Head distortion vs. pedal thru clean channel?

[toejam]

Re: Head distortion vs. pedal thru clean channel?

[ QUOTE ]
I prefer to use the amp's gain

dunno why, I just don't like using distortion that changes my tone. I enjoy just using the amp's gain and letting it voice it's on natural tone [img]/images/graemlins/toast.gif[/img]

it's just sexay that way

[/ QUOTE ]
+ 1. I really only like to use a pedal to give a boost if the amp doesn't have enough gain. Pedals work well with my THD Univalve head, but since I swapped out the EL34 with a Yellow Jacket and an EL84, I get more gain and don't seem to need any boost. I also seem to use less gain now as I'm older than I used to for some reason anyway. Maybe it's just because I'm getting old? [img]/images/graemlins/scratchhead.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]
My Mesa F-30 doesn't need any boost at all, but a pedal can smooth out the dark Mesa sound a little to be a little more Marshall-like.

[horns666]

Re: Head distortion vs. pedal thru clean channel?

I avoid stomps at all cost except a wah..

I couldn't ask for a better distortion quality than I get with my Uber...or any of the high gain amps that I took a liking to....much more pure and organic to me.

Stomps sounded awesome with an old Marshall tho...but ya needed one with those.

[metallicarocks]

Re: Head distortion vs. pedal thru clean channel?

[ QUOTE ]
Just throwing my opinion out there... I tend only to like amps if they sound great without use a pedal; it has to give me the sound I am looking for, before any addons.

[/ QUOTE ]
+1

How many of us go and test an amplifier with a case of our favorite stompbox distortions? Don't know about you, but I wasn't trying to get my tone through a metal master into a dual rec.

[horns666]

Re: Head distortion vs. pedal thru clean channel?

I just had a epiphany tonight..which is ahhhhhh FUGGIT..

Amps..amps...amps...blah blah blah..

If the final product is whoop ass ..who cares what tools were used ...and who cares if others don't like those tools..what works for one may not work for another..yes??!!

the bottomline is making music..and if the music delivers..that amp did a job well done..be it a Recto , Marshall , Uber , Vetta or whatever!

I hate rectos with a passion (they don't like me either)..but Jeff Loomis my fave metal shredder never sounded better when he toured with his..so I have shit to say really. [img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]

[Sinistas]

Re: Head distortion vs. pedal thru clean channel?

Guys, how about you stop telling him that his choice of setup is lame and give him some friggin' help? Dagum!

[horns666]

Re: Head distortion vs. pedal thru clean channel?

Sounds like a great Idea..OK you start.. [img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]

[Inazone]

Re: Head distortion vs. pedal thru clean channel?

Some people like stand-up comedy. For the rest of us, there's the JCF! [img]/images/graemlins/popcorn.gif[/img]

Somewhere along the line, someone interpreted my initial post as either a complaint or a cry for help concerning a problem...but it's neither. I shall rephrase it thusly:

"Does lowering the pre gain on a tube amp affect the frequency adjustments provided by the amp's EQ?"

Either way, I can get a great tone. I'm happy with the tone. No problems! I'm simply trying to increase my knowledge of tube amps and what to expect from them in different settings.

[horns666]

Re: Head distortion vs. pedal thru clean channel?

I never found that to be the case..lowering the gain of the preamp never really effected the eq section of any particuliar amp that I can recall...

and yes I am here for the comedy...and only comedy! [img]/images/graemlins/laugh.gif[/img]

FUCK, I think am the comedy! [img]/images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img] [img]/images/graemlins/toast.gif[/img]

[Dreamland_Rebel]

Re: Head distortion vs. pedal thru clean channel?

i have found that the pre-gain CAN effect the eq. but it is really dependant on the individual amp. cranking the pre-gain is sending more signal to each eq paramiter. and just like they say with volume, tweak to vol you plan on playing at. the same thing applies with gain for the same basic reaasons. i find that the gain mostly effects the bass, ie the more gain i use the less bass i can use and vice versa. but again it is amp specific. on boogies each eq paramiter affects the others. as well as the gain.

[Fragle]

Re: Head distortion vs. pedal thru clean channel?

"tweak to vol you plan on playing at"
very good point. i'd even go one step further and say that one should tweak while the whole band is playing.

[mjtripper]

Re: Head distortion vs. pedal thru clean channel?

I would add from a listening position somewhere close to the middle of a large room. Best not to EQ while standing in front of a roaring speaker.

[Inazone]

Re: Head distortion vs. pedal thru clean channel?

[ QUOTE ]
i have found that the pre-gain CAN effect the eq. but it is really dependant on the individual amp. cranking the pre-gain is sending more signal to each eq paramiter.

[/ QUOTE ]

This is what I've been experiencing. In the past, I always used amps with multiple channels, and ran my pedalboard into the dedicated clean channel. That's the setup I've always used for recording. For gigs, I always have used old Peavey Classic combos from the `70s which had a solid state preamp and tube power amp; these were single-channel amps with no distortion beyond AC/DC-type overdrive, so the pre gain was of little consequence.

Everything changed with the VTM-60, because it's the first all-tube amp I've ever used for gigging (don't gig with my Jackson Apogee), but also the only single-channel amp I own that is capable of high gain. That means using drastically different EQ settings depending on if I'm using amp distortion or running the amp clean and relying on a pedal for distortion.

Too many amps to keep the settings straight around here!

[horns666]

Re: Head distortion vs. pedal thru clean channel?

oh yeah, you MUST tweak to your normal volume levels..for band practice and self practice..I find me backing off the presence a bit the more I crank it..

[hammer84]

Re: Head distortion vs. pedal thru clean channel?

[ QUOTE ]
the bottomline is making music..and if the music delivers..that amp did a job well done..be it a Recto , Marshall , Uber , Vetta or whatever!

[/ QUOTE ]


Amen brother !!!!

[Tom B]

Re: Head distortion vs. pedal thru clean channel?

true, i have often tought that sounds i shaped at home sounded good, until i used them in a band situation. Usually i had to give it some more mids. Sometimes i had to lower the gain because at higher volumes there was more gain coming trough