Clean to "clean-with-a-little-hair" discussion

I really like the Doubleverb factory preset with an EV12L IR, a Silver IR works well too. If you have the Redwirez bundle the Mark IC EV12L and Mark IIC MS12 mix well for a full clean (open back combo style) with warmer mids than an EV alone (the MS12 can get honky & boxy so keep it's level lower than the EV).
 
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I think almost all of the amps works in a way. I often use to lower volume on the guitar.
Sometimes a crunchy amp with lower guitar volume can produce a better clean sound, than a clean amp with the guitar volume on full imho.

Lonestar
Two Rock
Plexi
Euro Blue (both)
Super Reverb
+++

Input trim, drive, boost, master volume, master trim, gain etc is doing different things.

Read this about input trim:

http://forum.fractalaudio.com/cliffs-notes/81116-input-trim.html
 
I love the JCM800 clean..
dig in and it'll add a little bite

it's awesome for all kinds of applications.. but I particularly like it for funk
 
I think that dual amps works really well for getting good clean tones.
I usually use one amp for a more middy sound, then another one with a more bright/scooped sound.
Also I prefer clean tones with my strat to have a compressor in front of the amps.
Try this patch, I made it for my strat (texas special pickups).
 
I use the Matchless amps and Bandmaster, input trim down, amp gain down, everything flat, turn up the Bright control, cut off some bass in the speaker section to taste, pair it with the new 2x12 high res speakers (try different combos, the speaker is HUGE in getting the sparkle). I love my cleans, better than the real amps. I can get a very nice high end shimmer, like on "Something's Always Wrong" by Toad. Presence, IMO, works best with high gain. I don't like adding much presence to my clean sounds, it changes the character too much. But cleans can be tricky, they are less forgiving than high gain, as far as feel and sustain.
 
so far only one person has mentioned the cab ir's used.

the op also hasn't said what guitar / other gear he's using.

both of these will be major factors.

specifics, people. specifics!
 
simeon said:
so far only one person has mentioned the cab ir's used.

the op also hasn't said what guitar / other gear he's using.

both of these will be major factors.

specifics, people. specifics!
Click to expand...

Post 1 and 13 for amp sims and guitars but no mention on IR's.
 
simeon said:
so far only one person has mentioned the cab ir's used.

the op also hasn't said what guitar / other gear he's using.

both of these will be major factors.

specifics, people. specifics!
Click to expand...

LMAO

studio clean tone:
Morgan V6 with Bulldog pups
JCM800 -> stereo cab block: 4x12 Basketweave TV left and AX right

live clean tone:
Morgan V6 with Bulldog pups
JCM800 -> a pair of real 1960b 4x12 cabs [cab emulation = off]
 
Related to the Input Trim points being made here, here's something I mentioned in another thread...

One of my favorite "tricks" is to have an IA switch on my controller set up to toggle the Input Trim down by a certain amount for each preset. So when I hit this IA switch, it causes the input trim to drop, lowering the gain hitting the front end of the amp model which of course pulls out some distortion. Not exactly like rolling back the volume on your guitar, but very, very handy. On presets with some hair, it can take you to instantly clean and back. For higher gain patches it's a handy way to pull out some aggression when you want that.

Karma
 
randolfo said:
I find the new brightness knob seems to make the difference when it doesn't sound quite right.

I usually go to the Matchless DC30 or the Buttery model, but most of the fenders do a good job for me as long as you have the right IR and turn down the input trim as mentioned. That's a well-rounded guitar collection you have there, too.
Click to expand...

Thanks!


Honestly, working the input trim has done wonders for my clean patches! And now, it's helping with my medium-gain tones too. I find myself PLAYING and digging the tones, instead of trying to twist knobs and figure out what's missing.
 
another clean amp I really like is the Hiwatt Normal
it has a sort of girth to it.. so it's real robust in the mix both studio and live..
some cleans that are a little over-produced and 'crystalline' sounding can sound real pretty in isolation..
but pop them in the studio mix or live on stage and they can be kinda fragile / brittle sounding…
so they never sit right and end up either vanishing or having highs that are a little shrill when you try to push them through the mix more strongly..

when I want a nice clean will a hint of attitude [funk or rock] I'll go for the JCM800
when I want a clean tone that stays clean no matter what, I prefer the solidity of the Hiwatt

on the last album I did [which was funky] I reamped the dry funk parts through both of these amps and had them sounding together [panned opposite and wide]
they worked very well together

EDIT: forgot to mention…..
newly discovered and adored since FW14 are the two Bassman amps..
for my tastes, the 59 functions like the Hiwatt.. robust and solid
and the 65 has similar 'attitude' qualities to the JCM800 when it's clean [although it seems to retain it's body a little more]
 
I'm using the DoubleVerb combined with the one of the OwnHammer 2x12 Bogner IRs (UltraRes version of the Scott Peterson mix of the Fane speaker). Using it for all my guitars (Ibanez RG7, a Tele with coil-tappable humbuckers and an HSS Strat). Input gain no higher than 3 for cleans. EQ fairly neutral (BMT in the 4-6 range), although I always engage the cut and treble switches. Turned up the bright knob a little, set depth to taste. In the cab block I invariably cut everything below 100 Hz and above 6 kHz. If I want a little hair I engage a drive block which is a Blues OD. Put some light compression on the whole thing and suddenly I realize 3 hours have passed. ;)

Started experimenting with the Dumble ODS-100 clean last night as well... also verrry nice. Very clear in the low, low-mids, where I find the DoubleVerb to be a tiny bit muddy. It's working great in band-context though, so I'm not swapping it out just yet. :)

Thing is, with the right IR it's so easy to dial in a good (clean) tone. I made a new preset, just amp and cab, selected the OwnHammer IR I mentioned and cycled through the list of amps to see which ones sounded interesting to me at default. I ended up with the ODS-100 and the FAS Class-A, although I still need to play around with the latter. Once I dropped in the ODS-100, it literally took me no more than 5 minutes to settle on something which I think sounds pleasing by only (barely) touching the basic amp controls, following the same procedure as described above. That even included swapping out the IR for something for a 4x12 to get a bit more body into the sound.

I'll see if I can whip up a recording this weekend, as all this stuff is a bit pointless if you can't hear what I'm talking about. ;)
 
karmakarmakarma said:
Related to the Input Trim points being made here, here's something I mentioned in another thread...

One of my favorite "tricks" is to have an IA switch on my controller set up to toggle the Input Trim down by a certain amount for each preset. So when I hit this IA switch, it causes the input trim to drop, lowering the gain hitting the front end of the amp model which of course pulls out some distortion. Not exactly like rolling back the volume on your guitar, but very, very handy. On presets with some hair, it can take you to instantly clean and back. For higher gain patches it's a handy way to pull out some aggression when you want that.

Karma
Click to expand...

Karma, would you be so kind to explain us more about this interesting option, how to set up an IA on my MFC controller for this trick.
Thanks, Martin
 
you could get a fender mustang floor and put it in the axe fx loop and send it program changes over midi. That box excells at those tones. Think of it as a 200 dollar amp pack.
 
For clean with a little hair I'm using the Carr Roamer with the Amp Factory TAF_ACRox_MIX in the cabinet "X" and the TAF_Art+TangoJR-MIX in "Y" (IR's that came with the firmware). I like how I can dial in the transition from "clean" to "hair" perfectly for my picking hand/feel. While I have the preset tone/drive setup for single coil middle/neck pickups, my bridge humbucker also works well...
 
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