Low tuned 5 string Bass..

[-Loco-]

I did a search on threads and came across one titled 'Recording low tuned bass..' it helped a bit but i still have some issues.

I'm recording in GDGCFAD on my 7 string and want the bass to be tuned with the low G too.. i find that having the bass playing on the same string fills in more mix 'gaps' and gives more of an emphasis and punch but as this thread states, tuning to a Low G on a 5 is like 24Hz and almost pointless to record with.

I tried recording with the octave above except it only provides more of a low-mid boost so in the mix even with compression some notes are ALOT louder than others even though they are hit the same and I cant really get the punch it just sounds really woofy.

Any tips?


p.s there's a track here: www.myspace.com/sectioneduk that was recorded with the subdub patch in gearbox tell me if you think the bass seems controlled in that or not

 

[korpse pop]

Any tips?

Tune higher

 

[NoDestiny]

what strings are you using on that bass? I have a bass set with a .145 to G# and it plays it very well.... fundamental frequency is in the mid-upper 20's Hz, BUT there is still a lot of action going on above that.

 

[-Loco-]

well we havent tried a higher gauge yet but we suspected that we'd need a .165 for the G. Can you post any clips?

 

[Suicide_As_Alibi]

I tried recording with the octave above except it only provides more of a low-mid boost so in the mix even with compression some notes are ALOT louder than others even though they are hit the same and I cant really get the punch it just sounds really woofy.

It will sound woofy because some of the fundamentals are right in the woof zone - in the octave below the guitar your into sub-bass; you've gone past woof and into rumble.

If you really have to have the low G, record an octave up then pitch-shift it an octave down. Pick-noise etc. isn't such a problem on bass (and if it is, you can EQ it out more easily), and you can mix the two octaves to taste.

Honestly though, it's pointless - if you tune the bass an octave lower than the guitars, 90% of what you're hearing is the same octave as the guitars. It's not even because the notes are right at the edge of human hearing; it's because there's not a consumer speaker in the world that puts out anything that low. Even if you've got a sub, you're adding more rumble than actual tone - and you're mixing something that most of the people hearing it won't be able to appreciate (as most people don't have subs).

Steve

 

[egan.]

Just like with low tuned guitars, you really have to shift your emphasis to the midrange and at least the first order harmonic. Obviously enriching the harmonics with distortion will help this.
Others will probably disagree but I've never personally found a bass that held up below A and they all sound better in standard.