Are Drum & Bass Production Courses Worth It?

The most commonly used way to learn how to produce drum & bass in today's industry is online learning. From YouTube tutorials, to masterclasses, to track breakdowns & online courses, the options are endless. The question is, are they worth your time & money?

Let's break it down.

Drum & Bass courses are usually one or many recorded videos about a certain topic. They can either be a library of various types of videos, individual one off videos or a structured set designed to be watched in order. The objective remains the same, to teach you production techniques.

Whether or not they help you become a better producer is at the core of this question.

When trying to understand if a DnB course is worth your time, you need to know;

1. What sort of reputation/credibility does the producer/company have?

2. Is the production technique they're trying to teach me relevant to the sub genre of DnB I'm trying to make?

3. Is the tutorial old & outdated?

4. What sort of learner am I? Do I struggle to stay focused when watching a 30 minute video? Or would I be better to learn in a 1 on 1 environment?

5. Can I learn this same skill from free platforms like YouTube?

The first question, What sort of reputation/credibility does the producer/company have?, is extremely important. With the internet largely unregulated, anyone can record videos & post them online. It's important to do your research on who you intend on learning from & if they're worth their salt. Make sure you check out the person/companies discography to confirm they practice what they preach, read online reviews from websites like TrustPilot, Reddit & social media forums and never hand over your hard earned money without 100% confidence.

The second question, Is the production technique they're trying to teach me relevant to the sub genre of DnB I'm trying to make?, is also incredibly important. Even though the course might say drum & bass, the content may not actually help you if you make liquid & the course is teaching neuro. Each sub-genre has its optimal production techniques, especially around mixing, sound design, side-chaining & mastering. What works for one sub-genre, may not work or be optimal for another. Always make sure the content is relevant to your style & goals.

The third question, Is the tutorial old & outdated?, speaks to the fast-paced nature of drum & bass production. Every month there's a new side-chain technique, vocal processing style, popular bass sound or industry standard. What was working 5 years ago, may not work so well right now. Buying courses that are up to date & relevant today will ensure your music stays competitive.

The fourth question, What sort of learner am I? Do I struggle to stay focused when watching a 30 minute video? Or would I be better to learn in a 1 on 1 environment?, is all about YOU. Everyone has a different learning style. If you struggle to stay focused staring at a screen for 30 minutes, do you think watching an online course will be an effective way for you to learn? Maybe not. Maybe your £49 or $100 might be better spent learning directly from someone in person, where you can engage in conversation & focus better.

Finally, number 5, Can I learn this same skill from free platforms like YouTube?, is a big one. Not all paid courses are superior to free content just because they have a price tag on them. Do your research & see what free content is available for what you're trying to learn. If there's a bunch of high quality tutorials on YouTube, it may be better for you to watch those instead. On the flip side of that, if you don't want to waste time scouring YouTube or doing hours of research, online courses can be the solution.

Are they effective?

The one thing online courses lack is context. They don't know your skill level, production blindspots or learning styles. The generic nature of online courses makes them sub optimal in teaching you efficiently.

Let's use an example.

More times than I can count, I've had clients come to me & say they need help with sound design. They think that having cool sounding basses will solve all their problems and their tracks will finally sound professional. I can tell you right now, 95% of the time the problem is in the mix or the execution of the idea.

If you believe you need to learn sound design to level up, but the core problem lies elsewhere, you'll end up buying a course that doesn't actually help you.

This is just an example, but here's another. Today's modern style of electronic music means that the mixing phase is blended with the mastering stage. Techniques like mixing to 0db, blur the lines between mixing & mastering and so if you believe you need to learn how to master your tracks, you might actually be better off learning how to mix first. This is the sort of context an online course can't give you.

Prices

I've collated prices from all the main suppliers of online drum & bass courses and converted them into prices per month (as most of them offer subscription-based fees).

~£5–8/mo Sonic Academy

~£9/mo Education & Bass

~$15/mo Producertech

~$17–20/mo FaderPro / BassGorilla

~€25–50/mo DNB Academy Foundations (spread over 6–12 months)

~€33–66/mo Noise Masters (spread over 3–6 months)

£49/mo Krakota Academy.

Now here are the main one-off purchase prices for all the main suppliers.

~£20–40 Loopmasters/Singomakers DnB Course ~5 hrs

~£20–40 Producertech — Icicle Course ~3 hrs

~$20–40 W.A. Production — Mainstream DnB ~3–4 hrs

~£20–50 Born to Produce — DnB Tutorial ~5+ hrs

~$30–50 BassGorilla — Joe Ford Course ~4–5 hrs

€99 DNB Academy — Single Artist Course ~3–5 hrs

€197 Noise Masters — Heavy DnB Supercourse

€297 DNB Academy — Foundations 100+hrs

€297DNB Academy — 2026 Vault Bundle 100+ hrs + all packs.

Pros & Cons

Here's a list of the pro's & con's of online drum & bass production courses.

Pros:

1. Learn at your own pace

2. Cost effective

3. Hundreds of options

4. Learn from anywhere, anytime

5. Can choose from a structured curriculum, one off or variety of the two

6. One-off or subscription based pricing available

Cons

1. Not tailored to your needs & goals

2. Could be made by someone who isn't an expert

3. Information can be outdated

4. Slow way to level up

5. Not effective for all types of learners

So, should you buy the course or not?

If you're money conscious, able to learn by watching videos, happy to take a bit more time to improve, want to learn whenever suits you and/or prefer to develop your skills without the pressure of scheduled sessions, then a one-off course purchase is probably your best bet.

If you want to speed up your progress, are happy to pay a bit extra, can be flexible with learning times & prefer a teaching style where you get feedback, you may want to look into getting 1 on 1 tutoring instead.

I hope this article has helped you make a decision on whether or not a drum & bass production course is worth it. Thank you for your time & happy learning!

Max.

P.s. if you want to learn more about the pricing & suitability of 1 on 1 tutoring, read my article on that here.