Alembic stuff in the studio

[hieronymous]

I recently went into the studio to do some recording with my friend who was visiting. Alembic gear was used, both in the studio and afterwards, so I thought I would post here.  
 

 
In the picture is my '03 Custom Stanley Clarke Signature Standard 5-string (restrung EADGE and upgraded to Anniversary electronics), as well as my F-2B and SF-2. The SF-2 wasn't in the signal chain, though I did use it later in post-production.  
 
I'll be posting soundclips and probably more pictures, so stay tuned!

[tmoney61092]

EADGE? never tried that before, how did that turn out?
 
~Taylor

[hieronymous]

Oops! That should have been EADGC - should've taken the time to spell check!

[tmoney61092]

haha, i was like really? gonna have to try that now. all is good though
 
~Taylor

[hieronymous]

OK, time for some soundclips.
 
This track was the second thing we recorded. The signal path is:  
 
Stanley Clarke bass --> CAJ Tube Compressor --> Alembic F-2B --> Radial ProD2 DI box --> board
 
I was playing my Alembic, but didn't have the sound together by this point - I think I had the bridge pickup a little too high (I was recording in mono):
 
original bass track
 
Recently I finally figured out how to send signal out of the MBox (the ProTools interface I use to record) so that I can process signals with outboard gear after the fact. I use plug-ins sometimes, but I prefer the flexibility and fun of using my own (usually) analog stuff. So in this case I used the Alembic SF-2 Superfilter to shape and beef up the sound:
 
bass with SF-2
 
There's a noticeable difference through computer speakers but it will be much more impressive through headphones or good speakers.
 
Here they are with the drums:
 
original bass with band
 
SF-2 bass with band
 
I did something similar with my Rickenbacker, though in that case I wanted to bring out more mids and highs, which I will post later.

[pauldo]

Harry - thanks, I certainly appreciate that you often times post relevant and useful information (along with great riffs).
 
This is another fine example - - - - and another wake up call for my yearning for an SF-2.

[hieronymous]

Thanks Paul! Yeah, the SF-2 is really quite amazing. You can have a track that sounds like it doesn't have enough treble, bass, whatever, but with the SF-2 you can often pull them out! I'll definitely put together the samples of my Rickenbacker at some point.
 
I should say something about the studio - it is Robot Envy in Berkeley, California. It's a small, independent studio, just perfect for what I wanted. Here's another shot:
 


 
 
You can see my Moog Taurus 3 bass pedals in this shot, though they don't appear in the track I posted.

[gtrguy]

I use an SF-2 with the F-1X as a direct box to record and it works great. You can always find a good sound if you have the time to tweak it a bit.
 
Dave

[terryc]

I must have been a drummer in my past life because next to a great bass riff I just love the sound of a solid funky drum pattern.
Nice rhythmn..very funky..send more sound clips!!!!

[pace]

How's the Taurus working for you Harry?

[terryc]

Is it in 5/4..sounded very like the intro to 'Money'

[hieronymous]

Thanks guys. At first I didn't think that this track was going to really go anywhere. It was just kind of a funk jam we did to get warmed up. Here's the whole track, mistakes and all, nothing fixed:  
 
first first robot envy
 
But putting it through the SF-2, it kind of came to life for me. I also overdubbed some Rhodes electric piano and did some more mastering EQ & reverb. Ah, now the track is beginning to take shape...
 
later first robot envy
 
As to the similarity to Pink Floyd's Money, I never thought of that! Maybe because I'm basically playing pentatonic, plus playing with a pick...

[alemberic]

Hi Harry--
Bump...please check your gmail account when you get a moment.  Thanks--
 
Eric

[alemberic]

Sorry, guys, another bump--a shameless effort to make my 101st post.  (I think this promotes me to another membership level?)
 
Thanks for your tolerance--
 
Eric