Signal Chain questions, ISP Decimator, fx loop, etc

[Megajosh20]

 

I am posting my signal chain and gear to see if anyone has any suggestions or is able to point out anything I could change to improve my tone.

 

I am using a sennheiser wireless unit, an ISP decimator Pro Rack G, Mesa standard cab, Peavy 6505+, Boss Tuner, TS-9 Tubescreamer, Boss Harmonist Pedal, Boss dd-20 Delay, and a Holy Grail reverb.

Guitar >> Wireless Unit >> Decimator CH1 IN >> Decimator CH2 OUT >> Tuner >> TS9 >> 6505 IN

6505 FX SEND >> Decimator CH2 IN >> Decimator CH2 OUT >> Harmonist Pedal >> DD-20 Delay >> Holy Grail >> 6505 FX RETURN

I'd appreciate any suggestions if there's anything I'm doing wrong. Thank you!

[PKTrono]

good settings and other such remarks

[Megajosh20]

6505 gain at 11-12 o'clock. Ts9 drive all the way down, level all the way up. But I still have to turn both channels on the decimator up to close to 2oclock and it cuts my sustain

[Grueller]

You asked about improving your tone, so here you go:

Lose the Decimator and tackle the noise issues at the source.

Try everything in front of your amp (not in the FX loop). Cable length = capacitance = tone loss. If having some effects in the loop is an absolute must, look into MIDI switching. That will allow you to keep some effects near your amp and still reduce your cable runs.

Wireless units are fun, but is it really essential? You're doubling the amount of contact points using two cables instead of one, and introducing a radio frequency in between. You still get your signal in the end, but it's a lot less direct than using a single cable. I would sell the wireless and buy higher grade cables (less capacitance, less oxygen, better durability, etc.).

Maybe not what you wanted to hear, but hopefully this gets you in the right direction.

[dkerwood]

OP, you're missing a very important detail- what don't you like about your current tone? What are you dissatisfied with? Is it just the noise suppressor?

 

Your rig tells me that you actually gig, which is good. Everything looks pretty good, honestly... I'm not familiar with the Decimator rack unit; do both channels work separately, or can they both trigger off of the front end (channel one) signal? To be honest, there's not much use for the Decimator in front of the amp, because there's not much noise there in the first place.

 

Edit: I've actually looked at the Decimator now and it does appear to trigger the second channel directly from the guitar input, which is exactly as it should be. Unfortunately, if it's destroying your sustain, it seems that it is doing too much. If possible, I'd run it exactly the same way but turn the first channel's noise suppression all the way off. Then set the second channel to taste and you're good to go.

 

It's going to sound silly, but that's exactly why I liked my Boss NS-2. When you run your noisy pedals or preamp in the NS2's loop, it triggers off the guitar input (before the loop) but triggers AFTER the loop. In my mind, that's the only way a noise suppressor can really work without negatively affecting sustain.