Amp Settings

[gardo]

I know this has been discussed before but things change.

I tend to open the controlls on the guitar then back the vol off to about 7 . The amps tone controls get opened up . On the Fender solid state I back off the bass a bit and on the Ampeg Gemini I back off the trebble a little..I like some reverb so that's about 3 just to fatten it up a little The volume on the amp is set to the desired level ,at home that's about 2 or 3. I rarely use the dirty channel or pedals for that matter. I do like the chorus built into the Fender,that's set with the rate at 2 1/4 and the depth at 6 . i really like the strat neck/middle this way.

[Freeman Keller]

Since I don't have a clue what I'm doing I do what sound the best to me. My home made tube amp is turned to the cleanest power setting, gain is pretty low and volume turned up a bit. Tone controls are pretty much straight up. I seem to like both the LP and Barncaster on the neck pickups, tone pot turned to 12 and volume whatever the room and mood dictate - mostly not too high. I miss the spring reverb that the old amp had, but otherwise I haven't put the Vox effects thingie in the chain for a long time.

 

Probably really wrong but it sound pretty sweet to my old ears.

[gardo]

Since I don't have a clue what I'm doing I do what sound the best to me. My home made tube amp is turned to the cleanest power setting, gain is pretty low and volume turned up a bit. Tone controls are pretty much straight up. I seem to like both the LP and Barncaster on the neck pickups, tone pot turned to 12 and volume whatever the room and mood dictate - mostly not too high. I miss the spring reverb that the old amp had, but otherwise I haven't put the Vox effects thingie in the chain for a long time.

 

Probably really wrong but it sound pretty sweet to my old ears.

 

It seems like you know exactly what you're doing,just follow your ears.I forgot about that home made tube amp hand built is a more fitting description.

[DeepEnd]

I'm with Freeman; I do what sounds right to me. With my Fender FM65R, I use the "Drive" channel due mainly to the addition of a Mid control. I boost the Bass and Treble to about 7 or 7 1/2 and cut the Mids to about 4. Some reverb, about 4 or 5, and just a touch of grit.

[gardo]

I'm with Freeman; I do what sounds right to me. With my Fender FM65R' date=' I use the "Drive" channel due mainly to the addition of a Mid control. I boost the Bass and Treble to about 7 or 7 1/2 and cut the Mids to about 4. Some reverb, about 4 or 5, and just a touch of grit.[/quote']

 

I'll most likely give something like that a try tomorrow just for the fun of it.

I also follow my ears and the settings I posted are where they seem to take me

[Juicy Elk Man]

Amp tone controls to minimum, with my Zoom G2's 6 band eq in the fx loop doing the shaping at the end of the line. Pre gain at 9o'clock and master volume at 3 o'clock. All pretty much 'set and forget'. Being programmable, I have many eq/fx patches to use on my G2 - that way I don't have to fiddle with the amp. I even have my dirt pedal settings written down - not too geeky?

 

I hardly ever use the clean channel; I like to roll around in dirt - I'm a filthy man-bear-pig.

[Grant Harding]

I usually run the guitar volume full, but roll a tiny bit of high end off using the tone control.

 

The amp settings are pretty flat in terms of EQ, but the gain channel gets a bit of a mid kick (as per the pic - clean channel on the left)

[t_e_l_e]

all depends on what amp i use and what guitar and in which setting

basically i like it, if the gain of the amp is slightly on the edge before break up still clean.

 

currently i use a tweed deluxe clone in stereo with a laney lc15r

on both amps i use the low input

setting the deluxe is a complete different science than any other amp i ever used, with the two volume controls affecting each other

so i try to balance them until i think is right

 

the lc15r the gain is on absolute minimum so just above that there comes sound out, cause with the volume pretty high to compete with the band the amp becomes really dirty very easy.

 

volume is set in unity with the deluxe to a level were i don't annoy the other band members

 

for tone this is also a difficult topic, when i was wanking home alone i loved the neck position of my strat and the full frequency range i used

i hated the bridge position cause it was so shrill and screechy

within the band i don't use the neck pickup of any guitar almost anymore.

its mostly too dark sounding, covers too much space in the bass range and makes the overall band sound muddy.

i try to fit in the mix, roll of some bass, have mids but not too much, and give the highs it needs

 

so with this all set i have a boost pedal and tube screamer in front with which i make the amps scream if needed

[knotty]

Depends on how I feel. Some days things seem treble biased some bass. Its weird but my hearing sensitivity seems to change a lot. Somedays the car seems noisy, sometimes quiet as a mouse. Related to stress levels I think.

