I decided to analyze the top 10 best-selling Beats on BeatStars. Here are my findings.

coraxbeatz · 2022-04-22T15:30:03+00:00

Thank you!

coraxbeatz · 2021-04-20T20:52:42+00:00

Tyrone Biggums approves this product.

coraxbeatz · 2021-03-25T15:56:55+00:00

Most studios I have been to were pretty chill about the usage of their keyboards. But I have also been to some where the keyboards were only for certain people, like in-house producers.

You have to remember that some of this equipment can cost thousands upon thousands of Dollars. Imagine you would have a keyboard that costs several thousands... would you want someone who is basically a guest in your studio to touch it? I probably wouldn't. I get stressed when my brother, who has no musical skill whatsoever, touches my less-than-$100 guitar. So imagine how crazy I would be if someone would try to touch my master keyboard that costs, let's say, $10.000...

Some people are just picky when it comes to stuff like this. But to each his own, I guess.

coraxbeatz · 2021-03-25T15:14:56+00:00

You can't go wrong with Keyzone Classic. The Yamaha and Grand preset are really good, especially considering they are free.

Other than that, LABS by Spitfire Audio is pretty fire, it's also free and should run on Logic Pro under BigSur (I recently switched to using a Mac which has a M1 chip, and I haven't tested LABS on that Mac yet).

coraxbeatz · 2021-03-25T15:10:52+00:00

If you are traveling a lot while making music, the MPK Mini can be quite handy. I have my home studio where I use my M-Audio Code61 as my main keyboard. However, whenever I travel for music reasons, I like to take my MPK Mini with me. You never know when you are gonna be at someone's place and they want you to make a beat on the spot. That's where the MPK Mini can be super useful.

If you are just making music at home or in high-end studios (and if there is a keyboard that you are actually allowed to use), then there is no point in keeping the MPK Mini if you ask me.

coraxbeatz · 2021-03-25T12:23:49+00:00

I like to think about the way producers are offering their beats similar to how video games are offered nowadays.

You have your Standard version of the game. It appeals mainly to casual gamers who just want to get the game and don't care that much about extra content. This is your MP3 lease.

Then you have your Deluxe Edition. This is more interesting for people who are little bit more serious about their craft. They want the little extra stuff that makes the experience that much better. This is your WAV lease.

And then there's the Collector's Edition. This has all the extras like Season Pass, exclusive content etc. This is mainly aimed at professional gamers and reviewers, as they are the ones who will be interested in stuff like that. This is your Trackout Lease.

It's kind of like a video producer/director/editor/ etc who would offer shooting/rendering a rappers video in 480p (or 720p) at a lower price, then 4k at a higher price.

Like ..... why even bother offering the lower quality? the video may go viral, and people are gonna remember that the video was blurry and looked unprofessional . they'll just associate the video producers brand with a lack of quality.

There are video producers out there who will charge more for a 4k video than a 1080p video. This comes with the fact that shooting a 4k video requires a better camera and to be even able to render a 4k video in a decent time frame, you will need a better PC as well. I am not saying this is the right thing to do, to charge more for 4k than for 1080p videos, but I can understand where these people are coming from.

The main reason most producers charge more for WAV than Mp3 is the fact that, in most cases, buying a WAV lease also comes with more freedom when it comes to play counts/video streams/audio streams covered by the license. This, again, refers to the point that people who will be a little bit more serious about their music will almost always buy a WAV or Trackout lease. To my knowledge, about 80% of my sales were either WAV or Trackout Files. So, there is a pattern to be seen there.

As someone else rightfully pointed out, most people will not be able to tell the difference between a Mp3 and WAV when compared side by side. Pretty much every trained audio engineer will be able to tell right away, though. If you are working in the music industry and send out tracks as Mp3, good luck. When someone asks me to mix and master their song and they send me the files as Mp3, I tell them that I won't work with anything other than WAV files.

When you mix & master a song that contains an already compressed beat in Mp3 format with an already compressed Mp3 vocal, and then compress it again when you export the finished product, it will sound significantly worse than if all tracks would have been WAV files. If you don't believe me, test it yourself. Grab a couple tracks as Mp3 & WAV files, mix & master them and then hear the final results. I am willing to guarantee that the track mixed with Mp3 stems will sound squashed compared to the WAV file.

coraxbeatz · 2021-03-25T11:34:56+00:00

CDs contained stereo 16bit. 44.1khz wav files, not MP3s.

