recording

[Jungle Dog]

What's the best approach when recording, dig in and get a lot of meat on the strings or go light and easy? I once heard it's good to record with the volume on your bass all the way up and using a light touch. I find that playing with a very light touch helps me to play more cleanly--less buzzed notes and unnecessary smacking of the strings against the fretboard--but I'm afraid there won't be enough oomph in the track if I record with a real light touch as opposed to the way I play on gigs.

[jelle99]

Good question... I've asked myself the same thing
Looking forward to Janeks take on this :-)

[janekbass]

when I'm recording I'm always on full volume on the bass and then the signal path determines what happens to the sound after that. My preference is to record clean and direct and make whatever sounds I'm looking for with my fingers. There are of course songs and sessions that require something specific and then the sky is the limit. using a mic on an amp, blending that with a direct sound, going straight into the board, using pre amps, using compression etc etc etc... I think my touch is always consistent though and unless there's something dynamically specific in the track I'm not conscious of using a light touch for recording at all. I play the way I always play and that's normally pretty consistent and works for any sessions I'm on.

Janek

[Rockmusician]

There isn't any one approach to recording. It all depends on the song. Play what it calls for and you won't go wrong.

[Jungle Dog]

Thanks, Janek!