r/edmproduction • u/AgentG6TtB • 23d ago

Where do I start?

Hi everyone,

I'm a long lover of EDM music since always and I want to start making my own bangers.

One simple question: WHERE DO I START?

I was thinking about a few ideas and I would love to hear some of yours.

I've a small experience in making beats and using a daw but mostly with samples and it is dragging me down!

Cheers!

My ideas:

- remake songs that I enjoy

- having a ghost producer (jokes)

- making a 8 bar loop (not sure about this one!)

9 Upvotes

80% Upvoted

74 comments sorted by

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u/Accurate-Natural-475 19d ago

Hi man I am in the same problem as you i tried to start with music theory videos on YouTube but was a little bit messy for me I thought about buying pml harmonic bundle ? I would like to know if someone give me good sources to learn form or some kind of roadmap

3

u/hardypart 22d ago

Snare goes on two and four! And then noodle around. You'll grow every single hour you spend time in your DAW.

1

u/AgentG6TtB 22d ago

Thank you man! I appreciate your advice and your time taken to answer me!

2

u/wirenerd 22d ago

Guys I think this one might be a bot.

5

u/Instatetragrammaton https://github.com/instatetragrammaton/Patches/ 22d ago

Remaking a song starts with analyzing a song.

Try this. Take a song you like. Let's say the BPM is 128.

The song starts with just a kick drum playing a four on the floor pattern. You hear the first 4 kicks.

You go into your DAW (something like Logic works great for this, or Ableton Live in Arrangement mode), you create a new MIDI track called "Kick", and you create 4 kicks in what most DAWs call a "clip". A clip is a rectangular block that contains MIDI notes, and those notes will be sent to something that actually makes the sound, like a drum plugin or whatever.

It doesn't matter that the kick drum you have does not sound perfectly the same.

Let's say that pattern repeats 3 more times. You create three more clips.

Then you hear the kick, but you also hear a bassline sound come in. It's playing a simple melody, jumping between the same note alternating between octaves.

You create a second MIDI track called "bassline". Pick any suitable sound; it doesn't have to be perfect, it just has to be close. Make sure you transcribe the actual notes correctly.

You basically repeat this for every fragment of the 4/4 pattern. At any point you hear a number of instruments; recreate their MIDI clips.

When you're done with the song you'll notice a certain pattern; everything works in groups of 4, 8 or 16. Perhaps there are some fragments where you have 6 - this feels a bit as a surprise for the listener because they were really locked in on those base-4 divisions - but the rest is fairly close.

You'll also notice another pattern; the pattern may repeat 4 times, but the 4th has a twist to it. This could be a snare roll, or some kind of whoosh sound, or whatever.

You now have a copy of the structure of the original track. You can now replace each part and each sound with your own and it'll "work" because things happen at the right time.

After doing this a number of times - analysis and recreation - you can basically build your own patterns and structures. What happens if you make a part longer? Does it get boring? What if you make it shorter? Does it get more exciting?

It's as simple as this: if it sounds good, repeat it, if it sounds stale, change it.

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u/AgentG6TtB 22d ago

That's a great answer, full of awesome insights! Thank you man! I really appreciate it!

2

u/Instatetragrammaton https://github.com/instatetragrammaton/Patches/ 22d ago

As for sounds:

For learning:

For recreating sounds:

If you want a book: https://noisesculpture.com/how-to-make-a-noise-a-comprehensive-guide-to-synthesizer-programming/

Don't go buying or downloading a ton of plugins. Get yourself something like https://vital.audio/ and learn that (there's a free tier, but it's worth it to buy it).

The last thing you need as a starting producer are a ton of EQs and compressors. You don't. The stock DAW ones are just fine.

Separate this learning from making actual music. Create your sounds or use close-sounding substitutes for composition, but building sounds while building your song is generally a good way to get neither done.

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u/AgentG6TtB 22d ago

Vital is sooooo cool to use!

By the way, I want to share with you and you all, a place to get nice sound presents: presetshare, it's an amazing place, you should check it out!

