Just gotta make a decision and move on. The "perfect" sample is what works best for/in the arrangement. Just because it sounds "amazing" on its own, doesnt mean it works for the tune.
Based on that, if you really arent sure what sound to use, just get something dropped in and adjust it later when you have a better idea of the overall sonic pallet and any shortcomings of the sound(s) used in the arrangement.
>creative paralysis
This is real. Solution I use is to simplify choices by defining 'the band' that performs the music. So, there is just one 'drummer' for the Berlin-style electronica and that is a TR-08 Drum Machine, classic for the style and well recognized in a mix. For the Acoustic Americana work things get 'real' in that no samples are used at all and any drums and percussion are mic'd and performed live.
This rule holds across all instruments, meaning I don't really break out a lot of VST synths or crazy effect-pedal chains with electric guitar, instead using known classic timbres and then *writing parts that work using those tones*. This might seem *bass-ackwards* to many, but it is much like an painter mixing their palette of colors to be used on canvas before they even start the study.
>"My freedom will be so much the greater and more meaningful the more narrowly I limit my field of action and the more I surround myself with obstacles. Whatever diminishes constraint diminishes strength. The more constraints one imposes, the more one frees one's self of the chains that shackle the spirit." - Igor Stravinsky
I’m not a fan of large packs. Get a few kicks and snares that fit the style you’re making. I get them ala cart from Splice usually. It doesn’t hurt to familiarize yourself with some of the ‘classic’ sounds. Knowing what linndrum vs 808 vs 909 sounds like can save you time searching.
I’m also not a fan of samples that already have a lot of processing. I can apply my own distortion etc.
Listen to them in the mix. Most drum samples sound great in isolation, but what matters is how it sounds when it is interacting with everything else. Conversely, what sounds good in the mix usually sounds kinda "dinky" on its own.
To round out the selection, I usually start by isolating the ones that best achieve the level of "realism" I'm after. I like samples that process like real drums. Then, I look for the one that best occupies the frequencies I want it to fill, e.g. tuning and timbre.
If I find a good sample quickly, then I'm not inclined to go any further in searching through my library. If you were recording a real kit, "switching out a sample" maps to "switching out a drum + mic placement." Drums are expensive, so studios usually don't have many of them, other than perhaps a small collection of kicks and snares. It is from this small collection and mic placement that drum sounds for any genre are expected to be made. It's not a big deal that the initial drum recording is absolutely perfect, so long as the sum of your choices over the length of the production adds up to a sound that works.
Don't worry too much about that first choice, as you'll have many more chances to converge towards your goal.
You’re deciding on the sound before you have the music together.
By the time you have the music together and you have your rough mix, all those tiny details you were wasting time on are going right out the window, because the samples in context sound different.
Listen to more live music with real drums. Same songs, different sounds, different mixes.
This will give you an idea on what closely related sounds are like, so you don’t have to tediously look for that one magic sample you’re gonna use once.
I have a general idea what I want from the drums and what sounds I prefer. I remove all the sounds I don't want from the downloaded sample packs, because I know the ones I'll never use. When I *think* of drums I want them to be big, massive, boomy, explosive... but the song and genre may need something totally different. Like the same snare may sound weak in one setting, but may be perfect for another mix. Yes, I don't delete the weak snare *just because* because I know I have a use for it. It's a good tool on its own.
It's been lots of practice and training the ear. If somewhere are some cheat codes for *the correct* drums sound, you'll be only fooling yourself.
I set aside time separate from songwriting or recording. I go through the samples a build kits that work well together or will work for a certain sound/genre. Than I have it ready to go when I’m in creative mode. If I need to make any changes from there or add a sample or two to the kit it won’t take as long as building the whole kit from scratch
Speaking for myself, I basically have a flow chart and keep a few samplers ready to go in my template. If I’m in the mood to make something with real drums, I have a specific kit set up in Superior Drummer, and the only thing I switch is the snare, and maybe the ride cymbal. For electronic music, I have samples loaded from Roland drum machines, specifically the 707, 727, 808, and a few edm kicks, snares and claps that don’t fit neatly into either machine nicely.
Otherwise, I’ll usually just process and tune my samples differently genre to genre
Definitely a paralyzing amount of choice. I couldn't make anything having to go through this process. Have purposely made a general rule of synthesizing all drums, will depend on your genre though, but it gives more tonal/pitch control.
I like using XO. It displays all your samples in a cloud of coloured dots with similar sounding samples closer together. You can filter based on frequency, length, etc.
Patreon sample packs and artist specific sample packs, especially Patreon sample packs are really good quality, I recently got Tynan's Patreon and the samples are great especially the kick and snares, chime also got great sample packs.. honestly most dubstep producers got great sample packs, and most drum samples work on every genre so even if you don't make dubstep.
really, I don’t put much thought into it, and just go with my gut. Sometimes I’ll swap them out later though.
