The trap drum pattern
A trap beat is counted in half time. The clap falls once a bar, on beat three, over a few kicks and hats in steady eighths broken by fast rolls. The usual tempo is 140 BPM, felt as 70.
| Kick | 1, 13 Beats one and four. |
|---|---|
| Clap | 9 Beat three, once a bar. |
| Hat | 1, 3, 5, 7, 8, 9, 11, 13, 15 Every eighth note, with two hats where the roll goes. |
| Tempo | 140 BPM |
| Kick | 5 Beat two. |
|---|---|
| Snare | 13, 15 Two hits to end the phrase. |
| Clap | 9 Beat three again. |
| Hat | 1, 3, 5, 7, 8, 9, 11, 13, 15 As in bar one. |
| Tempo | 140 BPM |
Half time
Set the tempo to 140 and the clap lands on step 9, the third beat. Heard on its own, that one clap a bar feels like a backbeat at 70 BPM. The fast grid is there for the hats: sixteen steps at 140 leave room to subdivide them.
The rolls
On a record a roll is three 32nd notes, or faster, in place of one hat. Beep Boop's steps are sixteenths, so these figures play two hats where the roll would be, on steps 7 and 8. They mark the place of the roll. They are not the roll.
Tempo
Typically 140 BPM, written as 70 when it is counted in half time. Published ranges run from 130 to 145.
On Beep Boop
- Turn the voice dial to CLAP. Press step key 9.
- Turn the dial to KICK. Press step keys 1 and 13.
- Turn the dial to HAT. Press every odd key, 1 to 15, and key 8.
- Press PLAY, and turn TEMPO until the window reads 140.
Or take the beat as it stands. On an iPhone or iPad with Beep Boop, touch the link under the receipt. From a computer, point the phone's camera at the code.
Sources
- The two bars, and the roll in place of the fourth hat: Tim Cant, drum patterns, Native Instruments, set there at 130 BPM. It is the one step-by-step source found.
- Half time, and 140 counted as 70: Trap music, Wikipedia.
- The range of 130 to 145: Sam Jeans, guide to tempo and BPM, Sample Focus.