I just can’t get happy with the levels, especially the lower end level on this track.
Either think the bass is too loud or it’s too quiet, still haven’t found my happy medium yet.
I hate this.
Do you guys ever have some kinda rule of thumb?
MEH
There is no rule of thumb for bass and low frequencies. Change your sound if you dont like how it sits.
some elements will change through the mix so automating levels is essential for a good balance mix.
i’m to lazy though 
Sounds like you cant get the levels right due to crossover frequencies happening. Try cutting a notch out of the EQ in the bass for your kick with a bandpass so you can hear them both clearly. Then change your levels.
Raymond
[quote]raymondsar (08/03/2010)[hr]Sounds like you cant get the levels right due to crossover frequencies happening. Try cutting a notch out of the EQ in the bass for your kick with a bandpass so you can hear them both clearly. Then change your levels.
Raymond[/quote]
Thanks mate
I went into my bass and found it seemed to be raising and dipping in volume depending on what key it was, quieter when it got lower in the range. Although sometimes it doesn’t, it’s weird, it’s like it decides randomly to do this.
I’ve changed basses a few times still same issue.
I also found cutting out a notch with an EQ kinda took away a bit of the weight of the bassline.
Do you think it’s worth cutting my kick? The kicks main weight is between 43khz and 100khz.
My bass sits mainly as sub but with more, i’ve low passed it to 300khz.
I know i need to either have my kick as the main sub area or the bass, ideally not both, however i’m aiming for a deep and dark bassline, the one that kinda rumbles but isn’t as noticable as say Electro basslines for example, whilst at the same time i want a solid beefy kick.
I’m clearly having trouble getting them to sit nicely together, even though i’ve looked at my EQs and have sidechained.
Am i going to have to substitute somewhere?
Could be ear fatigue. Try stepping away from the project for a day or two and then come back to it with some fresh ears. You’ll be surprised how different a project can sound.
What I like to do is step away from the project and when I come back to it; instead of listening to it straight away from my sequencer I play around with a bounced version of it and try to mix it with a commercially released track. That usually helps me or at least points me in the right direction as far as levels.
[quote]roben (08/03/2010)[hr][quote]raymondsar (08/03/2010)[hr]Sounds like you cant get the levels right due to crossover frequencies happening. Try cutting a notch out of the EQ in the bass for your kick with a bandpass so you can hear them both clearly. Then change your levels.
Raymond[/quote]
Thanks mate
I went into my bass and found it seemed to be raising and dipping in volume depending on what key it was, quieter when it got lower in the range. Although sometimes it doesn’t, it’s weird, it’s like it decides randomly to do this.
I’ve changed basses a few times still same issue.
I also found cutting out a notch with an EQ kinda took away a bit of the weight of the bassline.
Do you think it’s worth cutting my kick? The kicks main weight is between 43khz and 100khz.
My bass sits mainly as sub but with more, i’ve low passed it to 300khz.
I know i need to either have my kick as the main sub area or the bass, ideally not both, however i’m aiming for a deep and dark bassline, the one that kinda rumbles but isn’t as noticable as say Electro basslines for example, whilst at the same time i want a solid beefy kick.
I’m clearly having trouble getting them to sit nicely together, even though i’ve looked at my EQs and have sidechained.
Am i going to have to substitute somewhere?[/quote]
Where are you rolling the bottom end of your bass off at? Throw a high pass on your bass and set it to 80Hz, then put a low pass on your kick and set it to 90Hz. Now, start playing with the filters and adding more and more frequency until it starts to sound muddy. Pull it back about 5Hz at this point. Compress the two together to see what its going to sound like mastered. Adjust with your compressor on, then pull it off when you start working on the rest of the track. As you don’t want to double compress in the finishing stages.
Raymond