I upped my sound game

[podex]

I wanted to see what would happen if I hooked my PC up to my 100 watt bass guitar amp. The next logical thing to do was play SB. What I've learned:

 

1. Hard drives and monitors create a ton of interference

2. The low range sounds great, the top end is flat (as is expected)

3. It's monoaural (change window settings to mono and pan left or you'll just get left channel and a potentially fried audio chip)

4. Leopard 2E sounds freaking awesome, as do most other vehicles and weapons

5. M1A2 is a notable exception. The engine whine is just too much

 

I couldn't get the master volume up to 3 without risk of angering the wife or the neighbors -- it was that loud. The sound quality kinda sucked, as bass guitar amps just aren't designed for this kind of range, but it was fun. When I get some time alone, and the neighbors are gone, I'll go higher, but ear plugs will be needed.

 

I wonder what SB sounds like with a wah pedal and distortion.  hmm...

Edited April 16, 2021 by podex

[Mirzayev]

39 minutes ago, podex said:

I wonder what SB sounds like with a wah pedal and distortion.  hmm...

 

It sounds like a frequency limited, distorted mess. 

 

Instrument amplifiers have a limited frequency response focusing on those areas that are traditionally considered "most pleasing" for said instrument. A 100 watt tube guitar amp, for example, will NEVER be able to put out the bass response of something like an 800 watt bass amplifier (headroom in the power amp for lower frequencies, etc.) You *might* get something decent with a dedicated acoustic amplifier due to them being much more neutral in their response. 

 

The best bet if you wanna get REALLY loud with good sound quality is a full-frequency response powered PA speaker. I use an older version of these with my music rig setup: https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/K10.2--qsc-k10.2-2000w-10-inch-powered-speaker The older version if "only" 1000 watts. I've never turned my volume above 3/8th of the way up... and that was while playing gigs with earplugs in. 

 

This is 100% ridiculous, and your neighbors will hate you slightly less than you will hate yourself after permanently damaging the hearing of everyone in your household. 

[podex]

4 minutes ago, Mirzayev said:

 

Instrument amplifiers have a limited frequency response focusing on those areas that are traditionally considered "most pleasing" for said instrument. A 100 watt tube guitar amp, for example, will NEVER be able to put out the bass response of something like an 800 watt bass amplifier (headroom in the power amp for lower frequencies, etc.) You *might* get something decent with a dedicated acoustic amplifier due to them being much more neutral in their response.

What I found interesting was the top end was actually crisp, which absolutely surprised me with a 15" speaker. A had to spend the better part of an hour farting around with the EQ, PC output, and gain though. Mid-range was dull and lifeless. But yeah, you're right, it's not designed for this range at all. I suspect the crispness dies quickly with volume.

 

1000w? earplugs and muffs together aren't going to help you. You're vibrating your soul at that point.

 

And yes, a wah and distortion sounds like crap, as does adding chorus.

[Mirzayev]

4 hours ago, podex said:

1000w? earplugs and muffs together aren't going to help you. You're vibrating your soul at that point.

 

False. My active ear protection (which I normally use for shooting) is capable of reducing sudden noises by 40 db, and continuous noises by 15 db. That'll make standing next to a plane's jet engine have a db equivalent to a loud trombone player. Even a relatively cheap pair of quality earplugs can reduce noise by 20 db. 

 

Yes, it can get loud, but the purpose of the high wattage is for headroom within the speaker itself. I can run a drum machine pumping out both drums and synth bass, a synthesizer, and my guitar modeler through that one PA speaker without the sound quality turning to mush under the strain. Unlike something like a tube guitar amplifier, where low-wattage has a place due to being able to really "cook the tubes" at a (relatively speaking) low volume, higher wattage isn't about maxing out the volume, but preserving a clean signal. Unlike the aforementioned low-wattage tube amp, turning up the volume doesn't impact the tone. It isn't uncommon to find bass amps sitting at the 600+ wattage range to give bass players the ability to preserve a clean signal while being able to turn their volume up loud enough to be heard in a band situation.