Bass "Boom" issues in mix

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chandman1004

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OK, I hope this is the right place for this post. Feel free to move it ,Mods, if it's in the wrong area.
I am mixing 12 songs that have been recorded on Pro Tools with the minimum of plug-ins. BBE sonic max and blue cat chorus are the only non pro tools included plug ins. Monitors are M-Audio BX5a's. In a couple of the songs I have issues with the bass becoming excessively "boomy" even though the bass level is low. I have pretty much cut all freqs. below 40 to try and combat this, but it hasn't seemed to help. I have cut guitar freqs. below 120 hz . I have the bass contour set to 0 on the BBE sonic max , if it is used on the track. I am begining to think that the car stereo I am using for testing has some sort of bass boost at certain freqs. ( Honda Civic stock radio, 2007) . Is there a way to use compression to get rid of this? I hope I have given enough info, let me know if more is needed....
thanks ahead of time..
 
Soundcloud is free. Even though it converts to MP3, its a good resource for streaming your songs. Its really not bad as far as sound quality.
 
bottom line is, you have to determine exactly which frequency is booming...
and eq it out.

this requires training your ear to recognize most frequencies.

it also requires a monitor and room you can trust.

it also requires some visual help, on individual tracks, to determine peak conditions (suggest SPAN)

it also requires understanding of 'masking' frequencies, 'buildup' frequencies, and how to manage them.
 
I understand masking and buildup, ( i think) and and "slotting " freqs so they don't walk/conflict on or with each other. I really am just about to think it is the test bed ( car stereo) . Since my monitors aren't that great, visual help would be great. I see you suggested SPAN, I will look into that. Any other visual aids out there? Thanks for everyones help.
 
can't find anything on SPAN...what is this an acronym for?
 
Voxengo Span.

You've got 5" monitors, not the best for low end work. I've got Event ALP5's and have the same issues. I added bookshelf speakers with a sub to my monitoring system and switch back and forth between the two.

You also need a room that isn't going to lie to you. If you're mixing in an untreated room and taking your mixes to the car, chances are it won't sound good. Check out the Studio Build section for treating a room. It doesn't have to be expensive and it definitely is the biggest bang for the buck to get a good mix.
HTH,
 
I'm not in the studio at the moment, but on crappy headphones, it sounds like bass is ringing a bit around 120-200hz. Try cutting this a bit and putting some of the 40hz back. I'm not hearing much sub stuff going on there in the phones.
 
I commented on your post in the mp3 clinic and pretty much said the same thing. :P
 
In my experience bass boom usually happens on one or maybe two notes. Like "every time the player hit the E on the 7th fret of the A string, the note booms..." kind of thing. Voxengo SPAN is a good tool for finding those things. Then it's a matter of notching it out with an EQ.
 
TripleM said:
In my experience bass boom usually happens on one or maybe two notes. Like "every time the player hit the E on the 7th fret of the A string, the note booms..." kind of thing. Voxengo SPAN is a good tool for finding those things. Then it's a matter of notching it out with an EQ.
Click to expand...

Or in extreme cases of this ^,a multiband compressor squashing the unruly frequency.
 
I don't know how and why people get these issues. :eek:

This is a tracking issue, not a mixing one....well, it's a mixing issue now, but it should have been dealt with in the tracking stage.

I'd suggest you get rid of the BBE Sonic Maximizer. It might not be the source of your problems, but it certainly doesn't help.
 
By tracking you mean Eq on bass while recording I assume. Bass tracks can be redone, not a problem. On the track the chain is : Fender Jazz, SVT 6 Pro post EQ direct into Mbox. I have other options, any suggestions?
Options are:
1. Bass> Mbox
2. Bass> Sansamp Bass Driver> Mbox
3. Bass > Svt 6 pro > pre or post eq line out
4. Bass > SVT>Mic'ed 410hlf > mbox( not a good option, but willing to try )
5. Any combo of above including a blue max compressor.

Thanks again for all feedback...
 
now, if you are tracking a crappy bass and/or player and/or amp that booms on certain notes, that's a completely different topic!!
 
Reposted a different mix try...not sure if's it's better, but it's there in the lab. Sky2remix.
 
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