Smoothing out bass guitar

  • Thread starter Thread starter jndietz
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jndietz

The Way It Moves
Hey everyone,

I've tried mixing my bassists stuff to no avail. The performance and the tone are great.

I tried slapping a maul-the-band compressor on it, and it sort of helped, but not quite. I then tried a dynamics processor, and I fiddled with that for a good twenty or thirty minutes and didn't get very good results either. Some parts are loud, others are too quiet!

I was wondering if anyone could share their tips on getting bass into the mix.

Thanks everyone!
 
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If you tracked ito a computer with a reasonable program the BEST result is to solo the bass watch the metres and automate the faders to get the consistency you want.
Now, that might seems like a lot of trouble BUT it retains the original tone and doesn't do any damage.
If the tracking is as good as you say do the above.
THEN, if needed, give the bass a little definition or low cut, etc as you feel necessary for it to sit in the mix properly.
If you must use a compressor you could try something as simple and free as Blockfish which has some nice presets.
I went through a phase of using compression to make life easier, to generate additional gain etc but have gone back to basics with far better results.
 
I'll give that a shot.... I have used the automation lanes before in Audition, but never on a bass. I guess I kind of forgot about them :) ... Thanks man

Anyone got any other tips?
 
Using volume envelopes may be a little easier than the automation.
 
rayc said:
...Now, that might seems like a lot of trouble BUT it retains the original tone and doesn't do any damage.
...I went through a phase of using compression to make life easier, to generate additional gain etc but have gone back to basics with far better results.
Click to expand...
Seems like trouble? Hell it is. :D Inconsistent notes on bass is a tough one. Tackling that problem with compression just as often by the time you gain on the smoothness' end you loose on the 'attack and tone shape end.. Fast enough to get notes', not so fast it kills them. Good luck. :)

Along this exact line- Anyone tried this 'BlueCat plug? A comp' with a 'hold function like a gate..
http://www.bluecataudio.com//Vault/Products/Product_Dynamics/Screenshots/main.png
 
1st thing is to teach the bass player to play at a consistent level. (same story for drummers). I play bass and am a recording/sound engineer. I play with the all this in mind, if the player is consistent the only thing you may need to do is a little compression to fatten the sound up (not to fix it up).

I am amazed that players of any instrument can't work out that the sound they get starts with them.


Cheers

Alan.
 
witzendoz said:
1st thing is to teach the bass player to play at a consistent level. (same story for drummers). I play bass and am a recording/sound engineer. I play with the all this in mind, if the player is consistent the only thing you may need to do is a little compression to fatten the sound up (not to fix it up).

I am amazed that players of any instrument can't work out that the sound they get starts with them.


Cheers

Alan.
Click to expand...

I'm getting to the point where I think this is the problem --- inconsistent playing. He's good at what he plays, and his tone is good, but he hits some notes louder than others.
 
if the performance and tone are great - you should be able to hear it. though, depending on the music, you may need to adjust what is going on around it covering it up.

my hunch is it's a poorly played part...no offense to the bass player...i'm jaded!

Mike
 
From the initial statement that the performance and tone are/were great I assumed it wasn't inconsistency.
Yep, inconsistency is a major issue but if you replace great sound & performance with a consistent yet mediocre what have you gained?
Translation then,
greta tone, great lines & inconsistent volume. Same answer from me I'm afraid - automation.
If you're doing it for a mate - go to the trouble. If you're doing it as a discount rate for some meat heads - set a time fee & go to the trouble. If it's for your band and you can't get a consistent, great toned superb ideas take in the time required - go to the trouble & let him know how much trouble it is.
Then again - bang on some compression, a limiter, a sequencer trigger and some delay and call it trance!
 
jndietz said:
I'm getting to the point where I think this is the problem --- inconsistent playing. He's good at what he plays, and his tone is good, but he hits some notes louder than others.
Click to expand...
Bass guitars are also notorious for having resonant notes that naturally scream out louder than the others, even when played the same way.

In those cases it's actually the bass player's responsibility to recognize that on his/her instrument and adjust their playing accordingly. If the open E just comes out louder because that's the nature of the guitar, the player should try to play it quieter.

This is not always easy to do, even for good bass players, and very hard for rookies. Although I am a HUGE fan of automation and peak editing, this is one of those cases where I actually prefer to use black boxes...for no real good reason I can think of :o. Here I like to use medium-to-strong compression with a fairly high threshold as a very soft limiter - something on the order of 5:1 or so with a high threshold somewhere around 70% peak or so.

If the bass has one particular boomer note, I could also attack it with a parametric EQ with a harmonic filter, setting the fundamental to the problem note. But this is very surgical, and rarely is enough to handle the whole problem, but can help in addition with the compression to tame something really wild.

G.
 
jndietz said:
I'm getting to the point where I think this is the problem --- inconsistent playing. He's good at what he plays, and his tone is good, but he hits some notes louder than others.
Click to expand...

In that case use fader rides/automation on the notes that are too loud (assuming it's just occasional notes).
 
You could also try two compressors in series... use the first compressor with a high ratio and high threshold to attack the loudest parts and then another compressor after with a lower ratio and slower attack and release to do some more smoothing.

That way, neither compressor should be mangling the sound but both will be working to level the performance.
 
I ended up using a dynamics processor, which is essentially a compressor I think, and set it up with a hard knee, it actually turned out pretty good!
 
jndietz said:
I ended up using a dynamics processor, which is essentially a compressor I think, and set it up with a hard knee, it actually turned out pretty good!
Click to expand...

Yep. I take an 1176 on 20:1 and smash the hell out of it. Brings out the overtones, and bumps up the fades on longer notes. Consistent playing helps a lot too. A lot of ex-guitar players never quite get that concept.....
 
I was going to say if all else fails, smash it with compression. I sometimes use an old limiter that was used for an AM radio station, if the VU moves it's already being smashed. It has saved some bass tracks in the past.

Cheers

Alan.
 
I occasionally add a touch of small room reverb to a bass track. Depending on how you do it, it can smooth out the track and/or give it some depth.
 
Yeah, I tried that dynamics processor originally and couldn't get what I was looking for.. then revisited it again and just did a simple hard knee. I wish I would have done that in the first place :rolleyes: I spent a good three hours fiddling with that track!!!
 
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