Loopy Pro: Create music, your way.
What is Loopy Pro? — Loopy Pro is a powerful, flexible, and intuitive live looper, sampler, clip launcher and DAW for iPhone and iPad. At its core, it allows you to record and layer sounds in real-time to create complex musical arrangements. But it doesn’t stop there—Loopy Pro offers advanced tools to customize your workflow, build dynamic performance setups, and create a seamless connection between instruments, effects, and external gear.
Use it for live looping, sequencing, arranging, mixing, and much more. Whether you're a live performer, a producer, or just experimenting with sound, Loopy Pro helps you take control of your creative process.
Download on the App StoreLoopy Pro is your all-in-one musical toolkit. Try it for free today.
What's the best bass amp sim?
I've stumbled into a bass and been asked to do a few tracks (nothing professional, so I don't wanna spring for a SansAmp or hardware), so is there a consensus for bass players out there? Preferably something Fender-style, just some classic tones needed, nothing fancy like metal overdrive or whatever needed.
Thanks!
Comments
Psa1000 Jr is good.
I Agree, PSA1000jr is the most usable one I have found
Should I just get the psa 1000 or is there a difference?.
Edit: this Apple Pencil writing in text fields is more trouble than its worth. Ios14 sucks
You don’t need the big brother for Bass since it’s mono. The PSA1000 is just the jr but stereo. But, you might find other uses for the big boy so it can’t hurt if you don’t mind spending the extra.
One of ‘em has more presets. I don’t know which though.
You should check ThU which has limited but good amps and cabs (Ashdown and an Ampeg) and also Bias Amps are quite good but the app is quite buggy crashing a lot. Tonestack is my third option needs some work tweaking it to get a decent sound (Ampegs) and last Amplitube has dedicated Ampegs again decent at best but stable. Personally I used Bias a lot but since Thu I use that instead. Debatable whether it sounds better that Bias but is stable and sounds great anyway. Wish it had more classic models. In the real world I use an Ashdown little bastard which is my benchmark for comparing amp sims.
Thanks for the replies. I'm satisfied with the PSA Jr. Supersly, I wanted something simple and standalone, so didn't wanna bother going through all those, though I've heard ThU is pretty good.
it seems that Mammoth is the best.
https://apps.apple.com/fr/app/mammoth-bass-amp/id1517411435
don't have it so I can't give my opinion
@oat_phipps If you're interested, you can download the original PSA-1 factory presets from this post: https://forum.audiob.us/discussion/40603/nembrini-apps-presets-how-to-manage-them-and-49-psa1000-psa1000-jr-presets. They use the amp maker's names, so I assume they were licensed at the time. They're a bit of a business to access (internal AUM presets), but they are very good.
It may not fit the ‚do a few tracks‘ schedule, but generally a proper setup can improve a bass dramatically.
The most important part is strings and tension, because that defines the individual instrument‘s response to playing (envelope and spectrum). Even 2 basses with identical construction and wood type may react differently.
Quality strings are expensive, but once you found your favourite (or best match) you can rely on the manufacturer for constant quality.
Examples flatwound: LaBella, d‘Addario Chromes, Thomastik JF344
Roundwound: DR Sunbeams, GHS Boomers
Rules of thumb: the higher a string‘s gauge, the more wood it needs to perform best, 1st of all fat neck profile. Slim gauges don‘t mean a slim sound.
Any bass sound is demanding regarding the input stage with it‘s steep attack and deep frequency. A passive P-Bass may easily generate 1000 mV if picked hard.
Tbh I prefer the pure bass sound on a track, but I have a very good DI, a vintage broadcast impedance matching module, which happens to drive headphones simultanously while tracking. That‘s when I noticed the importance of monitoring for play/performance control.
(which was a stunning experience)
👍
Mammoth is only for metal and crispy overdrive bass, about the furthest from Fender style you could get.
Everyone has mentioned this already but I want to mention it again, anything Nembrini is going to be awesome
Also the mammoth bass sim is a beast!
Nembrini has mentioned they will put out an Ampeg bass amp in the future, can’t get more classic than that with a Fender bass. For now it’s both of their PSA preamps that reign supreme especially on bass. The great thing about them is they can be used as preamps but also post as saturators and filters. I really wish Mammoth offered more traditional clean tones.
As everyone has mentioned, PSA1000 or PSA1000Jr, they’re the best. Unlike guitars that benefit from IRs and very shaped amp sims, a bass doesn’t need much, you could go direct. I like the PSA bass presets they really add bite and presence pre or post. The main thing to remember with recording bass is drier and right down the middle is better. If you enter the mix with a really big bassy tone that’s wide, processed, and overshaped, in the final mix it will come out flabby and imprecise, it will get lost and buried in the mix. The big tone in your headphones is good at the final mix, not at the point of laying down the actual track. Opposite with guitars, I like to have the guitar tone already shaped as it inspires what and how I play.
I would also recommend Bass Rigs Volume 1 from Overloud, great quality and variety for $23. It’s not the same as the sims, the Bass rigs are modeled after actual amps like Aguilar and Trace Elliot, and they all come with cab IRs. 39 rigs there and has its own preset bank as well of 37 patches, and some pedals are included. The “Long Solo” and “Jacob” presets are incredible.
