

Or, sidechain reverb, saturation, chorusing from synths or drums to… anything at all, to be honest! Extending well-worn principles and applying them in new ways is a common way of finding your own unique sound effects.įor further information on creative sidechaining, check out our article on the topic. Why stop at compression? You could sidechain an EQ notch to engage whenever another instrument plays. Consider the following example from a classic French House track ‘Sound Stream – Freakin’: This technique helps your bass and bass-drum sounds sit happily in the mix together, and it can be an audio effect in its own right. You may be familiar with the concept of sidechaining kick drums to bass instruments. Or, perhaps more accurately, you can use it as an enhancement feature to add character to any instrument or drum sound. You can use sidechain as an instrument in its own right. This topic and some of the techniques here were discussed at length in our Mixed In Key Podcast, so check it out!Īlso, be advised to use headphones or good studio monitors to evaluate the audio examples below. These 5 Killer Sound Design Tricks to use in your DAW will help your music level up! Sound Design is here to stay, and any electronic music producer would benefit from embracing it. Entire genres of music like EDM, Dubstep and Future Pop rely as much on beautifully crafted sounds as they do the actual music.

From its early days involving sliced up tape loops and gigantic modular systems to today’s biggest pop hits, sound design has fully integrated into mainstream culture. Sound Design is no longer the sole preserve of experimental ‘mad scientist’ types. 5 Killer Sound Design Tricks to use in your DAW.
