Tips For Designing Bass Sounds; Resonance And Bass; Envelopes; The Fat, Deep Sawtooth Sound - Alesis Andromeda A6 Tips And Tricks Manual

section 11: tips for designing bass sounds

11.1 resonance and bass:

The two filters handle resonance differently, based on their style. When you crank up filter 2,
the resonance cancels out some of the bass. This is exactly the same way the Moog Modular,
and the Moogerfooger filter, handle resonance as well. Unfortunately, this means that for
resonant bass sounds, filter two is not always the best choice.
Filter one has positive resonance: When you crank up the resonance, the bass does not
decrease. This makes it idea for bass sounds. However, filter one does not self oscillate. If
you want self-oscillation, you have to use filter two.

11.2 envelopes:

For quick sounds, I recommend sticking with just a basic filter envelope (not too many
modulations), and turning off any stages that you can. This will speed up the sound
processing considerably. You can turn off a stage by twisting any of the envelope knobs all
the way to the left.
For speed purposes, note that the envelope routings to the filter and the oscillators are on the
highest CPU cycle, and get updated much faster than modulation routings. Although it is
tempting to throw some envelope tricks in on a MOD route, it is not recommended. The
resulting sound can be a tad sluggish. I would recommend sticking with the basic ENV 1
amount controls (for the oscillator), and ENV 2 controls (for each filter).
I typically program bass sounds with ASR envelopes for the amp (only attack, sustain, and
release 2 on); and ADSR envelopes in the filter (only attack, decay 1, sustain, and release 2
envelopes on).
Note that filter levels can affect the bass response; clipping sounds in general will sound less
" bassy" .
For more tricks and tips, there is an entire section in this guide devoted to envelopes. If you
are not familiar with the envelopes, I would suggest reading this tips and tricks section!

11.3 the fat, deep sawtooth sound:

Colin pointed out a pretty good trick for getting a really nice, fat-sounding waveform that is
in addition to your standard oscillator waves. Simply mix a sawtooth waveform with a sub-
oscillator at 34.7. A negative sawtooth will yield a sharp and defined tone, best for bass
sounds and other sounds which will give you great depth. A positive sawtooth will yield a
thicker, warmer sound.