Professional Analog Mastering.
Professional Analog Mastering.
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This is something you can do with any Pultec EQ - including this free Poortec EQ from Analog Obsession.
Set the frequency to 20Hz.
Amplify the band, then cut it to a lesser extent.
This amplifies the lows while attenuating the low mids.
By reducing the low mids, we reduce masking to higher frequencies - which means the impact and percussive elements of low frequency instruments, which occupy higher frequencies, are easy to hear.
The combination of boosting the sub and the lows, while dipping low mids makes your kick or bass sound less muddy, and more impressive and impactful.
Let’s take a listen to it on a bass track.
Watch the video to learn more >
To create cohesion in the low end, time both the kick and bass to the BPM of the track by carefully timing your release time.
60000 divided by the BPM will give you a quarter note in milliseconds.
Use this time or a multiple of it as the release time for both the kick and bass.
As for the attack time, you can subtract it from the release time; however, compression begins right when the signal passes the threshold. The attack time refers to how long before the maximum amount of attenuation, but a lot of the attenuation occurs right at the beginning.
I’d recommend timing the kick to a quarter note and the bass to a half note, but experiment to find what sounds best.
When it comes to ducking the bass when the kick hits, the same idea should be used - time the attenuation to the BPM to keep it sounding musical.
Let’s take a listen to it.
Watch the video to learn more >
When saturating an instrument like kick or bass, it’s best to do the following.
Use a frequency specific saturation plugin, and if you don’t have one, I’ll show a different method in a moment.
With it, isolate the fundamental range of the instrument - that is, the range with all of the fundamental frequencies.
If it’s the kick, it’ll likely just be the one fundamental, unless it’s an 808.
If it’s the bass it’ll move around as the notes change.
Once it’s isolated, saturate the frequency range above it.
This will cause higher order harmonics to form, which similar to the Pultec trick emphasizes the percussive aspects of the instrument, and brings the instrument forward.
If we were to saturate the full signal, or maybe just the fundamental range, the harmonics would likely form in the low mids, which would emphasis a range that already has a high enough amplitude more often than note.
Furthermore, saturating the lowest frequencies can wave shape them enough to create a new, higher frequency.
By saturating the range above it, we avoid any modulation to the lows that would cause the perception of a new frequency, and we generate harmonics in an area that actually benefits from the additional amplitude.
If you don’t have a frequency specific saturator, try an emphasis de-emphasis technique instead.
Before the saturator, use an EQ to attenuate the fundamental range with a shelf, and boost the ranges above it. This makes it more likely that the saturator will be triggered by those frequencies, and not the fundamental.
After the saturator, use an equal and opposite EQ to rebalance the response.
Let’s listen to saturation to the ranges above the fundamental, and compare it to saturation to the fundamental.
Notice how the generated harmonics fill higher frequencies when the higher range is saturated, and how aggressive saturation to the lowest frequencies causes them to sound slightly out of tune.
Watch the video to learn more >
Using your ear is best, but there’s nothing wrong with confirming something with an analyzer.
When it comes to low frequencies, it’s best if they have a correlation near 1 - in other words, it’s best if the left and right channels are identical or nearly identical below about 200Hz.
To check this, you can use the free plugin Isolate by TB Pro Audio, and place it on the stereo output.
Then adjust the low frequency range as needed, and solo the low frequency range.
Then insert a stock correlation meter to measure the correlation of only the low frequencies.
If you’re reading a correlation of less than 0.9, then you have a low end that doesn’t translate well to mono devices. Additionally, phase interference between the 2 channels may make the kick and bass less driving or focused.
For some genres like Classical and Jazz a decor related low range is okay, but for others it won’t sound right to listeners.
To fix this, first check that your kick and bass are centered.
If they are, try Mid-Side equalizers on the kick stem, the bass stem, or possibly the stereo mix, and use a side-image high pass filter to attenuate differences between the left and right channels.
Let’s listen to a drum stem and bass track with spread info in the lows, then, we’ll listen to it with the side-image HP engaged.
Notice how the low end instantly becomes focused.
Watch the video to learn more >
Engineers often dismiss using reverb on the kick or bass, but I’d argue it’s just not being done correctly.
Earlier in the video, I mentioned how aggressive saturation to low frequencies can cause the perception of a different frequency.
In short, the notes in the low range are very close together.
So any modulation in this range can shift frequencies enough to become a different note.
This is especially true for reverb, delay, chorusing, or any time-based effect.
Reverb often introduces mild frequency modulation, both intentionally to make the effect sound more realistic, and unintentionally through mild phase cancellation between the left and right channels.
With that in mind, if you want some reverb on a kick or bass, ensure that low frequency reflections are attenuated.
For example, if I want some room reverb on a kick sample to make it sound a little more natural, I’d use a high pass filter to attenuate any reflections below roughly 200Hz.
If you want to be exact about it, you could find the fundamental frequency or frequencies of the instrument and set the high pass about 60Hz above that. This way, the filter’s slope will attenuate the majority of reflections in the fundamental range.
Let’s listen to reverb with modulation introduced to low frequency instruments. If you listen carefully, you can hear subtle pitch shifting.
Then, I’ll enable the high pass filter and notice how the effect blends in much better.