d&b's bottom end

Tony Reid (t-bird@salata.com)
15 Feb 99 16:59:36 -0800


ar> I'll just keep getting groove music that has a bottom-end, w/a
ar> real bass drum & toms & such to support the bass gtr. And yes, I know
ar> *some* d&b does have a decent bottom-end, but it's few & far between--

hmm... i wonder who you've heard in the d&b realm. as in any genre, most
of
it is shite, but no (or little) bottom end isn't usually a problem i
encounter--i.e., it's always prominent whether i like it or not!

ar> most of the time it seems like the drum track has simply been sped up
ar> w/o attempting to retain any of the lower frequencies of the original
ar> (wouldn't some kind of timeshift work?), rendering the much-commented
ar> -upon "sped up Casio rhythmbox" effect. And those flickering
lights....

in the "roller" style (incorporating lots of drum rolls, etc.) the loop
*has*
been sped up, usually. the thing is, if you have a lot of bottom end in
your
drums, then you have to minimize the amt. of bottom end in the bassline--if
you want your track to not come out muddy. the basslines in jungle/d&b are
usually more of the "groove element" than the drums (kinda like in dub) so
reducing the lo-freq. content is counter-productive, hence the lack of
"bottom end" in the drums. in the "stepper (aka 2-step)" style, the break
is
usually programmed (i.e., *not* based on a drum loop) and consequently isn't
pitch shifted--though you still need to make sure the bass & drums aren't
fighting for the same frequency ranges.

i'm not sure what the deal is with the lights, though...

-t

p.s. i didn't like drum & bass/jungle the first time i heard it either...
i
think i scrunched up my face and said "what is that?"