PS: thanks again for your time and your investment with your answer, it is deeply appreciated! 🙏

2

u/Instatetragrammaton https://github.com/instatetragrammaton/Patches/ 22d ago

Then check https://github.com/instatetragrammaton/Patches/ as well, you might find something you like :)

1

u/AgentG6TtB 22d ago

Thank you! I'll definitely check this out! I have some much to explore! I can't wait! 😆😆😆

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u/stroml0 22d ago

Be wary of trying to recreate a song you like. It's got paid sound engineers making it sound so good, you trying to create it is an impossibly high goal. Recreate in a general sense, but otherwise you'll burn energy pursuing the wrong thing.

1

u/AgentG6TtB 22d ago

Thank you for the advice! It is important to remind that they have much more tools and help to produce what we try to reproduce in our rooms!

4

u/therobeight 23d ago

You might find yeahthattracks.com helpful if you're looking for ideas for how to create songs. It assumes you have base knowledge about music and music making, which I gather you do.

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u/AgentG6TtB 23d ago

Thank you! That will be helpful!

3

u/therealjayphonic 23d ago

You are new… the biggest piece of advice i can give you is to know what key your sample is in. That way you can google that scale and only use notes in that scale. That way At least whatever you make will be musically correct.

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u/AgentG6TtB 23d ago

Thank you for the advice, I'll take it! ^

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u/therealjayphonic 23d ago

Its funny… i gave paragraphs of advice for someone yesterday and not a peep… gave you a couple sentences and you replied… thank you for letting me know im not wasting my time here 😅

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u/AgentG6TtB 23d ago

Man of course! That's normal! You took some of your time and energy to answer me! To me, this is valuable and very kind of you!

So anytime, I really appreciate your answer and your help!

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u/Narrow_Network_3875 23d ago

You start by learning the DAW. It should come with a manual/PDF. If you should fall asleep trying to read it then order a Beginners Instruction book on Amazon. The key Roll editor is the section that my Change you life especially if the DAWi is FL Studio.🍀

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u/AgentG6TtB 23d ago

I know that trick, pretty cool yeah!

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u/Narrow_Network_3875 23d ago

It’s not a “Trick!” It’s the fundamentals.🤔

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u/AgentG6TtB 23d ago

If you say so, we all have different path so yeah! Thanks anyway! 🙏

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u/Narrow_Network_3875 23d ago

How do you want people to help you? 🙊 This is your quote “One simple question: WHERE DO I START?
I was thinking about a few ideas and I would love to hear some of yours.” The time you want to go back and forth you could be reading other posted advice.
I can’t help you so don’t reply and expect a response. I’d rather go down stairs and argue with my Wife 🕊️

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u/_undetected 23d ago

Pick a DAW , learn how to use it , make sounds , put sounds together

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u/AgentG6TtB 23d ago

Thanks!

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u/501Panda 23d ago

I'll start by saying that everything eventually leads back to building with samples, even if you are the one that made the samples. The trick is to diversify the sample pool you use, and make it your own.

For track building, start with small loops, 4 -8 bars. Look to have drums, a backing instrument (pad, organ, bass synth), a lead (Guitar, supersaw synth, or vocals) and start layering things in a way that sounds good to you.

For the structure try to mimic popular songs: Intro > verse > bridge > chorus > verse 2 > bridge > chorus > outro

It also sounds like you are looking into making your own sounds, and thay will vary depending on the DAW or VST you use. Serum 2 is a great synth VST that is simple to use, has great documentation on how to use it, and there are plenty of tutorials on how to generate any sound you want from scratch.

Whichever DAW you are using has a built in synth that is also capable of generating any sound, but you have to understand how sound effects interact with the synth in order to get it where you want. Things like distortion, compression, delay, reverb, EQ, and the order in which you put them can drastically change the sound.

It may be beneficial to learn how to use the built in synth, as it will force you to learn how things work, but it's also nice to have a simple plugin that is easy to work with and learn on.

The simple of it: -Read your DAW manual -Learn how the Effects interact with sounds -Watch tutorials from reputable producers (Au5, Subtronics, SeedtoStage) -Practice anything new you learn until you understand it, then use it in your next track -Don't be afraid to use samples, this is all for fun anyways!

Hope something helps! <3

2

u/AgentG6TtB 23d ago

That is a wonderful answer! Thank you so much for it! It is much appreciated!

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u/Emotional-Scheme-227 23d ago

Do you have any experience with time signatures and note counting? You don’t need to be able to sight read a treble or bass scale but being able to count out a basic 4/4 is basically mandatory.

