ambitious attempt, considering the original is around 110 bpm and all the hits are either 8ths or 16ths.

I can only pitch it down so much before I lose the sound that I'm after. And time stretching just sounds nasty.

Perhaps I could use compression to fade the hits out, but there goes all the atmosphere of the break.

So what options am I left with?

Reverb?

I know Paradox often talks about sampling the 'air' in the break but I'm not quite sure I understand exactly how he goes about it.

[dionysus]

I take the 'air' (the tail from hits) from somewhere else in the break to fill the gap.

My problem is eqing the 'air' when its really dense, to try and take some of the 'fuzzzz' away. Can't do that properly yet.

I guess you could try the reverb thing. Make a reverb hit. Mix it down. Cut out the actually hit. Then your just left with the reverb. Have to try that.

[cycom]

backwards looping!

just take the hit, copy its second half, paste it at the end, reverse this last part and make a fade out (probably starting a bit earlier).

sounds pretty natural to me

[dsp]

backwards looping!

just take the hit, copy its second half, paste it at the end, reverse this last part and make a fade out (probably starting a bit earlier).

sounds pretty natural to me

thats useful sometimes for me but whacking the air via various methods (on the wav or multi channel in cubase works to, it really depends on the break though

[dionysus]

Will have to give that a go cycom.

[Macc]

Recycle's stretch.

There, I said it.

It's a fw/reverse loop, but xfaded and so on. Frankly it's the best thing about recycle.

[dsp]

recycle's stretch.

there, i said it.

headlines

macc in recycle stretch shocker

what ever i takes for the break being used

[Shiva]

Recycle's stretch.

There, I said it.

It's a fw/reverse loop, but xfaded and so on. Frankly it's the best thing about recycle.

[Macc]

When set right it gives a nice smooth tail to the hit without the fw/rv being evident at all. Nothing worse than hits that just stop dead dead dead unless I make it do that

[Shiva]

I know Paradox often talks about sampling the 'air' in the break but I'm not quite sure I understand exactly how he goes about it.

All recordings have the natural ambience of the room they were recorded in.

If there is a gap in that ambience then it sound discontinuos. You can try and use a bit of that ambience to try and give the impression of that room where the recording came from or you could remove it and recreate your own room using reverb.

[Shiva]

When set right it gives a nice smooth tail to the hit without the fw/rv being evident at all. Nothing worse than hits that just stop dead dead dead unless I make it do that

only playing, what ever works is good!

I hate that stop dead rigidness too! Sound so fake and like blatent cut up samples of someone elses recordings.

[Macc]

News just in;

Recycle may be dead forever.

More to come.

[Abend]

I take the 'air' (the tail from hits) from somewhere else in the break to fill the gap.

I guess you could try the reverb thing. Make a reverb hit. Mix it down. Cut out the actually hit. Then your just left with the reverb. Have to try that.

oh, no no no no.....

One thing I've never quite worked out is what to do when a drum hit isn't long enough and you get a tiny gap of silence between hits. Even though it's only a few milliseconds, it still sticks out like nuts.

I know Paradox often talks about sampling the 'air' in the break but I'm not quite sure I understand exactly how he goes about it.

You guys have come up with some interesting ideas tho.

I think what paradox is refering to (and DJ Shadow) is like, studio pressure, tape hiss, or recording enviorment. I don't think they actually take the air from the break. In fact, I remember reading about how paradox sampled the air from some movie from the 60's just to suit one of his songs. if you think about it, it makes sense. If you record the silent enviorment, then layer that over chopped drums, you won't have those gaps.

My suggestion is to stay away from reverb & echo, and try to keep the drums as close to the original recording as possible (exception being the eq boost to the highs.) Depending where the short segment is, you can adjust the swing and compensate a bit for that annoying gap. Getting your break segments as similar as possible in length is a pain in the ass.

I'm going to listen to a few paradox records now and listen for hits chopped short hidden under "air" just to see if I'm right or not. Probally would have been a good idea to check first.

[Macc]

Jaysus

[markgabba]

check the beat science in this thread,,,

[RhythmicNature]

I like the gaps at the end!

[cycom]

i like the gaps at the end!

[subvert]

News just in;

Recycle may be dead forever.

More to come.

new feature in short circuit ?

[Macc]

may not even need that...

zero-x beat creator.

give me a few days to see if it really is as good as initial testing has suggested. but it seems to be...

[dodz]

may not even need that...

zero-x beat creator.

give me a few days to see if it really is as good as initial testing has suggested. but it seems to be...

what the....??!!? gmailzorzzzerez!!!11

[subvert]

Thats been out for years right ??

[Macc]

Yeah, but never been able to get hold of it for a trial. Demo versions don't count right?

[Senator Adam]

i like the gaps at the end!

depends on the song, break, style, but yeah, same here

i like stuff that sounds cut up, doesn't matter if its a break, guitar riff, trumpet, whatever.. sounds cool to me. but it has to be done well though, not lazy crap. usually it sounds best if it's intentional. these guys are talking about unintentional gaps though, which can definitely alter the mood of a tune.

[Senator Adam]

Didn't Zero-x have that Beat slicer for FL a while back? I tried it years ago and it was alright. Maybe it's better now though.

[subvert]

Didn't Zero-x have that Beat slicer for FL a while back? I tried it years ago and it was alright. Maybe it's better now though.

yeh its a cut down FL only version of what Macc is talking aboooot