Beefing Up The Low End

Pitch reverb down an octave to create space and deeper tones.

 If you feel like something is lacking beef or low-end thickness, try pitching it down an octave. It will bring in new harmonics and add depth that wouldn't have been there otherwise. This doesn’t always work, and definitely doesn’t work on everything. So use your ears.

 Another way to add to the thickness would be by throwing it through a distortion to accent that low-end even more. Sometimes, especially with reverb, it gets harder to pick out the low information. By distorting it, you're creating EVEN MORE harmonics so your ear can pick it up easily, especially in a dense mix.

Keep your ears open and the spectrum analyzer open. The low end in a mix can easily get out of hand fast, and by adding low-end reverb, you’re going to be adding to that potential hazard. Be smart about how much you’re doing this and what kind of instruments you are sending to it.

Here are a few examples of where you would want to use this:

Vocals

If you have a high vocal and even after EQ it’s still not getting thickness, try this trick. Works especially well with some female vocals in EDM.

Pads

I use this a lot on pads in my songs. It adds a slightly out of tune low-end rather than just making the pads go down another octave. By being slightly out of tune, you get a more interesting texture to your song making it more interesting.

Piano

Same kind of idea as the pads. Keeps things interesting, and helps you get away from (if you’re using one) that “software/MIDI” sounding piano.

Percussion

Certain types of percussion can take on a new chunkiness that they naturally wouldn’t have, which can make things more fun and unique. Think tambourine or shaker. Sometimes glockenspiels or other mallet instruments.

Try it out! Again, don’t go too crazy on it and watch out for your low end. Use an EQ after your verb if things start getting out of hand.