Swing and accents

Why a perfectly programmed beat can still sound like a computer — and the two controls that fix it.

You now have: a groove that sounds good but sits dead on the grid.

This lesson is being written. The outline below is what it will cover.

Hear it

Push the Swing slider up to about 20% while it loops.

Swing — every second sixteenth arrives late. 0% is a machine, ~20% is hip-hop head-nod, ~40% is UK garage, ~55% approaches a triplet shuffle.
Swing is set globally on the Tempo screen (Swing %), and can also be stored per pattern — so one track can swing while another stays straight.
Velocity — not every hit is the same size. Accents on the downbeat, ghost notes between the snares.
Why ghost notes work: they’re below conscious attention but your body still hears them.
Building a boom-bap beat: kick, snare on 5 and 13, ghost snares around them, swing at 20%.
The finished exercise will let you combine global swing with louder accents and quieter ghost notes in one editable pattern.

Next: 6 · Variation · Previous: 4 · Make it sound great

Reference: Tempo & clock · Step editing