Quote (sMACKTRiCKz @ 23 Nov 2012 17:50)
sup
I'm not using an amp, just the pedal plugged directly to guitar/laptop. Pedal can simulate a bunch of different amps though.
Gibson 2012 Les Paul Standard (Heritage Cherry Sunburst)
Oh i see what you mean now - hmmmmmm.......... If it can replicate various amps, it should replicate the settings on the amp and allow you to adjust to your tone.
i.e. Give an interface with a tone/volume/mid knobs etc
http://www.voxamps.com/forum/topic.php?id=2482
One of the posts there details his eq for the initial recording
http://www.gilmourish.com/?p=268
Great info, including this which I think answers your Q
Quote
Amps
As always I recommend a tube amp that doesn’t have too much mid range and the ability to stay clean even when you crank the volume, – Hiwatt, Sound City, Reeves, Marshall Plexi and JCMs, Fender Bassmans and Twins… the list goes on. It’s become a mantra on this site but David’s Hiwatts has a huge impact on his tone and the effects are carefully layered on top for subtle nuances. Tube amps are expensive but it’s an investment that’ll last a life time.
Don’t be intimidated by the scale of David’s rig. As long as you’re not playing in football stadiums a 50w head with a matching cabinet will be more than enough. If you’re only playing at home you’ll manage with even less.
It’s often a problem getting the desired tone from a Big Muff and the solution is very simple: volume. The louder you play the smoother it gets. What happens when you crank a tube amp is that the tubes gets very warm and saturated and unless your amp has a habit of distorting you’ll get a tone that’s nicely compressed with tons of dynamics just on the verge of bursting into overdrive madness. Pedals like the Big Muff, Colorsound Power Boost, BK Tube Driver etc are all designed to be used with tube amps and the magic happens when the amp and pedal reacts with each other. David also adds a booster or mild overdrive after the Muff to add more volume and character. This doesn’t really make the Big Muff sound more aggressive but it helps smooth out some of the harsh harmonics and add a richer character.
Solidstates or transistor amps can give you a great tone as well and the same “rule” should apply, – make sure that it can play loud without distorting. As described below you might need to add an EQ or a booster to compensate for the lack of the typical tube tone.
General amp settings
I recommend that you always use the front inputs on your amp. If possible, try to combine the inputs with a small patch cable, – upper normal and lower bright/brilliance and plug the guitar cable into the upper bright/brilliance. This will add brightness and presence without loosing the lower ends. General settings for both tube and solid states should be: bass 50%, treble 50-60%, mids 40% and the master at about 1/3 of the channel output. If the inputs are combined set the normal input volume a hair higher than the bright input volume.
Effects
As talked about above, David’s effects setup for Comfortably Numb is quite basic. Good sounding pickups and a powerful tube amp requires 4-5 effects at most. If you’re playing at home using a small solid state with a volume suitable for grumpy neighbours you might need to add a couple of effects to compensate for loss of sustain and dynamics.
Setup recommended for tube amps:
1. Warm, slightly dirty tone for PULSE
BIG MUFF (Sovtek/P-2/G-2) – gain 50-100%, tone 20-30%, volume 50-60%
OVERDRIVE (Tube Driver/Tube Screamer) – gain is depending on how aggressive the pedal is, – you want a mild overdrive, about 30-40%, tone 40%, volume 50-60%
DELAY – moderate volume and feedback and about 550ms time.
- Although not required I would also add a compressor (placed first in the chain) for a bit more attack and sustain. If you’re using vintage style single coils I’d also add hint of mid boost with an additional EQ for that boosted EMG tone (placed after the overdrive). For authenticity you could also add a subtle chorus (placed infront of the delay).
2. Bright, punchy tone for Animals, Wall and On an Island
BIG MUFF (“triangle”/”ram’s head”) – gain 50-100%, tone 40%, volume 50-60%
BOOSTER/OVERDRIVE (Colorsound PB/Boss BD-2) – gain, this should be as clean as possible without getting thin (find the sweet spot before it breaks), tone 50%, volume 70%
DELAY – moderate volume and feedback and about 550ms time.
- For authenticity you could add a flanger, preferably the Electric Mistress (placed in front of the delay).
Setup recommended for solidstate amps:
compressor > distortion > overdrive > EQ > chorus/flanger > delay
I usually recommend not to use a Big Muff on solid states or when you’re playing at home with a low volume. It’s hard getting a decent tone and you’ll often end up with something that just sounds thin and fuzzy. The RAT is an extremely versatile distortion that sounds great in any setup. I would also stay away from using overdrives and boosters designed for tube amps, like the Tube Driver and Colorsound Power Boost. Often they will react just like the Big Muff. The Boss BD-2 and an Ibanez/Maxon Tube Screamer are versatile substitutes. You might also realize that you need to set the gain slightly higher than the typical tube amp setup.
My favourite setup would be: BYOC Large Beaver “triangle” clone > Colorsound Power Boost > Deluxe Electric Mistress > delay. I sometimes also add a compressor to enhance certain climatic parts of the solo.
Quote (sMACKTRiCKz @ 23 Nov 2012 17:55)
Yeah you can adjust bass/mid-low/low/medium/treble/harmonics/tone etc. for each preset amp. Then can add effects. Unfortunately, I seem to be unable to get it all to work together how I want it to.
Can you get a PDF of the manual? Be worth getting one - I found that I was confused as shit by my Zoom before I got a manual to lay it all out for me.
This post was edited by bob(Cs2) on Nov 23 2012 10:57am