Can't hear the bass lines!

[dreamadream99]

over-the-ear headphones

This. Definitely.

 

[bass71]

This is a typical sympton of modern digital mixing. Listen to some pop stuff from the 70's....the bass is often mixed with plenty of low mids which enable us to hear it. Youll then start to hear the bloated soft bass in more modern recordings.

 

[dindinbre]

Good, full range headphones or speakers (you need to crank speakers to hear the bass line). Another idea is playing music through your BASS amp. I do that and, well, I can hear bass very well.

 

[glocke1]

I'm starting to dabble with bass after years on guitar. A good bass line is exciting to play and really makes me want to dance and sing. However …

I'm having a hard time hearing the individual bass notes. I use Transcribe! and can work out really fast & complicated guitar riffs, but the bass just sounds like thump thump thump to me without discernible notes. Thank God for bass covers on YouTube, or I'd give up right now.

Tell me it gets better …

it gets better.

It took me a long time after I started playing to hear individual notes, Im talking years. Even today, after playing for literally decades there are things I just can't hear very well and end up trying to figure via tab ***, a transcription, or I just make up my own part for that.

I'll admit there is weakness on my part when it comes to my ears, they are good but aren't great as some people on here, but it's also patience/time..I was never a patient person when it came to figure stuff out, and these days simply lack the time to figure out what all the right notes are.

Lastly, the fact that on many albums the bass is buried too deeply in the mix doesn't help either.

 

[Goatrope]

You could try to increase the pitch when you're listening to the song. Five semitones will move you up a string. By this I mean if the song starts on E (open forth string) it will now be on A (open third string). Or you could try 12 semi tones and move it up an entire octave. At my age, my hearing isn't as good with the lower frequencies, and this does help. It brings the bass frequencies more into my hearing range.

It does get easier the more you do it.

This reminded me of when I first started out listening to music. I used to listen intently to my LPs. By mistake, someone had left the record player on a faster speed, so when I played my LP, the bass part jumped right out. That accident drew my attention to the bass. I thought “What was that magical instrument, so sweet and mellow, playing a hidden melody?” It was like when we used to write with disappearing ink, then hold a match under the paper to see the words.

Later I used that faster speed to hear the bass melody much easier, albeit faster. But at least I could hear and memorize the pattern much more quickly.

Skip forward in time 45 years, and technology can accomplish this. Amazing.

 

[Flamingo21]

I would avoid watching bass covers on youtube like the plague.

What's wrong with listening to bass covers? All I know is, I mustn't take them too litterally because they are not the truth, just somebody's version. I use them to get a general idea.

 

[taught]

I was in the same boat. I was amazed how my bass teachers INSTANTLY heard every note of the bass line because I didn't at all! I thought something was wrong with me...

Fast forward 3-4 years, now all I can hear is the bass line note by note and I have to concentrate on NOT OT HEAR it. I remember he told me the same thing back then and he was laughing wishing not to hear the bass that much.
Now I have the same "problem" as he had

Get a decent headphone and give yourself time.

 

[Flamingo21]

(...) or I just make up my own part for that.

^ There's always this.

 

[JRA]

you need to practice listening for it.

it comes with time

 

[Smooth_bass88]

What's wrong with listening to bass covers? All I know is, I mustn't take them too litterally because they are not the truth, just somebody's version. I use them to get a general idea.

Because by not looking at some other person's version of the song, you're forcing yourself to develope your ear. Also, the vast majority of "youtube bass covers" are incorrect, thereby sending you down the wrong path.

 

[Chad T]

Sounds like you need some good monitors, or high end headphones and interface. 1st consider what source material your playing, is it CD quality, Mp3, or HD audio? Mp3's have only a fraction of info that the original wav file was recorded with, so that info gets lost and filled in with 1's and 0's which can cause things like a lesser bass quality sound. Don't listen to anything bellow CD quality for starters, HD Audio is better. Then look at your interface(where the music comes from), phone, stereo, computer speakers, etc. Is the interface good quality as that can dramatically affect your sound as well! Then your speakers. Are you using small little laptop speakers, or tv speakers or small little Apple earbuds? That won't do at all! You need at the very least to get some good Studio quality headphones, if not studio monitors. But getting good quality studio monitors is expensive and might be overdoing it a little.. I would recommend ATH M50's. With all that being said, I can hear the bass loud and clear, defined as well, with a pair of ATH m50's on my LG V30 phone. But this phone has a great quad Hi-fi DAC. Even still just getting a pair of good cans will most likely help you a great deal. If you don't wanna spend $150 on headphones, the Sony 7506's are a staple in studios around the world and are a great cheaper option, though not as good as the ATH m50's in detail IMO.

Remember when choosing headphones the larger the diaphragm the better the bass detail comes across meaning that a 50mm size speaker in the headphone will reproduce bass frequencies better than a 40mm speaker....98% of the time. Cheapo stuff that you can buy at Walmart doesn't factor in to this equation!
Audio-Technica ATH-M50x Closed-back Studio Monitoring Headphones
https://www.amazon.com/Sony-MDR7506-Professional-Diaphragm-Headphone/dp/B000AJIF4E

I love my 7506s but they are 20 years old and I’ve been wanting to try a set of ATH-M50Xs for awhile. Your post pushed me. Yesterday with the Ebay coupon and best offer, I got a brand new set from a reputable dealer for $102 shipped. Yippee.

 

[dairyman3833]

Great! Update please on if they fixed the problem or not IYO? And if you could try to describe on how it sounds if you still can't hear the bass that is.

 

[mongo2]

It was like when we used to write with disappearing ink, then hold a match under the paper to see the words.

A match?

Under paper?

What could possibly go wrong?

 

[rtslinger]

Yes it does, but it helps to listen with enclosed headphones not earbuds and set the EQ on the player flat. I find pushing the bass freq on the player makes it actually more difficult to hear the notes. This works for me hopefully it will help you. By the way welcome to TB RTS

 

[bholder]

A match?

Under paper?

What could possibly go wrong?

 

[Coolhandjjl]

A lot of music nowadays is poorly mixed and mastered.

The recording engineering of the 1970's is becoming a lost art form, just like everything else.

 

[Ikons2]

A lot of music nowadays is poorly mixed and mastered.

The recording engineering of the 1970's is becoming a lost art form, just like everything else.

The hit charts are full of well produced music. Whether the actual music is good is another matter.

 

[bholder]

Most of the music I've been listening to this morning was really poorly produced ('cause it's my own).

 

[Spectre Gunner]

Most of the music I've been listening to this morning was really poorly produced ('cause it's my own).

Have you ever thought about firing the producer?

 

[Coolhandjjl]

The hit charts are full of well produced music. Whether the actual music is good is another matter.

Being well produced is not the same as properly engineered and mixed down. Producers are a reflection of the times, and also gambling on what will sell. What they do is trendy, a moving target from year to year. Quality engineering and final mix down is not.