Dumping the multieffects for single pedals: Boss vs. others

Put an equalizer at the top of your effects list. if you pick up a dual 15 band, you can run your guitar into one side and use the other side in your amps effects loop. maybe before and after or even between your effects pedals.

Just a thought.

joe

I know you've seen diagrams in the guitar mags of a guitar guru's gear.
http://www.guitargeek.com has a lot of diagrams that shows how the stars have their gear setup, just like the guitar mags. Just thought I'd toss it in there.

Otherwise Joe, I've been thinking about upgrading my sound and I've been looking at cheap tube amps, mainly the Fender Blues Junior amp. If I got that and added a couple of effects. would it work good or is the amp not good enough and the difference between it and a solid state would be little?

PsYcHoNIK

That circuit board is a crossover.

Tarmpropp

I've heard the Blues Junior and I love it (but that's me). An even cheaper amp is the Pro Junior. The Pro Junior is a very simple tube amp. Just Volume and Tone. Go to Harmony Central and read the reviews on both.
Both amps are 15W, but the Blues Junior is said to be louder. Both can be used at a small gig, but would have to be mic'd at larger clubs or if there was a big crowd.

Joe uses a 12 Watt amp. I have been using a 5 Watt amp at an Open Mic at an average sized club. I mic it and use effects. You would think I had a Mesa/Boogie or Marshall full stack. Really.

With a very small tube amp you can crank it into tube saturation without going deaf. With a good distortion or overdrive pedal it will scream like a Banshee. The only problem is actually getting a clean sound. I am talking about gigging now. You have to turn it up somewhat to be heard. The small amps break up early. But you need to mic these amps anyway to gig. What you do is crank it where it sings, but is still pretty clean sounding. Use a pedal to get the insane stuff. You'll get it too!

Most don't realize that those small amps are really loud when driven hard. Everyone has gotten use to advertising and sales pitches on mega power this total speakers output that. Once you get your great sound and tone then you can amplify it when need be.

I will add that last week I retired the old small watt Gibson amps, I'v been using for playing with the local bands. I decide to move on to a Mesa Boogie 50/50 with the high/low power switch 50/15 watts for my stereo center channel and a Marshall 8008 value state for the left and right satilite speakers. I'm running the boogie at 15 watts with an attenuator on channel b and channel a adjusted to match channel b volume wise. I'm using two attenuators on the 8008 and running the volumes at 7 1/2.

The reason I choose the 8008 becuase it has a really nice dimensional stereo sound. How I have it connected gives my guitar sound real depth. And volume wise I'm not really very loud at all, I'm creating an illusion and it only sounds loud. (if you understand what i mean). I can use this set up anywhere with the windows open and people walking by and they will have to listen closely to hear it. I do have power saturation at my finger tips, only at low volume.

I hope some can understand what I'm trying to explain.

joe

Joe

Let me know what you would want for that 12 watter.

I have only been using the little Premier at open mics. It HAS to be mic'd to use live. It will stay clean up to about 6-7. At this volume it is not loud at all, but you can hear the beginnings of saturation. At this level it is about as loud as when you listen to your TV. I run my Danelectro Fab Tone and Daddy-O into it. They have their own volume controls, I can make it quite loud with those. But I don't make it loud, I just give it lots of gain. Makes your amp sound like a monster even at low volumes.

I would use this for our gigs, but my bass player only likes to run vocals through our PA (even though I've run his bass through it many times). He likes the sound to be behind us.

Really, the ideal way to gig is to be very quiet on stage and let your PA carry the sound to the audience. Makes for a very clear sound.

So, I continue to use my Hot Rod Deluxe 40 Watts for gigs. It will get REAL LOUD and stay clean. It must be one of the loudest amps in the world. It will blow away the loudest drummer easy. I use my pedals to get overdrive and distortion. Sounds great.

I really should invest in an attenuator. Then I could make the HRD scream at low volume. That would be awesome.

I am going to try to pick up a Pro Junior or Blues Junior soon. For the small gigs we do, I think I would have enough clean headroom. 12-15 maybe 20 watts must be just about right for small gigs without having to mic the amp. An extension cabinet with those would be perfect.

It is too bad about all the hype on big stacks. When young people see their favorite band with Marshall stacks to the ceiling, there is no way they are going on stage with a small combo. But you have to differentiate between a gig in small club and a coliseum. The sound is more important than the looks, but that is hard to get by for some people.

