DRUM TIPS

Sample selection is very important.

Use drum breaks/loops for hi-hats and ghost notes for extra texture

Kicks / Snares
o Use quick pitch and volume envelopes to keep the kick and snare tight and
dry.
o Layer an organic kick/snare with an electronic kick/snare to get a full
sound.
o Quick high to low pitch envelope will add to the attack of the drum.
o For a tight and dry snare, use a volume envelope to rid of the tail.
o Adding distortion to a snare will destroy the harmonics and boost the
volume which is perfect for a punchy dubstep snare.

Humanise the drums especially hi-hats, snare ghost notes and any percussion.
o When sequencing drum fills, try and mimic an actual drummer with subtle
inconsistencies in quantisation and velocity.
o Varied velocities.
o Swing function in step sequencer (parameter available for individual
tracks)
o Do not quantise. Record with sample pad if possible.
o Time parameter in FLS to offset notes.
o Playing open hi-hats at the same time as snares but offsetting them to
play slightly after can help widen the sound.

Ghost k
ick sidechaining
o Use a ghost kick to sidechain by taking a r egular kick with desired delay
and unlinking it from the master channel to prevent any sound being sent.
o Change the velocity of the ghost kicks to affect the intensity of the
sidechain compression.

EQ
o Go through each drum eliminating any unused frequencies, i.e. cut the low
end of cymbals and the low end of any percussion that may clash with the
kick.

MISC.

Reese B
ass
o The effect of a reese bass is created by phase cancellation. This is when
the peak of one waveform clashes with the trough of another, creating
silence.
o As there will be more cycles per second the higher the pitch, higher
frequencies will have more frequent clashes, producing a faster
modulation effect.
o Can be created by using two sine waves and fine tuning the pitches, which
will offset them slightly.
 o Take control over the reese effect by setting the Rand parameter to 0,
ensuring that the waves start from the same phase. The phase parameter
can then be adjusted as desired.
o The effect can also be generated with just one waveform by utilising
unison voices that are slightly detuned.
o Portamento helps the notes flow into each other smoothly.
o Run the synth through multiband compression and distortion to emphasize
the reese effect.
Vocal Chops
o As well as many other methods (including Fruity Slicer):
Take a vocal sample and trim it in Edison.
Drag the trimmed clip into a granulizer.
Adjust the envelope, set the time gate and mess with portamento if
desired.
Raise the attack if the vocals sound too robotic.
The offset of the vocal chops can be altered with the Time
parameter in the granulizer.
Fruity Slicer can also be used double click on notes in piano roll to
pitch them.
o Use Fabfilter to EQ and Valhalla for very wet reverb.
o Try using a multi-effect plugin like Camelcrusher.
o Generally vocal chops sound a better with a bit of a tail to prevent them
sounding robotic and abrupt.
o Experiment with and combine several vowel sounds to get an exciting and
varied melody.
Sample anything
o Sample a sound in Edison and trim it accurately.
o Insert silence after the note so that it doesnt end abruptly.
o Drag the new audio clip into a Sampler.
o Set Time to None.
o Crossfade as little as possible to loop the sound.
o Use de-clicking if necessary.
o Pitch to keyboard by right-clicking on the corresponding note.
Layering
o When layering synths for chords, make the sound get wider higher up the
frequency spectrum.
Fundamentals for bass (no width)
Medium width for midrange frequencies
Lots of width for higher frequencies

SERUM

BASICS

+7 semitones for perfect fifth

+5 semitones for perfect fourth
Envelope 1 controls the amplitude of the sound.
Mouse Over Help
 o Hover the mouse over a parameter to quickly show the description in case
you get stuck
The Macro knob can control several parameters at once good for making a
sound evolve in a track without having to layer several automation clips.
Using a lot of unison voices will affect processing power.
o 16 voices on both oscillators + sub + noise = 34 oscillators at once.
Switches
o Poly (polyphony) sets the maximum number of voices that can be played
at once.
o Legato
On
When a note is pressed whilst another is already being
played, envelopes will not retrigger.
Off
Envelopes will retrigger every time a new note is played.

o Mono only one note is played at a time, good for basses.

o Portamento
Can be really cool on chords especially supersaws.
The curve next to the portamento switch can be edited to change
the curvature on the portamento effect)
The Scaled switch will change the speed it takes to reach the
destination depending on the number of semitones between the
notes.
o The Always switch will always produce portamento, even when a note isnt
already being held down.
Parameters can be assigned to the Mod Wheel in the Matrix tab by changing the
aux source.

