Re: Drum Machine w/ Bass?

["Matt Davignon" <mattdavignon@gmail.com>]

I'm not sure if my answers will be any use to you or not. Sorry in advance.

I've yet to hear a "bass" sample on a drum machine that I didn't think
was really cheap sounding.

I get bass sounds on mine sometimes by downtuning an electronic tom
sound to a scale, running it through external distortion, filter and
pitch bender effects, then manually operating a volume control while I
play it. The effects are not always to make it sound 'weird' - more to
give it the unpredictability of live sound so it doesn't feel
'canned'. That's not much use if you're looking for automation though.

My personal opinion (from seeing many, many shows) is that not all
musical performances need to have drums and bass lines. In solo
looping performances, attempts to artificially fill in the "rest of
the band" take something away from the experience more often than they
add to it.

Matt Davignon


On 5/30/07, Jeff Shirkey <jcshirke@midway.uchicago.edu> was all:
> I was wondering if someone could tell me what some of the better good
> drum machines + bass are. I want something that I can put on a loop
> of my Switchblade GL for rhythmic backing. If a software option is
> better than some standalone hardware box, that's also an option.
>
> Basically I am looking for rhythmic accompaniment while I play
> guitar. I have an EDP already, but I need something else for drums/
> bass lines.
>
> Thanks in advance.
>
> Jeff
>