Hi everyone, I posted this over on the ableton website and all I ended up with was snotty answers, so I'll ask here even though it isn't ableton related. I've created a bass patch using Trilian with a rather deep timbre. Within the first 8-16 bars, the pitches are fine, but after a bit of time looping the clip and listening to it while I make other additions to the arrangement (pad, melody) the pitches of the bass seem to change into, or better, sound like the outline of the notes That I have chosen have morphed into a different chord altogether! For example, my bass has a repetitive three-note riff that outlines a diminished chord on F-Aflat-B, but after a while the quality of that chord shifts to what sounds like a major chord that is pitched somewhere between E and F major! Is this phenomena typical of synth basses that have a bit of "melodic" motion to them? I took steps to layer the patch by adding the same sound in another slot (Trilian has 8 slots available per multi) and changing the timbre ever so slightly, and that seemed to work a bit. Now, I do plan on tweaking the bass patches to evolve slowly over the course of the song, but for any sustained period of inactivity I'd like to avoid the listener experiencing the same thing I'm hearing. Anyone else have this issue with some of their bass riffs? And no, my ears are not failing, nor are they broken. I have quite a sensitive response to pitches. Just looking for expertise and a possible solution. Thanks in advance! Jamie

Hi Jamie, I don't have a copy of Trilian to try this on.. but this happen with every Bass patch you use? Can you replicate the issue in Logic as the host? Do you have any automation going on, or any modulation settings in Trilian that might be affecting the pitch over time? Another good forum (for Spectrasonics related instruments) to try is here: [url]http://www.northernsounds.com/forum/forumdisplay.php/2-Virtual-Instruments[/url] Eric Persing makes an appearance there often as well... :) Rounik

I wish it were that easy, Rounik! Unfortunately, I think it is the way I have written the bass line in the first place. There is no automation or pitch-altering parameters of the patch active, nor is the patch itself subject to any internal modulation from the sampling done at spectrasonics. My rhythm had some quick notes, placement in the low register, and a bit of reverb attached to the notes. I think by sheer sound physics, the reverb was interfering with the other notes causing the pitch to bend slightly. Once I got rid of some of the reverb it cleared up a bit. In addition to that, I added a pad in the high-mid region and the tonality of the pad seemed to focus the pitches of the bass right on the mark. Now just for kicks, I soloed the bass until it got pitchy, and then immediately added the pad. Within one cycle of the bass, the pitches came back. I don't think there'd is anything wrong with my ears or my DAW. I just think that's how that specific range in that patch hits my senses. Very strange effect. Perhaps useful! Jamie

Hey Jamie, That does sound odd... wish I had a copy of Trilian to try this out... Any chance you can bounce down the bass line and post it somewhere so we can hear the pitching effect? :) Rounik