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Geddy Lee

#302
jeff schmidt said:
The YYZ bass SOUND is highly distinct in the way it's produced.

listen.

I also have to say to everyone here - if have not been in a studio - working on music - using the tools of production (sorry m-box doesn't count) you are probably not going to HEAR the production element of music and you'll think the sounds you hear are ALL in the someone's fingers. Plead ignorance at least- but don't claim to know what is fingers and what is production until you've ACTUALLY produced something.

The way a person plays is unique and contributes greatly to the sound - I agree.

On a release like Moving Pictures - which is one of the more HEAVILY produced rock albums of its time - there are DISTINCT bass sounds that Geddy had not gotten before - and not went back to since. YYZ being one of them. THAT difference is in the way the tracks are produced.

Please - especially you guys born AFTER this album was even released - Get out of mp3 world - put that track on a nice stereo with decent speakers - put your head in the sweet spot - LISTEN - and then come back here and say THAT bass SOUND is 80% fingers.


on a side but releated note - the latest EQ magazine has an interview with legendary producer Eddie Kramer. He's released a foot pedal that mimicks the signal chain used in the studio to get Jimi Hendrix's signature sound. He ought to know - HE CREATED IT.
Click to expand...

+1

Definitely, without a doubt.

:D

Joe.
 
#305
jeff schmidt said:
The YYZ bass SOUND is highly distinct in the way it's produced.

listen.

I also have to say to everyone here - if have not been in a studio - working on music - using the tools of production (sorry m-box doesn't count) you are probably not going to HEAR the production element of music and you'll think the sounds you hear are ALL in the someone's fingers. Plead ignorance at least- but don't claim to know what is fingers and what is production until you've ACTUALLY produced something.

The way a person plays is unique and contributes greatly to the sound - I agree.

On a release like Moving Pictures - which is one of the more HEAVILY produced rock albums of its time - there are DISTINCT bass sounds that Geddy had not gotten before - and not went back to since. YYZ being one of them. THAT difference is in the way the tracks are produced.

Please - especially you guys born AFTER this album was even released - Get out of mp3 world - put that track on a nice stereo with decent speakers - put your head in the sweet spot - LISTEN - and then come back here and say THAT bass SOUND is 80% fingers.


on a side but releated note - the latest EQ magazine has an interview with legendary producer Eddie Kramer. He's released a foot pedal that mimicks the signal chain used in the studio to get Jimi Hendrix's signature sound. He ought to know - HE CREATED IT.
Click to expand...

Nice post Schmidt but with all due respect...

In every concert on Moving Pictures and Exit Stage Left , Geddy had no problem duplicating that "studio sound" live and in living color, in front of 30,000 critical ears (60,000? lol) every other night. Why? Because of the soul and the fingers of Geddy, and the way he chooses to express himself on bass.

And it makes no difference when one was born...sure I was only 6 years old when Moving Pictures was released, that doesn't take away from the fact I know what I'm talking about when it comes to studio vs. live versatility when it comes to Geddy's monster bass playing.
 
#307
Red Wonder said:
Every concert on Moving Pictures and Exit Stage Left Geddy had no problem duplicating that "studio sound" live and in living color.
Click to expand...


That doesn't mean it's "all in the fingers" -which is what I'm talking against.

It means the signal chain and production process used in studio is portable and Geddy used it live.

That SOUND is still a function of the gear and how the signal is routed and processed. This is my only point. It doesn't take away from Geddy.
 
#310
1 other thought. Let's not confuse SOUND with playing. Geddy's playing on EXIT is great. It's faithful to the studio recording.

The SOUND is close -real close - but it's not the same.

The stereo seperation between the 2 bass tracks (oops there's one of those nasty not in the fingers production techniques I keep talking about) on the album is crisp, well defined and very up front.

It's a distinct sound created by the way the bass track was PRODUCED.

2 channels of bass -seperated by some kind of slight delay with a tad bit of modulation and differnt eq and gain on each track - pased thru compression of a certain kind that responds and sounds a certain way.

ALL of these things have a great deal to do with sculpting the sounds you hear on records.
 
#312
Red Wonder said:
I think even Schmidt can agree that it's not 95% to 5% however. It has to be at least 65-35% in favor of fingers. Jeff?
Click to expand...

There is no standard ratio. This is getting silly.

It totally depends on the player. Certain players have sounds that are so natural and uneffected you pay WAY more attention to the WAY they play than they WAY it sounds.

Other recordings are distinctive because of the SOUND that has been created.

Take Chris Squire for instance. Another player with unique tone.

When he ditched that tone for the later YES records it just wasn't the same. It's still him, still playing the way he always did (which is great) but it's so much less engaging because the sound isn't nearly as compelling. That sound was created a specific way - with gear and a process. Change the gear and the process and it doesn't sound the same.

It's why there's dozens of type of basses, reverb systems, compression, eq, tube etc... that all create different sounds.

Why do you think artists and bands seek out specific producers? It's because they want the producers to make them sound a certain way.

In the overall picture - Production, process and gear have as much to do with the way a record sounds as the way cats play.
 
#314
Red Wonder said:
Schmidt...

Nobody can cop my sound, nobody can cop your sound, nobody can cop Till's sound, nobody can cop Pacman's sound...

How can you attribute this to "settings"
Click to expand...


If you played thru my set-up it would sound mostly the same as when I play thru it.

The one difference you would hear is the WAY you play as opposed to the WAY I play. That misleads you into thinking it "sounds different".



EDIT: Check this out.

Who is Link Removed
 
#317
Schmidty is SPOT ON with this one. There is a reason why artists work with certain people to achieve a specific sonic end result. The signal chain AND production values topic should definitely be brought up more! ;)

jeff schmidt said:
There is no standard ratio. This is getting silly.

It totally depends on the player. Certain players have sounds that are so natural and uneffected you pay WAY more attention to the WAY they play than they WAY it sounds.

Why do you think artists and bands seek out specific producers? It's because they want the producers to make them sound a certain way.

In the overall picture - Production, process and gear have as much to do with the way a record sounds as the way cats play.
Click to expand...
 
#319
If I can elaborate on that thought....

I have been goofing around with my settings on my amp forr my bass, and have found this to sound beuatiful:

BASS:
3 o'clock

MID:
7 o'clock (completley tuned down)

TREBLE:
4 o'clock

It sounds great!
 
#320
Jay Terrien said:
Schmidty is SPOT ON with this one. There is a reason why artists work with certain people to achieve a specific sonic end result. The signal chain AND production values topic should definitely be brought up more! ;)
Click to expand...

I'm not sure I ever imagined you taking the role as a voice of sanity Jay ;) -but thanks!


BTW - If anyone on the thread hasn't heard Jay's CD - get a copy.
A must have for bassists!


FWIW - the clip I linked to is a sample of a dude who bought a Zon Michael Manring HyperBass. The point of posting it was to show just how much gear influences the sound. That clip SOUNDS just like Michael Manring - the difference is in the playing of course.
 

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