Planning Bass

 Hi!

In this post, I'm going to plan the recording of the bass for my track! 

In "Glory Box" and similar songs mentioned in my last post, the basslines were often looped and reinforced by synth sub-bass to reinforce the low end and add a rhythmic pulse to it. When recording the bass, I want it to be played fingerstyle rather than with a pick, as it produces a more solid, sustained sound that blends well with a more melancholic style, such as Portishead. The bass in "Glory Box" is based on the E minor to G major progression and descends in progression, which reinforces the melancholic atmosphere, as described better by Hein on his website. The tone is thick but not too boomy, leading me to think the EQ is more emphasised in the lower mids to give it a warmer and vintage, tape-era feel. There is also subtle tape saturation (although I can probably add that post-production), gentle compression, and not much reverb at all - a lot of the space in the mix comes from the other instrumentation and vocals. 

Keeping this all in mind, I plan on recording the bass through a DI box, with a Sennheiser E602 and an AT2020 (used as a room mic). I plan to blend the AT2020 around 15%, E602 around 55% and DI box 30% in the mix.

E602 Positioning:

• Off-axis
• Angled 30-45 degrees from the cone
• Around 3 inches from the amp

Why?

• Vintage tone
• Less direct attack
• More warmth and roundness
• Less 'presence'
• tape-era sound
• Close mic for a more direct sound

AT2020 Positioning:

• Around 4 feet back from amp
• Around chest height

Why?

• Capture ambience
• Adds space and reverb from the room
• More lo-fi feel

DI Box - Why?

• Clean and full low-end
• Punch, clarity and presence in the mix

Below is a photo of the setup I plan to use to record the bass. The blue lines indicate an XLR cable, and the purple lines indicate a jack cable. I will plug the bass into the input of the DI Box and route the amp from the DI Box through the "Link" output. I will then send an XLR cable from the DI Box main output to the Outboard. The signal from the amp will be picked up from the close mic and the room mic.

Anyways, that's about everything I have to say for the bass recording. I'm excited to see the outcome!

See you soon.

-D.