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A drum machine emulates the sounds made by any and all percussion instruments. But unlike the actual instruments, a drum machine lets you go a step further in the creative process, allowing you to digitally tweak and alter your hits, beats, and breaks. You’ll be able to create completely new sounds, and ultimately, a crisp and rich-sounding track or set of your very own.
It’s not only for recording either. The best drum machines can be part of your practice, or your live line-up on stage too. Load it up with pre-recorded samples, or purely original customized sounds, and add it to the rest of the band. With the right machine, there’s no limits to genre or what you can do.
If you’re unfamiliar with drum machines, we’ve got you covered. Here’s a few terms, perks, and features to know and look for, before you starting shopping.
What Makes a Good Drum Machine?
Effects: Filters, oscillators, sequencers, tuning, gain, compressor, decay, delay, reverse… there are lots and lots of choices that allow you to bend, pitch-shift, invert, and create new sounds from pretty much any sample. The best way to learn these is simply by playing around, but if there’s a specific effect you’re going for, make sure your machine offers it.
Steps and Sub-Steps: Steps are the layers upon which you build your beats. Depending on how deep you’re looking to go, some machines even offer sub-steps to nail those intricate details on rolls, fills, and patterns.
Portability: Will you be setting this up in a stationary studio? Or bringing it to various recording sessions and live shows? A compact, portable unit can make life a whole lot easier if you’ll be on the move. Same goes for the power source – while most have USB capability, battery power is a helpful backup option, because you never know when an idea will hit you.
Pre-loaded sounds: Depending on the type of music you’ll be making, pre-loaded sounds can be anywhere from a nice bonus to a huge help. These can include samples of traditional analog drum kits and percussion instruments being tapped and slapped from various angles – it’s all a matter of personal preference on how precise you’re looking to get. They can also include lots of non-traditional sounds and samples too (even custom ones of your own), along with instruments from across the musical spectrum. It doesn’t hurt to have on hand, and is worth exploring the library if one is included.
Built-in Microphone and Speaker: If you’ll be keeping your drum machine at your home studio setup, these won’t matter as much, since you probably already have a higher quality mic and speakers at your computer. But if you’re using this primarily while away, such as touring or traveling, a microphone (either built-in or external) is a must to quickly capture vocals and voice sounds. You’ll also want a speaker or headphone output to listen to what you’ve got down when you can’t get to your laptop. If you’re starting from scratch, a set that comes with a mic and headphones is a great way to get going.
Pads: If you can’t find the beat you want, then it’s time to tap out. That’s where pads come in. These helpful big buttons allow you to use your fingers and play the rhythms you’re envisioning. You can even assign each one to a different sound, so it’s just like playing a tiny kit. If you’re going this route, be sure your machine has sensitive pads though. It can be extremely frustrating having to remember to press some pads harder than others to make them work, or missing a beat while playing live because a button didn’t pick up your hit.
LED Lights: These tiny lights are another feature that’s not a deal-breaker, but can be a huge help for those playing in a dark venue or studio. Same goes for a lit-up display screen; trying to see an unlit screen in the dark makes things more difficult than they need to be.
Ready to look for your next new drum machine? We’ve picked three below, so you can quit drumming on your desk and steering wheel, and start getting these beats down for real.
