Recording Stuido Bass tips

[(Airfell)]

My band and I have built a pretty good recording stuido with pro tools with the DI box, a 12 channel mackie mixing board, and a full set of 2 condenser mics, 4 misc drum mics (snare and tom), and a kick drum mic.

I've spent the time to make my personal taste for bass sound to somewhat resemble the harmonic tone range of my drummers bass drum, and subsequently my guitarist has built his guitar sound to mix well with my bass tone, but when we record in our closed studio, all I'm getting is the tone, and none of the crisp highs off the tweeter.

I'm currently going about 1/2 and 1/2 Di off of my amp head and condenser mic (condenser for tone and DI for clarity) but no matter what mix I use, I have none of the clear highs.

Any tips for recording bass to get more of the string sound with the warm tone?

[Armbruster]

Gain down, volume master up, be more quiet.

That's all I can really think of.

[derrico1]

Originally Posted by (Airfell)

I'm currently going about 1/2 and 1/2 Di off of my amp head and condenser mic (condenser for tone and DI for clarity) but no matter what mix I use, I have none of the clear highs.

Any tips for recording bass to get more of the string sound with the warm tone?

Hmmm. The high-end is missing, no matter what balance of cab mic track and DI you use?

Listen to your bass through a number of DIs. Is that "string sound" you're after missing from all of them? If your answer is no, change your DI (though it seems unlikely that your current DI is *that* bad).

If none of the DIs capture your elusive string sound, is it possible that what you're missing is the actual (acoustic) sound of the strings? Are you tracking bass overdubs at low volume, non-iso headphones, or phones off one ear, etc?

To get that sound you could track the bass from an iso room (while feeding both DI and cab in another room) and mic the acoustic sounds of your bass being played. I've done this w/ a small diaphram condensor (low cut engaged). Frankly, though, unless the bass is featured in sparse arrangements, that string track isn't generally useful as part of your core sound.

Other (and generally more practical) options for getting better high-end detail: favor the DI when balancing your two tracks, rethink your amp settings, change your right hand approach, and move and/or change the cabinet mic. You could also eq once you've tracked, but generally you're better off getting the right basic sounds at tracking.

[(Airfell)]

My system I'm using in the studio is a GK BL 600 with an ashdown mag stack. The BL head's DI sounds really empty and lifeless alone, and my cabs have been put in favor of the eq because of their warmth. The room we're in isn't isolated from the recording area, so yes, its hard to discern between what you hear in the head phones and what you hear in the room, but we've been recording, then going back and listening to it. The bass tracks i just put to the drums have this moment that the drums die and its just bass for about 4 measures. The bass there is supposed to be really crunchy with the sound of string pops and pick noise, but in the final recording, 90% of what was heard is just the tone itself, but in the room you hear it all clearly.

[Nick Kay]

My bet? The DI on the BL600 is set pre-EQ, and the mic isn't positioned to pick up anything coming out of the tweeter of your bass cab.

My suggestion? Leave the DI track is at is for now, but move the microphone so it's pointed about half way between a woofer and the tweeter on your cab, and pull it back 6"-12" off of the grille so it can capture both.

If that doesn't add enough of the clack and string noise you're looking for, throw the DI track through an EQ, then a saturator or not-so-clean preamp. Crank the hi-mids and treble on the EQ, and bring the gain on the saturator or preamp up until it gets dirty and compressed. Combine this with a raw DI track or the mic track and you should be in business.

[svenbass]

I'm no engineer, but could there be a phasing issue between the DI and the MIC?

[groooooove]

Originally Posted by svenbass

I'm no engineer, but could there be a phasing issue between the DI and the MIC?

possible.. listen to the track comming from just the DI. if it still sounds weird then its not a phase issue..its something even more mysterious.

[Nick Kay]

Originally Posted by svenbass

I'm no engineer, but could there be a phasing issue between the DI and the MIC?

Completely possible, but it wouldn't explain the symptoms. Phase issues (at least on bass) are usually much more noticeable in the bass and mids spectrum. Even if the treble response were affected by a phase issue, the problem would disappear when OP tried different mixes of DI vs Mic.

[JimmyM]

I think you need a better DI, maybe even a preamp so you can dial in your tone a little better than the board. You can find good ones used in the $100 range.

Failing that, another thing you can try is micing the tweeter from 5-6 inches away with a cymbal mic and micing a woofer dead center. However, micing tweeters generally sounds a lot worse than getting those highs from a DI, so I think in your case a DI is better, though micing the tweeter will work.

[(Airfell)]

well, the next thing I'm getting for my setup is the GEB-7 eq switch, but at the moment it will take me a couple of months to get the $80 together for it. (I'm in the process of moving and don't have any cash to spare)

I've tried the preamp/postamp switch on the DI both ways, and sounds like crap both ways lol... after looking at it though, I had the chA vol way up more, and the master down more, so I think I was going over-board on the DI volume.

And I will give that a go on the 1/2 way and 6" to 12" away thing with the mic, and probably try out other mics too.

[David1234]

See if the existing DI tracks sound good through either of the following plugins:

1. Amplitube SVX Uno plugin : you probably got this free with protools, I got Amplitube Amplitube LE and when I registered I was prompted o download SVX Uno. It's a kinda SVT simulator, quite clear with the right settings.

2. Markbass Studio 1 amp simulator plugins: free trial downloadable from their web site.

I'd focus on the DI for your starting signal here, not the mic channel. Run your bass pretty flat for now (tone up on full if your bass is passive, and centred if active) and save any EQing for later.

Also what speakers/headphones are you listening through? Maybe they're changing the sound a bit.

[(Airfell)]

Originally Posted by David1234

See if the existing DI tracks sound good through either of the following plugins:

1. Amplitube SVX Uno plugin : you probably got this free with protools, I got Amplitube Amplitube LE and when I registered I was prompted o download SVX Uno. It's a kinda SVT simulator, quite clear with the right settings.

2. Markbass Studio 1 amp simulator plugins: free trial downloadable from their web site.

I'd focus on the DI for your starting signal here, not the mic channel. Run your bass pretty flat for now (tone up on full if your bass is passive, and centred if active) and save any EQing for later.

Also what speakers/headphones are you listening through? Maybe they're changing the sound a bit.

I'm not sure on the pro tools stuff, its not my computer, and im not the engineer, I just play the stuff and tell him how I think it sounds, but the headphones are really nice, not cheapoes by any means. I couldn't tell you for sure, but I think they are bose headphones, and the big ones that take up most of your head. All I know is, when I put them on, the entire outside world disappears, and you are immersed in whatever you are listening to.

[JimmyM]

Watch out for Bose products. Don't just listen to the music on the headphones...listen to it elsewhere too, like on your own stereo or MP3 player. Bose has a tendency to shave off some high and low end on all their products, so it could have plenty of high end and you just aren't hearing it.