Overdrive - when to use?

spiker · #1 11-14-2011, 05:10 PM

I just thought I'd ask when most people feel it is appropriate to use overdrive in rock songs. To obtain fatness? To smooth out harsh inconsistencies that a clean signal has? To beef up the sound to support a distorted guitar?
Bearing in mind I'm talking about overdrive. It distortion, I'd appreciate your thoughts

ryanfenderbass · #2 11-14-2011, 05:34 PM

To obtain fatness? - certainly a way, but it's a stylistic choice. The right pickups/EQ setting can also get you fatness.

To smooth out harsh inconsistencies that a clean signal has? - nah, I would think overdrive would be more tonally inconsistent, unless we're talking about an OD's natural compression.

To beef up the sound to support a distorted guitar? - certainly (or to support an acoustic Piano—listen to Robert Sledge on the Ben Folds Five records, it will make you a believer!)

Before I overdrive, I like to ask myself one simple question: do I want my audience to HEAR my baseline (OD) or FEEL the groove (clean—for the most part).

PunkRocker33133 · #3 11-14-2011, 06:05 PM

All the time, I never turn mine off

jeff5311 · #4 11-14-2011, 06:12 PM

For driving lines, long sustaining lines use OD. For quick, thumpy, or articulate lines it goes off. YMMV.

gidbass · #5 11-14-2011, 06:13 PM

On all the time for me these days.

jmmadar · #6 11-14-2011, 10:44 PM

I have a bass overdrive and it's fun to play with at home, but I've honestly never felt like it was appropriate to actually use for anything I've done so far. I don't really feel like there's anything I would need it for that couldn't be done better by just tweaking my amp/Delano on-board preamp. I could see using it for a solo maybe. Most the playing out I do lately is death metal/black metal, and for that you want the cleanest brightest tone possible to compliment the overdriven guitar (especially w/ 2 guitars in my band). A lot of the stuff we do is fairly busy, so clarity is real important. However, one of our new tunes has the 2 guitar players playing a harmonized guitar solo and I might try the overdrive under that and see what it sounds like. Basically I think the faster the music, and the more distorted the guitars, the less you would consider using bass overdrive. I could see it sounding cool with some black sabbath slow and heavy kind of stuff, or with clean guitars.

Eric! · #7 11-15-2011, 02:21 PM

When you need something less ballsy than fuzz (which should be rare).

MSUsousaphone · #8 11-15-2011, 02:30 PM

When something needs to be a bit dirty.

Examples:

Soundgarden....dirty.

Savage Garden...not dirty.

But that's really it, man. Does the song need some grit or does it need some smoothness? It's all about the personality of the song.

DeltaPhoenix · #9 11-15-2011, 02:45 PM

You Must NEVER use them!!! Send them ALL to me! PM me for my address.
This has been a Public Service Anouncement...

NKUSigEp · #10 11-15-2011, 02:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by spiker

I just thought I'd ask when most people feel it is appropriate to use overdrive in rock songs. To obtain fatness? To smooth out harsh inconsistencies that a clean signal has? To beef up the sound to support a distorted guitar?
Bearing in mind I'm talking about overdrive. It distortion, I'd appreciate your thoughts

All the time. Literally. Clean bass is boring. Listen to isolated bass tracks on youtube. Nearly EVERYTHING has at least a little overdrive on it. Personally, the fuzz pedal could be hardwired into the amp.