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Post subject: Why tweeters in some bass amps?
Posted: Tue Feb 01, 2011 12:59 pm
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But not in guitar amps?

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Post subject: Re: Why tweeters in some bass amps?
Posted: Wed Feb 02, 2011 4:23 am
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Those can be useful for 5 or 6 string bassists where there are high register B E and C strings involved. Otherwise, the amp would not have enough frequency response to give a proper output at the higher frequencies.


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Post subject: Re: Why tweeters in some bass amps?
Posted: Wed Feb 02, 2011 2:45 pm
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Hmmm... not sure I know enough to understand those answers.

The high E string on a guitar is much higher in frequency than the high G string on a bass... so I'd have thought if any amp needed a tweeter it'd be a guitar amp, not a bass amp.

Seems common for piano amps (e.g., Roland, etc.) to have mids and tweeters, which seems intuitive since the high C in the 8th octave on a piano is WAY higher than guitars and basses.

Given that guitar amps usually don't have tweeters, and given that bass freqencies are much lower than guitars... it seems counter-intuitive that bass amps would need tweeters.

I don't get it.

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Post subject: Re: Why tweeters in some bass amps?
Posted: Wed Feb 02, 2011 3:49 pm
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To clarify just a bit -

The speaker engineering design in a bass amp cabinet versus that in a standard guitar amp is very different. Standard guitar amp speakers produce a wide frequency range because of the engineering design, while the main speaker in a bass amp enclosure is there to move lots of air at low frequencies. The piston travel of a dedicated bass speaker is much greater than the available piston travel in a standard guitar amp speaker of the same diameter (in most cases). When a bassist uses a 5 or 6 string bass with a bass amp, unless the amp cabinet has a wide frequency mid range or tweeter, the high register on the bass guitar will not be properly presented. In the same token, if a bassist uses a standard guitar amp enclosure, there will be limited high volume lows.

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Post subject: Re: Why tweeters in some bass amps?
Posted: Thu Feb 03, 2011 1:43 pm
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So it's not just about frequencies. Thanks.

Of course, drummers just think all speakers of the same size must be equal :)

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Post subject: Re: Why tweeters in some bass amps?
Posted: Thu Feb 03, 2011 6:47 pm
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There have been guitar amps in the past with tweeters ,some of the Vox Speaker cabs from the 60s had horn tweaters in the cabinets for higher frequencies.I guess that some bass amps have them for the same reason.Most bass speakers can handle mostly low frequencies and with the proliferation of basses these days with upwards of 12 strings you need an amp or cabinet with tweeters to handle the higher frequencies.

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Post subject: Re: Why tweeters in some bass amps?
Posted: Fri Feb 04, 2011 12:04 pm
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frwpb wrote:
It's very simple. The bass is running on a very low frequency range to push the air. That's why you'll see guitar amps 60-70 watts that are loud, and have a great sound. Try using the same wattage levels for a bass amp. It may sound ok, but don't plan on using it for more than a home practice amp, or a very small venue. A bass amp with any real sound is going to be min. 100 watts. 200 Watts and up is where they really start to be heard with guitar amps, and those noisy guys called drummers. The bass sound has to cut through all of the other sounds. The reason there are guitar speakers and bass speakers, guitar speakers are not made to handle the low frequency range of the bass. If a bass is played through a guitar speaker set up, it doesn't take to long for the coils, and cone of the guitar speaker to be damaged.


Maybe about 30 years ago speaker cones would get shredded by low bass frequencies. Since the Nu-Metal movement it isn't uncommon for guitarists to play detuned 7 or 8 (to A on 7 strings i.e. open A on a bass or E i.e. open E on an electric bass) stringed guitars or even severely detuned 6 strings. Amplifier and speaker technology has had to adapt to keep up.

If you run a guitar amp with a bass amp in your rig the differences in frequency response will almost act as a a crossover and you won't need to turn either amp up as much as if you were using either alone. Plus through the years numerous bass players ran guitar amps in their bass rigs for a little grunge on top such as:

John Entwistle
Chris Squire
Stanley Clarke
dUg Pinnick
Jason Newstead
Robert Trujillo

Stay Brown,
Rev J


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Post subject: Re: Why tweeters in some bass amps?
Posted: Mon Feb 14, 2011 11:27 am
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A bass guitar can sound muddy awfully easily. Now some folks like a muddy sounding bass. In fact some folks absolutely hate any bass tone that isn't muddy. I am not one of them. I like my bass to sound true and clear with note definition by the bucket. I also like to hear the percussive dynamics of the bass, ie: the thump, the wallop, the spank. For that you want an amp that reproduces those higher frequencies that have nothing to do with the fundamentals of the notes. I'm talking about harmonics of course but also the sound of the strings rattling against the frets on initial impact whether done simply out of aggressive attack or done purposely as in the slap n' pop style. The bass line for Billy Idol's Flesh For Fantasy comes to mind or virtually anything by Geddy Lee. Heavy Metal bands also frequently employ that bright snappy bass sound. A tweeter makes your bass amp tone sound more alive and vibrant. 10" drivers also help to keep things snappy and crisp due to reduced cone flex and improved transient response.

My bass rig consists of a Fender Jazz (Victor Bailey) and an SWR Red Head. That is one snappy, in-your-face pounding little rig.

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Post subject: Re: Why tweeters in some bass amps?
Posted: Fri Jun 17, 2011 9:55 am
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It produces the overtones much better than the main driver in a bass situation.

The reason they are not used in guitar is because distortion/overdrive will ruin a tweeter by trying to create too much upper harmonics.


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