• Pizzicato Five - Porno 3003 (Thievery Corporation Remix) @ 1:56
  
• Liberation Front @ 0:11
• Lebanese Blonde @ 0:21
• All That We Perceive @ 0:00

In each of the above tracks, at the marked timestamp there is a particular drum beat playing with a sound that is very interesting to me. The kick is very short, barely contains any sub and fits into the mix like a glove. The snare is very short, yet full and sounds like it's being whacked with good force, and has no obvious fundamental note/tone. Hihats are also pretty smexy but I'm more interested in learning how to achieve the kick and snare sound.

Can someone shed more light on how to go about achieving this sort of lush drum sound? I'm aware it might be sampled, but is there a particular genre/style I should go digging in hopes of finding similar kick & snare sounds? My hunch is that Thievery Corporation cooked this drum beat up themselves i.e. selected one or more kicks, snares and hihats from different sources and layered them to get this beauty.

 

Last edited: Aug 21, 2023

i like this one: The Richest Man in Babylon. but watch the acoustic version of it. there is another percussion player off screen. when they walk away, there are more drum hits. either way, they clearly have some pretty damn nice microphones. If you click their "About" page, it mentions their live shows have a sitar player and percussionists. These beats definitely sound influenced by chopped up jazz breakbeats, but i don't think they are sampled because they sound very open and have no obvious re-compression on them. I could see them maybe using samples to put the track sketch together and then having their own percussionists re-record the drums. Why chance getting caught sampling, or paying to clear samples when you can just as easily re-record them even nicer? I think you will want to start at Kontakt libraries right from the get-go.

this stuff sounds like some of the tracks used on the Amazon detective series Bosch, and some of the author Michael Connelly's other books turned into films.

 

Last edited: Aug 21, 2023

I never listened to their stuff until just now. Took me 10 sec to know they used an MPC 3k. It does exactly what you want. It makes all sounds cohesive yet punchy and thick without harshness or flatness which is the sound of the newer MPCs and DAWs.

That comes with a hefty price tag though, as more and more people are realizing that old hardware samples and gear have that magic to them that can't be replicated

Edit: just looked up their studio and alas: they use an MPC 3k

 

Last edited: Aug 21, 2023

I wonder if something like nebula could capture the sound. On analog gear it does wonders.

 

I am not sure I believe this theory, at all. Granted, a quick trip to their website might show you that they use an MPC3K and then confirmation bias sneaks in and you think that sure, it does sound like one! Fair enough. But not the reverse. Somehow the MPC3000 sounds identifiably different now from a 2000XL? How about a MPC60? Or an S6000? sure.

Why would you sample drums when you have multiple talented percussionists who could perform the parts, free and clear of any points, clearance headaches, and other costs? Unless the actual sample source of some specific Akai expansion pack can be identified; i'm going to lean towards BS all day on this one. Even if unintentional BS.

 

I understand your reasoning but when you mention percussionists and performers you are looking at an "evolved" Thievery Corporation after their first couple albums. They did their first album exclusively on the MPC 3000 and ASR10. (Source) Now, this beat in question first appeared just a year after the first album, so there's a good chance they were still using the same workflow. Back then they were working in the back room of a restaurant/bar in DC (source). The picture shows a room with a vintage MPC, quite likely the 3000. And they're saying the first three (!) albums were recorded in that room! While I was not there I suspect that they didn't record live drums... and the sound doesn't suggest it to me either, too clean... I've recorded drums before. I'm not claiming to be the best at it, but it's a LOT of effort to get a live drum take to sound like that, even with post processing and all!

 

Last edited: Aug 22, 2023

I knew they used a 3k before I checked- that came after. So where is the confirmation bias? You can listen to demos of the 3k on youtube- it has a very distinct sound that once you realize what it is you'll hear on countless of hit records, precisely because it's so unique. And no, you cannot emulate it because it's far more than just the swing template. The 2000 is cool too, but very different. Less thick and more gritty imo. Also the swing seems to be different too.

No offence but if you cant identify sounds by their texture or their swing then you are not deep enough into music production. Often times this feeling you have ( vibe for lack of word) is actually simply a piece of equipment. Talent is when you recognize that feeling as great and worthy of recording. Once you use an MPC you will know what I mean. The swing is undeniable and different to sequencing in a daw.

To OP: If you want that sound, are you ready to spend big racks? if not, get as close as you can and you might find something else cool on the way until you can afford the piece.

 

Last edited: Aug 22, 2023

Well....... The more I hear this the more I feel the urge to get my hands on one just to see how much of a difference there REALLY is. If there's this "magic" which can't be replicated, makes me wonder if it's all good magic, or if there are cases where the magic works against you by doing undesirable things to your samples. (E.g. applying a compressor that you can never turn off) I mean let's be real here, last thing one would want is to spend mega fat stacks on a vintage MPC and then realize that while it's making your snare "punch" it's also screwing with your sound/workflow in 10 different ways you didn't expect it to.

