Trap Hi-Hats: 8ths, 32nd Bursts and a Triplet Turnaround
The skeleton is half-time: the kick lands hard on beat 1 of each bar and the clap answers on beat 3 only, so at 140 BPM the whole thing leans back like a 70 BPM groove with twice the detail on top. The hi-hat runs straight 8ths as its default pulse, accented on beat 1 (velocity 1.0) and on the clap at beat 3 (0.9), with the in-between 8ths dropped to 0.6 so the hand sounds relaxed rather than machine-flat. The bursts are the whole point: 16ths fill beat 2 of bar 2, a pair of 32nds flicks off the "a" of beat 4 in bar 1 and off beat 3-a in bar 2, and beat 4 of bar 2 breaks into six 16th-note triplets that crescendo from 0.5 to 0.75 straight into the loop point. Swing is 0 — trap rolls get their humanity from velocity shaping and from switching subdivision, not from pushing the offbeats late, and swinging this would smear the 32nds into mush. Listen for the two open hats on the "&" of beat 2 (bar 1) and beat 3 (bar 2): they ring for a moment and then get choked by the next closed hat, which is what gives the pattern its "tss-t" bounce.
Play it yourself
- Hold the closed-hat pad and tap steady 8ths with your index finger, accenting hard on beat 1 and on the clap at beat 3 — that alone is 80% of the feel.
- Add the bursts with the tight-hat pad: double up into 16ths for one beat, then flick two 32nds right before a downbeat so the roll lands you back on the 1.
- To move the triplet fill, drag the last six hats to a different beat — keep them evenly spaced at 2/3 of a step and ramp the velocities upward so it pushes into the next bar.
The pattern above is already loaded and fully editable. Press Space to hear it, open EDIT to see every hit on the step grid, then drag steps to change velocity or nudge them off the grid. When you have made it yours, press SHARE to copy a link that rebuilds your version exactly.
More rhythms
- The Jungle Break: Syncopated Snares at 172172 BPM
- Boom Bap at 90 BPM: the dusty backbeat90 BPM
- Dilla-style drunk swing87 BPM
- Four on the Floor124 BPM
- The hip hop skeleton: kick on 1, snare on 2 and 4, ghosts in the gaps90 BPM
- The Full House Groove: Four on the Floor, Offbeat Hats and a Rolling Shaker124 BPM
- The Dembow Riddim96 BPM
Try another kit
- Boom Bap drum machine88-94 BPM
- Trap drum machine130-150 BPM (half-time feel)
- Lo-Fi Hip Hop drum machine70-85 BPM
- House drum machine120-126 BPM
- Techno drum machine130-140 BPM
- Drum and Bass drum machine172-176 BPM
- Afro House drum machine120-124 BPM
- UK Garage drum machine130-135 BPM
- Funk drum machine100-110 BPM
- 808 drum machine100-130 BPM
DRUMMY is inspired by classic 16-pad sampler and drum-machine workflows. It is an independent project and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to Akai Professional, Roland, or any other manufacturer.