| Author
|
The Final Challenge -Bass Sounds!?!?!
|
mcmasterbates
Started Topics :
1
Posts :
24
Posted : Sep 1, 2010 03:57:47
|
Ok, here's the deal, IMHO I've got lots of things down (making drum loops, synth programmming, play guitar, know about eq, comp's etc) except for bass!! Here's some history:
I've been playing and producing EDM (incl. psy-trance) for fucking 10 years now, and I STILL can't get the bass sounds down. It AIN'T about the gear as I've got Fireface 400, MacPro and Genelec's. I'm so hopeless about this that I'm ready to sell my shit and fucking forget about music forever. I currently have:
Nord Lead 2x
Roland SH-101
Spectrasonics Trilian
Ableton Live 8 Suite
I have other stuff too, but even ONE of these should be enough to make great fucking bass sounds. Now the 101 is IMHO the best, but it's not velocity sensitive so makes it a little limiting. And, BEFORE anyone tells me I'm lazy or sumshit, trust me I've been twisting the fucking knobs, tried layering 2 or more sounds together, eq'ing those, separating high, lower and sub -bass sounds, I've tried tweaking the shit out of it all, I've looked at countless tutorials online, even the presets in Trilian sound crap to me, there's isn't one I can use, what is the secret people??? Please someone help me out, I'm so fucking desperate and I don't need anymore shit in my face so please leave the "it's cos you suck comments" out.
Why bass- why??!!?
* cries and starts wiring up the noose * |
|
|
moondoggy
Started Topics :
8
Posts :
175
Posted : Sep 1, 2010 04:36
|
|
try making a deal with the devil?? |
|
|
|
Colin OOOD
Moderator
Started Topics :
95
Posts :
5380
Posted : Sep 1, 2010 04:40
|
The best bass sounds are often the simplest. You can make a killer bass sound in Trillian using the SH101 sawtooth waveform, a 24dB/oct filter, one envelope and two bands of EQ. For what it's worth, this is how many of OOOD's recent basslines have been made. Alternatively you could go straight for the analog SH101; you have a MIDI-CV converter to sequence it with? You can map velocity to eg. filter frequency this way...
However, if every single preset in the best bass synth out there sounds crap to you, then I would suggest looking elsewhere as to the source of your problems. Is your room roughly cubical? Does it perhaps need some kind of treatment to even out the low-frequency response? Where are your monitors situated within the room, and what are they standing on? Do you have a sub? Where is it, and how much care did you take in getting the level/phase right on it?
Hopefully the knowledge that it IS possible using the equipment you have will be the inspiration you need to persevere. Bass isn't easy; it took me quite a while and a few intensively focussed sessions to start cracking it. What got me most of the way there was a solid weekend with Cubase and Sub 6's "Pounding" track.
 Mastering - http://mastering.OOOD.net :: www.is.gd/mastering
OOOD 5th album 'You Think You Are' - www.is.gd/tobuyoood :: www.OOOD.net
www.facebook.com/OOOD.music :: www.soundcloud.com/oood
Contact for bookings/mastering - colin@oood.net |
|
|
|
PoM
IsraTrance Full Member
Started Topics :
162
Posts :
8087
Posted : Sep 1, 2010 04:56
|
maybe you are after a specific sound? or too much perfectionist ?
try to start a track with the intro and not the beat ,psytrance kick bass combo is very hard to get it sound right on their own but with some other sounds on top it s "hiden" (not really a solution but even on some good sounding tracks the kick bass sux in solo)
fast tempo , short notes , make it very hard ,with basslines and kicks often less is more imo .
in my experience many synths are too bright and will need more equing (harmonics too loud in the medium ), i would avoid these cause it make more trouble to get a well balanced sound or you have to use low notes and/or more processing. |
|
|
|
PoM
IsraTrance Full Member
Started Topics :
162
Posts :
8087
Posted : Sep 1, 2010 05:45
|
|
if you are after full on bassline with the nord and the sh101 you need to sample them.i would use trilian and find a saw you like and make a preset (many can work),you could make a bassline wihtout almost no eq and no other processing ,the problem might be your room ,change your listening position and monitors place maybe? |
|
|
|
vipal
IsraTrance Full Member
Started Topics :
123
Posts :
1397
Posted : Sep 1, 2010 08:36
|
|
no matter how embarassing it might feel, post a part of a track you made. feedback on something you did might speed up the learning. and try also the dvd abt the art of making psytrance, a kind of ok bassline is guaranteed the result if you follow the video. |
|
|
|
Upavas
Upavas
Started Topics :
150
Posts :
3315
Posted : Sep 1, 2010 12:58
|
Trillian is what everyone says, and I am patiently saving, for now I use either Blue, or Alien 303.
Bass took me by far the longest, and only with tips and tricks from friends, a very intense year of school + a very patient read of "the mother of all Basslines" and a lot of practice did I get anywhere.
