slap volume drop?

[j powell]

hey all,

 

first, hi again folks! i haven't been around for years, but i switched jobs and have mroe spare time at work, so i've been lurking...secondly...

 

i'm in a new band and we have one track where slap is needed. i've never done slap and pop at all before, it's coming along ok. my question is, is it normal for all the bottom end and a lot of volume to drop when one switched mid song to slap from plucking? i feel like my rig is developing anemia. should i get used to pumping the volume when i switch or will time ease this?

[Dthraco]

Do you use a compressor? That helps. Also having the guitar back off helps too.

[gonzobassman]

I typically have to turn my bass down when I throw in a slap part.

[jackcheez]

I get the same volume drop. When I play with fingers I tend to really dig in. I've broke more strings than our guitar player. That might be part of it.

 

I watch others slap and pop, and they seem to do it with a lot more authority, so I'm thinking my technique needs a little work.

 

I also drop a little volume when I use a pick. Which isn't very often these days. There have been times when I used it a lot.

[catphish]

 

I typically have to turn my bass down when I throw in a slap part.

 

 

Same. I find it really odd that the volume would go down.

[gonzobassman]

 

Same. I find it really odd that the volume would go down.

 

 

Agreed! Especiallly without the signal being compressed.Actually,having the {censored} compressed out of it!!!

[T. Alan Smith]

Huh. Volume usually goes up for me.

[DevilRaysFan]

 

Huh. Volume usually goes up for me.

 

 

same with me...I run a simple DBX compressor all the time with a soft knee setting to keep things even from fingers to slap and to tone down the brittle edges.

[melancholy mechanic]

if you are running compression and you boost the bass quite a bit sometimes slapping will cause the comp to kick in harder depending on how you have it setup.

[Mogwix]

 

Huh. Volume usually goes up for me.

 

When you're slapping, the "peaks" go up but the "power" goes down. I could draw you graphs of why this happens but it probably won't help anyways.

 

The answer is compression. I have a dbx 160a in my rack that's set for a 3:1 ratio. The threshold is set so that the compressor is pulling maybe 2 or 3 dB at most when I'm playing "normal fingerstyle". When I dig in, still playing finger style, the compressor pulls 3 or 4 dB off. When I start slapping, it's pulling the peaks down (by as much as 10 dB) and smoothing out the sound. You're just trying to control the peaks, not squash the tone.... so if you hear any pumping or breathing then you've got it set to compress way too much.

[j powell]

 

I typically have to turn my bass down when I throw in a slap part.

 

 

 

this is interesting. i wonder if maybe i'm digging in too hard when plucking? i did play with an underpowered amp for a long time. well, i'm hoping cleaning up my slap technique will alleviate the issue. can anyone recommend a good vdeo?

[BottomHeavyKate]

It really depends on your style of slap. Are you just bouncing your thumb off the strings or are you slapping 'through' the string? Bouncing off - I have found - kills a lot of my low end.

[NHLfan2010]

Fix your technique...I have the same problem :faceplam:

[bnyswonger]

I solve the problem by not slapping.

[j powell]

 

It really depends on your style of slap. Are you just bouncing your thumb off the strings or are you slapping 'through' the string? Bouncing off - I have found - kills a lot of my low end.

 

 

i'm definitely bouncing off...i picked up a video last night, we'll see if fixing that helps any...

[j powell]

I solve the problem by not slapping.

 

 

i suggested that already, it was a no-go unfortunately...

[perrydabassman]

I solve the problem by not slapping.

 

DING, DING, DING, DING, DING, DING, DING,DING........ One, I hate using compressors, because I play alot of nuance type stuff is some of the songs we play, and I use my attack to control volume.

[wades_keys]

 

I hate using compressors, because I play alot of nuance type stuff is some of the songs we play, and I use my attack to control volume.

 

Yeah, I'm that way too.

 

But last night I went and saw my old classic rock band with their new bass player.

 

He was running some kind of trace-elliot head with a built in compressor, and his tone was rock solid and consistent the whole night. But then again, they play big rock stuff.

 

Still, it's tempting for me to do that - or at the very least to work even harder on getting a consistent solid tone without using a compressor.

 

Dude had a real primitive fret hand technique - reminded me of Rocco - but his right hand was rock solid and strong, very consistent and solid.

 

He sent my ass to the backporch/woodshed for a few hours last night.

[catphish]

One, I hate using compressors, because I play alot of nuance type stuff is some of the songs we play, and I use my attack to control volume.

 

No doubt that for this purpose, compressors are a crutch for bad technique. Some of us need crutches.

[Mogwix]

No doubt that for this purpose, compressors are a crutch for bad technique. Some of us need crutches.

Well, for me, the compressor is just protection really. It's not usually doing anything until I really start to dig in, and it's smoothing out the peaks when I'm playing slap. I try to be as nice as I can to sound guys, since I'm on the other side of the board more than I'm on stage

[perrydabassman]

Well, for me, the compressor is just protection really. It's not usually doing anything until I really start to dig in, and it's smoothing out the peaks when I'm playing slap. I try to be as nice as I can to sound guys, since I'm on the other side of the board more than I'm on stage

 

AHHHHH, I was never a big fan of rubbers either.....