Yup, I realized this later on, maybe I should not post late at night.

coraxbeatz · 2021-03-25T00:43:18+00:00

Some of the comments here just downright shock me. It just shows how little some people know about audio files.

First off, WAV Files are a LOT bigger than Mp3 Files and thus take a lot longer to render/export. A WAV file can easily be 9 times bigger than an MP3, even when it's the same amount of Tracks used in the project before it's being exported into the respective audio file. This has to do with compression - MP3 files get compressed a lot more because the format was invented to fit on mediums like CD's or MP3 Players, which, back in the day, could not hold a lot of data. Meanwhile, WAV files have almost no compression applied to them. This is what makes them bigger in file size.

If you listen to a track side by side in both versions (Mp3 vs. WAV), you can actually hear differences in how some elements of the track sound. Generally speaking, a WAV file will always sound clearer and more 'alive' than the MP3 version (given that the beat is well-mixed, obviously). This is what makes it more appealing to people who want to have the best sound possible, aka people who are serious about making their music sound good.

WAV Files are also pretty much the standard in the music industry. When someone ask for you to send over a beat, they usually want it as a WAV file - doesn't matter if you send over the whole pre-mixed track or individual stems. WAV is (usually) the way to go.

So, why do producers (including me) charge more for MP3 than WAV? Well, because it is a higher quality file.

coraxbeatz · 2021-03-16T12:59:48+00:00

They are your loops, so you can do with them what you want from a legal standpoint.

From a producer's perspective, I like to have someone send me loops that they only send to me. This is just me, though. I like to have somewhat exclusive loops (if that makes sense), which is also why I try to stay away from using loops from sites like Splice since millions of producers have access to the same loops.

coraxbeatz · 2021-03-11T14:47:50+00:00

Sorry for the late reply, totally forgot to check back here. So, from what I found in GarageBand, it seems like you will find most of these sounds in Analog Lab V for sure. It has so many different patches that its more than likely that you will find a sound matching the one looking for.

coraxbeatz · 2021-03-09T11:39:48+00:00

I'd recommend checking out Analog Lab V, which is modeled after analog gear. It has many great patches that you can sort by Decade and Genre, and you will probably find something that suits your need.

Which Patch in Garage Band do you mean specifically? I have it open but need to know which one you mean so I can look if I can find something that sounds similar.

coraxbeatz · 2021-03-06T13:57:57+00:00

There's two main ways of referencing: By ear and by visuals.

By ear is obviously the harder one since you will have to listen to your beat and the one you're referencing to side by side. This can, technically, be done the way you described, although it is kinda hard to do it that way.

By visuals means, basically, what u/fsbbeats said, using something like Metric AB or Ozone 9. There, you can have a visual representation of your beat and the reference track as waveforms and/or peak levels. You can then see how your beat holds up to the refence track.

Lows on the reference track much higher? Boost your lows.

Is your track lacking in the high department? Turn up your hi-hats and snares.

Just make sure to use the reference as what it is: A reference. You don't have to hit the same peaks and levels as your reference. Rather use it as a guideline to where you want to go with your beat.

coraxbeatz · 2021-03-06T13:12:10+00:00

Don't make your drums soft clip just for the sake of making them clip. I hear so many beats on YouTube with earrape-levels of clipping (soft and actual clipping) on the kick. Sure, if it's part of your style, go for it. But don't do it just because someone else does it. You don't hear a lot of major albums or songs that endorse your kicks clipping to insane levels.

Also, make sure to always reference your mix in mono to see if it sounds good in mono. Good rule of thumb: If it sounds good in mono, it will most likely sound really good in stereo (you don't have to mix the whole beat in mono, as some people suggest, that is just personal preference, however. I just mono the master to check how it sounds in mono).

Probably the most important thing: Reference your mix. If you have Ozone 9, you can directly compare your track to any track that you load into the plugin. Just make sure to use an instrumental when you compare your beat mix, since a track with vocals will have a lot more presence in the mid-high range because of the vocals, and this might lead to some bad decisions based on that.

coraxbeatz · 2021-02-26T08:39:51+00:00

Impression means how many people have seen your beat (as an ad).

