I'm attempting to write a chorus with a big pulsing synth bass like Ellie Goulding - Figure 8. I made a wobble bass preset in Massive and I'm using an LFO to modulate the cutoff of a "scream" filter. I'm relatively happy with it but it's lacking depth and really isn't creating the wall of sound you hear in the chorus to Ellie Goulding - Figure 8, shown below. What's missing? How do I make it as phat as your mom?

My sound
https://www.dropbox.com/s/vjiupy0db8dq0sg/BassChorus.mp3?dl=0
http://s15.postimg.org/3yrn9dfor/Screen_Shot_2016_10_28_at_9_08_07_am.png

"Figure 8"

from 1:04

The sound in the bridge of Bring Me The Horizon - Happy Song is similar but a bit more trance-ish. Any idea how to make this sound?

"Happy Song"

from 2:46

 

Instrumental version

 

My definition of "pulsing" is something in the realm of "ducking" - not necessarily ducking when kick hits, but ducking none the less. What I hear there, is a sub bass hitting the exact same note as the tail of the kick. Most likely the notes of the sub are missing where the kick is hitting - so the subsonics are delivered either by the sub either by the kick's tail. On top of the sub what I hear is a "top bass" which ramps down in pitch. I don't even think is a wobble - maybe a serum/massive wavescan (a single scan, start to finish of the wavetable - attack of a synced envelope). You lowpass the sub at 100 Hz or around and hipass the top bass at 110-120 Hz.

At least 2 layers of bass, and just on the top layer(s): parallel distortion, parallel compression, inline tape saturation, inline clipper. Also a multiband compressor on the masterbus. Worth trying unison in massive.
Send your kick and subbass straight to the masterbus (after you mixed the levels properly) to avoid as much any kind of compression or other dynamic alteration. Also excess clipping is damaging for low end so don't overdo it on the master bus.

OK, the track has no depth, it's "in your f-n face" to quote a classic. As for the lows, this track lacks in low end compared to any techno or house tracks. So here's your "wall of sound": cut the subsonics as much as possible and clip everything in the track: clip the instruments, clip the instrument summing busses, clip the submix and clip the master - each couple of minus dB matters. I bet that if you pass that track through a goniometer you'll see a nice diamond shape there.

Update: The track is hitting -8dB FS RMS. I've seen even more clip but this one too is definitely clipped.

Does someone actually ever mentioned the word "trance-ish", ever, when talking about this song? For me is rock all day long. Or I'm growing old?

good night.

 

Thanks for your in-depth answer. Can you tell me what envelope shape to use for the LFO controlling the HPF? I'm struggling to get the same pulsing rhythm, which is that aspect I'm most interested in.