My Filthy Dubstep Blog

1) get a notch eq set with a really high Q, raise the gain by 6db and then sweep it across the freq spectrum. When you hear nasty whines and hisses then leave the notch there but instead drop it by 6db

2) stick a lo-pass filter over your master bus and drop the cutoff to 300hz or even lower, then you can really hear how the bass is interacting with the kick and other elements.

3) When balancing always start by zeroing all faders and raising the kick, then the bass. This makes a big difference to how the mix take shape as you are basically deciding which elements are taking the main focus. As you cant hit over 0db in digital systems you have a ceiling to work up to, so just decide which parts are going to be given the most room.

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Today i made a strange Organic Pattern Generator.

Inspiration for this script was taken from a lecture given by Robert Sapolsky one of the worlds leading neuroscientists where he talked about chaos theory and the butterfly effect ‘ The sensitive dependence on initial conditions where a small change at one place in a nonlinear system can result in large differences to a later state. ‘ and this was the basis for my script.

If you make a small changes to the size of your browser window while viewing a generated pattern you’ll see massive differences and natural organic results.

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FREQUENCY USES:

50Hz
1. Increase to add more fullness to lowest frequency instruments like foot, toms, and the bass. Peak equalization with a 1.4 Q.
2. Reduce to decrease the “boom” of the bass and will increase overtones and the recognition of bass line in the mix. This is most often used on loud bass lines like rock. Shelf equalization.

100Hz
1. Increase to add a harder bass sound to lowest frequency instruments. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0 to 1.4..
2. Increase to add fullness to guitars, snare. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0..
3. Increase to add warmth to piano and horns. Peak Equalization. For piano use a Q of 1.0. With horn use a Q of 1.4..
4. Reduce to remove boom on guitars & increase clarity. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0 to 1.4..

200Hz
1. Increase to add fullness to vocals. Peak Equalization with a Q of 0.7 to 1.0..
2. Increase to add fullness to snare and guitar ( harder sound ). Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4.
3. Reduce to decrease muddiness of vocals or mid-range instruments. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.
4. Reduce to decrease gong sound of cymbals. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.

400Hz
1. Increase to add clarity to bass lines especially when speakers are at low volume. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.
2. Reduce to decrease “cardboard” sound of lower drums (foot and toms). Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4.
3. Reduce to decrease ambiance on cymbals. Peak Equalization with a Q of 0.7 to 1.0. Alternately try a shelf EQ with a 320 Hz frequency setting.

800Hz
1. Increase for clarity and “punch” of bass. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4.
2. Reduce to remove “cheap” sound of guitars. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.

1.5KHz
1. Increase for “clarity” and “pluck” of bass. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4..
2. Reduce to remove dullness of guitars. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.

3KHz
1. Increase for more “pluck” of bass. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4.
2. Increase for more attack of electric / acoustic guitar. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4.
3. Increase for more attack on low piano parts. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.
4. Increase for more clarity / hardness on voice. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.
5. Reduce to increase breathy, soft sound on background vocals. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.
6. Reduce to disguise out-of-tune vocals / guitars. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.
7. Increase for more attack on the snare or other drums. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4 to 2.8.

5KHz
1. Increase for vocal presence. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.
2. Increase low frequency drum attack ( foot / toms). Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4 to 2.8.
3. Increase for more “finger sound” on bass. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4.
4. Increase attack of piano, acoustic guitar and brightness on guitars (especially rock guitars). Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4.
5. Reduce to make background parts more distant. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.
6. Reduce to soften “thin” guitar. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.

7KHz
1. Increase to add attack on low frequency drums ( more metallic sound ). Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4 to 2.8.
2. Increase to add attack to percussion instruments. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4 to 2.8.
3. Increase on dull singer. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.
4. Increase for more “finger sound” on acoustic bass. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4.
5. Reduce to decrease “s” sound on singers. Peak Equalization with a Q of 2.8. Sweep frequency slightly (between 7 kHz and 8 kHz) to find the “exact” frequency of the S
6. Increase to add sharpness to synthesizers, rock guitars, acoustic guitar and piano. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0 to 1.4.

10KHz
1. Increase to brighten vocals. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.
2. Increase for “light brightness” in acoustic guitar and piano. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.
3. Increase for hardness on cymbals. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4.
4. Reduce to decrease “s” sound on singers. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4.

15KHz
1. Increase to brighten vocals (breath sound). Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.
2. Increase to brighten cymbals, string instruments and flutes. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.0.
3. Increase to make sampled synthesizer sound more real. Peak Equalization with a Q of 1.4 to 2.8.

…

Useful frequencies for several instruments:

Voice: presence (5 kHz), sibilance (7.5 – 10 kHz), boominess (200 – 240 kHz), fullness (120 Hz)

Electric Guitar: fullness (240 Hz), bite (2.5 kHz), air / sizzle (8 kHz)

Bass Guitar: bottom (60 – 80 Hz), attack (700 – 1000 Hz), string noise (2.5 kHz)

Snare Drum: fatness (240 Hz), crispness (5 kHz)

Kick Drum: bottom (60 – 80 Hz), slap (4 kHz)

Hi Hat & Cymbals: sizzle (7.5 – 10 kHz), clank (200 Hz)

Toms: attack (5 kHz), fullness (120 – 240 Hz)

Acoustic Guitar: harshness / bite (2 kHz), boominess (120 – 200 Hz), cut (7 – 10 kHz)

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251 Hz and up

The hi-bass layer is optional. I only use one when the bassline is the main hook or melody in the track, otherwise it tends to fight for space with lead mid-range elements like vocals, or lead synths / guitars. A hi-bass layer also helps the bassline to be heard on very small sound systems that have trouble reproducing the mid-bass layer, let alone sub-bass.

