Stepmania Drum Pack 2

**customstuff** · 02-19-2009, 11:56 AM

Re: Stepmania Drum Pack 2

dore's Lovely Guide to Chart-Making

Alright, so you want to make drum charts. The easiest way to learn to make these charts is to study Harmonix's Rock Band drum charts. They invented this system of drumming and I think they have a solid grasp on how to chart for it

I'm assuming that if you're interested in charting drums that you know basic drum terminology and you will be able to follow this guide in actual drumming terms. I am also assuming that you know how to make a normal stepchart. But here are the basics for how to accurately chart a song for the Rock Band drums.

You're going to use Pump it Up to create the charts. Hit "select game" on the main menu and switch from "dance" to "pump." Config your keys however you want and then go to edit/sync as usual.

Downleft - red
Upleft - yellow
Center - orange (pedal)
Upright - blue
Downright - green

These are all in order just like the Rock Band kit, except the center is the bass pedal.

BASIC CHARTING

Your typical kit will be arranged like this:
Red - snare drum
Yellow - hi-hat
Blue - ride cymbal, open hi-hat (for emphasis)
Green - crash cymbal

Most beats use some variant of the above kit. The drummer will ride either a hi-hat or a cymbal with his right hand and play the snare with his left.

When a drummer uses open and closed hi-hat, you can consider charting open hi-hat to blue and closed hi-hat to yellow. This should only be used when it is very obvious that the drummer is changing up; you can ignore subtle changes to the hi-hat pedal because it doesn't change enough to warrant using a different pad.

FILLS WITH TOMS
Red - snare (or really high tom if 4+ toms are used)
Yellow - higher tom
Blue - lower tom
Green - floor tom

When toms are used, you can use many combinations of pads to chart accurately. You can be very flexible, just work to stay consistent with the rest of the song and fit with the main beats while retaining pitch relevancy.

BEATS WHERE YOU RIDE THE GREEN PAD
These beats are more complex to chart. This is when the drummer is riding a crash cymbal or a floor tom. Roles change a bit, in that the ride note is green and the emphasizing cymbal notes will be blue. So it will be:
Red - snare
Yellow - tom, hi-hat, or a third cymbal
Blue - crash cymbal (emphasis)
Green - crash cymbal/floor tom (ride)

This style also applies when toms and hi-hats are used in the same beat. The hi-hat can move over to green and toms will be used on yellow and blue (see ...And Justice For All for a good example).
Red - snare
Yellow - tom
Blue - tom/crash cymbal
Green - hi-hat

BEATS WHERE BOTH HANDS ARE USED FOR A HI-HAT
Sometimes, hi-hat rolls are played with two hands rather than one. In this case, the snare drum is usually played with the right hand rather than the left. To make this pattern playable on a Rock Band drum kit, switch the yellow and red pad (but only if the pattern is used for an extended period of time, don't just change it for a couple beats and then switch back. Make sure the pattern is at least a measure long.):
Red - hi-hat
Yellow - snare
Blue - open hi-hat or (rarely) a tom
Green - crash cymbal
(see Run to the Hills for an example)

SNARE CHARTING
A difficult thing in converting reeldrums to RB drums is snare techniques. There's a lot of things you can do with a snare drum that you simply can't chart for when your snare drum is just a pad. So here are some guidelines for snare drum charting.
-FLAMS- (this also goes for toms too) - A flam is when the drummer uses both hands to hit the drum at nearly but not quite the same time. Flams are usually charted in Rock Band as two pads at the same time. So if the drummer plays a snare flam, you should probably chart it as red/yellow. Tom flams should probably be yellow/blue.
-ACCENTS- If a passage is being played with just the snare drum and there are accents all through the passage, you should probably chart the accents as red/yellow, as long as that does not detract from the flow of the section. It is perfectly acceptable to just not chart accents at all, but it can be more fun with them charted.
-RIMSHOTS - chart them as reds
-GHOSTING- If the ghosting is REALLY prevalent and obvious at full speed, then chart it. But you should probably not chart every hit, just the initial attack. It is perfectly acceptable to ignore ghosting anyway, since you can't even come close to accurately charting it with the RB drums.

All of these are just guidelines; the beauty of the Rock Band drum kit is that it's flexible and you can use pretty much any combinations of drums and have it make sense. These are some accepted standards but many variations can be made.

