Low/Medium Gain Live Sounds

L

LJHood

Member
What amps/cabs/EQ tricks do you guys use to get a good low/medium gain live sound with BALLS and muscle? My issue has been getting a sound that once put through a PA sounds wimpy and brittle.

Example, I have been using the Buttery amp with the UR TV cab with the Master full up with juiced mids...through the PA it just sounds weak. Not sure what amp/cab combos people are using. I do get that louder the PA the more balls the perceived sound will have.
 
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No special tricks. It must not be too bright to start with, it gets brighter as you go up in volume. Therefore the classic advice is to make the final tweaks at loud volume. I only use amp and cab, no special extra eq's. Search for best IR's and maybe kill the unnecessary highest treble with high cut in cab block.
 
For these types of tones, I often use the graphic EQ in the amp block, usually to boost low mids (around 250Hz) with a gentle roll-off above and below.
 
I guess what I am after is how to get these types of tones if you are in the situation where the PA is not loud. Last night was a relatively quiet gig but I just wanted my sounds to be bigger sounding. It may simply not work at low volumes, but thought I'd inquire.

What are you go to amp/cab combos big/full low gain sounds that also have chime and cut?
 
Use the null mic option in the CAB block and adjust the proximity level to taste.

This adds a very musical girth to tones.

My current philosophy is to use a Dumble amp sim with the input and overdrive set pretty high. Then I am using the guitar volume control to dial in my breakup sound. I rollup the volume to get a gainy lead tone.

Independent of that, I use a post amp boost to raise the volume level without adding gain. So I can solo with the gtr volume backed off too if I want.
 
Playing a Strat and using factory cab #3 (fw18.12) as a beginning point, I've been having good luck with the following for cleans and mild to mid gain amps:

Band-Commander
Concert 6G12
Tremolo Lux
Vibtrato Verb AB
59 BassGuy
Super Verb
Super 6G4

I've experimented with various cabs but i'm not in front of my AxeFX right now, but Cab#'s 3 and 4 are very good starting points.
 
I like the JCM800 and 1987X Marshalls, MrZ 8 and 38, Nuclear tone. They all rock with suitable IR's. The factory "Fuzzbomb" IR has nice fat low mids, check that out too. Yes, the proximity control is a good bass boost for low volumes.
 
Thanks guys...very helpful. To me, its all in the cab. Lots of amps do the mild gain/chime thing well but to get the big sound, you need the right IR. With so many options, it can be hard and overwhelming to figure out what works (particularly when you have 2 small kids preventing you from tinkering with your AxeFX). Nevertheless, all good problems to have (including the nagging kids).
 
yeah man, but it's pretty basic. drive to taste, a no hi-cut, treble to taste. IR is the biggest part. I never really like 4x12 ir's with amps like this, but that's my taste. I'll post a patch later. I posted an IR shootout with that amp set pretty dirty, see if you like those tones.
 
jcm800 with a Greenbasket cab is a good start for me.
null mic, prod to 5 at 120hz, Fat cutting tone.
you can also give a Recto a try
 
I'm kind of embarrassed right now. Made some small changes to my tones last night to account for some of the advice I read here. When I went to my gig, I checked the EQ on the board that we use and what did I find? Substantial dips in the low mid and mid range....no idea why they were there but there it was. I zero'd everything out and when we went to play...there it was...big, beefy and full yet cutting. Sometimes I wish I weren't such a moron.
 
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