tips for getting a great thick bass sound DI

Wish is spot on. The Behri BDI21 is fanmazing for great & so so basses.
I use it for roundwound strings on an 80s bass and for flatwound strings on a late 60s bass.
It's solid, easily tweakable and just plain brilliant for the oh so small price.
It is a Sansamp clone but is a little easier to operate and a LOT cheaper.
A good bass is an important thing to have but while you're saving up get the BDI21.
 
I love my Ibanez bass, too.

I am using the IK Multi Ampeg bass sim these days, but before I got that, I used to slam the hell out of the bass track with an 1176 plug. It brings out lots of detail that otherwise would go unnoticed. I used to get a lot of nice comments about my bass tone. I would say it wasn't orthodox, but it rocked.
 
Chili said:
I love my Ibanez bass, too.

I am using the IK Multi Ampeg bass sim these days, but before I got that, I used to slam the hell out of the bass track with an 1176 plug. It brings out lots of detail that otherwise would go unnoticed. I used to get a lot of nice comments about my bass tone. I would say it wasn't orthodox, but it rocked.
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I do that too. It depends what the track sounds like in the first place. Sometimes I need the added upper midst that you get from distorting it.
 
Chili said:
I love my Ibanez bass, too.
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I use an Ibanez also. :)
It's a Blazer bass from the late '70s...It looks it's kinda' like a pre-law Fender copy.
This isn't mine...but this is what it looks like.


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I was in a local music shop one day getting something else with my band mates, ans that was about the time I had a 4-track tape deck that I used for my own demos, and I always wanted to have a bass so I could do my own bass tracks without having to depend on anyone.I saw it hanging there, it was used, but maybe only 1-2 years old if that. and liked the look and feel, so bought it for $200 I think...back in '79.

I love it...and I use it with heavier flat-wound strings, so it kicks out some fat low end tones, but I can also get a brighter, more defined tone out of it. I like to go DI with it, and that's it.

It's been on just about every song I ever recorded...with few exceptions. I have an Epi Thrunderbird bass....but I never took to it like my Ibanez Balzer. I think I used the Epi on maybe 2 songs in the last 10 years since I bought it...so it's basically brand new. Would love to swap it out for a nice short-scale to complement my long-scale Blazer...like a Fender Mustang.
 
OP, it's unlikely your bass is the problem. If you can set it up and keep it in tune, you can make good tracks with it. It would be helpful to know the kind of bass you are playing (especially the pickup configuration). I take it you are using a pick and round wound strings.

Quite a difference in style between the Satriani track and your own. One of the reasons you hear the bass better in the Satriani track is because he has carved out sonic space for it. While the drums are too loud for my taste, there isn't really much else competing for those low midrange frequencies where the bass guitar lives. In your track, the guitar or guitars and drums take up all the real estate. If you want more bass in those frequencies, there has to be less of something else. You're going to have to make some choices.

If you have mixed properly to create space and you're still not hearing the bass, your problem may be a lack of girth in the low midrange (100-200 hZ or thereabouts). Jazz style basses often have that problem when you run both pickups maxed. The result is a scooped tone that can disappear in a busy mix. The solution is to back off one or both pickups and boost the lower midrange with amp EQ (or cut other frequencies, better yet). If you have a P style bass, the problem is usually different. P's tend to have an abundance of low midrange but can be lacking in the upper midrange frequencies where the clarity and articulation come from.

Any chance you could mute the guitars and give us a snippet with just bass and drums? I could offer more useful comments if I could hear your tone.

And Miroslav, nice old Ibanez you've got there.
 
Actually as Jimmy mentioned earlier, I recently bought an Eden WTDI as a pre amp for my Electric Upright Bass when I play live. I had it in the studio when I had to do some session work and I played my Ibanez BTB 5 string through it as a DI, it sounded very good, I usually mic an amp as well but in this case I just used the WTDI. Haven't tried it with the Fender basses yet but I will.


