The Beat Thang Blog

There’s only so many hours in the day for musicians to spend writing original material, collaborating with other artists or scribbling down ideas when they strike, regardless of what music making software they’re using. But it’s almost 2012. Shouldn’t there be music making software out there to consolidate all of this? Thanks to GRAMMY award winning producer Dallas Austin and Beat Kangz Electronics, now there is. Mobile production studio Beat Thang was designed by these two parties earlier this year, and could be the music making software musicians and producers alike have been waiting for. Time Management There is an immense amount of electronic drum kits and music making software products on the market right now, and while they very in quality, one thing most do share is their complicated user interface. When time really is money for busy producers and musicians trying to make it, quickly understandable user interfaces on new products really can help speed up the creation process, and ultimately the profiting process. Beat Thang’s electronic drum kit’s user interface is highly regarded as one of the easiest to use amongst similar products, and is poised to give you a great first impression of the device. Furthermore, everything about Beat Thang, from the electronic drums feature to its music making software, is portable. This means that you have the ability to record or sample with it while you’re on the go. Twiddling your thumbs on the subway? Whip your Beat Thang out and write some beats with the electronic drums! Consolidation Judging Beat Thang by its price tag would be unfair before taking the time to analyze all that’s under the hood. Yes, it is expensive, but it’s also more than your average music making software or electronic drum set. Think about this: with one Beat Thang, you can draw from any of the 3,000 sounds in the sound pack, record samples anywhere you are to accompany electronic drum beats, and then turn that noise into music through the remaining phases of the recording process – mixing, and mastering. There’s no way you’d be able to do all that even for one song at a traditional recording studio with standard music making software for the same price. Besides, as popular as electronic drums are in club songs today, you might be better off going this route anyway in the long run. Performance This portability also means that playing concerts with music making software or electronic drums now has a whole other dimension – performance in real time. You don’t have to be chained to pre-recorded electronic drum beats on a backing track when performing with this music making software, you instead have the freedom to write new material or perform old material with a new touch using Beat Thang. But, this also means you’ll need to be sharp when performing, so the portability of Beat Thang goes a long way in giving you an opportunity to practice your skills regardless of where you are. Resource Box: Beat Thang is the new, mobile music production studio created by Dallas Austin and Beat Kangz electronics. To learn more about the capabilities of theBeat Thang’smusic making software and its electronic drums, go to http://beatthang.com.

Buying musical gear in general is overwhelming to say the least. What’s most affordable? What will last the longest? Where are the music loops best? When the piece of gear in question is music editing software or a beat machine, the guidelines below will help you decide which is right for you. Portability Just like the music loops they create, the modern musician travels many places before returning home again. To have a beat machine or music editing software that is stationary would be to put yourself at a severe disadvantage. Portable beat machines and music editing software do exist now, and you should use them to create music loops when creativity strikes. For example, new mobile production studio Beat Thang is battery powered and comes with music editing software capable of recording / producing when you’re on the go. Also, in addition to music loops from sound pack sounds, the beat machine’s music editing software can even record external sounds for samples (which you can then music loops out of)! One more advantage of this music editing software feature is that you can collaborate with other musicians wherever needed. You won’t have to worry about hauling gear across town or sending huge music loop files digitally if you own a Beat Thang. Ease of Use Let’s face it, if the beat machine and / or music editing software you purchase is simple to use AND just as powerful as the more complicated machinery, why not go with it instead of a more complicated beat machine? Beat Thang’s interface has been highly touted as one of the easiest to use among all beat machines, music editing software, and music looping devices, as it puts intuition and simplicity before anything else. That said, it loses no ground with music production veterans because it features the same functionality they expect. Power Do you have the power? It’s always important to take into consideration your skill set when buying a music editing software or a beat machine, or even if your only intention with a device is to make a bunch of fun sounding music loops. If you’re a beginner just looking to create basic music loops, you won’t be able to understand how to use the more complicated beat machines. And if you’re an expert, the beginner music editing software won’t be able to deliver what you need it to. Except if you’re creating with Beat Thang, that is. I say this because not only is it powerful enough (in the literal sense) to live on a four hours lithium ion rechargeable battery, but it also comes loaded with over 3,000 sounds, and has the ability to sample, edit, mix, and master. All four phases of a recording can be completed by this one handheld object, wherever you may be in the world. Think about that! Resource Box: Beat Thang is the new, mobile music production studio created by Dallas Austin and Beat Kangz electronics. To learn more about the capabilities of theBeat Thangbeat machine, its music editing software, and its huge sound pack (great for music loops), go to http://beatthang.com.

