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Have we neutered the bottom end with the HPF craze?

Red Planet

Red Planet

Inactive
May 29, 2005
6,487
2,152
Atlanta
Disclosures
I'm cranky in my old age.
#1
Bass is meant to be felt right?
An amp shouldn't sound like a barking chiwawa should it?

Are a lot of these new designs neuter the goods out of the sound?
Is part of this equation coming from the new let the synth have all the sub and lets put the bass above it in live sound thinking?

Edit: No more personal attacks! If you can add something to the conversation then please discuss. If you must belittle your fellow TBer then please leave this thread and stay away.
 
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#2
Not in the slightest. If the cabinet can't reproduce it, taking the signal away in the first place doesn't change anything... BUT there are players who prefer the results they get with a HPF, and not just at below what their cabinet can reproduce but at frequencies considerably higher. That's their individual choice which you don't have to share.
 
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#3
When you set the HPF to 50hz, you effectively allow your rig to not "fart out" as fast at higher volumes. Your tone still sounds great and now you are putting out less low end on stage. Very helpful in a live setting. Agedhorse nailed it though.

For me, bass should be heard and felt. There is no right way to do it.
 
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#4
No.

Filtering any sub-frequencies coming from the strings makes a bass guitar sound bassier and also easier to hear in the mix. It also has more punch. Something which can definitely be felt much better than subsonic notes which just tend to wash all over everything. You're far better off leaving the uber lows to an electronic oscillator found in a synth or an octave pedal.
 
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#7
Stumbo said:
Your FOH tone is the only thing that matters. If an HPF(specialized equalizer) gets you there, that's what you use.

Check out my TB Wiki on the topic for more info on the topic and what the benefits of using one are.

+1 @agedhorse nailed it.
Click to expand...
Fine. I'll finally wander into the forbidden corner of TB and read the HPF thread...
 
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#8
Some of these new amps seem to be factory default high to my ears without a choice. I literally have listened and some sound like a barking dog. I suppose if that's what someone wants then Cest la Vie. I like a good horse power on tap and some mega down under sub rattling tones. I tell you what got me to listening/feeling this is my old trusty PLX1804 that doesn't roll off until 6 HZ.

Disclaimer: I own an Fdeck Series 1 its great for an Upright for sure.
 
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#9
Red Planet said:
Some of these new amps seem to be factory default high to my ears without a choice. I literally have listened and some sound like a barking dog. I suppose if that's what someone wants then Cest la Vie. I like a good horse power on tap and some mega down under sub rattling tones. I tell you what got me to listening/feeling this is my old trusty PLX1804 that doesn't roll off until 6 HZ.

Disclaimer: I own an Fdeck Series 1 its great for an Upright for sure.
Click to expand...
What speakers were you using to take advantage of the 6hz roll off?
 
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#13
The limitation is almost always the speaker. It doesn't matter how low the amp's response goes, driving a speaker hard below the -10dB point will do nothing other than damage the speaker and greatly increase non-musical distortion.

This is WHY HPFs have become so popular, especially with the smaller "super cabinets" that have become so well liked.
 
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#15
agedhorse said:
The limitation is almost always the speaker. It doesn't matter how low the amp's response goes, driving a speaker hard below the -10dB point will do nothing other than damage the speaker and greatly increase non-musical distortion.

This is WHY HPFs have become so popular, especially with the smaller "super cabinets" that have become so well liked.
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And, for assembly line cabs, an HPF can be even more important.
 
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#17
Red Planet said:
That the amp has zero HPF and brother you can tell it. Didn't take any measurements. Would you dispute that?
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Hey, use what ever you like, who am I to say.

Still, FOH is the only tone that matters. Balancing the kick, bass, keys in the low frequency area is almost always the most fun part of setting up the PA, especially with venue acoustics playing tricks. Bass amp/cabs not rolling off around 50-60 will most likely step on the kick. Same for keys, only needing to roll off even higher.

No argument that have cabs/subs that can reproduce ultra-lows can be cool, especially outdoors and not in the PA.

Other than that, IMO, you're barking up the wrong freq-ing tree as far a pro sound is concerned.:thumbsup:
 
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#18
Stumbo said:
And, for assembly line cabs, an HPF can be even more important.
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It's important when selling to the general public that may not have perfect judgement or common sense.

Powerful amps require exquisite judgement and common sense to prevent damaging speakers, so when a speaker manufacturer stands behind a speaker with a comprehensive warranty, HPFs greatly improve long term reliability. The additional benefit of improving audio quality.
 
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