10 Ways to Make Your Drums Hit Different

Why do some beats sound boring and basic, while others feel stylish and alive?

Through 15 years of producing and releasing records, I've picked up a lot of clever drum tricks that pro producers are using to give their beats a unique edge. Here are ten of my favourites.

1. Design custom envelopes

Let's kick off with a clever way to reshape drum hits.

Take a look at the waveforms of pro drum samples, and you'll find clues for techniques you can apply to your own hits. On a punchy snare, for example, you'll often see a dip in volume just after the initial transient, which gives that first part more punch and impact.

Armed with this knowledge, you can stamp a similar envelope on any sound – and VolumeShaper is the perfect tool with which to do it.

Load up ShaperBox and open VolumeShaper. Set it to Audio mode to make the LFO reset every time the snare plays. Reduce the Loop Length so that the waveform fills the editor.

Now draw in a volume dip just after the transient. Tweak the curve to get the flow and impact you want, and suddenly the snare feels punchier and qualitatively different.

Here's a snare prior to processing:

And here's the same snare drum with a brief dip dialled in with VolumeShaper before the transient:

Here's another example: a drum machine handclap.

You can see multiple “fins” at the start of the waveform. This diffused attack is meant to emulate multiple stacked claps at once. It sounds nothing like humans clapping, but it does give a synthetic clap much of its character. And once again, you can apply a similar volume curve to any drum sound you like.

Here are two instances of a noise hit, followed by the same hit reshaped into a clap using volume modulation in VolumeShaper:

Indeed, you can try all kinds of volume shapes to change a drum hit's dynamics and feel.

And you don't have to stop at volume. Try TimeShaper or PitchShaper in Audio mode on a snare, drawing a sloping curve to sweep the pitch down and reshape its feel.

2. Layer up

Layering is one of the most effective ways to make drums that stand out and hit different.

A good approach is to start with solid foundational samples, then add character or flavour by layering a new sound that complements the original.

You could layer foley or vinyl crackle for a sampled feel. In this example, a layer of vinyl crackle imparts a crusty, sampled vibe:

Or stack a new transient for punch. Or layer something weird, like a pitched vocal or sound effect, for a fun, special vibe.

And for style and variety, automate your layers over time. Bringing layers in and out across a track keeps things interesting and stops your drums from sounding static, as in this example:

3. Play with resonance

A hot topic in music production right now is resonance suppression, and there are plenty of plugins that remove resonances automatically. Because resonant frequencies are always evil, right?

Actually, no.

Take a famous drum sample: the open hi-hat from the TR-909 drum machine. You can see several peaks sticking out in the frequency spectrum. Boost and solo them, and they sound like individual notes in a chord.

If you pull out these resonances, the magic is gone. The hi-hat loses what makes it recognisable and unique.

You may also have noticed resonant peaks in drums from sample packs. These resonances add tone, vibe and character.

So how can you use resonant tones to help your drums hit different? One option is to add resonance with EQ. Try boosting a super-narrow bell, then sweep it around to find a ringing tone that adds positively to the drum hit.

Or, when layering drums, try blending in a tonal sound. For example, layering an 808 conga tone over your snare layers can make the snare sound more "complete", especially when the conga layer is tuned in key with the track.

4. Get your micro-groove on

What is a micro-groove? Well, it's my completely made-up term to describe all those tiny, subtle details that bind drums together, add groove, or change their feel and impact.

One example is a Snapback layer. A reversed Snapback "thwip" leading into a kick or snare might be super subtle, but when you remove it, the groove and feel of the beat completely changes.

Another example is using an obvious Snapback layer to add suction and urgency before a transient. You can use automation to add Snapback layers only on certain hits and not others, for variety and movement.

Another trick that works great for cinematic drum impacts in breakdowns is to add a sucking low-frequency “rumble” Snapback.

And here's another example of a micro-groove, layering field recordings or vinyl crackle onto the drums. I used NoiseShaper along with a couple of audio tracks for this one:

These kinds of organic textures often contain microscopic rhythmic events. Working these into a regular drum groove will not only add texture, but can also introduce subliminal rhythms that just feel unique and different.

5. Pour on the stereo sauce

Another way to make your drums slap in a unique way is by adding a big, fat dollop of stereo sauce.

Try using a convolution reverb – and especially its weirder impulse responses – to add unique stereo content to your drums.

You could even try loading in non-reverb audio files as impulse responses for cool effects. ReverbShaper's user IR import makes this easy: just drop samples into the User Reverbs folder to make them available in the Reverb menu.