Whether you make hip hop beats or even know what a sound pack is, all music creators of the world now face a conundrum: With so much music being downloaded illegally from the Internet, how are music creators supposed to support themselves financially? Through ticket sales to their concerts, of course. The concert sector of the music industry is more financially relevant to music creators than it has been in a long time, and the time is ripe for those who write hip hop beats or are just music creators in general to capitalize. For instance, if hip hop beats are your forte as a music creator, try to stand out from the pack by performing those hip hop beats live rather than just playing them on a pre-recorded track. Such a task would have been nearly impossible for music creators decades ago, but with Dallas Austin and Beat Kangz’ new mobile production studio Beat Thang (great for hip hop beats and comes with a loaded, high quality sound pack), playing these hip hop beats in front of fans’ eyes can be a reality. It’s understandable for DJs to and other music creators who create predominantly hip hop beats to be skeptical of Beat Thang’s ability to re-create the same sound in a live setting. Most hip hop beat making machines do not have the wherewithal or sound pack powerful enough to replicate the same sound. However, thanks to Beat Thang’s sound pack with more than 3000 sounds (all of which are very high quality), it can be done. The truth is, even if you’re a music creator that makes hip hop beats by mixing and matching sound pack sounds on a computer, fans appreciate hearing and seeing them performed real-time in front of their eyes. It gives them more respect for you as a musician, and gives their ears a chance to hear a new take on a hip hop beat or song they’ve probably heard a hundred times. On the off chance you’re feeling extra adventurous as a music creator and want to drop a new beat that comes to mind right in front of fans’ eyes, such is also a possibility, although a gutsy one. But remember, with 3,000 sound pack sounds at your disposal in the Beat Thang sound pack, the possibilities are endless. It’s amazing how much a deep sound pack could potentially do for your career, especially in this context. The more revered your live show is, the more tickets you will sell, and the more successful your career as a hip hop beat maker / music creator will be. Moreover, learning how to play your hip hop beats live on the fly isn’t as difficult as you’d imagine, because Beat Thang’s user interface and sound pack sections are both incredibly easy to understand. Resource Box: Beat Thang is the new, mobile music production studio created by Dallas Austin and Beat Kangz electronics. To learn more about the live performance and sound pack capabilities of Beat Thang for music creators who make hip hop beats, go to http://beatthang.com.

Don’t wrap the beats before you rap to the beats. In the previous segment, we talked about Beat Thang’s ability to make professional-quality rap beats, hip-hop beats, or electronica. Now we arrive at the practical part of this series: Beat-making production tips for making bangers on Beat Thang. Beatin’ the rap One of the most common mistakes of young producers making rap beats is to drop the finished beat before they rap. With a powerful groovebox like Beat Thang, it’s tempting to fill the beats with as many drum loops, samples, and effects as possible. But this isn’t electronica, it’s “making ‘ur’ own rap beats.” So don’t forget to rap early on or you won’t have any room left to rap. It’s what mixers call a science project: too many tracks because somewhere along the way the producer lost sight of the project. Start with a basic rap beat; say a drum loop and bass. Once you’ve got the drum loop bangin’, do a scratch rap track and make it as close to finished as you can. Once you have the drum loop, bass, and rap track, then you can start filling in the empty spaces. Remember, rap beats are all about drum beats and words. You don’t want your beats stepping all over your rap. Compression, New York style Parallel, or New York compression* can make electronic drums, drum loops, and virtual drums sound big and punchy without loss of dynamics. In your DAW, MIDI sequencer, or Beat Thang, record a drum track or drum loop and copy it. On the drum loop copy, apply heavy compression (8:1 – 20:1 ratio) with a fast attack and release. Also, apply EQ, boosting at 80Hz and 10kHz. Resample the compressed drum loop back into Beat Thang and mix it in with the original drum loop. You just want to sneak it up in there until you hear the drum loop fill out the stereo field and get punchier. To save tracks, you can resample both drum loops onto one track. Buying the best beats Before we part company, let’s talk price and availability. Beat Thang isn’t cheap—no professional-level studio gear is. But when you consider that one day in a world-class studio will run you $1,500, or a decent home project studio will cost $10,000 for low, Beat Thang is a bargain at twice the price. Beat Thang is available at Best Buy. Another surprise, I know. But I do know something about the negotiating practices of the huge music retailers. They’re not happy unless the other guy is crying. That makes it hard for a startup company to get off the ground. So kudos to Best Buy for giving the little guy a chance to get on his feet. And for you, future Beat Thang owner, it means that The Beat Kangz will be around to support their products. -- RESOURCE BOX -- Darius Van Rhuehl is the owner of Backhouse Productions and also a producer of pop, rap beats, hip-hop beats, and R&B beats for TV. He attended the Juilliard School of Music and has studied music production from multi-platinum producer Michael Wagener.To learn more about Beat Thang, go to http://beatthang.com.

