Skip to content
Notifications
Clear all

n00b amp question

4 Posts
2 Users
0 Likes
786 Views
(@mac-manc-mcmanx)
Estimable Member
Joined: 18 years ago
Posts: 141
Topic starter  

Hi All,
I have an Agile AL2000 that i play through a Roland Microcube. I also have a no name amp that i got for 20 bucks. I like distortion and i use the Classic stack and Rfier settings on the microcube heavily. But i've noticed that when i crank the gain or volume on the amp slightly higher the tone gets muddled. It's not very clean (i know clean distortion kinda sounds contradictory but you get my drift). I've tried increasing the gain and volume on the treble pickup but that doesn't get me the volume i need. Microcube does not let me adjust the bass or treble levels so i'm kinda stuck. My other amp lets me do that. My question is can i use my other amp like a pre amp or will it fry my microcube? Let me know if i'm doing something wrong and if i can achieve better distortion without having to resort to that. Thanks much.

Sri

When you wanna rock hard children, lean on F sharp


   
Quote
(@ricochet)
Illustrious Member
Joined: 21 years ago
Posts: 7833
 

Well, that's a general characteristic of amp distortion. Crank up the gain and it tends to get muddy, especially with chords and with a lot of treble. The basis of amp distortion is "clipping" off the peaks of the waves, making them look more like square waves. Clipped waves have a lot more high frequency harmonic content than the original. So you need to diminish the treble if you're going to be doing that. Amps meant for high gain distortion usually have some low pass filters built in, to take out some of that high frequency hash. Turning down the guitar's tone knob will help a lot by not putting in so much to start with. Chording just doesn't work with high gain, it becomes a mess. If you'e going to use a lot of gain, it's for single note solo work.

Commonly beginners want to use a lot of gain at first, and the more they play, the more they tend to back down on the gain.

"A cheerful heart is good medicine."


   
ReplyQuote
(@mac-manc-mcmanx)
Estimable Member
Joined: 18 years ago
Posts: 141
Topic starter  

Thanks Ricochet!

When you wanna rock hard children, lean on F sharp


   
ReplyQuote
(@ricochet)
Illustrious Member
Joined: 21 years ago
Posts: 7833
 

You're welcome.

One way to deal with the situation is to set up your amp's gain so that when you turn up the guitar volume it'll distort as much as you want it. Then turn down one of the pickups' volume (usually the bridge pickup) so it's cleaner and doesn't sound muddy with rhythm chords. Switch pickups when you want to chord or play a hot lead. Those guitar controls are there to be used, and they really are useful.

"A cheerful heart is good medicine."


   
ReplyQuote