I just don't know where to start...

DJVendetta

Member
Joined
Oct 25, 2010
I want to start producing but I have no idea where to start, I just think about so many things (drum beats, synths, the daw, vsts, structure etc) so I cant start a song. I worry about not having enough samples but I don't want to be using too many samples for obvious reasons.
I have the motivation to produce but when I get to my laptop and open FL Studio I just leave it open for hours without doing anything as I have no idea what to do.
Where should I start? I need to learn how to use FL Studio properly first but I have no patience.

Thanks
 
sometimes i have a fair idea in my head of how i want the track to sound, i always think of the drums first... will they be programmed, will it be a break, how will it sound or what break shall i use.
Then i just piss about with samples, strings, chords, pads, atmospherics, until i find something i dig... then i roll with it!
It should be something you enjoy so don't force it. take inspiration you have done that day, week, was it a good week or a bad week, etc. Watcha movie you like, listen to the soundtracks etc.

I found when i was learning reason i was just following tutorials... its good to be able to translate your thoughts into the daw but mainly just work from inspiration, never boredum (because then you definatly wont have the patience)

Also don't worry about samples and presets... they r there for a reason m8, its what you do with um that counts.
 
I start with kick drum, snare n hat :), then I build up whole break from different layers etc,usualy then i start with bassline but if i feel inspiration to create something more orchestral i start with piano then add pads,leads etc :). But more I am into producing more i understand that i need to know some theory about music and my daw for example what eq does and how properly eq my stuff :). Oh and I personally very dig those computer music videos not only with dnb headz but with rest artist too, you can learn very good stuff from there. If you are on FL then i recommend some indivision tutorials, i guess they will help you :).
 
Well first u better stop worrying couse thats no help hehe:P check out some tutorials on youtube and other places if u dont have a clue what to do so u get the basic idea to know what to do. and just try stuff out and dont get frustrated if u cant do it right, u gotta have patience u cant expect ur music to be good right away
 
i sort of work in a "free spirit" kind of way, poking around on my computer waiting for something cool to happen. i will make synth presets, listen through samples, play records, and eventually something gets in my head. could be a snare, a synth sound, a sequence/melody. i hear lots of people say they start with the drums or the bass, but really i wait to hear something i like and go from there.

that said, you can really break most of it down to drums, leads/synths/keys/etc, bass, atmosphere/fx, and maybe vocals. almost every track needs all this, so just try and pick one and run with it. do you have a good sample collection yet? maybe go through that and try and find some inspiration? open a new project, drop all you favorite samples in the audio bin, and just start dragging. once you get something you like, then look up the subject on youtube before you f**k it up too much (which you will anyway, don't worry, that will happen for a long time. at least i still f**k things up and i've been doing this a few years). let's say it's a snare sound you like. then go to you tube and search "dnb snare" and watch ten videos. then go back to your project. repeat for like a million goddam years...
 
I think the key point that you are missing is the patience. It takes a hell of a lot of patience to produce, especially if you are just starting out and learning your DAW.

I've been using FL Studio for 2 years now and still to this day I am learning new techniques. When I first started out, I didnt know what style of music I wanted to produce, or how to produce it at all. I didnt understand how FL Studio worked, and I certainly had no idea how to EQ anything. The key to it all is the patience. If you realise you arent gonna produce the next big hit overnight, and are willing to take the time, and put in the effort, you will eventually be rewarded.

Like I said, when I first started I was in the same boat as yourself, the only difference being that I was doing it for fun, taking my time, and being patient.......and my reward?.......I've recently been contacted by a digital label...........So if I can do it, anyone can.


Oh, and if theres anything I can help with, just feel free to ask.
 
Totally agree with Fletch!
You have to know that making music is gonna be a harsh job to learn, it takes years to get better and let's say it takes even more to make it perfect.
And believe me, if your just starting or you are one of the legendary producers, every producer learns something with every track you produce.

I normally start out laying down a drum pattern, usually made of single kick, snare and hihat samples.
Then I layer one or more highpassed break loops on top of it to give it some rhythm and drive, amens work really well for this, but also rock drumloops!

Then I start working out the bassline, since the two most important parts of Drum & Bass and Dubstep are the drums and the bass.
Once you've got those two things running simultaneously and everything is sounding good I start working on the levels of the drums, bass and subbass. Keep everything at a level with enough headroom!

