Serum · Deep, minimal bass · Ableton Live

How to Make Minimal Deep DnB Basslines in Serum

To make a minimal deep drum and bass bassline in Serum, start with a sine-based wavetable that already has a few extra harmonics, drop it low, and layer a second oscillator a fifth above with unison and the lows cut out of that layer only. Then add a touch of moving pink noise, saturation and compression, and get the rhythm from an automated EQ and a drawn sidechain rather than from lots of notes. Below is the whole chain from our deep, minimal bass video, with the settings from the screen and audio of each stage.

By DNB Academy · Updated 28 October 2026 · 8 min read · Serum + Ableton Live, intermediate

Deep, minimal basslines are about space: a clean low end, a darker textured layer on top and small movements that keep a sparse pattern interesting. If you’re new to the style, our guide to deep and minimal drum and bass explains where it sits, and the drum and bass bass guide compares it with every other bass type.

The full walkthrough from DNB Academy: a deep, minimal bassline built from Serum’s init preset and finished in Ableton Live 12 at 174 BPM. Each step below links to its moment in the video.

1.Start with Analog_BD_Sin and add harmonics

The foundation is a sine-like wavetable with a few harmonics already in it. Editing those harmonics and dropping the oscillator three octaves gives you a deep, solid low end that still has enough upper content to cut through.

Start from Serum’s standard init preset (watch at 0:52). On oscillator A, open the wavetable menu and load Analog_BD_Sin from the Analog folder (watch at 0:58). It’s a good starting point for most deep basslines because it’s mostly sine with a little extra colour.

Next, click the pencil icon to open the table editor (watch at 1:05). The top half shows the harmonics as bars. Raise some of the harmonics that are already there to enhance them, and then add a few small in-between harmonics as well, which makes the tone a little more aggressive. Then pitch the oscillator down: on screen oscillator A ends up at octave -3.

2.Layer a fifth with unison, and high-pass only that layer

A second oscillator a perfect fifth above, spread with unison, gives the bass its deep, techy character. Cutting the lows out of that layer alone keeps the sub clean and adds a darker, textured edge.

Turn on oscillator B and leave it on Basic Shapes at the sine position (watch at 1:51). Add some unison (it’s on 9 voices on screen) and tune it up a perfect fifth: +7 semitones. On screen oscillator B sits at octave -2, one octave above oscillator A. That alone already gives you some of the deep DnB vibe.

Now enable the filter, pick High 24 and route it to oscillator B only (B ticked, A unticked in the filter’s routing) (watch at 2:19). Raise the cutoff until the lows of the layer are gone. Oscillator A keeps the low end on its own, and the high-passed fifth sits on top as texture.

3.Add width, mono, glide and a little moving noise

A bit of dimension adds width to the top layer, mono with glide makes the pattern slide like one voice, and a quiet pink noise layer with some movement fills in the texture.

In the FX tab, add Hyper/Dimension for some extra width (watch at 2:47). Back on the oscillator page, set the voicing to Mono and add some glide with the porta knob (watch at 2:59), so overlapping notes slide into each other.

Then turn on the noise oscillator and load a pink noise (watch at 3:12). On screen it’s ARP pink at a low level (the tooltip reads 9%, about -41 dB, while it’s being set). To give the noise some movement, drag an LFO onto the noise level; in the video it’s LFO 3, synced to a dotted 1/8 with a quick rise and slower fall.

4.Saturate it, then add compression carefully

Distortion is what makes the bass come alive, and compression pushes it further, but compression also boosts the highs a lot, so you have to balance it against the envelope.

After Serum, add Ableton’s Saturator (watch at 3:42). On screen it’s on the Analog Clip curve with the drive at about 7.4 dB while it’s being set; later in the video the drive reads 6.29 dB with Soft Clip on. Just distorting it a little makes everything better.

Then go back into Serum’s FX tab and add the Compressor (watch at 4:02). Be careful here: it drastically boosts the highs and pushes the sound a lot. The fix in the video is to go back to the amp envelope and soften it; on screen the attack of ENV 1 changes from 0.5 ms to 8.8 ms. You can also try changing the octave of oscillator B (watch at 4:40); on screen it moves from -2 to -1, which shifts where the fifth layer sits.

5.Thicken it with a little extra noise

The compressed, saturated sound has a slightly bit-crushed quality that suits the style. A touch of extra noise from Ableton’s Erosion makes it thicker before the EQ.

