Guitarix as a bass preamp

ICONO

ABSTRACT

Since the Guitarix software guitar preamp tries to have a personality of its own rather than emulate certain famous models, I've decided to try to get some juice out of it with the bass. In this post I will try to show the essential steps to make my bass, a handmade Eko 70's with very little body, sound like a decent and modern bass.

Taking into account that it is already difficult for me to be a guitarist to learn a lot about bass, I refer you to the guides that have helped me in this task.

http://www.musicradar.com/tuition/tech/the-quick-and-easy-guide-to-bass-processing-153406

http://bassguitarrocks.com/bass-amp-eq-for-beginners

Dynamic

Compressor and limiter.

Compression has two purposes: to fix a bad dynamics of the player (unwanted changes in intensity) and to add "punch" or hit to our sound.

Ratio: On the bass, the most normal ratios are 2: 1 and 4: 1, but it would not be unusual to use 6: 1.
Threshold: The threshold should be adjusted so that the intensity of the softest note will drive the compressor. If we place it higher, the lower notes could be left out of the mix. If we place it below it can exaggerate the "punch" if we play with the attack.
Attack: to improve execution, we should use the lowest possible attack. After this first adjustment, we will increase it while lowering the threshold to achieve the desired “punch”.
Release: the best way is to adjust it by ear. If it is too long, we will lose "punch", while if it is too short the sound will be "cut" (rippling) by the compressor.

Equalization

The equalization will depend very much on the instrument used. Not only that, but also the problem that it combines with the rest of the instruments will be added. If we are old dogs we will already know where to move, but if not, and if we record it directly by line (this being the case), it would be more advisable not to equalize it and reserve these parameters for later mixing.

Some recommendations are:

150Hz. Below this frequency we can cause definition to be lost. To avoid this, it is advisable to cut the bass at this frequency while enhancing the range from 150 to 200hz.
400Hz. The low-mid is very important.
1000Hz. Important frequency for the sound of the pick (I have read of some applying up to 10dB when the song asked for it).
1kHz to 3kHz.

Some recommendations:

For Rock Standard

| 31 Hz | 50 Hz | 120 Hz | 400 Hz | 500 Hz | 800 Hz | 1,6 kHz | 4,5 kHz | 6,4 kHz | 10 kHz |
| 0 dB | -5 dB | +5 dB | +10 dB | +7 dB | +5 dB | 0 dB | -5 dB | 0 dB | 0 dB |

To do Slap

| 31 Hz | 50 Hz | 120 Hz | 400 Hz | 500 Hz | 800 Hz | 1,6 kHz | 4,5 kHz | 6,4 kHz | 10 kHz |
| 0 dB | +5 dB | 0 dB | -10 dB | 0 dB | 0 dB | 0 dB | +10 dB | +5 dB | +10 dB |

To simulate an amplifier

| 31 Hz | 50 Hz | 120 Hz | 400 Hz | 500 Hz | 800 Hz | 1,6 kHz | 4,5 kHz | 6,4 kHz | 10 kHz |
| 0 dB | +5 dB | +5 dB | +7 dB | +5 dB | +3 dB | -3 dB | -5 dB | -7 dB | -10 dB |

The big one is 400Hz or so. The midscooped bass is popular. It takes the boxy / honky / vintage qualities out of the bass and leaves the low end balls and the gritty stuff up top (from 1K-3k). Cutting that 6-10dB can go a long way. If a bass isn't distinct there are a number of possible factors. Sometimes it's because it has excessive deep stuff. You may need to to do a low shelf cut at 150Hz to keep the subwoofer stuff under control while boosting 150-200Hz to give it some beef even on laptop speakers. If you want the pick attack like you hear on the old Guns N Roses recordings you've got to have plenty of energy at 1K. If a song calls for it, I have no quams with boosting it 10dB or more. Everything is highly dependent on the bass used (and amp, if applicable).

Distortion / overdrive

Effects

Reverb or Delay
Chorus and flanger
Filters