Beat Thang hands you the creative keys to music production. In the first article of this series we mentioned that the Beat Thang music-production workstation has been long anticipated, possibly arriving too late. Nonsense. A solid, well-thought-out instrument is always useful to producers and musicians. Not useful in the long term are budget drum machines, groove boxes, and beat-makers rushed to the marketplace. The fact that Beat Kangz took their time to get Beat Thang right the first time speaks volumes to me. So let’s look at Beat Thang in terms of how its features address music production, live performance, and most important, creativity. Getting your mind right Let’s talk about creativity first, since it’s the underlying component of all music production, whether it’s orchestral, rap beats, hip-hop-beats, or rock. With music production, particularly computer recording, creativity is at a disadvantage due to the sheer number of features buried in menus, sub-menus, and controls that need to be accessed via mouse or controller. All of these functions engage the left side of the brain. The left-brain is your mind’s accountant. It likes numbers and lists. The right brain is the creative side. Music production requires that you stay in the creative side of the brain without interruption as long as possible. Shifting back and forth makes you drop ideas, not beats. Top producers avoid time-sucking, creativity-killing tools and procedures to keep the right brain engaged. Looking at the top panel of Beat Thang, the music production experience of its designers is obvious. All functions are accessible at one button press. The simplicity of Beat Thang is a double bonus, insofar as it makes it easy for beginners to get started in music production, and gives professionals the focus where they want it: on creativity. It’s all about the bling One button in particular caught my attention: Blang. No, it doesn’t relate to music production. It controls the backlighting of the top panel and front grille. To some, Beat Thang may look a little too “Tron.” If you don’t like the lights, Blang lets you turn them off (just the active button lights) to save batteries, or dim them to see what you’re doing onstage. In keeping with the performance aspect of Beat Thang, its 13 velocity-sensing trigger pads mimic the layout of a piano. The pads are labeled with note names and accidentals, making it easy to play melodic lines. Plus, you can shift through all eight octaves. Or, you can connect to a MIDI keyboard via its five-pin MIDI port and have access to all eight octaves. Beat-making while you wait In the previous segment, we said we were going to challenge Beat Thang’s “15-minute music production guarantee.” It’s a challenge you can’t lose. And yes, within 15 minutes, I was dropping beats like an ugly baby, and creating some very complex, layered, film-score style electronica. Can you make professional-sounding beats with just Beat Thang and a set of headphones? Quite simply, yes. Now beatmakers, stay tuned for music production tips used in hit-making beats—courtesy of The Beat Kangz. -- RESOURCE BOX -- Darius Van Rhuehl is the owner of Backhouse Productions and also a producer of pop, rap beats, hip-hop beats, and R&B beats for TV. He attended the Juilliard School of Music and has studied music production from multi-platinum producer Michael Wagener.To learn more about Beat Thang, go to http://beatthang.com.

