fdesalvo
Well-known member
I must be getting old(er).
Over the weekend, we had 2 outdoor shows, so I was able to really open up the Deuce. I had global output set to 12:00, clean set to about 9:00, and lead set to about 7:00 (I’m probably off, but am going off of memory). I was also using 100w, bold, and silicon diodes.
Before the show I decided to back off the gain, turning it to about 9:00 and engaging Tite Gain for the first time. I also lowered the JB bridge pickup in my guitar a few turns just for the hell of it.
This was also my first test run of a new BK Butler Tube Driver with the bias knob added. I set the gain on that to about 7:00 and the output almost full up with Low/High EQ around noon.
I engaged clean the clean channel (tite) and the Tube Driver. As soon as I hit an arpeggiated D chord, my bassist looked over at me in shock and I know I had the same look on my face. That pedal was what I was looking for in a gritty, edge of breakup tone. It sounds AMAZING through the Stiletto’s clean channel. I found that turning the gain up on it was less than desirable, but Andy Timmons found a way to do it for his live rig, and who’s going o argue with that guy’s tone? Not me. I'll experiement with that tone later, but for now I need it for a lil' grit.
The clean was uber spanky! Normally I run Fat mode, but I chose Tite and pushed the bass up a bit to compensate and it was gorgeous. I felt like I could actually solo in clean mode haha. It made me wish I had some single coils to play around with, but the JB/Jazz pickup in the second position of a 3-way toggle were just gorgeous!
The lead channel alone was very rich and defined. The band that played before us hung around and I noticed their guitarist (who had a phenomenal Brian Setzer tone working) checking out my rig. He came up and looked at my pedal board and gave me a smirk. I noticed that I lost an immediate fade-into-feedback condition with single notes, but what I lost on that end, I picked up in clarity, bite, cut, and just sheer godly tone.
My solos and rhythm playing took on an inspired form Friday night and I owe it to my rig and new found appreciation for lower gain settings. The Deuce was just absolutely juicy. I was injected with a new found confidence and my solos took on a life of their own, as I found a sudden ability to improvise.
This amp is just magical and I was able to recreate this tone again yesterday morning with a few tweaks. We played with our cabs unmic’d and I wasn’t able to hear myself during the show, but I knew the tone was still there. It wasn’t as enjoyable for me b/c I couldn’t hear myself above the din of the vocals and drums; I had to use the force to get through haha.
Over the weekend, we had 2 outdoor shows, so I was able to really open up the Deuce. I had global output set to 12:00, clean set to about 9:00, and lead set to about 7:00 (I’m probably off, but am going off of memory). I was also using 100w, bold, and silicon diodes.
Before the show I decided to back off the gain, turning it to about 9:00 and engaging Tite Gain for the first time. I also lowered the JB bridge pickup in my guitar a few turns just for the hell of it.
This was also my first test run of a new BK Butler Tube Driver with the bias knob added. I set the gain on that to about 7:00 and the output almost full up with Low/High EQ around noon.
I engaged clean the clean channel (tite) and the Tube Driver. As soon as I hit an arpeggiated D chord, my bassist looked over at me in shock and I know I had the same look on my face. That pedal was what I was looking for in a gritty, edge of breakup tone. It sounds AMAZING through the Stiletto’s clean channel. I found that turning the gain up on it was less than desirable, but Andy Timmons found a way to do it for his live rig, and who’s going o argue with that guy’s tone? Not me. I'll experiement with that tone later, but for now I need it for a lil' grit.
The clean was uber spanky! Normally I run Fat mode, but I chose Tite and pushed the bass up a bit to compensate and it was gorgeous. I felt like I could actually solo in clean mode haha. It made me wish I had some single coils to play around with, but the JB/Jazz pickup in the second position of a 3-way toggle were just gorgeous!
The lead channel alone was very rich and defined. The band that played before us hung around and I noticed their guitarist (who had a phenomenal Brian Setzer tone working) checking out my rig. He came up and looked at my pedal board and gave me a smirk. I noticed that I lost an immediate fade-into-feedback condition with single notes, but what I lost on that end, I picked up in clarity, bite, cut, and just sheer godly tone.
My solos and rhythm playing took on an inspired form Friday night and I owe it to my rig and new found appreciation for lower gain settings. The Deuce was just absolutely juicy. I was injected with a new found confidence and my solos took on a life of their own, as I found a sudden ability to improvise.
This amp is just magical and I was able to recreate this tone again yesterday morning with a few tweaks. We played with our cabs unmic’d and I wasn’t able to hear myself during the show, but I knew the tone was still there. It wasn’t as enjoyable for me b/c I couldn’t hear myself above the din of the vocals and drums; I had to use the force to get through haha.
