MPC Virtual Drum Machine

The Beat Thang Virtual Drum machine has been taking the internet by storm since  it came out in late 2009 and hip hop producers and rap producers around the world are buying and using this brand new hot drum machine by Beat Kangz Electronics.

The program in itself is a little pricey compared to some of your beginner beat making programs but for the cost compared to having to go out and buy a brand new MPC drum machine, it is very cost effective and makes some really nice beats and sounds with your PC.
The next hurdle that you will face is your knowledge of producing instrumentals and how many other music production programs you have worked with in the past.

If you want a really good beat making software program and your pockets are limited, Sonic Producer is a very affordable beat making program and you will be able to make some really good sounding rap beats with the program.

But the features and benefits of the program out weight the affordable price of only $149 and it is well worth the money when you combine all of the samples and sounds that come along with it.  You have to check it out first hand to really see the power of the drum machine and once you use it, you will probably make it your main computer drum machine for programming beats.

If you are experienced with beat making programs like Fruity Loops and Reason 3.0 and have been able to produce music with them, then you are well on your way to making some awesome beats with the Beat Thang Virtual Drum machine.

I advise every beat maker to take a look at their setup and see if this hardware would fit into their beat making arsenal and if so, it is well worth the expense to begin producing rap beats and r&B beats with this outstanding virtual drum machine.

If you are serious about producing music, then this virtual drum machine will be worth more than the money that you spend to acquire the virtual drum machine by Beat Thang.

There are many drum machines on the market from the Boss series of drum machines that use to be pretty popular back in the 90′s and was probably one of the first Hip Hop drum machine that was affordable to producers who were starting out in the beat game.

I remember when you had to have at least 3 thousand dollars to get a set up to start making rap beats and now you can get virtual drum machines for as little as free and on average about $100 for a beat making program.

The sampling power alone on the MPC drum machine is what gives it the unique sounds and samples and really put the knock in your beats if you are sampling sounds on your own.  I have used the MPC drum machine to create my own sample library and let me tell you that there is no other drum machine that can create the types of strong sounding samples that the MPC drum machine can bring to the table when you are creating and producing hip hop beats.

Synesthesia Releases ‘ez Version’ of Mandala’s Virtual Brain Software

Last modified on 2010-01-17 01:15:24 GMT. 0 comments. Top.

Stepping Stone Approach Brings Electronic Drumming and Music Within Anyone’s Reach — No Computer or Audio Knowledge Necessary

Synesthesia Corp. ( http://www.mandaladrum.com ) today announced the release of a new EZ Version of its Virtual Brain software, designed to allow anyone — even those with no musical or technical knowledge — to be able to make music using the company’s wildly popular, patented high-def drum and synthesizer, the Mandala 2.0. The EZ Version will be available starting Thursday, July 3.

‘If you can listen to a QuickTime movie or iTunes on your computer, then this software will make sound for you — there’s nothing more you need to do except install it onto your computer,’ said Vince De Franco, Synesthesia founder and CEO, and inventor of the Mandala.

The software comes with 75 presets offering pre-arranged musical combos, with self-explanatory names like piano only, piano scale, piano and bass, snare only, snare + position pitch, snare + velocity pitch, etc.

The software automatically detects and configures the Mandala. With the ‘help’ function activated, the EZ software provides rollovers to explain everything that appears on the screen, helping users change the pre-configured settings if they want: they can choose instrument combinations (drawing from sounds and instruments that are built into the computer already), configure up to four different zones of sound across the drum pad, choose scales, modify sound effects and more.

The EZ Version also has:

• 175 instruments and drums (accessed from within Windows or Mac operating systems)
• One operating window for ease of use
• 21 musical scale choices, and nine scale pattern choices
• Three different adjustable sound effects: pitch, pan and modulation
• The ability to alter sound effects with strike position and velocity
• Graphic representation of zone strikes and position ring strikes, so users can see the various zones of sound across the drum pad
• Ability to save new presets
• A panic button to immediately stop all sound
• A ‘Get Started’ button takes users directly to the Mandala Virtual Brain EZ Webpage for help and updates

‘There are a lot of features in our standard Virtual Brain software that only advanced players would want to use,’ said De Franco. ‘So we’ve created a lighter version that streamlines the core function of the software, while maintaining the features that have made the Mandala so popular with beginners and pros alike.’

Both the EZ and Standard Versions of the Virtual Brain software will be included with every Mandala; both are available online for free download at http://www.mandaladrum.com. In fact, even without buying the Mandala, anyone can download the software and tinker with it — on its own, or with other PC or Mac-compatible musical devices.

