Live Rig change

[jgcable]

I have been gigging with a JCM900 head and Marshall bottom and a few pedals for a while now and have been very happy. Recently I traded the Marshall head for a Carvin Legacy. Again.. very happy with the live sound.
A few weeks ago I started messing around with a GT8 again. Some of you know that I used a GT6 for years live. I got really good at tweaking it at home and live on the fly. I could pretty much make it do anything I wanted.
I then bought a GT8 and I gigged with it very shortly and ended up with 2 Vetta 2's along with Soldano's, Mesa's etc... Geez, I have had a ton of amps.
Anyway... I am considering going back to the GT8 live and using the Legacy to power it. I have this black box sounding so good its crazy. There are so many features and hidden ones and if you know what you are doing you can really create some crazy stuff.
I have even been considering going ampless and using the PA for everything. We have a really high end PA and I would just need to add a sub mixer to it to create a seperate monitor mix for my onstage guitar sound. Maybe even a hotspot monitor. Some guys just use a keyboard amp as a monitor.

[markD]

john, you do go through a lot of amps - even ones you are happy with. is it that you are just wanting new sounds or do you end up unhappy after a period of time? i am genuinely curious...

i have gigged with my riveras for years...they are the SOUL of my tone and, truthfully, the sound of my band. i got that matshall 3203 from yo and it was wicked for a marshall, but it lasted ONE rehearsal before i was back to rivera....some of it was me, but the BAND said "nope we sound weak...use your regular stuff!!"

i mean, whatever works for you, but WHY, MAN?!?! WHY?!?!? hahahahaha

[jgcable]

john, you do go through a lot of amps - even ones you are happy with. is it that you are just wanting new sounds or do you end up unhappy after a period of time? i am genuinely curious...

i have gigged with my riveras for years...they are the SOUL of my tone and, truthfully, the sound of my band. i got that matshall 3203 from yo and it was wicked for a marshall, but it lasted ONE rehearsal before i was back to rivera....some of it was me, but the BAND said "nope we sound weak...use your regular stuff!!"

i mean, whatever works for you, but WHY, MAN?!?! WHY?!?!? hahahahaha

When it comes to guitar tone.. I don't have a soul. Actually when it comes to anything musical. The only piece of musical gear that I actually have an attachment to is my 1992 Washburn N2. I have actually worn out the Floyd saddles and had to replace them, the frets are pretty shot but it feels really good. I also have a 1st year RG550 that is pretty worn out but sounds good too. Regarding amps... I can find a way to make just about any amp sound pretty good live. Its all in the tweaking.
The GT8 (and the GT6 for that matter) just sound right to my ears.
The guys in my band (including myself) all agree that the Legacy sounds fantastic. The downside is when we are writing we are always thinking of cool sounds to layer into a song and many times we won't do it because we wouldn't be able to pull it off live. With the GT8 I can pull off just about anything. I also miss using stereo effects and dual amps panned left and right.
Anyway.. I am thinking about it. For now.. I am gonna stick with the Legacy rig live and start trying the GT-8 rig at rehearsal to see how it sounds with the band. I have been using a simple all tube rig for a few years now so I am not really sure how a modeling rig will fit in the mix anymore. Also... I have to consider the Carvin endorsement we are working on getting. That will mean I will be using the Legacy excusively which I have NO problem with. Its a extremely good amp. Probably the best value in tube guitar amps next to the V3.

[markD]

that's cool. i understand what you mean by needing a lot of sounds...i am playing with using my roland gr-30 live now...i am also having rivera build a midi interface for my s120 and m100 heads so i can control them with my effects....not so much "plug-n-play" anymore, hahahaha.

the biggest thing that sucks for me, in regards to the roland gr-30, means i HAVE to use my brian moore live, which i don't like to do!!! too many knobs and switches and cables coming out of that thing, so in the end i prolly WON'T be using it, but we are toying with it in rehearsal....

but i am really digging the idea of my channels and effects switching together....including the couple of pedals i use....it'll be awesome!!

[Dreamland_Rebel]

i know what you mean. it goes the same for amps and women. hehheh.

The grass ain't always greener on the other side of the fence... but it sure tastes different.

[slash-ed]

Probably the best value in tube guitar amps next to the V3.

Well, mostly from your endorsement (unofficial, but let's hope it soon becomes official!), I'm soon to be the owner of a V3! Tried one out for myself yesterday finally and I really liked it. Ironically the part I was most impressed with was the cleans - lively, sweet cleans that I had for the most part failed to coax out of my ex-Spider Valve. Not that I wasn't impressed with the other channels.

Unfortunately I'm leaving town, and the guy couldn't get the finance settled before the store closed early on Saturday, so I don't have it just yet But I'm looking forward to it! I'm going to have to learn a whole heap more than I currently know about amps (turn amp on, turn knob, make sound) to use it to its full potential, hopefully with my GT6 in charge of MIDI switching and effects!

[jgcable]

Well, mostly from your endorsement (unofficial, but let's hope it soon becomes official!), I'm soon to be the owner of a V3! Tried one out for myself yesterday finally and I really liked it. Ironically the part I was most impressed with was the cleans - lively, sweet cleans that I had for the most part failed to coax out of my ex-Spider Valve. Not that I wasn't impressed with the other channels.

Unfortunately I'm leaving town, and the guy couldn't get the finance settled before the store closed early on Saturday, so I don't have it just yet But I'm looking forward to it! I'm going to have to learn a whole heap more than I currently know about amps (turn amp on, turn knob, make sound) to use it to its full potential, hopefully with my GT6 in charge of MIDI switching and effects!

You'll love it. The V3 is versatile, crazy loud and the 2 independent programmable smart loops are extremely useful.