Mixing With Mike Mixing Tip: How to Anchor the Bass in a Mix
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- Опубліковано 28 кві 2015
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Thank you very much for the tip. I watch many tutorials, tricks, lessons about mixing and recording. They all help me to learn something but most of the time the "enlightment" occurs after I see your interpretation. That's when I really understand the essence, the idea behind all the technical stuff.
Thanks a lot for sharing your wisdom!
+Emre GitarCom Cheers Emre!
Mike you are the best teacher on youtube! You don't know how much these videos are helping me, many thanks, wish you all the best as you deserve it
Thanks for sharing the knowledge Mike. I'm learning to mix hip hop & getting the low end to sit in the mix is a top priority! This helped me out so much. Your videos are the best out here. Thank you.
Hi Michael, this low ratio/low threshold RComp technique is one of the most useful mix techniques I've ever tried on bass. It's now one of my go tos for mixing. Thanks so much for sharing it.
This is one of the best bass mixing videos on youtube. It's the subtle moves like this on bass which make all the difference. Thanks Mike.
i realize Im pretty randomly asking but do anyone know a good website to watch newly released movies online ?
@Harvey Armani i would suggest FlixZone. You can find it by googling =)
@Harvey Armani lately I have been using flixzone. You can find it on google =)
Michael, Michael, Michael, you are a treasure! Few, if any, audio gurus
online are as articulate, knowledgeable and experienced as you.
Ha! What would we do without you?! Bless you...
Thank you so much Micheal for your advice being so clear precise and knowledgeable you are helping me heaps Tassie down under
Wow. This was a LOT better than I thought it was going to be.
I compared it with Andy Wallace’s bass technique that’s up here on YT.
Wallace’s technique is good. So is this one.
Wallace’s is very fast. This one is not.
This technique produces much better results in my opinion because it creates a final result wherein MORE of the original articulations of the player are retained, enhanced, and brought forward.
Wallace’s technique is probably the winner for Lemmy’s or Tim Commerford’s bass playing style, whereas this technique is more for a player like Tony Levin or Lee Sklar.
An absolutely fantastic technique right here folks. Fantastic.
👍😎👍
mike, this tip was awesome. instant help for the mix. really got my bass to sit in the mix well and what a difference it makes for the clarity and punch of the kik!!
Cheers!
Thanks Mike... Tried it today. It works
So wonderful explanation!
This is wonderful!!
Great. Thanks.
Thank you!
Awesome tutorial. You really taught me something today. I see some of the weaknesses in my approach to mixing bass a little better after watching this. Thank you!
+RUTheCatalyzt Thanks Man!
Bass is one of the most difficult instruments to get right because low frequencies are so hard to control and get to monitor correctly. At least with a kick the frequency is fixed, with a bass it is shifting around so it is hard to focus it well.
Cheers!
Mike
THIS video is what I needed to see!! I just so happened to have seen a video of yours because of a UAD Plug-In I bought that I wanted to learn more of and here is this beautiful video that I have been longing to see! haha! thanks!!
Cheers!
Great info! Thank you
+carroll paryo Cheers Carroll !
Thanks for this wander full tip is really helpful
Esteban Chamorro Cheers Esteban!
High quality stuff here.
Excellent
Great tutorial once again. Thanks so much for doing these. In the comments below you mentioned it would be a different approach for slap bass. I was wondering what that might look like.... what you'd do differently. Thanks. Cheers!
Cheers Mike!
I think I would focus the upper mids a bit more to feature the slapping and also approach the compression more like a percussive instrument.
Thanks sir 🙏
This is so good Mike, again, thank you very much!
I'm assuming that the decision to set the fastest release (to anchor) as opposed to setting a bpm synched release (to groove) has to do with the bass part being sustained or percussive?
This is much better technique rater to use a low pass filter, mostly i do for the bass, thank you, you changed and motivate me a lot for my mixing skills, thank you. 🙏🧿
I dedicate myself to the production of Techno music, and I must say that I am very happy to have meet you, your teachings are applicable to everything, even to sampled material. This particular technique is very useful, like everything you teach, You should write a book about compression. You knowledge is well above average. Thank you very much Mike
He does have courses online, if that is what you looking for
thnx!
