What Is Most Responsible For Harmonic Content, In Your Opinion?

Which One Matters Most?

  • Total voters
    27
Martial Arts Fighting GIF by Micropharms
 
Eagle said:
You’re not adding , it’s just boosting what is already happening.
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I'm mostly with you however running a sine through a compressor and craning the smack out of it so it starts clipping by definition adds non existent harmonic content.

Now having said that reading through the the posts there are some odd takes.
I mean aren't most here playing Class A/B ps where push pull cancels half the harmonics.

Andthen we have modelers where the overtones just go wonky when you scope them.

In it's most simplest form overtone content is why a guitar doesn't sound like an oboe.
 
Ed DeGenaro said:
I'm mostly with you however running a sine through a compressor and craning the smack out of it so it starts clipping by definition adds non existent harmonic content.

Now having said that reading through the the posts there are some odd takes.
I mean aren't most here playing Class A/B ps where push pull cancels half the harmonics.

Andthen we have modelers where the overtones just go wonky when you scope them.

In it's most simplest form overtone content is why a guitar doesn't sound like an oboe.
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I’m just saying that for most intents and purposes everything starts with the acoustic properties of the instrument.
 
Eagle said:
I’m just saying that for most intents and purposes everything starts with the acoustic properties of the instrument.
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Absolutely.

That said I could be convinced with an electric guitar the instrument actually is guitar+amp+cab.

And that gets back to the idiotic tone is in the fear because hands can't make distortion.
Like it's not an effect.

I remember why I try to stay away from these discussions....😀
 
TSJMajesty said:
I don't claim to know for sure, but until I played a Majesty thru an Axe III, or thru any of my Mesa amps, I'd never heard a guitar with so much rich harmonic content.

If pressed, I'd probably say it's PU's, followed closely by how they're amplified. Or maybe it's the Mesa predominantly. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ :rofl

What's your thoughts?

How bout guys who play more than 1 guitar (unlike me, haha)? @Warmart , what do you think, if you were to compare your Majesty to one of your other, very awesome, axes, using the exact same rig?
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Depends on what your definition of harmonic content is. What exactly do you mean when you say this?
 
JCW308 said:
Depends on what your definition of harmonic content is. What exactly do you mean when you say this?
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There are commonly agreed upon definitions...


Harmonic content refers to the collection of different frequencies that make up a complex sound or signal. These frequencies are multiples of a base frequency, known as the fundamental frequency. The presence of different harmonics affects the overall quality and timbre of a sound.
 
Ed DeGenaro said:
There are commonly agreed upon definitions...


Harmonic content refers to the collection of different frequencies that make up a complex sound or signal. These frequencies are multiples of a base frequency, known as the fundamental frequency. The presence of different harmonics affects the overall quality and timbre of a sound.
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That's what I meant.
 
Ed DeGenaro said:
There are commonly agreed upon definitions...


Harmonic content refers to the collection of different frequencies that make up a complex sound or signal. These frequencies are multiples of a base frequency, known as the fundamental frequency. The presence of different harmonics affects the overall quality and timbre of a sound.
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Yeah I know. But does the OP agree that this is the common definition? In other words what are we starting with here....?
 
Eagle said:
I can't believe there are 13 people that think you can amplify something that isn't there. Which would be the case if it didn't come from the instrument.
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It can. Have you ever heard ghosts while playing?
Animation Ghost GIF

Ghost Notes are harmonics generated by the amplifier. They can add a rich and warm touch, specially when soloing at the upper frets.

forum.fractalaudio.com

Ghost Notes

A phenomenon present in some vintage amps is an artifact known as "ghost notes". Ghost notes are the result of intermodulation distortion between the note being played and ripple on the power supply. The ripple is at 120 Hz because the AC voltage is full-wave rectified. So there are frequency...
forum.fractalaudio.com forum.fractalaudio.com

They are typical of vintage amps and old Plexis, but with the advanced parameters of the Fractal modeler you can add them to any amplifier by simply adjusting the Supply Sag and the B+ Time Constant

A phenomenon present in some vintage amps is an artifact known as "ghost notes".

Ghost notes are the result of intermodulation distortion between the note being played and ripple on the power supply. The ripple is at 120 Hz because the AC voltage is full-wave rectified. So there are frequency components of 120 Hz and its harmonics in the power supply.

These frequency components mix with the note being played and create new tones that are not harmonically related to the note being played. Since it is intermodulation distortion, tones are created at the sum and difference frequencies. For example, if you play a D at the seventh fret on the G string this is 294 Hz. The intermodulation will create new tones at 294 - 120 = 174 Hz and 294 + 120 = 414 Hz. The harmonics of the note being played also factor in. The aforementioned D will also produce tones at multiples of 294 Hz and these mix with the 120 Hz and its harmonics.

The G string above the 5th fret is most prone to this because of the harmonic spectrum of those notes.

The amount of ripple on the supply is a function of the supply impedance. More capacitance and less resistance will reduce the ripple. Conversely less capacitance and/or more resistance will increase the ripple. You can adjust these values in the Axe-Fx using the Supply Sag and B+ Time Constant parameters. Supply Sag adjusts the virtual resistance of the power supply. B+ Time Constant adjusts the resulting time constant of the supply resistance and capacitance, i.e. as you increase the sag the time constant stays constant (capacitance decreases). To counter this increase B+ Time Constant.

Old 100W Plexis exhibit this the most of any amp I've seen due to the high resistance of the power supply transformer. Our reference 100W Plexi has so much power supply resistance that the power supply sags up to 120V! This along with only 50 uF of power supply capacitance leads to prominent ghost notes.
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HomespunEffects said:
Lulz, wut?
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Intermodulation distortion happens when two notes collide. .
Not only do they add up the also subtract

And since they usually not having any close relationship are mostly inharmonic.

As in not something anyone wants other than for sentimental reasons because our cranked vintage amps do it
 
I was asking how what I said was confirmation bias. I read your post as a sarcastic comment. I could have misread the context.
 
HomespunEffects said:
I was asking how what I said was confirmation bias. I read your post as a sarcastic comment. I could have misread the context.
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Zero sarcasm we all are biased to think our opinion is fact.

But as I said seeing it’s the amp because it’s an overtone generator when driven into distortion then it’s not the amp but the effect of distortion.

An amp’s intent was to amplify and stay clean. Heck that was Marshall’s original ad copy “…it won’t distort”.
Leave it to guitar players to prove them wrong.

In other words added harmonic content is in anything that distorts even more so in Class A circuits because it doesn’t cancel overtones.
 
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