How To Make Trap Hi Hats In Fl Studio 20

Okay, so you want to make those crisp, snappy, almost-nervous hi-hats you hear in every trap song blasting from your neighbor’s car? You've come to the right place! Forget about feeling intimidated by FL Studio 20. Think of it as your digital playground, where even accidental clicks can sometimes lead to pure genius.

Step 1: Find Your Hi-Hat (The Adventure Begins!)

First, you need a hi-hat sound. Don't overthink it. Seriously. Just pick one. FL Studio comes with tons, buried in folders like treasure. If you're feeling adventurous, rummage through those folders like you're Indiana Jones searching for the Ark of the Covenant... but with a slightly less dusty fedora. If you can't find one you like, there are millions online you can use.

Drag that chosen hi-hat sample onto the channel rack. Congratulations, you've just placed your first brick in the sonic fortress you're about to build! Treat yourself to a celebratory air-guitar solo.

Step 2: The Piano Roll (Not Just for Piano Anymore!)

Right-click your hi-hat in the channel rack. See that option that says "Piano roll"? Click it. Now you're in a grid, and each row represents a note. Think of it like a dance floor for your hi-hats. We’re going to tell them where and when to bust a move.

Start by placing a hi-hat on every other line. It looks like a little stair-step pattern. Press play. Hear that basic "tick-tock"? Congratulations, you've just created the most boring hi-hat pattern in the history of trap music. But don't worry; we're about to spice things up!

Step 3: The Velocity Game (Giving Your Hats Some Attitude)

See those little bars at the bottom of the piano roll? That's velocity. Velocity basically means how hard the hi-hat is hit. A higher bar means a louder, more aggressive hit. A lower bar means a softer, subtler tap.

Now, this is where the magic happens. Click on some of those velocity bars and drag them up and down. Experiment! Make some hats louder, some softer. Think of it as giving each hi-hat its own personality. Maybe one is a shy, retiring hat, and another is a bold, flamboyant hat that demands attention.

Try a classic trick: make every other hi-hat slightly softer. It creates a nice, subtle groove. It's like adding a secret ingredient to your grandma's famous cookies – nobody knows exactly why it works, but everyone loves it.

Step 4: The Ratchet Effect (Going Hyper-Speed)

This is where we get into that fast, almost-overwhelming hi-hat sound that defines trap. In the piano roll, find the "1/4 beat" selector. Change it to something smaller, like "1/8" or even "1/16." This means your hi-hats will play more often.

Fill in more notes! Experiment with filling every space, or leaving some gaps. This is where your creativity shines. Don't be afraid to try wild, chaotic patterns. Sometimes, the most unexpected combinations sound the coolest.

Step 5: The Art of the Roll (Adding Flavor)

Hi-hat rolls are those quick bursts of hi-hats that add a lot of energy to a track. To create a roll, simply fill in a bunch of hi-hats right next to each other on a very small beat division. Like 1/32 beats.

Velocity is key here. Make the beginning of the roll loud, and gradually decrease the velocity towards the end. It creates a sense of momentum, like a rollercoaster building up speed before the big drop.

Step 6: The Secret Sauce (Effects!)

Now, for the final touch. Add some effects! The FX slot next to your hi-hat in the channel rack is your friend. A little bit of reverb can add some space and depth. A touch of delay can create interesting echoes. And a high-pass filter will remove the muddy low frequencies, making your hi-hats sound crisp and clean.

But remember, less is often more. Don't overdo it with the effects. You want your hi-hats to sound good, not like they're trapped in a washing machine.

Step 7: Listen, Tweak, Repeat (The Endless Cycle of Awesomeness)

The most important step is to listen to your creation in the context of your whole song. Does it fit? Does it groove? Does it make you want to dance like nobody's watching (even if somebody is watching)?

If not, tweak it! Move some notes around, adjust the velocities, experiment with different effects. Making music is all about experimentation. There are no right or wrong answers, only different shades of awesome. So keep playing around, keep learning, and keep creating! And remember that there will always be times it will not work no matter what you do, that is fine too. Just start a new and go on to the next creation.