Whenever they’re ready, players using the EZ Version can step up to the standard version of the Virtual Brain software. It includes 10x more sound effects, can handle up to five different drums plugged into the computer, increases the range to seven configurable zones of sound per drum pad, and comes with a custom library of professionally produced, proprietary sound samples derived from more than 100 other instruments. It’s professional audio software, allowing players to synthesize a host of new sounds and expand their drum kits and sample libraries at will.

Synesthesia also is producing a series of video tutorials for beginner, intermediate and advanced levels. The company will make them available on its website and on YouTube later this year. The series of videos will walk users through the entire process of using the Mandala — from physically connecting the drum to a computer, to using the EZ software, on through to setting up advanced audio techniques using the pro version of the Virtual Brain software.

The Mandala 2.0 retails for $349, and is available online at http://mandaladrum.com . Each Mandala is hand-crafted and thoroughly tested before it is shipped.

About Synesthesia
Synesthesia Corporation ( http://www.synesthesiacorp.com ) is exploring new sonic terrain with the Mandala™, its patented high-def drum and synthesizer — the only electronic drum that faithfully emulates an acoustic drum, and then transcends it. A new kind of synthesizer, the Mandala offers the world’s fastest trigger, precise strike detection across the entire pad, and a musical range so wide it can be the top of the line Black Beauty® Snare Drum or virtually any other instrument imaginable. The Mandala plugs into PC or Mac via USB cable, and works seamlessly with most major mixing programs. Co-developed with professional drummer Danny Carey of Tool, Mandalas are used by professionals and hobbyists the world over. Vince De Franco — inventor, physicist and musician — founded Synesthesia to develop his state-of-the-art electronic sensor technology and to use it to create products that inspire imagination and exploration. Based in Laurel Canyon, Calif., the company currently has several other products in development.

(the Article bod)

,

Learn How To Play Jazz Drums

Last modified on 2010-01-17 01:15:25 GMT. 0 comments. Top.

So you have decided that you want to be a drummer but is at a loss as to which genre of playing style you want to master. Have you considered learning how to be a jazz drummer?

As you probably know, jazz is one of the most artistic and intriguing genre of music and especially so for the jazz drummer. Playing jazz music gives the drummer the opportunity to exhibit his amazing technical drumming skills and capabilities. However, most drummers choose not to take the time to learn how to play jazz drums properly which is partly due to its wide range of technicalities unlike most other forms of music.

Although jazz drumming seem to look very complicated, in reality, it is not that difficult to learn. The main difference is that most drummers are used to the 4/4 tempo of drumming where jazz is played with plenty of triplets and has a different feel from most other types of music. So the drummer may have to relearn some drumming techniques. Furthermore, most jazz pieces are relatively fast in tempo and thus most drummers also need to make improvements on their stick speed.

The first thing a new drummer needs to learn when playing jazz pieces is the basic jazz swing tempo or sometimes called the “swing groove”. A jazz drummer’s main role is to keep time for the rest of the band just like in any genre of music. The drummer should never overpower the rest of the band unlike when playing rock songs. To do this, simply use your hi hat and ride cymbal.

Ok. Let’s start with your hi-hat stepping on the 2 and 4 count to a piece of swing music. It is critical to keep this count over top of everything else that you play. Next, add ride the cymbal with a triplet tempo and feel. Practice these moves to perfection before going further with your drum lessons.

Now that you have mastered how to keep the swing tempo with the hi-hat and ride cymbal, let’s move on to the bass drum or sometimes called the kick-drum. Jazz drumming techniques are sometimes very subtle and because of this, the bass drum should not be too dominant. So do make sure that you do not play the bass drum too loudly. This again is unlike most other form of drumming. A good technique for this is keep your heel down when playing the bass drum. In this way, you are more in position control the strength of the kick more easily. A technique jazz drummers often use is the feathering the bass drum. This is done by lightly tapping the bass drum on the quarter or eighth notes.

You will probably know that is highly common for the bass drum to follow the bass guitar player. So you may need to know what kind of rhythm progression the bass player is playing and try to follow him. The bass drum should be played with more of a feel rather than powerful thumping like those in rock music.

The snare drum can be used to help as an accent for the band or can be used to play straight quarter notes.

Another common rhythm in jazz music is the shuffle and every jazz drummer must also master this form of drumming. Furthermore, since jazz music usually have musicians doing solo runs, the jazz drummer must also learn how to play drum solos. By developing these common jazz drumming styles, you will be playing jazz drums like a pro pretty soon!

(the Article bod)

,

Drums Made Easy – Learn To Play Drums Online

Last modified on 2010-01-17 01:15:25 GMT. 0 comments. Top.

