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Bass set at 30hz?

#3
The center frequency of the knob is 30hz, but that doesn't tell you everything, because it also affects surrounding frequencies on both sides of the center. So it's really a case by case basis on what gets affected.
 
#4
Who is "they" and why didn't you ask them what they meant when they said it?

30hz is a very low frequency (approximately the lowest B on a 5 string bass) so that's why it's labeled "bass" and not "treble."

If you have questions how to EQ your bass for various styles/songs, then ask away! :)
 
#7
I believe the old style Puma 500's sets there bass pot at 30hz. Just wondering if they mean if the knob is straight up it's at 30hz. I know turning a knob one way or the other changes the sound. I just don't know exactly what it's doing.lol If a pot is set for 30hz at center and I turn the knob to the left am I cutting only the 30hz. Can you tell I'm confused. Some people like there pots set at certain hz from the factory. Thats what makes them like that brand of amp. Is that just for convenience so that they like the sound with the knob set flat. (straight up) Am I sounding stupid or what!
 
#9
2string1 said:
I believe the old style Puma 500's sets there bass pot at 30hz. Just wondering if they mean if the knob is straight up it's at 30hz. I know turning a knob one way or the other changes the sound. I just don't know exactly what it's doing.lol If a pot is set for 30hz at center and I turn the knob to the left am I cutting only the 30hz. Can you tell I'm confused. Some people like there pots set at certain hz from the factory. Thats what makes them like that brand of amp. Is that just for convenience so that they like the sound with the knob set flat. (straight up) Am I sounding stupid or what!
Click to expand...

I don't know what a Puma 500 is (Google tells me it is sneakers??) but the thread Passinwind links to answers your exact question, with graphs. If you don't have time to read it, I can summarize it by saying: different amps have different circuits, and you should find the one that sounds best to you. :)

Personally I would probably use a 30hz bass control as cut only. I would never send a signal to the mixing board that was significantly pre-boosted at 30hz, because it would interfere with the engineer's ability to properly EQ/mix my bass using his equipment. Same reason I don't brush my teeth before I go to the dentist for a cleaning. ;)
 
#11
Mushroo said:
Same reason I don't brush my teeth before I go to the dentist for a cleaning. ;)
Click to expand...


Wait...what?

original_zpsa21f5cbf.jpg
 
#12
That would be an interesting poll for a different thread, "do you brush your teeth before you go to the dentist to have your teeth brushed?"

I totally understand that some people brush and floss like a madman before their cleaning, maybe they are trying to trick the dentist into thinking they take better care of their teeth than they actually do? My thought process is, I am not going to waste my time sloppily brushing my teeth with a 79 cent tooth brush, on my way to have a professional do the same thing with high-end equipment.

Anyway, my experience, when players show up for a gig or recording session and are like, "hey, I pre-EQ'd my bass, already programmed in all the compression and effects and everything at home, so all you should need to do is run me into the mains," the sound engineer is like, "yeah, thaaaaaanks buddy."
 
#13
The Traditional bass knob is 60hz. Some bass amps started having a 50 hz slider on the graphic eq. My Ampeg has a graphic EQ and the lowest freqency is 40 hz. I think the bass control on my Audere preamps is 40 hz.

Your A string is 55hz, Your E string is 41hz, The B string on a 5 string bass is 30.87.
 
#14
Ric5 said:
Your A string is 55hz, Your E string is 41hz, The B string on a 5 string bass is 30.87.
Click to expand...

Yes and no. A little bit of knowledge can be a dangerous thing.

Every note you play on the bass creates sound over the entire audible frequency range. For example "pure" E is 41hz, but playing the note E on a physical instrument like a bass also creates sounds lower than 41hz and higher than 41hz.

If you start thinking of EQ sliders/knobs as corresponding to specific individual notes, you'll drive yourself nuts. EQ is not really about making individual notes louder/softer, it is about shaping the overall tone of every note on the instrument.
 
#15
Ric5 said:
The Traditional bass knob is 60hz. Some bass amps started having a 50 hz slider on the graphic eq. My Ampeg has a graphic EQ and the lowest freqency is 40 hz. I think the bass control on my Audere preamps is 40 hz.

Your A string is 55hz, Your E string is 41hz, The B string on a 5 string bass is 30.87.
Click to expand...
Interesting,the puma is set at 30hz. Don't know if thats good or not,but I'll find out when it comes this Saturday...
 
#16
30hz? Really?

That would appear to be the 'I want to blow my speaker' control.

Most production cabs have rolled off fairly heavily by 30hz, nor is it where our ear really perceives low bass on a bass guitar.

On graphic EQ's that's the slider I pull down all the way. :crying:
 
#17
2string1 said:
I believe the old style Puma 500's sets there bass pot at 30hz. Just wondering if they mean if the knob is straight up it's at 30hz. I know turning a knob one way or the other changes the sound. I just don't know exactly what it's doing.lol If a pot is set for 30hz at center and I turn the knob to the left am I cutting only the 30hz.
Click to expand...

Nope. This graph may be fairly similar to what your amp does when you crank full boost on the bass control:

Link Removed

This is just a ballpark model taken from one of my DIY preamps, adjusted to +15dB at 30Hz. You can see that you are actually boosting everything from 1KHz down a little bit. Your amp probably behaves a bit differently, but hopefully you get the general idea? The thread I linked goes into much greater detail if you care to go there. ;)
 
#19
BurningSkies said:
30hz? Really?

That would appear to be the 'I want to blow my speaker' control.
Click to expand...

Not as simple as it seems. ;)

An EQ spec'ed at a 60Hz shelving point can easily still be at full boost at 30Hz, while now slamming another octave of low bass at full power instead of half power at 60 as illustrated in my graph. A little bit of spec is often a dangerous thing, not unlike cranking bass controls in general.
 

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