WT EDITING

Processing imported waveforms

o Use the editor to trim samples with no characteristics or ornaments at the
end of the wave.
o Remove silence in the beginning and end of the wave by using
Add/Remove Multi-selection
o Process Normalise Each to normalise the amplitude of each frame
o Process X-Fade Edges to crossfade the edges of the wave to allow each
table to smoothly transition into the next one.
o Process Morph Spectral to generate 256 frames very important when
modulating WT position.
Optional features
o Add noise to the wave to add some harsh harmonics
o Use the grid to add specific intervals for melodic content.
o There is an option to remove fundamental in the WT editor which will
retain harmonics of a sound but remove the fundamental frequencies of
the root note, which can be replaced with a sub.
o Down arrow dropdown button multis Process Squarify Normalise
to retain only even harmonics. This makes for a very useful wavetable for
FMing due to only even harmonics being present.
 WT E
ditor Tips / Tricks
o Along with a collection of useful presets, the formula function can also be
used for text to speech by writing a phrase in marks.
o The section above the WT editor is a harmonic editor, which offers a lot of
different options upon right click.
o You can rename and save custom wavetables by exiting the editor and
clicking the save icon to the left of the Custom name.
o Create wave tables from vocal samples (8-12 samples) for unique sounds.
o You can drag a PNG picture file to the wavetable sampler to turn it into a
wavetable.
o You can resample to Osc x using the dropdown menu where Init Preset
is found.

SERUM TIPS

Use Shift + Alt + Click to switch the modulation between Uni-directional and
Bi-directional without visiting the Matrix window.
Alt + Click on a parameter with modulation to change the modulation amount
without having to click the tiny blue circle.
Ctrl + Click on a parameter to reset it to its initial value.
Quickly add modulation sources by right-clicking and clicking Mod Source.
Add curves to modulators for non-linear curves
o In the Matrix tab, you can change the curve of modulators, potentially
adding an entire new element to the sound.
Use warp modes and modulate them for movement.
When creating synths, try modulating the sub level to follow the level of the
synth.
You can modulate sub tuning and master tuning from the Matrix window.
When modulating from another osc, mess with pitch for cool effects.
Note on Random
o Right click WT position parameter Note on Random to generate a
different timbre on every note.
Serum is really powerful when it comes to making FX/atmospheric/fill sounds
pick a waveform or two and modulate several parameters with LFOs until you find
something cool.
If Serum is popping/clicking:
o Check the CPU can handle it
o Uncheck limit polyphony to one of any note number in global
o If attack and release are both at 0 it will usually be clicky add a small
amount of each to solve this.

Copy a
n LFO to another
o Hold Alt and click + drag the LFO tab to any other LFO.
o This c an be great for creating variation in synth patterns by adjusting the
modulation via the new LFO.
o You can also drag an LFO to an oscillator to turn it into a wavetable.
o Scroll through LFOs quickly by Alt + Clicking on the LFO folder.
 LFO functions
o Trig - Activates LFO from the beginning whenever a key is pressed.
o Env - Makes the LFO behave like an envelope.
o Trip/Dot - Enables triplets/dotted patterns, respectively.
o Rise - Gives an LFO attack
i.e. 1/128 rate means that the LFO will take 1/128th the time of the
BPM to reach its full range of motion.
In Env mode, this behaves as a fade-into the envelope.
o Delay - Enables a delay on the start of the LFO
o Smooth - Smooths out edges
Can prove useful with step sequencer shaped LFOs.
When using an LFO in envelope mode, press Shift + Ctrl + Click to create a loop
point, in which it will continuously loop. Click on a pre-existing curve node to turn
it into a loop point, indicated by the letter L.
LFO nodes
o Hold Alt while dragging a point to snap it to the grid.
o Hold Shift to create step sequencer patterns.
o Right click to change shapes for step sequencer and set start/loopback
points.
o Click and drag to select several points.
o Ctrl + drag to change nodes relatively.
o Hold Alt while changing a curve to affect all curves.
Use a step sequencer pattern LFO on WT position for a jumpy synth effect.
Use a very fast LFO to modulate coarse pitch to create the vibrato effect.
o Recommended to assign this effect to a macro and/or Mod Wheel for full
control.

