Mixing Bass- A Good Tip!

Throughout the process of trying to mix this DVD, one of the main problems I've run into is getting the low end right.  For one thing, the bass (guitar) was coming through all of the other stage mics.  This is easy to resolve since most all other instruments do not need to share the same frequency space- I just scooped it out.  The other more common problem, is that the bass is inconsistent on different notes.  If you've ever recorded bass before, you know what I'm talking about.  You're bass player is playing a bass line and you go ahead and EQ it how you want.  Then when you put it into the mix, you notice that certain notes are WAY louder than others.  The low end can be all over the map- especially when you use old strings like I do.  Here's a good tip I learned from a good friend recently.

First, duplicate your bass channel, so that you have two identical channels with the same settings and the same performance.  On the first channel, cut out everything below 80hz completely.  Next, go to your second bass channel and do the opposite.  Cut out everything above 80hz completely.  Now, on the second bass channel, add a compressor, and just squash it!  I mean, really crunch it, you can even use a limiter in there as well to make sure it's nice and even.  Last, take both of those channels and group them together on a new group channel.  Just mix those two signals together, and you're done.  What this does is allow you to take those lower frequencies and make sure that they are even all the way up the fret board.  This is very difficult to do using a simple multi-band compressor with one channel.  It's working very nicely for me thus far.  Thanks for the tip Todd.  

Thanks for reading.

Jeremy

Comments

[Stormie]

What a GREAT tip! I play bass and in recording, that is a problem we are always running into - I'll have to try this! :)

[Emma]

Great ideas, thanks for the information! What recording equipment are you usually using?

[Conner Lucas]

Used this on a mix today! Worked great, especially since I was mixing a mic'ed bass amp with no DI. It's great when you insert the reFuse Lowender just a hair on the after the compressor. Gives it a little subharmonic character.