>Step by step
Creating and processing a three-layered bass sound
1 I’ll start by loading a simple 808 patch in FXpansion Strobe ( BA – 808 style). Within the Amp Envelope, turning up the Sustain creates longer or shorter notes. I’ll trigger notes on the keyboard to hear the difference while I’m changing each parameter. I’ve gone for an 80% Sustain value for an extended tone. 2 At this point, the raw sound is lacking grit. In the Sub Oscillator section, I’ll turn up the Saw oscillator to 35% to blend in more harmonics. In the Filter section, I switch the filter mode to N2L2 T, to generate midrange distortion. Next, I turn down the Filter Cutoff to +38 to remove unwanted top-end noise. 3 Next, I want to add movement to the bass, as this can really determine the groove of your track. I’ll start with adding Cubase’s Tremolo, which modulates the bass’s volume for a ‘wavering’ effect. Here, I’ve set the Depth at 100%, Sync Rate at 1/4 T, and turned up the Output to 2.8 for a bit more level. 4 To get more saturation and warmth, I’ve used Dada Life’s Sausage Fattener, with Fatness set at 5.0%, and Color taking out some top end crunch at 15%. I’m careful to only add subtle heat at this stage, as excessive drive will destroy the sub bass’s weight and power. 5 At this early stage, enhancing certain harmonics with EQ can increase punch. I’ve used FabFilter Pro-Q 2 to pull particular frequencies out of the sound – specifically, some 6dB boosts at 43Hz, 108Hz and 11KHz, with a moderate 1.5 Q for each. Watch for clipping while boosting, and turn down the EQ’s final output to compensate for level changes. 6 Next, I’ll duplicate the bass channel to create a parallel midrange layer. On this channel, I set Sausage Fattener’s Fatness to 18% and Color to 25%, but leave the Tremolo settings the same. To prevent this layer’s sub area clashing with the original bass signal, I’ll harshly cut away this layer’s low frequencies at 300Hz with a 36dB high-pass filter.
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On the midrange channel, I load PSP Nitro (pre-EQ) and select its Gentle Chorus preset, with Mix at 43% for thickness. Post-EQ, I’ve loaded Waves CLA Effects: I switch the EQ to Filter mode, at +1.7; the Distortion to Drive at -5.5; and the Reverb to Room at +1.7. These effects add crunch and ambience to the mids.
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Next, I want to program in some notes at F#-1 on all three channels. I find keeping all three splits in the same octave range works best. Slight automation to parameters can work wonders – I’ve automated PSP Nitro’s Chorus Output in the top layer, giving subtle but sharp movement to the sound’s attack and tail.
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To bulk out the sub and mids, I want a third ‘top’ layer to add upper-end width and crispiness. After duplicating the mid channel, I delete all plugins from this instance, except Tremolo and PSP Nitro. Next comes Tone2’s BiFilter 2, cutting the lows at 1kHz with a bit of biting resonance. The plugin’s Waveshape distortion then gives the top-end a bit of grit.
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Now to glue all three layers together. I add a Group channel track (ie, an aux bus), then route all three layers to the group. Now it’s a case of tweaking each channel’s level to fine-tune the overall mix. On the group channel, I’ve inserted Waves MaxxBass to emphasise harmonics, then another S1 Imager increases width further.
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To distinguish the top layer from the others, Audio Damage’s Eos reverb douses it in cool ambience. I’ve used Plate
2 with a Size of 9.9m, and pulled the Mix back to a subtle 11%. After the reverb, I use Waves S1 Stereo Imager to increase the signal’s width even more, for the required dimension of ‘spread’ in the upper-mid frequency region.
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For a finishing touch, I’ll process the channels in parallel via FX (return) channels in Cubase. On separate auxes, I’ve got Satson CM for saturation, Waves API 2500 for slight compression, and Sonnox Dynamics for warmth. From each channel and group, I send a small amount of signal to the FX channel, and tweak the individual volumes until I’m happy.