Inside the instrument
How an analog drum-machine kick works
A short trigger sets a resonant circuit ringing. Its pitch falls while its energy fades. Listen to the three parts of that motion in Headphonaut's own 808-style kit.
The playable graph
Turn the sound
These controls change the kick nodes in the same graph the Studio plays. Press Play, then move a slider to hear the changed beat.
1. The body starts ringing
The original Roland TR-808 bass drum uses a bridged-T resonant network. A trigger excites it, producing a low tone whose pitch falls as it dies away. Our graph uses a sine oscillator and a pitch envelope to approximate that motion. The Body pitch control moves the oscillator's starting frequency.
2. Length and pitch move together
On the original circuit, the DECAY control changes feedback in the resonant network. Pitch fall and ring length are therefore linked. The Ring length control moves both envelope times together in our graph. It does not claim to reproduce every change in the original circuit's resonance.
3. The tiny click defines the front
A short filtered-noise layer adds the attack in our model. Try Attack click at zero, then turn it up: the low body stays, while the front becomes easier to locate in the beat.
Modelled on the Roland TR-808 bass drum. Independent; not affiliated with Roland. Circuit description: Werner, Abel and Smith, DAFx 2014. Open Studio to edit the full kit graph.