Step 1: Create your hi-bass sound

I tend to use fairly wide, distorted hi-bass sounds. If you choose a real guitar sample, try putting an amp simulator on it for some grit. For synth patches, try adding applying a fair amount of detune on the oscillators as well as drive, bit crushing, or distortion. Another good trick is to select a hipass filter and apply a filter envelope (ADSR). This will give the sound some growl to it each time the patch is triggered.

Step 2: EQ / hipass

Use an EQ or a hipass filter (with no resonance applied) to shear away the unneeded low frequencies. The EQ or hipass filter should be set to remove frequencies where the mid-bass lies. For example, if your mid-bass sits in the 101 – 250 Hz range, set the EQ or hipass for 250 Hz.

Step 3: Limit

All aspects of the bass should be locked in place. Use a limiter or hard compressor on the hi-bass as well.

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101 – 250 Hz

Mid-bass is where you will get a lot of your bass tone and articulation from. Many sound systems, especially car and home audio units without sub-woofers, will not reproduce sub-bass at all so this is the layer that translates to those systems. Here you will want to use a patch or a sound that has some character to it.

Step 1: Create your mid-bass sound

Here are some suggestions: a real bass sample (of an electric or acoustic bass guitar), a synth patch with that uses slightly detuned oscillators (for a wide sound), or a synth patch that uses oscillators that play one octave apart from each other (for a full sound). Real basses are good for percussive attack, or the “pluck” sound of fingers on the strings. This can also be simulated by using the amp envelope (ADSR) on a synth to shape the sound.

Step 2: EQ / lowpass & hipass

As with the sub-bass, it is important to have the mid-bass sit in its own, discrete frequency range. Use an EQ or a combination of lowpass and hipass filters (with no resonance applied to otherwise alter the sound) to shear away the unneeded low and high frequencies. The EQ or hipass filter should be set to remove frequencies where the sub-bass lies. For example, if your sub-bass sits in the 30 – 100 Hz range, set the EQ or hipass for 100 Hz. Same for the upper EQ or lowpass. If your mid-bass occupies 101 – 250 Hz, set the upper EQ or lowpass filter at 250 Hz. Keep in mind that if no hi-bass layer is being used, you can play with the upper frequency limit as it would not be appropriate to cut it off at 250 Hz.

Step 3: Limit

All aspects of the bass should be locked in place. Use a limiter or hard compressor on the mid-bass as well.

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Mastering is an art which take long time learning sound engineer to reach… what you’re trying to do is finalizing your songs… all mixing levels should not beat -3dB and the master stereo buss should not reach -3dB either… after that take a limiter and finalize the stereo bounced song!

At 24 bit resolution peak your kick drum at -18dBFS when you start mixing (and just turn the volume up on your amp/volume controller) It looks low but forget it and just mix, then your peaks will be perfect for either
DIY finalizing or professional mastering. Good Luck!

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20 – 100 Hz

Sub-bass occupies the frequency range from 20 – 100 Hz. It is not so much heard, but felt. Sub-bass is responsible for creating a low-end presence that gives a bassline its power. Special attention should be paid to this layer as low frequencies take up a lot of headroom in a song. Getting the sub-bass just right is an art. Too much and it will sound muddy and eat up valuable headroom, too little and it will sound thin and tinny.

Tip:

To accurately gauge sub-bass, your studio monitor set-up should have a sub-woofer. Without one, low frequency response will not be accurate and your mixes will not translate well to other systems.

Step 1: Create your sub-bass sound

The source of your bass can be a synth patch or a sample. I almost always choose to synthesize my own, but for your benefit I’ll explore both.

Synthesize:

Many synthesizers (software and outboard) come with dedicated sub-bass patches, however, it’s easy to create your own. Start with a sine waveform. They are simple and powerful. Set the amplifier envelope with a high sustain volume and low release value – this is because you want sustained bass notes to be loud, but to diminish quickly when released. Play with the attack timing to your preference. I opt to back off the attack on the sub-bass to achieve a more consistent level with less dynamic range and get the attack from my mid-bass. This saves me a bit of headroom and I find I don’t need to limit the sub-bass as much.

Sample:

Alternatively you can use a sub-bass audio sample, loaded into a sampler. Make sure you use a long sample (a bar or more) and set your loop points to create a smooth loop for sustained notes.

Step 2: EQ / Lowpass

To ensure that the sub-bass does not interfere with any other elements, use a shelving EQ or a low-pass filter (being careful NOT to use any resonance) to remove any frequencies higher than 100 Hz.

Step 3: Limit

Bass should be as loud as possible and have very little dynamic range. Use a limiter on the sub-bass.

Tip:

As an alternative to a dedicated limiter, you can use a compressor with the ratio set to infinity and attack and release times set to 0.

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Atmospheric Sounds Pack 03 to download.

Download Dubstep Atmospheric Sounds Pack 03

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Atmospheric Sounds Pack 02 to download.

Download Dubstep Atmospheric Sounds Pack 02

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Atmospheric Sounds Pack 01 to download.

Download Dubstep Atmospheric Sounds Pack 01

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