Getting more 'attack' from a P-Bass

[India_Sierra]

Just tossing this out there..... could this be the reason why I keep seeing vintage P basses with an aftermarket J pickup added at the bridge?

I think it's the best pickup combo for a Precision. It's what I'd go for if I was after a bass with a split coil P type pickup in the typical Precision placement. You lose nothing by having the singlecoil or humbucker at the bridge.

 

[Pbassmanca]

I'm primarily a P-bass player, and I love the idea of keeping things simple - one bass, two knobs. But a few recent studio experiences have me wondering if I need to augment my situation in some way. I'm also not a studio guy, just showed up to record some tracks for a friend, so I'm not expert in how it all goes.

In the past year, I recorded two separate tracks with an American Standard P-bass. Both times, the producer (same one each time) remarked that I wasn't getting enough 'attack' from the bass to situate it properly in the mix. Even after opening up the tone fully, it still wasn't quite enough for one of the tracks - I ended up using a pick super close to the bridge just to get a little more bite. The track sounds ok, but not nearly as meaty as it should've been. (I should note that I was using GHS pressurewounds on this particular bass).

My question is, (without of course knowing if the pickups were faulty) should I look into adding some sort of overdrive, or a preamp to my setup? Right now I just go PBass into amp (or DI in the studio), no effects. I've always loved the P tone, but if it's going to be my workhorse, what could I do to maybe add a little more presence to it? FWIW, I typically play rock in the style of bands like Wilco, MMJ, Dr Dog, etc. But I also take on some Motown/Soul stuff from time to time.

Hey man, what gauge strings were you using on that session?

 

[Tom Baker]

I feel like these 2 post are the ones that really get to the heart of the problem. I don't believe it's a gear issue at all. I would add one thing to this which is timing in regards to feel. Playing aggressively with more perceived attack may translate into playing on the front of the beat as opposed to the back of the beat where a lot groove players are comfortable. Being slightly ahead or slightly behind the beat can greatly change the perception of the quality and characteristic of the sound.

Attack is usually a word that describes your technique and not something that gets adjusted in the tone. More attack = digging in harder and getting more volume out of the strings, which also opens up other tonal characteristics. This might include a little more fret noise, but also the strings themselves will give you a different response. The increase in string travel will also react differently with the magnetism of the pickups which can further color the tone.

Were you maybe trying to play too clean, being in the studio, or is your playing style a little on the lighter/smoother side?
.

Clarify what the producer means by more attack. I don't understand what he wants, harder picking? louder volume, more punch, less sustain, shorter notes? With your ears what does the bass sound like in the mix? Is the bass muddy, and covering up the kick and other instruments? A good producer with some experience can clearly identify what the problem is, and should give you specific recommendations on what he wants in the mix, and explain why the sound is not working.

Playing bass on a recorded track in the mix is a lot different than playing live sound on stage. Depending on the way you're recording with mic or DI, and the style of music will dictate. With live sound you can be more expressive in your groove and attack. With recording, making each note stick, and shortening its sustain consistently while giving each note it's value is the key. In addition while maintaining a even volume and attack throughout the song. All this, together helps reduce the amount of compression on the bass, and gives the bass clarity in the mix. When you listen to the bass track on its own, it may not sound great, but if the engineer knows what their doing, it will sound great in the song once they mix it. Like the Gestalt, the sum of the parts are greater than the whole.

 

[Brkls]

Was looking to soften the attack of my p
Stumble on this thread... haven't read the whole thing but
a slight piece foam mute under the bridge can really bring out the attack of a p...
flats or rounds

 

[chris_b]

Isn't this why the J pickup started to appear on Precision basses? You can also increase "attack" by plucking nearer the bridge. I'm a P bass player. I left the P bass doing its thing and bought a Jazz bass for when I needed the "attack" sound.

 

[luciens]

To me, attack means a higher dynamic range on the notes. On my Tony Franklin, plucking directly over the pickup faces is the most effective way to do that. Also, no compression or effects, and turning down the amp to eliminate clipping add to that.

So to go in the other direction, the most effective thing I've found is to move the plucking away from the pickup face (between the pickups for example). Or use some limiting in the signal chain. But changing the plucking location seems to work best for me.

L

 

[NoiseNinja]

Use fresh roundwound strings and a pick, boost 800Hz and especially 1kHz some, using a relatively high Q value (narrow band width), a Q value of around about 4 or so would be a good bet, use a compressor to emphasis the attack further, by dialing in a compression rate somewhere between 2:1 to 4:1, the attack time somewhere between 20 to 50 ms, a release time somewhere between 50 to 100 ms, with a hard knee, and then experiment with the optimal threshold for your specific signal and your specific setting.

There you go.

Was looking to soften the attack of my p
Stumble on this thread... haven't read the whole thing but
a slight piece foam mute under the bridge can really bring out the attack of a p...
flats or rounds

Same in reverse, just using a lower Q value, around 2 or so, and cutting instead of boosting, and as for compression, the same, except you want a shorter attack time, between 0 to 10 ms, and a softer knee.

 

[bigcupholder]

Picking harder with a stiff pick (with a sharp edge) near the bridge helps. You can't EQ in the sound of bashing the strings if you're playing softly. Lighter strings (40-95, rounds) also help.

Boosting around 2-3 kHz will help the pick noise come through more, but if you're playing softly near the neck it'll just be a "clack" sound followed by a gentle note - it won't have a ton of attack if you're not playing it the right way.

 

[Fresh Eddie]

I'm not very nuanced, but I play with my fingers and smack the strings against the upper frets to get clank.

 

[mongo2]

Here I though how to situate a P bass in a mix was the first lesson in producer school.

 

[ElectricBass72]

I get plenty of attack on my G&L Tribute P with Dunlop Super Bright Stainless Steel strings. Also, I get good attack with Ernie Ball Cobalt flats on my Fender Player P.

 

[Ric Vice]

I'm primarily a P-bass player, and I love the idea of keeping things simple - one bass, two knobs. But a few recent studio experiences have me wondering if I need to augment my situation in some way. I'm also not a studio guy, just showed up to record some tracks for a friend, so I'm not expert in how it all goes.

In the past year, I recorded two separate tracks with an American Standard P-bass. Both times, the producer (same one each time) remarked that I wasn't getting enough 'attack' from the bass to situate it properly in the mix. Even after opening up the tone fully, it still wasn't quite enough for one of the tracks - I ended up using a pick super close to the bridge just to get a little more bite. The track sounds ok, but not nearly as meaty as it should've been. (I should note that I was using GHS pressurewounds on this particular bass).

My take is that you should try a set of Ernie Ball Slinky Cobalt Flatwounds, they will give you plenty of attack. I've had countless engineers comment on something that turned out to be a failure on their part. Just my take.

 

[Jefenator]

"Bright" switch on a tube preamp For The Win.