Snares: Punch?

Snares: Where to start... Where did I start? 
Layering 7+ samples, of snares, taps, claps and white noise in an effort to get them to cut through the rest of the tune... This was back in 2009, and all of which was a good call.
Panning - Left & right will get some desired effects.
What did I change?
Adding sounds that you may not think would be worthy of a snare.
Layer a kick, or an open hi hat, or even vocal stab, until the one sound all at the same time covers a wider frequency range... That has worked for me in the past. 
Ultimately now, more importantly than anything - The first and main snare must have a punch of it's own, and be a nice full realistic snare with some umph.
It can still be layered with other sounds, but it will remain the loudest pivot point of all the other sounds creating the snare drum, and will also be the track that triggers any sidechains (To be discussed in later posts) 
Next: The average snare frequency is around 200hz... 
Layer a kick with the snare but find one that is tight and short with not much sub in it.
Filter the kick with a high pass up to at least 150hz so that it won't interrupt any sub bass. 
Layer an open hi hat - But use a high pass and filter it up to over 1khz
Any other sound layered for the snare after this is entirely the choice of the creator.
Next: Envelopes
Shorten the release of any sound being used for the snare as much as possible, with any envelope vst available. for the O HH extend the attack so that all you get is the tail of the sound after the initial snare sample has been triggered. 
Next: Create a dedicated bus
Create a bus channel, and send all related snare samples to it. (Don't put any VSTs on the bus to avoid phasing)
Next: EQing the snare for the mix down. - 
A snare should be around 200hz. But to fine tune it with your mix. Work out the harmonic relationship between frequencies and the key of your track to 3 decimal places. 
For example - If a track is in the key of "F"
F over 4 octaves resides on the following frequencies. 
85.333hz 170.666hz 341.333hz 682.666hz

So, to boost your snare frequency in harmony with the rest of the track, if the track is in the key of F, set your EQ to 170.6 with a tight band width and increase it until it is as loud as the rest of the tune. It will sound nice and sit well with the volume of everything else. 

More to follow:
Any questions or comments follow the links
www.soundcloud.com/shotty4hf
www.Shotty.co.uk
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Studio tips from now on

Not a lot of people have blogs these days to my knowledge. So, over the next few months I'm going to try and make some use of this page. Not just for myself, but for others. "Studio tips" Stuff that I've picked up over the years. I'm often eager to share! Recently learnt secrets and techniques? I will still be keeping to myself for the time being! ;-) But a lot of the frustrating aspects of producing that I have over come I will divulge in following posts. For example: Snares Vocals Loudness Side chaining Transients Saturation Umph Exciting bass sounds VST Instruments VSTs (That help) Buying software Remixes Exporting Outboard etc etc... Check back... I aim to cover as much as possible. And from time to time will post a free tune or two. Ultimate regards, Shotty 4HF

New stuff

Created a new email account. A new ********* account. Uploading tracks as we speak. Successful day. All will be revealed.

Project update!

Tuesdays! Long! All good though - Loads of new projects on the go, working with some great people! About to make a start on the new material for Robbie MC and Insyt. Also entered in to an ongoing entertainment project, big shout to Mike J and Debbie S! Looking forward to this taking shape. Also saw Jozef for the first time in a while - could be some promotional efforts and gigs not too far away if I can get my 'Act' together! Literally!! Quick beer in the sun before I sit at the studio controls! Very much called for! Updates on the above to follow.
Peace! Shotty.

ENTER 2012

Finally, after much time and effort. ENTER 2012 is complete. This is a full CD album, packed with the latest Dubstep, DnB, Breaks and Hiphop from Shotty.co.uk and 4HF Records. Everyone needs to get on this! Download it and turn it up. This is - "Enter 2012" Shotty 4HF.

On Itunes, Amazon mp3 and Spotify.

There have been some issues with Amazon mp3 UK and EU stores. This should hopefully be resolved soon. Amazon mp3 stores in other regions of the world are unaffected.