The Anchor button is useful for keeping LFOs p erfectly in sync with the song.
However it may cause skipping if a change is m ade mid switch.

Noise O sc layering
o Enable key tracking to pitch the noise oscillator to the key you are playing.
o Use One-Shot mode to create a fast decaying sound that can be excellent
for a percussive burst on the front of sounds, great for plucks or arps.
o Layer pads with long sustain atmospheric noise to create texture.
o If the noise sounds out of tune, use the fine tuning option in the Global
tab.
o Use the Random parameter if you need to change the starting position
every time, good for using texture noise over chords as this prevents the
sound from being echoey and phasey.
Use the magnifying glass in the envelope window to zoom in.
o Useful for creating envelopes with very quick decay, perhaps to modulate
coarse pitch for more punch.
o The lock feature can also be handy to lock an envelope to the size of the
window.
FM Modulation
o When using FM modulation, stick to very basic waves with not much
harmonic content, as this will produce harsh sounds and sometimes even
just noise.
 o Turn down the level of the oscillator you are using to FM otherwise the
sound will be muddy and incoherent.
Testing multiple waveforms quickly
o Click and drag multiple waveforms to the oscillator window.
o Modulate the WT position with an envelope with a very slow attack.
o This will cycle through the waveforms slowly whilst a note is played,
allowing you to synthesize a sound and then quickly experiment with
waves with different shapes and harmonics.

SERUM SOUND DESIGN

Supersaws
o Use a saw wave, or two saw waves
You can use variants but ensure they have that saw shape.
o Introduce 6-12 voices of unison, using detune and blend.
Use less voices of unison if using a second oscillator, and
experiment with pitching it up an octave.
o Utilize the noise oscillator for added texture.
o If desired the sub can be used on a saw wave pitched an octave down,
level kept quite low.
The sub oscillator can be used for this extra texture because it is
not recommended to use it as a regular sine sub bass. This is
because playing chords with the supersaw would simultaneously
play multiple notes in the sub bass, creating a very muddy and
incoherent sound in the sub bass frequency range.
o The patch needs to sound good at this stage before adding effects etc.
o Hyper effect will detune the sound further which can be good.
o Dimension expander for width.
o Use warp modes to make the sound more 3D
Modulate these warp modes for movement.
o Fast envelope on coarse pitch.
o Increase the attack of Envelope 1 for a future bass sound.
o Shaping the sound here can be very powerful, especially if setting a fast
decay for a pluck feel.
o Portamento can sound really good too.
o Mess with width control in Global to fit the sound into the mix.

FX PANEL

Filters
o Filter names for dual filters are just abbreviations of the filters in the first
menu.
When using dual filters, the first filter is controlled by the cutoff and
the second filter is controlled by the middle knob of the bottom
rack of knobs
o SampHold filter acts as a bitcrusher
Cutoff - sample rate reduction
Resonance - bit reduction
o The Misc. filters can be very powerful, especially reverb.
 o Click Mix on the filter section to transform it into Level which
essentially makes it a gain control.
This can be super useful if you overdrive the filter using the Drive
knob and need to compensate the volume.

