About Equalization - Hartke TX300 Owner's Manual

About Equalization

The Hartke TX300 Bass Amplifier gives you control over shaping the sound of your bass, using
a process called equalization. To understand how this works, it's important to know that every
naturally occurring sound consists of a broad range of pitches, or frequencies, combined together
in a unique way. This blend is what gives every sound its distinctive tonal color. The TX300 EQ
controls allow you to alter a sound by boosting or attenuating specific frequency areas - they
operate much like the bass and treble controls on stereo, but with much greater precision.
The TX300 offers three bands of equalization.
Each EQ knob, labeled Bass, Midrange, and Treble,
affects a different frequency area of the audio. We
carefully selected these frequency areas because
they have maximum impact on bass guitar signals.
The Bass and Treble controls are shelving EQs,
which provide boost when the control is moved
clockwise from the center or cut when the control is
moved counterclockwise from the center. The Mid
EQ control is a peaking EQ. As the Mid control is
Bass Midrange Treble
turned clockwise the frequency area is boosted; as
it is turned counterclockwise the frequency area is
attenuated.
In many instances, the best way to deal with equalization is to think in terms of which frequency
areas you need to attenuate, as opposed to which ones you need to boost. Be aware that boosting
a frequency area also has the effect of boosting the overall signal; specifically, too much Low EQ
boost can actually cause overload distortion or even harm the connected speaker.
The TX300 also includes a Shape control, which enables the sound of your bass instrument to
be enhanced at the touch of a button. When the front panel Shape switch is pressed in, a special
equalization curve is activated that is designed to enhance the sound of most electric bass
instruments. This curve provides moderate boost at certain frequency areas and deep attenuation
at other frequency areas. Furthermore, the Shape control adds a filter to a selected frequency
area within the Shape curve. As the Shape knob is turned clockwise, the filter is applied to higher
frequency areas; as it is turned counterclockwise, the filter is applied to lower frequency areas.
Even when Shape is activated, the front-panel EQ controls remain operational. When all three EQ
controls are set to their "0" (flat) position, they add no boost or attenuation to the preset Shape
curve. However, when any EQ controls are turned left or right of their 12 o'clock ("0") position,
their boost or attenuation effect is layered upon the preset Shape curve. In this way, you can
customize the sound of the TX300 amplifier further still to complement your particular bass
instrument and playing style.
Note that, when the Shape switch is out, the EQ controls operate on the "flat" signal coming from
your bass (that is, there is no preset equalization curve imposed).
TX300 - 300 Watt Bass Amplifier 11