Jake BrooksI’m not a fan of fret buzz and have not been able to remove it from my tracks. I have read that a certain velocity or greater creates the buzz, but what is that velocity? Thanks!
guy_32I am also interested to know this too.
abbkmbI too would like to know how to reduce or eliminate fret buzz.
For some instruments and particular notes, it happens at very low velocities. It sounds awful, especially when used with an amp sim.
Recon66Is this sovled yet? This should be parameter which can be set on/off or % how “many times” it will buzzing.
JamesGood to see I am not the only one annoyed with EZBass notes that have fret buzz? I am surprised that TT would have let this slip through in product development. My guess is it had to be intentional to create a more “realistic” performance. Sure would be nice if the sound library is ever updated (resampled/rerecorded) at some point that the fret buzz be either eliminated, or an option that users can dial in. Maybe on an rawish sounding indie rock track I guess it adds “realism.” But if working on a track (a ballad for example) where the bass might be more exposed the fret buzz calls attention to itself and detracts from the overall song/track causing the listener (or client) to fall off the track and think “didn’t the producer hear that fret buzz.” I don’t have any of the EZBass expansion packs so maybe it is addressed in those, but if not it would sure be nice if TT would address this in future updates. Reducing the velocity of the notes helps some, but even then the buzz is still there. And with the note velocities reduced the timbre and volume of the bass changes which even a compression and EQ plugin have a hard time making up for.
Glenn Stantonas far as i know it’s deliberate to make it “real”. i would prefer that the noise can be adjusted when enabled. it’s especially tough on an upright bass when you’re using samples, with the final damp on a low string slapping the neck (resulting in extra percussion like sounds). so for the most part, i use EZB for creating the bass part and then use my Ample basses to play it. and if somehow they’re still noisy, i may use the MODO bass since that’s modeled and not samples.
Glenn
www.runnel.com
www.reverbnation.com/fossile
JamesI somewhat accidentally found a way to minimize, or to some degree eliminate the fret buzz issue. Using the Modern Bass that comes with EZB I selected the Warm (or something close to that name) preset. And used that in tandem with the Key Switches options. From there it was a bit of trial and error. I do all my MIDI in my DAW so it was the MIDI in a virtual instrument track that had EZB on it and then a MIDI track with it’s output directed to the EZB track. Then I penciled in a D0 which is what the Keyswitch manual says for Repeater or Index Finger and used the trimmer tool to make the note the entire length of the song. That seemed to at least help. And if I recall correctly, in my DAW (Pro Tools) I think I had to drag the note to D-1. I did try putting the note directly in the virtual instrument track but that did not seem to work. Anyway, give it a try and see if it yields any results. The Keyswitch thing along with the correct preset seemed to be the trick. If you do your MIDI in the EZB grid editor/composer window there is a drop down menu there for selecting the play style. This is essentially the Key switch thing in a drop down menu.
Still it would be nice if TT would clean up the fret buzz thing in future library updates. I have yet to purchase any EBX expansion basses so maybe they addressed it in those.
Bear-Faced CowThis is more of a case that you need to think more like a bassist. You are dealing with a few factors with the bass guitars in EZBass core library: a real bass guitar sampled with round wound strings, and the fact that bass strings have a huge vibration swing, especially at the lower frequency range. Couple that with really yanking the strings, which in effect is what the higher velocities are representing, fret buzz becomes part of the overall tonality.
If you look at almost every bassist when they play, with notable exceptions, like Geddy Lee, you will see that they have a fairly light to medium touch when they strike the strings. Geddy is a fairly heavy-handed player and fret buzz is a part of his overall sound.
I have a couple of bass guitars that will attest to the above.
If you don’t want fret buzz then you need to use a moderate velocity, just as real bassists do. Also, selecting a pack that uses flat wound strings on the bass also helps with fret buzz. It also helps to use a bass amp sim to help shape your tone.
