Snappy and punchy attack - how to get it?

[Jefus]

There's a technique that I've become increasingly aware of, especially in metal, where the action is kept low and the the fingers pick hard enough to let the strings hit the fretboard, giving a sound in the neighborhood of using a pick or slapping. It'll take some practice to nail precisely but it might get you there. Look for some YouTube videos on recording metal bass.

Or a Cali76 Stacked Edition with both compressors at nearly fully at "F".

 

[Willie5String]

Hi, seeking advice on how to get my bass to have a louder, snappier, punchier attack…

I do not have a clear example of a song/record with that tone (perhaps you do?), more a general feeling or tone in my head. In my mind this should be achievable with a compressor, but perhaps there's a "secret attack shaper" pedal out ther I'm unaware of…

My only live experience with compressors are:
- Vox cooltron snake charmer: really cool compressor, but I can't imagine leaving this on all the time, too "effecty". I thought about modding it to add a clean blend. But I'm unsure of the outcome and the pedal would still be HUGE
- EBS Multicomp: good pedal, but I couldn't get this kind of snappy attack out of it. It kind of evens out the signal but I use a gritty VT bass as always on and it feel redundant, I haven't missed it since I got rid of it
- Ampeg pf-500 compressor, perhaps similar to the current ampeg opto comp?, felt similar to the EBS in tube mode: evens out the signal, but doesn't "shape" the signal to give you more attack

I've read the reviews, seen many compressors' reviews in YouTube, but to me is really hard to judge how they will sound with me and, specially, in the mix.

So, before I go into debt in a compressor shopping spree… is there a pedal out there that can help me get snappier attack? Is there a particular type of compressor that excels at this?

I play finger style, with a VT bass warming up the signal always on, and some distorsion on and off… into an ampeg pf-500 and a barefaced 212… In case it's helpful. I've eyeballed the empress, diamond, mxr, Cali and the Fairfield accountant, but I'm really unsure about how the most fitting to my needs

Fresh strings, a pick, more treble. Without a pick, pluck hard.

 

[conttador]

Bright strings

I use Sadowsky Bright Nickel strings. If you use a preamp, boost bass & treble to taste & if you have a 3 band pre, maybe scoop the mids.

For a compressor I have most of the aforementioned pedals but prefer the Empress & Compressore.

 

[Dr Zee]

IME maple fretboards have a faster attack.

 

[Bill Murray]

Keep fresh strings on, relatively low action, pluck hard near the neck, mids/low mids should be the focal point of your EQ. A kiss of compression with some overdrive should do it. Darkglass B3K would be my first stop.

 

[el murdoque]

What frequency do you set your LPF at?

My unit is a Broughton LPF +HPF.
I don't know how precise the print on the pedal is. I always set the filters the same way: Activate the unit with the filters wide open. Then, while playing the bass, I slowly close the filters. At the beginning, all they do is remove unwanted frequencies. At some point, they start removing wanted frequencies. That's where I stop, back off one notch and I'm done. With the Broughton that is, according to the printed scale, 6k on the LPF and around 65Hz on the HPF.

 

[fishdreams]

For fingerstyle i found that a light touch brings out the snap/attack.

 

[bluesblaster]

Get a German Shepard and train it to play your bass........but seriously, maybe use Stainless steel strings for starters, maybe a jazz bass with single coils should get you most of the way there. Also something like a 4x10 or a 2x10 speaker cab wouldnt hurt.

 

[George Dennis]

I'm slightly frustrated that I can't simply throw money at the problem..

If you've got the cash, throw it at a single coil Tele! That'll fix it!

 

[heavyfunkmachin]

Just to be clear: I love my bass tone! it's the attack envelope what I'm trying to improve on…

 

[Hawk256]

You can push straight down towards the body while picking with your finger instead of pulling parallel to the body. This will force the string into the fret board while giving almost a slap to sound. Not easy to describe so I hope this makes sense. You want to rotate your picking hand so that you are attacking the strings at a different angle.

 

[nnnnnn]

My unit is a Broughton LPF +HPF.
I don't know how precise the print on the pedal is. I always set the filters the same way: Activate the unit with the filters wide open. Then, while playing the bass, I slowly close the filters. At the beginning, all they do is remove unwanted frequencies. At some point, they start removing wanted frequencies. That's where I stop, back off one notch and I'm done. With the Broughton that is, according to the printed scale, 6k on the LPF and around 65Hz on the HPF.

Thanks. As it happens, I have the Broughton too, and use the same procedure, but I am always curious to see what settings other people end up using. My current settings, as best I can tell from the labels on the pedal, are 5k on the LPF and around 45 on the HPF.

 

[40Hz]

I'm slightly frustrated that I can't simply throw money at the problem..

Yeah! What a perfect world it'd be if it were that easy, right?

 

[Green Knight]

And how do you get there?

from my profoundly amateur perspective, i feel like quick finger attack with a LOT of snappy octaves and fifths makes the politest bass sound punchy ... er, and my MXR bass compressor

 

[40Hz]

String gauge can have a lot to do with it.

Lighter gauges exhibit greater excursion in relation to the force applied. Pickups don't sense string gauge. They do sense string excursion and motion. So a lighter gauge will move farther out and return quicker on the initial note attack before settling into a note. Translation: more punch and snap.

Want more? Try a lighter gauge.

 

[Coke Kane]

Straighten the neck and lower the action.

 

[anightintunisia]

Move your fingers back to the bridge. Play acoustically and achieve your desired sound. Turn amp on.

 

[Thumpin6string]

i know… it just doesn't feel right, I guess I'm looking to get pick-like attack with fingers via pedal, impossible?

If you don't want to use a pick, let your nails grow and pluck with them rather than the pad of your fingers.

 

[HardNHeavy]

light gauge strings helps. I'm using Roto66's with EQ in midrangey/treble area with relatively heavy plucking in a full band setting, also i sometimes let my fingernails grow just to edge of fingers. No need for a pic. A jazz bass gives this tonal attack easier than my P's imo. But they have different pickups installed so it varies.

 

[ctmullins]

I don't cruise the Effects forum often, but this thread caught my eye. I am intrigued by how many people look to solve this via effects, when to me the obvious answer is upstream - pickups with large MM-style polepieces: