About Session Bassist - Icon Bass
Icon Bass combines a pattern-based bass library with a sophisticated multisample set, designed to deliver authentic-sounding bass lines, patterns, and riffs for songwriting and music production. Its samples originate from a legendary 1989 electric solid-body bass guitar with active electronics. The instrument’s active, 9V powered DI signal was recorded through the DI input of a vintage Universal Audio M-610 preamp. In addition to the pickup signal, two vintage dynamic microphones were used: The first was an AEA r84 ribbon mic pointing towards the picking hand of the player and then running through a Neve 1073 preamp. 2. The second was an Avantone CV-28 small diaphragm tube condenser mic pointing towards the headstock, running through the 2nd channel of the Neve 1073 preamp, then through an Empirical Labs EL8-X Distressor in Opto Mode. Both mic signals have been precisely phase-aligned and summed with a Phoenix Audio Nicerizer Jr. Summing Mixer.
The signals were converted by the SPL Madison analog-to-digital converter and fed into an RME MADIface XT via MADI, both externally clocked by an Antelope Audio 10MX Rubidium atomic clock.
A total of 208 loop patterns, single notes in many different articulations, round robin variants and velocities in multiple fret positions over the range of three octaves, and additional sample content were performed live by professional bassist Jakob Winterstein. The loops and phrases are grouped into 54 song presets, containing four to six patterns each, as well as a matching sound preset. You can select patterns via keyswitches and play them on your MIDI keyboard. Playback will always stay in sync with your host project. Phrases can also be dragged and dropped into the DAW for MIDI editing.
Regarding sound options, Icon Bass offers an authentic emulation of the real instrument’s active 2-band boost EQ, providing both low-end punch and high-end clarity. Furthermore, the mic signal features an additional tone control and a built-in effects chain for further processing. An expanded selection of integrated effects and a carefully curated sound preset library provides for a truly versatile collection of sounds, suitable for a wide range of musical styles.
The key feature of Icon Bass is its revolutionary playback engine. You can seamlessly switch between different patterns, and also alter the dynamics in real-time, thus creating true-to-life musical performances. Because all the nuances of the original performance, such as exact timing and dynamics, have been preserved, you will notice that the instrument feels very natural and organic. All of the integrated patterns can be played over a wide tempo range in outstanding sound quality.