Then it's just a matter of filling up the tune with some pads, strings or atmospheric sounds. Some filter sweep, uplifters and downlifters and you've just finished your first track. :D
 
My advice is to keep things simple at first, don't worry about what everyone else is doing to their beats and what everyone else does to their synths and how they process them. Do it your way and you'll find a way that works for you then when you start to get a bit more fluent in producing start to try new techniques out such as compression, different automation effects etc...

and another bit of advice... save ALL the patches you make in massive, it might not fit the tune your currently working with but it could fit perfectly into the next one!
 
My advice is to keep things simple at first, don't worry about what everyone else is doing to their beats and what everyone else does to their synths and how they process them. Do it your way and you'll find a way that works for you then when you start to get a bit more fluent in producing start to try new techniques out such as compression, different automation effects etc...

this. completly. do not take to heart what people are saying about "patience" and "hard work" just have fun, its not supposed to be a chore :)
 
I'm still a bit stuck. I can create a drum beat but it sounds so shit and nothing like DnB. I've got my kicks and snares but when I add hi-hats it sounds shit, do I need to layer loads of different hi-hats or do I layer it with a break? Sorry for asking so many questions, it'll be worth it one day :)
I was trying to recreate the (what sounds simple) drum beat out of pendulum - crush. I've kinda figured out how to EQ and use compression in FL Studio to make the drum hits more snappy but I can't get the hi-hats inbetween to make it sound like dnb.
Any help would be greatly appreciated,
Thanks
 
yes, look for some breaks/loops, add them to your track, and add a high pass filter - play with the frequency cutoff here. you can even add several high passed layers to get a fuller sound. overtop of this, you have your individual hits (kick, snare).

it's also helpful to cut the breaks up and move them around, to sort of generate your own feel to the beat.
 
Whenever I try to make a beat it sounds too 'clubby' and doesn't sound natural, is there a tutorial anywhere that I could use? Maybe I'm using the wrong kicks and snares?
 
dude, other people have probably said this, but you need to stop thinking about it technically, youre not going to be any good when you start out, its a fact, you have you just have fun, learn your way around your DAW first, dont worry about the technical stuff, i promise it will come naturally once you learn how to use your DAW, just have a good time man, seems like you are taking it way to serious, if you are just starting out you have a fucking long way to go, so just relax, take your time, make music, and be prepared for it to not sound like the songs you listen to, because it wont, and it wont for a while. just open up your DAW, and try shit out, read tutorials on fun things you always wanted to try, like wobble, or layering beats, simple stuff, and go from there.

it all works itself out in the long run. do not over think.

also the clubby thing, you need to layer kicks and snares and breaks and shit, but it could be a variety of reasons, try using the attack decay sustain and release settings on your kicks and snares to tighten them up, short and snappy is the key for dnb. then layer them with some highpassed break kicks and snares, to give it some natural feelings, a straight kick and snare from a pack laid out is always going to sound dull and a bit to clean.. if you will
 
I'm still a bit stuck. I can create a drum beat but it sounds so shit and nothing like DnB. I've got my kicks and snares but when I add hi-hats it sounds shit, do I need to layer loads of different hi-hats or do I layer it with a break? Sorry for asking so many questions, it'll be worth it one day :)
I was trying to recreate the (what sounds simple) drum beat out of pendulum - crush. I've kinda figured out how to EQ and use compression in FL Studio to make the drum hits more snappy but I can't get the hi-hats inbetween to make it sound like dnb.
Any help would be greatly appreciated,
Thanks

It might help to set up your DAW so you can quickly switch between your sound, and the song you want to sound like. I do this by sampling the cleanest bit of drums out of the song and setting it to loop in my DAW. I then program my drums and can switch back and forth really quickly. It helps even more if they are in sync. This comparison technique will make differences more obvious, and help you learn some basic mixing and eq.

Plenty of people on a forum will say "dont mind sounding like someone else, be yourself" etc etc, but I think thats just bullshit. You need to compare your work against your influences to be able to learn. Being able to get really close to a specific sound is much harder than just throwing down any sound and excusing your lack of control by calling it original.
 
I just made this: http://soundcloud.com/vendettadj/drum-break-2-0
I've EQ'd it a bit, haven't done compression yet, I don't know how to. Is it the same as EQ where I put the compressor in the same channel as the EQ? Do I compress the WHOLE BREAK or each hit e.g. different compression for the kicks, snares and hats?

If you don't know how to then my advice would be to leave it for now theres a good thread on DOA called compression 101 (http://www.dogsonacid.com/showthread.php?threadid=507671) that could teach you the basics, imo the break sounds pretty good as it is, nice and splashy. I would turn down the 16th hats or shakers in the background, or groove quantize them/change velocity and volume to get it rolling a bit more.
 
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