Bass cut-off point? :::

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Badtz

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Is there a point where there shouldn't be any bass in your recordings?

in dance/electronic music for instance, bass is a primary emphasis.......... when is too low of bass, become muddled?

should you cut everything below a certain frequency? example, everything below 40hz?
 
Euh... No? Where did you get that idea?

I think it's best in your case to explain where you get your idea. :D You're confusing the hell out of me. hehe.

;)
 
so if the song/piece calls for it, you should play it all the way to the low end? 20hz -?
 
Why would a piece call for getting all the bass out???? Where did you get this idea????
 
Badtz,

> Is there a point where there shouldn't be any bass in your recordings? <

I wouldn't say "shouldn't be any bass," but it is common to cut the deepest frequencies when they are too loud and start to muddy things up.

One time you might do that is when recording a live instrument, and there's low frequency rumbling caused by the player tapping his foot on a resonant wood floor, or a car or plane passes by. Another good reason to cut very low frequencies is to preserve headroom. When there is a substantial amount of subsonic energy that is not contributing meaningful information to the mix, removing it lets you raise the overall level of the track.

--Ethan
 
thanks ethan, so i'm assuming that it varies per song/track?

there's not a definitive cut-off point for all music? [too low of bass to be put on cd]
 
The accumulation of summed subsonic frequencies from multiple tracks is a prime contributor to "muddy" sounding mixes. That is why very often the HPF is useful even at the tracking stage.

Try rolling off at 40 hz. You might be surprised at the level of clarity you add. Your mastering engineer might end up doing the same thing anyway. It can't hurt to audition the results. And you don't have to tell Roel the secret of your stunningly clear and detailed mix!
 
should be rolling off on every track per mix? or just do the complete mix and then do a "final" roll-off?

or

does it not matter? :)
 
i usually roll off around 45hz, it really depends what kind of sound im going for in the mastering process. if the project wants the track to be really loud, then i might roll off higher. you have to bear in mind that the more deep bass there is, the harder you are working the speaker. it can lose you a lot of clarity and detail. even bass heavy music usually is rolled off atleast at 40hz.
 
Badtz said:
should be rolling off on every track per mix? or just do the complete mix and then do a "final" roll-off?

or

does it not matter? :)
Click to expand...

I very often slap an EQ across the mix buss and do the whole mix at once.
 
i have lo cut filters on quite a few tracks to eliminate low end rumble or non important energy in the low end.
 
so i take it i should just worry about the mix first, then just do a phat cut-off @ the end? [the cut off point variable per mix?]
 
things like hi-hat, acoustic guitar, elec guitars, vocals. i tend to apply a low cut filter on these because i dont want any of the energy below say 80hz. that's where the bass instruments lie.

it depends on what type of music you're doing aswell.

it's wise to do a cut off on the whole mix, atleast aroudn 40hz. most hifi speakers will not be able to go lower than this anyway. you're just making it easier on the speaker, and thus, improving clarity and detail at the same time.
 
Badtz,

> so i'm assuming that it varies per song/track? <

Yes, and LongWave gave you good advice. Most stuff below 40 Hz. is not useful on very many tunes, and that's about the lowest most speakers can go anyway. Heck, few speakers go that low, but since some do 40 Hz. is a good cutoff point.

--Ethan
 
i don't do electronica or whatever you are calling new wave this week.

i do r&b/hip-hop/reggae/dancehall, and just like electronica we need bass.

i roll off all instruments except the bass and kick such that nothing else is occupying any sonic real estate below 80hz.

then on the mix, i roll of everything below 40hz, because i figure that 80% of people who listen won't have speakers who can take anything below 40.
 
Seems almost unanimous!

Isn't it nice to see a consensus for a change! :D
 
Wow you guys just answered a question that was driving me CRAZY!!!

Thanks!
 
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