Synthesis Tutorial: 808 Kick Drum

Introduction

Last month’s article outlined some of the basic functions of the modules within synthesisers, thereby giving an introduction to the world of sound synthesis.

The aim of this week’s article is to provide a step-by-step guide to creating your very own synth sound from scratch. We’ll be starting out very simple, so it should be easy to follow along for sound synthesises enthusiasts of all levels. In this tutorial we will be attempting to create an 808 Kick Drum.

The Roland TR-808 was one of the first programmable drum machines and was introduced in the early 1980s. It was initially intended to create demo music but it was soon appropriated by music producers of all genres, as a cheaper alternative to more expensive drum machines like the Linn LM-1.

Another thing that made the TR 808 so appealing to music producers was that it was capable of producing extremely smooth and low bass frequencies, more so than many drum machines at the time.

The 808 has been used in commercially released hits like: “Sexual Healing” by Marvin Gaye, “Cold Blooded” by Rick James and “Planet Rock” by Afrika Bambaataa.

In recent years the 808 sound has been revived by artists like Kanye West, and various other musicians in the Hip-Hop, Pop, R&B and EDM scenes. The difference is that it’s now possible to create the iconic 808 sound without actually having the drum machine itself.

All we need is a laptop computer and a DAW of your choice. In this case we will be using Logic Pro Xs ES2 synthesiser. However, this tutorial can be done in Logic 9 or any DAW of your choice, so long as you have a basic understanding of synthesisers and sound synthesis. If not, check out in

September’s article on sound synthesis.

Even though this is a beginners tutorial, it should give a good idea of what kind of thought processes go into creating synth sounds. In addition to this, it will give the opportunity to put the knowledge learned in September’s article into practice. Let’s get started.

Step 1

Start by opening a software instrument track and insert Logic Pros ES2 synthesiser, then click the ES2 drop down preset menu.

Image overview, click ES2 drop down menu arrow

Step 2

Go to “Tutorial Settings” and select “Analogue saw Init”. This setting is a good point to start when doing synth design as it gives you a blank canvas to work with.

Image overview select “Tutorial Settings” then “Analog Saw Init”

Step 3

The first thing we need to do is change the voicing on the synth from “polyphony” to “mono”. This needs to be done so that the kicks don’t overlap when notes are played together or in close sequence. Additionally it gives the kick a sound that is more in line with that of a traditional bass drum, which is one tone coming from the centre in the mix.

Image overview, change “poly” to “mono”

                                                                              

           Before                                                                          After

                                                            

Step 4

Next, change the waveform in oscillator 1 from a sawtooth to a sine wave. Kick drums, especially bass drums like an 808 have a smooth round tone, so the sine wave is most suited to recreating the smooth bass tones that we need.

Image overview OSC 1, change saw tooth to a sine wave in oscillator 1

                  Before                                                                        After

            

                                                              

                                                                  

Step 5

Next, go down to the modulation router and select any blank slot. Click “Target” and select “Pitch 1”.

Next, click “Source” and select “ENV1”. Now push the green arrow fader next to the slot all the way up. By doing this, you are able to control the pitch of oscillator 1 with envelope 1.

This is essentially a modulation patch linking the pitch of oscillator 1 to envelope 1, thereby allowing you to control the pitch with the attack and decay of envelope 1.

                       

Image overview modulation router, select empty slot in modulation router.    

                                         

                  

                                              

                 Before                                                                    After

                             

                                                   

Step 6

Go to envelope 1 and bring down the decay setting to about 24ms. This will give the sound a characteristic more like a kick than a bass (by reducing the time it takes for the sound to taper off after a key is pressed)

Test your sound to make sure it sounds like a kick drum and not a bass instrument.

                       

Image overview ENV1, change decay level on ENV 1

        

                                                                    

            Before                                                                          After

                                         

Step 7

If you press a key, you should now be hearing a distinct kick sound. However, you might notice that the sound is clicking at the attack stage immediately after a key is pressed. If you don’t want this, click go to “ENV3” and bring up the attack slightly. This should remove the click, while also giving the kick drum a rounder tone.

You can also play around with the release time, giving the bass sound a longer or shorter release depending on your desire. Remember that envelope 3 controls volume, so you can use the ADSR controls of envelope 3 to shape the kind of kick drum you want.

Image overview ADSR, turn up “attack” on “ENV 3” for less click

                      Before                                                            After                                                               

  

                                             

Step 8

Next, we can add some distortion to our sound; this is not essential, but distortion can help cut through the mix better, while also giving your sound a warmer and fuzzier tone.

This is mostly a matter of taste, so try different extremes with the distortion knob and see what you like.

Image overview, turn distortion knob up.

             

                     Before                                                                  After

                         

                    

                                                   

This marks the end of this tutorial. If you have followed all the steps laid out here, then the settings on your screen should look something like this, but don’t stop here. Experiment and try different settings; you never know what you might come up with. Don’t forget to save your new synth sound, by clicking the drop down menu arrow in the ES2 synthesiser and selecting “Save As”. This way you can use the synth as an instrument whenever needed.

Complete Image Overview, for 808 Kick Drum

Conclusion

Hopefully you were able to follow the instruction laid out here and were able to create your own 808 Kick Drum. Although this was a very simple tutorial, the point of it was to make a nice bass drum of course, but also to demonstrate that all sound synthesis requires is some critical thinking, a basic understanding of your waveforms and synth modules and, of course, a good ear. If we have all these attributes down then it becomes a little bit easier to create more complex and unique synth sounds.