9 replies to this topic

[blacklikesunday]

i'm looking at getting an old amp and it has defeated tone controls, which i've never heard of.  i've looked this up but the only answers i get are too technical for me to understand.
i understand that some people don't even like tone controls on their amps, which is amazing, never heard this type of thing before.

is it a case of having the bass and treble set 'in the middle' so to speak? or having no bass or treble except what was on the original recording? wouldn't that sound tinny?

thanks.

[Quark]

Sounds like the tone controls have been bypassed - this will be the equivalent of them being in the middle (neutral) position.

[digitalj]

basicly it's a switch to decide whether you want the signal to bypass the tone controls or not.

[:)]

bass and treble controls can have a nasty effect on the sound quality in pure 2ch gear. so what some makers have done is rather than completely remove them, is give you a button for "tone defeat" or "direct" and the like that essentially just bypass these circuits as though they are not part of the amp. gives you the option then to use the tone controls if you really need them and remove them otherwise.

trying to think how far back have owned 2ch gear without tone controls..probably 20 years or so back I'd say...nothing have owned or bought since have had them

[mtv]

As others have said, 'defeated' in this case means bypassed, meaning any tone/EQ circuitry is removed from the signal path.


Yes, it means there is no colouration of the sound from the original recording..... they way the producer intended it to be.

Adjusting tone/EQ can be a personal taste thing, but EQ especially can also be utilised to ensure room acoustics do not add to or detract from the original sound.  (eg: flat response).

Most high-end stereo (power) amps have no tone controls.

Some will have them as part of the pre-amp section, if it's an integrated amp.

[blacklikesunday]

thanks for that.
i've just been reading that some people say that having these controls distort the sound, have to admit it all sounds a bit silly to me.
i would of thought that all song producers of say hard rock, would always have plenty of bass and treble in their songs. i've only been in one studio[gary numan's] and everything i heard there was nice and bassy and not the equivilent of having the controls in the 'middle'.

this is the amp.
http://www.ebay.com....=item4602ac86f5

Edited by brent ford, 20 April 2012 - 06:47 PM.

[cwt]

brent ford, on 20 April 2012 - 06:44 PM, said:

thanks for that.
i've just been reading that some people say that having these controls distort the sound, have to admit it all sounds a bit silly to me.
i would of thought that all song producers of say hard rock, would always have plenty of bass and treble in their songs. i've only been in one studio[gary numan's] and everything i heard there was nice and bassy and not the equivilent of having the controls in the 'middle'.

If you use tone controls; instead of a flat frequency response [which is whats wanted in a room and whats on the disc] you usually get a broad peak or suckout depending on the frequency  [hz] where its positioned.

Its basically a throwback to when a separate graphic equaliser was used for better freq manipulation .Think of a graphic as tone controls with say 10 or more freq adjustment points rather than just 2 like the rotel as well as sometimes adjustable q which is more precise for frequencies affected Other models back then had a 3rd mid control that natch affected the midrange frequencies

These days we have room eq much more sophisticated like audyssey;arc;trinnov but people still like to play with tone controls

[:)]

brent ford, on 20 April 2012 - 06:44 PM, said:

thanks for that.
i've just been reading that some people say that having these controls distort the sound, have to admit it all sounds a bit silly to me.
i would of thought that all song producers of say hard rock, would always have plenty of bass and treble in their songs. i've only been in one studio[gary numan's] and everything i heard there was nice and bassy and not the equivilent of having the controls in the 'middle'.

this is the amp.
http://www.ebay.com....=item4602ac86f5

as er cwt the tone controls are a pretty coarse adjustment that can do more damage than good. but some do like em.

the answer is pretty simple. if want the amp you get it. try it either way, with tone controls and without, stick with what sounds best to you. nothing else really matters '

[Chopsus]

Most modern AVRs still have these settings, including graphic equalisers, but you need to drill own into the settings to access them and it's very likely most users would do a worse job than auto caliberation.

[Chicken Man]

:), on 20 April 2012 - 08:35 PM, said:

as er cwt the tone controls are a pretty coarse adjustment that can do more damage than good. but some do like em.

the answer is pretty simple. if want the amp you get it. try it either way, with tone controls and without, stick with what sounds best to you. nothing else really matters '

That generally sums it up.

One's listening habits or preferences are not subject to the appraisal and the approval of some elitist audio community, what one feels happy to live with and find enjoyable is what it's all about.
Tone controls are essentially 'trimming' controls and are better used with moderate use if at all.  Tone controls were once fashionable and upfront on older equipment but not so now-a-days but rather tucked away.

C.M