Came across this song and I tried to mix my kicks to sound like that, but I don´t even know how to get any close to the sound. Any ideas on what to do? I know my basics, but this too much for me.

 

That's probably a down tuned and distorted 909 kick, if that's what you meant.

 

Regular (trap) dry kick + parallel distorted and EQ'd FM synth (start with init sine and tweak your way with different harmonics).

 

Last edited: Jan 26, 2020

This kick doesn't seem particularly notable to me unless you're referring to the synth-bass its layered with. Like they mention above, I'd look for a synth sound or 909 and add some distortion. Then I'd say look into side-chaining the kick to the bass (and possibly other instruments) for that crisp clarity.

 

Last edited: Jan 26, 2020

You could try making the kick like your block-caps thread title!
Seriously though, I don't hear any side-chain compression between kick and bass on this track as @juggz143 said. And I think the 'bass' is the tone of the kick.
Although I maybe hear some subtle side-chain dynamic eq on the topline synth when the kick hits.

 

Sometimes side-chaining your kick and bass isn't supposed to be heard like a future bass pumping effect, sometimes its done for clarity and it makes the bass and kick sound like one thing. I actually use this trick all the time.

There's an 808 and Kick playing simultaneosly AND a synth bassline.

 

You're saying that ducking the bass behind the kick makes it sound like one thing? Nah.
And in this track they're happening at the same time, so...
When you say "side-chaining", with the common usage of those words I assumed you meant ducking, even though a side-chain is used for many different things.
Seems like you've come up with your own term for a diiferent technique of just compressing the kick and bass together to sound "like one thing".

 

So if you sidechain "other instruments" too...what happens if everything is sidechained? lol

 

One can amplitude envelope the attack of the bass, so that the kick acts alone (less overlapping) and then progresses/cross-fades into the bass. The impression will still be percieved as "one" sound/kick.

 

But how does one mix the kick to knock so hard? I normally just sidechain it to the 808 and compress it, but with only that I don't manage to get to that point.

 

By god, imma find out.

 

EQ, in the 100-300 range, compression (transient designers), subtle sidechain against other low end elements, and giving it tons of headroom so it actually can be louder than everything else.

 

808 short kick-drum layered w/a sidechain-compression 808 long kick-drum slightly distorted.

And EQ that sumbeeyotch.

 

There is a little used technique, although so simple it is ridiculous. Double up on the Kick, (2 individual channels) Sidechain the bass and synthline to duck against one of the kicks. then group the 2 kicks and eq (Remove everything below 20hz, boost 1300hz with a very narrow Q by about 2 db for a knock em dead smack kick) & compress together.

Last bit is to offset the sidechained kick, late to about 3 to 10 milliseconds. Not so much that it phases, but just enough to give massive depth. Take the volume of that sidechained kick down a fraction. This infuses the bass/ synthline whilst allowing the kick to cut through the mix.

 

I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that you don't make this genre of music lol

Its an advanced mixing technique, tho its not that hard of a concept.... Again I'll reiterate that I'm not side-chaining for a "ducking" or "pumping" sound, we're talking about a side-chain for clarity (which IS ducking technically but very subtly). Sooooo yes you can side-chain your kick and sometimes the snare to literally everything else in the track (with 0 attack and 0 release so that its instant) and adjust the mix or how deep the side-chain is in such such a way that you don't hear the instruments duck (maybe a few db at most). If done properly the side chain on whatever instruments will be imperceptible, BUT what you DO notice is that whatever your trigger is, it is clearer because it has more room in the mix and no longer being masked.

Lol I should link you guys a youtube tutorial #shrugs


Funny how the next 3 post are all suggesting side-chaining as the answer to this issue

In-fact here's a great article describing exactly what i'm talking about...
https://samplesfrommars.com/blogs/t...compression-to-make-kicks-cut-through-the-mix
He mentions everything I'm saying ...the subtlety ...the fact that you can do it on more than just the bass ...fast attack fast release and so forth. I'd only add that you don't have to use a "compressor" for this technique, you can use an eq, you can use the volume, or you can even use the fader. But what do I know.

If you're side-chaining your kick and 808 but you still feel like your kick is weak (and not punchy enough) then the next step would be to soft-clip the kick. I would recommend not compressing the kick at this stage, especially not on its own, but maybe slightly glue compressing the entire drum bus if needed.

 

Last edited: Feb 3, 2020

Nope. No he doesn't mention everything you're saying, sorry to say. Specifically sidechain compression of everything against the kick.
But after 30+ years as both a pro engineer and session musician, what do I know, eh?

 

i struggled with this for a long while myself -
however its just soft clipping, but it occurs on the master bus, this is where alot of people get it wrong by placing a soft clipper on the kick itself, altho it sometimes may work it doesnt sound as good as soft clipping on the master buss, that way the transient just reacts differently with the rest of the drums and instruments, some people here who dont produce trap or do beats might consider this wrong,
but this is the way to go about it:
1) level and balance all your mixer tracks the way you like, while making sure you dont peak at 0dB and clip (obviously assuming the kick will be the loudest/louder element)
2) add a soft clipper with an input control and knee ratio (and prefferably output knob if youd like to compensate volume) and just increase the soft clipper input and adjust the knee ratio till the kick sounds clipped but not harshly distorted, i usually get that sound when soft clipping 5-8db (shut up boomers i know its alot - thats the point)
i HIGHLY recommend T-Racks 5 Classic Clipper. if you dont have it try a demo or install the T-Racks 5 budle crack, you will not be disappointed i promise, also check out V-Clip by Venn Audio, but it doesnt have that low end magic like classic clipper has, i dont know what it is tbh

also the kick in the track u sent doesnt even hit that hard - hear this for example:

in this case sidechain is also applied

 

Basically, what DJ Elite said. Then just compress both sounds together on a bus and let the compressor shape the sound/envelope. That's what an 1176 does so well, remember? No need to over-complicate stuff! No side-chain, no parallel compression, no transient shapers, none of that. Think like a producer not like an engineer.

For 808 Decay saturation, I suggest ONE of the following flavors:

L1, fastest release. Lower threshold until it introduces slight distortion
Little Clipper - drive it, clip it, hear it
Kramer Tape – Drive the input and then play with the bias, IPS and flux
Berzerk - just try some presets. Haven't wrapped my mind around it fully, but it has some nice fuzzyness to the algos included.

Nice Synths for 808s: FAW Sublab. Massive can do it to, it's just less convinient.

 

Last edited: Feb 4, 2020

Ahhhh old dog new trick syndrome, gotcha!

 

I think you should read the article you linked to, is all. Because it says what it says, not what you're saying.