Then you have the Overloud Bass amps, 5 amps and 3 cabs, comes with “Bass World” preset bank. I think all the amps are great for clean and vary from vintage, classic, to modern. What matters is the cabinet. The OB Tweed ‘59’ cab is the best for the bass amps, and it also works for guitars. The other bass cabs called Ash are quite bassy and definitely need Overloud’s internal shelf splitter/mixer between amp and cab. Anyway to complement the PSA with a more traditional bass amp I’d recommend 2 amps and 1 cab from TH-U for $15, or the Bass Rigs. And then you can dress it up with the free demo stuff. Amplitube sells bass amps too btw.
Agreed with @Telefunky, pure bass direct is good and how your bass is set up is very important. Flatwound strings allow for no fret noise and squeaks when recording but they can sound quite dull. Roundwounds have that good bite, Halfwounds are a good compromise. A vote for the GHS Boomers here. I also use La Bella flats .52-110 but only for specific purposes. I think overall rounds are the way to go.
Assuming your string height and length is set up properly at the bridge, what’s really important for the bass is the neck relief. If your neck is straight as a board and there’s no relief, you could get fret buzz and rattle in the first half of your bass, and a sound with less dimension and sustain. Too much neck relief will cause intonation issues and fret buzz higher up the bass, and a neck bow. So the best is just a little bit of relief so you don’t get rattle and backbuzz and give your strings room to vibrate in all directions. As we say, action as low as you can go without buzz, which usually means medium action. String gauge is important for this too. Some players prefer zero relief for a real fret clank sound, but I think it sounds better with a little relief. Definitely not too much. To check your relief, with your left index finger fret the first fret of the low E. Then Turn your right palm towards you and put the right thumb on the 15th fret. Now you’ve created two end points. So while in that position press your right middle or index finger on the 9th fret. If when pressing on 9th fret the string doesn’t move at all, then you have no neck relief. If the string moves down a lot when you press the 9th, then you have too much relief. What you want is a space of one to two business cards between the fret and the string. So put one card next to your right middle finger. If when you release the 9th fret and the card falls out, put three cards in, if when releasing the 9th the cards don’t fall out, then you’re in the ballpark. If you need to adjust the neck relief you need to proper sized hex key for your truss rod. Don’t be afraid to adjust the truss rod, but only quarter turns at a time at most. Assuming your truss rod is located at the headstock, turning towards high strings to add relief and turning towards low strings to tighten. You have to detune the strings if you’re tightening, but not if you’re loosening. If you can get your frets 2-4 not to buzz when you attack and they have more roundness and sustain but still with growl, you got it right. If it’s too clanky and rattling, then you need more relief to reach the full potential of that bass. If it sounds too thuddy and plays loose and the higher frets buzz, you need less relief. Sorry for the novel. I recently diy adjusted my Fender P Bass and it changed my world...
Wow, thanks for this. Bass has always been my natural instrument (meaning I'm actually pretty darn good and have a great feel for it compared to guitar), but I've never owned one or paid much attention to the hardware. Coincidentally, your novel on action is just what I needed, because I played for a few hours last night and it's a buzzy thing (borrowed Fender Mustang bass, I'm guessing one of the lower-end models). Now to print up some business cards advertising my professional bass services!
Also, agreed on roundwounds. Never bought a pack, so I'll take yours and Telefunky's advice on the Boomers, but I prefer them.
And interesting notes on the DI. I've never even thought to try it, even though I love DI guitar in many situations. Like I said, I'm mostly just a dude who wants to play and ignores the technical side of things. I was brought up in the studios being taught that a SansAmp was a must for bass without an amp.
Love me a Mustang bass, do you have the two pickups PJ config, or the one split coil pickup? Keep in mind the mustang is a short scale bass, 30 inches, actually really comfy for guitar players. But you need to make sure you buy short scale bass strings, and if it’s a string through body design you might need medium scale in some cases. But don’t get long scale. Short scale basses are super hip right now, they offer a bassier fundamental and less overtones.
https://www.ghsstrings.com/products/11266-short-scale-bass-boomers?category_id=1964722-bass-boomers
I would get the regulars, short scales can have a floppier feel because the shorter the string the less tension there is, but getting a regular to heavy gauge can counteract some of that.
Basically if the open strings and the 12th fret harmonic are both in tune, you’re more or less fine regarding the bridge, unless the string height action feels comically too high or too low just leave it alone. But you can certainly adjust the truss rod for a minimal action change, Fender bass uses a 3/16 hex I believe. If the open strings buzz you need more neck relief. If you’re playing frets 2-4 and it causes a buzz or rattle, you need more neck relief, but don’t confuse it with the feeling of floppier strings on a short scale. Also important to know what gauge is on there now and if the nut has ever been scooped, don’t change to a crazy gauge because that requires a bridge adjustment. Anyway if your action seems low and there’s fret buzz, add some neck relief and it will go away, just 1-2 tiny turns towards the g string at first to check. Some players like a little buzz, but there’s a difference between a live bass amp where you don’t really hear it and direct recording where you might. Another important thing is on the Mustangs some truss rods are at the headstock but others are accessed at the neck/body joint, so the direction in which you turn could be opposite. I’d look this up. Never tighten the relief without detuning first, it can damage the bass. Adding relief is fine without detuning.
If you do have the 2 pickup Mustang version, important to note that the bridge pickup is a single coil so it will have a cycle buzz and hum when soloed. It also will not be cancelled out if balanced with the neck pickup because that’s a split coil. So to record without cycle buzz you can just use the neck pickup. This buzz doesn’t matter in live settings because you can’t hear it over a band and many like the bridge pickup, but for recordings it totally matters. If you just have the one split coil neck pickup then this is not an issue.