What is a low end studio to do about clients with shitty beats?

Tibbon · 1st August 2005, 11:36 PM

I'm no longer working in a professional studio, but when I was (still need to update my sig) we had about 50% of our Hip-Hop clients bringing in beats that were obviously just sampled from 50 Cent or Eminem songs. They'd even admit to it.

I'd say about 45% of the clients brought in really bad beats that some 'Producer' that they knew made on their PC in Fruitloops or Reason. They'd often bring in this stuff on a really nasty sounding 2-track recording that was distorted to hell, and then they'd want the whole thing relooped to their lengths. Thank god for Beat Detective.

The other 5% actually made their own beats and recorded a good bit of it in the studio. Decent sounding stuff most of the time.

What do you guys do when the beats that you get in that these guys (or girls) will be using are simply horrible? Many of these guys were coming in to this studio simply because they didn't have the money to go elsewhere, and they certainly didn't have the money for decent beats. Quite a few of the guys loved the way i mixed their vocals to them as well, but I couldn't stand for them to put my name on any of it. I don't think i've EVER had a hip-hop project that I was actually proud of from an engineering standpoint because i was building a house on a foundation of ice in florida.

I guess on the Rock and Roll side you've got the guys that can't play. On the hip hop side you've got people with bad beats.

**TonyBelmont** · 2nd August 2005, 12:41 AM

Hi Tibbon,

You should tell them that their sh!t isn't hot... and that they should try to get some better beats before wasting money on studio time. Unless they are doing it for a mixtape, in which case sounding horrible is the norm and it doesn't matter.

Honesty.... it won't make you more money, but they will respect you more for it. If they got some money, you can call me and I can throw them a beat or two that was tracked properly and make your job a lot easier.

XHipHop · 2nd August 2005, 12:51 AM

I have a lot of people bring me a bounced down instrumental track that is like .01 db from being in the red that i can't even EQ...drives me nuts. It's almost impossible to add vox and process their track in any way without it getting nasty sounding.

So I know where you're coming from... You should definitely explain to them what's wrong with the beats (at least the fact that it's distorted, and ask if you could get the producer to bounce the drums, synths, bass seperately). Hopefully you'll have a few of your own beats ready to play side by side with what they've got so they understand what's wrong with it...and when they hear the difference, you can make some $$$ off the situation.

If you don't make beats, maybe you should invest in some loop cds so you can grab some loops and throw something together for them really quick...

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1st August 2005, 11:36 PM	#1
Tibbon Lives for gear Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Boston/MA Posts: 4,110	What is a low end studio to do about clients with shitty beats? I'm no longer working in a professional studio, but when I was (still need to update my sig) we had about 50% of our Hip-Hop clients bringing in beats that were obviously just sampled from 50 Cent or Eminem songs. They'd even admit to it. I'd say about 45% of the clients brought in really bad beats that some 'Producer' that they knew made on their PC in Fruitloops or Reason. They'd often bring in this stuff on a really nasty sounding 2-track recording that was distorted to hell, and then they'd want the whole thing relooped to their lengths. Thank god for Beat Detective. The other 5% actually made their own beats and recorded a good bit of it in the studio. Decent sounding stuff most of the time. What do you guys do when the beats that you get in that these guys (or girls) will be using are simply horrible? Many of these guys were coming in to this studio simply because they didn't have the money to go elsewhere, and they certainly didn't have the money for decent beats. Quite a few of the guys loved the way i mixed their vocals to them as well, but I couldn't stand for them to put my name on any of it. I don't think i've EVER had a hip-hop project that I was actually proud of from an engineering standpoint because i was building a house on a foundation of ice in florida. I guess on the Rock and Roll side you've got the guys that can't play. On the hip hop side you've got people with bad beats. __________________ David Fisher (aka tibbon) What is Noise, Blog (DIY, gear, tech, etc) Follow me on Twitter

2nd August 2005, 12:41 AM	#2
TonyBelmont Moderator Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Boston,MA Providence,RI Posts: 10,150	Hi Tibbon, You should tell them that their sh!t isn't hot... and that they should try to get some better beats before wasting money on studio time. Unless they are doing it for a mixtape, in which case sounding horrible is the norm and it doesn't matter. Honesty.... it won't make you more money, but they will respect you more for it. If they got some money, you can call me and I can throw them a beat or two that was tracked properly and make your job a lot easier. __________________ Tony Belmont We Sell Gear! Need plugins? Check out PluginDiscounts.com

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2nd August 2005, 12:51 AM	#3
XHipHop Moderator Join Date: Jul 2002 Posts: 2,022	I have a lot of people bring me a bounced down instrumental track that is like .01 db from being in the red that i can't even EQ...drives me nuts. It's almost impossible to add vox and process their track in any way without it getting nasty sounding. So I know where you're coming from... You should definitely explain to them what's wrong with the beats (at least the fact that it's distorted, and ask if you could get the producer to bounce the drums, synths, bass seperately). Hopefully you'll have a few of your own beats ready to play side by side with what they've got so they understand what's wrong with it...and when they hear the difference, you can make some $$$ off the situation. If you don't make beats, maybe you should invest in some loop cds so you can grab some loops and throw something together for them really quick...