Another trick for widening drums is stereo layering. Start with a solid, centred drum hit, then blend in a stereo layer to add tasteful width. In this example, I've used Snapback to add stereo transients to the kick and snare.

6. Go wild with distortion

For drums that hit different, we can't overlook the power of distortion.

While slapping on a distortion plugin and cranking up the Drive may get you the sound you want, a smarter, more flexible method is to only distort certain parts of the waveform. Keep the transient clean and punchy, but smash the body hard to blow out the sustain. Or do the opposite.

In DriveShaper, you can do this with LFO drawing (shown above) or via the Envelope Follower.

And here's another distortion trick: accent a distortion pattern in unique ways by drawing interesting rhythmic shapes in the Wave Editor, for crunchy movement, as made particularly evident in the hi-hats in this example:

7. Get reactive

One of my favourite ways to make my music feel different is to make one part of a track react to another part. Using sub frequencies to trigger distortion on high-frequency elements like hats or rides, for example.

Here's how to set up an FX rack for this, using a ride cymbal to demonstrate. On your ride channel, insert a compressor. Select your bass track as the sidechain input for the compressor, but instead of using it for sidechain compression, use the Sidechain Audition/Monitor button to route the bass signal into the channel.

Now insert an EQ or filter to isolate the sub bass in the bass signal, then mix it in parallel with the ride.

Next, distort the sub bass and ride together using your distortion plugin of choice, high-pass filter the sub bass out of the combined signal after, then EQ out any honky distorted bass frequencies to clean up.

The result? Every time the bass hits, the rides go “mushy” and break up, giving a squishy, oppressive feel that exaggerates the weight of the bass in the mix.

Alternatively, you can use DriveShaper in ShaperBox to achieve the same thing even more easily. Turn on DriveShaper's Envelope, route the bass track into the Sidechain input, set the Envelope’s Input Filter to Free mode and isolate the lows, then dial in Envelope settings to get the reactivity just right.

8. Stay off the grid

Locking all of your drums to the grid is, of course, the way to go when you want a given track to have a purposely robotic feel.

For a very different, more human feel, though, you can move individual notes early or late by tiny amounts to emulate the timing inconsistencies of a real drummer.

You can also use swing (aka shuffle), which shifts every second 16th-note slightly later in time. A beloved feature of many classic drum machines, swing is a standard trope in house, garage and techno. Just select one of your DAW's swing templates for a typical groovy feel, or add swing in real time with TimeShaper.

However, swing isn't particularly unique, and so doesn’t fall into the category of “hitting different”. In fact, it's a bit clichéd. For imbuing a beat with real rhythmic character and identity, manual groove shifting is where it's at.

Start with the snare and downbeat kick quantised to the grid to "anchor" the rhythm. Then manually move other sounds earlier for "urgency" and later for "looseness". You can use your DAW's track delay or a delay plugin to shift sounds later.

In this example, the off-kilter rhythm of the drum track has been hand-programmed via manual groove shifting:

Check out artists like J Dilla and Burial for a masterclass in just how far off-grid you can go with your drums while still keeping them musical.

9. Select different

The drums, cymbals and percussion elements you choose will define the timbre, punch and feel of your track, so sound selection matters.

Use only generic sounds, and your beat will sound generic. So if you want a stylish, unique feel, you’ll need to incorporate stylish, unique sounds.

One good way to do that is to occasionally use weird, non-drum sounds as drums, with the goal of making an unusual beat.

Another is to use regular sounds in non-regular ways. For example, using two different kicks and three different sidestick snares in a single drum kit.

Another thing to consider when choosing drums is juxtaposition, or, put simply, how you combine and contrast different drum sounds to make a unique kit. You could use acoustic elements alongside powerful electronic hits, say, or use one strange, standout sound in an otherwise generic drum kit.

10. Produce with purpose

Now that you've got a toolkit of techniques for crafting unique drums, it's important to ensure that you bring them together with a clear sense of purpose.

Throwing in weird or crazy drums for no reason is just weird. So define your vision; think about the mood and energy you want to convey. Is it aggressive and punchy, laid-back and groovy, or experimental and atmospheric?

Having a clear vision or theme will guide your decisions and tie everything together, so when striving to get your drums hitting different, always approach them with intention, critical judgement and an open mind.

And finally, to see and hear all of these techniques in action, check out my ‘10 Ways To Make Your Drums Hit DIFFERENT’ video.