On tone controls

Thanks Mike, If I had tone controls I'd probably screw it up!

 

On top of that they use a kind of monitors for the mix few of us would use at home, hence a very different sound. Today I listened to a ¨remaster¨ from a local 1973 classic; it was so boomy I had to substract to -3 (from a control that goes from -5 to+5 at 400 hz, to even things out. Thanx to the guy who designed my receiver in the 70s !

 

Re: Manimal. I'm sure there are a few people on here who will take the time out of their own nothing day and give you the argument that you so desperately seek. If I were them, I would try to charge you for it. Time is money.

It's not that most people like to mess around with tone controls, its that many people would rather hear their music reproduced in a balanced way where clarinets don't sound like saxophones and guitars like a synthesizer, because the harmonic overtone structure is messed up with bad or non-compatible equalization at the company. Another thing that is really screwed up is sometimes you put on a CD and it starts with a quiet passage and all of a sudden many minutes later a passage comes on that is loud enough to wake the dead or blow your speakers. At least with LP's you could sort of adjust the volume in such an instance according to the perceived loudness of hiss and micro ticks.

 

You’d be surprised how many mastering engineers make terrible EQ moves like that. A boomy 3dB bass boost would only really be obvious to other audio engineers and audiophiles, so they get away with it

 

Bringing this thread back to life. As previously stated. my main amp at home has no tone controls, and I don't miss them. but listening to a 1989 German vinyl pressing of the B52's "Cosmic Thing" on headphones on my "work" TT, and OUCH! Painful. Not much bass, LOTS of treble. Really unpleasant headphone listening. Now, that set up has a Schiit Loki EQ connected to it, thankfully. 4 minor knob twiddles later, and I'm back.

 

I have a vinyl promo of Cosmic Thing I haven’t yet played in my home system, I’ll be curious how much help it needs. I have an Icon Audio PS2 tube phone stage and a Fisher 800c. It’s only in this tube system that I don’t need much help with tone control, my solid state and desktop setups absolutely require it IMHO.

 

Listening to it on my main stereo, it sounds ok. Headphone listening, not so much.

 

Have it and greatly enjoy it.

 

I know that I am “supposed” to have my tone controls set to flat or the pure direct button on my amp turn on. I’ve tried and tried to appreciate the sound that way. I just can’t do it. I guess it kind of works if I turn up the volume loud, but I almost never listen to music at that level. I NEED to hear the bass, and with the levels set flat most recordings just sound weak and lifeless. I have albums that are meant to be percussion heavy where drums don’t really stand out from the rest of the instruments without using tone controls. Nobody is going to convince me that that was ever the artist’s intention.

 

Well, because of the ear's sensitivity (Fletcher-Munson curves), the "artist's intention" will be realized at ONE and only ONE volume level for each release. So this audiophile agrees with you and would never try to convince you to do without.

 

I think we’re “supposed” to hear music in such a way that we’re satisfied. If that means using tone controls or tube gear, or whatever else floats our boats it’s all good!

In my experience only tube amplification has me leaving the tone controls alone or minimally adjusted. All of my solid state amplification needs tone adjustment, usually the treble. Since I have a subwoofer it’s much easier to get the bass right and leave it alone most of the time.

 

The arguments for or against tone controls should never be waged with an "I'm right and your wrong" attitude. And that goes for both sides. Music is meant to be enjoyed, and if that means making or not making adjustments, so be it.

 

I make use of the equalizer on my digital audio player to compensate for the way my headphones color the sound. They tend to be a bit bassy, so I reduce the bass slightly and raise the highs slightly (because it makes the headphones sound better). However, other than making an adjustment due to my headphones I don't make any other adjustment.

 

I agree. There are so many factors in the way that the music actually sounds that for some people making an adjustment would improve their enjoyment of the music.