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super low freq

davidl13

davidl13

Oct 15, 2011
129
49
www.optogateonline.com
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USA distributor: www.optogateonline.com
#1
How does one drop super low frequency bombs... ?

I have 2 - 18" powered cab.. capable of a lot, with a low freq capability of 8hz


At this moment I am playing a 4 string(approx 40z low e). although I own a 5 string (approx 31 hz low b)...

But how does one drop the clear tone bomb???

Octave pedals seem a bit gritty and robotic... What is the effect that Phil lesh or Mike Gordon use to get the Uber low vibration... Or anyone else...

Subharmonic synth?

Thanks in advance
 
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#2

The lowest note on a 5-string bass is about 30 Hz. If you’re looking for lower than that, you need an octave divider, that generates a signal an octave lower than the note you’re playing. As with everything else, I’m sure some EFX units are better than others. If you don't like what you got from a stomp box, I'm sure there are studio-grade processors available. How much are you willing to pay?

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

Pedulla Club #45 Unique Arrangements of Hymns, P&W Standards, and Original Tunes
Administrator, Tobias Club #133
Administrator, Fretless Club #943
Big Cabs Club #23
My Basses
Pedulla Club #45
Tobias Club #133

 
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#3
WayneP said:
The lowest note on a 5-string bass is about 30 Hz. If you’re looking for lower than that, you need an octave divider, that generates a signal an octave lower than the note you’re playing. As with everything else, I’m sure some EFX units are better than others. If you don't like what you got from a stomp box, I'm sure there are studio-grade processors available. How much are you willing to pay?

Regards,
Wayne A. Pflughaupt

Administrator, Pedulla Club #45
Administrator, Tobias Club #133
Fretless Club #943
Big Cabs Club #23
My Bas
Pedulla Club #45
Click to expand...

If you read my post again, you will see I'm not asking about money, I am asking about sound.. how does one create a clean fundamental below 31 (low b)... Every sub octave I have heard is not clean.. a bit gritty or robotic..


Do you know what processor will accomplish this? Have you tried it?
 
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#5
Lammchop93 said:
That Aguilar octave pedal drops one lower. I have the TC electronic sub n up. It does 1 or 2 octaves low. The 1 octave down sounds awesome and natural. My cab won’t even make a sound for octave -2 on my low string. That may be a good pedal for you to check out
Click to expand...

Thanks.. I have not heard that one yet...
4 string bass low e is 40hz.. so theoretically I can get to 10hz 2 octaves down... It's all about the clean and natural part... I like clean earthquakes... ;)
 
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#6
davidl13 said:
Thanks.. I have not heard that one yet...
4 string bass low e is 40hz.. so theoretically I can get to 10hz 2 octaves down... It's all about the clean and natural part... I like clean earthquakes... ;)
Click to expand...
It’s great cause you can blend all the octaves together. And really have a huge foundation, but still have your natural bass on top. I love the pedal
 
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#7
Lammchop93 said:
It’s great cause you can blend all the octaves together. And really have a huge foundation, but still have your natural bass on top. I love the pedal
Click to expand...

I just watched a video with dry off and 2nd Sub octave down all the way up.. wow.. it was clean and really low.. you may be right, this may work...
 
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#13
Most cabinets can't reproduce sub 40Hz waves, even though the company may quote the frequency response down into the 20Hz territory. Really, anything below 60Hz is almost inaudible rumble. The nice deep sub style bass we're used to is like 80 or 100hz
 
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#16
Coolhandjjl said:
Who has an amp that goes that low?

And how could you tell if it even was even doing anything at that low of Hz? Hire elephants or whales?
Click to expand...

I almost fell out of my chair when I read the "Hire elephants or whales?" comment. Haha. Very true though.

I've read on the internet (so it must be true right?) that the human ear can hear down to 20 hz. I knew whales could hear much lower, but I wasn't aware of elephants. We haven't booked any gigs at the zoo lately, but maybe we should so we can test the theory?????
 
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#19
my A/V and studio subs go down to 15hz ... which is already lower than humans can hear ... but i get nice solid audible lows , with a little extra oomph you can really only feel ... which makes sense for Special LFE type stuff , ... but nothing i'd ever wanna bother messing with on a gig ... ???

i've had several different processors for Sub Octave stuff ... DBX 120 SubHarmonic Synth ( the older better model ) , some Lexicon FX unit have ultra low processors , pedals are OK ... analog sounds better , digital works better .

if i wanted low lows , i'd use a keyboard , since they have sub oscillators built right in .. !! moogs are fun ..
as are most Virtual Analog synths ... even little keys like the Alesis Micron that's in our classifieds ...
 
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#20
You'll need lots of watts.
You'll also need to have an amp with no built in pass filtering. This isn't always disclosed, but many amps have them built in to the circuitry.
I'd suggest a crossover, if this is to work.
Many octave pedals won't track as low as you are trying to go. Many analog ones start glitching between F# and A on the low string. Digital ones supposedly will track better.

This is a topic which has shown up from time to time on TB, though not usually as low as the OP is aiming. I don't think I've seen a generally accepted approach, nor a reported successful result. I have seen a bunch of conflict about which devices will or will not work an how or why.
 
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