KVR Audio

FuzzyKeys · Post by **FuzzyKeys** » Sat Jul 03, 2010 9:03 am

I'm curious to see what people are using for bass guitar processing and even more interested to hear their thoughts on the subject.

There are definitely some great bass guitar amp simulators out there but, a bassist myself, I very rarely go for an in-the-box approach to getting a good tone that sits well in the mix and forego amp simulators entirely just as often as or more frequently than I use them. At the very least, I use external compression, EQ, saturation, cabinet IR convolution, etc. and treat SVX and VBA as preamp front-ends.

Some compressors I've found particularly good for bass:
- Voxengo Crunchessor as a character compressor
- Fabfilter Pro-C for more precise dynamic sculpting

Character EQ's:
- Nomad Factory Pulse-Tec
- Nomad Factory British NEQ-1970
- Stillwell VibeEQ

Cabinet IR's:
- Redwirez Hartke 4.5XL for punchier funkier material and their SVT 810 for rock and more commercial material

Others:
- URS Saturation
- BBE Sonic Maximizer OR Harmonic Maximizer on light settings on occasion and depending on the material

redshift factor · Post by **redshift factor** » Sat Jul 03, 2010 9:41 am

I just plug my bass into my instrument input and go in straight to AmpliTube 3 (loaded with Ampeg SVX and Fender). I used to use Ampeg SVX for bass, but since AT3, I've more often than not reached for one of the new bass models they added. I usually just build the EQ and comp into my .at3p preset. If I want additional 'character' I'll use a T-RackS single for channel EQ and compression. People say they're as good as Waves and UAD.

Waker · Post by **Waker** » Sat Jul 03, 2010 9:58 am

Uad la2a + Dimension-D (on a send) for more mellow bass. Sometimes CE-1 for that new order sound. 33609 is good for a more agressive sound. A third option is the Abbey road TG12413.

Pultec variations are a good choice for EQ, althought I've been digging the UAD Harrison lately. I use envelope filters more and more in subtle ways. It's great to add some life into the sound without going for that Phat funk sound.

SVX is great IMO for that grunt sound. Decapitator can make the bass become larger than life. Sometimes it's too much. L6 Gearbox has some good alternatives, if you don't want the Ampeg vibe. I dig their Trace Eliot variation.

Recording bass is not hard. You just need a good DI. I split the signal via a Valvulator, and track a Ampeg SVT with a Heil PR30. Bass is a great instrument and you can do a lot to make a great sound. I've had lots of fun with MFM2 on bass tracks lately.

waiting man · Post by **waiting man** » Sat Jul 03, 2010 11:04 am

at home my Jazz goes into ReallyNicePreamp (hi-z and d.i.) and then straight to the box.
then:
if necessary, few prefx in stompie fashion, Liquid collapsed to mono for that huge flange, or NaiveLPF for enveloping, BrassBuster for melting. a little of ampeg's compressor might help. (specially with my dodgy fingering)

amps: ampeg svx's svt4 for that mid-growling-not-too-modern-nor-bright-slapping.
a good alternative is amplitube3's Gallien&Krueger.
I use the IKM amp-sims room. whatever people might say, the room response on headphones while tracking is so good I can feel the amp behind me, placed on the floor.

on post, a touch of 2095LA and then IIEQ.
lots of other processes then, but not track fxs. bussing with BAE nebula eq, Ferric, the legacy Bootsie'e VSD, the free console emu for nebula, IKM's vintage 670.

I got also a EH bassmetaphors which is a nice alternative to the RNP for a more controlled, glossier & pop sound. it has a fixed slamming compressor that will instantly annoy any jam partner.

the included distortion is a Stonerock onetrickpony.

oscarb75 · Post by **oscarb75** » Sat Jul 03, 2010 11:08 am

I have tried to record some easy bass tracks on Reaper, plugging the bass directly in the line-in, but the signal is very weak and the quality is low.

Do I really need a DI ?

Do you think I can use a Behringer GDI ( in theory it is a guitar DI ) ?

Can you suggest me a way to improve the signal with a free VST ?

PS: sorry for the OT, but I hope you can help me. Thanks.

sascha · Post by **sascha** » Sat Jul 03, 2010 11:33 am

oscarb75 wrote:I have tried to record some easy bass tracks on Reaper, plugging the bass directly in the line-in, but the signal is very weak and the quality is low.

Do I really need a DI ?

