how do you process your kick tracks?

[Mercado_Negro]

Roll-off at 30Hz or higher, if it's "rumbling" too much. Cut around 140Hz-320Hz (you need to find the right spot, though). Boost around 3kHz-4.2kHz, if needed (aiming at "punch", though this may need some tweak later if you're going to compress that kick). I always process my kicks with Nebula and shape their tone to make them fit the song (if this kick isn't cutting it) so I don't need to cut/boost too many dB's.

FWIW, I mix hip-hop/R&B and latin rhythms.

[milosh_]

I always process my kicks with Nebula and shape their tone to make them fit the song

Do you use Fate EQ kick program (from Analog In The Box stuff) ?
Sometimes it does half the job for me

[Giusmex]

ok thanx for these answers

from them i understand that :

1) bitcrushing can be useful and that cab ne obtained with camelcrusher ( i also have camelphat but i dont think it is necessay for kicks, because it also has a little modulation matrix and a LFO, so maybe its more for basses and guitars

2) the EQ...mhhh...that really hits me; i catch that sometimes increasing the high frequencies in a kick makes it a bit snappier...but there is no risk that it collides with other "high frequency" instruments such as pads or other things? i imagine a little eq there, also...

[IBurstBubbles]

Eq -> Cutting everything below 40hz,shaping the sound.

Flux Bittersweet II -> handling transients (optional).

Compressor -> Handling dynamics.

[Giusmex]

Eq -> Cutting everything below 40hz,shaping the sound.

Flux Bittersweet II -> handling transients (optional).

Compressor -> Handling dynamics.

HI

But if you cut below 40 hz isnt that too much? dont you lose a bit too much low end this way? ill try anyway maybe this is the best thing i have learnt until now...who knows

[risome]

hi guys
sometimes i hear from you some suggestions about this and that, and very ofter a consideration about the processing of a single track comes out; now id like to know form you which chain of effect ( ine lectronic music) do you apply to your kick drum track

thanz

I layer sounds, eq them , then use parallel compression

[synthgeek]

For me, it depends on the track, but generally speaking, if it's not gonna be distorted a bunch, I often use a compressor (my favorite for this job is Rough Rider), followed by EQ. I often compress quite a bit, with a slow enough attack to leave the initial transient alone. Just how I EQ depends on the track, if the kick is the main source of sub-bass, I'll cut around the 120Hz-ish mark for the bass (as in bass instrument, whatever it may be) & boost the sub freqs if needed (also cutting subs on the bass)- or the other way around if the bass is doing the subs. If needed, I'll also do a narrowish boost for the "beater" (generally around 5kHz). I also generally use a little bit of overdrive/distortion, just 'cuz I like it. Sometimes I also use a limiter in there, to keep the attack in check after the compressor's make-up gain.

In the case of the distorted kicks I use in my noisier stuff, most of the above still applies, but then I also usually use parallel processing (via sending to another track in Reaper, or with a second chain of fx in a modular host such as Bidule) for the distorted signal. When I do this, I usually EQ the lows out of the distorted part of the signal, and carve out a fair amount of everything but the lows on the clean signal (also usually leaving at least some of the original attack/beater). Or I might just use two different sounds completely. I'm also a big fan of using a resonant filter on the distorted part.

Another little trick I've used (this would be for cleaner sounds again) pertains to the reverb send, and I imagine it's mostly useful on electronic kicks. I usually send less kick to the reverb than the other drums, for one thing (I believe that's pretty common). Also, to add a little something without getting too much boom in the reverb, I use another send track in Reaper with the kick as an input, and use a gate to get rid of everything but the attack, and maybe some of the initial punchy bit (maybe with some EQ for shaping)... send to reverb, mix to taste. Not something I do all the time, but has been useful.

[Igro]

I never layer kicks. The click and body either can be made with compressor and EQ.

here is my list for working with the raw 909 kick:
1)Cut below 30 or 20(24-38-48dB slop, depends what you want to achieve)
2)Boost lows by 10dB(on 60Hz) using any Pultec emulation)
3)Cut below 20 Hz again(cos this area will be amplified again)
4)Compressor
5)Saturation(I use Roundtone, Presence or Magnetic. Roundtone can tame nasty comp attack click in a good way and giving a nice body)
6) EQ - last corrections with cutting, rather than boosting. Check low freq area if those freq were boosted again cos of saturation)


That's only for raw kicks.

[IBurstBubbles]

HI

But if you cut below 40 hz isnt that too much? dont you lose a bit too much low end this way? ill try anyway maybe this is the best thing i have learnt until now...who knows

Yeah it is a little too much but few subwoofers can reproduce frequences below 40Hz properly.Plus (for me) everything below 40hz is worthless.I get all the bass frequences i want above 40 Hz,plus it uses headroom which i could use to make my kick louder.
Dont know if that is wrong,but works for me.I even cut everything below 40Hz in the whole mix

[ryandfl]

How much you cut out the lows also depends on what you want at the bottom bottom end. Sometimes it is the bass not the kick.

[thedjesus]

A lot of the posts are iterating that what you EQ out (or boost) in the Kick Drum, Bass Relationship really depends on what you want to get sub frequencies <60hZ to come from.

Sometimes in my tracks I may want the sub frequencies to come from the Kick over the Bass. (I would say generally, because I use a lot of side-chaining, that I prefer a good amount of sub frequencies in my Kick drums).

Trial and Error Experimentation is better than any "right way" of doing it.

[Dean Aka Nekro]

Rather heavy handedly, have to track them that way also. When dealing with rapid double-kick laced complex metal at lets just say upbeat tempos they need it

Dean

[Grain Bastard]

I never layer kicks. The click and body either can be made with compressor and EQ.

here is my list for working with the raw 909 kick:
1)Cut below 30 or 20(24-38-48dB slop, depends what you want to achieve)
2)Boost lows by 10dB(on 60Hz) using any Pultec emulation)
3)Cut below 20 Hz again(cos this area will be amplified again)
4)Compressor
5)Saturation(I use Roundtone, Presence or Magnetic. Roundtone can tame nasty comp attack click in a good way and giving a nice body)
6) EQ - last corrections with cutting, rather than boosting. Check low freq area if those freq were boosted again cos of saturation)


That's only for raw kicks.

No. 2 interests me. That seems quite a boost imo and I was wondering if you would answer me a few questions.....

I do something similar to you but I only add about 1 or 2 db gain around 80Hz rather than 60 but I leave the volume as it was. Do you have to trim the fader back down the 10db you boosted @60Hz??? Also do you do the boost by ear or use a visual aid, as my UAD Pultec has 0-10 on the low-end boost and wouldn't know how much 10db was - lol. I'm guessing that the following compression you listed maybe trims the gain and drives it a bit harder being louder but gain staging does intrigue me. What do you monitor with? Do you use a sub-woofer?

What genre of music do you produce and have you any music I could listen to??

Thanks in advance for any more info mate - I would like to know/hear as it sounds like you throw quite a few cpu cycles at your kick which usually makes me think, 'mmmmmmm, they wouldn't go to that much trouble unless it's worth it!!!' -

[sadkin]

Someone else already posted the same method but i do it too: tape sim, compressor, eq

on occasion, if i need more attack, less release from the source i will throw spl's transient designer on the kick...first in line actually.

[Sokar]

Stillwell's The Rocket into the Waves Pultec EQ.

I use one of the snare presets (I forget which one) as a starting point on the compressor and adjust. On the EQ, I use a common Pultec trick. Set the low end to 30 and turn up both the boost and cut equally till it hits the way I want it to.