Quantisizing Midi Drums

After I record drum parts on my keyboard I go into the Piano Roll view and select the parts that have the highest resolution (like hi hats and toms that may reach a 16th note) and quantize those together. Then I select another part with a lower resolution (like kick and snare that may reach only 8th notes) and quantize those together. I usually do the kick and snare at 100% and may do everything else at 100% or lower. I also adjust velocities here to, often maximizing the kick and snare and leaving other stuff alone. I've got key bindings for quantizing and velocities so I can do it really quickly and quantize more precisely to what I played.

Also, be sure that when you play your drum parts that they are pretty close in the first place. Personally, I find that my own timing is not too good and quantizing helps alot.

ORIGINAL: Stealthassassin

Hey thanks doncolga!

OK, so it seems i should split the parts that i am quantisizing to get more accurate results. Can you explain the resloution description you have used? Is it a way of describing the amount of times the instrument is hit per bar - something that is played 16 time per bar = high resolution?

Well i just want to say... I am loving Midi and SONAR So much to learn though..

You don't have to split the parts, I just do that myself sometimes. If you play it in pretty close then you can use the highest resolution that you played and it should get all the parts fine.

Resolution is the smallest division of time that a certain part plays. Basically they are whole, half, quarter, eighth, sixteenth, 32nd...it depends on the time signature of the song. Very generally speaking, if a measure in 4/4 time is divided into 16 equal divisions, then those are 16th notes, 8 equal divisions are 8th notes, four are quarter notes, two are half, one is a whole note. Those are the basic resolutions. There are also triplet varieties that have a swing feel to them.

If I have a measure where the snare drum is only playing quarter notes, then I'll quantize using quarter note resolution. If I have another measure where the snare drum is playing 16th notes, then I'd need to quantize that using 16th note resolution. If you want to quantize both measures at once, you'll need to use the highest resolution that was played; in this case, the 16th note resolution. This applies to all your other percussion parts too...and regular instrument parts for that matter as well.

I cut my sequencing teeth almost 20 years ago on a Roland MC-500 and step timed all my drum parts in with the rhythm sequence. This really helped me *see* exactly what each note was playing. I have not used it, but I believe there is a step sequencer in Sonar that could be mighty handy for programming drum parts. But DO try playing your parts in the way you are doing now and then quantize.

Another drum programming tip: try to think the way a real drummer plays. You're not likely going to do a huge tom tom roll at the same time 16th notes are rolling off the high hat and the snare is doing 16th notes too. I usually put down a kick and snare together, then I go back and add hi hats, toms and cymbals all at the same time. That way, when I'm doing something like a roll or something with the toms, I'm not hitting the hi hats at the same time. Every song is not like this; I use loops on some things and then it doesn't really apply. But for things that are more acoustic, I really try to stick with that.

Another tip if you are new to this...

When you're beginning MIDI and audio sequencing and you realize you have all this power at your fingertips, be selective about parts you use when building your arrangements. When I first started this, I was about 13 years old and would have about a dozen different drums going on, bass, piano, organ, strings, synths, horns, etc....I was *WAY* over sequenced. I'm quite the opposite now.

I would suggest building the best arrangements you can with the fewest parts to build the basic structure, then very carefully add as you see fit, being careful that the parts really plays a role and that they fit together well and don't clash.