Kick & Bass in this track...

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From what I've picked up, I've sort of got the idea that (rightly or wrongly) when mixing your kick and bass, one has to give way for the other. Now, in this track, the kick and bass both seem to be really prominent in the low end, and I was wondering if anyone could help me with how to achieve this in my own productions? Kick and bass are something that I really struggle with, and I feel that it is greatly hindering my progress. Any assistance would be greatly appreciated.
Here is the track:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lUgqGPpmkc4

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So here's an effort I've just put together. I haven't tried to copy the original track too closely. I'm just practising at the moment. I know there's nothing really going on, but I want help with the kick and bass exclusively. I'm ok with everything else. So, where am I going wrong with this? My bass sounds awful and my kick sounds weak, yet this is the absolute best I can get both of them.
Here it is...
https://soundcloud.com/rayolivermusic/new-2

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Am I posting in the wrong part of the forum or something? Over 70 views and no replies.

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Hey,

I've been known to struggle with kick and bass combos for 11 years now!
It's never easy to get right.

In this case the kick doesn't appear to be all that meaty - it needn't be because of the massive sine bass sound.

Also, the bass and kick don't seem to coincide on the higher note, it's like the bass is just about a 16th note late. That technique can help clean up the low end of a rhytmh track immensely.

Marco :)

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Thanks a lot for your advice. Ill try playing with the bass pattern when I get home. Do you have any advice on adding some weight to the kick? And also, how does the bass sound?

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Oh - I think I overlooked that soundcloud thing. I was describing the youtube video - which is to say: 16th note late is good, and kicks needn't be meaty and massive if the bass does the job.

The soundcloud sample doesn't sound bad - I'd try the offset trick for more loudness/impact.

Marco :)

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Thanks for your help.
Would you say the bass in the Youtube video was just a simple sine wave? I cant seem to get anywhere near it. Mine seems to sound so thin compared to it. I've tried EQ, saturation, compression. Nothing seems to be doing the trick!!

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OK so I'm listening on a pair of less than decent speakers (they have a nice enough bass though) and I can't find much of a difference a/b-ing the bass in your soundcloud sample with the youtube track.

I definitely think it's a sine wave or something amounting to one (eg. heavily filtered saw wave)

Obviously the youtube track has that percussion/crowd thing going on and a less techno-sounding kick drum.

The kick drum also appears to be softer than the one your sequence. It's all about relative loudness!

Marco :)

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that's another thing, where the hell do you get those crowd noises like the one in that track? i hear them in so many tech house tracks. can never seem to find any good ones though. the only ones i seem to find are of crowds cheering, stuff like that.

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Well it needn't be one crowd sample - maybe the producers went to great pains to piece together the right atmo for their track from any number of sources (including their own field recordings), glueing it together/processing it beyond recognition with effects.

Maybe they were just in the right place at the right time with their smartphones.

The possibilities of digital recording are endless. One tends to forget about that when stuck in a rut.

Marco :D

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Just cut out 2 or three dB with a sharp Q where the parts are at their strongest. So, if the bass overlaps with the kick, do a sharp cut where the kick is at it's best and vice versa. But the best thing to do is not let the bass wonder down near the kick, but it depends on the genre. Also, if the bass is pretty low, don't make your kick boomy and 808-ish. Keep it higher and shorter. Low bass and long and low kicks do not mix.

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