Mk iii Combo ------Larry Carlton settings.

[dlcmkiii]

Hello all,
I've owned a MKiii combo Simul Class red stripe, loaded that has an EV 200 watt spkr. since the late 80's.
I want to get as close to a Larry Carlton sound as possible. His early years. (Rm. 335 etc.)
I have an ES 335 "59" Reissue Dot Neck. I've played with the sound example sheets that came with it but they tend to be overly bright. And the other sheet which was published later shows the Fat Switch pulled regardless of whether it's a single or humbucking pickup. There's no indication like on the original instruction sheet. So........I thought I'd try here to see if any of you MKiii owners ever nailed the Carlton sound. Clean and his lead sound. I'd be interested in exact control settings including the presence control. Thank you very much !

 

[dlcmkiii]

Hmmm....anybody ?

 

[KiwiJoe]

That's going to be a tough row to hoe, I think, mainly because LC used a Mk I, and because I'd venture to say that there aren't a lot of Mk III owners who are going for that sound; and even fewer of them are posting here. I'd say use your ears and forget about prescribed settings.

I remember reading that LC used the infamous 7-7-7 (or was it 8-8-8?) setting on the Mark I: Those would be the settings for vol 1, vol 2, and the master vol; what that would translate into on a Mk III I have no idea since it's a multi-channel amp and the Mk I is a single channel with to inputs of different levels. And that would be very loud. LC would use a volume pedal and his right hand attack to control gain from clean to sizzle. And then there are other factors involved, like bridge or neck pick-up; and phrasing/attack. So much of Larry's sound really is "in the fingers" and how he picks; sometimes, especially lately, he uses hybrid picking.

Now, completely different amp, but at a show I did get a good view of the settings on his Bludotone Bludodrive (Dumble ODS clone) amp he's been using for the last several years. He sets the master higher (1 o'clock) than the drive setting (noon) on the OD channel. Treble was at about 11 o'clock; mids at 10 o'clock; bass 8 o'clock. Preamp vol around 1 o'clock and master vol around 10 o'clock. Like I said, completely different amp, but I think it gives a decent insight to how he likes things relative to one another.

The thing about Larry (and a lot of great players) is that he tends to always sound like Larry regardless of the amp. With slight variations his Boogie Mk I sound was close to the sound he got on Steely Dan's "Kid Charlemagne" solos, and he used a dimed Fender Tweed Deluxe for that.

So, long story short, I'd say use your ears and turn some knobs until you're happy; surely after having the amp for 25 years or so you've gotten pretty close, yes? Unless somebody with a Mk III comes along with some exact settings which may or may not sound the same when you play with the same settings.

Good luck.

 

[dlcmkiii]

Thank you for your insight. Yes Larry sounds like Larry no matter what amp he's using.
And yes I have had the amp a long time. I just wanted to get ideas from other mkiii owners that may be going for the same tone. I met Larry at a concert years ago and he said the reason he stopped using Boogie was because in his opinion they didn't sound the same anymore.
I'd love to try a Bludotone Bludodrive sometime just out of curiosity.

 

[MrMarkIII]

Volume = 7 (higher or lower to taste, pickup hotness, and cleanliness desired for R1)
Treble = 7
Middle = 4 to 5
Bass = ZERO (Pulled, maybe)
(This is crucial. Most players blindly run up the bass and wonder why the Mark III sounds flubby and indistinct, especially on the 335's neck pickup, which is where L.C. lives)
Lead Drive = 4 to 5
Bright settings tend to sound that way when you're alone, and sitting right in front of the dang speaker, but cut through in a band context.
Hope this helps.

 

[kdorsey]

Volume = 7 (higher or lower to taste, pickup hotness, and cleanliness desired for R1)
Treble = 7
Middle = 4 to 5
Bass = ZERO (Pulled, maybe)
(This is crucial. Most players blindly run up the bass and wonder why the Mark III sounds flubby and indistinct, especially on the 335's neck pickup, which is where L.C. lives)
Lead Drive = 4 to 5
Bright settings tend to sound that way when you're alone, and sitting right in front of the dang speaker, but cut through in a band context.
Hope this helps.

I used a completely different cab and speakers, but one of my favorite ES-335 settings looked similar:

But the one that gave me the most headroom and punch involved keeping V1 at 4 and Master dime'd...while in class A mode only.