Obviously. Remember that passive PUs from guitar & bass have high-impedance (usually 20k..500kOhms). If you hook them up to a line input (typically 10k), the input acts as a 'load' to the pickup. Result is a dead, muffled & low-level signal.
'Instrument' inputs should have an input impedance of at least 500kOhm, better 1M (there's a rule of thumb in audio electronics saying it should be ~10 times the preceding devices output impedance).

A good & cheap active DI / preamp for Bass (and more) is the ART TubeMP (using the 'studio' version here with my EMU1212m). The basic circuit is solid-state, but the tube helps to round off the spikes; so you get a pretty solid & controllable tone. I like that thing.
What you then apply afterwards depends on your taste. Since I've build myself Vandal, I'm doing more processing now, but in former times I've always used just the straight DI out from my SWR head and never fiddled much with anything but basic EQ and compression.
You can do anything with bass, unless you don't chop off its balls.

RunBeerRun · Post by **RunBeerRun** » Sat Jul 03, 2010 12:15 pm

Straight into amp sim and that's the whole shebang.

Might build a limiter/enhancer plug sometime. Let us thank the lord for fat strings.

Barf · Post by **Barf** » Sat Jul 03, 2010 1:54 pm

I've tried some amp sims and cabinets but in the end I decided to stick to just simple 'clean' chain:
Jazz bass--->old tascam 4 track as pre-amp--->Emu 0404.
Sometimes some compression with Blockfish.

robogone · Post by **robogone** » Sat Jul 03, 2010 2:21 pm

Amp sim, probably some EQ to cut anything I don't want and that's it. I'd rarely try anything else and try to avoid compressors on bass unless I've screwed up the dynamics while playing.

futurefields · Post by **futurefields** » Sat Jul 03, 2010 2:36 pm

Yamaha BB414 > Focusrite Saffire DI > Guitar Rig 4 > Waves SSL E-Channel > URS Saturation

dickiefunk · Post by **dickiefunk** » Sat Jul 03, 2010 3:13 pm

I've been liking :-

1/ DI into Golden Age Projects PRE-73

2/ Stillwell Vibe EQ or Bootsies BootEqmkII ( am planning on trying out IK's Pultec

3/ IK's Fairchild 670 compressor

I only have the bass amp sim built into Guitar Rig 4 Pro and aren't a big fan of it. I've tried the demo of Studio Devils VBA and liked this.
I've recently bought the ReaCabinet IR collection and will try out the Ampeg's that come with this at some point.

sightlessness · Post by **sightlessness** » Sat Jul 03, 2010 4:08 pm

VANDAL is the shit for BASS. AT3 sucks for it (I don't get why people like AT for bass TBH, but that's just me. Don't want to start some discussion, not interested).
Another one that is great is Bass Amp Room.
VANDAL works great also with Scarbee PreBass (a VSTi).

Barf · Post by **Barf** » Sat Jul 03, 2010 7:35 pm

Need for a pre-amp also depends on your bass output I guess, my old Fender Jazz has quite a low output, an modern bass with active pickups would have a much higher output.

michael2 · Post by **michael2** » Sun Jul 04, 2010 4:19 am

bass always seems to be the easiest for me to get a decent tone for some reason. I have been going into my presonus firebox and then direct into either logic 9's bass amp, podfarms arena rock backline or amplitudes ampeg sim. although lately I have decided to experiment a bit more and I bought some flat wound strings and will try running through a nice pre-amp I just got before hitting the firebox.

Hermetech Mastering · Wed Oct 13, 2010 11:59 am

here's how i have been getting a ridiculously cool dub bass tone recently:

spirit steinberger xt-2 bass with stock EMG passive pickups (neck pickup only, tone rolled all the way off) and status black nylon flatwound strings. played over the fretboard, dub stylee.

bass out into avalon u5 d.i. set for max gain (around 30dB to get it up to somewhere near modular synth level), treble cut filter, and EQ curve 3 (slight mid cut).

u5 out into motm moog ladder low pass filter with loads of highs rolled off and slightly overdriven.

filter out into motm class a discrete vca slightly overdriven.

vca out into chandler tg2 d.i. slightly overdriven.

no plugins

the crazy thing is that it already sounds compressed to f**k, but there is no actual compressor in the chain. i think it must be a result of all that overdriven class a circuitry. i could put it through the chandler germanium comps and thermionic culture pullet eq, but i like it as is and don't really think it needs it.

sorry, please forgive my geek out.

Your Bass Guitar Signal Chain?