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mixing bass lines

hey everone. been mixing for about 6 months. i have beat matching down. i am wondering whem some of yall mix ow do you do your bass line. meaning

if you put 2 base lines on top of each other tou get times the bass. witch is loud and nice but to noticable.

when you are putting a song in do you leave the bass off in it untill u hit a que then switch bass lines at the same time so that the song u are now pulling out hass the bass all the way down.

or is there a happy medium in there.

i have watched armin and ferry both spin and i rarley se them messing with the bass that much.

just looking for some different ideas.

Don't mix basslines on top of each other.

Never, ever mix basslines on-top of each other unless you're 110% sure that it will work well (which is very rarely the case). Look again at Ferry and Armin's mixing; both of them adjust the low-end EQ during transitions.

So how do I adjust the low-end EQs when I mix? Gradually. Adjust each EQ at the same time, the same amount of distance (just in a different direction for each knob; lowering the outgoing track, raising the incoming). Sometimes quick EQ kills work, but I find that a gradual transition is far more pleasing to listen to.

Agree with idoru but it all depends. If you switch them quickly, and at the right moment, it can sound fine too, just depends on the tracks. When doing a longer mix usually slowly switching basslines is the better option.

When I saw Phil K live a few days ago, I noticed he'd leave the bass all the way up on the incoming channel, untill about halfway up with the fader, when he'd slowly bring the fader all the way up while taking out the outgoing track's bass. Seemed to work pretty well.

Re: mixing bass lines

quote:

Originally posted by super trance hey everone. been mixing for about 6 months. i have beat matching down. i am wondering whem some of yall mix ow do you do your bass line. meaning if you put 2 base lines on top of each other tou get times the bass. witch is loud and nice but to noticable. when you are putting a song in do you leave the bass off in it untill u hit a que then switch bass lines at the same time so that the song u are now pulling out hass the bass all the way down. or is there a happy medium in there. i have watched armin and ferry both spin and i rarley se them messing with the bass that much. just looking for some different ideas.

I honestly only have about 3 or 4 records in my modest collection that have a similar enough bassline to somewhat compete/compliment with.

For the most part, play only one bassline at a time, less the other low end EQ's are percussion based only where there is no conflicting key.

Re: mixing bass lines

quote:

Originally posted by super trance i have watched armin and ferry both spin and i rarley se them messing with the bass that much. just looking for some different ideas.

They both mix harmonically.

if you mix in key its quite easy (and imo preferable) to overlay the basslines.

wtf? All these responses are bogus, sorry.

Myself, and all my close friends constantly mix with the basslines at normal EQ levels. We have had no problems, the basslines don't DOUBLE in volume, when overlayed frequencies do not add up, they simply lay on top of each other. So in the end, most Basslines are 'engulfed' by another bassline as they usually fit within each other.

This strikes me as weird that some people kill the bassline in one song and then switch at some point, to be quite frank, that will only work if the two basslines are EXACTLY the same.

Quite frankly, if you cannot mix basslines, there is something fundamental missing in your learning steps.

quote:

Originally posted by alefort when overlayed frequencies do not add up, they simply lay on top of each other.

yes they do add up, not sure about double, but they do add up. this is pretty simple to check. record your set and watch how the wave looks like afterwards. it's much louder in the parts where you have 2 tunes playing at the same time at full volume and full bass than what it is when there's only one track playing. just check it out. the difference is noticable even if the bass is killed and you don't lower the other track's volume at all when you bring the new tune in.

I usually have the incoming track's bass knob at about the 9 to 11 o'clock position before I completely bring it in and kill the outgoing tracks bass. So I suppose you can say I mix the two basses a little bit together but never completely. But you have to time it almost perfectly when switching them in/out for there not to be an obvious delay in sound.

quote:

Originally posted by alefort wtf? All these responses are bogus, sorry. Myself, and all my close friends constantly mix with the basslines at normal EQ levels. We have had no problems, the basslines don't DOUBLE in volume, when overlayed frequencies do not add up, they simply lay on top of each other. So in the end, most Basslines are 'engulfed' by another bassline as they usually fit within each other. This strikes me as weird that some people kill the bassline in one song and then switch at some point, to be quite frank, that will only work if the two basslines are EXACTLY the same. Quite frankly, if you cannot mix basslines, there is something fundamental missing in your learning steps.

It all depends on what genre you're spinning. I find that if done well, killing the bass allows you to create a much more seamless transition. You'll find that most DJs kill the lows to a great extent. There's always a point in each transition where, yes, both Lows will not be totally killed, but I don't ever keep them all the way up simultaneously.

quote:

Originally posted by DOOMBOT I usually have the incoming track's bass knob at about the 9 to 11 o'clock position before I completely bring it in and kill the outgoing tracks bass. So I suppose you can say I mix the two basses a little bit together but never completely. But you have to time it almost perfectly when switching them in/out for there not to be an obvious delay in sound.

I've found myself doing this more and more as well. Quite like the sound it gives, as one track doesn't sound too hollow.

Anyway, another factor is the mixer. Different mixers have different 'strength' Eq's on them.

So where i might 'kill' my bass line, my mixer doesn't have a complete kill feature on my EQ (Vestax PCV 275)..

I often find myslef lowering the EQ all the way down then using the handy kill switches which the PCV 275 has to lower the EQ even further. (again it still doesn't really completely kill everything, but it's good enough for me.)

Anyway, There's no right way or wrong way, but i know for a fact that bring two tracks in with the bass right up there on both tracks can defnitely lead to disaster. Then again if you're fading is pretty decent you might be lowering the bass (+tune) perfectly in time to ther other track coming in.

