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To tweet or not to tweet (tweeter purpose?)

F

fasto

Mar 4, 2007
963
304
Amsterdam, NL
#1
What is a tweeter good for? Currently my tweeter(s) are switched off.

My setup: GK MB 500 Fusion, Markbass 4x10" 8 Ohm, 8 Watt cab (sometimes i add a Eden 2x10" cab also with tweeter off), Jazz Bass, VMT Overdrive, Fuzz, Envelope Filter.

I play 60% clean, 35% overdriven (Distortion/Overdrive/Fuzz), 5% with quackquack (Envelope Filter).

Does it makes sense to use the tweeter of my cabs? Any risk to destroy the tweeter while playing heavy overdriven sounds? I´m a noob. THX.
 
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#3
I run a GK1001RB with RBH cabs. They're running with just a little tweeter - enough to give a little detail. It's easy to overdo it and have them sounding harsh or tinny. A lot of guys run with tweeters off and let the woofers supply the high end. Any decent cabinet should be crossed over with an appropriate reduction in power to the tweeter which meets its lower power requirements. 150 watts that sounds good in a woofer is enough to toast a tweeter. There's been stories here of guys that have burned their tweeters but I suspect the cabs were on the ragged edge when it happened. In other words, something was getting ready to give anyway.
 
#4
Just a dash of tweet... a hint of tweet... a speckle of tweet will do. When I run both of my Ampeg Classic 410HE cabs, the tweeter control on the top one is at 9 o'clock (or barely on), bottom cab's tweeter is off. On my Heritage 410HLF, it's set at halfway (noon). I like a little top-end clarity, but would rather have no tweet at all, than to have too much tweetin' going on.
 
#5
I personally never liked tweeters. I don't need that high end, it sounds yucky with distortion.
Actually my current cabinet, an Avatar B-212 Neo had a tweeter and a crossover, but I took it out and filled the hole.
I managed to sell the tweeter and the crossover as a set to someone who did like it.

Besides, we play BASS right? No treble...;)
 
#12
fasto said:
What is a tweeter good for? Currently my tweeter(s) are switched off.

My setup: GK MB 500 Fusion, Markbass 4x10" 8 Ohm, 8 Watt cab (sometimes i add a Eden 2x10" cab also with tweeter off), Jazz Bass, VMT Overdrive, Fuzz, Envelope Filter.

I play 60% clean, 35% overdriven (Distortion/Overdrive/Fuzz), 5% with quackquack (Envelope Filter).

Does it makes sense to use the tweeter of my cabs? Any risk to destroy the tweeter while playing heavy overdriven sounds? I´m a noob. THX.
Click to expand...

Thanks for asking this question, I was wondering the same thing.
 
#16
I played a 2x12" with a 6" mid and no tweeter for several years. Liked the cab, and liked the mid more than the tweeters in most cabs I'd played before. I play lots of chords and harmonics and they all rang through well. I appreciated not having a hole in the mids or dealing with a harsh high end.

My cabs now are all three-way with really nice tweeters (most tweeters in bass cabs sound harsh to me if turned up more than a little). I like the air/detail they add to the sound. I sill turn them off sometimes, depending on the bass, amp, room, and the sound I'm going for. If I run fuzz, I generally prefer the tweeters off.

I wouldn't worry so much about "what tweeters are for" as how using them sounds to you and what it does for your playing. Try playing with the tweeter off. Full up. Then start with it off and dial it in bit by bit... see if you like what it does for your sound. See how you like that in a band setting.

With your setup, you've got the treble control on your amp, the tone knob on your Jazz Bass, and the tweeter control on the cab to shape your top end. Playing around with them in combination can yield different flavors of top end. Don't be afraid to play around with it, trust what sounds good to you in a mix (even if that changes with the day/room) and have fun!
 
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