@Zounds Very true ! I’m also often caught in this trap and would likely end up throwing tracks to the trash after spending too much time to get “that pro sound” and not being satisfied with the result, definitely not fun in the end !
That’s pretty self explained in Video 2 ( starting at around 11:00 minutes play time ), Dom Kane is showing the changes made in the midi notes on the last 2 bars. Don’t look at this like a typical chord progression related to traditional music theory here, it’s rather more a matter of layering different synths and adding some variation when they all play together. If you watch carefully the video at the point I mentioned, you’ll be able to see & replicate the midi notes.
It’s often difficult to use tools such as a tuner to check percussive sounds because of their texture & their short length.Therefore it’s common practice to do it by ears. A Frequency Analyzer like the free “Span” from Voxengo can also help by displaying the frequency & the corresponding note reference, pointing your mouse cursor over the transient note in Span Gui will display this information at the top.
Beside this there’s pros & cons about tuning your drums in key with the track. Pros: the technique is supposed to make the all mix more harmonic & smoother for the ears, cons: having too many of the same frequencies dueling for space in the mix can give you some issues & will require some work to avoid the all mix to sound dull in the end.