Would anyone care to summarize the pros and cons (apart from price) of the MPC3000? Cos at this point I'll consider selling some gear just to try one out. Like, is the MPC3000 that last 1% to the 99%? Is it the CHERRY on top of the cherries on top of the cake? Cos from YouTube comparisons I'm not noticing a huge difference, while others seem to swear by it. Any MPC 3000 owners pls pitch in....

 

Last edited: Aug 22, 2023

Laughably easy to reproduce...and no, you don't need 3k for this. Learn to use superior drummer and/or addictive drums, or any other similar vst. I can shit out such kicks with Kick 2 in a matter of minutes. Literally. Then some proper compression (any compressor will do if you know what you're doing + saturation/distortion (MWaveShaper/MWaveFolder is/are insane, again if you know the tools). Seriously, give it a go, its not that hard.

 

I don't think you'd benefit only to play sounds into your daw. The output of the MPC3k is only part of the puzzle, that's where I'm gonna leave it at. You will have to learn HOW to use it. Just owning it isn't what does the magic.

I also wouldn't listen to people saying gear doesn't matter, which is 99% of all forum posters. Listen to their music and you can decide if what they're preaching is truthful or ignorant.

Also lmao at people saying you can replicate the punch of source material by adding plugins- sorry! Not gonna happen.

 

Show us how! I'd love to get proven wrong, but the prices for 3ks are going up up up. Purely nostalgia or are people catching on? You decide

 

For sure, with an MPC3000 I'd work inside it as much as I can until it's no longer possible, until it's time to mix or master the track. Have you made any music using an MPC3000 by any chance? Would love to hear something if so, doesn't have to be anything groundbreaking just a reference for the sound.

I have Addictive Drums, will try it tomorrow along with the MWaveShaper (I think it's free?) But I struggled to find a matching snare, you'd be surprised how tricky it can be to get close to this drum sound! Very dry, short, punchy, full snare with no fundamental tone.

 

I have no 3k, but I've studied the differences in sonics between machines. Old and new...I have a Live II which is decent, and has great workflow, but the sound is....well. I've already given away too much sauce. There will now be a myriad of posters saying all you need is workflow. Sonics are secondary to them. Now which great producer ever said that? Food for thought. We live in a fast food world now, also in music. Workflow is first.

 

A quick Google search showed me that the MPC3000 retailed originally for $3699 back in 1993. With inflation that's equivalent to $7737 today. So I would say they've maintained their value fairly well, but it's not obvious to me that they're value is appreciating significantly.

 

yep, for a digital product that is insane value. 10 years ago they cost 1grand or even less. Now you cant get them under 3k ;)
I will be happy if I can resell my Live II for half the price I bought it for, and that's not even a year ago I bought it

 

These guys are not called "thievery corp" for no reason, of course they use samples. I have listened to them since the first albums and can confirm that many tracks use these drums;

 

So to prove that is an MPC3K instead of a 2K (as example); all we have is your word on it that you can't get your newer model to sound like that?

That's a stretch. I have blind tested myself with my e-mus which I have had quite a long time and I can't tell the difference with just sample playback from them. People make comments like yours about "studying the differences" and claim because they used different ad convertors one is much dirtier sounding than the others. But it is impossibly slow to use comparatively. It would make sense to use one or the other if there was any real difference in sound to put up with their differences in processing speeds. An impulse response would probably be different, but there is hardly enough variance to make the slower one worth using. I'll have to take your word for it that I am not into producing enough because I cannot identify gear which I have never even owned, and i'll stick with what i do. You should try it sometime.

 

Last edited: Aug 22, 2023

I always thought that beat sound like multimedia, this guy instead

 

I think it's not unreasonable to assume that an MPC 3000 was used on some of the tracks. Might be even the case that they recorded a real drum sequence and then put it into a sampler afterwards. Whatever, it's a nice sound!

I think sharp transients / attack and the short decay are not necessarily due to the MPC 3000, but due to sound selection and editing.

Most samplers have an envelope / ADSR or similar, where you can shorten the decay to get this done. Or select samples that already have this characteristics. Also pitching drum samples a few semitones can get you closer to that sound. Saturation, some bit reduction and sample rate reduction can also contribute to that sound, if you want to recreate it in your DAW.

 

most likely your monitoring situation isnt good enough if you cant hear differences between samplers cause they arent that subtle. Especially between newer Mpcs and older ones. The lack of punch and depth on newer ones is pretty drastic. Once you hear what it does to sound (warms it up and gives oompf without sounding harsh) you will recognize the sound in many of your fav records