Deadmau5 is WRONG!

EDM producers often say you need to tune your kick to the bass, but the creator disagrees with this blanket advice.

Kicks make kicks, not bass. A kick drum is not a bass line and serves a different purpose in the mix.

Deadmau5 suggests there's no point in tuning certain kick drums, particularly those without a discernible pitch.

The video will examine what makes a kick drum, its components, and the nuances of kick tuning in music production.

• Transient: Extremely short element that helps the kick cut through the mix • Thump: Fast pitch envelope that creates the characteristic 'oomph' sound • Tail: The sustaining part where the pitch of the kick can be clearly heard

An Adriatique track remix demonstrates a medium to long kick with a clear sine wave tail that allows the pitch to be audible.

The tail component typically contains a sine wave that makes the pitch of the kick recognizable to listeners.

Where the tail comes from (synthesizer or kick source) doesn't matter, as long as it has an audible pitch component.

Tuning a kick doesn't mean tuning it to the root key of your track; you have flexibility within the scale.

• In A minor, you can tune to A (root) for stability • Tune to C or E (third and fifth) for a stable feeling • Use B, D, F, or G for different emotional qualities • F creates a more dramatic, unstable sound that works well in techno

With long-tail kicks like the Adriatique track, tuning to notes outside the key (like C-sharp) creates unwanted dissonance unless intentional.

Keep the kick tuned to at least a note in the key to maintain a pleasant vibe in your production.

Overly long kicks dominate the low end in club systems, creating a rumbling 30 Hz sound that masks other elements.

Shorten the decay to approximately an eighth note, which provides space for the next kick without creating excessive low-end mud.

• Short kick: Shortest possible length before next kick hits • Medium kick: Mid-range decay for balanced presence • Long kick: Extended tail that risks cluttering the low end

An eighth note is actually a medium-length kick, not a short kick. Excessive length creates muddy low-end problems.

A kick from a Berlin pack shows a short-to-medium kick with a clear E pitch that is immediately identifiable by a tuner.

When the same kick is extended, it develops what the creator calls an 'E roll'—a continuously shifting pitch envelope without a fixed tone.

Long-tail kicks don't have a stable pitch or fundamental frequency because the frequency constantly drops, making traditional tuning meaningless.

Only kicks with audible, stable pitches benefit from tuning; those with rolling, descending pitch envelopes cannot be tuned effectively.

Optimal kick length is shorter and punchier to maintain clarity in fast, heavy arrangements.

Allows for longer, more extended kick lengths that build atmosphere and groove.

Requires its own distinct kick length range that differs from both hard techno and progressive house.

Choose your kick length based on your specific genre and musical style rather than applying one universal rule to all production.

Don't automatically tune every kick to the root key; experiment with different scale degrees.

• Start with the root, third, and fifth • Try other notes for more dramatic effects • Consider genre conventions

Short kicks with audible pitches should remain in key to avoid dissonance and maintain harmonic compatibility.

The key insight is that kick tuning is not a one-size-fits-all rule but requires understanding of kick anatomy, genre, and harmonic context.