Pick your samples. As in most hip-hop, grime beats are composed of chopped-up elements - samples of other music. Grime makes frequent use of snares, synths, and square basses, as well as a variety of other instruments to which some type of distortion has been added. These samples are typically culled from records, but they can also be recorded live or produced using computer programs. Sample packs of grime samples and instrumentals are also widely available.
Input your samples. Samples are imputed into an audio sequencer or sampler, in either software or hardware form. Music can be taken off various devices, including turntables, DATs, CDs, or digital files. These sequencers and samples are then used to organize, edit and play these musical samples. In grime, in which synthetic sounds are common, these tools are frequently used to change the qualities of the imputed samples, making them sound patently artificial or dissonant by shifting their time or pitch.
Set your drum pattern. Drums act as a skeleton of grime beats, a basic structure upon which other sounds can be added. Most grime songs are fast, typically 140BPM, and busy, with complex, syncopated rhythms almost standard. While grime borrows from many genres and no single kind of drum is standard, most producers scatter at least a few snares throughout each composition.
Program your bass line. Like much of the UK's electronic music, most grime features a booming bass that acts as a counterpoint to the more nimble drum sounds. Square basses are particularly common.
Add a melody. Most grime songs begin with a drumless introduction that features only a simple melodic phrase that is then repeated through much of the rest of the tune. Much of the genre's creativity derives from , with producers striving for obscure and unusual samples, drawing from such sources as violins, organs, strange vocals, and vintage synth sounds. One or more such patterns should be placed at regular intervals throughout the song.