There are so many options here, it's nearly better making this thread a "What style of low end mixing do you prefer" thread.

Just my 2p

nelly

i like to do a quick bass kill only when i know it'll add to the energy of my set...feel like it has that head slamming into the ground effect...

Yeah, Dont let 2 Basslines overlap. Thats just dumb.

For most melodic trance the bass switch (kill outgoing bass bring in full incoming bassline) works really well. Almost every DJ I hear uses this method.

You can do this slower, for basslines that are present from the start, or if your mix isnt full on trance.

Leaving 2 basslines though is rediculous.

quote:

Originally posted by alefort wtf? All these responses are bogus, sorry. Myself, and all my close friends constantly mix with the basslines at normal EQ levels. We have had no problems, the basslines don't DOUBLE in volume, when overlayed frequencies do not add up, they simply lay on top of each other. So in the end, most Basslines are 'engulfed' by another bassline as they usually fit within each other. This strikes me as weird that some people kill the bassline in one song and then switch at some point, to be quite frank, that will only work if the two basslines are EXACTLY the same. Quite frankly, if you cannot mix basslines, there is something fundamental missing in your learning steps.

I guess your mixer doesnt have VU meters, cause you'd notice it very quickly then. Redlining sucks.

quote:

Originally posted by Clovis86 I guess your mixer doesnt have VU meters, cause you'd notice it very quickly then. Redlining sucks.

Even then, hearing two kicks, as well, should be very noticeable.

quote:

Originally posted by idoru Even then, hearing two kicks, as well, should be very noticeable.

Apparently not for him.

quote:

Originally posted by alefort wtf? All these responses are bogus, sorry. Myself, and all my close friends constantly mix with the basslines at normal EQ levels. We have had no problems, the basslines don't DOUBLE in volume, when overlayed frequencies do not add up, they simply lay on top of each other. So in the end, most Basslines are 'engulfed' by another bassline as they usually fit within each other. This strikes me as weird that some people kill the bassline in one song and then switch at some point, to be quite frank, that will only work if the two basslines are EXACTLY the same. Quite frankly, if you cannot mix basslines, there is something fundamental missing in your learning steps.

I dunno what kind of music you're mixing, but when I try mixing songs with the bass full in on both tracks, 9/10 times it sounds completely naff....

quote:

Originally posted by alefort wtf? All these responses are bogus, sorry. Myself, and all my close friends constantly mix with the basslines at normal EQ levels. We have had no problems, the basslines don't DOUBLE in volume, when overlayed frequencies do not add up, they simply lay on top of each other. So in the end, most Basslines are 'engulfed' by another bassline as they usually fit within each other. This strikes me as weird that some people kill the bassline in one song and then switch at some point, to be quite frank, that will only work if the two basslines are EXACTLY the same. Quite frankly, if you cannot mix basslines, there is something fundamental missing in your learning steps.

i disagree with you on this one. a lot of times whenn i'm fucking around i'll let the two tracks play out without fuckin with the eq's, but that's only to tell if they'll sound good together or not.

if you don't blend or switch the conflicting basslines, it'll sound really muddy.

quote:

Originally posted by alefort wtf? All these responses are bogus, sorry. Myself, and all my close friends constantly mix with the basslines at normal EQ levels. We have had no problems, the basslines don't DOUBLE in volume, when overlayed frequencies do not add up, they simply lay on top of each other. So in the end, most Basslines are 'engulfed' by another bassline as they usually fit within each other. This strikes me as weird that some people kill the bassline in one song and then switch at some point, to be quite frank, that will only work if the two basslines are EXACTLY the same. Quite frankly, if you cannot mix basslines, there is something fundamental missing in your learning steps.

i know of some people who do that.
but using the crossfader with a gradual curve.
it sounds shit if u use the faders. unless ur using the gain to control the channel volume.

I am not going to say a thing, but I invite each and everyone one of you to sample the first 15 minutes of my april promo mix. And I would like to draw your attention to the fact that the basslines were left untouched, and as I mixed the peak level for each channel ran between 0dB-2dB. Have a listen and tell me what you guys think....

Link:

http://www.andrelefort.com/media/mp...xing_sample.mp3

In my previous post, I was not trying to say your methods are incorrect, but to simply think that my method is flawed is extremely near sighted. I have been mixing in this manner since I started and it sounds great to myself, and everyone else who enjoys my sets. I am not the only one who mixes in this manner, all of my close DJ friends also mix in this manner and we have no issues.

I have never been one to kill a channel in order to mask it, in my eyes (this is my opinion) I consider it cheating to be killing a channel, especially the lows. I DJ for the love of the music and the challenge it provides me. Why would I want to reduce that challenge? That is why you will find me mixing with the lows at 12o'clock on each channel.

Basslines usually don't mix together, but it can be done.

For example, Starkid - Crayons (Leama and Moor Remix) and Ridgewalkers feat. El - Find (Andy Moor Mix) go perfectly together.

Koolaid, thats cause they are the same bassline :P

And cutting low end isnt cheating.

thats like saying using channel faders is cheating. Its just a tool to help.

quote:

Originally posted by Lunar Phase 7 Koolaid, thats cause they are the same bassline :P And cutting low end isnt cheating. thats like saying using channel faders is cheating. Its just a tool to help.

That is true, but like I said, it was merely my opinion....I have retardedly high standards for certain things, others don't.

quote:

Originally posted by djkoolaide For example, Starkid - Crayons (Leama and Moor Remix)

man that is a good tune! poor starkid may he R.I.P only young too

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