This is just a quick video I put together showing how to use sounds from beat thang virtual in Maschine.
Of course it will work for other programs too, but Maschine has some features that makes it pretty easy and quick to do.
A lot of folks that have BTV are always looking for ways to get the sounds out of it to use in their favorite daw, sequencer, mpc, whatever.
There’s a few ways to do it, I found this way to be very quick and easy.
Some other ways to do it are recording audio directly into a wave editor or daw from btv, and chopping the samples, manually. You can make a simple beat that has what you need in it, export as a wave, and chop it manually. You can use something like Sample Robot or another automatic sampling system to do it, and there’s even a way you can do it with a script using autohotkey.
For me, using Extreme Sample Converter was the quickest and most efficient way, since BTV is a vst plugin now, I can just use the VST converter tool in Extreme Sample Converter.
Here’s the video:
So let me know what ya think, as you can see this is a dope tool to have, and automated vst sampling is like waking up to fresh pancakes…just a good thing!
Yo, yall know I’m a huge fan of Maschine…but you also know I’ve recently become a huge fan of BPM as well.
I love them both for different reasons.
The hands on workflow of Maschine is un-matched.
And I love how it handles sampling, editing samples, chopping, etc.
But I also love the BPM sound engine, fx, and expandability with Motu/UVI sounds.
Luckily there are ways to use the best of both in a quick and efficient workflow.
I will be using Maschine for what it does best, namely sampling, sample editing, and holding the hundreds of kits I already made in it!
And I will continue to use BPM as a workstation with the various expansions and instruments available from UVI and Motu.
These two products don’t have to be against each other, and in fact, they work very well together.
I have the Maschine controller mapped to BPM so it can be more hands on (though still not as fluid as Maschine with it’s own controller)
In this video I had started a drumloop in Maschine, but couldn’t find the sound I wanted to lay over it, this prompted me to explore dragging audio into BPM, since I knew the sound I wanted was available in one of it’s many expansions.
While so many people are trying to figure out which one is better, I’m busy figuring out how to use them together!
Today I’m doing something a little different in that I am doing a review on a book.
Amir SA’ID is now on the 5th edition of this hop hop beat making manual.
When it first shipped, I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I knew I had heard about it before.
Once I got it, the first thing I noticed was that it was HUGE! I’ve had it for a few months, but wanted to really get in and read it thoroughly before giving you a proper review on it. Now that I have read it, let’s get into it!
What is the BeatTips Manual?
At the core it is a producers love for the art, history, and technique of beat making.
The manual starts with a few chapters on the history of Hip Hop as an art form, why and how it started, then goes through the process of the first beatmakers, the djs, on up to beat making as a skill and art.
This thing really could be the book for a college course or something, it’s very thorough and I learned many things I never knew.
Especially about the environment that birthed the Hip Hop culture, not just the cliche stuff you hear, but actual background info on the social and political climates from which this culture was born.
After that you get into the various eras of hip hop beat making….
Complete with a nice and thorough chart going from sample based up to keyboard and computer based, documenting and explaining the tools of the various styles of production.
He broke it down into 7 large periods which include:
the break beat period
the studio band period
the electronic drum machine period
pioneers/avant garde period
post pioneers period
southern bounce period
retro eclectic period
Within each period and between periods he documents the styles, major players, gear, techniques, and sound that was prominent during that era. This is not a “skim the top” type of book, you really get a lot of detail and Amir is an amazing writer who you can tell really has a passion for this artform.
From there you jump into a journey of learning the various types of beat making tools, setups, and what sound each tool is best for. Here he goes deep into what makes each type of tool important, and more importantly why the specific style of music you intend to make should determine your setup, not just what’s new or hot. A strictly sample based style of production will benefit from different specific tools than someone who wants to do a lot of keyboard based music.
In addition to learning about the gear, he also goes into the basic foundations of beat making, laying out the common drum pattern upon which pretty much every type of beat can be derived, covering things like swing, ghost notes, arrangement, song structure, etc. He even covers ways and the importance of laying out samples and sounds that ensures your best workflow.
He has whole a whole chapter dedicated to the art of sampling, explaining the process, the different types of sampling, as well as giving out many tips, tricks, and techniques to better work with your samples. He follows that up with a chapter on the legal side of sampling, the different amendments and laws, copyrights, licensing, etc.
Following that chapter Amir gets deep into the need for regular practice of your craft not only hands on, but reading and consumption of manuals, documentaries, studying various forms of music, studying and learning from other beatmakers, basically anything that can help improve your musical talents, and making it a regular part of your life.