BASS PEDAL
For the bass pedal, just chart what's there, unless the drummer is using double bass. Here are the guidelines for stepping double bass:

-8th notes are OK
-Two quick hits are OK
-Three or more quick hits are NOT OK

So how do you take out notes to make them acceptable on a single pedal?

-For long runs, take out every other note to simulate only playing the right foot.
-If there are three quick hits in a row, take out one. If you are using your hands during these quick hits, take out the bass pedal hit that goes with the most emphasized pad hit. That way, the player gets the feel of all three hits while only having to hit two. You should generally try to avoid stepping straight 8th notes unless that is the only option.
-If there is a really quick burst right before a note, you should probably condense it down to one or two hits, whichever feels better.
-If there is a stupidly fast long burst, try to step the emphasized beats as best as you can and don't worry about strictly taking out every other note. Or just don't step that song because it'd probably be dumb anyways.

When it comes to double bass, just be smart and only do what makes sense and is doable on one pad. Don't be dumb.

And that's about it for charting. Just remember that drum charting is about accuracy and not interpretation; work within the music to make your chart and let the music dictate difficulty, not you. The best chart is the one that makes the player think about drumming, and not chart-reading.

also SYNC YOUR SONGS. This isn't arrowsmash where you have to be within a millisecond on every note, but everything should at least be close.

Guide by dore, barely edited by customstuff

**dood gone krazee** · 02-19-2009, 01:40 PM

Re: Stepmania Drum Pack 2

How about get judges who either play the drums or at least know something about drum theory, not just people who say "I want to judge."

**customstuff** · 02-19-2009, 01:44 PM

Re: Stepmania Drum Pack 2

Already done... :P

**ddr_f4n** · 02-19-2009, 02:14 PM

Re: Stepmania Drum Pack 2

Originally posted by dood gone krazee

How about get judges who either play the drums or at least know something about drum theory, not just people who say "I want to judge."

After an extensive amount of drums expert playing, I know what drum charts are fun and what aren't, as well as which drum charts are accurate, and which aren't. I also have some knowledge of drum theory

Also, if any files are submitted, I'll at least try to rate them as as quickly and accurately as I possibly can.

REVIEWS:

How I rate:
Green = Accepted
Orange = Accepted if revised
Red = Rejected

Radioactive Turtle (customstuff) - Rejected
It's accurate, but some parts are just too ridiculous for RB drums IMO (ie measures 8-9). Also, I didn't like the song choice =/.

A Gunshot to the Head of Trepidation (EnR) - Accepted if Revised...
38-46 Should have blue instead of blue/green for crash. Seems more accurate IMO. Once fixed it should be accepted in my books

Six (EnR) - Accepted
Accurate and Fun! Awesome job.

Blooddrunk (EnR) - Accepted
Just one mistake at measure 91 where you accidentally left a left a blue with the red/green. Just needs that fixed. Otherwise accepted!

Brompton Cocktail (EnR) - Accepted if Revised...
Spotted quite a few mistakes...

19-27 Should be all green. I don't think it's necessary to switch to blue all the time. The crash sounds similar enough.

27-31/153-157 The toms should be green/blue instead of yellow/green. It's less confusing for the player thinking it's still a hi-hat.

Also, you seem to put a lot of green/blue or yellow/green for crashes in some parts. I don't think it's necessary, just blue or green is fine (blue in crash section, green for hi-hat section).

Cigaro (EnR) - Accepted if Revised...
64-71 Switch yellow to green. Sounds more like crashes to me.

Toms like at measure 18 should be switched to blue/green. Keeping it red/green may confuse players into thinking that it's still snare/crash.

Awesome song choice btw. It's still fun.

Confined (EnR) - Accepted if Revised...
34 Change yellow to blue

54-67 Yellow - green, green - blue

71 Missed a blue crash

Sea of Lies (EnR) - Accepted!
33/69 I feel like the green should be changed to blue. I don't know why =/. Doesn't matter. Accepted!

Stabbing to Purge Dissimulation (EnR) - Accepted!
Song choice was meh, but chart was accurate. Accepted!

The End of the Heartache (EnR) - Accepted!
No problems here from my side. Accepted!

Flower of the Sun (ddr_f4n) - My File

**Patashu** · 02-19-2009, 04:25 PM

Re: Stepmania Drum Pack 2

What's the stance on how to step drum patterns in techno/electronica songs that would be impossible to do in real life?

