I wanted to put this topic out there because it doesn’t seem many are chompin' at the bit to initiate a thread to discuss achieving a musical bass. I lack much understanding about bass when I read the forums and from what I can tell it seems some others do too. Many of us love to talk about fabulous bass and yet it seems if somebody mentions some type of distinction between a typical bass and a superior bass, some get that dear in the headlights look or go silent.
I say musical bass does exist and is a rather radical departure from the typical bass many have been accustomed to. One listen and I think anybody would be convinced it exists, even if their hearing aids were turned off. I would even go so far to say a musical bass draws us into the performance perhaps more than any other sonic characteristic – especially for what it does to the entire presentation and is perhaps the single biggest contributor toward a musical system.
By no means would I say a musical bass is easy to achieve (I think it's one of the most difficult things to achieve) but it is entirely free provided one already has the hardware to sufficiently cover those frequencies. In fact, I would call musical bass one of high-end audio’s best hidden treasures.
Most of us have some rather limited exposure to some varied strategies, methods, options, etc. and some that come to mind include:
Though some are clearly more expert than others, I’m still guessing with so many variables and combinations of variables, such bass guru’s don’t really exist. Sure some speak with confidence about many of the strategies and options but to have intimate expert knowledge of most all possible combinations about what works and what doesn’t work seems hard to fathom, but still. I’ll admit that I’m intimidated by much of the tech talk about bass (and other things) but I’ve gone out to a few subwoofer mfg’ers websites and I’m not entirely convinced all of them know exactly what’s going on either.
Does it exist? Is it possible to achieve a superior bass with these and/or other options? Are some options potentially more right than others? If so, does that imply some options are inferior? How does one get there?
Anyway, below are a couple of examples of what I consider a superior / musical bass.
What say you?
BTW, thank goodness I don’t employ an active linestage anymore. Then again, an active linestage inserting certain characteristics into the playback presentation is just one more option or strategy toward a superior bass, right?
I say musical bass does exist and is a rather radical departure from the typical bass many have been accustomed to. One listen and I think anybody would be convinced it exists, even if their hearing aids were turned off. I would even go so far to say a musical bass draws us into the performance perhaps more than any other sonic characteristic – especially for what it does to the entire presentation and is perhaps the single biggest contributor toward a musical system.
By no means would I say a musical bass is easy to achieve (I think it's one of the most difficult things to achieve) but it is entirely free provided one already has the hardware to sufficiently cover those frequencies. In fact, I would call musical bass one of high-end audio’s best hidden treasures.
Most of us have some rather limited exposure to some varied strategies, methods, options, etc. and some that come to mind include:
- Speaker and/or subwoofer designs, sufficient power, heft, size, tuning options, etc.
- Bass driver speed - quick vs not so quick – does speed matter or does it improve with tuning?
- Single vs multiple vs stacked vs towers, etc.
- Speaker- subwoofer-to-floor interface i.e couple vs decouple, materials, designs, executions, etc.
- Minimum system requirements e.g. main speaker siize, main amp power, is a subwoofer needed, etc?
- Dependencies on caliber of playback system/rooms or is it independent of other parts of the playback vineyard?
- Cable lengths, single-ended vs xlr, match / not match other cables in the system, cryo-treat, etc.
- Do cabling differences even audibly impact lower frequencies?
- Subwoofer placement options
- Room requirements e.g. designs and acoustics, dimensions, treatments, bass traps, etc?
- Measurements – what to measure, interpreting findings, etc. Are they meaningful or meaningless?
- Subwoofer-to-main speaker integrations e.g. high- or low-level inputs, driver alignments, etc.
- Speaker positioning significance/insignificance, etc.
- Cost/performance ratios – are there associated costs?
- Subwoofer placement, tuning abilities, sealed vs open port, driver size, materials, servo-control, down-, front-, side-, rear-firing, etc.
- Hiring professionals vs DIY
- Hard and fast rules / guidelines – never vs always
- Is achieving a reasonable or better bass overly complex or simple, does one ever arrive?
- Terminology used to describe bass types e.g. slow, woolly, ill-defined, well-defined, deep, taut, quick, pronounced, musical, etc
- Etc.
Though some are clearly more expert than others, I’m still guessing with so many variables and combinations of variables, such bass guru’s don’t really exist. Sure some speak with confidence about many of the strategies and options but to have intimate expert knowledge of most all possible combinations about what works and what doesn’t work seems hard to fathom, but still. I’ll admit that I’m intimidated by much of the tech talk about bass (and other things) but I’ve gone out to a few subwoofer mfg’ers websites and I’m not entirely convinced all of them know exactly what’s going on either.
Does it exist? Is it possible to achieve a superior bass with these and/or other options? Are some options potentially more right than others? If so, does that imply some options are inferior? How does one get there?
Anyway, below are a couple of examples of what I consider a superior / musical bass.
What say you?
BTW, thank goodness I don’t employ an active linestage anymore. Then again, an active linestage inserting certain characteristics into the playback presentation is just one more option or strategy toward a superior bass, right?