At around the 0:44 mark, you can hear a pretty distinct distortion/saturation effect, with the bass and the kick(not the same effect on both, but ideally I'd like to know the processing methods for both). I'd describe it as a very cold(Not because of the visuals XD) and crisp, almost glitchy saturation effect on them (super apparent with the kick, so much so that I wonder if its an additional layer or part of the kick itself) Any idea what type of effect that would be and how one would go about recreating it? My initial guess is that the bass was driven into some tube, and the kick was soft-clipped, but I'm pretty doubtful, especially with the kick.

 

sounds waveshaped to me or some soft saturation but heavy on the drive with a boost on the hi end try the msaturater and play with the harmonics

 

What I hear about the kick is a simple saturation, try different types, and I'll tell more 3rd order harmonics in how I perceive the sound of it.
I think what is interesting is what is happening AFTER the kick transient : layers, layers layers.
You have the hint of a buzzy raw saw wave synth hitting at the 0:49 mark.
Add to this saw synth a crash cymbal, very important, the voice harmony, and you get this roaring hollowish texture making the kick very impactant. Don't forget the reverb, obviously.

There is also a string note underlying, but it follows the soundpiece very subtly. Does not change a lot if it's in or not IMHO.

Back to the kick, yeah, the transient get "ooomphed", "rounded" with saturation but nothing exotic, and there is a bass sustain following.
I would tell a supplementary bass layer just to match the kick and make it sustain, i could be an other kick, the same with reverb and filtered, or just a bass generator of any kind.

Kick transient - saturated
Kick sustain layer - filtered, prolly bass boosted, merely excited by any kind ?
Synth buzz - saw wave, with weighted saturation, eq, maybe some other modulation fx of some kind to allow it more space
---For the kicky sound---
And the additional textures I mentioned earlier... which are not a kick by themselves, but alter the way we perceive it, de facto, because happening at the same time as the kick.

 

coming from hip hop and beats we have this alot,

while no one can say for sure, i feel safe to say that you dont achieve this with single, separate channel processing (meaning soft clip the kick and saturate the bass.. etc...)
but rather as simply a mix buss/drum buss process, where the saturation/soft clipping is happening on one channel where the bass and kick (and maybe other stuff) are summed and driven into.

you can also hear the cymbals and that woosh fx in 0:44 being distorted which supports my theory of just driving the instrumental mix buss or drum buss, and not processing individual separate channels

try good quality saturator plugins on that summing buss, use saturators that can deal/have plenty of dynamic range and coloration, that way you can shape the saturation/distortion (Kush Audio Omega Bundle, Lindell 80/50, Kazrog True Iron)

 

Last edited: Sep 1, 2021

I think it's more of a matter of layering fizz/noise/washy noise with a assymetrically distorted sine or lowpassing a square. That way it gives the impression of being distorted, when it might not be distorted (or "as much" distorted as it is). Try it on the bass first and foremost.

Edit: Another thing to give the impression of distortion is to add a fast Sn'H LFO on amplitude, so that the volume modulates rapidly. To give it that old tape texture.

 

Last edited: Sep 1, 2021

Are you suggesting that click above the kick is simple saturation? I might be having a brainfart moment here, but it doesn't seem that way to me at all? Let me timestamp it just to ensure we're talking about the same thing.

Edit: For example the singular click at 0:51, there's a distinctly sharp layer at the top end. It might not be a part of the kick, but it does play with the kick each time, suggesting it was either manually layered or some form of parallel processing(as the basis of the kick still sounds "normal")
At 1:19-1:20 too

 

Last edited: Sep 1, 2021

Yeah that would explain the tone of the bass when it hits initially, the kick is what's escaping me now!

 

Ah yeah this little shite. I did not pick it up, and plays from 1:16 to 1:26 the downtempo part.
At this moment I'm going to bed, but it remembers me when I was messing my drums with guitar amps plugins. Try to send your kick to a medium sounding one like Guitar Rig, then a better like Amplitube, and then go for a Neural ? if your CPU allows it. And of course disable the cab IR.

little hint : on the Guitar Rig you can change the Variac and Bias voltages. You can create some asymetrical "dead zone" distortion. I don't know if it's your anwser, but it will lead you to "devasted / farting transient" territory. I made killer grainy textures with this technique.

I don't think it's a different kick nor noise or layer of harsh stuff added. Sounds like a faulty tube type of distortion. Grab Trash 2 from our fetished Reversers, there are plenty colors of distortions and pretty cool presets to start some dead zone distortion.

 

Ahhokay I'll try that out then. thank you!