Hyper/Dimension
o Hyper is essential a type of delay that creates the effect of multiple voices.
o Unison controls the number of voices.
o Dimension is a dimension expander that creates the effect of width.
Distortion
o Try out different distortion types for different results.
o Pre affects sound on the way in.
o Post affects sound on the way out.
o Applying distortion through a LP/HP:
A low pass shaped filter with the distortion set on post can be
applied to add harmonics to the lower frequencies of the sound
without it affecting the high end.
Similarly, this can be applied through a HP to get the harmonic
distortion on the high end, could be useful for leads and chords.
o Custom distortion shapes
X-Shaper distortion type allows you to draw your own custom
distortion graph by clicking edit.
Edit A and Edit B correspond to the left and right ends of the drive
knob, therefore creating a crossfade between the two shapes.
This can be modulated for a very noticeable movement in a sound.
Flanger/Phaser/Chorus
o You can set the rate to 0 for ultimate control, allowing you to modulate the
parameters yourself instead of using the built in LFO.
Delay
o Link - Adjusts both delay channels simultaneously.

o Feedback - Amount of gain.

o Normal - Normal delay, occurring in both L and R at the same time.

o Ping-Pong - L and R delay channels feed back into each other.

oTap Delay
Left parameter becomes the amount of time before the delay kicks
in. meaning half a bar.
Right parameter changes the delay times as it normal would.
o Use the settings below the L and R timing options to change offset.
1.333 = triplet, 1.5 = dotted etc.
Compressor
o Multiband compression:
Anything above the threshold = compressed as normal.
Anything below the threshold = boosted massively by 36dB of gain.
For example, if a bass note has a small amount of tiny high
end harmonics, it will compress the bass frequencies and
boost the high end harmonics.
Useful tool when bringing out reverberation.
 o Set the compressors ratio to the maximum to switch it to a limiter.

GLOBAL

o Chaos g enerators
Essentially very unique LFOs, both Chaos 1 and Chaos 2 use
different algorithms.
Assign chaos generators via setting the Mod Source by right
clicking a parameter.
Mono = All notes will be affected with the same algorithm.
Mono off = All notes will be affected randomly.
BPM sync can be useful for an approximation of the kind of feel you
want to achieve from the randomness.
o Oversampling
Using 4x oversampling when using warp modes may be useful.
However it is a strain on CPU and 2x will generally be enough to
prevent aliasing.
o Disable pitch tracking if you want all keys on the midi keyboard to play the
same note.
o Unison controls (can be modulated):
Range (semitones) more dissonance.
Width determines stereo panning (the outermost voices being at
100% panning and then voices are placed inwardly into centre
panning.
Warp ?????????????????????????????????????????????
WT position adjusts the WT position offset of unison voices.
Stack layers additional voices of the unison +/- octaves
12+7 adds perfect 5th
Centre-12 drops centre unison voice an octave
Stack type detune mode, choosing how the detune knob is
spreading the voices.
o Right side of the unison controls applies to oscillator B
o The controls in the middle will change both simultaneously.

FLS TIPS
Alt + Right Click to preview.
Hold Alt and drag clips to bypass the grid snap.
The swing amount can be adjusted for individual tracks.
Route multiple channels to a bus by selecting them and right clicking a mixer
track and select route to this channel only.
o A bus can control volume, panning, effects etc., applying everything to all
of the grouped tracks.
To sidechain certain frequencies rather than volume, use a peak controller on the
kick and right click the bands in the EQ and link it to the peak controller.
Piano Roll:
o Ctrl + U to slice notes based on grid in piano roll
o Load scales and chords in piano roll when creating melodies.
o Use Shift + Scroll Wheel near a note to change its horizontal position.
o Use Alt + Scroll Wheel to adjust the property of the selected note.
o Shift + Up/Down Semitone adjustment
 o Ctrl + Up/Down Octave adjustment
Split audio samples and create unique samples to allow you to Right Shift + Left
Click to drag splice points.
o You must be in Stretch Mode for this.
o Different stretch algorithms may create different effects!
When stretching samples and adjusting tempo, a sample may become time
distorted. Go into settings and ensure the Stretch Type is on Resample and not
Auto, and ensure the Time parameter is 0.

MIXING / MASTERING

Everything in the mix should have a purpose.

