Korg Forums

mihata · Last edited by mihata on Sun Jul 12, 2015 9:46 pm; edited 2 times in total

Hey people,

I'm kind of novice, playing e2 and volca keys. From all elements I most struggle to compose nice baselines. How do you approach them?

- do you sequence them and then note-adjust or record directly?

- for me its somehow easier to make a dubstepp-ish (saw) baseline (I'm into techno kind of style) rather than bouncy, pumping and dark baseline that goes in between of the kicks.. which wave you use for those and then what modulation you apply?

- do you use glide?

- other strategy I would imagine is to have sustained note and record some pitch change on it.

- I prefer setting Mono for baselines - a Poly chord in the lows just doesn't sound right to me.

your knowledge is most welcome!

MaartenNl · Junior Member Joined: 16 Feb 2015 Posts: 92

I have not all the answers, but maybe this Will help you. Don't think: i want to do the stuff on my own, wanna be creative or something like that, but just learn a gew basic bass patterns.

http://promusicproducers.com/10-common-bassline-patterns-in-edm/

For the sound: like you said, do not overlap tones in the lower section/octave.
Use lowpass filters or maybe high Pass filters.

I know that you are asking for harder basslines, but you can use the doncamatic kickdrum for basslines or Some Toms.

If you go towards a more agressieve dubstep / on the beat bassline:
I think, but not sure that you have to add a little bit of highpassfilter to the bassline so the kick and bassline won't melt together to much.

mihata · Posted: Sun Jul 12, 2015 2:11 pm Post subject:

Many thanks, I will definitely go through those and try replicate some in e2 environment!

MaartenNl · Junior Member Joined: 16 Feb 2015 Posts: 92

MaartenNl · Junior Member Joined: 16 Feb 2015 Posts: 92

Also, keep attention to the swing: for example in this tutorial:
http://www.attackmagazine.com/technique/beat-dissected/simple-jackin-house/

You need to set the bom on 120, but the swing on 15 instead of 65.(different scheme)

mihata · Posted: Sun Jul 12, 2015 9:47 pm Post subject:

Great info, I found also this one about adding subtle variations to the beat http://www.attackmagazine.com/technique/walkthroughs/the-psychoacoustics-of-drums/

MaartenNl · Junior Member Joined: 16 Feb 2015 Posts: 92

mihata · Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2015 5:47 am Post subject:

Not yet, but I haven't got time this weekend to play.. hope to finish my work earlier today and dive in.. will be updating here:)

dutchcow · Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2015 9:03 am Post subject:

Some synthesis tutorials might be useful as well. The E2 is capable to shape nice bass sounds. You can see how bass sounds you like are made in the demo patterns to get an idea. Trying to figure out how your favorite tracks are build can also help a lot.

Also read tutorials and tips/tricks for different musical styles and take the basic principles from it. Try layering different waveforms and turn on EG/AMP and play with the attack and decay. A saw layered with a triangle can make a big difference when done right.

In short read a lot, play and experiment a lot and once you are able to create some sounds you like start using them in your tracks. There are many audio/music forums full of great little tips and gems. Some creative Googling will allow you to find loads of threads scattered around the net.

Synthesis basics;
http://www.innovativesynthesis.com/category/basic-guide-to-synthesizers/ (start at the bottom)
http://beausievers.com/synth/synthbasics/
http://www.musicsoftwaretraining.com/blog/basic-synthesis-and-sound-design-essentials/

Some bass line guides;
http://www.interruptor.ch/dub_bass.shtml
http://music.tutsplus.com/tutorials/8-quick-tips-on-designing-synth-basses--audio-19807
http://www.kmag.co.uk/editorial/musictech/ten-ways-to-make-a-dnb-bassline.html

mihata · Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2015 10:28 am Post subject:

Thank you dutchcow,

About synthesis, yes I already have some basic knowledge how it works, seems that I miss the part where I need to get into which exact elements to combine for achieving certain feel/ style that I'm after. Of course I need to play more to achieve that:) What I've been doing is watching everything possible about synths and producing on youtube while doing design work on the other laptop - I only had around more or less 10 2 hours sessions with e2 and recently volca keys:)

here is some of my favorite stuff as a prime example to follow:)

Gary Beck - Before The Crash (Original Mix):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tjPcftYBOv8

Marcel Fengler - Frantic:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=if2C3bOt5_A

Daniel Stefanik - Rush (Original Mix)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kgs1UGRBF2Y

Nina Kraviz @ Dekmantel Festival at Amsterdam 2015
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p6o08LW6i94
(god I love that last one, gutted to have missed this gig!)

Links seem super-useful, thank you!

mihata · Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2015 10:43 am Post subject:

the actual track from N. Kraviz set
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvEdwl88J2U

Purity Ring, went to their gig in A'dam, sounded massive:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ETbGpGJNVLM

Pet Shop Boys with a brass-y base:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HIQCI1reA08

Excuses for the link spam, but I somehow felt like it's also nice idea to share some examples on the topic:)

s3kn0tr0n1c · Joined: 16 Jul 2010 Posts: 32

mihata · Posted: Mon Jul 13, 2015 11:16 am Post subject:

I guess just making separate parts for each

eightysix · Joined: 04 Jul 2015 Posts: 5

I've been playing with the layering, too. Make a bass line with a sine wave, copy the part one over, change the oscillator. Adding a little distortion makes them come alive! You may want to give them a little room to breath, too, by applying the low pass filter on the bass line parts and high-pass most others.

s3kn0tr0n1c · Joined: 16 Jul 2010 Posts: 32