The Beat’s the Thang, wherein I’ll capture the conscience of the Kangz. It’s been a long time coming, but Beat Thang by Beat Kangz, a professional-level beat maker/drum machine/workstation has finally arrived. And while some think it may have shown up late to the party (as the cool ones do), it’s not bringing just chips and dip; it’s a complete music production workstation combining the functionality of several units, including signal processing, mixing, mastering, MIDI sequencing, computer recording, and music sampler. Beat Thang is poised to do battle with NI’s Maschine beat-maker, Akai’s MPC 2500/MPC 5000 beat-makers, and Roland’s MV-8800 beat-maker (now a legacy product). The question is whether its beats can stand up to that kind of heat . . . In this series of articles, we’ll talk about Beat Thang’s features, design, ergonomics, sound quality, and ultimately, explore whether the kind of beats you’d expect from a world-class studio can be produced just with Beat Thang and a set of headphones—wherever you are? We’re also going to challenge the Beat Thang’s 15-minute beat-maker guarantee: If you're not making beats within 15 minutes of opening the box—whether you've produced beats before or not—Beat Kangz will offer a “no-questions-asked, money-back guarantee.” Plus, we’ll give you some production tips for dropping serious beats with Beat Thang. What’s in a name? As the great bard Shakespeare once said, “A beat-maker by any other name would still drop the beats like an ugly baby.” . . . or maybe it was DJ ShakezPeer . . . (Well, I thought it was Shakespeare). I have to admit, at first I was a bit put off by the name Beat Thang, but then again, there was a time when the greatest American action hero was named “Arnold,” and spoke with a thick Viennese accent—and that seemed to come out okay (nobody beats Arnold). So, if The Beat Kangz want to stay true to their roots and culture like Arnold did, then more power to them. My concern is that they might be pigeonholing Beat Thang. People might think that it’s a beat-maker for rap and hip-hop beats only. Not true. Its 3,000-plus onboard sounds are able to span multiple genres, including dance, pop, dubstep, electronica, and more. Plus Beat Thang’s functionality is what you would expect from a professional studio tool. As long as we’re on the subject of names, let’s talk about some of the names behind Beat Thang. Two in particular jump out at me: beat-maker extraordinaire Dallas Austin (Michael Jackson, TLC, Madonna, Pink) and producer Bob Ezrin (Pink Floyd, Alice Cooper, Peter Gabriel). As a bona fide studio geek who speaks in reverent tones about Bob Ezrin—his and Dallas Austin’s involvement tells me that not only can Beat Thang span multiple genres; its design incorporates the experience of studio professionals. There’s a big difference between studio gear designed by the people who use it to make hit records and equipment designed by electrical engineers who’ve never dropped the beats. The names Ezrin and Austin tell me that Beat Thang is a serious beat-maker that “understands” how the creative flow works. And that’s the subject we’re going to discuss in the next article in this series: The physical design of Beat Thang and how its controls keep you in the creative mind. -- RESOURCE BOX -- Darius Van Rhuehl is the owner of Backhouse Productions and also a producer of pop, rap beats, hip-hop beats, and R&B beats for TV. He attended the Juilliard School of Music and has studied music production from multi-platinum producer Michael Wagener.To learn more about Beat Thang, go to http://beatthang.com.

-- RESOURCE BOX -- Beat Thang is a hi-tech evolution in beat maker, groovebox and music production technology that is revolutionizing the music industry. Beat Thang gives you professionally mastered, performance ready tools you can use anywhere you want. To find out more, go to http://www.beatthang.com/

-- RESOURCE BOX -- Beat Thang is a hi-tech evolution in portable beat machines that is revolutionizing the industry. With more than 3,000 original sounds, beats, drum loops and 65 digital effects, the Beat Thang gives DJs professionally mastered, performance ready tools to use anywhere they want. To find out more, go to http://www.beatthang.com/

All free. -- RESOURCE BOX -- Beat Thang is revolutionizing the music industry. Packed with more sounds, rap beats, loops and digital effects than any competitors’ machines. Beat Thang gives musicians everything they need and more. To find out more, go to http://www.beatthang.com/

Beat Thang is a recently released music recording and production suite, co-designed by GRAMMY award winning producer Dallas Austin and Beat Kangz electronics. To learn more about the music production and music recording capabilities of Beat Thang, go to http://beatthang.com. 

Using products like Beat Thang, producers of all proficiency levels can create beats and then sell them on beats websites. To learn more about the music production and recording capabilities of Beat Thang, go to http://beatthang.com. 

Beat Thang is a new beat making and music production suite, co-designed by GRAMMY award winning producer Dallas Austin and Beat Kangz electronics. To learn more Beat Thang’s music production capabilities for beat makers, go to http://beatthang.com.