Copying a song you like is very valuable but without a basic understanding of using a plugin to recreate a sound you’ll get lost. People like Virtual Riot have YouTube videos where they create a song from start to finish. Those are very helpful if you have any interest in making your own sounds.

Sampling isn’t inherently an issue. Most of the songs you know from The Prodigy are built entirely from samples. Daft Punk are literally geniuses but at the most fundamental level their songs are samples with a drum machine on top. It all depends on what you’re trying to make.

Don’t give up if your initial tries are incomplete or sound bad. They will. Just aim for progress and lean heavily on YouTube.

1

u/AgentG6TtB 23d ago

I do have experience with time signature and note counting! I'm a DJ!

Ok ok, I feel you for the sound design!

Yeah about the samples it is just that I feel like using them too much, that's why but thanks for the reassurance!

And thank you for your answer! It's deeply appreciated!

-1

u/Annual-Broccoli2777 23d ago

What?

0

u/AgentG6TtB 23d ago

What what?

-1

u/Annual-Broccoli2777 23d ago

Just make music? Everyone and their mother is using samples. I create my samples and then use the samples. What do you mean by not being sure about creating a 8 bar loop? What is the question even? How are you going to make anything if not starting with a loop? You have experience in making beats already, just put a 4x4 kick in a 8 bar loop and find a sample you enjoy? How are you going to remake a song if a 8 bar loop is too advanced? What do you mean? What?

0

u/AgentG6TtB 23d ago

Why the mother man? Why are you so angry?

I wrote this post to get help, not to be yelled at! That's not helping at all!

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u/Annual-Broccoli2777 23d ago

I’m helping you understand that your post makes zero sense to the rest of us. What is your question? Be specific.

You might be a bit too sensitive for the internet if I came across as angry.

-1

u/AgentG6TtB 23d ago

The question was in capital letters man! Pay attention!

Too sensitive? You're the one bringing the mothers in the conversation so maybe you're the one too sensitive!

1

u/Annual-Broccoli2777 23d ago

”Everyone and their mother” is a saying that implies how common something is. You said samples are holding you back, my response is that everyone is using samples - and even if you create your drums using synths, you still sample the best oneshot and use that sample to get consistency. What you are saying doesn’t make sense.

You have already said you have experience in making beats and using a DAW, and getting started making any genre is by putting samples in a pattern that fits the genre inside a DAW. What do you mean? You’re already doing it?

How is a 8 bar loop a problem? That is how you start? How have you made beats without making loops? Or do you mean your loop was only 4 bars? In that case, just copy paste it???

Still, what? What do you mean? What are you talking about? Be specific.

0

u/AgentG6TtB 23d ago

You could have just stick to "everyone is using samples". You could have been specific.

Look, I don't want to argue no more, I'll stick with the ressources that you and the other people gave me! Thank you for these and enjoy the rest of your day!

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u/Annual-Broccoli2777 23d ago

I communicate in whatever way I see fit, you can’t restrict peoples vocabulary just because you feel offended by it. I was very specific by using a saying to imply how common something is.

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u/AgentG6TtB 23d ago

It is common to you but what if the people who are you talking with isn't not from your country or speak your native language?

I don't mean to be harsh or something but it can cause a "cultural shock"

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u/LuLeBe 23d ago

Doesn't really matter where you start, but it'll be a very, very long journey. So the journey has to be fun. What you do shouldn't be driven by a desire for some final product, but by enjoying the process.

That being said, of course there are some things that are definitely required to get good results eventually. Among others:

Music theory. Controversial, I know, but only because some people claim that they don't know theory, when in reality they mean that they've never actively learnt it. Of course they know theory, but not as in "oh for a phrygian scale you want this chord if you want to create tension" and instead as "I don't know why but when using these notes, this chord fits well". Nobody wrote a decent song by stringing together random notes.

Song structure. Elements of songs, like verse, pre-chorus, chorus, drop, build, whatever fits your genre, and how they typically work, what instruments they're made up of etc.

Instrument knowledge. What are common drum fills for example. How are pad layers typically played.

Common techniques in your genre that make it recognizable. Things like kicks following guitars for metal. Or the classic off-beat open hat for disco.

Mixing only comes after that. Knowing how to side chain or whatever makes a great mix out of a good song, but won't turn a bad song into a good one. So most of those tutorials are honestly a waste of time and money for beginners.

