Compression and bass go together like ham and eggs, red beans and rice, or peanut butter and jelly (or gin and tonic, if you prefer something a little stronger). A lot of engineers plug in a compressor within milliseconds of turning up the bass track's fader. Some pro tips on the web even recommend inserting lots of compressors in series. Hey, if one is good, then four must be better-right? Well, I'm not convinced.
Lately with electric bass (synth bass, too) I've been tossing compressors aside, and using Limiter2 when I want to get a solid sound down fast. And I mean fast-that 15 seconds is actually a bit misleading. I've clocked myself at under 12 seconds from drag-and-drop to pressing play, including editing the Limiter2 settings.
Check out the audio example. The drums are using my Bigness of Huge Drum Sound FX Chain. The first four measures are the bass sound as recorded, using the Limiter2. The next four measures are the same, but with the Limiter2 bypassed. Note that when the limiter is in play, the bass isn't overwhelmed by the drums.
chadschoonmaker Audio Example Bass With Limiter2
Fig. 1 shows the Limiter2 settings.
Figure 1: Settings for bass with the Limiter2.
That's all there is to it. (But if you're a 5-string bass fan, I do recommend changing the Release time to 300.0 ms.)
Granted, this isn't necessarily a one-size-fits-all tip. You might want to add some EQ, some AutoFilter funk in parallel, or whatever. But this punchy, full sound will hold its own in the rhythm section, and get you through the tracking session. What's more, if the bass player has a good touch and properly adjusted pickups, it maybe even take you to the final mix.
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Compression and bass go together like ham and eggs, red beans and rice, or peanut butter and jelly (or gin and tonic, if you prefer something a little stronger). A lot of engineers plug in a compressor within milliseconds of turning up the bass track's fader. Some pro tips on the web even recommend inserting lots of compressors in series. Hey, if one is good, then four must be better-right? Well, I'm not convinced.
