Beat Maker Music Production - Choosing the Right Software

By Abdal Girmani

Beat maker software and good music beats are tough to come by. When I was first starting, I tried to find pre-recorded, royalty-free mixes to use as background in my videos. If you're like me, you've hunted everywhere for free beats to lay behind your music tracks. What you usually get is something that never fits like you would like it to and it sounds like thousands of others. What I wanted was something different, something I could make original. However , I didn't know a thing about producing tracks on my own, after all, my field is video. I tried all types of software and sites on the internet and found some good stuff out there, but I could never find package that did it all for me.

There are a lot of sites and software out there and all of them have their benefits and disadvantages. I've discovered that when hunting for any sort of software, not only for my music producer wishes it's best to make an inventory of the things I wanted it to meet. I decided the perfect beat maker software or web site had to meet the following criteria :

1. Firstly, it had to be user friendly. I had no real experience with sequencers or difficult mixers.

2. There needed to be a huge library of prerecorded sounds and instruments.

3. Possible combinations of sounds and timing had to be unlimited.

4. Tutorials had to be easy to follow.

5. Output quality needed to be remarkable.

6. It needed to be ready to output files in mp3 format.

7. If I wanted help, there needed to be good support.

8. It needed to be INEXPENSIVE!

Your list may differ, rather, from mine, but I was trying to find the perfect package. I presumed at first that I was expecting too much, luckily , after a lot of searching, I found one to fit everything on my list.

There are many different places to look, both off and online.

1. Brick and mortar stores, i.e. : normal outlets like music and software stores.

2. On-line stores that sell software, i.e. : Amazon, Overstock, Fry's, etc . ( perform a search for music producer or beat creator software )

3. Forums are a great place to see what others are using.



4. Website-based software and groups. These are great, because they generally offer better support and have a bunch of members 7that will help one another. - 23815

About the Author:

Find out the top music production software for music production and find out the best ways to produce music in easy manner.

The Boss ME-70 Multi-Effects Pedalboard: A Review

By R. S. Rasnick

For the last few years I have relied upon a Boss ME-50 Boss multi-effects system to supplement my main gig pedalboard. The reason is simple. My main board is absolutely huge, with almost 12 dedicated effects pedals. It's great, but it's also a back-breaker and sometimes causes more hassle than it's worth. I've learned the hard way that carrying around a gigantic pedalboard isn't always the best solution, especially for short gigs or practices. As a result, the ME-50 has proven worth its weight in gold on more than one occasion. I never thought I would want to replace my Boss ME-50...then Boss introduced the ME-70.

Though it's not the most important change, I have to say that the ME-70 is far more attractive on the outside than its predecessor. The classy black exterior of the ME-70 just plain looks more polished and professional. This new board simply looks more like a pro pedalboard than the ME-50. The aesthetic difference is a minor but welcome change.

Of course, looks don't affect the sound, so what's different under the hood? Well, that's where the ME-70 really sets itself apart from its predecessor. In a relatively small package you've got what amounts to 40 different Boss effects pedals. Yep, these are the same classic Boss sounds that we've come to rely upon for so many years. All of your favorites are here - the distortions, overdrives, delays, choruses - from both the ME-50 and your old Boss pedals. It's amazing what the ME-70 packs under the hood. It's a virtual history of Boss effects pedals!

In addition to these classic Boss sounds, the ME-70 has some other cool new features as well. I honestly have never been a huge fan of multi-effects pedalboards that have onboard preamp sections because I never used the preamp, preferring amplifier-based preamp sounds. That was until I had a gig where my tube amp completely died on me, and I was forced to plug my pedalboard straight into the P.A. system. It sounded just plain awful. I then realized the value of having a backup plan in place in case of equipment failure, and the ME-70. It has a COSM preamp that can be turned off completely but is easily accessible if needed. For some gigs, the ME-70 could even be the only thing you bring in addition to your guitar.

Another welcome addition to the Boss ME-7o is the onboard looper. Boss makes great looping pedals, and if you've ever used a Boss Loop Station, you'll recognize the same Boss quality here as well. The looper gives you up to 38 seconds of loop time, which is exceptional for a non-dedicated looper.

In addition to the looper, the designers at Boss saw fit to included a dedicated compressor section, a noticeable omission in the ME-50. While the ME-5o did have a compressor, it had limited controls. Since a compressor is a necessity in any professional quality effects system, it's a welcome addition to the ME-70

Of course, all the great things about the ME-50 are still here. There's adjustable reverb and noise suppression as well as the rocker pedal where you can get wah, volume, and pitch-shifting effects control.

So, if you're looking for a world-class multi-effects pedal that won't break the bank, you should definitely check out the Boss ME-70, a worthy successor to the ME-50. - 23815

About the Author:

If you want the lowest price on the Boss ME-70, make sure you visit JustEffectsPedals.com, which offers the lowest price on the Boss ME-70 available anywhere!

