Not sure if this has been talked about before, perhaps elsewhere.
It's about the phenomenon of people, mostly younger, using excessive and overblown bass while listening to their, ahem,... music.
Particularly in their cars.
What is the deal?
As far as I can determine, it's rampant, annoying, and just plain dumb, but that's my opinion.
I don't understand the attraction, and why people choose to do it.
Is it a "power" thing, or just a fanatic thing?
Is it to make up for other shortcomings or insecurities?
Have manufacturers catered to this crowd to reap profits, at the expense of ruining people's hearing?
The average, sensible human being, surely likes a "full bodied sound" to enjoy, and since everybody's various tastes and preferences are concerned, that's perfectly fine.
But what is the attraction to brain-shaking, window-rattling, and trunk lid vibrating bass?
Setting off car alarms along the way.....
The "I don't give a crap" attitude of someone driving down a residential street at night isn't pretty to me, and I'm sure others.
Maybe someone here can toss in a few of their observations, without starting a thread-war.
It's about the phenomenon of people, mostly younger, using excessive and overblown bass while listening to their, ahem,... music.
Particularly in their cars.
What is the deal?
As far as I can determine, it's rampant, annoying, and just plain dumb, but that's my opinion.
I don't understand the attraction, and why people choose to do it.
Is it a "power" thing, or just a fanatic thing?
Is it to make up for other shortcomings or insecurities?
Have manufacturers catered to this crowd to reap profits, at the expense of ruining people's hearing?
The average, sensible human being, surely likes a "full bodied sound" to enjoy, and since everybody's various tastes and preferences are concerned, that's perfectly fine.
But what is the attraction to brain-shaking, window-rattling, and trunk lid vibrating bass?
Setting off car alarms along the way.....
The "I don't give a crap" attitude of someone driving down a residential street at night isn't pretty to me, and I'm sure others.
Maybe someone here can toss in a few of their observations, without starting a thread-war.
You don't like it, I don't like it, but we're both old. There's no clear answer, so there's really no point in ranting on about it, especially on this forum.
jeff
You are asking as if they decide to do this based upon sitting down and analyzing their needs and coming up with optimal plans based on reasoned criteria. They don't. It is form over substance, if one is good two is better, mine is bigger than yours. And to get into the whole peer approval thing is beyond my interest.
I sold car systems when subs were just getting started. For me it was like a physics experiment. How to create musical bass in a closet. A big amp was 100 watts and cost a lot.
Sold a lot of clean tight subs by demoing an 8 inch sub in a <.5 cu ft enclosure in my Subaru wagon. Played it with the sub then without. Answered the question "Why do I need/want a sub-woofer in my car?"
But then the market changed and music seemed to lose out to sheer output. Soon it was rare to demo a car subwoofer with anything other than a bass track CD. Amps increased in wattage, subs changed toward more output and customers started asking "How far away will people hear me with this sub?"
Sadly it did not take too long to make that change.
The last time I talked to someone about their subs (they were big and in a small fridge sized box), all they talked about was the next set they were saving for being louder and needing bigger amps.
So I have no answers for you and I am just as baffled by it as you. Just wanted to share the pathway to your question as I saw it happen.
Sold a lot of clean tight subs by demoing an 8 inch sub in a <.5 cu ft enclosure in my Subaru wagon. Played it with the sub then without. Answered the question "Why do I need/want a sub-woofer in my car?"
But then the market changed and music seemed to lose out to sheer output. Soon it was rare to demo a car subwoofer with anything other than a bass track CD. Amps increased in wattage, subs changed toward more output and customers started asking "How far away will people hear me with this sub?"
Sadly it did not take too long to make that change.
The last time I talked to someone about their subs (they were big and in a small fridge sized box), all they talked about was the next set they were saving for being louder and needing bigger amps.
So I have no answers for you and I am just as baffled by it as you. Just wanted to share the pathway to your question as I saw it happen.
No mystery here.
Bass has, and will continue to increase. Why? Because it can.
Great Grandfather's Victrola had none
Grandfather's speakers had a built in paper surround, 3" spider and a 2 watt amplifier.
Your father's gear was the first to see longer throw woofers and transistor amps.
Your kid's stuff has woofers built like a brick ****house and oodles of cheap power.
What did think was going to happen to the bass?
Bass has, and will continue to increase. Why? Because it can.
Great Grandfather's Victrola had none
Grandfather's speakers had a built in paper surround, 3" spider and a 2 watt amplifier.
Your father's gear was the first to see longer throw woofers and transistor amps.
Your kid's stuff has woofers built like a brick ****house and oodles of cheap power.
What did think was going to happen to the bass?
but can‘t stand those dB-nazis.
Even when I was in my 20's, (1970's) I didn't have a desire to blow my ears out with SuperBass.
Sure, I installed better speakers (Jensen Co-Ax) in my cars, for some richer sound, I had one of the first "in dash" AM/FM/Cassette players too.
But I wasn't some brazen brat that wanted to entertain the neighborhood with my music.
And you ever notice on here, the amount of "blown" muscle sub amps needing assistance?
Ahahahaha!
Sure, I installed better speakers (Jensen Co-Ax) in my cars, for some richer sound, I had one of the first "in dash" AM/FM/Cassette players too.
But I wasn't some brazen brat that wanted to entertain the neighborhood with my music.
And you ever notice on here, the amount of "blown" muscle sub amps needing assistance?
Ahahahaha!
Last edited:
I do not want to comment on exaggerated bass, obviously not my cup of tea.
However, most of my friends hifi I listened to, had terrible bass. Not extended low enough, and with lumpy response, especially peaking midbass.
See, those tone controls are not designed well. First, if the bookshelf starts rolling off below 50Hz for instance, applying the bass tone control will not solve the problem, it may lift bass, but it will create terrible midbass hump, since tone control starts from ~ 1kHz. What is needed is parametric tone control, or at least some selection of turnaround frequency. I have Sanyo Plus C55 preamp, and it has this feature. Very useful.
Bass is great, if it is executed well. Not exaggerated, but flat and dynamic. Some recordings just require good deep bass, otherwise the song lacks the emotions it was meant to deliver. Not to mention organ music.
Enough rambling.
However, most of my friends hifi I listened to, had terrible bass. Not extended low enough, and with lumpy response, especially peaking midbass.
See, those tone controls are not designed well. First, if the bookshelf starts rolling off below 50Hz for instance, applying the bass tone control will not solve the problem, it may lift bass, but it will create terrible midbass hump, since tone control starts from ~ 1kHz. What is needed is parametric tone control, or at least some selection of turnaround frequency. I have Sanyo Plus C55 preamp, and it has this feature. Very useful.
Bass is great, if it is executed well. Not exaggerated, but flat and dynamic. Some recordings just require good deep bass, otherwise the song lacks the emotions it was meant to deliver. Not to mention organ music.
Enough rambling.
Come on it was 1975 !
Mine sounded ok but they were a bit finicky.
They have a metal strip on tape to click on to next track.
They either didn't click on a track or clicked on two tracks !
Mine blew up a couple of times, probably from too much volume !
- Status
- This old topic is closed. If you want to reopen this topic, contact a moderator using the "Report Post" button.