Blaming ToonTrack for fret buzz is like blaming your automobile manufacturer for the speeding ticket you got for doing 65 in a 30 zone.
jord
Glenn Stantonno question – sampled bass will be prone to it. however when i was playing bass professionally, i used relatively high action on one bass to keep it really clean, and mainly light touch on my precision unless we’re doing Rush or Yes etc requiring the Geddy or Chris grinding 🙂
that said, it would still be handy if the TT samples were cleaner. my Ample basses don’t have this much “realism” and it’s adjustable to some degree, although the Ample upright bass (which i also played live using slap, fingers and bow) does have the really long vibration and the “smack” on the neck unless you’re really playing soft…
Glenn
www.runnel.com
www.reverbnation.com/fossile
Bear-Faced CowMy basses have low action. I’ve mainly use a moderate touch when using my fingers for a more rounded tone, which also helps propel the grooves. I have very little fret buzz. Of course it does happen since we’re human and we vary. However, you won’t find me yanking the string unless the song calls for it. That’s when the fret buzz will be part of the tonality.
This is what I’m hearing from the core library.
All things considered, the main reason I use EZBass is for the basses I don’t own but want the sound, such as the Hofner, Upright and Acoustic basses. Sometimes the hardest part of using them is thinking like someone who plays them when it comes to creating a groove.
jord
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Thanked by: Glenn Stanton
PatmusicdPosted this above in forum, in particular reference to Upright, but there is more discussion on this thread.
It is an infuriating flaw and means the product is wholly unsuitable for professional use, Support confirmed that there is no way to turn off the random buzz. The clean sample is there, as it is played sometimes. I can’t work out if it is very second time on Upright, but pretty much. This would never happen in real life, you would just do another take and get the clean sound as required. or indeed the buzz, if that is what best served the music.
I was trying to get a mix finished recently, but each render had a different random set of loud fingerboard buzzes on notes, yes, probably intended for realism, but no professional musician would want these sounds to be outside their control! And professional musicians can of course control their tone, the very opposite of this random ‘feature’!
It is a ridiculous feature and means for me, I need to buy another bass library, and spend however long re programming the parts.
I had reported it to Support a while back, but nothing changed. Extremely flawed product as it stands. Reporting it again this week. I have found every step of the process to be made as difficult as possible. I don’t want to be writing in annoyance here in public, but there is no other way to highlight the problem!
It is clearly a huge error, Toontrack should stop arguing about it, take responsibility and fix it! It could be velocity mapped, or just an on of toggle! Not rocket science, just decent customer service.
abbkmbI agree entirely!
As is, this library is unsuitable for professional work. It’s the first and last Toontrack library I will ever own.
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Thanked by: PatmusicdBear-Faced CowThis would never happen in real life, you would just do another take and get the clean sound as required. or indeed the buzz, if that is what best served the music.
I was trying to get a mix finished recently, but each render had a different random set of loud fingerboard buzzes on notes, yes, probably intended for realism, but no professional musician would want these sounds to be outside their control! And professional musicians can of course control their tone, the very opposite of this random ‘feature’!
Not entirely true. The bottom strings are more susceptible to clicks and buzzes even at lower velocities on the upright bass. I have been listening Ray Brown Trio this morning and even he continually gets random clicks and buzzing especially in the lower strings.
Curious as to what note ranges and velocity you are programming your basses at. If other libraries are not clicking and buzzing at higher velocities, I truly question how genuine they are.
jord
PatmusicdHi Jord, and thanks…. I hear you, but the clean samples do exist, and do play back, sometimes, but are somehow programmed to randomly round robin with the more buzzy ones! And this is the annoyance, and I do think it is true that a real studio musician, I am one myself, on violin, would do what it takes to articulate the note the way it needs to be played. And this is not possible here, as this random feature means you never know which articulation will sound until you have replayed it back. In a recording situation this is quite bizarre. I spend time programming a line, then it plays back differently each time, with no option to just play it as I programmed it,
I agree re. the velocities, and yes as one would expect they open up tone wise with increased velocity, like in real life. I have tested it extensively in hope, but the uncontrollable nature of how the round robin works means every render/bounce has differently (when I say different, I think it is 1 or 2 or 3) speaking timbres, which is un workable as the heavy buzzes sound so OTT.
I expect to be able to program my line, and for it to play back as I programmed it! This will not do that and so is unusable as a pro tool, which is a shame. The attitude of Support re my questions has been the real disappointment. I have spent thousands on Toontrack.
Thanks for getting back to me, all advice appreciated! I tried to include a short video example but it doesn’t seem possible, which is a pity.
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