Can I Use a Guitar Amp for Bass
A question that seems to come up up regularly is, tin can yous play a bass guitar using a regular guitar amplifier? Technically speaking, yes. The Jack is the same size, the pickups work in the aforementioned manner, when plugged in and turned on, a guitar amp will answer to a bass guitar. The real question is, should you play bass through a guitar amp?
In this KillerGuitarRigs guide, yous will learn:
- What is the difference betwixt a guitar amp and a bass amp?
- How volition a bass guitar sound when played through a guitar amp?
- In what circumstances is it ok to utilize a bass guitar through a guitar amp?
- How to avoid dissentious your guitar amp if you have no culling?
Before moving on to the guide, cheque out these fast facts:
- Guitar amps are designed to accentuate mids and highs
- Bass amps are designed to pronounce lows and mids
- It'due south generally safe to utilise a guitar amp for bass at bedchamber volume levels
What Is The Difference Between a Guitar Amp And a Bass Amp?
Equally you might expect, a guitar amplifier is designed and voiced to respond to higher frequencies than a bass amplifier would be. This is influenced by the choice of speaker in the chiffonier, too as the setup of the electronics. Bass amps on the other hand are designed to be less responsive to highs, focusing more than on the lows and mids.
The speakers in bass amps are mostly larger than those found in guitar amps. Having a larger speaker cone allows the amp to push button more air, which is essential for the depression frequencies from the bass. The smaller speakers found in guitar amps aren't able to respond in the aforementioned manner and will answer with a raspy tone.
Not only are guitar amp speakers smaller, but they aren't quite as robust. The cone material is ordinarily less sturdy, and then when pushed beyond their limits, by excessive bass frequencies, for example, they are liable to "blow". You might not be and so worried if this happens to a generic unbranded bedroom amp, only if yous happened to blow your Celestion Heritage Greenback you lot'd probably be quite upset.
Additionally, in guild to proceed the bass tighter and punchier, bass amps are usually airtight back, while many guitar amps take open back in order to give an open up, natural audio. By playing a bass through an open dorsum cabinet, you'll lose much of the focus.
How Volition a Bass Guitar Sound When Played Through a Guitar Amp?
Playing a bass guitar through a guitar amp volition definitely yield different tones than it would through a proper bass amp. Expect to hear more often than not mids as these are the only frequencies from your bass that the guitar amp is voiced to reply to.
Because the lows will be missing, expect the audio to exist more fuzzy. This can be partially addressed by adjusting the amplifier's EQ settings to max bass, effectually 9 o clock on the mids, and treble at nil. If you do have a pedal lath with an EQ pedal, you can further influence the audio by increasing the lows and reducing mids and highs earlier the indicate fifty-fifty gets into the amp. This isn't going to be perfect, only it should help to brand the virtually of what you lot have.
At low volumes on low power solid state amps, the untrained ear may not fifty-fifty be able to notice the difference if the EQ settings are just right.
Plugging a Guitar Into a Bass Amp!
In What Circumstances is it OK to use a Bass Guitar Through a Guitar Amp?
There are occasions where yous might really notice information technology useful to play your bass through a guitar amp. Bedroom sized practice amps for bass are much harder to come by on the used market, if you lot're only starting out on the bass and want to play at low volume for practice purposes, a guitar amp might be all you need to get going.
If you're recording, y'all might also be looking to experiment with dissimilar sounds and playing through a guitar amp can certainly provide a different tonal range. If this is being done using an amp of any pregnant value, but go on under the knowledge that you could potentially cause harm to it.
In short, it'due south all-time to limit the practice of using a bass through a guitar amp to bedroom level exercise with a 10-20 watt solid state unit of measurement, or for experienced players, in recording scenarios with extreme caution.
How To Avoid Dissentious Your Guitar Amp if you lot Have no Alternative?
If you don't have access to a bass amp and you need to play through a guitar amp, there are a few steps you can have to help prevent damaging your amplifier.
Outset, keep the volume down. By keeping the book low, you lot'll reduce speaker movement. Equally pointed out earlier, guitar amp speakers are smaller than bass amp speakers, significant they accept to piece of work harder to try and achieve the same low frequency output. This actress vibration tin can cause components to come loose and rattle, which volition consequence in buzzing and an overall unpleasant sound.
Don't add FX – similar high volume, adding distortion will likely result in the speaker cone vibrating excessively.
Avert using tube amps at all costs. Valve based amps are delicate at the best of times, and are expensive to buy, and expensive to maintain. Playing a bass guitar through a tube powered guitar amp is just plain abuse. Even regular guitar frequencies tin can rattle tubes loose, so don't even need to imagine the havoc that the speaker trying to continue up with bass frequencies would wreak.
Final Thoughts On Playing a Bass Through A Guitar Amp
As described throughout this guide, there are indeed circumstances in which it is perfectly fine to play a bass through a guitar amp. However, information technology'due south always best to use the correct tool for the correct task. You'll get then much more than from your playing experience by using the right kind of amplifier, and you won't run the risk of damaging it through misuse.
Past the fashion, while you lot're here, check out our list of the best guitar amps nether $100, our guide to solving amps picking upwards the radio, and our review of the modern classic Dominate Katana.
Source: https://killerguitarrigs.com/can-i-play-bass-through-a-guitar-amp/
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