After that, in the next chapter, Amir goes into the study of music tradition, culture, and theory. I mean he gets deep laying out the foundations of music theory like harmony, rhythm, and melody. Getting into things like texture, tone, arpeggios, chords, scales, dynamic…I mean, it’s a serious collection of the basic building blocks for any musical creation. Having it all in one spot is very useful.
Part 4 of the book, which is made up of 3 chapters focuses on the business aspect of beatmaking or producing. Everything from knowing the difference between a beat maker and a producer, to understanding contracts, putting together beat cds, copyrighting your works, shopping beats, and handling the marketing of your product. There are even some sample contracts for you to study and get familiar with.
Knowledge from those deep in the game…
The last part of the book, really could have been a book on it’s own, and will surely be a favorite of many. This is where you get access to the interviews with many top producers, engineers, and beat makers as well as some that are up and coming. So who exactly did Amir Said interview?
Marly Marl
Buckwild
D.R. Period
DJ Toomp
Steve Sosa
DJ Premier
9th Wonder
My final thoughts on the BeatTips manual 5th edition
This is a great book, it’s thorough, it’s deep, it’s very informative, and it’s a great resource to have by you while working on your craft. Sure there may be some things you know, but also some things you don’t. It’s also entertaining to read, and get other people’s outlook on the craft and creative outlet you love.
I find no faults in this book, and though I’m not a huge book reader, I really loved this one. I consider it a reference manual, like an encyclopedia on making beats! Not just for learning, but for education, entertainment, and enlightenment! You don’t have to read it from start to finish, if you just want to learn or review a few skills, techniques, or just want to be entertained on a specific area, go for it. Just want to read up on some history real quick? Go for it!
The candid interviews are great and will no doubt be something you read multiple times. The sections on business and music theory are really a great addition, even for those that have been making beats for a while. You may not need help in the area of drum programming, or song arrangement, and that’s cool, there are some that do. Any little tip or trick that can help you be creative is worth it in my opinion.
I say if you make beats, or have any interest in making beats/producing, this book is a must have, no questions, period.
429 pages for $29.95
Go check it out at http://beattips.com/ and also read some of his other articles on the site, they are great as well and frequently updated.
My homie hit me up last night asking how to sequence Reason from Maschine so you can use it as a sound module.
It was working, somewhat, but there were issues with the midi triggering everything at once, no matter the channel.
I don’t use Reason so I downloaded the demo and played around with it this morning, it works pretty well.
I think it would be even better using it with Record, so you could sequence the Reason devices in Record and then record the audio of them when you’re ready.
I may have to test that out as well, if I do, I’ll post a video.
Contents: 4gb of drums, rhodes, bass, guitars, percussions, and fx
Format: REX, WAV, RMX
Price: $99 for the dvd or $49 for each of the two download pak versions.
How does it sound?
It sounds raw and jazzy.
The drums are thick and crusty, the samples have a vinyl/dusty feel to them and the samples are ready to be sliced.
There aren’t many long loops in this one, the music loops folder provides a nice collection of samples to chop.
The rest of the sounds are mostly bits and pieces, perfect for molding together those spontaneous moments of pure funk!
The keys and bass notes are very useful, when used together or spread out across your keys/pads to form the basis of your track.
Well record, this one definitely has some imperfections in some of the samples, but it’s a good imperfection, which goes in line perfectly with the turntable them.
The sounds don’t force you to go in a certain direction, but simply give you the building blocks for your next musical skyscraper.
So what’s the bottom line?
I loved this library, I thought I would miss the longer loops more but I actually loved the chords and short hits quite a bit, felt exactly like the type of small snippets you’d grab off of a vinyl and build around.
I give this library a 4.5 out of 5 subs, very solid and the drums are sick! The kicks, hats, and snares come in two versions…lo fi and phat!
I also like the fact that they break it down into two parts and allow you to pay a little less to download half of the library at a time, good move.
back again with some more authentic samples from platinumloops
this time we taking it south of the border! And no I don’t mean taco bell….
What is Latin Breaks Volume 1?
It’s a full authentic collection of rhythms and loops straight from Latin America.
Percussions, horns, vocals…
all the various sounds you would expect in an exotic latin musical excursion.
Not just a bunch of bongos, but these sound like full breaks
chopped from complete latin records or performances
Real Latin music played live by real Latin musicians
Quick Specs
Content: 144 loops and 7 one shot samples
Format: WAV, AIF, REX2
Price: $69.95
So how do they sound?
Authentic…and spicy!
One thing I’ve come to notice about platinumloops is when they say Latin, they mean it. Just like their Arabian breaks product, this product captures the authentic sound and vibe of real Latin music.
The playing and recording is the type of stuff you spend hours getting dusty fingers looking through old thrift store records, cds, and 8 tracks.
