Take the "boom" outta my bass!

P

Pastorob

New member
I just mixed (and had mastered) some bass guitar tracks (which started out boomy and loud) and guess what? The tracks STAYED boomy and loud! I thought the mastering and compression, etc. would even it all out (don't get me wrong; the mastering did a WORLD of good to the recording), but I need suggestions as I re-mix, create new plug-ins and get it re-mastered...

Any frequencies you can recommend I add/change with my FilterBank E6 e.q.?

I recorded the bass to two separate tracks with a POD (one for the bass "amp", one for the "direct" line). So I have some flexibility there.

I know I've got to "tweak" and "use my ears", but any head starts or general tips would help me jump start.

Thanks!

Pastorob
 
try what Beathoven says first.

Also, unless you have done ear-training (like Dave Moulton's Golden Ears) or have a lot of experience, it would be hard to pick out "where" your boominess is.

Do you have a sample we could hear? Maybe as .mp3? You could put one of those in the clinic, and one of the experts there could instantly tell you what to try and cut. Alternatively, if you have (preferrably) sweepable EQ, even more preferrably parametric EQ:

Start where Beathoven says (right near the middle of that 80 ~ 400 Hz) and narrow the Q to about 1/2 octave. Play the track. Now, sweep the EQ up the spectrum, and down -- boosting about 6db. When you hit the BOOMY notes, they should get terribly louder. THAT is where to cut or rolloff your frequencies.

You should probably also roll off any energy below 60 to 80 Hz, since you'll want that for the kick drum.

Just some suggestions, but the better minds will come in and help more :D


Chad
 
also!

Certain bass guitars (as recently mentioned in the guitars & basses forum) just have certain strings that are LOUDER. The E string on many basses seems to just BOOOOM right out of there (like my Ibanez ATK) and on some others, the upper strings do that.

Compression could be your friend, here. (assuming you have a compressor). Experiment with lower compression ratios first, then work your way up till you find that tightened bass sound. This might be what you need in place of EQ after all. Others would be better suited to tell you what the threshold and attack settings should be.


Chad

Oops. Never mind. The question was about EQ anyway. :D
 
Well, the advice was so good I couldn't add anything to it! Now lets see:

If I listen to Participant, then i should do what Crawdad says, which is to listen to what Participant says which.....oh no! I'm so confused!

To clarify, do what Crawdad says, not what Crawdad does!

And listen to Participant! :D
 
serious. Compress the crap out of it. A lot of players play WITH compression.. so adding it if they dont is totally kosher.

xoox
 
the bass "boom" is gone, but so isda TONE and PUNCH

OK, friends. Remember my "boomy" bass tracks? I compressed them and they sounded "eh", so I compressed 'em more and they were "pumping" (bad). So I attempted Beathoven's and Chad's advice about e.q. I cut and "Q'd" and swept and found some loud ringing notes and all that... I worked with it for a while, but now the bass just sounds mushy and not tight.

Is it difficult to get a tight, clear, punchy bass sound using a $700 Yamaha bass with a POD on Pro Tools LE w/Digi 001 on 16-bit (not 24-bit - Newbie error) with lots of instruments and vocals in there? I didn't think so before...

When I solo the bass track, it actually sounds pretty good. You can tell the POD "effected" the tone on the way in and it's pretty warm and punchy (2 tracks, remember - one "direct" and one "amp"). But when I bring up all the other tracks, the punch and tone of the bass are lost.

My rig is at work (church), so I'm still working on getting an mp3 out to you guys.

Beathoven, Chad, or anybody else out there, can you give me a little more detail walking me through gentle bass guitar compression and/or the FilterBank E6 e.q. step by step? I wasn't quite up to speed with the meaning of your terminology:

"narrow the Q to 1/2 octave"
"roll off any energy between 60-80 hz; you'll need that for the kick drum."
"-4db gain with a medium Q. Now set the frequency between 80hz and 400hz" (I don't understand this since the E6 has six points goin')

So there's your new challenge!

Thanks!
rob
 
Also look to other instruments that may be fighting with the bass for space. You may want to do some EQ cutting on them as well to make room for the bass. You say it sounds OK solo'd but when the other faders come up the bass dissapears. That would make me look to other instruments.
Very true that 315Hz is the center of muddville.
 
if u have money to spare get the waves renaissance package and use ren bass...this is a program that controls strictly bass at ur specified frequency u can lower it make it louder add more harmonics...i love it
 
This is acoustic phenomenon, it depends on room size, wall distance and ceiling height ( standing waves build-up and room
resonant freq )

I have experimented with open field playback, and effect of 315 Hz region is not so drastic.
If you just open window in the studio, BOOM effect will decrease.
If monitoring with headphones, there is no BOOM.

This depends on playback room, and it looks that average room resonate at 315 Hz.
 
Rob, What are you monitoring on? One thing to make sure is that it actually is boomy and not just your monitors or room.

Bring up the bass track by itself and one by one bring up the other tracks. Try to notice what tracks start to kill your bass tone. Do some bass cuts on those tracks and you may find that your bass will have more room to thump.
 
Igormeister - thanks, I thought it was something about that particular frequency. I think I'll insulate my room some more now. :)
 
reduce but don't totally do away with the low-mids that you've been playing with, and only compress the bass as needed not just because you've been told to do so.

also, what kind of music are you doing? is it bass intensive music where the bass has to thump or the type of music where bass just needs to be present?

i typically low cut all bass frequencies below 60hz. i also find the fundamental frequency of the kick drum and notch (-3db) that using a narrow Q. then, i sweep the low-mids to find the offending mud and tame it but i don't throw it away, because it does contribute... i just don't want for it to over-contribute.

lately, if i cut the low-mids more dramatically, i also go searching for the upper harmonic (anywhere from 800hz to 1.5khz or so) and boost it.
 
How the....

How can people work with so much EQ??? Like 30 band EQ's on computers. I have 3 band with sweepable mid, and I play with it for along time. I sure do wish that I have more, when I am fighting with something like the boom, but man mixing would take along long time with 30 band EQ's. Sorry I just bitched and didn't help.


These guys are giving you all the right things to do....good work :)
 
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