Adenosine
Member
What gauge strings is he using?
You'll find the biggest problem will be loose string rattle/hitting pickups noise
You'll find the biggest problem will be loose string rattle/hitting pickups noise
Low F Tuning on Bass
- Thread starter NSGUITAR
- Start date
I'd personally string the bass with a slightly lighter gauge than normal (say .100 for 34" or .95 for 35") and tune up a semitone to F. It's not worth trying to tune down an octave to F, it'll sound like undefined mush.
StefTD
Member
the only bass I've ever saw that I would use in that tuning would be the Warwick Dark Lord,
it's designed for F# I think, comes with a 0.175 string...but it will still be pretty hard to get
a good sound out of it. Had the chance to try the Dark Lord once, with new strings and a
good setup through a TecAmp BadBull into an 4x10 cabinet, played it with a pick next to the
bridge and it was still pretty hard to actually here the lowest note.
it's designed for F# I think, comes with a 0.175 string...but it will still be pretty hard to get
a good sound out of it. Had the chance to try the Dark Lord once, with new strings and a
good setup through a TecAmp BadBull into an 4x10 cabinet, played it with a pick next to the
bridge and it was still pretty hard to actually here the lowest note.
DeclanWhite
Senior Member
meshuggahs live bass tone was amazing when i saw them, and i was suprised it wasnt mush, makes sense now haha
Harry Hughes
âââ¬â¬
- Apr 25, 2009
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what tuning is the new acacia strain album in? that's low as hell, but sounds pretty tight?
thanks,
thanks,
ze kink
THE BLACK WIZARDS
Just forget about the fundamental. I've heard stuff with the bass as low as D0 (the string gauge was INSANE though) and it sounded fine for what it was. Obviously it's role is quite different than that of a standard bass, and hopefully the bassist also realizes that. You can't really play any fast stuff without it sounding like a total mess, but those brown note rumbles can sound quite good if he knows what he's doing. E.g. playing in the same octave as the guitarists for stuff that's picked faster and going for the lower octave grooves when appropriate.
midget donkeys
Member
- Jan 11, 2007
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I agree, I saw them about 10 years ago or so and they sounded like 10,000 lbs. It was so massive it was crazy.
The Unavoidable
jättebög
PhilR
Studio Scapegoat
To the best of my knowledge in Meshuggah the bass is tuned to the same octave as the guitars.
Rotosound make a .175 gauge bass string designed for insanely low tuning. That must be like playing on a fucking tent spike.....
Rotosound make a .175 gauge bass string designed for insanely low tuning. That must be like playing on a fucking tent spike.....
RedDog
Humanoid typhoon
if you can at all.
- Oct 26, 2009
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So, I ended up using a real bass rig for this, and it took on the tuning much better! I'm blending a processed DI with a few amp/mic tracks and it's sounding huge and competent.
The bassist is using a 192 gauge string!!!!!!! I've never even heard of something that thick.. It's like the size of my finger.
I can show any clips YET, but once the band clears everything up with the label/gets everything in writing I'll let you know who I'm workin with.
The bassist is using a 192 gauge string!!!!!!! I've never even heard of something that thick.. It's like the size of my finger.
I can show any clips YET, but once the band clears everything up with the label/gets everything in writing I'll let you know who I'm workin with.
PhilR
Studio Scapegoat
Fitting those massive bass strings must be a mission all by itself. I used to use .130 gauge and even that would get jammed in the bridge of my 5 stringer sometimes. On my old 4 stringer I had to actually drill the bridge to enlarge the hole. A .175 gauge would never fit a standard bass bridge...
- Oct 26, 2009
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Well, it's a 6 string bass, so I'd assume it BARELY fit in there..
I know that they had to file the nut though so it would fit into the groove haha.
I play a 4 string ernie ball sting ray with warwick dark thrones .175 guage strings tuned EAEA i use a sans amp gt2 pedal running into an sans amp rbi rack playing out a mesa boogie big block 750 with 1 - 4*10 and 1 - 16 live and just di the rack and pedal and use amplitude ampeg classic for recording.
I have no issues with audiability loss of tone or attack even at speed the secret is using the distortion to increase the lower frequencies and clean out your mids as that is where your mud will be.
I have no issues with audiability loss of tone or attack even at speed the secret is using the distortion to increase the lower frequencies and clean out your mids as that is where your mud will be.
Sloan
Sounds like shit!
FUCK.
oh well. my input is to highpass the bass and do your sub lows with a synth. keep it tiiiight
oh well. my input is to highpass the bass and do your sub lows with a synth. keep it tiiiight
BLUElightCory
Member
Just tune up to F, it's not worth the trouble to tune down to the low F, especially since it's going to sound worse. Lower is not heavier in this case.
Most peoples' speakers can't reproduce 22Hz. It's hard to hear. It's almost impossible to accurately tune it. It'll sound flubby and mushy and eat up a ton of space in your mix, without providing much benefit.
Most peoples' speakers can't reproduce 22Hz. It's hard to hear. It's almost impossible to accurately tune it. It'll sound flubby and mushy and eat up a ton of space in your mix, without providing much benefit.
TheWinterSnow
Den Mørke Natt
Here is a concept, how about just tuning the Low F up an octave and tune the rest of the bass normally (along the lines of banjo tuning), so it will be something like FBEAD. That way you keep all the low end up until B and everything lower gets a nice octave up treatment. The higher F could serve as a way that the bassist can exactly double what the guitars are playing without needing to transpose (and in some cases depending on the riff, can lead to physically impossible fingerings).
