New Studio, New Song, First Attempt at Upright Bass

[guitar zero]

Been working on a few songs for a local gal who wants to put out a CD, and last night we added upright bass to a few of them. First time for me. I'm interested to get some opinions on how it sounds. Feedback welcome on anything else that needs fixing as well.

 

[klutzee]

WOW what a great voice!!! She's EXCELLENT!!!...The only thing that stands out to me is her vox seem a little hot in the mix for my ears. Everything seems to be recorded really nice.

 

[rayc]

Upright bass, bullfiddle etc. I'd love to have a bash at one - I sometimes play my cello like an upright - with the spike well out etc. It's fun.
Cool voice but it does get close to clipping in my media player.
Nice bass - some growl, finger slap & boom in there to give it character.
Nice song too.
Well done!

 

[guitar zero]

WOW what a great voice!!! She's EXCELLENT!!!...The only thing that stands out to me is her vox seem a little hot in the mix for my ears. Everything seems to be recorded really nice.

Upright bass, bullfiddle etc. I'd love to have a bash at one - I sometimes play my cello like an upright - with the spike well out etc. It's fun.
Cool voice but it does get close to clipping in my media player.
Nice bass - some growl, finger slap & boom in there to give it character.
Nice song too.
Well done!

Thanks fellas. Two votes for turning down the vocals. I'll take a look at how that sounds.

 

[jeffmaher]

I like the tune , her voice, the mix, and the FX applications [I can't hear the distortion, if any] The mando has these pick-dragging-the-strings transients way out in front...and it sounds like LD condenser harshness....the kind you don't get with a Neumann. I know that sound. I got rid of it by using dynamics on the instruments until I can afford a really nice LD condenser. JIC...

The upright sounds like you're using a pickup. Very electric. and kinda farty. I couldn't tell that it was an upright. {Sounds exactly like an Ibanez guitar-bass with a piezo.} If that's the case, you might want to try throwing a dynamic 16" in front of the treble F hole, and letting it tell its story with all that woody warmth!

She's wunnerful! Recording is really translucent. Good cordage? :^)

 

[guitar zero]

Jeff,

Thanks for the feedback. The mando was recorded with a ribbon. I used EQ as much as possible to weed out some of that pick noise, but can't get rid of all of it. Also used a couple of SDC room mics to give it some ambience and space. You are correct about the upright. It was a fishman pickup. I also used an LDC in front and an SDC at the neck, but haven't mixed in any of that. Phase issues made it not sound great right off the bat. Maybe with some coaxing I can work some of that in. I agree it doesn't sound as woody as I had hoped.

 

[ido1957]

Cool - the mix is good for me. The vocal reverb is really nice - what is that? Singer makes song really pop - can't say enough about the singing
Background instrumentation is sitting nicely below the voice but peeks out in the spaces to shine too. Really good overall!

 

[jeffmaher]

In case you missed my last sub, [haven't seen ya around]

MP3 Player SoundClick

That's an SM58 16" out front of the treb F hole. Wicked simple. The lads said it sounded good. Best sound I've gotten yet. Further away gets too much room; closer, and y' gotta roll-off bass [proximity effect]. No compression, EQ, ...nuttin. As tracked.

 

[FoulPhil]

That sounds fan fucking tastick home boy. Good job. Nice and clear and pro sounding to me. Not something I would listen to though

 

[guitar zero]

Cool - the mix is good for me. The vocal reverb is really nice - what is that? Singer makes song really pop - can't say enough about the singing
Background instrumentation is sitting nicely below the voice but peeks out in the spaces to shine too. Really good overall!

Thanks for the feedback. Main vocal has no reverb on the track itself. It's sent to Sound Toys echoboy set on ping pong echo and then the echo is sent to Valhalla Room plug set on DarkRichChamber. It's also bussed to a short delay plug and a chorus plug. Back Up vocals have some echo and Valhalla Room set on smooth hall. If you want a fantastic tweakable plug in reverb with tons of great presets to start out with, check out Valhalla Room. It's only $50.