These samples fit easily in a movie or tv soundtrack, as well as they next hip hop, pop, or dance tune.
There is a bit of “air” about the samples, that gives it that live feel, maybe because it was actually recorded live.
I found myself just listening to the grooves, not knowing how or where I would use them.
Production is high quality, and there is tons of different elements to mix, mash, and mangle
So what’s the bottom line?
I was really surprised in this library, when I first got it in for review I thought I couldn’t do anything with it.
I knew it was recorded well, but it felt more like something I would use in a movie score and not for making my next production.
Either way, movie score or music production, these sounds can be very useful and inspiring.
I give this collection a solid 4.5 out of 5 subs.
Well produced and well put together, I would have liked to have more of the musical elements, even though there is quite a bit, I felt I could have traded a few of the percussion loops and breaks for some good latin horn/guitar grooves.
But all in all, a great product.
check out the demos on their site, they even have a few loops/breaks for download: Latin Breaks V1
leave a comment below and let me know what you think
This week I’m checking out a library Big Fish sent over entitled “Smoker’s Relight Deux”
It’s a follow up to “Smoker’s Delight” a library I’ve personally been using and continue to use since it released in 2003
If you like laid back, smoked out, jazzy hip hop…then check this out
What is Smoker’s Relight Deux?
eQuipped Music ( back then they were called elab) smashed the downtempo/lounge hip hop sample genre with Smoker’s Delight.
Dub style rhodes chords, flutes, mpc style drum breaks and music samples, brass, and bass..
all with a laid back vibe that just made you want to chill.
It’s one of my favorite collections, so I was very excited to get my hands on the follow up.
At it’s core, Smoker’s Relight is a huge collection of smoked out hip hop samples for those that like their music on the smoother side of hip hop.
You get tons of drums, loops, riffs, chords, fx, and melodies, all with that lounge type vibe.
Quick Specs
Content: 5012 24bit loops and samples
Format: Rex, Refill, Wav, RMX
Price: $199 for the whole dvd, or $69.99 for each of the 3 downloadable sections.
How does it sound?
I LOVE how they produce these libraries. I’m not quite sure what it is about them, but there is a “texture” to these samples.
The variety of sounds and riffs in here is amazing. The literally hundreds of rhodes chords, the funky musical loops, even the drums are dope.
Some of the drumloops and breaks are SICK. All have that mpc groove that hip hop has been build on for years.
Since so many softwares are able to extract groove templates now, this library doubles as a whole new source of grooves for you too!
The quality is top notch, not a hint of unprofessional recording anywhere in this library.
So what’s the final verdict?
I’ll admit, I’m biased on this one, I love it and I’m not ashamed to say it. Smoker’s Delight has been the library by which I judge all similar libraries for years, and now with Smoker’s Relight the standard has been set once again.
No question this is a 5 out of 5 subs.
I just love the shear amount of samples in this library, each chord is ready to be the foundation for it’s own track, each loop, riff, and sample are so inspiring that you’re bound to have thousands upon thousands of ideas.
There’s no doubt in my mind I will use sounds from this library for MANY years to come…they just don’t get old, and are so well recorded and produced that it’s hard to get away from them once you start using them.
I also like that Big Fish is allowing folks to download the collection in 3 sets, for a lower price. Each downloadable volume contains all the loops and samples from 1 tempo. The tempos in this library are 80, 90, and 100 bpm
So if you normally work at a specific tempo, that may be a good way to get into this amazing library, plus with the great times-stretching software around now, it really doesn’t matter what tempo it is!
I say check it out, I was expecting great things and was NOT disappointed at all.
Here’s a search for smoker’s relight on Big Fish that shows all the collections available. Smoker’s Relight collections.
let me know what you think and leave a comment below
What is the BeatTips Manual?
He has whole a whole chapter dedicated to the art of sampling, explaining the process, the different types of sampling, as well as giving out many tips, tricks, and techniques to better work with your samples. He follows that up with a chapter on the legal side of sampling, the different amendments and laws, copyrights, licensing, etc.
This is a great book, it’s thorough, it’s deep, it’s very informative, and it’s a great resource to have by you while working on your craft. Sure there may be some things you know, but also some things you don’t. It’s also entertaining to read, and get other people’s outlook on the craft and creative outlet you love.
What is Breakbeat Jazz?
It sounds raw and jazzy.
I give this library a 4.5 out of 5 subs, very solid and the drums are sick! The kicks, hats, and snares come in two versions…lo fi and phat!
What is Latin Breaks Volume 1?
What is Smoker’s Relight Deux?
No question this is a 5 out of 5 subs.