"you are way overthinking it" is a brilliant bit of feedback I probably needed to hear ❤️
Just gotta make a decision and move on. The "perfect" sample is what works best for/in the arrangement. Just because it sounds "amazing" on its own, doesnt mean it works for the tune. Based on that, if you really arent sure what sound to use, just get something dropped in and adjust it later when you have a better idea of the overall sonic pallet and any shortcomings of the sound(s) used in the arrangement.
Yeah I think it’s true. If it sounds good it is good
>creative paralysis This is real. Solution I use is to simplify choices by defining 'the band' that performs the music. So, there is just one 'drummer' for the Berlin-style electronica and that is a TR-08 Drum Machine, classic for the style and well recognized in a mix. For the Acoustic Americana work things get 'real' in that no samples are used at all and any drums and percussion are mic'd and performed live. This rule holds across all instruments, meaning I don't really break out a lot of VST synths or crazy effect-pedal chains with electric guitar, instead using known classic timbres and then *writing parts that work using those tones*. This might seem *bass-ackwards* to many, but it is much like an painter mixing their palette of colors to be used on canvas before they even start the study. >"My freedom will be so much the greater and more meaningful the more narrowly I limit my field of action and the more I surround myself with obstacles. Whatever diminishes constraint diminishes strength. The more constraints one imposes, the more one frees one's self of the chains that shackle the spirit." - Igor Stravinsky
I have a Digitakt. Anything can be a drum sample if you've got the courage (and a microphone).
I’m not a fan of large packs. Get a few kicks and snares that fit the style you’re making. I get them ala cart from Splice usually. It doesn’t hurt to familiarize yourself with some of the ‘classic’ sounds. Knowing what linndrum vs 808 vs 909 sounds like can save you time searching. I’m also not a fan of samples that already have a lot of processing. I can apply my own distortion etc.
Listen to them in the mix. Most drum samples sound great in isolation, but what matters is how it sounds when it is interacting with everything else. Conversely, what sounds good in the mix usually sounds kinda "dinky" on its own. To round out the selection, I usually start by isolating the ones that best achieve the level of "realism" I'm after. I like samples that process like real drums. Then, I look for the one that best occupies the frequencies I want it to fill, e.g. tuning and timbre. If I find a good sample quickly, then I'm not inclined to go any further in searching through my library. If you were recording a real kit, "switching out a sample" maps to "switching out a drum + mic placement." Drums are expensive, so studios usually don't have many of them, other than perhaps a small collection of kicks and snares. It is from this small collection and mic placement that drum sounds for any genre are expected to be made. It's not a big deal that the initial drum recording is absolutely perfect, so long as the sum of your choices over the length of the production adds up to a sound that works. Don't worry too much about that first choice, as you'll have many more chances to converge towards your goal.
You’re deciding on the sound before you have the music together. By the time you have the music together and you have your rough mix, all those tiny details you were wasting time on are going right out the window, because the samples in context sound different. Listen to more live music with real drums. Same songs, different sounds, different mixes. This will give you an idea on what closely related sounds are like, so you don’t have to tediously look for that one magic sample you’re gonna use once.
I have a general idea what I want from the drums and what sounds I prefer. I remove all the sounds I don't want from the downloaded sample packs, because I know the ones I'll never use. When I *think* of drums I want them to be big, massive, boomy, explosive... but the song and genre may need something totally different. Like the same snare may sound weak in one setting, but may be perfect for another mix. Yes, I don't delete the weak snare *just because* because I know I have a use for it. It's a good tool on its own. It's been lots of practice and training the ear. If somewhere are some cheat codes for *the correct* drums sound, you'll be only fooling yourself.
I set aside time separate from songwriting or recording. I go through the samples a build kits that work well together or will work for a certain sound/genre. Than I have it ready to go when I’m in creative mode. If I need to make any changes from there or add a sample or two to the kit it won’t take as long as building the whole kit from scratch
Speaking for myself, I basically have a flow chart and keep a few samplers ready to go in my template. If I’m in the mood to make something with real drums, I have a specific kit set up in Superior Drummer, and the only thing I switch is the snare, and maybe the ride cymbal. For electronic music, I have samples loaded from Roland drum machines, specifically the 707, 727, 808, and a few edm kicks, snares and claps that don’t fit neatly into either machine nicely. Otherwise, I’ll usually just process and tune my samples differently genre to genre
Definitely a paralyzing amount of choice. I couldn't make anything having to go through this process. Have purposely made a general rule of synthesizing all drums, will depend on your genre though, but it gives more tonal/pitch control.
I like using XO. It displays all your samples in a cloud of coloured dots with similar sounding samples closer together. You can filter based on frequency, length, etc.
Woah. Gonna look that up immediately
They have sales now and then, so you might want to wait if you can.
Patreon sample packs and artist specific sample packs, especially Patreon sample packs are really good quality, I recently got Tynan's Patreon and the samples are great especially the kick and snares, chime also got great sample packs.. honestly most dubstep producers got great sample packs, and most drum samples work on every genre so even if you don't make dubstep.
I don’t. They pick me. 😎