Before the EQ, add Erosion in front of the Saturator (watch at 5:01). On screen it’s set to Wide Noise, with the frequency at 2.43 kHz, the width at 2.26 and the amount at 36.4. That makes the bass nice and thick without changing the notes.

6.Add movement with an EQ you automate

Automating one EQ band’s frequency is a simple way to make a sparse bassline move and even to give it its own rhythm.

Add an EQ after the chain; the video uses FabFilter Pro-Q 3 (watch at 5:23). On screen the band is a 12 dB/oct high cut, first set around 330 Hz. Then show the automation for that band’s frequency on the bass track and draw breakpoints, so the cutoff opens and closes across the bar. You can draw in your own rhythm this way, which is a fun way of making something rhythmic out of a single long note (watch at 6:12).

If you want to go further with movement in the low end, our sub bass guide covers how to keep the sub steady while the layers above it move.

7.Add a little reverb and a drawn sidechain

A small amount of reverb on a return gives the bass some air, and a sidechain drawn around the kick keeps the low end clean where the drums hit.

Send a little of the bass to a reverb on a return track (watch at 6:23). The video uses ValhallaRoom on the return with the BrightCistern preset (Bright Room mode, mix at 100% because it’s on a return), followed by an EQ on the same return to cut the low end out of the reverb. Keep the send low; it should be a small ambience, not a wash.

Finally, the sidechain (watch at 6:52). Here it’s drawn by hand: open the Track Volume automation on the bass track, look at where the kicks are and how long they last, and draw a dip down to silence for each kick. Where there’s no kick, leave the bass alone. You can sidechain however you like; drawing it is just the quickest way here and shows you exactly what’s being ducked. For the full picture on getting the kick and bass to sit together, see our guide on how to mix drum and bass.

8.Variations to try

Once the chain is in place, you have a lot of options (watch at 7:58):

• Another filter. Add Serum’s Filter effect, for example another low-pass (it’s on MG Low 6 on screen), and play with it for extra movement.
• Different wavetables. Swap the wavetables on either oscillator; the same processing chain gives a completely different character.
• Different notes. Try a completely different note or interval for the layer. The fifth is a starting point, not a rule.

That’s how you can get these deep, techy basslines: a simple source, one layer for texture and most of the interest coming from movement. For another deep, minimal approach in a different synth, try our bass like Alix Perez in Phase Plant.

Common mistakes

• Filtering both oscillators. If the high-pass hits oscillator A too, the sub disappears. Route the filter to oscillator B only.
• Too much noise. The pink noise should sit far in the background (single-digit percentages on screen). It’s texture, not a layer you hear on its own.
• Compressing without checking the highs. Serum’s compressor can brighten the bass a lot. Listen after adding it and soften the envelope if the attack gets harsh.
• Leaving the bass static. A minimal pattern with no movement sounds empty. Automate an EQ band, a filter or the noise so each bar changes a little.
• Reverb on the low end. Use a return with an EQ after the reverb so the sub stays dry and focused.
• Ducking where there’s no kick. Draw or set the sidechain to follow the actual kick pattern, and leave the bass alone in the gaps.

Free download

Free samples to build a deep, minimal loop

A sparse bassline like this needs drums and space around it to work. The 174 Marathon Sample Pack gives you:

• 100+ royalty-free samples
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It’s one of seven free sample and preset packs in DNB Academy Free Access, alongside the mixing and mastering e-books and the 3‑day DnB challenge. Join 40,000+ producers in Free Access. Free account, no card needed.

Get free accessWhat’s in the pack

• Phase Plant · Deep minimalHow to Make a Bass Like Alix Perez in Phase Plant7 min read · Video + guide
• Vital · Deep bassHow to Make a Deep Bass Like Skeptical’s “Desire” in Vital8 min read · Video + guide
• Serum · Deep minimalHow to Make Basses Like Alix Perez & Skeptical in Serum10 min read · Video + guide
• Guide · BassHow to Make Drum and Bass Bass: A Guide to Every Bass Type15 min read · Video + guide

FAQ: making minimal deep basslines in Serum

Next steps

Build the two-oscillator source first, then write a short, sparse pattern over a drum loop and add the EQ automation; that’s where the groove comes from. For a deep bass in the free synth, try our deep bass like Skeptical’s “Desire” in Vital; for more bass types and when to use them, read our drum and bass bass guide.

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