What they don't realize is that most of those stacks are dummy loads, their for the effect. I know I did that for years. It's the boutique amps and rack mounted equipment thats hide behind the stacks is where the real action is coming from.

Sorry, but I have to keep the Gibson's, I've had them forever things and my daughter's been asking for them. just because the history behind them. I do know someone with a couple of those Electra 10's. I'll be ordering one tomorrow, he wants $115.00 each that includes shipping from Michigan. I used the guitars amps for the left and right sides which now I'm going with 2 1x12 cabinets.

I was using just 1 four space anvil case and 1 2x12 cabinet and the two Gibson's. Now I'm spoiled on that Boogie and Marshall power amps..lol When I was younger full and half stacks were the ticket though. Nothing like the G- forces coming from a Saturated Marshall stack. I know how young guitar players think, I was one once too.

I decided to use a rack setup, for local things its has been easy to transport and quick to set and take down. I'm using 2 four space Anvil case's, 1 with the line conditioner, tube pre-amp, Art 341 Eq, 2 has the Marshall 8008, Art 341 Eq, Mesa boogie 50/50, then 1 2x12 and 2 1x12 cabinets, briefcase full of cables and cords, briefcase with attenuators.

A person could get by with a six space rack case put a line conditioner, tube pre-amp, Eq, power amp and use 1 2x12 or 2 1x12 cabinets. Or even 1 1x12 cabinet and run the power amp bridged. That would be enough to rock and roll the audience, and have them crying for more.

joe

Could you put a picture of your rig on here someday?

Weber has a 50W attenuator for about $75. It is there cheapest model. Is it any good?

Another option is JJ Tubes. I wrote the guy and he told me he could sell me a set that would bring my HRD down to about 30 Watts with earlier breakup. (JJ 6V6's Matched Pair grade #22-#24, and for the pre-amps-
JJ ECC83S, balanced and graded ECC83S in the phase splitter position).
Wish I understood this stuff.

You are a pro on this. Which is the better idea?

There's a couple things you may want to research upon and get the tools need to keep it running top notch. One is biasing the output tubes which if you change tubes to any that you posted you'll need to bias it anyway. And not just once after you change them, new tubes will break in over time, causing the bias to drift. New tubes need to be biased once a week, for a month, until they are stable. And then occasionally once a month or longer after that.

It's really not hard, just alittle intimidating the first time and learn safety.
We are talking about a hot rod deluxe right?

Does your amp have an Eminence speaker in it? you may want to think about changing it to a Jensen C12N, it will keep the classic fender sound or a Celestion. A speaker really acts as a final Eq if it doesn't have what it takes your sound and tone will suffer. it can mean the difference between night and day. And Yes, Speakers need to be broke in or played through at moderate to loud volumes for a day or two. After a few hours you'll start to notice the difference.

This what fender and other amp companies do also by offering Limited Edition's. They change the speaker to a more expensive one, many don't want to pay the extra and some will not really even know the difference because they haven't played on enough different speakers to hear or tell the difference.

Just a few thoughts to think about.

Joe

Yes, I'm talking about my Hot Rod Deluxe.

I have read up on biasing, doesn't look too hard, although I've never done it. Looks easy enough though.

Yes, my HRD has the Eminence speaker in it. However, I went on the HRD site and listened to sound clips with the Jensen C12N. I really didn't like the sound. The Eminence is brighter and has more chime which sounds great on the Strat, especially in the neck position. The problem with the Eminence is people say the low-end farts. I know what they're talking about, but don't have much problem with this. At low volumes I turn the bass up somewhat, but at gigs I keep it down around 4-5. Sounds pretty tight really.

I have never been one to mess with gear much. Don't fix what ain't broke.
I just constantly tweak the knobs until I get a sound I like. I usually find it too.

I think I should just try the attenuator, although I get the HRD up pretty good at gigs. It starts to sing at about 4.

Thanks Joe. It's nice to know someone in the know. I still want to see
a picture of your rig someday.

Wes

The problem with the Eminence is people say the low-end farts.

Interesting to know the reason for flabby low-end. When I was amp shopping several years ago I chose a Peavey Classic 50 over the HRD for this very reason.

-Greg