Can't seem to get an actual clean tone with HB bridge pickup on ANY preset

Colorado Axeman

Colorado Axeman

Inspired
I've been through loads of presets, including the "LA Studio Clean" - and it's always hot overdriven with my HB bridge or bridge/neck positions. I can get it to sound clean on the neck PU if I pick softly. I don't have active or overly hot pickups - using Seymour Duncan APS-2H Slash HB's in both positions (8.3/8.9k ohm output). I've got my input levels set so I'm not in the red. I get some really nice overdrive tones, but it's escaping me why I can't get a good clean. What next?
 
That does seem odd. Lowering the input trim is a good suggestion. If you could post a DI track someone else could re-amp it to see if the issue is repeatable on another unit.
 
My experience has been that most of the "clean" tones are clean for single coils and closer to edge-of-breakup for HBs. This is my preference, so I'm happy with it, and it actually mimics the real amps appropriately. I can also be a ham-fisted string banger, so I'm strumming "with purpose" a lot of the time. When I back off on "purpose", or just drop the guitar volume a little I can get quite clean, though never JC-120.

HOW clean are you looking for? No overtones at all? Or just "not Ozzy"? There simply aren't tube amps that do perfectly clean, especially when you add a cab IR.

I would recommend dropping the amp's master volume, choosing a cleaner speaker like an EV, and maybe going to a SS amp like JC-120 if you want very very clean.
 
Whenever I can’t get something clean enough I go right to the Master Volume. I don’t even think of that as a volume knob at this point.
 
I have an fm3 and run -12db input pad on a PRS tremonti which has fairly hot pickups esp the bridge. That helped me get clear cleans on amps that should be clean with no breakup. The other mentions of input trim and master volume can also be very helpful.
 
Archean clean
CAE3+ Clean
Carol-Ann Triptik Clean
JMP Clean
USA Pre Clean

Even without any special tweaks or even super low gain settings, these are all pretty darn clean. Testing with an EBMM Albert Lee HH which has fairly hot DiMarzios ("hot" is definitely a term open to interpretation)
 
"Hot overdriven" how so? What kind of overdrive or distortion are you hearing? Is it the amp "breaking up" or are your levels too high inside the unit that it's clipping digitally?
 
What happens when you drop the volume knob on your guitar? Does it clean up then? Tube amps (and their accurate models) respond in a big way to relatively small changes in your guitar's volume knob. I'm not sure which preset or amp model you are using, but with many of them you can go from crystal clean to edge of breakup just by using your guitar's volume knob.

So if you have eliminated clipping, input gain, amp model master volume and gain knob settings then try the volume on your guitar. I am old school so I'm constantly messing with both my volume and tone knobs on my guitar. I know many metal players just crank everything and never touch a knob on their guitars. They are even making a good number of guitars without tone knobs now - just one volume knob that nobody touches.

Between that and the mastering loudness wars the majority of modern music has no dynamic range anymore.
:cry: This is the kinda shtuff that old people like me say all the time. That and of course, "Hey you kids get off my lawn!"
 
ProfEmerald said:
Archean clean
CAE3+ Clean
Carol-Ann Triptik Clean
JMP Clean
USA Pre Clean

Even without any special tweaks or even super low gain settings, these are all pretty darn clean. Testing with an EBMM Albert Lee HH which has fairly hot DiMarzios ("hot" is definitely a term open to interpretation)
Click to expand...
Don’t forget the Band Commander and Silverface Twin models, too, both are well known for being clean.

Search Factory Presets for “clean” for examples.
 
Colorado Axeman said:
I've been through loads of presets, including the "LA Studio Clean" - and it's always hot overdriven with my HB bridge or bridge/neck positions. I can get it to sound clean on the neck PU if I pick softly. I don't have active or overly hot pickups - using Seymour Duncan APS-2H Slash HB's in both positions (8.3/8.9k ohm output). I've got my input levels set so I'm not in the red. I get some really nice overdrive tones, but it's escaping me why I can't get a good clean. What next?
Click to expand...

Setup > I/O > Input 1 Gain: is it set to "1.00"?
 
Greg Ferguson said:
Don’t forget the Band Commander and Silverface Twin models, too, both are well known for being clean.
Click to expand...
Those are both great choices for clean amp models with a bit of character too. I have also had great results getting crystal clean with either the "USA Pre Clean" or the "USA JP IIC+ Green" amp blocks.

Sometimes for a good clean jazz tone (Think Pat Metheny on a Gibson Byrdland), I even skip the amp block and go straight into a cab block with a "guitar body" IR mixed with another cab. Add a 10 band GEQ after the cab block and that's a nice, squeaky clean tone too.
 
I just played a HB guitar into the Band Commander, and it is quite clean, but when I dig into the strings, it breaks up. Gain on 3, Master on 10.
 
elvis said:
I just played a HB guitar into the Band Commander, and it is quite clean, but when I dig into the strings, it breaks up. Gain on 3, Master on 10.
Click to expand...
Yes that's what I meant by character. But try the USA Pre Clean or the USA JPIIC+ Green. With my guitar and reasonable gain/master settings those never break up.
 
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