A lot of those who want to learn to play drums understand that the whole process is not an easy thing to do. Learning to play drums, like many other musical instruments, requires a lot of patience and perseverance. Just imagine the amount of endurance and dedication that you need to put in if you plan to learn to play drums online. Yes, learning it in this manner can indeed be ten times challenging but the whole experience can be fun and rewarding.

Click Here For Drums Made Easy Best Deal Now!

If you think that learning how to play drums is comparably easier than learning to play any other musical instrument, you might just be right. Indeed, if you are in the early stages of learning to play drums, you might find it easy as all you would need to focus into are timing, rhythm, and stamina. Wondering how stamina factors in? You will need a lot of stamina as you progress through your drum lessons as playing the drums is a very physical activity. If you will try to review materials that can help you learn to play drums online, you will realize that you will be giving your hands a good amount of beating.

Making a web search for lessons that can help you learn to play drums online can introduce you to numerous results. But before you even think of rubbing your nose on these online lessons, remember that it is always a big advantage if you have your own decent drum set. It can take you time to get familiar with the feel of your drum set. However, once you get the hang of it, you will start to feel that playing the drums is almost a second nature.

After securing your very own drum set, try to compile drum lessons that you can find online. No one wants to absorb bad habits, so see to it that the lessons you download are complete and teaches you proper care of your drums as well.

There are a lot of lessons on the web that can help you learn to play drums online. You just need to select one that you think you will be most comfortable with. Of course, it always helps to seek help from a teacher or tutor who will not only teach you the basics, but will also give you an idea of the progress that you can look forward to.

(the Article bod)

,

Last modified on GMT. 0 comments. Top.

,

Last modified on GMT. 0 comments. Top.

,

Last modified on GMT. 0 comments. Top.

,

A Complete Guide For Electronic Drums

Last modified on 2010-01-17 01:15:31 GMT. 3 comments. Top.

The drums is one of the most interesting part of the music history. Drums and drum sets form quite a variety and is almost an integral part of many different cultures.

Making a drum is easy and the standard variety of a drum consisted simply of a hollowed out log or gourd with a piece of skin stretched taunt. Dissimilar sizes of gourds and logs created different sounds and beats.

What is Electronic Drums

Electronic drums are kind of percussion instruments where the sound is produced by an electronic waveform generator or sampler instead of by acoustic vibration. When an electronic drum pad is hit, a change in voltage is activated in the embedded piezoelectric transducer (piezo) or force sensitive resistor (FSR).

The signals emitted are then transmitted to an electronic drum brain via TS or TRS cables, which are then decoded into digital waveforms. The result is the production of the preferred percussion sound assigned to that particular trigger pad.

Popular and new drum modules have triggered inputs for a kick, 3 to 4 toms, 2 or more cymbals, hi-hat, and a dual-zone snare (head and rim). The hi-hat has a foot controller which creates open and closed sounds; there are some models which also offer variations in-between.

The electronic drummer has virtually boundless prospects for configuring many different sounding drum kits from one set of electronic drums, because of its capacity to assign diverse sounds to any given pad.

Electronic drummers, also add up, in sampling non-percussive sounds to use them as drum sounds. This is also called as an advantage over acoustic drums due to tuning and changing aspects. The effect can be simply obtained by merely changing the kit selector switching on the module. The result can have a jazz, rock or ballad drum set.

Electronic Drums Module

The modern drum modules are bundled with amazing features and the power to create unlimited drum kits. Acoustic drum kits build their sound through physical divisions of the drums, such as the shell, head and trapped air pressure within the drums.

In comparison to many other musical instruments, the electronic drums are next to silent. The inbuilt electrical sensors pick up the energy produced by the stick-movement and convey it to the drum module for processing.

Market for Electronic Drums

There are four electronic drum companies that control the market today. Each offers a range of models and prices to suit the choice and taste of the amateurists to the experienced professionals. Roland, Pintech, Yamaha and Hart Dynamics are the four in the business, which covers 80 percent of the market.

Technical Advancements

Drum kits being manufactured today have dealt with many of the inadequacies of early electronic drums. Although each of these manufacturers has basic entry-level products, the kits for professionals are aimed towards creating a sound and playing knowledge which is practically interchangeable with the output of a quality acoustic kit.

For example, there are Yamaha DDrum4SE. DTXtreme IIS and Roland TD-12 and TD-20 V-Drums having 2006 MSRPs are equipped with high quality digital samples, multiple triggers, realistic Hi-Hats, multiple outputs, expansion slots/MIDI connections.

(the Article bod)