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recorded tone on bass tracks

Hizzoner

Hizzoner

Jan 6, 2005
710
30
Chicago area
#1
Looking at some youtube stuff with isolated bass tracks I was amazed how many songs by a variety of players have a overdriven kinda dirty tone.. even Sting on Roxanne has a bit of grit..

http://www.youtube.com/user/dxbrbnkhd#p/u/210/IJkutVcmXvM

Justin..would you say your favorite recorded bass tones would sound somewhat gritty or overdriven if heard in isolation? I know you are something of a chameleon and have worked in lots of scenarios...but the "tone in yo head"...is it gritty?...is it the p-bass with flats/ b15 sound? What about something like "sexx laws" in isolation..gritty?

Thanks

Mark
 
#3
Yeah, Sexx Laws is pretty dirty when solo'd. But in my head, I really like it as dirty as possible all the time! Bass through guitar amps and stuff. But of course, more often than not, I'm playing a P-Bass, Starfire, Hofner, Harmony, Eko, etc. through B-15 only mildly overdriven. I just can tend to scare engineers when I crank it too much; sometimes they don't want to "commit", and I guess I can understand that for the most part. But I really wish I could keep that stuff blown out 24/7. A-la Ima Robot stuff, or like Sparks "Kimono My House", Stranglers, Joy Division, The Who as referenced above, all that biz.

Best,
JMJ
 
#4
Cool....I find I like the dirt sound I get out of the tonehammer with the gain turned up...leaving it engaged most of the time now...

Thanks JMJ...now I have the signature I have been sorely lacking!:)

"But in my head, I really like it as dirty as possible all the time!"

Mark
 
#5
#6
that guy has some killer iso tracks! but you know what surprised me? the bass sound on the ac/dc live album is di! he was using mesas on that tour, and i always thought he mic'ed them and leaned on the mic sound, but it's a precision into a dead clean di full range.

i'd love to hear the iso bass track of sexx laws and mixed bizness, btw. justin said it was a pretty simple signal path, like a preamp into the board, but what a fat tone! that'd be cool to hear what's really doing.
 
#7
One of my favorite 'gritty' bass tones is Nate Watts bass on Stevie Wonders 'Do I Do.' You can really hear it in the sections where it's just bass and drums. From what I have read, its just a late 70's or early 80's Stingray thru a DI. Tim Comerford from Rage Against the Machine has a sick dirty tone too!
 
#10
Hizzoner said:
Jimmy- I'd love to hear sexx laws iso too..some JMJ lookalike dude tries to do it as a playalong on yutube..seems to groove to it well..not sure if it is 100% accurate, but it moves..what do you think of this JMJ?

Click to expand...

ya, that's big john, creator of the granny puker which i believe jmj owns. he already said it's not 100% accurate. i told him if i was putting together a beck tribute band, i'd be plenty happy with it ;)
 

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