Magic Mike
really dig the track that's playing!
+Logan Gaudreau Stone Walters is the artist. Find You Again is the title.
Cheers!
Mike
Extremely helpful Mike! I have been struggling to get my bass and low end to sort of break through the muddiness and sound tighter. Thanks for this vid.
+aries4973 Cheers!
Thanks Mike! Your tutorials are very helpful as I'm in the process of mixing a new song. Keep up the great work helping out the masses. Very much appreciated.
Cheers!
thanks a lot ,this was an "eyeopener"
Sascha Kühn Thanks Sascha!
Gooood video!
Cheers!
Thank you Mike! had not realized you could group controls across channels on plugs. That is a good one for sure.Mix sounds very nice, what date is the session roughly from?
Do you have any LFO on the bass, or is the A sharp, the E and D a bit flat? p.s. Forgive me, my pitch sensitivity is acute *embarrassed*
God thank you so much
Can you elaborate on the fast attack AND fast release setting. I was under the impression that a fast attack and a SLOW release was more appropriate for evening out a sound.
well...this was awesome! nothing to add to this statement :)..oh ok..you are awesome ;) Thank you!
Pretty Cool. Can you tell me what the differene between the 2 bass groups is?
thanks! when you talk about making the bass image, what does this mean? I thought it's usually mono, or is there some other meaning of imaging?
1. Compression with fast attack and fast release, low threshold, low ratio.
2. Cut highs, add mids and lows.
3. Limiter with fast attack and slow release.
4. Sidechain to the kick, so that the bass ducks when the kick"s transients peak.
Is this right? I know it does not apply to every situation and is sound dependent, but as a general guideline.
5. (?) Cut the fundamental frequencies of the kick out of the bass to let the kick sit nicely.
6. Cut out the super lowend (50hz - ) of the bass and let kick do the sub.
What do you think of this?
Thanks for the tutorials!
1-4 is right on and works in most situations. I am very cautious about cutting the kick frequency out of the bass, but maybe with a dynamic EQ. As fars a sub freqs on the bass goes, depends on the song and the sounds. There are notes on a bass that extend down into the 20's. gotta be careful when cutting that high.
Cheers!
Mike
Thanks Mike
Cheers Vincent!
Hi Mike I love your videos and I love listening to you. I have a question. Because you used fast settings on the comp. will that introduce some kind of distortion because it will react within the cycle? I read that in the book called Mixing Concepts. I got a little confused.
I mean on low frequencies.
Alright, so both ways would work? Anchor the kick, would i use the same technique as when anchoring the bass? :) Thanks for the help, very much appreciated!
Wow
Would you apply this same technique on a bass that has more top end? (Ex: synth bass.) Or would you treat sub and higher freq separately leaving more dynamics on the higher end and keeping subs stable/controlled?
Fantastic! many thanks Mike. I was wandering if you've ever used the Waves Bass Rider plugin, would it be of help in this type of scenario?
I do use it when the bass performance is very inconsistent. It emulates a process I never practiced and hardly know anyone who did back in the big console era. It is a valuable tool at times.
Thanks Mike :)
What's that blue compressor you're using?
💯
Thank you Mike, this was very helpful!
One questions; I see your levels are pretty high (from my perspective) on each of your channels. How do you have all channels this high without clipping the master fader? Is it all a matter of reductive eq to save up headroom? Are you pulling them all down at once before hitting the mix bus?
I'm asking cus lately i've been trying to gain stage with a VU Meter, and when going for -18 db, my channels seem much lower than most of yours. Im on Pro Tools 12 if that helps, no HD.
Hope you get where im coming from..
Keep up the great tutorials! You truly help out a lot of people.
Best regards
Otto
I think you may be thrown by the fact that I always meter Pre Fader - Post Insert. I gain stage all audio regions so that they are no more than -6 dBFS peaks or - 18 dBFS RMS, whichever hits first. The mix bus has a limiter on it to make sure that the video record levels are set well to the Voiceover and don't clip, but generally, without that plugin, I am in the -18dBFS average level range on all of my mixes.
Cheers!
