Recording bass

[NatStringer]

Just read a nice little article on recording bass from the folks over at Enmore Audio - http://enmoreaudio.com/fat-tones-isolation-and-the-joys-of-recording-bass/

[WRGKMC]

Its got some of the info but misses out on some great alternative options that are relatively new.

 

One is many amps either have line or speaker emulated line outputs. When recording with the band I typically use this method because it gets rid of the need to use headphones to hear the bass player, and it captures the bass players live tone without having to mic and amp and deal with bleed over and phasing.

 

The second option completely neglected is advanced DI methods. Using preamps was once the only option. You could of course EQ and compress it. Today you have all kinds of Sans amp type devices that will do the job without having to crank up all the rack gear. Some of these units also contain a full array of amp + speaker cab modeling and effects "specifically voiced for bass. Cab modeling especially has taken on the same methods of Convolution reverb and you can download cabinet impulses which will produce ideal tones from any amp type you want.

 

All of this gives you a much wider range of tones and therefore a much higher degree of creativity, and this doesn't even include what can be done in the box. There are all kinds of bass amp emulator plugins you can use to get your pre or post sound. Of course using them as a substitute for hardware recording live has the typical issues dealing with computer and communication latency but with a high speed computer these may be low enough to ignore. Bass is a low frequency instrument which has a slow response due to string inertia anyway so it may not create a big problem for many. Using them post tracking is definitely an option. Even if you record straight in with a DI box, its a great way of getting standard tones vs using many separate plugins to do similar things.

 

I've used all the various methods extensively and can say the hardware amp emulators are by far the easiest and quickest.

Back when I used hardware like DI, Mixers, Preamps, EQ,s Comps etc, I still had to do allot of tweaking to the track to get it to sound good in a mix. I'd get there eventually, the same way as I would micing an amp.

 

I can take a small box like a Vox Stomplab for bass, Plig into my Interfaces line input, Select an amp type like an SVT, set my level and record.

 

I rarely have to do anything to the track to get it to mix. The sound is already ideal. Depending on the level of the track (I usually record bass fairly low in gain to avoid pops from transient overs) I may use a preamp plugin to set the ideal gain staging. Maybe I'll use a single EQ peak at around 800hz to bring out some extra finger tone.

 

Because I use less plugins to get the bass to sound good, it means there is less bits lost as a tradeoff using plugins that use an algorithm to recalculate bits. This means the sound retains a more natural sound quality which makes for a higher quality mix. It also means, I can save hours mixing bass and spend that time on other tracks that need it.

 

Also these DI units don't cost you a mint to purchase like they used to. I have around a half dozen or more from Behringer Clones of a sans amp, to a number of bass pedals that double as a DI. Several even have stereo emulation which can do wonderful things vs having that bass stuck mono center all the time.

[Mikeo]

I have a small DI box I hardly ever use.

 

I only have one bass amp, 2 if you count the SWR Cal Blonde.

 

Both amps actually have DI's out sound you can grab the color of the amp, and still go direct. You can also mic the cab, or do both and see what you like the best for the song.

 

[ThudMaker]

I always like to get two signals on the bass when recording. One is the tone of the rig, post eq/FX, etc., and the other is a clean DI straight from the bass instrument. This way, I can mix, or, if there is an issue with the Post signal, I can always re-amp and/or use the mixing software plug-ins to shape what I hear in the song.

[WRGKMC]

I sometimes use my Ampeg Portaflex. You're able to run it without a cab and simply turn the master volume off and record from the preamp output. Makes for some killer bass tones.

 

When I'm recording solo stuff I multitrack the bass parts in. I monitor the recording when I'm playing through my studio monitor setup instead of using headphones. I keep the volume is as loud as a small practice amp playing along to the mix and this ensure I'm recording the exact tones I need.

 

I can run the mix into my PA system then crank the bass amp up to record but then I'm back to using headphones to hear what's actually being recorded. Tweaking the recorded amp for optimal tone may not make for the best live sound coming from the amp which can influence how I actually play. My bass cabs and heads are a mix of different gear so what the preamp is outputting may be completely different from what the mic is hearing. This is why I normally only use amps when recording a band. I can target the actual tones much more effectively recording direct through a amp emulated preamp.

 

I do have one bass that can record very well through a DI if I choose. Its got some decent tones all on its own. Its got passive pickups however and getting some edge to the treble requires more EQing in the box.

 

If you have a bass with active electronics and preamp you can often get great recordings plugging straight into the interface so long as the interface has a pad switch for instrument level recording. Again, you may need to do some tweaking in the box to shape the response to the mix depending on how good the onboard electronics are.

[Phil O'Keefe]

I pretty much always take a direct feed when recording bass. I also will often mic up an amp too if the bass player has a good one, and if not, well, I have the direct feed and can always clone that track and use it to run into an amp sim of some sort, or to reamp with. I will then usually use the DI and the amp tones together in the mix.

 

 

[WRGKMC]

I pretty much always take a direct feed when recording bass. I also will often mic up an amp too if the bass player has a good one, and if not, well, I have the direct feed and can always clone that track and use it to run into an amp sim of some sort, or to reamp with. I will then usually use the DI and the amp tones together in the mix.

 

 

Do you just use the mic position to get them in phase of do you use some kind of phase tool? (or do you just shift the track to get them in sync)

[Phil O'Keefe]

 

Do you just use the mic position to get them in phase of do you use some kind of phase tool? (or do you just shift the track to get them in sync)

 

 

I usually just nudge one of the tracks until I have them in phase.

[*BLEEP*]

 

Dealing with bass amps for recording? I gave up on that approach aeons ago.

 

One can often plug straight into a recording console with an electric bass and get excellent results using studio compression and EQ to tailor the final sound.

 

However, if I need some amplifier colourings, these days I will simply plug an an Eden WTDI into the console or patch bay to do the job.