Getting a lower recorded bass sound...

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lttoler

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I am trying to record a cover of Mary Jane's Last Dance by Tom Petty with my cover band. We are using the original track as a reference and one of the main things that is definitely off is the bass tone. We used a Standard P Bass going to a GK 2001RB head straight into the interface.

Compared to the original, our tone has a brighter, more prominent sound. I have tried different EQ settings and can't quite get to where I want. I have considered getting some flatwound strings, but Im not sure that it will get there either. Do any of you have any suggestions? Thanks in advance!
 
lttoler said:
I have considered getting some flatwound strings, but Im not sure that it will get there either.
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Oh yeah...heavier gauge flat-wounds will certainly add a lot of beef to the tone! :)

I use flat-wounds on my Ibanez Blazer long-scale bass from the mid-70s, it has serious THUMP.
My other bass has round-wound strings and you certainly get the brighter, jazzier tone with them.

My Blazer bass gets used most of the time. I just love that low-end. :D
 
It depends a lot on the era the song was recorded in. Flat wounds were the norm for quite some time. 1/2 and round wound strings remind me of the 80's because that's when I encountered them and the 80's had the vogue for toppy sounding bass, (possibly due to strings but also due to playing styles).
Have you tried playing with fingers if you're using a pick?
Want more bass tone? Use fingers & mic the cab. Or try the Behringer BDI21 - it'll be cheaper than a new set of strings & you can dial in a good tone.
 
The era was early 90's, but I still think it may have flats on it. The bassline was recorded using fingers. I tried micing the cab, and it made a slight difference, but still not where I want. Anyone got any EQ suggestions?
 
I'm gonna say that I would never get that deeply into trying to have the exact same sounds even down to the bass of a cover I was recording.

Why not do it with your sounds?
Cover it but still sound like you?

You might end up with what Petty wished he'd have gotten.
 
For recording I only use flats - they produce a significantly more pronounced percussive quality to the attack, all be it at the expense of a more rapid decay. Think deep, rounded "thump".
 
First off, as usual, I agree with Lt. Bob. Even Petty's engineers probably couldn't recreate the sound exactly if they tried, let alone doing it in a limited home studio environment. Find a sound you like and go with that.

That being said, flatwounds (or very old, dirty roundwounds) might help, as might turning back the tone control on the bas just a smidge. I actually suspect that a lot of the problem (if you want to cal it that) is in the choice of head you're using. Try to get ahold of a tube amp if you can. If it's just for recording, it doesn't have to be anything high wattage. I'd also recommend using a 12 or 15 instead of the 10's. And I'm not saying anything against the GK or 10's (I have both), especially for live use, I'm just referring to this particualr situation.

Good luck, and remember to have fun.
 
Also, and I don't know the answer to this, but it might also be possble that he used a 5 string. I don't have it handy to listen to, and even if I did, I don't have my 'good' monitors hooked up, so I wouldn't really trust what I'm hearing.
 
As the other users have suggested, flat wounds & miking the cab. Also try your picking closer to the neck. And recording it to tape.
 
OK, I have a question for you. What are you trying to accomplish? If you're doing this just for fun, then cool. If you're making a demo to get gigs, then I wouldn't be so stressed out about the bass sound being exact. If you're recording it as your version of the song, then get a sound you like, as you don't necessarily want to copy the original.
 
Also, I would think this would be one of the things that you actually could 'fix it in the mix', unless you're recording it live, and not multi-tracking it at that.
 
I am recording it for a demo for my cover band. I'm not necessarily trying to emulate the song exactly, its just that I dont think the sound is quite right, and am using the original as a model since I love the sound of the original. I will try to post a link of what we got. Thanks for all the comments!
 
If you are recording through an amp, you could face it into the wall maybe, it can sometimes produce a different sound.
 
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