fuzz + ? = synthy keybass

[JohnDavisNYC]

sounds like key tracking to me, the way it 'closes off' on the lower notes... they don't have the same harmonic content...

 

[dave_p]

fuzz plus a simple phaser will get you close, depending on how thick the fuzz gets.

 

[3toes]

+1 on the octave stuff. I'd also throw in an envelope filter for good measure and a little more texture.

 

[The Lurker]

Does it have to be an OC-2? Don't have my fuzz here at school but was wondering if i could use the octaver on my bass synth wah to get a similar sound or if it needs the second added tone from the OC-2 to sound more like that.

Edit: Really actually haven't used the octaver much so I can't remember if it has more than one added tone but I'm assuming it only has one.

The BSW should do just fine.... it sounds different from the OC-2, but it tracks well and will do pretty much the same thing.

 

[jucas]

I thought that it sounds like the pitch warbles a bit in a few places here and there. I've been coming decently close with just a fuzz and a vibrato with or without a filter after. I'm sure an octave would help too.

That might be too much trouble to find for a few songs, but I think that adding in a vibe pedal can really help things sound "synthy".

 

[dantheman6690]

I've never tried the BSW but others have said the octaver is the best thing on it. Definitely give it a go - no point shelling out for another pedal if you've got one that will already do the job.

The octaver is the best feature in the BSW in my opinion. I think it sounds better than the sub octaver in the HOG (and micropog by default); very good tracking and a bit dirtier than the (x)OG's, and still with a bit of warmth despite being digital.

The BSW should do just fine.... it sounds different from the OC-2, but it tracks well and will do pretty much the same thing.

Awesome! I'll try it out next week when I'm home. WOOHOO SPRING BREAK...and yes, i know it's not spring yet

 

[Mullenski]

Fuzz --> POG --> Phaser = Synth

 

[mattq]

ok, i think i'm starting to understand a little bit more here. using the octave pedal with just the suboctave and then playing an octave higher will help get that weird tonal character and the fuzz will help even further. i'm still failing to understand how something like a phaser will help me get that tone though. nothing on that line sounds like the tone is changing as the note is held, like a phaser would make it do. so a synth/auto-wah/phaser/envelope filter makes absolutely no sense to me. yet.

also, thanks fightthepower. that's the best i've heard it explained so far

 

[Mullenski]

You got it. Just kill the phaser if you don't want the tonal change.

 

[Jared Lash]

I think part of the confusion is people reading the thread title and giving their recipes for a "synth" tone rather than listening to the song you linked to and giving advice on how to get that specific tone.

And I think what fightthepower said is right in terms of getting a more synthy tone, in this case, I wouldn't run the octaver 100% wet. I use an octaver with the 1 oct up at 100% but I also have the dry tone up around 70% or so. To me it sounds like there are both octaves present in that sound.

Also, All I Need centers around a C that is one half step up from a low B, so you playing it an octave up means the 8th fret of the E string (what I do) or the 3rd fret of the A string.

As I said, I like the OC-2 (for the synthetic octave) into the Bass Micro Synth for this tone. I set the stop frequency just a bit down from the start frequency primarily to get that "bubble" type sound at the beginning of each note to make it sound more like a synth. I push the Square Wave slider up just a bit to get a bit of hair on it.

Sounds very close to me.

 

[mattq]

awesome. i think i got it now. looks like i'm gonna have to start finding my own particular tonal tastes now. thanks for the help bigo

 

[monsterthompson]

Fuzz --> POG --> Phaser = Synth

Haven't done the phaser, but my Blow Torch combo with a micro POG is dope. Perhaps a gate for that tight key-like attack and decay. Possibly a wah set static as a filter. Play around with the order.

With the Micro POG, try pulling the original signal way down in the mix and relying on the +/-1 octave sounds.



Edit - Sorry, but I can't surf youtube from the office, so I'm trying to route you to a target based on what others have been saying. Hope the Xerox effect isn't too bad.

 

[Projectile]

I just realized what that radiohead bassline really is. I'm pretty sure it's not a synth at all, it's just an overdriven fender rhodes! That's why it has that weird upper harmonic content. That's just the sound that the tines make when they are overdriven. I knew I had heard that sound a million times before, but I just couldn't place it because the way that radiohead used it in that song is pretty unusual for the instrument. I think the keytracking sound is just an effect caused by the upper notes being played harder so they overdrive more than the lower notes. I'm not sure how any of this helps you recreate it on bass, but that's how the original was created, or at least I think so.

 

[mattq]

i figured it was totally a keyboard thing. which is exactly the type of tone i was going for. a rhodes would make total sense

 

[meRTKendrew]

i thought that when i put it on this morning....mmmmmmm, rhodes, sweet sweet rhodes.