Always roll off unused frequencies for each sound.
o Do not Low Pass kicks as often the high frequencies of a kick are very
important.
o The same applies for mid-range bass sounds too, especially if a bass has
been distorted to contain higher frequency harmonic content.
Sounds that overlap in the frequency spectrum lose POWER.
o This is called masking and can damage the clarity of sounds, especially if
you have more than two sounds battling for the same space in the
frequency spectrum.
Avoid panning and/or adding reverb to low frequencies.
Terms
o Fader the overall volume.
o EQ the volume of a certain frequency.
o Compression the volume relative to itself.
o Sidechain the volume relative to another track.
o Stereo/pan the volume set to either side of two or more speakers.
Kick/Bass/Sub mastering
o Balancing these three elements is crucial to maximise energy and
coherence in a track.
o Use an EQ to view what each sound is doing. What frequency range is
each sound covering?
o Guidelines:
Make a cut in the bass for the kick to fit in.
Harshly cut below 20Hz in the sub as we cannot hear frequencies
that low, though it will still drain energy from the kick.
Cut the sub above 100Hz to isolate the sub bass sound.
Note that if you are using sub jumps, you might be jumping
into cut frequencies and losing a lot of power.
Cut the sub bass frequencies in the kick (below 50Hz~). The cut
should be a curve rather than a straight cut.
o REMEMBER:
In most mixes you can never eliminate all masking between the
kick and bass - especially when they play together, which often
sounds really good.

Sub and Bass movement

o Rhythmic content isnt very noticeable in a sub bass however subtle pitch
bends that move with the bass create a lot of energy.
 o Use the bass to undergo automated pitch, gaps and interesting rhythms
whilst the sub underlines everything.
A good tip is to use the main bass for octave jumps but keep the
sub playing at the same octave where it is the most powerful.
For this reason it might be best to have a separate instance
of serum solely for the sub bass when finalising a track.
o Artists such as KSHMR boost the highs on the main bass track to add a bit
of hiss to the synth, often making it more present in the mix.

If cutting frequencies, experiment with slightly boosting the frequencies just

above the cut to bring in some of harmonic characteristics of the sound to
compensate for the lost frequencies.
When layering synths, EQ so that each layer has its own space in the frequency
spectrum. Each synth should play a role and all of the sounds should come
together to create one cohesive sound.
If repeating samples e.g. 4 crashes in a row, use panning to keep things sounding
interesting.

Transient Shapers
o Transient shapers shorten or lengthen the attack and sustain portions of
any sound.
Emphasize or soften the onset of a bass drum or percussive sound
with the attack control. This is an ideal approach to control the
amount of punch and presence a sound has to help it sit better in
the mix.
Emphasize or soften the onset of a bass, lead or melody sound to
control punch, clarity and presence. Increasing the attack will bring
sounds forward in the mix and in your face whilst decreasing the
attack pushes the sounds to the background.
Lowering the attack can also fix any harsh spikes in sounds that
may cause clipping or result in your overall track being quieter due
to those peaks triggering the limiter.
Musically increase or decrease the sustain of an instrument, drum
sound or loop to clean up the mix and control transparency.
Remove reverberation from sounds by decreasing the sustain
control. This will remove unwanted delay tails as well as reverb
tails.
Amplify or reduce the picking sound of an electric or acoustic guitar
with the attack control.
Hold the sound of strings or pads longer with the sustain control.
Control the dynamics of vocals and breaths using both parameters.

Compressors
o Compression is the process of lessening the dynamic range between the
loudest and quietest parts of an audio signal by boosting the quiet signals
and lowering the louder signals, thus compressing the track and levelling
the dynamic signature of the sound.
o Compression is really good for treating vocals, drums and instruments that
need some correction in their general dynamics.
 Threshold - How loud the signal has to be before compression is
applied.

Ratio - How much compression is applied.

e.g. 6:1 means that the input signal would need to cross the
threshold by 6dB for the output level to increase by 1dB.
Attack - How quickly the compressor starts to work.

Release - How soon after the signal dips below the threshold the
compressor stops.

Knee - Sets h
ow the compressor reacts to signals once the
threshold is passed.

Hard Knee settings mean it clamps the signal immediately.

