So let me point out the obvious...

[JMacBass65]

Bass is fundamentally a percussive instrument.

Huh??

 

[JustRicks]

Huh??

Agreed in a sense that I don't agree with that statement, although to each one's own. I like to play more melodic lines than think of myself as a percussive instrument, while I know others would rather be know for playing rhythms.

 

[JTE]

Why would a bass cabinet have a tweeter (when basses are obviously producing such low frequencies) and guitar cabinets don't typically come with tweeters?

A. MY bass sound isn't just lows. I don't want to sound like a kick drum (and I don't think most bassist do). There are harmonics even on my Precisions with flats that give definition to the NOTE I play and they're way above the fundamentals of the pitches I play. Those harmonics are what make MY Precision sound like MY precision.

B. Guitarists don't use tweeters (at least on electric guitars generally) because they get the sound they want from regular speakers. And there have been some guitar amps with tweets- but if you've ever heard a typical rock guitarist through one of those Acoustic guitar amps with the horns, you'll probably be very happy they don't use tweets! Guitars can create the "ice pick through the forehead" sound already without tweets.

I used to have an Ampeg BA115 in which I disconnected the tweeters and still achieved the amount of 'highs' that I wanted coming thru the 15 inch cone.

Cool. I've only played one cabinet with a 15" speaker that sounded good to me at all (a cabinet I had custom built from Electro-Voice's T/S TL-606 plans they used to give away in the '80s). So a single 15" with a tweet or without a tweet just doesn't do what I want. It does for you and a lot of others, but I'd bet there are probably more bassists (and not just slappers/poppers or metal players) for whom a 15 without a tweeter doesn't do what they want to hear.

So, why do bass cabs have tweets and guitar amps don't have 'em? Because the people buying the bass cabs want tweets and guitarist don't.

John

 

[ga_edwards]

Also, forget generalizing bass into the guitar category. There are similarities in looks, but that's about where it ends.

I'm entirely convinced of that Jimmy. On one hand I agree with you, on one hand the electric bass is derived from the double/upright bass and is there to perform the same function within a band.

On the other hand, there's the school of thought that the electric bass is constructed in a similar fashion to an electric guitar, just a bit bigger, fewer strings (most of the time) and amplified with similar equipment. Ergo, it's a bass 'guitar'.

Personally, I thing the electric bass is a bit of both. A hybrid if you will, with similarities to both double bass and electric guitar. I think it's up to the individual player and how they play that decides which it's a closer relation to.

However, I do believe if electric guitars were called 'treble guitars', the sound engineering landscape would be a lot different!