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Get the Perfect Lowend With This Guide

Get the Perfect Lowend With This Guide

This week I'll run you through perfecting your kick and bass, our favorite drum machine under $100, and the best track of the week. Let's get it!

The Producer
May 19, 2023

Hey! This is Ernesto, this week I'll run you through perfecting your kick and bass, our favorite drum machine under $100, and the best track of the week. Let's get it!

Get the Perfect Low End

Struggling to achieve that professional-sounding low end? I’ve got you covered! Here are some tips and techniques to help you get there:

Use a Reference Track: Choose a professionally mixed track in a similar style to your production and use it as a reference. Pay special attention to the bass and kick drum in your reference track, and use a frequency analyzer to visualize what's happening.

High Pass Filter: Use a high-pass filter to all non-bass tracks in your mix, usually around 100-200 Hz or higher depending on the track. This will remove unwanted low-end frequencies that can clutter your mix.

Mono Your Bass: Making the low frequencies of your bass mono can help avoid phase cancellation issues when your track is played on different sound systems.

Stay in key: Make sure your kick and bass are in key, just not hitting the same note. In house music, you can make your kick fill the lowend tuning it to the root note of your scale, and have the bass hit the 3rd and the 5th note of that same scale.

Create Space: Eq out 2 or 3 db of the main frequency of the kick on the bass, and do the same with the main frequencies of the bass on the kick. Remember low frequencies take the longest time to disappear - space is key!

With these tips, your mixes will sound cleaner, more balanced, and more professional.

Got any questions? join us on the Discord and let's discuss it further.

Track of the Week:

Claude VonStroke, Shadow Child - Steel Thing Original Mix

Industry News: Insomniac Events Announces New Boat Festival

Insomniac Events is taking the party to the high seas with EDSea. Starting November 4th, 2023, they're decking out the Norwegian Joy cruise ship with everything from late-night dance parties to art installations, spread across eight marine-themed stages. The cruise kicks off from Miami, throws a party in Nassau, drops by the private island of Great Stirrup Cay, and sails back home by November 8th. Lineup details are still under wraps, more info here.

Plugin of the Week: Fabfilter Pro-DS

This is my go-to for de-essing rough samples and vocals. It's precise and transparent, even at high sibilance reduction settings, and has a great "preview" option that lets you hear exactly what you are taking out, making it an excellent tool for both recording and mixing.

Best Drum Machine under $100 (sort of): Behringer RD-6

Inspired by the legendary TR-606, the Behringer RD-6 is user-friendly, with eight analog drum sounds, and a handy global distortion, the RD-6 packs a major punch for its modest price tag of $139. The perfect place to jump into the rabbit hole of outboard gear. Check it out here.Check out the full list Home Recording Studio Essentials.