So Ive noticed that I can get a much better bass sound if I track the bass than if Ed does who actually plays bass in our band. I dont think its a technique issue as he is tight and articulate but I cant seem to make his bass sound as good as mine.
They're really similar basses too both Ibanez sound gears just different models.
One difference might be that I track into my bass chain so maybe I very my playing to suit the chain whereas Ed tracks jsut to the DI but I cant seem to get a chain that I think works as well as it should with his bass.
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Maybe his pickups are significantly different enough that your usual approach is wrong for them? A difference in plectrum can really change the way a bass tone sounds as well. Thinner picks in my experience give a scratchier sound on bass. It could also be the DI he's using. If you're plugging into a Helix for your tracking, but he's plugging into a Samson DI or something ... possibly there's a quality issue there.
I feel like I cant get the low mids sounding solid on his tracks and although he has plenty of attack also cant get the clank as nice as I can when I'm processing my own playing.
So, if one player is monitoring their performance in a way that means they can't judge how hard to play to fit the tone in the mix, and another player even *playing the same instrument* is monitoring through a chain that places the bass in the proper context for the track, I'd absolutely expect the latter to have a better tone - because on some level, performance *is* tone - the player is trying to make a sound that works, and monitoring determines how hard that is for them.
That said, some players just never build that feedback loop of being able to modulate their playing by actually listening to the sound they're making, some basses just sound bad, some DIs are rubbish... I'm not discounting those possibilities or discrediting the importance of the gear used.
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Active basses are generally fine straight into line level. I normally track straight into that then use Sansamp for some colour. A passive bass will need a DI box though unless you like a dullish sound
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4 tracks to choose from... two from the markbass and two that I can reamp through the big fuckofff ampeg stack I’m currently leaning against!!!!
do that!...
when I say recording, I mean the performance and playing. Not the gear or signal chain.