AC Line Frequency 60Hz -vs- 50Hz ..... am I imagining this ??

ben ifin

Experienced
Hey all !

I too live in Leon Todd land ( :) ) and as such have my FM3 On-Unit Global " AC Line Frequency Setting " set to 50Hz for us down-under.

I was in the "Amp Block" / "Power Supply Tab" today and noticed the default " AC Line Frequency " was set to 60Hz for all my chosen amps.

I then set it to 50Hz and I could swear the bottom-low-end sounded a bit tighter and sounded a bit less wooly (?)

=> is this just a placebo affect with my ears -or- is this actually happening (?)


Many thanks,
Ben
 
It is actually happening.
Sometimes neither 50hz or 60hz sounds best, depending on the amp or settings.
Do you think the actual AC line frequency the Axe and your other gear is running off of the an audible effect? To put it differently, is the question the 50 vs 60 hz setting, or is it about matching the actual line frequency vs not?
 
Do you think the actual AC line frequency the Axe and your other gear is running off of the an audible effect? To put it differently, is the question the 50 vs 60 hz setting, or is it about matching the actual line frequency vs not?

The global setting is for the noisegate, so it knows what to filter.
The one in the amp block is part of the modeling.

My FM3 Global AC Line Hz has been set to 50Hz always.

Wanting to know ... for my preset patches ........ if changing the "Amp Block" / "Power Supply Tab" / " AC Line Frequency " from 60Hz to 50Hz actually really does make the bottom-low-end sound a bit tighter and sound a bit less wooly -or- is it just a placebo affect I am imagining (?)

Ben
 
Do you think the actual AC line frequency the Axe and your other gear is running off of the an audible effect? To put it differently, is the question the 50 vs 60 hz setting, or is it about matching the actual line frequency vs not?
If we are talking about the AC line frequency setting in the amp block, then I doubt that it matters what the real line frequency is, and don't try to match it. Setting this to 50hz does sound a bit tighter than 60hz, but I generally prefer this setting closer to 60hz than 50hz, because it feels a bit bouncier at 60hz.

Matching the global line frequency setting is useful however, as this affects the behaviour of the noise gate.
 
Hey all !

I too live in Leon Todd land ( :) ) and as such have my FM3 On-Unit Global " AC Line Frequency Setting " set to 50Hz for us down-under.

I was in the "Amp Block" / "Power Supply Tab" today and noticed the default " AC Line Frequency " was set to 60Hz for all my chosen amps.

I then set it to 50Hz and I could swear the bottom-low-end sounded a bit tighter and sounded a bit less wooly (?)

=> is this just a placebo affect with my ears -or- is this actually happening (?)


Many thanks,
Ben
It’s real. Here’s what started it all nine years ago:


...I just finished reworking the power supply modeling. It's now a virtual AC supply (by default, can be set back to DC if desired) and I'm sitting here stunned at the difference this makes. Literally stunned almost to the point of speechless. I always felt that AC supplies were a compromise and if it were cost-effective, manufacturers would use DC supplies so I used a DC supply model in the prior firmware.
 
I remember some thread for axe fx 2 it was written that this impacts interharmonic distortion. Don't ask me who wrote this nor when.
Personnally I don't really care but have one question to FAS though : why is there a general setting and a block setting of this value?
 
I remember some thread for axe fx 2 it was written that this impacts interharmonic distortion. Don't ask me who wrote this nor when.
Personnally I don't really care but have one question to FAS though : why is there a general setting and a block setting of this value?
I think the global setting is for the noise gate, which works better when it knows the real AC line frequency that hum happens at.

The one on the amp is about tone, and I don't know for real whether matching the real AC line makes a difference, or just the frequency. I asked about that earlier, and the few folks with an opinion thought matching didn't matter.
 
I think the global setting is for the noise gate, which works better when it knows the real AC line frequency that hum happens at.

The one on the amp is about tone, and I don't know for real whether matching the real AC line makes a difference, or just the frequency. I asked about that earlier, and the few folks with an opinion thought matching didn't matter.
Let's wait the holy answer ;-)
 
I think the 50/60Hz setting in the amp block determines the frequency of the virtual residual ripple of the DC voltage. This creates different interferences with the guitar tone.
That's why the same amp sounded different in Europe than in the US!
 
An improvement for me would be that the global frequency would also set this to 50Hz in the amp blocks. This makes the amp models sound a lot closer to my amps :) I feel that the 60Hz is a bit looser but has some more gain? While 50 has a bit more clarity and tightness.
 
I think the 50/60Hz setting in the amp block determines the frequency of the virtual residual ripple of the DC voltage. This creates different interferences with the guitar tone.
That's why the same amp sounded different in Europe than in the US!
This. That parameter just sets the frequency of the ghost note created by the amp's own hum and ripple, so whenever you play you'll get a 50/60/whatever Hz note (and a few of its harmonics) mixed in with your guitar signal. Setting the power supply to DC gets rid of this ghost note.
 
"Ghost notes are the result of intermodulation distortion between the note being played and ripple on the power supply." Different PS frequencies create different IM products, or Ghost notes. The 50/60 Hz difference has been an odd listening experience for me. I listened to Neil Young's 5E3 and Magnatone 260 tones and preferred his sound at certain european festivals. I thought perhaps the 50 Hz made some of the difference. And, this was true even without heavy ghost noting. Perhaps, it was a part of Clapton's tone on "Fresh Cream" in 1966 (that and High-Voltage Marshalls w/KT66's.) But, what I actually hear is that sometimes I like 50 Hz and sometimes I like 60Hz. And, it probably depends on which amp PSU, or what Sag, Screen Freq or other changes I have made to the virtual PS. Even weirder, 50 or 60 Hz shouldn't be special. Other, odd PS frequencies should be just as valid as choices. Maybe, even one that is mathematically related to the song key at the moment. But, nope. I find I prefer either 50 or 60 for no reason that I can imagine. My best guess is that I have simply become accustomed to either 50 or 60 Hz sounds -- maybe low-level ghosting. Now, that is just me. Perhaps, there is some subconscious expectation. I don't know. I wish I understood why. It could easily be a different experience for a different person.
 
Back
Top Bottom