Help with choosing “pleasant” speaker at high volume?

[Bearitone]

It seems no matter how I dial my amps they all sound harsh at high volumes. If i roll back the treble and presence enough to be able to bear it, then it sounds dull.

How can I get LOUD without the high end getting harsh, but still retain high end detail and clarity?

I’m thinking it HAS to be the speakers/cab at this point right?

 

[DeathByButterslax]

I’ve always found greenbacks to be pleasant at high volumes

 

[budda]

Earplugs. That or dont go to such a high volume so that you can enjoy the tone you want.

 

[LeftOurEyes]

No speaker recommendation but I feel like standing in front of any speaker at high volumes is almost always harsh. Standing to the side sounds much better at that level. Do your speakers sound harsh everywhere you stand in the room?

 

[Bearitone]

No speaker recommendation but I feel like standing in front of any speaker at high volumes is almost always harsh. Standing to the side sounds much better at that level. Do your speakers sound harsh everywhere you stand in the room?

I’m slightly off axis where I sit/stand in the room, about 10 to 15 degrees. It sounds perfect at bedroom volumes to about “loud-talking” volume and then it just sounds harsh in the highs. Starts to lose clarity.

 

[SalsaWood]

This has to do with the human ear and the nature of sound waves more than any speakers. Low freq high SPL and high freq high SPL may have the same snapshot of amplitude in cross section, but the rate of that energy will be titanically different in magnitude. This is also a gigantic factor of acoustics in regard to absorption and reflection as well, so you're basically never going to get a linear volume knob as a human on this planet without some big time black magic fuckery. This is the same reason you can sit in a school bus full of 15" subs and practically levitate the engine out with bass freqs while your eardrums don't blow, but we're talking the other end of the spectrum here.

 

[Crungy]

Earplugs. That or dont go to such a high volume so that you can enjoy the tone you want.

This by a lot.

Earplugs remove all of the shit noise you don't need to hear. It might not be as bright sounding but it saves your ears and imo sounds far better in rehearsal/live situations. Same for watching bands.

 

[Kosthrash]

You may try some 12" speaker diffusers for spreading evenly the sound of your cab for less harsh tone in high volumes and less dependance of your position re the cab.
Also if you break in your speakers, they'll sound less harsh.

 

[budda]

I’m slightly off axis where I sit/stand in the room, about 10 to 15 degrees. It sounds perfect at bedroom volumes to about “loud-talking” volume and then it just sounds harsh in the highs. Starts to lose clarity.

Ya boi fletcher-munson is in the house.

If it sounds harsh directly in front, it sounds harsh. I think this is where people get confused trying to dial in modellers - there is no “stand to the side and get a completely different sound” lol.

Try way less mids. Also completely and absolutely ignore knob location: dial it in to sound good to you.

Less gain, less treble, less mids, less caring if settings look right and you’ll hopefully be a lot closer. Double if you’re just playing home alone.

Also, try your tone knob assuming there is one.

 

[TheWarAgainstTime]

If the core tone at moderate volumes is already the way you want, then you might also look at some kind of room treatment. I recently built a handful of sound absorption panels with my dad and they helped a lot to cut out flutter and make my cabinets sound more focused in the room. Even a couple of moving blankets draped over a chair sitting perpendicular to the cabinet will go a long way to block the highest frequencies from bouncing around

 

[ATRguitar91]

What cab and speakers are you using?

Generally, louder is gonna be harsher naturally. Maybe try boosting the mids instead of cuttings highs.

 

[op1e]

What cab are you using, and is this happening when you're playing alone? What makes you cut in the mix sounds harsh on its own a lot of times. Ye ole v30 fatigue.

 

[Necky379]

Putting foam on the walls and an area rug makes a big difference to me. I like playing in a really dead room for that reason, it sounds less grating at higher volume. It’s easier to hear what’s actually going on vs hearing a bunch of bullshit bouncing off the walls and floor.

Greenbacks were recommended, in my experience they’re brash and can be piercing at high volume because of the lack of low end, abundance of mids/upper mids, easy breakup. Fane’s version is the most pleasant version to my ears. Splawn Small Blocks are darker with more of a mid spike less of a presence spike. I love both of those speakers, still I don’t think that’s what you want. I find greenbacks to be very cab dependent too.

My advice, check out the Classic Lead 80 and get some foam squares. Don’t be afraid of turning your mid knob down. Don’t judge anything with tired ears, after awhile you aren’t hearing accurately and everything is going to sound bad. At higher volumes listen, adjust, listen, take a break and come back to it.

 

[MatrixClaw]

Sounds like bad room acoustics to me. Does the room have carpet or wood/tile floors? Anything hanging on the walls? Windows? Is the room rectangular or square? Where is the amp/cab situated in the room? Is the cab on casters or directly on the floor? Is it angled or straight?

So many variables that could come into play here, but the only time I've had an amp go from sounding good at low volume to harsh as it turned up was the room itself sounding bad... Or the speakers just sucked when they started breaking up.

 

[gb66]

I’ve always found greenbacks to be pleasant at high volumes

If greenbacks then the 25W version. I use Eminence GB12 50W for over 15 years now and they do what you expect I think. I use them in 4x12 cab which means 200W and the amp has no more than 50W. This gives lots of headroom and the only harshness I get is from the amp (or Helix) itself.

 

[wheresthefbomb]

You kinda have to pick one. Loud amplified guitars sound harsh and unpleasant by their nature. Accept this fact and you will be free. I have a giant box of complimentary earplugs I bring to every loud gig I play.

I have found that more speakers gives a fuller sound at lower, and therefore less-harsh volumes. I run a stereo rig of 4x10 and 2x12 or 4x12 for a variety of quiet, conversation-level gigs like yoga workshops where my job is to fill the space in a pleasant way and still allow the instructor to be heard clearly, or parties where I'm providing ambiance but not necessarily the main attraction.

 

[Screamingdaisy]

Go old school and crank the volume until the harshness goes away.

You'll do permanent damage, but it's the most metal solution I can think of.



(lol)

 

[crushingpetal]

Beam blockers. Do they even make those anymore? Just throw a pillow in front of the speaker, or a teddy bear, or something like that.

 

[Kosthrash]

Beam blockers. Do they even make those anymore? Just throw a pillow in front of the speaker, or a teddy bear, or something like that.

Like I suggested

TT Diffusor 12" - Standard

Universal size for 12" speakers Dome diameter: 80 mm - recommended for most of the guitar loudspeaker with average beaming As the frequency increases, the radiation of a loudspeaker is increasingly focused on its center. If the ...

www.tubetown.net

 

[JediMasterThrash]

Get an line-level EQ as the last step in the signal chain befor the power amp. There is still a lot of >8 to 16+k content coming out of that speaker, even though they spec as always having like a 6-8k rolloff.

Human audio perception changes with volume, and we perceive the highs and lows louder with volume, but not the mids. So it's good to counter that with some mid bumps and high rolloff.

I use a behringer FBQ800, cheap and does the job. Take that 16k slider and put it all the way down to -12db, maybe dip the 8k a bit too, bump the 2k/4k a bit to keep the bite and bump 250/500 to get the low-mids which will help it feel louder without harsher. 75hz cut switch to block the lows.