EQ question.

T

the toad

New member
It's my understanding that most vintage tube amps have passive eq's (only cut, not boost their respective frequency range)...

So isn't setting the knobs at noon basicly just cutting away much of the signal?

Shouldn't the "baseline" be all set at max then cut a bit of one or two if needed?

Is an active eq set at noon, the same as a passive eq set to max?

Are passive eq amps designed to be run at noon or cranked?

I used to feel like I could never have a bright enough guitar, now that I crank the eq I usually actually leave the treble one dialed back a bit..
 
Re: EQ question.

You don't always drive your car with the accelerator to the floor.
Its the same with passive eqs. Just set them to where you need them.
Ears don't lie.
 
Re: EQ question.

gibson175 said:
You don't always drive your car with the accelerator to the floor.
Its the same with passive eqs. Just set them to where you need them.
Ears don't lie.
Click to expand...

WE are not being "snarky" ..... it is certainly an intelligent question.
Are you, maybe, wondering about making the settings "flat".
You would have to play with the tone calculator to see what is going on graphically. But who cares.?
As you have found out...you need to adjust the knobs with your ears, and not your eyes. Some guys can't sleep at night because the bass knob on their amp is at Zero.
But yeah, you are right. The basic Fender Marshall Vox etc etc tone stack is passive. If the knobs are half way, you are cutting out some of the feq response.
With all knobs dimed, you are, basically, jumping the pots, and allowing the amps available freq response to prevail.
All based on the CR Filter values that are in the amp circuit.
Blah Blah Blah.....just do exactly what you did.
good luck
 
Re: EQ question.

gibson175 said:
You don't always drive your car with the accelerator to the floor.
Click to expand...

Actually, yea I do pretty much, unless I'm in the braking zone or pre-apex in a turn... And even then I'm heel toe'ing to keep the revs up...

:D \../
 
Last edited:
Re: EQ question.

the toad said:
Actually, yea I do pretty much, unless I'm in the braking zone or pre-apex in a turn... And even then I'm heel toe'ing to keep the revs up...

:D \../
Click to expand...
The Toad: Tokyo Drift

Sent from my Moto X 2014 using Tapatalk
 
Re: EQ question.

The EQ circuit in a vintage amp acts funny. What is listed as B M and T don't effect those frequencies in the same way . . . And this is further changed by speaker interactions (guitar speakers suck at producing highs and lows, it's part of the reason an electric guitar sounds the way it does). The tone stack is a big part of why a Marshall amp sounds different than a Fender amp, Fenders get much of their mid dip from here. Turning up the mids often acts like a volume control for example, but it will also change the way that the treble and bass knobs affect the sound. Depending on how a particular amp was designed, diming everything and then adjusting the knobs on a guitar might sound great of might not.
 
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