THIS bass sound

Not to dwell on this, but let's take this example:
Recordingmaster said:
What if that bassist has a really special, rare mismatched rig that imparts his own really unique signature sonic character
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What would color that special, rare sound more? Taking a direct out? Or putting it through a mic that imparts it's own character on the sound? I'm not taking about what's better or worse. Just asking.
 
I'd say mic it because the mic is acting as your ear. More realistic.

Didn't realize I'd raised such an uproar! haha. I guess what I am trying to say (if I didn't already mention it), is I prefer the sound of a mic'ed bass for reasons already mentioned. Sounds more realistic. And also, that it bugs me that not too many people give trying it out the time of day. And trying it out more than once until they get it right. Just like anything else.
 
RecordingMaster said:
I'd say mic it because the mic is acting as your ear. More realistic.

Didn't realize I'd raised such an uproar! haha. I guess what I am trying to say (if I didn't already mention it), is I prefer the sound of a mic'ed bass for reasons already mentioned. Sounds more realistic. And also, that it bugs me that not too many people give trying it out the time of day. And trying it out more than once until they get it right. Just like anything else.
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Nothing wrong with that. I'd bet though that in a well done mix you can't tell the difference between a good DI bass track and a mic'd bass cab.
 
Greg_L said:
Nothing wrong with that. I'd bet though that in a well done mix you can't tell the difference between a good DI bass track and a mic'd bass cab.
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You know, you're probably right. Just like if I gave you a mix and asked you to tell me whether or not you think they used a tape saturation plugin on the 2-bus...unless you compared the two.

Like all things, I guess the listener won't have the chance to compare between the two either, but why not give them the better of the two, if there even IS such a thing, but probably not.

Aaron's right about preferences and I'm not denying that.
 
RecordingMaster said:
You know, you're probably right. Just like if I gave you a mix and asked you to tell me whether or not you think they used a tape saturation plugin on the 2-bus...unless you compared the two.
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I probably couldn't, because it's not important and I don't care. Just like a DI vs mic'd bass track. As long as it works, it works.

Like all things, I guess the listener won't have the chance to compare between the two either, but why not give them the better of the two, if there even IS such a thing, but probably not.
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There is no better. Your insistence that miking a bass cab is "better" is just audio snobbery.

Aaron's right about preferences and I'm not denying that.
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You sure are trying to though. :D
 
RecordingMaster said:
When time allows I'll post a raw DI and a raw mic'ed track. See which you prefer.
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That won't really prove anything. One might sound "better" on it's own but not fit a particular mix or song. You can put up 2 different snare recordings and the same applies.
 
RAMI said:
That won't really prove anything. One might sound "better" on it's own but not fit a particular mix or song. You can put up 2 different snare recordings and the same applies.
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Exactly. That's what's dumb about this whole thing. DI'ing a bass isn't the same as drum sample replacement or using sims or autotune. It's not cheating or laziness. It's a proven and useful way to track bass, if you want to.
 
RecordingMaster said:
I'd say mic it because the mic is acting as your ear. More realistic.
.
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Except that you're leaving out the fact that the mic colors/changes the sound. Nothing wrong with that, But I can't see how that makes it more realistic. How can that be more realistic than taking the exact sound and not passing it through a mic? It might be "better/warmer/thicker/etc...." in someone's opinion, but I question your definition of "realistic".
 
And not only that, just like with guitar cabs, what the mic "hears" pressed right up near the speaker isn't what you're hearing sitting or standing out in the room. So no, miking a cab isn't really realistic at all.
 
Greg_L said:
That's cool but fuck raw tracks. Put em in a mix. That's where it matters.
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Not saying this isn't true. Like I posted above, last night I ended up having to go with the DI because it was working better IN THE MIX. Side by side to the mic track it wasn't as good, but the mic track had an issue I couldn't "fix". If it weren't for that I'd not have used the DI.

As for the rest of the comments, I'm going to have to throw in the towel here because I am now the one who is getting lazy, and like I mentioned and agreed to, at the end of the day I guess it's a matter of taste/preference. I don't consider myself an audio snob by any stretch.

It was interesting bringing this up though and seeing what you all had to say.

SORRY OP!
 
Greg_L said:
Our work here is done. Praise be to shamalamadingdong!
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Don't you mean Obamalamadingdong ?:p

I can't tell if a bass sound in a mix is miked, DI'd, simmed or a blend. They all work well, they all sound great and they can all stink in the wrong hands.
 
I'd hate to see what's going on the cave right now...60s dude, dogman, nave, C7, I forget all the other names...trying to show off who knows least about everything known to man.

bass is really tricky to me. more so than other instruments, if it sounds good soloed, it typically sounds bad in a mix. i had a hard time finding a sound i was happy enough with.
 
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