Mixing Bass and Kick question

Hello, wanted to go about asking how you guys mix a bassline and a kick without getting the track muddied up… Im not talking about sidechaining because my bassline MUST fall on kickbeats … Do you EQ the bass to fit better with the kick, OR do you eq the kick to fit better with the bass?

For example, take the intro to Queens, Another one bites the dust… the kick and the bass are all at the same 1/4 notes…

Any help here would be greatly appreciated…

The kick is always the most prominent part of the track.



You want the kick to sit right in the middle of the track with the bass. dead center.



First make sure that you have a good KICK and you do not have too much compression.



Too much compression on a kick makes it muddy.



Then make sure the volume of the kick is at 0 or -1 db.



Bring the bass slightly lower then the kick at like -2 db. Play with this.



You EQ the kick prior to making your bass. EQ the kick so it sounds good.



It has to sound good on monitors & headphones.



Once you have a good sounding kick, then you can make your bass.



RULE OF THUMB! Your kick has to be right FIRST!



If your kick is not right, then your sidechain levels will be messed up… which screws the whole track.

thanks, i will try your tips out… however, im not trying to “duck” the kick as some bass notes fall directly when the kicks hit…

[quote]Darthbrooklyn (30/03/2011)[hr]thanks, i will try your tips out… however, im not trying to “duck” the kick as some bass notes fall directly when the kicks hit…[/quote]



i have notes that hit on the kick all the time. thats the beauty of sidechaining.



just make sure the kick is louder then the bass.

I think I may have not explained myself properly… What im trying to do is to have the bass and the kick hit at the same time without ducking the kick… I want the bass to be heard even when the kick drum hits… i dont want the bass volume to drop out when the kick hits…

Some people swear by putting the sidechain at the END of the FX chain.



When it comes to bass, I always sidechain first. It is literally the first thing on the chain.



To your point, once you have sidechained the kick the volume drops.



From there you could use a 2nd compressor after the sidechain to boost the volume.



Or you could just use a limiter and crank the gain.



I usually do a combination of both.



Doing this will ensure the kick still hits but the bass is as loud as you want.

[quote]UnitedVision (30/03/2011)[hr]Some people swear by putting the sidechain at the END of the FX chain.

When it comes to bass, I always sidechain first. It is literally the first thing on the chain.

To your point, once you have sidechained the kick the volume drops.

From there you could use a 2nd compressor after the sidechain to boost the volume.

Or you could just use a limiter and crank the gain.

I usually do a combination of both.

Doing this will ensure the kick still hits but the bass is as loud as you want.[/quote]

AHHHHHHHHHHHH I got you… understood… Thanks UV