Hello everybody

Been struggling with this for years, but i'd really like some insight on mixing this type of sound (mostly leads played in a lower octave with a long sustain).

A good example of this type of bass being used would be:

( Kendrick Lamar - Swimming Pools)

Questions I have:

1.) What type of EQ best suites this job? (Currently use Fruity Parametric 2)

2.) How deep should the Lowpass be? Eg: 500Hz.

3.) When/When not to use a Steep LP curve?

4.) Should the kick stand out more than the bass?

5.) Should the bass be sidechained to the kick?

6.) Should the bass be in mono/stereo

Any info on this subject would really help as my mixes tend to get muddy when I add a bass like this.

Hopefully someone has a good understanding of this style of mixing

Thanks in advance

 

Last edited: Jan 29, 2016

Not an answer, but I think you should try freq/M-S isolation and freq dependent phase/correlation metering with your reference tracks.
(I think there's tutorial about this on MixBusTV youtube channel.)
You can actually "hear" balances and panning concept at certain freq, that you couldn't individually hear(even see) before.
I personally learned from this a lot.

In general, that type of bass synths should be wider than kick.
(In that arrange, I'll make that bass synth track wider with some modul/delay effect even if I get as mono track from artist.)
But you know you should be very careful about phase issue and mono compatibility on sub-low freq.
So you gonna need 'EQ with M-S Matrix' and 'freq dependent stereo imager'.

 

Now, if you ask if the bass should be in mono/stereo and say that you struggle with this for years, I don't know what you mean by struggle but you focused your energy in something else than mixing theory: your subbass must be mono; the thump of the kick is mono - you can safely go with mono signals with everything below 400 Hz then you can go wider & wider. As a general rule of thumb: if it works in mono, it will work in stereo. The reverse is not always true.

Now on topic: these tracks are having at least 2 layers of bass - 1 layer of sine bass below 120 Hz and the second layer is what you hear when you play the track in laptop speakers. With such long sustain on the bass notes, your kick must be quite short and punchy otherwise it's weight will interfere with the subbass. Also, on that track, some kicks have programmed a bass note with the same length - it gives the impression that some kick hits are really big, but in fact is the same kick layered with a sub sine. It also goes one octave up to simulate a 808-style tom on a couple of notes. Also I'd worry more about actual sounds (synth programming) and mixing

4: Kick and bass have their own places, no one stands out more (the kick is simply shorter that your average drum kick). You carve an couple dB EQ cut in the bass at the frequency the kick has the most energy. See your kick in term of length in miliseconds: you simply can't make a super fat and heavy short kick - the subs need time to propagate. If your kick's thump overlays often with bass notes, you have to change the kick.
5: Yes, it helps. Do it with taste though. (Bigger dB cut in the centre, smaller dB cut in the sides). Pro-C can do it elegantly.

Final note: As our friend above me pointed out, most likely without Mid-Side processing you will not be able to get exactly that sound. But you can get it clear at the expense of loudness. Good luck!

 

personally I find fl parametric eq 2 a little counter intuitive.(not bad sounding)
so maybe it's good to look for an extra eq, you might want take a look at the free section.

you will need a linear phase eq if you split sounds and merge them after eq-ing

 

Waves linear phase EQ?

 

http://theproaudiofiles.com/linear-phase-vs-minimum-phase-eq/
Check these links. You'll get the concept that why & when you need linear phase eq.
There's a lot of options. Waves LinEQ, FabFilter Pro-Q, Acon Digital Equalize, DMG, Voxengo etc.