Room treatment is indeed equally important, my room could definitely use some, saving up patiently for that one too. Your situation does sound like your room has a bad standing wave or something. Did you try in a different place/room?
For now I would suggest to just kick back from it all for a day or two or however long you need and then get back to it. Don't just sell all your toys, I wouldn't .
However, if you want to sell your trillian, gimme a shout 
Upavas - Here And Now (Sangoma Rec.) new EP out Oct.29th, get it here:
http://timecode.bandcamp.com
http://upavas.com
http://soundcloud.com/upavas-1/ |
|
|
|
mcmasterbates
Started Topics :
1
Posts :
24
Posted : Sep 2, 2010 01:57
|
Thanks for the support people! Had a bad night yesterday, spent 5 hours trying to get the bass sound right on a track that otherwise exactly to my liking but I just couldn't get it goin'!
It was a mini-meltdown. I think the problem is that it's hard to make a bass sound sound interesting. I always end up with dull and lifeless bass sounds which ruin an otherwise fine track.
I have done some amateur room treatment. Maybe I'm suffering from "this can't be good enough" -syndrome. Like, I can't even re-create sounds that I like on records by trying to reverse engineer them and stuff. I guess I still need to put more and more work into it. And then put in some more work. It's just frustrating because I feel that is the ONLY missing link, and I want to freakin' crack it cos I'm getting old and shit you know!
Thanks again, I think what I'll do is spend more time in Trilian starting up with raw waveforms and forgetting about the presets for now.
Cos it's not like I need 20 good bass sounds, I just need like one or two and presto!
Peace |
|
|
|
Upavas
Upavas
Started Topics :
150
Posts :
3315
Posted : Sep 2, 2010 02:51
|
|
willsanquil
IsraTrance Full Member
Started Topics :
93
Posts :
2822
Posted : Sep 2, 2010 06:14
|
Quote:
|
On 2010-09-02 01:57, mcmasterbates wrote:
Thanks for the support people! Had a bad night yesterday, spent 5 hours trying to get the bass sound right on a track that otherwise exactly to my liking but I just couldn't get it goin'!
It was a mini-meltdown. I think the problem is that it's hard to make a bass sound sound interesting. I always end up with dull and lifeless bass sounds which ruin an otherwise fine track.
I have done some amateur room treatment. Maybe I'm suffering from "this can't be good enough" -syndrome. Like, I can't even re-create sounds that I like on records by trying to reverse engineer them and stuff. I guess I still need to put more and more work into it. And then put in some more work. It's just frustrating because I feel that is the ONLY missing link, and I want to freakin' crack it cos I'm getting old and shit you know!
Thanks again, I think what I'll do is spend more time in Trilian starting up with raw waveforms and forgetting about the presets for now.
Cos it's not like I need 20 good bass sounds, I just need like one or two and presto!
Peace
|
|
You are aware that re-creating a sound from someone elses work is one of the most frustratingly mind-destroying things you can try to do, right?
Seriously - don't beat yourself up over that. There are plenty of things to beat yourself up over but that one is just masochistic - take the A/B comparison between tracks or the recreation of a track as practice, and that only. Otherwise you are bound to spend hours and hours tweaking and just getting more frustrated for no real gain.
If you want to make an apple pie from scratch...you must first invent the universe
www.soundcloud.com/tasp
www.soundcloud.com/kinematic-records |
|
|
|
mcmasterbates
Started Topics :
1
Posts :
24
Posted : Sep 2, 2010 11:45
|
Quote:
|
On 2010-09-02 02:51, Upavas wrote:
How old?
|
|
3-fkn-2! |
|
|
|
Domi
IsraTrance Junior Member
Started Topics :
36
Posts :
444
Posted : Sep 2, 2010 17:39
|
|
Pagan
Started Topics :
5
Posts :
98
Posted : Sep 2, 2010 17:48
|
I know it sounds odd, but recently I've been getting superb results from my bass....without using vsts.
These days I just use FL's 3xOsc's, usually 2-3 of them, and then its just a question of the right ADSR envelopes and cutoff filters(the 3xOSC filters, not externer filters).
www.soundcloud.com/za-pagan
Its beer appreciation month.
Send me beer...I'll appreciate it. |
|
|
|
kabbalisticvillage
IsraTrance Senior Member
Started Topics :
231
Posts :
611
Posted : Sep 2, 2010 18:50
|
|
i use Alien303 and Sylenth and have no problem.........what notes r u placing ur bass on? |
|
|
|
mcmasterbates
Started Topics :
1
Posts :
24
Posted : Sep 2, 2010 22:43
|
Quote:
|
On 2010-09-02 18:50, kabbalisticvillage wrote:
i use Alien303 and Sylenth and have no problem.........what notes r u placing ur bass on?
|
|
It's not about note placement. I know where to put them to make them groove, just having trouble with the tone/timbre of the notes.
Does "have no problem" in ur case mean: "I just got back from a world tour"?? |
|
|
|