Soft Knee means the compression kicks in more gently as
the signal goes further past the threshold.
o Example:
Insert compressor on the channel you want to compress.
Adjust the threshold until the peaks in the signal are pushing over
the threshold and triggering the compressor.
Set the ratio as necessary.
2:1 or 4:1 is generally a good starting point.
Experiment with the Ratio and threshold, and the release control.
Use the output gain to sit the signal back into the mix without
adding any unnecessary noise.
o A good example of when to use compression could be on a vocal track:
A vocal track will have loud points and quiet points
Rather than automating the volume yourself, a compressor will do
this process automatically for you, by reducing the range of the
dynamic range, making it much easier to fit into the track without
having sections that will overpower the instruments or become lost
in the background.

Sidechain Compression
o Prevents masking by cutting out the bass for a very short amount of time
to let the kick cut through.
o Example (kick and bass):
Route either the kick or a ghost kick to another channel or a bus of
channels that the sidechain compression will be applied to.
It might be better to just route the kick to several individual
tracks so that you have full control over each sidechain
amount.
Set the compressor initially to:
A fast attack (10ms or less)
A fast release (50ms~)
A high ratio (say 5:1)
Play a section of the song where the kick and bass play together.
Set the threshold low enough so that you get around 6dB of
compression on the bass every time the kick hits.
 You should be able to hear the compression; the settings can now
be adjusted accordingly.
o Its easy to get carried away but often a small amount of sidechain
compression goes a long way.
o Heavy sidechain for a very EDM feel, gentle sidechain for a more natural
feel.

Limiters
o Works in the same way as a compressor in terms of applying gain
reduction by reducing transients and dynamics.
o Limiters also use gain reduction and can often feature a threshold control
but the main difference is that the gain reduction occurring in a limiter is
not decided by a ratio control but by an absolute output ceiling decided by
the use. Basically this means you set the limit and the level of the audio
passing through the unit cannot go above this value.
o Two types of limiter:
Input gain the sound is drven into the limiter and becomes
denser and less dynamic as the gain reduction rises
Threshold control this will decide when the limiting kicks in and
the limiter will then amplify the signal to be pushed against the
upper output limit you have set.

o Some limiters will often include a release control to fine tune the speed of its
recovery. This is really useful for getting a transparent sound which is especially
important when treating whole busses or during mastering.

o When t o use a limiter:

o Safety Net limiting
Limiting applied to a specific channel that may contain an effect
chain that may produce slightly erratic dynamics due to the amount
of processing. Adding light compression or even
chorus/delay/reverb will increase the chances of this occurring.
Placed last in the chain of processors a limiter with very subtle
settings will ensure that no clipping occurs and will apply only small
amounts of gain reduction when things get out of hand, this way
most of the dynamics should remain unaffected.
o Peak reduction
Similar to above but decreases peaks rather than just any clipping.
By pushing the threshold a bit further, a dynamic sound with
varying levels can be made denser and, while everything is brought
into line and the audio becomes denser, the illusion of the original
dynamics can still be retained.
A really good example of this slightly more aggressive limiting
being useful is when using side-chain compression. Often this sort
of compression can add really enjoyable pumping effects but these
can lead to issues in the mix, creating an uneven overall level. By
inserting a limiter directly after the side chain compressor, the
peaks can be cut off, bringing the lower level of the side chain
signal up. You may think this would defeat the purpose of having
varying levels but the feel of the side chain can be retained and
 your signal made a little more consistent and of course without the
fear of any overs.

o Increasing Volume and Density in the Mix

Having a few elements in your mix at a higher perceived volume

than others creates contrast between sounds and can work well as
an effect.
This technique does involve pushing your limiters pretty hard and
in turn destroying some of your sounds dynamics, so use it with
caution and only on a few elements at a time.

o Limiting in Mastering
Limiters are often used for mastering to increase the perceived
volume of an entire track. To achieve this, the limiter must be
strapped across the master bus and really should be the last
process you apply.
As in the previous example, this treatment will add considerable
volume to your music but unlike the previous clip you really
shouldnt be pushing your limiter hard here. You are looking for
total transparency and coloration of the sound should be avoided.
-3db seems to be a pretty good guideline for the ceiling on your
final mastering limiter.
o REMEMBER: A limiter is not needed on every track. Not every track needs
to be at the maximum volume possible without clipping.