Drum Mixing

[Elgyn]

I'm wondering if anyone can give me some tips for mixing a drum beat... I think I'm capable of some pretty complex shit in Cool Edit Pro 2.0, since I've worked out how to sync things via the Beats Per Minute, and using the metronome. Timing isn't a problem. The things is I'm not a drummer by trade, and I don't even know the basic 4/4 beats.

Yep... I write in 4/4, basically because I don't understand the complexities of many other time signiatures. My rhythmic skills aren't really up to scratch. I know what other time signiatures mean, there's no problem with that (example: 6/8 = Six Quavers per bar), but I just don't know where the beats should fall.

I've managed to download some pretty damn good drum samples (kick, highhat, snare, toms etc), and they're good enough for me. They don't give much flexibility, but I can do pretty much everything I want with them.

At the moment the only real drum progression I know is...

Beat no.......1....|...2...|...3...|...4...|...1...|... 2...|...3...|...4...|
..................HH.|...HH.|..HH..|..HH..|..HH..| ..HH..|..HH..|..HH..|
.................KIC.|........|........|.......|.K IC..|........|.......|........|
.......................|.......|..SN..|........|.. .....|........|..SN..|........|

HH = Highhat,
KIC = Kick,
SN = Snare
I try and throw in some double kicks here and there, but it doesn't really sound great. My apologies if thats a crap way of notating drumming. I sometimes use variants of this such as a kick or snare landing on the first beat of each bar.
Is drum Tab going to be helpful to me...?

I've got a song as an example of how budget my drum mixing skills are... its at This Link... (http://home.iprimus.com.au/sylent/boundaries_01.mp3)
I would seriously appreciate some drum tips here.
Thanks

. . o O o . .

[elevate]

I'm not really sure what you're asking. Your thread title seems to suggest you need help mixing drums, as in setting levels, eq and compressor settings, mic placement, etc... But do you just need pointers on playing?

The way you tabbed out that beat is pretty much the way things are tabbed, except they usually just use regular music notation and then provide a key, like A would be a snare, C# would be tom 2, F would be hihats, etc... That beat also happens to be beat #1 for pretty much all drummers - it's pretty much the simplest beat there is, though any beat can be flavored by subtle nuances - that same beat could be on-beat and have a dance feel, or it could be ahead of the beat and have a jazzy feel, or behind the beat and have a nice groove to it.

So I take it you're using some software to program the beats(?). If so, how are you doing this and what would you like to be able to do?

[Elgyn]

Bleh... its hard to ask what I want to ask, when I'm not 100% sure.

I'm not using pre-mixed beats, I'm looping samples in Cool Edit. I can find all kinds of notes, like Quavers, Semi-Quavers, down to a fairly high detail, but I just don't know the first thing about drumming.
Its most likely too much trouble for someone to explain how drum tabs work, so perhaps I shouldn't have postedin the first place. I appreciate your reply anyway. I've never learned the first thing about drumming, so perhaps thats where I need to start. At the moment I've just been trying to pick up on what the drumming is doing in the songs I hear. I probably need to speak to someone in person.

Perhaps the title of the thread is a little misleading. I'm not even going to get in to recording my own drum samples (firstly I have no drums), and secondly I have some good samples.
I pretty much need some beginner tips for drumming I guess. The things you pointed out helped me out, and I think I'll check out some drum tabs when I find the time.
I think I'm trying to cheat at drumming, and at the moment its failing and it sounds grotesquely generic.

My apologies for the confusion, but cheers for the reply.

[Chris_Brightwell]

Get a copy of Fruity Loops and Sonic Foundry Acid.

Thank me later. :)

[adamaynardanny]

Reason 2.0
Buy it or acquire it by other means.

EDIT: Btw, a good source of good drumming tips is tool ;)

[elevate]

Get a copy of Fruity Loops and Sonic Foundry Acid.
You don't need Acid, as you've already got CEP, and it works just fine. But Fruity Loops is pretty much where it's at for creating beats - unless you want to do it manually in CEP, which some people do, but it's pretty fuckin difficult....or rather, just a huge pain in the ass. Fruity Loops is easy to get started with, and as you get more comfortable with the program, new features await you at every turn. If you were so inclined, you could Fruity Loops by itself to create songs, but I don't recommend it.

[Elgyn]

I tried to learn Fruity Loops, but at the moment I don't have the time which is required so I'm prepared to undergo the laborious task of looping in CEP. I've actually got pretty good at it lately, and I'm comfortable enough with it.

Thanks heaps Elevate for suggesting drum tabs. I hadn't even thought of it before. I went to a good drum tab site last night, and they have examples of decent beats. I can actually pretty much copy the beats off Tab into CEP. I did it last night, and I was very impressed by the results.
Cheating? Maybe, but everything is being made faster and easier with the computer age. Admittedly most things are also becoming crapper because of this, but I'm hoping my music can be some kind of exception to this rule.
Thanks for the responses.

. . o O o . .

[holy reality]

Get a copy of Fruity Loops and Sonic Foundry Acid.

Thank me later. :)
where one would get those things without paying a hefty price (i.e. > $0.00)

[Chris_Brightwell]

where one would get those things without paying a hefty price (i.e. > $0.00)If you don't know by now, you don't deserve to know.

There's a reason they're trying to shut down P2P networks, and it's more than just music.

[Elgyn]

Pirating, without the CDs!!

Actually some of the software doesn't cost a whole lot more than your average game in AU. I'm not sure if its Fruity Loops or Acid Pro, but one of them goes for about $100-$200 here. That's much more reasonable than say... Adobe Photoshop, which goes for about $500.

But yeah, go with p2p..

[elevate]

There's the Studio Express version of Fruity Loops that goes for $49, which should do everything you need if you have a seperate multitrack app, and there's a free version of Acid - it's somewhat feature-limited, but it works.

[holy reality]

If you don't know by now, you don't deserve to know.

There's a reason they're trying to shut down P2P networks, and it's more than just music.
okay, i was just wondering whether this program was freeware or not based upon how many people have it and wondering if there was a website rather than having to scour kazaa.