Alan
 
Regarding the Satriani track: I'll second the recording from amp thing. It also sounds like they maybe miced the bass to get some of the acoustic/percussive sound in there.
 
jimistone said:
Cheap basses can make great bass tracks...They are just harder to play and do a great performance on. Also, their pickups aren't as articulate, as a more expensive bass, and you must compensate for that by applying EQ. I would say that aside from laying down a good performance, having the bass properly set up and in tune, and not clipping the channel....in other words having the best bass sound possible going into the recorder.
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That's exactly right. I used to own an expensive American P bass. Sold it and got a cheap Mexican. Had it setup professionally, and now I get bass that's nearly as good for half the price. There are also some other tricks (not sure if these have been mentioned), but adding foam, rolling off the tone, and even using the right sim cab (I notice bass sims are much much better than guitar, because they don't have that gross, annoying high frequency problem). I love my DI bass sounds now, but they took a lot of work and tweaking. I'd say price of the instrument is the last thing. Any instrument setup right with the right tone knob setting will do the job. I'm not even sure the American was easier to play than the Mexican...they're about the same in that regard. The pickup tone straight out of the box was the biggest difference (American was clearly better), but that was pretty easy to fix even without swapping pickups. It takes some experimenting and creativity, but I find that fun.
 
Haven't been able to get my hands on a better bass yet, I uploaded a track of just bass and drums, I'm not happy with the bass tone, the performance isn't perfect but the tone is the main thing that bothers me.
Heres the demo
https://soundcloud.com/ben-2014/bass-tone-demo

The bass I'm using has no model number on it so its hard to tell what exactly it is, but it looks like this GuitarCenter


So any tips for improving the sound using that bass, or do I shell out the cash.
Also my signal path is bass to usb audio interface to cuabse 8 with guitar rig 5 bass amp, I also used a compressor built into cubase.
 
You really need to tell us what you don't like about it. To me, it sounds good; nice fat tone with good definition and growl. The litmus test is how it sounds in the song. I'm willing to bet you'll get a nice bottom and clear articulation. It should sound good in an aggressive rock song.

BTW: I have the same bass. It got a lot of use and I recently gave it to my son.

[Edit] Here's a thread where I refinished it. https://homerecording.com/bbs/equipment-forums/guitars-and-basses/adding-veneer-my-old-bass-360197
 
There is nothing wrong with that bass tone. Nothing at all.

But if you really want that 'piano string' sound on the Satriani song, You will need an active bass with brand new strings.

Like I said, you are getting a good bass tone, context and personal preference are the only thing you are fighting at the moment
 
Well I'm glad you guys like the bass tone, let me upload it within the context of the song, including the guitars.
 
Yup, it fits in nicely. You just gotta lower the guitars a bit.

(You can always tell when the guitar player mixes the song. :facepalm: :D)
 
Chili said:
Yup, it fits in nicely. You just gotta lower the guitars a bit.

(You can always tell when the guitar player mixes the song. :facepalm: :D)
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lol I'll take that as a compliment, I've been playing guitar for 6 years but I've only been recording and mixing about 6 months. Its good feedback though, us guitar players don't notice when we are overpowering everyone else.
Thanks for the positive feedback guys.

I find I am always my biggest critic.
 
On a side note, what genre would you classify this as, other than rock. I was thinking alt rock, or alt metal, or punk rock.
 
Ex3vious said:
lol I'll take that as a compliment, I've been playing guitar for 6 years but I've only been recording and mixing about 6 months. Its good feedback though, us guitar players don't notice when we are overpowering everyone else.
Thanks for the positive feedback guys.

I find I am always my biggest critic.
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Well you now have a few more critics to join you. :)

It is not abnormal for you to want to hear yourself. The challenge is to have yourself heard while making the whole project sound as good as it can be.

:)
 
I'm not making a conscience effort to make the guitars louder though. I think since I'm a guitar player a have a natural tendency to pay more attention to the guitar, therefore I make it louder, its all on a subconscious level though.
 
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