Mike
Great tutorial, many thanks! But I didn't understand why you duplicate the bass track and all the plugin chain?
They are 2 different tracks, not the same. One is a DI and the other is an Amp.
Hi Micheal great job.. How do i get this tracks to you are using to mix ... I want to practice what you are teaching.
+tehillahband Hi tehillahband,
Sorry, these tracks are not publicly available. I do have some multis available for download in my online school for paid members.There is plenty of free multis on the internet. The biggest collection is from Cambridge: www.cambridge-mt.com/ms-mtk.htm
Check them out.
Cheers!
Mike
Awesome stuff man. Question.. The song that you're working on, is it available on itunes for purchase? I love the music man...
mustream1234567890 Thanks! The song is not finished yet and not ready for release. The Artist is Stone Walters www.stonewalters.com. Should be release in the next month or so.
Cheers!
Mike
Cool man.. .Thanks for the info and the response....
Cheers!
Dear Mike! Thank you for the tips. What is this song you’re mixing?
Hey Mike: Me likey! To what degree do you feel this technique(s) are applicable to electronic basses, like synth basses and Subs - particularly in Urban styles where audible EDM-ish sidechaining is often not desirable?
+jeff7775 I think, in general, EDM is a different animal because nothing in an EDM track is an "anchor" throughout a song so to speak. Everything typically ends up changing at some point in the mix and the pumping oscillations of instruments like basses are often part of the sound.
This technique is more anti-modulation than anything.
Hope this answers your question.
Mike
hi mike ...i dont understand why you have dublikatet the bass-channel when both are identical..thank again for the best tutos in the internet..
One is a Bass DI and the other is an Amp. 2 different sounds blended together. I could have bussed them together, but prefer the independent control.
Cool! Do you use this on synth bass too, a good 'go-to' for any type of bass?
When you mentioned transformers it reminded me of Thrillseeker VBL(Bootsy) or Arts Acoustic CL1, too very coloured sounding compressors which manipulate the phase strongly. Have you ever used those or do you ever use phase shift(all pass filter) to manipulate the bass? It has a very punchy/depthy/warm sound as I'm sure you'll know, similar to transformer colouration?
Cheers. :)
***** Hi Seany06,
It can work on synth basses as well, but for the most part synth basses are generally programmed and are well together dynamically. I have used this process on synth basses as well and it has proven to be effective. Every song and sound is different so you may get mixed results depending on the production. To me, it is just another tool in the bag that is effective in many situations.
I am not familiar with those 2 plugins so can't really comment on how much the sound is transformer driven. The phase shift thing sounds similar to a dynamic filter sweeping plugin like MetaFilter. Is that what this is?
Cheers!
Mike
Michael White Hi, not sure about Metafilter, does it have an Allpass/Phase rotator filter? I recommend trying out DMG Equilibrium and playing with the Allpass filter and you'll see what I mean, it can give a very kind of 'rubbery, deep, punchy, dense' sound.. I'm trying to figure out if it's similar to transformer saturation.
great! can i use this technique in electronic music? :)
Yes, or anchor the kick which is often smaller sounding than the bass and let it flow through the kick sound. Especially for stereo synth basses that have a lot of modulation and movement in the sound.
Cheers!
Mike
Interesting points sir! How would this apply to more modern music styles where you might want to side-chain the bass to let the kick drum breath? Does the bass still play the same anchor role? Also, when would you recommend using a limiter on a bass?
Vincent Menard Hey Vincent,
If you set it up right, this technique can actually make the side-chained bass work more effectively. You need to set up the keyed compressor after all of this processing. This technique will not always work in every situation. Depends on the original sound and the role it plays in the production.
Cheers!
Mike
Michael White Alright thanks for the info! What do you think about cutting the bass with a high pass at around 100Hz and layering it with a Sine Sub for the lower frequencies? Does this make the bass more solid, more constant?
Hi Vincent,
It can. It's not uncommon for producers to have a "sub bass" track that is added to the main bass. How well it works depends on the sound selected. Even sine wave subs require some king of harmonic distortion to image well.
Hope this answers your question,
Thanks!
