9V Battery Brand = Sound

[plato]

Both were brand new?

Yes.

 

[midopa]

ok someone needs to hook up their bass and rig to a DC power supply and vary the voltage from 8 to 10 V and see if there's any difference.

 

[plato]

Good idea! as long as it's not a Vandegraaff generator.

 

[SteveB]

OK you jokers... just had to do the test. I used my old multimeter to test a fresh Energizer and Duracell. I can't tell the exact voltage measure for each since I can't calibrate this old multimeter as the knob fell out, but... listen to this.... the Energizer gave almost a 0.5 higher voltage measure.
(Ducking)

Which one made the multimeter sound better?

 

[high mileage]

Which one made the multimeter sound better?

Depends on the brand of meter. Fluke + Duracell... mmm...

I use Duracell industrial 9v batteries. Why? Because I buy them at work really cheap. They're the same battery as the regular Duracells you see everywhere else but with a different label. I'm surprised about a 0.5v difference in brand new batteries, especially when brand new ones are usually around 9.5v. One of the Nashville session players said in an interview that he changes them at 8.5v which I imagine is very conservative. That's what I do, but at $1.10 each why not? What do you guys do?

 

[adouglas]

Licking my batteries makes a difference.

No, really! It lets me tell which ones are dead.

I can see how feeding a preamp a bit more voltage could yield a slightly different tone. It'd depend on whether the voltage is regulated by the preamp in any way, wouldn't it?

I'm no EE. Assuming that preamps are sensitive to voltage, wouldn't there be a "sweet spot" of voltage where the preamp sounds the way the designer intended it to?

This is all moot anyway. There are too many other variables involved.

Plato: Okay, so you've got data. But not enough. One data point does not a valid conclusion make.

Get back to us when you've tested at least 30 of each brand of battery, all with the same use-by date. Then you'll have statistically valid results.

In the meantime, I'm going to use whatever I've got sitting in the refrigerator door.

 

[adouglas]

One of the Nashville session players said in an interview that he changes them at 8.5v which I imagine is very conservative. That's what I do, but at $1.10 each why not? What do you guys do?

I replace mine at each semi-annual string change or if the bass starts sounding funny. I mean, funnier than it usually sounds...the normal odd noises are all my fault, not the Bongo's.

 

[Slim]

I remember few years ago Consumer Report tested 9v batteries and Energizer came first as the longest lasting battery so I always buy them unless Duracell have special sale price

 

[PeteDuBaldo]

Plato,

You're not crazy. The other people here are crazy. Those gurly little Fujitsu's and Faradays. I upgraded to a VandeGraaff generator with a Tesla coil that I borrowed from the local science museum's lightning show. That wasn't enough for my tone. So then I got a Flux Capacitor. It was a major step up. I really didn't need to tweak my EQ at all after that. When I boosted it up to 1.21 GigaWatts and set the tempo to 88 bpm, I achieved a tone that was timeless!

I really need to hang out on this side more often

 

[MCBTunes]

I stopped using batteries in my basses long ago; I’ve had all my EBMM refitted with Faraday generators…

DUDE!... you totally ruined your tone. Everyone knows MM basses sound best from the factory. Your resale went down the drain too, hopefully you kept the original parts.

 

[ibanez2005]

Stick a F****in' solar panel on it, see what that sounds like

 

[strummer]

This is just too good

 

[ibanez2005]

Or maybe a windmill on the headstock, or even better, a hamster in a wheel.

 

[Rano Bass]

a hamster in a wheel.

I'm in for one of those

 

[brooklynfall]

I can honestly say I have never thought about any of this before.

 

[PaulBass]

I've been playing StingRays for 30 years and I never heard a difference in sound with battery brands. I only buy Duracells, Energizers, Panasonic, and Fujis. I test the batteries every month. If its below 22mA they get tossed in the trash. I'll never buy CVS batteries again. they don't last and some of them are 22mA right out the pack

 

[Bloodfist]

Does anybody here besides me lick the ends of the 9 volt battery before the install it? I find myself irresistibly drawn to 9V batteries, and I must lick them.

 

[Musicman Nut]

OK you jokers... just had to do the test. I used my old multimeter to test a fresh Energizer and Duracell. I can't tell the exact voltage measure for each since I can't calibrate this old multimeter as the knob fell out, but... listen to this.... the Energizer gave almost a 0.5 higher voltage measure.
(Ducking)

I can tell the difference between a UPS guy walking up to my door or a Cop. The Tone is very different.

 

[Musicman Nut]

Does anybody here besides me lick the ends of the 9 volt battery before the install it? I find myself irresistibly drawn to 9V batteries, and I must lick them.

Yeah I think that becomes Standard after years of messing with 9Volts, we even do it to new ones.

 

[Musicman Nut]

I've been playing StingRays for 30 years and I never heard a difference in sound with battery brands. I only buy Duracells, Energizers, Panasonic, and Fujis. I test the batteries every month. If its below 22mA they get tossed in the trash. I'll never buy CVS batteries again. they don't last and some of them are 22mA right out the pack

The Batt-O-Meter test the battery without ever removing it, Just plug it in and it supplies a Load and gives a very accurate reading.