Recording bass

[youncester]

Trying to do some bass recording... What is the rule when it comes to active and passive bass recording? I am using an active bass now ran into my 002 then through Ampeg SVT. Should I be using a DI box but what kind of DI box should I use. Should it be an active or passive DI box? Just really confused with what I think is the most important instrument other than the drums. I am doing some new country tracks and I am just looking for a nice punchy sound that is noticeable on the mix...

 

[snellular5]

Why are you going to the 002 first? Just wondering. If you want a nice sound get a passive DI box and send the bypassed signal to your amp and mic that with a large diaphragm dynamic like a shure beta 52a or akg d112 and then take the DI line to your line input on your 002 and then mix to taste.

Matt

 

[youncester]

Why are you going to the 002 first? Just wondering. If you want a nice sound get a passive DI box and send the bypassed signal to your amp and mic that with a large diaphragm dynamic like a shure beta 52a or akg d112 and then take the DI line to your line input on your 002 and then mix to taste.

Matt

Well due to only having the bass and no amps the only thing I knew to do was run it directly into the 002 and use plug-ins like ampeg which I think sounds great.. But I am trying to get a sound that I can’t find and wandering if a DI box would work... So your saying a passive DI box would be the best.. would it work with an active bass though...the reason I was running the bass like I have been is because I have been doing the guitar rig direct into the 002 with my electric guitar player and they are some rocking sounds on there... Figured it would work the same with the bass...Thanks for your help..

 

[moresound]

If you go with an active DI you'll have to send it phantom power or put in a fresh 9V.
My personal preference is a passive DI the Radial JDI is a great DI for live or studio.
You should also mic your bass cab as suggested by snellular5 if you like that sound for the DI is just your bass straight sound.

 

[youncester]

The sound I am trying to get... Dave Matthews as a song on Playlist.com called crush. The bass on that song is amazing. But since I don’t have an amp I am going to look into getting a DI box. Try to borrow one before I put money into it...lol.. Then the next step would be to eq it to hit that punch... but keep the ideas coming… TRUST ME I need them...lol

 

[shortedaman]

i believe the man is saying he doesnt own any amps or cabs. he is running direct through the 002 into an ampeg plug in of some sort. if this is the case, then i would say a DI is not needed. i would say if your not getting the tone you want try a different plugin or find a friend with a decent bass amp that has a direct out built in and run it through the pre's of the bass amp. if none of these are an option, you could always go out and buy a cheap mic pre ( with 1/4" inputs) and plug the bass into that then into the 002.

 

[rayc]

Snellular has the good oil on optimal bass recording.
With your rig I'd skip the 002, buy the super cheap Behri Vtone BDI21 and be done with - you probably won't need the Ampeg plug. In fact use the plug as an effect AFTER recording the bass dry IF you need the effect whentehr you're using the BDI or not.
The BDI would be very good even if 3 times the cost.
The main thing will be EQ tweaking AFTER you have all your tracks together to determin what you need to get the bass to have its own place in the picture. Once you've sorted out your sound you'll be able to prep the bass chain for recording.

 

[Richard Monroe]

Yo Youncester! Too much confusion and too many acronyms here. I know half a dozen items with the designation 002. Are you talking about a Digidesign Digi002 or what? If you are, getting a cheap preamp won't help, because you already have cheap preamps with a high-z input. A DI box won't help, because the high-z input *is* a DI box. What would help is a really good instrument preamp/DI, such as:

http://www.8thstreet.com/product.asp?ProductCode=9907&Category=Audio_Processors

Then you plug it into any of channels 5-8, which bypasses the 002's preamps, and don't bother with the plugins, you won't need them (OK, maybe compression, depending on the sound you need). The Avalon *will* give you the sound you described above, and it'll cut through titanium.

On the other hand, if you are *not* talking about a Digi002, please tell us what you *are* talking about.-Richie

 

[matttheaxe]

Don't forget the MOST important part...

You MUST have a solid tone in the track. Some basses just plain sound crappy and even the best plug ins won't fix it.
Provided you have a great input tone, I would just use plug ins later to tweak it in. EQ's, BBE maximizers and the PSP vintage tube warmer is all you need.

 

[rayc]

Be very, very careful with the BBE.
Basically, if you get a dcent tone going in, you won't need anything but a little EQ'ing.
Depending on your playing skills you may need some compression tom help level out the volume &, a better option, automate the faders to really control the volume.

 

[Paulie Jay]

Depending on how much you want to spend, you could try one the Sansamp DIs, which have some good tone shaping.

I'm using one of these, which allows you to save a few settings, to DI bass for recording. I tried it at a gig the other night, too, and it performed pretty well.

 

[youncester]

Hey guys... thanks so much for the input... I really need it. I do apologize about the 002 deal(I am a newbie here). Yes I am using a digi design 002... And yes I pray every night for a really nice preamp like exampled but right now with a new kid I cant seem to afford that. I know you pay for quality and then again you got the bum that wishes he owns the company..lol... I know the ampeg plug in has the potential of having a really incredible sound. It has awesome reviews and have herd of great musicians as in victor wooten and bill dickens recording with it. How they did this I dunno(as in DI or no DI.. etc). I think I am just stupid in setting up the amps and EQing it like it should be in the software itself. Not downing the micing and the way it should go but being a keys man I get awesome sounds with plugs.. Cause I can tear a NI B4II up... Like I said I guess it is the knowledge of the bass part.. Know what I want and how to get there....Really guys thanks so much for your input and for real keep the comments and suggestions coming.. thanks again!

 

[bozmillar]

as was mentioned, you already have everything you need. the 002 has a hi-z input. That is where you should plug your bass into. You don't need a DI. Just plug it in there and use amplitube ampeg as you described.

I think every post on here made it sound 10x more complicated than it really is.

 

[haymedic]

as was mentioned, you already have everything you need. the 002 has a hi-z input. That is where you should plug your bass into. You don't need a DI. Just plug it in there and use amplitube ampeg as you described.

I think every post on here made it sound 10x more complicated than it really is.

+1 ! ! !

thank you bozmillar. it's so nice to hear someone else not have to drop all the lingo and just say, 'play the damn bass through a 1/4 inch cable.'

just make sure you only use neutrik connectors, or you're going to lose all kinds of valuable frequency quality through the hi-z input, mainly around 200 - 347 htz when using a sample rate of 44.1k/24bit high pass filter, 6:1 comp ratio via the XLR input audio technica ampeg SVT running at 300watts 8 ohm modulation rate sine wave data 000111 01 0000111 1001000 ----whuu...?

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