I have this urge to try brainstorm from dj max portable 2, laffo

**dore** · 02-19-2009, 04:28 PM

Re: Stepmania Drum Pack 2

Originally posted by Patashu

What's the stance on how to step drum patterns in techno/electronica songs that would be impossible to do in real life?

I have this urge to try brainstorm from dj max portable 2, laffo

Keep it possible, and try to incorporate natural sticking, take out what would have to be played on a double bass, etc. for one chart and then do a chart with everything. See my Doggy Bounce file in the first pack.

Also you should probably link to my drum charting guide in the OP.

Also I'm gonna send in the couple things I made before that got done and I forgot about lol

**EnR** · 02-19-2009, 04:49 PM

Re: Stepmania Drum Pack 2

Reserve post is reserved.

Btw, Custom, I'm going to just upload an entire zip of my files I'm sending at sendspace and link every judge through PM, it'll make it easier than sending like 5-10 different emails :P

Flower of the Sun (ddr_f4n)
-Mesure 6-9, should be 2233223322311111. instead of the 2233223333311111.
-Mesure 23(end) should have what I think is a ghost snare right before the crash on mesure 24 ( a mini snare roll, 2 notes)
-Mesure 42, the snare pattern is different there, you made a few errors, go back through that mesure, I got it, but I'll only explain if you need me to:P.
-Mesure 54, missed a snare before the crash at exactlty half the mesure.
-mesure 76, red note not yellow, right before the 77th mesure.
-Mesure 108, fix the syncing on those 3 crash things :P
-Mesure 116, that last note in that file is a snare :P

Accepted after you go see these, might be more, I'm really tired. Anyways, very fast song, seems fun.

**alloyus** · 02-19-2009, 05:25 PM

Re: Stepmania Drum Pack 2

Does each file have to meet the same requirements as the last pack? I was thinking of making at least one drum file once my drums are completely fixed (The green drum snapped off), but I wasn't going to make a kick pedal arrow, I just want to know if you need it for the pack because I may submit a file (Unless you need it).

**EnR** · 02-19-2009, 05:48 PM

Re: Stepmania Drum Pack 2

make the files in Pump It Up, go to select game and make them, middle = bass pedal, if that has anything to do with your post..

**thechild** · 02-19-2009, 06:05 PM

Re: Stepmania Drum Pack 2

I would like to judge, but I think this might die and I'll forget about it again.

**ddr_f4n** · 02-19-2009, 06:44 PM

Re: Stepmania Drum Pack 2

Alright I'm gonna review customstuff's file once I get my drums set up, download the previous pack, and hope that this laptop won't die on me for some odd reason (**** you Vista).

So expect a review of the file by Saturday maybe.

**alloyus** · 02-19-2009, 07:13 PM

Re: Stepmania Drum Pack 2

Originally posted by EnR

make the files in Pump It Up, go to select game and make them, middle = bass pedal, if that has anything to do with your post..

Yeah, thanks

**TC_Halogen** · 02-19-2009, 07:18 PM

Re: Stepmania Drum Pack 2

YES

I want to seriously get a song in this time. I was working on a chart for the last one, but didn't finish. I have a small dose of rock songs now.

Also, dore, CHART BLOODMEAT FOR THE LOVE OF GOD.

Oh, and dore, the tutorial you made, mind posting it here? I liked the rules that you had when I was working on the chart, but I forgot them.

**EnR** · 02-19-2009, 07:22 PM

Re: Stepmania Drum Pack 2

Wow, I'm proud of myself, just finished stepping Cigaro, pretty weird fukken song, but it's awesome

I lost all my songs, but expect sick charts anyway.

Btw, can we resend stuff from the other pack, since all my files have errors I'm not to fond of :/

Also, not sure about you guys, but I'd like that every chart that has a song with double bass make Edit a double bass chart.

Edit:

Just finished End of the Heartache, which I started last pack but couldn't get a bpm and I think I got it now, so I finished that one too.

On my to do list:
BloodDrunk (stepping as I type this)
Black Dragon (Thought I was done, went back to see the file, 2000 notes into it.)
Something from PtH (Protest) possibly Wretch.

Stepmania Drum Pack 2

Stepmania Drum Pack 2

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