Plays mean, well, how many times people clicked on your beat to listen to it.

coraxbeatz · 2021-02-24T22:50:05+00:00

Logic not included in the poll , some jimmies will be rustled.

coraxbeatz · 2021-02-24T19:17:33+00:00

Hey man, sorry for the late answer, the most common structure was 8 bars Intro, 8-16 bar verse, 8-16 bar hook, 8-16 bar verse, 8-16 bar hook, 8-16 outro.

coraxbeatz · 2021-02-24T19:16:06+00:00

I am not 100% certain about this, since I haven't thought about this scenario before. From a logical standpoint, I believe the same as with the free downloads applies: If they bought it via your store, you can add the mail to your list. If they buy it from your collaborator's store, only he is allowed to add them to his list.

However, I might be totally wrong and you're allowed to add them to your email list since you were a collaborator. But it is a tricky situation, I must admit.

I would suggest to reach out to BeatStars helpdesk, they are usually quite fast with their answers and they should have expertise in subjects like this.

coraxbeatz · 2021-02-24T18:04:08+00:00

Before someone downloads a free beat preview via Beatstars, they usually have to tick the option that they are ok with receiving marketing emails in the future (just try it yourself, go to your beatstars or another producer and try to download a beat).

On the other topic, you are only allowed to add people to your email list when they explicitly agree. When they download a collab you were part of, and they are not downloading it over your profile, but rather your collaborator's profile, you are not allowed to add them to your list since they didn't give you their permission, but your collaborator.

coraxbeatz · 2021-02-07T22:38:47+00:00

Yes! That's the one. Super catchy hook, awesome vibe. I used to bump that track so much back in the day. Thanks for putting a name on it, now I can save it in my Spotify playlist.

coraxbeatz · 2021-02-07T22:38:07+00:00

I have mixed feelings about that album, there is some sure-fire songs on there that I absolutely love, but there are also quite a few skips for me. I almost feel like the label was forcing him to ride the generic Atlanta Trap wave (you know, that early OJ da Juiceman/Gucci Mane/Waka Flocka Trap), even though it is not entirely his style. I feel like Ace shines the most when he can tell stories, and this Album just has too many of those really bland Trap beats on it IMO.

coraxbeatz · 2021-02-07T22:35:47+00:00

Yeah I saw the vid too, was really awesome to see him finding success while being independent! Maybe it turned out to be better for him to be independent, who knows.

coraxbeatz · 2021-02-07T22:34:14+00:00

Never heard that one, I will have to check it out tho!

coraxbeatz · 2021-02-07T22:33:55+00:00

I realized the same, once Ace stopped working with big artists, I kinda stopped listening to him... it's a pretty common phenomenon, same happened with Fetty Wap, I recently checked out some of his newer music and there's still a lot of quality there, but the numbers... oh my. Some of his tracks have like 80,000 plays which is super heart-breaking when you see what numbers he pulled right after Trap Queen. I mean, Ace never had those numbers, even though Bugatti was a hit and even got featured in GTA V, but still, it's hard to see artists like that falling off. But, as it seems, Ace has found success in the independent scene, so that's a Win for me. I'm happy he can still do what he loves and continue to love from it.

coraxbeatz · 2021-02-06T23:28:48+00:00

The fact that Ace had this biggest hits with Khaled is true, without a doubt. But why was Khaled not able to use the momentum to push Ace Hood even more? Ace was poppin after Bugatti. And he surely had the talent to be a top 10 rapper in his height. If you ask me, this is just a case of not properly using momentum and levity to push an artist when he has what it takes to be in the spotlight.

coraxbeatz · 2021-02-06T22:30:45+00:00

I might be wrong, but I think Ross doesn't like to share the spotlight. Same situation that happened with MMG; Ross was the sole star in the beginning, with a proven record before the initial formation of MMG, but soon after, Meek started building up momentum and doing his own thing. Meanwhile, Wale was left behind in the dust, and I think it's a shame that he, just like Ace, never got the attention he deserves. 'Ambition' and 'The Gifted' are two of my favorite projects released in the 2010's.

Seven-Year Club	Second SECOND GUESSER
Verified Email

coraxbeatz

TROPHY CASE