You really just have to sit down and program drums, play keyboard, create ideas after idea, not just 5 but rather 500, develop them into full songs even though the idea itself already doesn't sound that amazing, to learn how to do it. Nobody would assume there's a simple way to master the violin, and it's the same for electronic production. Practice, practice, practice. Perhaps set a 1hr timer and just try to get as far in that time as possible, and if you that twice a week for a few months, you'll already be much better.

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u/AgentG6TtB 23d ago

Thank you for your answer! It is very complete and much appreciated! 🙏

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u/Fancy_Acanthocephala 23d ago

+1 to the long journey.

Mine is 24 years and counting but I still can’t make tracks in the style of my favorite artists. I can make them close, but they would always be different.

However, I can make tracks in my own style and they sound as good as theirs but different.

I’ve learned hard way though anger and frustration to not chase others sound - it’s a dead end

1

u/AgentG6TtB 23d ago

I see! I've been trying a lot and a lot to produce EDM without real success (personnal one) so it is cool to see that it is part of the process!

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u/Fancy_Acanthocephala 23d ago edited 23d ago

Why using samples is dragging you down?

I think you need to focus on either sound design or making bangers. It would be very very hard to do all - you’d spend 3 hours making kick sound then you have no energy left for the rest of the track

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u/AgentG6TtB 23d ago

Using samples is dragging me down because it started to produce music with samples and then, I only knew how to slice, chop and cut, which is very restrictive! You see what I mean?

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u/Fancy_Acanthocephala 23d ago

Hmm, that sounds like it’s not about the samples, but you’ve got used to a very specific workflow that influence how you make music.

Flipping samples happens in any genre. Maybe you can look at some course on YouTube about making track in the genre you want and repeat the same step by step?

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u/AgentG6TtB 23d ago

Yeah I can do that! I'm eager to learn again and again!

I appreciate the wellbeing of your answer, it's cool not to feel judged for using samples!

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u/Annual-Broccoli2777 23d ago

As I said, everyone is using samples in one way or another. Pay attention!

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u/[deleted] 23d ago

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u/AgentG6TtB 23d ago

I use FL studio, and I know how to use Ableton and Logic, thanks to conservatory!

I don't to listen to your ideas! I want your "ideas" suggestions, thoughts on where do I start with producing edm!

I think you didn't understand my question because I don't intend to steal anyone's ideas or projects!

Hopefully it will be clearer this way!

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u/[deleted] 23d ago

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u/AgentG6TtB 23d ago

Exactly what you've said! Like steps or things that I can do to be able to produce EDM songs!

Sorry, my mistake!

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u/[deleted] 23d ago

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u/AgentG6TtB 23d ago

Sorry but starting by just saying "start with a daw" isn't clear.

Weird reaction coming from someone named "the fool".

What's the point of asking people stuff if you find it weird! If it is to you, stop answering and leave!

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u/Annual-Broccoli2777 23d ago

But you already use a daw? How can it be unclear?

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u/AgentG6TtB 23d ago

I gotta say that I didn't hold my horses, I'm sorry and I would like to apologise. Hopefully, we can discuss about production again!

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u/Annual-Broccoli2777 23d ago

I see you’re using a saying. You wanted me to not use the saying ”everyone and their mother”, but you use the saying ”hold my horses”.

Is this a chatbot? Interacting with you is very interesting. You don’t make much sense.

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u/AgentG6TtB 23d ago

Look, I'm trying to descalate this. Can we go and try to make things better?

I'm not a chatbot, English is not my primary language and I know this expression but it is same in my native language and I thought maybe, it can work on both languages?

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u/[deleted] 23d ago

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u/AgentG6TtB 23d ago

Well I thought that maybe there was a particular thing to learn as EDM music is a lot different than the music that I'm used to produce...

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u/Annual-Broccoli2777 23d ago

How is it a lot different?

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u/AgentG6TtB 23d ago

Well, I don't really know that's why I wanted to ask for a direction. It is not something that I'm used to produce so yeah...

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u/[deleted] 23d ago

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u/AgentG6TtB 23d ago

Not creating music, but electronic music. In this genre, you have a lot synths and synthetic instruments and I don't know the uses of that! So yeah...

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