In case you missed my last sub, [haven't seen ya around]

MP3 Player SoundClick

That's an SM58 16" out front of the treb F hole. Wicked simple. The lads said it sounded good. Best sound I've gotten yet. Further away gets too much room; closer, and y' gotta roll-off bass [proximity effect]. No compression, EQ, ...nuttin. As tracked.

Now that's how I want it to sound. That sounds fantastic. I've got an SM58. If he comes back, I'll use it.

That sounds fan fucking tastick home boy. Good job. Nice and clear and pro sounding to me. Not something I would listen to though

Yeah, I understand it's not everyone's cup of tea, but thanks for taking the time to give feedback.

 

[guitar zero]

Jeff and all,

New mix with vocals turned down a titch, and upright mic track instead of the pick-up. Better?

 

[wretchasketch]

In case you missed my last sub, [haven't seen ya around]

MP3 Player SoundClick

That's an SM58 16" out front of the treb F hole. Wicked simple. The lads said it sounded good. Best sound I've gotten yet. Further away gets too much room; closer, and y' gotta roll-off bass [proximity effect]. No compression, EQ, ...nuttin. As tracked.

Say's "error loading track". I tried two different browsers. I really wanted to hear that.

 

[wretchasketch]

Jeff and all,

New mix with vocals turned down a titch, and upright mic track instead of the pick-up. Better?

Somehow I missed the first post and listened straight away to this one. It sounds great to me. Everything I record is pretty straight forward...you know what it sounds like in the room. Except maybe some 'verb. Seems to me you did a great job with fx on this singer. It's a cool sound.

 

[dewhitt]

Beautiful recording! I love the singer's voice, there's a nice quality to it that makes it unique and you did a great job of capturing that and showcasing it in the mix. I like the reverb on the vocal - I'm definitely going to check out that Valhalla plug-in. The instruments sound nice and natural too. I listened a few times to the new mix - on the first play I didn't listen critically, and I really enjoyed the song. On the second listen I paid closer attention to the upright bass, and I'm hearing some noise on that track. I don't play upright bass, and I'm not familiar with it at all, so I'm not exactly sure what I'm hearing, but to me it sounds like a combination of a few things. I'm hearing something that sounds like string squeaks (which may be expected and absolutely fine), and there also seems to be an occasional slap or pop that makes me think of someone shifting weight around in a wooden chair and causing it to crack and pop once in awhile. It could also be strings slapping against the fretboard, or even the instrument itself popping as weight shifts around and it moves? The first couple of times I heard the noises I almost thought I was hearing distortion due to clipping, but listening closer it was just random noises in the bass track. I'm not sure if it needs to be fixed, but I figured I should mention it

I like the mandolin, the panning to the right is nice, but my ears wanted to hear it back a little further in space, and not so up front.

Overall, this is outstanding. To me, these "simple" acoustic-type recordings are absolutely the most difficult ones to get right, and you have the goods to really pull them off well. I'm just curious...what type of room setup do you have for recording acoustic instruments like this?

Best,

Dave DeWhitt
SoundClick artist: Dave DeWhitt - page with MP3 music downloads

 

[jeffmaher]

Ya mon! That's the sound!

Yup: uprights creak...strings on the fingerboard...'specially when there's rosin residue in the area. It gets lost in the mix, but you can hear it when soloed.

But that particular noise sounds like a foot tapping. Maybe a bare foot?

Or the mics are really close, and it's nails catching on the strings? Or the string hitting the fingerboard when depressed? If the action's high, the speed and force of fingering can make a noise like that. Either way, moving the mic away should fix it.

That sounds like an upright upright! Nice intonation on the playing. Too good!

 

[guitar zero]

Somehow I missed the first post and listened straight away to this one. It sounds great to me. Everything I record is pretty straight forward...you know what it sounds like in the room. Except maybe some 'verb. Seems to me you did a great job with fx on this singer. It's a cool sound.

Thanks for the kind words. I really want her to have a good sounding CD to sell at her gigs.