Mike
Hey Mike, great video again! Just a short question: At 7:07, when you talk about the Scheps 73, you say that it is a "transformer based compressor". Was this just a mistake or is that some special kind of EQ which adds some compression? Just trying to figure out if its possible to follow your steps with stock plugins of my DAW :) Thanks!
Nipsky86 Hey Nipsky, Yes, that was a mistake. The most important part of the sound of the Neve 1073 is the transformers. It is the harmonic distortion characteristics that makes the classic Neve sound, that was my point.
Regarding stock plugins, you can emulate the frequencies and the boost amounts but you will not capture the sound of the vintage components that way. There are many reasons for this ranging from the harmonic distortion to the shape of the filters. The techniques are still valid with stock plugs and you should still get great results even without the vintage character.
Hope this helps!
Mike
Hello Mike, sorry for the delay and thanks for clarifying! I have to admit I was a bit sceptical about the whole of topic of "vintage sounds", seems I should better look into it again :)
Cheers!
something that crossed my mind...for non-hd users, you could always just send your bass tracks to an aux for this kind of processing, right? I'm trying to think of a good reason why it wouldn't have the same effect but I can't come up with one off the top of my head
+manifestgtr Hi manifestgtr!
Yes, but it depends on what is going on with the 2 bass tracks. Many times, independent processing is necessary for the best blend. I tend to do it this way by default even if the processors are identical because it gives me the flexibility to change my mind. In a more CPU intensive session, summing them together might be a more efficient approach. Also consider that, in pro Tools, there is a small latency when running through an aux channel, not sure if this has been corrected in PT12
Cheers!
Mike
hi mike
are all 3 plugs are running on the end .i am on cubase and not do fit with other daws, so cant see is the first compressor running before the scheps
+Jakob Schuetz Hi Jaokob,
Yes, all 3 are running at the end. Each one plays a specific role that is part of the overall sound.
Cheers!
Mike
Thanks mike,now i am on.by the way your video how to anchor the bass ,changed my mixes ,is there any video how to prepare the drums frequenzly,you mentioned it.thank that you help young musicworkers on the way.jakob
Is this a better way to do it then using a multi and compressor on the low end ? Cause personally I like this way better
+mkvemcee In the end, whatever works best for the particular song and bass sound. This technique does not work all the time in every situation. It's one approach that is very effective for the right song. In general, I find that MB Compression is more effective for pumping bass sounds like in EDM.
Cheers!
Mike
Hi, thank you for the great tip! I didn't understand completely why you mirror the technique in the bass group. Are there other basses in the mix? I usually have bass + sub bass. Do I have to apply this to all bases + the bass group? Thanks a lot!
Antonio Guedes Hi Antonio, Not sure what you mean by Bass Group. There are 2 tracks for the bass, a DI and an Amp. They are routed to a group channel along with the Drums, but there is no bass group used in this video. Maybe you misread the Bass Amp track as Bass Group?
Cheers!
Mike
Michael White Thank you for the reply! At at around 3:04 you said you had a bass group.
Michael White at 3:04
I think I was referring to a Track group. A Pro Tools Track Group in HD offers the ability to link plugin settings. It is just a convenience that allows me to apply the identical settings on 2 tracks instantaneously. Because most of the settings will be identical for the DI and Amp track anyhow. I gets 90% of the work done at one. I can ungroup and adjust the settings individually for each track later.
Hope this makes sense.
Cheers!
Mike
Got it. I produce in logic. Really wondering if I should use the same technique for a sub bass "grouped" with the regular one. Or, should I just send both to a bus and do what you doing there for both in just one aux channel? Thank a lot!
Hi Mike. Thank you for the great work you're doing here! May I give a little tip? This will help keep my OCD in line, when watching your videos.. ;-) When you're in "Modify groups" and go to attributes and select the boxes for A, B etc. Try holding the alt key down, when you check the first box. :-) Sorry, but you'll be happy. :-) Best regards, Thorbjørn
Seems to work really well but... then... is it not necessary subtractive EQ around 500HZ? that would achieve even more clarity though.
Hi Francisco,
I'm not sure what sound you are talking about so it is hard to comment.
Thanks,
Mike