Todd's Secret Sauce To Achieve The Best Tone

Revision as of 14:00, 31 July 2013

Introduction

I recently spent WADS of money buying a rack full of gear:

Digitech GSP1101 with foot controller
ROCKTRON Chameleon 2000
5 different overdrive boxes to try
Rocktron velocity power amp
Genz Benz 2x12 cab
etc.

And NONE OF IT can come even close to the tone I can get from overloud. IT's just shocking. I thought for sure I could build a live rig with my desired tone it with this gear. Nope. Now I"m thinking of running one of my ipad guitar sims on an effect loop with the gsp 1101.

This has been a serious wake up call as to how much I"ve come to adore the tone I can get out of software vs the tone I can get with gear I know really well and used to think sounded killer. OBVIOUSLY, none of this gear is a KEMPER or AXE FX. But I've used these pieces before and been very happy with results. But...I've been seriously spoiled by overloud/amplitude/guitar rig after finding the secret sauce (adding a 20db boost active direct box, reducing 100hz at the mixer to kill flubby bass, etc.) I'm finding I really miss the software tone when I go to "real" gear that I used to adore.

Direct Box

The direct box is a CHEAP behringer ULTRA DI PRO rack mount, active unit. It has a 20 DB boost on it (the secret sauce is that it's a full range clean boost, it doesn't have a mid range hump like a stomp box so it boosts all frequuencies evenly, from deep bass to high treble)

Link to their web site (These run about $100)

This is CRUCIAL imho for working with sims. You need to hit the front end of a software amp sim pretty hard to get the kind of high gain sound you would from a big amp. Not to say a tubescreamer won't do the trick. It will!!! But, overdrive pedals are very mid range focused and for 7 and 8 string/downtuned stuff, the mids can sometimes get in the way. So for ERG (extended range guitar) stuff, I prefer the DI BOX. For 6 string stuff, I have JOYO/NUX/PRO TONE overdrives (any of which work fine).

But that's not all!!!!!!