How to properly distort bass?

ctang · Post by **ctang** » Sat Feb 19, 2011 4:14 am

I have ohmicide, not too sure how to distort my basses properly to sound filthier.

johnny666 · Post by **johnny666** » Sat Feb 19, 2011 4:48 am

Dont add too much distortion just enough so that it is obviously a little more distorted from the original, bounce it out
then do the exact same again with different settings to your taste or what ever.
repeat till satisfied.
Thats Resos method, and it works great for me.
Also add transient designers and bit crushers, even amp emulators to warp it even more.
again Resos method... even add spread and chorus effects to make it seem wider along with reverb.

Phigure · Post by **Phigure** » Sat Feb 19, 2011 5:03 am

i like using tube distortion modeling plugins on my subbasses. not too much, just enough to introduce some nice harmonics and add some warmth

Cyma · Post by **Cyma** » Sat Feb 19, 2011 5:22 am

Proper? Well there are a few ways to skin a cat but...

Distorting is an art. Some are really good at it. If you look at guitar amps and pedals that are famous for distortion and drive a lot of the same principles can be applied to distorting bass. When you distort (clip) anything you end up adding harmonic content to the sound. This can be a good or bad thing but the important part is control. How do you control these new harmonics? Filters and eq. So in a typical cascaded distortion device or fx chain, you might get a good sound by going Synth>filter>distort>filter>distort>filter But, one thing to keep in mind is that a lot of these distortion devices are voiced (using internal filter and eq in a similar setup) to address any excess harmonic content in order to make them sound "fat" or "smooth" or whatever. Kind of the flavor of the device if you will... So then you might be good just chaining a couple distortion devices one right after the other on lighter settings. This will help get you away from the buzzy kinda sound and more towards fatter. There are a few things to keep in mind that are helpful, but in the end most people around here will say "use your ears".

Another very important thing to remember is that bass frequencies will send your distortions devices into clipping much sooner. Experiment with bass and treble cuts pre AND post distortion whenever needed. This is also a reason you'll see a lot of people go for the frequency spitting route. Avoid the flabby shit. Try to use the distortions to add harmonics and use the eq and filter to take away. Exception being natural resonance bumps from filters and whatnot. Pretty sure you'll get to results that you are happier with going this route than if you just slap that one plugin on your bass and crank it...

ctang · Post by **ctang** » Sat Feb 19, 2011 6:24 am

Great advice cyma.

I'm using fl studio 9 and massive. Is this what I should do..

Raw synth from massive > ohmnicide distortion > fruity filter > bitcrusher > fruity filter?

Cyma · Post by **Cyma** » Sat Feb 19, 2011 6:28 am

That's basically the idea. But you can take that a lot further. Try out a different effect in the chain here and there and you are off and running. Save the order as one channel strip and then flip all the effects around so they sound different and save another one and so on. Also try a slow sweeping notch filter in there once in awhile...

ctang · Post by **ctang** » Sat Feb 19, 2011 6:36 am

Cyma what do you think about running a vocoder somewhere in there, I haven't gotten around to playing with it yet but I think it might have some potential to do something cool.

nowaysj · Post by **nowaysj** » Sat Feb 19, 2011 6:42 am

ctang, I appreciate that you are trying to learn how to make this music, but you are asking about matters of taste. Developing your taste is more important than downloading another plugin and following another masterclass.

There are LITERALLY millions of ways to introduce distortion into your signal. If you are interested in distorted sounds, why not try experimenting with the possibilities? None of the producers you're trying to emulate woke up one morning and just shat out a golden egg. They all spent a long time experimenting and improving their taste and technique.

Just something to keep in mind as you move ahead.

Cyma · Post by **Cyma** » Sat Feb 19, 2011 6:48 am

^ This is the entire point. Also, read the stickies for info on all sorts of good stuff.

/thread

jayou · Post by **jayou** » Sat Feb 19, 2011 11:44 am

Camel Crusher is great for distortion. Free & really user friendly too, check it: http://www.camelaudio.com/camelcrusher.php

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