NuVision: New test results. ATN: BASS PLAYERS!

    Over the past year I received a number of inquiries on the specifics of the NuVision pedal's frequency response and specifically related to the EQ controls.  Most (not all) of these people were bass players.  There were at least two guitar players who said they couldn't hear the low cut switch doing anything.  Something is going on, but their guitars/speakers/amps can't produce the low tones necessary to hear what was actually going on.  A few recent emails got me to work late (again) to take some test measurements of the NuVision with DIFFERENT test equipment.  This is much more accurate equipment than I originally used on the NuVision.  It was a bit of a pain in the ass to set up, but I did it for the inquiring minds!  

    I'll diverge for just a second to say a tiny bit about my musical background.  I'm very much a multi-instrumentalist, but my favorite instrument since before I could even play an instrument has always been the bass.  My first instrument was the lowly flute because it was a hand-me-down.  Then guitar because I found one in my gramps basement.  My first bass came at around 9th grade.  OK enough of that ancient history for now!

    If you're following on Instagram, you might get the the idea that I'm busy (Although, I post less than 1% of my work).  Tonight I forced myself to keep going late into the night (yet again) to double check the EQ measurements of the NuVision pedal with more accurate test equipment.  This test equipment is what I've been using for developing my Trinity channel strip because its super accurate.  Its just a real pain in my ass to set it all up (tedious).  What I discovered is a difference from previous tests.  The new information coincides with what people have said to me about the low cut switch.  Some guitar players can't hear the low cut doing anything.  That's probably because its actually at 75Hz, which is about the lowest frequency a large guitar amp can produce.  It makes sense then that they couldn't hear much happening!  The bass knob is a shelving control, so it will provide a relatively level boost (or cut) across all frequencies below its specified point.  The point that I measured tonight is roughly 100Hz.  An interesting thing I found was when the low cut switch is on and the bass knob is boosted all the way you get a 3-octave bell curve boost centered around 80Hz with a 5dB/octave cutoff at 20Hz.  The boost on the graph looked to be only about 3-5dB, but in real life its very audible.  

    As for the treble control (also from tonights analysis), the pedal naturally has a high frequency roll off, which starts somewhere around 4kHz.  I didn't have time to figure out the specific slope.  It looked fairly steep on the graph... certainly when compared to the very high end channel strip I've been developing (which is flat from 8.5Hz-20kHz).  When boosting the treble knob I found the flattest response on the graph happened at about 2:00, which then bumps the treble rolloff up to about 6kHz.  If memory serves me (I'll have to check back) it was about 5dB down at 10kHz, which is right around the highest frequency from a bass.  Boosting the treble knob gives a bell curve because of the natural HF rolloff of the pedal.  I'll have to check on the octave range of the bell curve, but based on my brief viewing I think it spanned about 2 octaves.  It seemed to be focused somewhere around 2-4 kHz.  Difficult to say exactly without further analysis.  

All of this testing stuff aside, I know I like the NuVision pedal on bass because to my ears it makes my bass sound better.  To me it sounds more lively, rich, and more in the foreground.  I play a 2015 G&L LB-100 through a 1964 Ampeg B-15NB.  I also sometimes play a frankenstein Ibanez SR505 that I converted over to all-tube electronics.    

If you have any questions about the NuVision or my other designs, please email sales@lightningboyaudio.com.  Its me and I'd love to hear from you!  Your input helps me improve and move forward.  Thanks for reading :)