Tone Controls

[speakerman1]

I don't use them. Most of my amps and pres don't have them. If they do I can turn them off. I have them on my speakers one pair anyway. I try to keep things out of the signal path. Just something else to cause noise. This is just me. I want to hear the music as it is recorded. Never liked thump in my music.So when I was younger I cranked the treble tone control. Even on the Vandies I have went to flat. OK here goes "Room Compensation" using the tone controls. Whatever floats your boat. I like the sound of them flat. It isn't one of the 10 commandments. Some people don't like metal tweeters. On the systems I have they aren't a problem. Their are some that hurt my ears. Usually the culprit is an amp. The Vandies I have had 3 years and the Epos for 7 years. I know my speakers. The Epos have been hooked to everything. They were in the store.

OK I'm done.

 

[Gepetto]

I don't use them. Most of my amps and pres don't have them. If they do I can turn them off. I have them on my speakers one pair anyway. I try to keep things out of the signal path. Just something else to cause noise. This is just me. I want to hear the music as it is recorded. Never liked thump in my music.So when I was younger I cranked the treble tone control. Even on the Vandies I have went to flat. OK here goes "Room Compensation" using the tone controls. Whatever floats your boat. I like the sound of them flat. It isn't one of the 10 commandments. Some people don't like metal tweeters. On the systems I have they aren't a problem. Their are some that hurt my ears. Usually the culprit is an amp. The Vandies I have had 3 years and the Epos for 7 years. I know my speakers. The Epos have been hooked to everything. They were in the store.

OK I'm done.

I keep mine set to flat or even better with the "out" switch thrown. I prefer silk dome tweeters over metal dome too Larry. Not a deal breaker but they just sound a little sweeter

 

[jbeckva]

I still do that U curve a little, but it's getting smaller and smaller nowadays. Hard habit to break, once ya are into it. Gotta have a lil bit of treble boost for me.

 

[laatsch55]

Totally flat, all tone controls and processors bypassed..

 

[speakerman1]

When I redo my one set of speakers. There will be Morel silk domes. They are fast and subtle. They are accurate; but not in your face.

 

[El Magnifico]

Well, for me, the Tone Controls are there for a reason and as long as you use them well, no harm is done. It could help you correcting the deficiencies of your room acosutics. I seldom use them but when playing back a dull sounding tape, they become handy.

 

[speakerman1]

Not all have Tone Controls. What do you do then? If it is a bad recording it is a bad recording. Does tone controls make it a good recording. How if the person who recorded it used tone controls in recording it. It is still a bad recording. We had aircraft that we called turds. When they made them pretty they became a polished turd. Still a turd. If you add tone controls you are not listening to what was recorded. I go to a concert I don't run the stage and ask them to add more treble or bass. Different producers record with their own style. Adding tone controls would change the whole purpose of listening to how it is recorded. Producers do it their way to sound good to them. I have at least one LP that is just bad. I hate listening to it. Tone Controls will not remedy that situation.

Now my little thoughts about room compensation. If it loud enough for it to bounce off of the walls. It is to loud. My sweet spot in my sound room is right in the middle with a little tilt back to time the tweeters. I can hear it very well just by positioning my speakers to where I am sitting. I have no tone controls in that room. I have no controls in the living room either. Sounds very good to me. If you think it all sounds better the way you like it with or without controls. That is good for everyone. There is no wrong or right just perceptions.

Your mileage may vary depending on your driving habits.

One more thought. If I can I try to run w/o a pre.

 

[jbeckva]

It's more just personal taste, IMHO. Yeah I hear ya about bad recordings... but hmm... do you think half the old Led Zep albums sound like they're coming out of a tin can? I do. I feel obligated to follow up any LZ listening-to with a good Steely Dan/Donald Fagen just to get the fuzzies out of my ears again. See that's also subjective... Point being - it's all subjective, heheh. That might be how they wanted LZ to sound, but aaagh.. I'd rather listen to Robert Plant's later works for any period of time. Would you put "Big Log" up against "No Quarter"? Heck no.. I wouldn't either... NQ beats BL hands down in the classic "legend" department. BUT... I could stand listening to Big Log many more times.

Interestin... makes a good "Hmmmm" come out of me, this topic...

 

[El Magnifico]

Yes, it is a matter of perception and personal preference. Good high end pres don't have any and good hi-fi pres has,so what? You use it if you want and if not, don't use it. You may want to sweeten up a song or add some more bass because that's your preference and in no way you are wrong. You just like it that way because you decided so. In the old days, many good recordings were ruined by bad pressings and you have those controls at your disposal. At the end, again, it's a matter of personal choice so if you use it or not it's up to you and by no means you are violating any "audio laws".

 

[Pure_Brew]

123

 

[Lazarus Short]

My JVC MX-1, doing A/V duty in the living room, has electronic tone controls, which I don't use.

The Proton 300/301 in the bedroom, has tone controls, which I leave flat.

The Cyrus amp in the lair has no tone controls or even balance controls, and it's very musical.

 

[laatsch55]

One had better be when one is nekkid....

 

[Lazarus Short]

One more thought. If I can I try to run w/o a pre.

You can run w/o a preamp if all your gear has variable outputs, especially if the pot for the variation is on the front of the unit. I used to do this, and yes, less was more, but it may well mean often swapping out patch cords. A passive pre might be worthwhile then. BTW, a line-level source plugged directly into a power amp has a special magic, besides being LOUD.

 

[laatsch55]

With the Oppo I just bought it has a remote with volume control, straight to a WOPL 1000, pretty damn nice!!

 

[speakerman1]

Speaking of Oppo. Just hooked the CDP I got from Mark last week. It had been sitting silent since last year. I noticed more body from it over the Oppo. The Oppo for what it does can't be beat. It isn't a bad sound at all. The Oppo had a lot of SS sound. To me. Havent tried the DACs on it yet.

 

[laatsch55]

The Onix CD-1??

 

[Gibsonian]

For me it is like food. Some needs a little seasoning, some is so good it needs absolutely nothing added or subtracted. I like to have some seasoning available when needed.

 

[laatsch55]

Nice analogy...