Level Up Your Kicks with SansAmp

2m 19s

Mix with the Masters

Beef up kick and snare with parallel distortion and compression

Nick Launay demonstrates his approach to parallel processing on kick and snare drums. For the kick, he uses parallel distortion via a Sansamp PSA-1, adding weight and thickness to the sound. To prevent muddiness, he gates the kick in the parallel chain before applying distortion. Additionally, he fine-tunes this distorted signal with EQ adjustments, such as enhancing the low-end, cutting the high-end, or reducing mid-range muddiness. For the snare, Launay applies a similar concept but with aggressive compression using an analog Distressor instead of distortion. He also gates and EQs the parallel snare signal, ensuring it enhances the drum's weight and sustain without introducing unwanted artifacts, like excessive hi-hat or cymbal bleed.

59s

Avid

Add mid-range punch to a kick with parallel distortion

Tchad Blake employs the SansAmp distortion plugin to infuse the kick drum with additional grit, character, and mid-range presence. He implements this effect in parallel, allowing him to preserve the original sound and dynamics of the drum while gaining more control over the distortion's setup and manipulation. Blake often experiments with filtering and inverting the polarity on the distorted parallel track. Adjusting these parameters results in varying degrees of comb filtering when blended with the original track, thus shaping the sound in distinct ways. His method typically revolves around experimenting with the settings to discover a balance that best complements the song.

1m 57s

Reverb.com

Kick parallel distortion for more character

Noam Wallenberg demonstrates how to add more character to a kick drum recording using parallel distortion with a SansAmp Classic pedal, a technique inspired by Tchad Blake. By running the kick drum signal through the SansAmp, Wallenberg introduces a unique, gritty texture that enhances the overall drum sound. This approach not only adds character to the kick but also creatively incorporates the snare's sound, making it a part of the overall drum texture.