DC-10 - Best Power Attenuator & Questions.

[james86]

Hey guys, I have owned my DC-10 now for roughly 5 months and wow, i love it!

I'm not as clued up as i'd like to be so i have a few simple questions, any help, advice would be great

First of all, as you all know, the amp is pretty loud. Ive been reading up about Power Attenuators, i think this is the way forward for me to be able to reach the tone i desire without my ears bleeding? Which one would you recommend as the most suitable unit. THD seem to be the most popular from what ive read, if so, what Ohm would best suit my DC-10?

secondly, i have been using the amp set to 60watts as opposed to 100watts. Am i right in saying that when set to 60watts i am only getting the use of 2 power amp tubes instead of 4 when set to 100watts?

And last but not least.... whats everyones oppinion on master and channel volumes? High channel volume and low master? Half and half of both? Or high master and low channel? I have been playing around with it myself, im just curious to get other peoples oppinions

I know my questions are pretty simple to some of the guru's on the board but it would be a big help and mean alot to me if i could get some information, so i can learne more!

Many thanks, guys

James

 

[MJ Slaughter]

I also have a DC-10 and use a attenuator with it most of the time. Just a little attenuation, otherwise the tone sucks. If you don't mind a simple box that does the job there is this guy on eBay selling the "Tubecube" for cheap. I use it. Nothing fancy but it works and has got great reviews on harmony central. Here is one on eBay now: http://cgi.ebay.com/Tubecube-Amp-Attenuator-160watt-2output-8ohm-16ohm_W0QQitemZ260335795324QQcmdZViewItemQQptZGuitar_Amp_Accessories?hash=item260335795324&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=66%3A2%7C65%3A1%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1318

If I were looking for a nicer looking, more well known attenuator I'd go with the Weber because you can select different ohms unlike the THD.

It is my understanding that in 60 watt mode only the 2 outside tubes are working.

I read that the Level control is what pushes the power tubes harder. I run mine between 3-5. Needs to get past 2 to starting sounding it's best IMO. From there I setup my channel masters around 3-5 but I'm still working with those settings. I would rather use minimal attenuation and set the channel master lower. Attenuation works well for taking the edge off. If over attenuated your tone will suffer.

 

[james86]

Great! Thanks for the info!

When you say 'your tone wll suffer', i thought idea of the THD attenuator and others was to allow you to drive the power tubes flat out and in return achieve desired tone at any level? Am i wrong?

When you say 'level control' do you mean the overall master volume for the amp? If so ..great...i think that will help me.

I think the onboard e.q is good but do you think i would benefit myself by putting an e.q in front of the amp at all?

Thanks, any other info you have would be great, much appreciated.

James

 

[MJ Slaughter]

Any attenuator if it is set to high attenuation, greatly reduced volume, just wont have the same dynamic tone. To me it sounds like when you just barely have the master and level turned up to just hear the amp like you didn't want to wake someone up in the same room. When I use my attenuator it is set to only knock off about 2-6 db in volume. Enough to control the amp better at rehearsals or gigs. At home I drop it more so my wife doesn't come asking me to turn it down. Some people complain about not having as much clean headroom. I only have this problem if I crank my clean master up very high. If I need it turned up I'll reduce the amount of attenuation, not crank the clean master.

When I say level I am referring to the "master" level for the amp. On my DC-10 it is labeled "level" where the channels each have their own "master" control. This always gets a little confusing. When I think master I presume it's for the main level. Wish Mesa just called the main level the master and each channel has it's own level control but they didn't ask me.

I wouldn't add an eq in front of the amp unless you wanted to use it for a boost for the preamp section. Even then I find using a good quality overdrive works well for that. What I do sometimes is put an eq in the effects loop for shaping the tone differently and use the on-board eq as a boost because it's foot switchable. Our amps come stock with a parallel loop so if you want to do this you need to make the simple serial loop mod. I did it myself and haven't any regrets. My Rocktron Xpression sounds so much nicer in a serial loop than parallel. There are all kinds of threads about that one as well.

I didn't mean to be so verbose. Hope this helps some.

 

[james86]

Not at all! Thats great info thanks!

I think i will look into the serial loop mod too! The Xpression is high on my list and i can't wait!

Have you dialled in a presence level you are happy with on the lead channel, i find it so versitile, im still experimenting! What level are you running?

Once again, thanks!

James

 

[MJ Slaughter]

I still play around the with the presence. I usually prefer it in the lower range for a little more compression and smoothness but some rooms or moods I bump it up around 6-7 if I feel I need to cut through more without raising the volume. If you want the instructions for the serial mod PM me with your email and I'll send it to you. I got it directly from Mesa.

 

[james86]

Thanks for that!!!

Also, spent some time playing around with the master (level) and adjusting the channel masters accordingly....awesome...really improved my tone. Simple, but its really helped me and my sound!

Thanks a bunch