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whenever i see tutorials for anything production related i see that the drums are usually all audio.

im just wondering if it makes a difference using a sampler and midi notes or just importing the samples right into your arrange page?

the midi timing is not as tight, but whether the difference is perceptible is another question.

it's more about the workflow, i'd say do what is quickest / most comfortable...

yea thats what i was thinking. you have more processing options if it's audio but on a drum track you dont need much more than compression and EQ'ing.

thanks man

doesn't anyone else sequence with midi, render, and THEN mix their drums? Do people bounce their midi stuff only during final mixdowns?

The first 3 posts are the biggest crock o shite i have heard in ages...

lol does that count the OP or nah? my post is a serious question.

Depone wrote:The first 3 posts are the biggest crock o shite i have heard in ages...

either way works
i prefer audio as it allows for individual editing of every single hit easier

-[2]DAY_- wrote:lol does that count the OP or nah? my post is a serious question.

the op counted. was probably some overheard 3rd-4th hand bullshit.

As to your question. No using just midi in channels will give you exactly the same results as rendering to audio. Some benefits of using audio tho, is chopping up audio and glitching it manually etc... But otherwise both are equal in sound + functionality.

Infact the benefits of using midi is to take advantage of the chosen samplers/drum machines synthesis engine, as well as setting individual vol envelopes on each sample, and being able to use velocity better than with audio. I can go on, but both are pretty much the same give or take. some prefer audio, some prefer midi. and some like me utilise both to their strengths.

i always write the beats with midi, just cuz i ain't dragging drum hits into no audio lane... i play drums, it would be ridiculous not to. And it's always amp envelopes to get punch out of the samples....
and it's always the great effects they give u in kontakt, battery, and reason... (and stylus rmx but not so much that one for fx)

But i'm sayin, before i even think about mixing, i gotta render those drum parts to audio. then i do some editing if i want hip hop style drops or glitch or watevs... so yeah def. both.

but for me its always been necessarily both, never one or the other.

Like depone said... learn to work with both, they both have their strengths!
enveloppe, velocity, pitch and playing your drums/samples by hand are great strengths of using a sampler
Chopping up them drums (reverse/ slicing) and a better overview are strengths of audio + I think it works a little bit faster

For me it's a workflow thing, I realize my beats quicker in audio than in midi, I don't know why, I just do.

Depone wrote:The first 3 posts are the biggest crock o shite i have heard in ages...

touche, my point about midi jitter only applies if you're controlling external gear, so not a total crock but misleading nonetheless...

like everyone has said, if you're in the daw its all down to workflow preference.

With my last few tunes I've been laying out the main rythms in midi and finding that after laying down the bass, atmos/leads I need more percussion so i end up adding that as audio in the sequencer. Same end result pretty much.

One thing i don't like about dropping in audio is having to edit velocity using automation or use a another track lower in volume.

I use both.

Almost always use audio for kicks and snares. I just find it easier to place them and vary the lengths that way.

I usually use midi for something like hi-hats because I can use velocity as a macro control within my sampler for stuff like the envelope and the volume.

yea i've been playing around with both lately and i find audio easier to work with.

probably cuz im using ableton now more than logic

I've always used midi. Probably because I grew up mashing beats with an akai or roland sampler. Also because being a bass player and percussionist, I always liked to play my beats in real time. Drawing in beats with a mouse was never really that exciting to me.

So yeah, everyone has their own methods.

EZ

I load all my hits into a drum pad and play with midi

I wanted to revisit this because it seems that most people are programming their drums using audio clips.

That actually seems boring to me. Do you not feel rhythm just flowing through your body and then you play it?

For me it's a bit of both kick and snares I'll do with midi but hats and other Percs are audio channels that i bus together

See, percussion and hi-hats are some of the most important things for me to play live.

This is where you can make the rhythm swirl and get some good cross-rhythms going.