Disco Four-on-the-Floor
Genre: Disco · Tempo: 120 BPM · Time signature: 4/4 · Length: 16 steps · Style: classic four-on-the-floor disco drum programming
Open this pattern in the interactive Patchpad (with playback)
The pattern
| Instrument | Steps (1 = start of the bar) | Velocity | Timing and chance |
|---|
| kick | 1, 5, 9, 13 | 110 | on the grid, always plays |
| hat-open | 3, 7, 11, 15 | 75 | on the grid, always plays |
| clap | 5, 13 | 95 | on the grid, always plays |
| snare | 5, 13 | 80 | step 5: plays 60% of the time; step 13: plays 60% of the time |
| rim | 10 | 55 | step 10: plays 50% of the time |
Digitakt II
Tracks
- T1: kick
- T2: hat-open
- T3: clap
- T4: snare
- T5: rim
Settings
- Hat-open (T2): AMP page DEC locked to around 115 (near the top of its 0-126 range) so consecutive offbeat hits ring into each other with no closed hat to choke it — this constant, ringing pulse is disco's signature 'shimmer' and the core identity of this pattern's hat treatment; do not add a hat-closed track, it will choke the ring
- Snare (T4): AMP page VOL locked just under clap (T3)'s level (~80, vs clap's 95) and layered directly on the same steps (5, 13) for extra body — a common disco-era production trick
- Step 10 (rim, T5): TRIG PARAMETERS PROB locked to 50% for a light syncopated accent adding groove without competing with the clap/snare backbeat
Digitone II
Tracks
- T1: kick (ALGO 4, warm punchy carrier)
- T2: hat-open (high-FDBK FM noise, long ring)
- T3: clap (high-FDBK FM noise, bright)
- T4: snare (moderate-FDBK FM noise, layered)
- T5: rim (ALGO 1, bright plain carrier)
Settings
- Hat-open (T2): AMP page DEC locked to 120 (near the top of the 0-127 range) with MODE ADSR and REL 100 so consecutive offbeat hits ring into each other; SYN page 1 FDBK 105 for the FM-noise texture; FLTR page 1 TYPE toward HP (~70, moderate, not too thin) — this constant, ringing pulse is disco's signature 'shimmer'; do not add a hat-closed track, it will choke the ring
- Kick (T1): SYN page 1 ALGO 4, RATIO C 0.60; AMP page DEC 60, REL 30 for a warm, punchy four-on-the-floor pulse
- Clap (T3): SYN page 1 FDBK 100; FLTR page 1 TYPE HP (~100); AMP page ATK 0, DEC 30 for a bright, crisp, short transient that captures disco's forward, danceable snap
- Snare (T4): SYN page 1 FDBK 75; AMP page VOL locked just under clap (T3)'s level (~80, vs clap's 95) and layered directly on the same steps (5, 13) for extra body — a common disco-era production trick
- Step 10 (rim, T5): SYN page 1 RATIO C 3.50 (bright, plain carrier); AMP page DEC 15; TRIG page 1 COND locked to 50% for a light syncopated accent adding groove without competing with the clap/snare backbeat
Syntakt
Tracks
- T9: kick (BD Classic)
- T10: rim (RS Classic)
- T11: snare (SD Classic)
- T12: hat-open (OH Classic)
- T1: clap (CP Vintage)
Settings
- Hat-open (T12, OH Classic): SYN page DEC locked high (~110) so consecutive offbeat 8th-note hits slightly overlap and ring together — disco's signature 'shimmer'; no hat-closed track is assigned, so nothing chokes the ring
- Kick (T9, BD Classic): SYN page TUNE moderate (~40) with DEC around 60 for a warm, punchy four-on-the-floor pulse
- Snare (T11, SD Classic): AMP page VOL locked just under clap (T1)'s level (~80, vs clap's 95), layered directly on the same steps (5, 13) for extra body
- Step 10 (rim, T10, RS Classic): TRIG PARAMETERS PROB locked to 50% for a light syncopated accent adding groove without competing with the clap/snare backbeat
Notes
A classic four-on-the-floor disco pattern: steady kick on every beat, a ringing open hat on every offbeat 8th with no closed hat to choke it, and a clap/snare backbeat combo. An original pattern in the genre-defining disco idiom, not a transcription.
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