How do you dial in a Dub bass tone?

[max cooper]

I've been working on getting this bass sound for a couple of days. You know, really sub-sonic, no highs...

The closest I've come is thru multi-band compression.

Just wondering how you guys get there.

[Blast9]

Would be worth trying a lo pass filter or resonant filter (eg bass synth pedal) between bass and amp plus 8 x 10 cab.

That can be pretty outrageous.

OR track the bass with plenty of lows and scoop out mids, turn tone knob down/off and filter in the DAW (I've used the logic filter before... That can get you into that territory no problems).

**** NECK PICKUP ****

[jdg]

also, play with your thumb.

[PRobb]

Flatwound strings. Preferably old and heavy gauge. On a P bass.

[Renaud Charlier]

my favourite Dub bass sounds:

- E bass with octaver pedal recorded through DI+ good valve preamp + urei 1176

- Minimoog with the right bass patch (LPF is the key! - adjust it to taste) through DI+ good valve preamp + urei 1176

...and almost no eq needed...

[axtrak]

Try a Sherman Filterbank or a moogerfooger Filter.

Sometimes i'll use a UA 6176 with 70Hz@+9 and 4.5KHZ@-9 followed by some heavy compression

[lozion]

All of the above + A bass player who knows what Dub is...
Its all in the playing. Listen to Robbie Shakespeare for example.
Flatwound + neck pick-up, tone closed, definitely if looking for organic type Dub.
Here is an example I just did...
Lo pass set to 6K and a huge dip around 1.6k to kill the fingertip sound.





In Dub we trust.

[woodyP]

From my experiences, I used Software: Rvox + Rcompressor(2-2.5dB of compression
and no more than 3:0 Ratio plus medium attack, medium release) unless if i really need
hardware sound then Manley VoxBox and/or Fatso. Hope this can help. Good luck

[Blast9]

.... And don't forget to play near the neck too!

[Methlab]

Im a huge dub lover, and as a bass player i love getting that sound right.

I'd use a Fender Jazz with flatwounds. Roll off the treble (tone knob) entirely. You get the sound at the source especially in dub. This sound came along way back in the day before any digital processing was available, and also the studios this music was made in were not very high tech, due to the lower economy of that region.

You can use a DI like a bassdriver. What they did was put foam under the strings on the bridge to enhance low end even more. You can do that, and also use the bass driver with the presence and treble cut to taste, and get some extra boom with the bass knob.

Also, a fast attack on the compressor can sometimes work and knock off the front atack of the note a little, further dulling the sound.

[Flymax]

dbx 120
stike stike stike

[max cooper]

Cool. Already playing flatwounds on a '51 reissue P-Bass with my thumb and third finger.

Plenty o' Sly and Robbie, too.

Thanks for the tips. I'll work these in tonight.

[max cooper]

Originally Posted by Methlab

Also, a fast attack on the compressor can sometimes work and knock off the front atack of the note a little, further dulling the sound.

Good point. I find that bringing the comp threshold waaay down but with less than 2 dB of GR and a looong release is a good way to get the notes to hold.

Also, counter intuitively, it seems that you can get the low end bigger by not really boosting anything, just cutting the highs. I think once you boost any low freqs, you can't turn the bass up as much in the mix.

I'm tempted to use this bass sound all the time since it leaves the other stuff more room in the mix.

Also noticed that I like the kick to sound "cardboard boxy" with this kind of bass tone.

Originally Posted by Blast9

.... And don't forget to play near the neck too!

Yeah, and it seems that you really have to watch jumping strings because you'll lose the size on the smaller ones.

Playing up high on the E-string is nice. At that point the string is really fat relative to the fret distance.

[Flymax]

Hey Max,
You can also try a pitch shift plug in and create an octave down..blending to taste...
..Pete

[Volodia]

If you're on PT : duplicate the bass track . insert filterbank F2 on the dup . lo pass at 60 hz with resonance (play with that too) . check phase to hear what sounds best (often flipped phase) . blend to taste . instant sub .

[cdog]

Its true a lot of it comes from the playing style and amp setup if any.

Then just a bit of filtering and compression should get you there.

Bill Laswell has one of the best dub bass tones on the planet.

[Marlowe]

The best advice I ever heard regarding this (probably from around here) was to CRANK the low end and pull back the high end a bit. I tried this on a 1604 and it worked perfectly. I decreased the high about a quarter turn and cranked the lows all the way. This give you that wide, deep sound that doesn't conflict with any high end info.

I'd also agree with using flatwounds.

[MarkTAW]

First you have to choose the right bass for the job. There's no point in trying to find a frequency that isn't really there to begin with. I'm not going to say "choose a this bass or a that bass" it's just a matter of trying a few out & seeing what has that deep fundamental - it could be a P or a J or even a Music Man or one of those telecaster basses with that pickup right at the neck. You're really just looking for the right sound to come out of when you plug it in to the amp.

Then I'd put flats on (or leave my nice, dead strings on) & stick some foam under the bridge. Just the kind of stuff they sell to put in your windows when you have an air conditioner to prevent a draft from coming in through the gap between the two windows. One strip of that and you should be able to cut any thickness (both height & width) you find suits you. Just what do you think the ashtray on old Fenders was for? Foam, though it was intended to give a more upright sound than a dub sound at the time. Some early Music Man bridges have four knobs with foam on them you could use to dial in the right amount of deadness. Really, any foam will do. You can even experiment with other materials you happen to have lying around the studio - an old t-shirt you can cut/fold into the right height, for example. Duct tape, guitar straps, anything.

I wouldn't worry about playing up near the neck, that tends to get you a wildly round tone as you overexcite the strings by hitting them towards the center where they vibrate the most. I've always found that to be somewhat indistinct and difficult to use.

Whether or not you do any of the above (who has money to spend on new basses & strings?), you can still get a nice dub sound by playing with your thumb and/or pick (foam is better - they do have foam picks. I believe Carol Kaye used them a lot in her 60's session work) and palm muting. The whole point of the foam, flatwounds, palm muting, etc. is to deaden the sound & give you a sort of natural compression where the string simply can't vibrate as wildly as it could otherwise & killing the overtones.

Then choose the right amp & settings on the amp, again it's just a matter of plugging it in, turning a few knobs & seeing what comes out.

Then worry about the EQ and the outboard gear - 90% of which (including the amp) can be done to an already recorded track anyway, so they're the least important ingredients.

[tuflek]

To add to all things listed above,try playing with the very light touch,the sound will be bigger.