Multisampling a Bass (or Guitar) for the EP-40 Riddim
A sampled bass that plays evenly across the keyboard is one of the most useful instruments you can build for the EP-40. Here's how to do it so it stays deep and in tune, low notes and all. The same approach works for guitar.
A good bass is one of the most useful instruments you can build for the EP-40. Get one mapped across the keyboard so it plays evenly, deep and in tune, and you'll reach for it constantly. The same approach works for guitar, but bass is where most people start, so that's what I'll use here.
This guide is about the approach. For the editor steps, see How to Make Multisamples for the EP-40 Riddim.
A plucked instrument sits between piano and synth
A bass or guitar note has a clear attack and a natural decay. It's not the endless sustain of a synth, nor the long ring of a piano, which makes it forgiving to sample. A couple of seconds per note usually catches everything that matters.
The playable range is narrower than a piano's too, so you need fewer zones. Four to six well-spaced samples will cover a bass comfortably and leave headroom in your eight-zone budget.
Weight your samples to the low end
Two reasons to sample more often down low.
First, the tone changes most there. The bottom strings have a very different character from notes up the neck, so sample them more closely and the EP-40 won't have to stretch a mid sample down into territory it doesn't suit.
Second, pitching a sample down sounds more natural than pitching one up. Capture your low notes directly rather than dragging a higher sample down to reach them, and the bottom end stays solid.
So: narrow zones low, wider zones higher.
Keep the low-end fidelity
It's tempting to crush every sample to save memory, but bass is the one place to hold back. The deep frequencies that make a bassline land live right at the bottom, and dropping the sample rate too far thins them out.
When you optimise a bass for the device, convert it to mono (bass is mono anyway, and it halves the size) and trim it tight, but keep the sample rate a bit higher than you would for a hi-hat. There's more on the trade-offs in How to Fit More Samples on Your EP-133, and the same logic applies to the EP-40.
One dynamic, one playing style
EP multisamples have no velocity layers, so capture every note the same way: same plucking strength, same position, same tone. Want a muted bass? Mute every note. Want it open? Play them all open. That consistency across the zones is what makes it feel like one instrument rather than eight.
Decay: pluck or hold?
For plucky lines, short captures are perfect. Record the attack and a bit of decay, then let the EP-40's envelope shape the rest.
For held, sustained notes, set a loop in the sustained part of the sample so it rings on. Put the loop points at zero crossings so the seam doesn't click.
Quick workflow
- Capture four to six notes across the range, one consistent dynamic and playing style, mono.
- Trim and level them, keeping the sample rate up for the low end.
- Map them, weighting zones to the low end, with correct root notes.
- Short captures for plucks, looped sustain for held notes.
- Send it to the EP-40 and play.
If a note sounds out of tune once it's on the device, it's almost always a root-note mismatch. See Fixing Detuned or Clicking EP-40 Multisamples.
Get started
EP-PatchStudio is free to download, with multisample creation included.