• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Amplifying a low F# on a budget?

T

thatrandomdude

Guest
Dec 11, 2011
25
0
Atlanta, GA
#1
I currently have a Schecter Stiletto Custom 6'er and I want to try removing the high C and replacing it with a low F#. I love the C for jazz/blues, alas I mainly play with metal bands now adays, and with the rising rate of 8 string guitarists it seems logical to go lower. (inb4 Dick from Meshuggah plays on the same octave as their guitarists )

I've read up as much as I can on this site and others and from the research I've done so far I know that I'll need a GOOD speaker to keep the low notes from sounding like farts.:hmm: I was thinking about buying a 1x15 speaker and putting it in my old crate combo(the head blew out a few months back).

So my question is, does anyone have some recommendations for a speaker and just some general advice/forwarning on amplifying a low F# string?
Also, should I be looking at any certain amplifier heads? Sadly due to budget restrictions I'm limited to 400 bucks tops for a head. :hiding:

Thanks! :D
 
#2
No speaker really produces it, and no human ear really hears it. So it is more complicated than a "good speaker".

Best to do a lot of reading. There's harmonics and physics and ..... stuff.

A low B is somewhere around 31Hz. The human ear can't even hear that low. So it certainly won't "hear" a low F#.
 
#3
Not true. I saw a fellow TB'er post a link to this video while I was researching all of this.


Though the F# is at around 23 Hz, and most speakers bottom out around 40 Hz, the brain somehow manages to correct it so you still hear it.
I have been, but this is by far the best place to ask questions about it.
 
#7
You can buy these things pretty cheaply...

attachment.jpg
 

Attachments

  • vila-didgeridoo-player-1.jpg
    vila-didgeridoo-player-1.jpg
    49.8 KB · Views: 116
#9
You can hear the overtones, but you won't hear the fundamental. Human ears in peak working condition (ie when you're a child), hear around 20hz to 20khz. By the time you're an adult you won't have that level of performance.

Additionally, there are few speakers that can produce anything that low, and virtually none that can do it in an efficient manner. Weigh in with your $400 ceiling, and it's effectively impossible.

Buy the best amp you can afford for your money, and EQ the low end out when using that low F# to avoid farting out the cab.
 
#12
I think what two fingers meant was that the fundamental pitch isn't really audible, which is mostly true in this application. i think your setup is going to need to revolve around more than just the amplification. if you want it to really be heard as a pitch, its going to necessitate strategic eqing and technique to get the perceived pitch out there. boosting hi mids and cutting lows will probably get you there, along with fresh strings and plucking near the bridge. its going to be alot of clank, but atleast the note will make sense.

As far as amps on a budget go, I'd recomend a used gk 700rbii or even a 1001, since you play in a metal band and it takes alot of power to push those low freqs. The GKs also have a 4/5 string switch, which should lower the hi pass freq enough to get a good idea of the F# out. I'm nowhere near as knowledgable on cabs as some others on this forum, but in terms of cabs, any well designed (and definitely ported) 410 should do the trick. You may also want to look into the fEarful designs, as they are supposedly designed with efficiency and full range in mind.

EDIT: looks like you guys beat me too it on the fearfuls. I still think you could get away with a decent 410 and good eqing.
 
#15
It doesn't take much to get a great sounding open low F#.


Your bass is good enough to assist in obtaining that frequency.

A nice 115 or a 410 cab will work and you'll need an amp with about 500 watts, a 300 watt head would work but it would work best under low volume.
 
#16
thatrandomdude said:
I currently have a Schecter Stiletto Custom 6'er and I want to try removing the high C and replacing it with a low F#. I love the C for jazz/blues, alas I mainly play with metal bands now adays, and with the rising rate of 8 string guitarists it seems logical to go lower. (inb4 Dick from Meshuggah plays on the same octave as their guitarists )

I've read up as much as I can on this site and others and from the research I've done so far I know that I'll need a GOOD speaker to keep the low notes from sounding like farts.:hmm: I was thinking about buying a 1x15 speaker and putting it in my old crate combo(the head blew out a few months back).

So my question is, does anyone have some recommendations for a speaker and just some general advice/forwarning on amplifying a low F# string?
Also, should I be looking at any certain amplifier heads? Sadly due to budget restrictions I'm limited to 400 bucks tops for a head. :hiding:

Thanks! :D
Click to expand...

The relationship between low frequency and cost is inversely proportional- the lower you want to go, the more it will cost. $400 won't get you there unless you want this to work in a small space, in close proximity. In a large space, it's not gonna happen at a usable output level.
 
#17
JAUQO III-X said:
It doesn't take much to get a great sounding open low F#.


Your bass is good enough to assist in obtaining that frequency.

A nice 115 or a 410 cab will work and you'll need an amp with about 500 watts, a 300 watt head would work but it would work best under low volume.
Click to expand...


Thanks! :D
So I would be good with my original idea of putting the new speaker in the crate cab?
I was thinking about a hartke lh500 for the head.
 
#18
1958Bassman said:
The relationship between low frequency and cost is inversely proportional- the lower you want to go, the more it will cost. $400 won't get you there unless you want this to work in a small space, in close proximity. In a large space, it's not gonna happen at a usable output level.
Click to expand...

Like I said before, I was just wanting to buy a 1x15 speaker.
That's around $150. Plus a used Hartke LH 500, which I believe I could easily get for around $200.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back