I keep hearing that active basses are better for recording because they are more quiet. So if you have only a passive bass at your disposal, what is the best way to get a good recorded sound from it?
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Passive vs Active for Recording
- Thread starter BulbousMoses
- Start date
Those people gave you their opinion, in my opinion they are misguiding you. Active basses are different, not better, and a properly setup passive shouldn't be noisy.
If you like the sound of your passive bass you should use it, just like people have been doing for decades.
If you like the sound of your passive bass you should use it, just like people have been doing for decades.
I will be using it but I am just wondering how to best record it and maybe what techniques apply to a passive in a recording environment. Thanks for the reply.
Active basses are better for recording? So I guess nobody ever got a decent sound out of a P bass on a recording?
Passive basses and active basses are both good for recording.
Passive basses and active basses are both good for recording.
Typical answer to a recording question is "it depends".
If you have a hifi rig, it's purpose is to transparently reproduce the sound of your instrument. If this is your vibe you are probably best to use a high quality DI box.
If your rig is charactered and part of your sound, you are probably best to mic it. Mic options are almost limitless, you just need to experiment. Some recording engineers like to mic and DI, never found that useful myself but it's common.
Whether you mic or DI you then need to go into a mic pre which will also have influence on the sound. Like mics there are almost limitless options and they interact with the mic or DI they are connected to, but my personal favorite for bass (of what I've tried) would be an API. Very thick and punchy.
odd... the common 'wisdom' that I've always heard is that it's better to record passive than active.
regardless, I believe the phrase "whatever suits the music" would apply here.
regardless, I believe the phrase "whatever suits the music" would apply here.
It can depend on the bass and player, application. But assuming you have a top notch bass and top notch player, passive tone is the way to go.
There is a reason why classic passive Fender instruments have been on more radio/album hits than any other instruments combined.They sound musical, sit very well in the mix, and have a strong fundamental tone.
Incorporating a preamp circuit may have some benefits but as a general rule I would rather hear the sound of my bass rather than the sound of the preamp.
Zander
There is a reason why classic passive Fender instruments have been on more radio/album hits than any other instruments combined.They sound musical, sit very well in the mix, and have a strong fundamental tone.
Incorporating a preamp circuit may have some benefits but as a general rule I would rather hear the sound of my bass rather than the sound of the preamp.
Zander
I think that the thing here is that active basses are usually louder, so you will tend to pick less noise from the bad cables, electric curret, etc, if you use them, as the signal will be much louder than the unwanted noises. Passive basses are more likely to give you noisy recordings, but their tone is worth this inconvenience in my opinion.
Ric5
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- Jan 29, 2008
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An active bass will record fine. Just don't max out all of the tone controls.
A passive with a humbucker will be quiet. A passive with single coil will have so hum. An active with a single coil will also have hum.
A passive with a humbucker will be quiet. A passive with single coil will have so hum. An active with a single coil will also have hum.
Considering how many classic albums/songs that have been recorded with passive instruments I don't think I can recall hearing much in the way of noise over top of the other instruments. Personally I don't think that is much of an issue. A J Bass with true single coil pups can be noisy whether it has a preamp circuit or not.
Very true. Stratocasters are also noisy and they are everywhere, almost as onipresent as Precisions. Not as issue, but active instruments are less noisy (I mean noises external to the instrument).
Funny you bring this up I was talking to our studio engineer today on active basses v.s. passive. He and I both agree passive records much better,cleaner and warmer. Active basses in his experience have more volume spikes when players play aggressive and are harder to work with , not impossible just harder.
I am running thru an Avalon preamp then to the board right now and will decide if this is what I want. Today the recordings were full, warm and had punch all done with passive P basses and flats.
I am running thru an Avalon preamp then to the board right now and will decide if this is what I want. Today the recordings were full, warm and had punch all done with passive P basses and flats.
Whenever people start talking about active versus passive, I think it's all pointless when you can easily have both options on the same bass.
Add an active/passive switch and a passive tone control and your bass can be either, depending on which you want.
Add an active/passive switch and a passive tone control and your bass can be either, depending on which you want.
True enough. I wouldn't have the preamp and cut a hole in the back of the bass if I wasn't planning on using it though. The active/passive switch is good option, just make sure you can adjust the gain on the preamp to keep it at unity. You don't want to have a big jump in volume switching between the two....
Of course it's not just passive basses that record well, I think that most of us here can agree that most engineers and producers know that only Fender basses will truly record well. Of course there is controversy over whether a J or P is best but that is just a minor difference...
But seriously, folks, passive basses in general DO record better. They are cleaner, smoother, better and with better sheen and greater sense of humor!
Ok, now I'll get serious for sure. Look. A passive bass adds no noise (like hiss). A passive bass isn't prone to overload. A passive bass adds no distortion (except that produced by the pickups themselves). A well shielded passive bass adds no hum except single coil hum. A passive bass will not demodulate RF interference.
An active bass on the other hand usually has a half-baked circuit with all manner of limitations. These include Hiss, Distortion, poor headroom or overload handling, RF pickup, and other nasties. And it's really not the fault of the bass, it's the fault of the limitation imposed on the electronics by being forced to run off a 9v battery! People have asked here why active basses are like this when your amp isn't. The front end of your amp does exactly the same function as the circuit in your active bass. well, the amp doesn't have a power limitation nor a size limitation nor a battery life limitation.
So here's the deal: Compare a passive bass running into some expensive finely tweaked preamp or DI out of the studio cabinet that may have cost more than your car. As opposed to taking that same passive signal and feeding it through some low current draw, limited headroom, noisy 9v preamp (that probably cost $30 in parts) and THEN feeding the high quality stuff. Can you dig it?
On the other hand, no rule is always true. There is also the situation where the electronics in the bass are DESIGNED to be part of the total bass sound. Examples are Stingrays or Bongo basses. There are many more. In such a case there IS NO passive mode. If you want the sound you have to play the game. So does a dialed-in 'Ray not sound as good as some passive who knows what? I think you know the answer to this one.
So yeah, there is a rule, but it's also not always true.
too much thinking in the way of getting things done. whatever bass you have, plug it in and get a sound, and if you have more than one, try them all out until you decide.
