How do you deal with line preamps with no tone controls? Most of tube preamps have no tone controls, as I can see it. Can you trust audio engineer with your listening preference?
tone controls you need for bad records. if you don't have bad recorded material than you don't need tone controls. so the best one imo should have tone controls and bypass direct switch if you don't need them.
Hmmm .... your not yielding this "Noobie" a fair choice. Look at solid state and your options will change. It's really a resonal preference and that is all ......
I agree with zenieth -- personal preference. Lots of people like to pour ketchup all over their sirloin. Those of you who feel strongly about tone controls should know that each pot only affects one frequency. So all you can really do with them is raise or lower the volume of that particular frquency. If you want choice about your contour/correction, then you should buy an equalizer and learn how to use it. I believe that is what Kal meant about them being too crude.
equalizer... is probably where i was going with this question. however, there are less and less of them that are available on the market. recordings are getting better and better, i guess. still, cd's that are produces for mass market in my opinion have extenuated tones to compensate for poor stereo system ...
Fair question sir. Just to advance your education a bit... equalizers are used for two distinctly different processes.
In recording an EQ (equalizer) is used to correct or eliminate a specific frequency usually to make it easier to get a blend or to make up for a previous mistake... this is the whole fix it in the mix thing which rarely works out for anyone but the studio owner.
In playback, an equalizer is used to correct the interaction of the speakers and the physical aspects of the room. In other words the way the sound waves interact with the environment.
This is the only way to correct a room - but you need to understand that the goal is to set it to neutralize the problem and forget it. That is the antithesis of using it as a tone control. The whole concept here is to build a neutral reference system which accurately reproduces the source. That's why you set the EQ to fix the problems in the room then leave it alone.
The good folks at Rive Audios are frequent posters and are quite expert in the whole subject of room treatment and equalization... you might want to look at their stuff and some of the posts on room tweaks as you get into this a bit more. As it turns out, tweaking the room itself is often more cost effective and sounds way better then pouring more and more into gear...
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