Beautiful recording! I love the singer's voice, there's a nice quality to it that makes it unique and you did a great job of capturing that and showcasing it in the mix. I like the reverb on the vocal - I'm definitely going to check out that Valhalla plug-in. The instruments sound nice and natural too. I listened a few times to the new mix - on the first play I didn't listen critically, and I really enjoyed the song. On the second listen I paid closer attention to the upright bass, and I'm hearing some noise on that track. I don't play upright bass, and I'm not familiar with it at all, so I'm not exactly sure what I'm hearing, but to me it sounds like a combination of a few things. I'm hearing something that sounds like string squeaks (which may be expected and absolutely fine), and there also seems to be an occasional slap or pop that makes me think of someone shifting weight around in a wooden chair and causing it to crack and pop once in awhile. It could also be strings slapping against the fretboard, or even the instrument itself popping as weight shifts around and it moves? The first couple of times I heard the noises I almost thought I was hearing distortion due to clipping, but listening closer it was just random noises in the bass track. I'm not sure if it needs to be fixed, but I figured I should mention it

I like the mandolin, the panning to the right is nice, but my ears wanted to hear it back a little further in space, and not so up front.

Overall, this is outstanding. To me, these "simple" acoustic-type recordings are absolutely the most difficult ones to get right, and you have the goods to really pull them off well. I'm just curious...what type of room setup do you have for recording acoustic instruments like this?

Best,

Dave DeWhitt
SoundClick artist: Dave DeWhitt - page with MP3 music downloads

Good ear on the bass. Yes there are some pops and clicks here and there that I think are from the finger board and strings. He was sitting on a wooden stool, and that may have creaked a couple of times. Can't really get rid of it. I actually think it makes it sound more like a real upright, but for now I'll have to live with it. Can't really get rid of some of it. The bass player just came down for a day to help out a friend. Don't know if I'll be able to get him back in.

As for my room, it's just a spare bedroom that I've put a wood floor in with a rug in the middle. Lots of bass traps, and diffusors spread around the room. Everything I recorded has three tracks, except the bass. The vocals have the close mic and two room mics a few feet away. Guitars recorded with SDCs in XY, and a ribbon room mic. Mando with ribbon close and two room mics. Mixed to taste.

Ya mon! That's the sound!

Yup: uprights creak...strings on the fingerboard...'specially when there's rosin residue in the area. It gets lost in the mix, but you can hear it when soloed.

But that particular noise sounds like a foot tapping. Maybe a bare foot?

Or the mics are really close, and it's nails catching on the strings? Or the string hitting the fingerboard when depressed? If the action's high, the speed and force of fingering can make a noise like that. Either way, moving the mic away should fix it.

That sounds like an upright upright! Nice intonation on the playing. Too good!

Jeff,

Your ear is too good. On the first take, I noticed that I could hear his foot tapping on the floor and his leather shoe squeaking. I stopped the take and made him take his shoe off. He can't play without tapping his foot. He also kept sniffing during the takes, which you can hear when soloed, but I don't hear in the mix. Maybe I should put a towel under his foot.

Thanks for your help.

 

[aaronmcoleman]

I really like that. Who wrote the song? Singing about a missing a Portland hipster! Cool song. Nice mix, good voice. I like the simple mix without a lot going on, it really lets the song stand on its own. I don't think the mandolin is that bad, but I don't have the ears others hear have.

 

[guitar zero]

I really like that. Who wrote the song? Singing about a missing a Portland hipster! Cool song. Nice mix, good voice. I like the simple mix without a lot going on, it really lets the song stand on its own. I don't think the mandolin is that bad, but I don't have the ears others hear have.

Thanks, that's just what I want to hear. She wants it simple and acoustic. I'm actually fine with how the mandolin sounds as well. The plectrum noise doesn't bother me now.

 

[wretchasketch]

In case you missed my last sub, [haven't seen ya around]

MP3 Player SoundClick

That's an SM58 16" out front of the treb F hole. Wicked simple. The lads said it sounded good. Best sound I've gotten yet. Further away gets too much room; closer, and y' gotta roll-off bass [proximity effect]. No compression, EQ, ...nuttin. As tracked.

Just get my very best bass sound yet by following this advice with an Oktava mk012 instead of the 58. Tried the 58, too, and it worked, but the 012 gave me a better thump in the mix.