This a little Pro Tools tip I picked up from an old interview with Junkie XL that was in one of the 2004 issues of the Digidesign Digizine. In the interview, Junkie XL talks about a range of things important to the production of dance music. One of these things is the importance of creating massive kick drum sounds.

Dance music requires that the kick have a lot of low end, but at the same time, a lot of punch is required for it to cut through. So here’s a quick breakdown for how you can get this sound for yourself.

Step 1.
Import around 20 to 30 kick samples, and find the best samples for each of the kick’s three composite frequency ranges – low, mid, high. From these, pick the best 5 or 6.

Step 2.
Place Pro Tools in a two- or four-bar loop record mode and begin shifting the EQ's "phase" button for the low kick sample a hard 90 degrees left or right.

You’ll know when it’s working because your kick will either sound quite strong, or have no bass at all. For the high frequency sample you won’t need the low end, so you can filter that out to make sure the low end sample stands out more.

Step 3.
Start nudging the samples around in tiny increments until you get the overall attack and release just right.

This whole process could take a while, but it’s worth a shot. It could give your tracks the boost they need to stand out from the crowd.