egervari
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What is the normal freq. distribution for a bass guitar?
What is the normal freq. distribution for a bass guitar? On a bass recording I've been mucking around with for the last few days, my EQ graph is saying that between 0-250hz, the curve peaks to 9db at 80hz. It's all very high db. At around the 250hz mark, everything is way below 0db. There are some peaks around the 500 and 800hz areas at -3 db, but mostly, it's all between -6 to -18db past 250hz. The signal completely dies at 2k. I REALLY have to make a boost to get the signal past that. Is this an uneven signal, even for bass guitar? I find that if I boost/cut in 6 areas, I can make a somewhat more balanced curve. The tone is better, but the quality is crap because the EQing distorts the sound. I find that I have to make -16db cuts and +9db boosts in various areas just to get a more correct 'tone' that matches an album (quality thrown to the wind). However, the dry tone is so muddy, it's completely unusable. Help? :)
post edited by egervari - 2008/12/17 09:35:37
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bitflipper
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RE: What is the normal freq. distribution for a bass guitar?
2008/12/17 12:32:51
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No, that doesn't sound too unusual. The spectrum for a bass guitar varies greatly depending on the instrument, amp, mic and playing style. If you have nothing happening above 2kHz, that's just the way the guitar was played and recorded. Maybe the strings were overdue for replacement. Maybe the wrong type of mic was used. And maybe the performer rolled it off intentionally.
Usually, bass does not require radical equalization. Take a little off down low (< 60Hz) if it's clashing with the kick drum, boost a little in the low mids to bring out the harmonics, maybe boost a little (or a lot) in the midrange if it's a funky slap style. But it's rare for any boost or cut to be over 6db.
It sounds like you're just not happy with the bass sound you're working with, and EQ might not get you there. At some point you have to ask yourself if it makes sense to re-record the part with a different setup and/or player, or even substitute a sampled bass if you just can't get what you want.
 All else is in doubt, so this is the truth I cling to. My Stuff
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wogg
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RE: What is the normal freq. distribution for a bass guitar?
2008/12/18 17:05:16
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However, the dry tone is so muddy, it's completely unusable. If the original tone is really that bad, you may have to face re-recording the tracks. Also, don't get hung up on the spectrum too much... ear's and mix placement are better. How was the track recorded in the first place?
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jimmyman
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RE: What is the normal freq. distribution for a bass guitar?
2008/12/18 21:08:55
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A Bass guitars basic frequencies are to about 250 he. However it gets
much more complex than that. Lets say your playing your bass and it
sounds "so sweet" But in "a" mix it don’t sound so great.
Alone everything’s fine right? Boy I can relate to that! Well without
getting into physics here is what I do. I compress from about 100 to
300 hertz. This keeps those frequencies in without being in competition
with other instruments. (multi band comping)
From 100 hz down that sound for a bass is a "must" It doesn't compete
as much as 100hz up in a mix. So if you comp the (whole bass) you cut
100 down too!
You can put some nice snap in a bass at 3k so does this make sense?
Perceived sound. This is explainable but I won't get into this for now.
Actuality guitar is my instrument but do a lot of mixing.
Even guitars get mushy on the low end without treatment.
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jacktheexcynic
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RE: What is the normal freq. distribution for a bass guitar?
2008/12/18 21:25:17
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might want to make sure other instruments aren't stepping on the bass. you are listening to the whole mix while mixing right? i wouldn't say off hand that this or that is too much EQ for a bass. i usually EQ the crap out of the bass to let the kick through (it's just how i like it). but - if you aren't getting the sound you want coming in then why bother with hours of mixing? spend those hours getting the right tone.
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DaveClark
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RE: What is the normal freq. distribution for a bass guitar?
2008/12/19 16:19:59
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Hi egervari, Dave (Bitflipper) posted:
It sounds like you're just not happy with the bass sound you're working with, and EQ might not get you there.
That is my thought, also. By merely plucking a string in a different location, you can easily and completely change all of the amplitudes of all harmonics with respect to one another. To "fix" it with EQ, you would have to address each harmonic individually and correctly with respect to all the others, preferably for every note because the variable plucking motion itself helps to determine the spectrum. Those who suggest trying a different setup, etc. are almost certainly giving you good advice, based on your description. Good luck! Regards, Dave Clark
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kwgm
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RE: What is the normal freq. distribution for a bass guitar?
2008/12/19 20:11:45
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ORIGINAL: egervari
What is the normal freq. distribution for a bass guitar?
On a bass recording I've been mucking around with for the last few days, my EQ graph is saying that between 0-250hz, the curve peaks to 9db at 80hz. It's all very high db.
At around the 250hz mark, everything is way below 0db. There are some peaks around the 500 and 800hz areas at -3 db, but mostly, it's all between -6 to -18db past 250hz.
The signal completely dies at 2k. I REALLY have to make a boost to get the signal past that.
Is this an uneven signal, even for bass guitar? I find that if I boost/cut in 6 areas, I can make a somewhat more balanced curve. The tone is better, but the quality is crap because the EQing distorts the sound. I find that I have to make -16db cuts and +9db boosts in various areas just to get a more correct 'tone' that matches an album (quality thrown to the wind). However, the dry tone is so muddy, it's completely unusable.
Help? :)
That's why it's called a bass. Please don't think that the whole point of EQ is to achieve a flat freq. response. Every kind of instrument has it's own tonal characteristics, and you can't change a snake into a swan, so to speak. Try this -- take one of the peak filters in your eq, and give it a very high Q (or low BW, if your EQ uses bandwidth instead of Q). Then turn the gain up +6 or +12db, and listen the bass signal while slowly panning the center freq. of that filter between 50 and 2500 Hz. This way you'll learn the frequency components of the various sounds that make up the bass instrument. Also, try to identify the fundamental freq. and the harmonics or partials that make up the bass timbre. So, when you do this experiment, play the same note. (Simplifies finding harmonics, which are multiples of the fundamental). Remember that A4 = 440 hz.
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