 

So. As it fits on the day is my answer. Always a bit of reverb though. Often a compressor too.

[WRGKMC]

Excellent point. Ears can and do change sensitivity daily. And when you play solo you tend to dial up what's sounds comfortable, not necessarily what's best for others.

 

In a band situation I tend to stick with fixed settings because I have a frame or reference to tweak the setting to. An acoustic drummer provides that frame of reference because the size of the drums and cymbals don't change and if the heads aren't retuned then its basically the drummers dynamics that dictate the volume level I need to set my amp to match and the pitch of the drums and cymbals determine what frequency response I need to dial up to blend with what the drums produce.

 

From there other players do the same so everyone has their own piece of real estate in the mix. Two guitarists have to share the midrange frequencies so even more shaping may be needed but if the gear they use is different each can usually get the best signature tones without masking or having to sacrifice too much response to make themselves heard.

 

When I play with the same band I often leave the settings the same as I did at the end of the last gig with maybe a reduction in volume till things get rolling again. Hopefully others do the same. It can be very difficuly working with others who have a completely different sound every time you play with them and its one reason bands develop signature tones, at least on a single album before they change gear and develop a new sound.

 

I then force my ears to adjust to the sound instead of adjusting the sound to my ears. They quickly acclimate after the first few songs and then I only need to make minor tweaks if any. It would be a train wreak for others if I dialed up new solo sound before each rehearsal and then have to spend an entire set re-tweaking everything back to an optimal mix blend. This would also force everyone else in the band to jockey all over the place to find their sweet spots too.

 

From there adjustments are based on the sounds you need for a particular song and if you've rehearsed enough you should know what those settings need to be. I used to jot the settings down on the lyrics sheets so I had them right there. Programmable stomp boxes can make that a breeze if you have your song settings saved and then you can just worry about your amp volume to match whatever room you're playing in.

 

If you start with where you left off on the last gig and make small tweaks from there its much easier and you get allot more accomplished focusing on the notes instead of the gear settings. Then changing guitars to fit your mood to get different tones is a whole lot easier especially on stage where you have to have your stuff wrapped tight.

[gardo]

 

volume is set in unity with the deluxe to a level were i don't annoy the other band members

 

Is this even possible

.The bass player thinks they're the one that holds it all together. The drummer is sure that everyone wants to hear them. Add a keyboard and they want to be the star and the vocalist is in a whole other catagory.

 

 

[gardo]

Amp tone controls to minimum' date=' [/b']with my Zoom G2's 6 band eq in the fx loop doing the shaping at the end of the line. Pre gain at 9o'clock and master volume at 3 o'clock. All pretty much 'set and forget'. Being programmable, I have many eq/fx patches to use on my G2 - that way I don't have to fiddle with the amp. I even have my dirt pedal settings written down - not too geeky?

 

I hardly ever use the clean channel; I like to roll around in dirt - I'm a filthy man-bear-pig.

 

Whether you play clean or dirty one thing I believe is that the caps in the amp are filters,they take something away Wouldn't it make sense to keep the loss to a minimum by opening the controls and then adjusting to only take away what you don't want?

[badpenguin]

As a general rule with me, I keep the bass, mid, and treble at the 12 o'clock, maybe the brightness switch on, depending on the guitar and the mood. Gain around the 9-12 range when wanting distortion, and the master, at whatever level sounds right to me. Always verb. I can always tweak the EQ, and am a big believe in the tone controls on the guitar.

[gardo]

I decided to try your settings and thought ,I wonder what kind of guitar he uses?

Since you sold your Fernandes Strat ,what are you playng?

[gardo]

As a general rule with me' date=' I keep the bass, mid, and treble at the 12 o'clock, maybe the brightness switch on, depending on the guitar and the mood. Gain around the 9-12 range when wanting distortion, and the master, at whatever level sounds right to me. Always verb. I can always tweak the EQ, and [b']am a big believe in the tone controls on the guitar[/b].

 

I agree ,instead of constantly adjusting the amp I use the controls on the guitar. I start with the guitar vol on 7 so that I always have a little more if I need it and the tone wherever I like it. I use either the high or low input depending which guitar.I"m playing

[catscurlyear]

marshall j cm 900 .bass 10 , mid 5, treble 0 , presence 0. gain for both channals 4 .all my valve amps are set the same, treble all the way down and still i get lots of top end . boss blues drive pedal in the front end for over the topness ,and a cry baby wah for the jimmy page type treble boost in solo`s just for flavour ....and to deafen people .not a lot else you can do with a marshall other than play it`s sound,you either like em or don`t.

