Infenro Posted July 24, 2013 Share Posted July 24, 2013 Everytime I attempt to learn to make a decent LFO bass it comes out sloppy or I just don't understand the main parameters used to make such a thick bassy sound. It often just comes out flat like I'm just messing with a LP knob on any of the other synths. What did most of you guys do to learn how to make a cool LFO bass? Of any kind too, not just those huge heavy sounds but the more laid back ones too. Sorry if this is a common question, I do not mean to waste time on the forum but I didn't find any threads specifically aimed at this question Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flexstyle Posted July 24, 2013 Share Posted July 24, 2013 LFO on the cutoff is usually just one part of the bass patch. You'll also want to experiment with the resonance of the filter, adding effects to the bassline (distortion, etc.), and then just careful EQ tweaking as well. What synth are you trying to make a wobble with? Some are much better than others. Also, consider trying to take a bass synth but cut all the actual low frequencies out of it, then modulate the cutoff on that. Add the sub frequencies back with a separate synth doing a pure sine wave or something, then perhaps compress the two together at the end. Those are just a couple of things you can do--a lot of wobbles are made in ways that don't involve a filter at all (FM synthesis, for instance). Keep poking around, and I'm sure someone else will chime in here soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timaeus222 Posted July 24, 2013 Share Posted July 24, 2013 (edited) I don't think Infenro is necessarily looking for dubstep wobbles only. could be something worthwhile to try to make, or maybe (the tremolo sweeping resonant bass in the background). The tone itself is usually based on experimentation and knowledge of your synth. If you have a synth that can route oscillators serially, this will help. You could try an oscillator routed to an FM oscillator for a distorted buzzy sound. Overdrive it afterwards, and then do the standard LFO to test it. Add a little resonance for some strength. Don't overdo it, because some people do that, and that's sometimes why dubstep gets grating. That's a generic wobble. Edited July 24, 2013 by timaeus222 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Infenro Posted July 25, 2013 Author Share Posted July 25, 2013 Yeah timaeus got me (unrelated, but I found your youtube channel and I really liked your Zebra 2 tutorial). See right now I'm using Sytrus, its safe to say that I need to get a better synthesizer right? I had already heard of Zebra from Zircon, and I'm seriously considering getting it. Would it be to much for someone like me who really quite a novice? And, would it help actually making successful LFO basses? (had to get back on topic) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryan Jobson Posted July 26, 2013 Share Posted July 26, 2013 Automation. Automation. Automation. If we're talking about dubstep bass, it's all in the details and automation. A simple LFO with the same garbled bass sound is going to be lame. There's a big gap from amateur dubstep to really crazy sounding bass and it's all in the automation and audio manipulation. To me that's what keeps it interesting. Now you may not be going for big crazy wobbly wonky bass effects, and a simple LFO on your bassline might do the trick on your track. But still, automating those parameters whether it be part of the envelope, filter, or something else, is going to really breathe some life into your sounds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flexstyle Posted July 27, 2013 Share Posted July 27, 2013 Yeah timaeus got me (unrelated, but I found your youtube channel and I really liked your Zebra 2 tutorial). See right now I'm using Sytrus, its safe to say that I need to get a better synthesizer right? I had already heard of Zebra from Zircon, and I'm seriously considering getting it. Would it be to much for someone like me who really quite a novice? And, would it help actually making successful LFO basses? (had to get back on topic) You can actually do some seriously sick basses with Sytrus. See http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rsSCePKB16A for more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timaeus222 Posted July 27, 2013 Share Posted July 27, 2013 You can actually do some seriously sick basses with Sytrus. See http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rsSCePKB16A for more. It's just personal preference with me, but I've never really worked that in-depth with Sytrus, and I've found Zebra to have a pretty smooth workflow. But yeah, it's still your choice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Infenro Posted July 27, 2013 Author Share Posted July 27, 2013 I do want Sytrus, but I usually work with what I have first. Thanks for the link flexstyle! Will check it out and try some new things! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poblequadrat Posted July 30, 2013 Share Posted July 30, 2013 You can also use any synthesizer that will let you use hand-drawn waveforms as modulators, rather than automation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timaeus222 Posted July 30, 2013 Share Posted July 30, 2013 (edited) You can also use any synthesizer that will let you use hand-drawn waveforms as modulators, rather than automation. That's true, but with automation you can also evolve the timbre over time, rather than having a rigid tone the whole time. Automation helps a lot with progression, and it's independent of the synth phase/position. I believe you're talking about Multi-Stage Envelope Generators, which are still just a form of shrunken automation. Edited August 6, 2013 by timaeus222 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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