Dish Network Red Zone Sports Package

By Sam Bousacks

Football enthusiasts and avid fans have been looking forward to a way to watch several games simultaneously. They have wanted a channel that gave instant information and highlights for all of the games being played instead of a few games. With the Dish Network Red Zone a person is now able to get instant information and highlights for all the games being played.

The commercial free Red Zone is different than the NFL Red Zone. This channel is brought to viewers in the crystal clarity that makes watching action and replays exciting. A person can see the highlights of touchdowns, scoring, and drives for each game that is being played. The Red Zone channel is part of the Dish Network Sports package.

The package allows you to watch the action from your computer or mobile phone. You can be traveling and not miss the action of a game. You also get replays of games within thirty minutes with the package offer so you can watch games throughout the day without missing any of the drives, touchdowns, or playing.

Another part of the package offers real time scores and streams highlights of games as they are being played. You may want to follow several games at the same time for a fantasy football enthusiast. This is the way to do it. You get live look-ins and highlights of all the games at the same time.

Using the channel that contains multiple screens, you can watch eight games simultaneously. Or, you might want to include the Red Zone as one of the channels and watch seven games while you are watching the highlights from games that you aren't watching.

Not everyone loves football, but for people that love to watch, listen, and play fantasy football, the red zone provides an added level of action and entertainment throughout football season.

The signal that is received from the satellite comes to you in HD so you are able to see every facial expression of the players clearly. You will be able to see the plays taking place from cameras set in the field and on the goal lines. When watching the game you will can easily become a part of any game you are watching.

One of the problems for many football fans has been the inability to see all of the games they are following at the same time. Many times a person had to wait until a few days after a game to see it played. Now, with the sports packages and red zone, a person is able to see all of the games as they happen.

Figuring out which games to watch on Sunday and Monday night is made easy with the multiple options available for viewing. You are now able to watch several games at the same time and not miss any of the action in any of the games. The same high quality and close-up action is being shown for each game that is played.

The Dish Network Red Zone channel is included in the sports package for an additional charge to the basic package rate. You will find that the package makes a great gift for anyone that loves football. For those bets that are made on several games, you will be able to start collecting your winnings as soon as a game is over. - 23815

About the Author:

Want to find out more about Dish Network Red Zone Package, then visit Sam Bousacks's site on how to choose the best Dish Network Deals for your needs.

Right Way to use Drum Samples - Hi-Hats

By John Gellei

There are so many different-sounding types of hi-hats (or just hats) available today, and the range of drum samples that go along with them is also ever-increasing. Many people, when thinking about their favorite songs of the year, could probably tap out the snare and kick drum samples without thinking, but the hats? That's another deal. You see, the hi-hat has resigned itself to be simply a supporting sound, backing up its big brothers, the snare and kick drums. This is not a bad thing, though.

The two mistakes made by producers are not just the domain of amateur producers who may not know better, but also of professional music producers and beat makers.

The first mistake we will look at concerns the volume of hi-hats. There is definitely a battle of the loud out there, and we try to compress and tighten everything up, but the fact of the matter is we don't need to do this for hi-hats. Hats are plenty loud as it is. Many hundreds of thousands of years ago, humans were pray to aerial monsters that let out sounds that share similar frequencies with hi-hats. We have developed a tendency to pick these sounds out quickly, so drop those hi-hat drum samples down a few decibels - your audience will hear them.

Mixing the hi-hats in a little bit lower is great practice - two or three decibels should do. Unless you're going to 'mix out' these samples completely, you can go pretty low and still be sure that your audience will pick them up. Remember that for every six decibels up or down, the sound doubles or halves respectively.

The second mistake is about achieving authenticity with your hip hop drum samples... If you're trying to establish your song as having a real drum part, do not make the mistakes that many others do. Let me give you an example: a constant closed hi-hat in the left channel plays once every 16th note, 16 times a bar, and on the third beat; we hear an open hi-hat that strikes at the same time. What is wrong with this? Well, just about every real drum set only comes with one set of cymbals to manipulate, and triggering a closed hi-hat so often and consistently demonstrates that the cymbals are firmly closed, and yet you also hit the open cymbal at the same time. This is physically impossible, so don't do this if you're trying to set a tone of authenticity in your drum beats. Dance tunes, on the other hand, often have two or three different types of hats playing simultaneously, and if it's the electronic vibe you want to lay down, go crazy. If it sounds good, it's all good!

You can learn a great deal using professional drum sequencing sample libraries and sets like EZ Drummer and BFD. These will show you the physical implications and deliver standard and advanced patterns that you can immediately digest and take in mentally, noting what works and what doesn't work. Then apply what you learn to your own songs. - 23815

About the Author:

Are you after the best hip hop samples on the net? Check out drum samples for all your music production needs.