A kick drum works with a bassline. They are generally the only two sounds that dominate the low-frequencies of a song (the bass).

I am using SoundForge here to make a Kick Drum. Its possible to use a synthesizer, or another audio editor to make a Kick Drum. A Kick Drum is simply a sine wave that sweeps from a high frequency to a low frequency rapidly. The shape of the Kick Drum can vary to fit the genre, style, or individual track. You can use anything from the Ultrabeat in Logic to any VST with pitch envelopes etc... For this example i am using Soundforge on pc as its a tool many people have. The basic process is like this:

1) make a new file:



2) make a sine waye- the exact frequency of this sine wave should be tuned with the note of the bassline to make a pleasing combination to your ears. For the most power (resonance) it is suggested to tune them to the same note. You can convert Hz to musical notes with THIS chart if you are tone-deaf :)
Select Tools -> Synthesis -> Simple





3) bend the pitch over time. Select Effects -> Pitch -> Bend





4) do it again- and again if you like- for psy trance- the sharp sound comes from 3 pitch bends of 24 semitones for a total of a 6 octave pitch sweep range! (12 semitones per octave...)
Select Edit -> Repeat Pitch Bend (Ctrl+Y)

5) save your kick drum (Ctrl+S). Mono works best for the most focused power. you want a single massive object in the middle of the stereo field.

6) open/insert the audio file of your new kick into your sampler or an audiotrack in your sequencer. You can adjust the envelope here (Attack Decay Sustain Release in a sampler- or Fade-In Fade-Out in an audio track....) normally I never touch the first part of the kick- thats the defining sound and should be sudden and sharp. I usually only play with the Fade-Out

IMPORTANT NOTE: this kick is already highly compressed. Look at the wav- there is NOTHING sticking out. There is absolutely no need to put a compressor or limiter on the Kick Drum unless you are aiming for something different. for basic bam bam this works fine... For equalization I suggest using a High-Shelf with the frequency around 140Hz-250Hz ... this will split the kick into roughly the bass "whoomp" and the high "knock". then simply turn the gain on the high shelf up or down as needed. Usually i put the high shelf a bit lower in gain (maybe -4 to minus 10?) to reduce the "knock" and make the kick seem more phat.

The bassline can be thought of in a similar manner- the basic shape of the bassline comes from the envelopes on the synthesizer you are using. The amplitude envelope controls the overall shape of each bass note- while the filter envelope can be used to shape a sharp "pluck" followed by the more muffled "bassy" part of the note. I PROMISE you that you can make almost any kind of Bassline with the envelopes alone. You do not need to process the sound with 20 plugins to achieve phat bass. In the end they will only dirty your sound. Go for clean purity:) I sometimes use a TOUCH of compression on the bassline but I will tell you another secret now: The way you control the WAY the bassline pushes is using the midi note VELOCITY and the change in Volume (and possibly filter?) that goes with it. Do I make myself clear? You will destroy this if you compress too much. Dont kill your bassline- let it live:)

Resist the urge to fuck with your kick and bass too much. LEAVE THEM ALONE!!! Step away from your plugins! I promise you that if you follow these instructions above your kick and bass will have more power than your fellow producers who are using 6 plugins on kick and 10 plugins on bass. trust me:)