[Floyd Rosenbomb]

I know this has been discussed before but things change.

I tend to open the controlls on the guitar then back the vol off to about 7 . The amps tone controls get opened up . On the Fender solid state I back off the bass a bit and on the Ampeg Gemini I back off the trebble a little..I like some reverb so that's about 3 just to fatten it up a little The volume on the amp is set to the desired level ,at home that's about 2 or 3. I rarely use the dirty channel or pedals for that matter. I do like the chorus built into the Fender,that's set with the rate at 2 1/4 and the depth at 6 . i really like the strat neck/middle this way.

 

Yeah, that's cool.

 

I encourage you to try doing almost the opposite some time. Not because there is anything wrong with what you are doing but because we tend to get stuck in our ruts and by mixing it up we can find another avenue to enjoy as well.

 

I like my clean about like you do, though, I use some reverb, delay and compression.

I also enjoy a dirty tone and for that I'll use a keeley modded DS-1. It has a circuit diode that reacts to changes in volume like a tube would. Gives a really cool break up when I hit the strings hard and its pretty clean when I play soft. Fun to play around at that edge of breakup.

[gardo]

 

Yeah, that's cool.

 

I encourage you to try doing almost the opposite some time. Not because there is anything wrong with what you are doing but because we tend to get stuck in our ruts and by mixing it up we can find another avenue to enjoy as well.

 

I like my clean about like you do, though, I use some reverb, delay and compression.

I also enjoy a dirty tone and for that I'll use a keeley modded DS-1. It has a circuit diode that reacts to changes in volume like a tube would. Gives a really cool break up when I hit the strings hard and its pretty clean when I play soft. Fun to play around at that edge of breakup.

 

Floyd ? I remember someone named Floyd from a long time ago. Welcome back

Part of the reason for starting this it to find out what other people do and try their ideas. What works for one may not work for another but like you said it keeps us out of a rut. I had a hollowbody at one time and it was fun playing that on the edge of a howl .

[DeepEnd]

I bought a used Schecter Gryphon back in late March. Dual humbuckers with a 25.5" scale and d'Addario 10's with a wound third. Here's my NGD thread: http://www.harmonycentral.com/forum/forum/guitar/acapella-41/31459009-ngd-new-guitar-day.

[DeepEnd]

Is this even possible

.The bass player thinks they're the one that holds it all together. The drummer is sure that everyone wants to hear them. Add a keyboard and they want to be the star and the vocalist is in a whole other catagory.

I hear ya, brother. This past Sunday, the praise band was practicing before the service and one of our older members of the congregation started yelling, "The guitars are drowning out the piano!" I obliged and turned down my amp. When we actually played during worship, I couldn't hear my amp from 6' away. The other guitarist's amp was much louder. I need to learn that "The guitars are too loud" means "Mike's guitar is too loud."

 

[gardo]

Thanks now I remember.,and I still like it

[gardo]

I need to learn that "The guitars are too loud" means "Mike's guitar is too loud."

 

Isn't that one of the basic rules. "the other guy is too loud"

[DeepEnd]

^ It's certainly a rule Mike believes. That and "The other guy is out of tune." When I can't hear my own amp but people are saying the guitars are too loud, chances are it's the other guy's fault.

[Juicy Elk Man]

Yeah, that does make sense. I used to use the amp's tone controls in conjunction with the G2, but one day I rolled off all those controls and everything sounded better - tight, punchy and defined - and doing this gave the G2 more usable range of control. I don't know why my setup works - it just does.

[onelife]

I don't really know what the amp settings are that I use. I play through several different amps of my own and quite often whatever is provided in the backline. I'm quite happy with most Fender amps and tube amps in general.

 

If it's an amp I don't know then I'll usually start off with everything set halfway and adjust accordingly. Last weekend I played two sets outdoors and the back line had a HotRod Deluxe III and a HotRod Deville 2x12 III. I used the Deville for the first set and got it dialled in so when the Deluxe was all setup for the second set, I started with the same settings I had on the Deville earlier but quickly started making slight adjustments as the set got going. I try not to be too drastic in the changes so it's easier for the FOH team but my sound does evolve until I find that comfort zone where the volume and the texture of the guitar sound sits nicely with the other sounds on stage and I feel like I can dig into the guitar or play quietly and it all fits.

 

It's a balance. I really don't like playing full out just to be heard and I don't like being too loud so that I hold back so finding the sweet spot is really a worthwhile endeavour.