My new amp (Stiletto Ace combo) is on it's way!!

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MusicManJP6

MusicManJP6

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I finally sold the ESP that I traded my RoV combo for so I could cure my GAS for a Stiletto! I thought about going for a head and cab, but a combo is more my style and all I really need.

Here's what I scored!:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=150295550167&ssPageName=ADME:B:EOIBSA:US:1123


I'm excited as Christmas! It should ship today and be here middle of next week. I was told by the seller that it is a 2006 and that it is actually a brand new amp with full warranty! If that's the case then I should have a full 5 years of warranty! I think I did pretty well...

So, Stiletto Ace owners... any tips you want to give me for dialing her in?
 
Congrats! I thought that was the one you were going for. Only advice is don't feel weird turning the bass up and presence and treble down. I might look into getting an Ace if my Roadster sells. Great amp! I like KT 77's in the Ace. Gives it more thump and rolls off the almost harsh highs. With an EQ in the loop, you can get whatever sound you want, besides the Rectifier thump, which is why I originally sold my Ace. Best amp for leads that I've played using Fluid drive and tube rectification. One thing I regret is never really getting to crank mine. Makes me wonder if it could give me enough palm mute chunk at high volumes... Guess you can let me know!
 
Its one of those amps that requires turning the knobs with your ears not your eyes... I thought about either KT77s or maybe E34Ls if the bass response becomes a problem.

I thought it was a good price for a new amp too, Frank!
 
MusicManJP6 said:
Its one of those amps that requires turning the knobs with your ears not your eyes... I thought about either KT77s or maybe E34Ls if the bass response becomes a problem.

I thought it was a good price for a new amp too, Frank!
Click to expand...

Great price! A 2x12 I was considering went for $1150!
 
Congrats man! Great amp.

Tips? Don't judge at living room levels or you may be disappointed. The "too bright" thing people talk about--that all goes away when you turn it loud and play it in a band. Also the combo sounds great, but you're not gonna really feel it till you play it through a 4x12 or at least a 2x12 to supplement the combo speaker.

Dialing in? There ain't really no dialing in a Stiletto. Well, maybe on the clean sounds, but from Crunch on up, put everything on 5 and adjust to taste. Use the spongy to get better power tube response.

Play it LOUD!
 
Nice price on the combo and welcome to the Stiletto family. I've had mine for close to a year, and still am dialing it in. Here is what I've done to date (mostly in order of preference) to get a great classic rock tone. I'm probably the only one on this board that found my tone this way and I never would have guessed I would have ended up with this "system".

- EQ in the loop. Gave it a "smile" so bass/mids/high are all just a tad above nuetral. Huge difference in tone and really fills it out.
- Xotic AC+. No matter how many times I try it with AC+ on/off, my preference is on. Ch 1 is Fat Clean with gain around 2:00 with a little AC+ (left side of pedal like an RC-type gain) to give it a crunch. That way I have my clean/crunch on Ch 1. Something about that Xotic that gives you distortion but doesn't alter the tone, and it gives it some girth too. Fat Clean is fat, and with a little OD pedal on it, it's fat and crunchy (unlike the other settings). Then I use Tite Gain on Ch 2 with gain around 9:00 and still use the same slight AC+ gain as I did on Ch 1. Again, it just sounds beefier than only using Tite Gain by itself and the slight AC+ gain gives it a nice ripping sound. Then I use the right side of AC+ for solo gain. I'm sure other OD's may work too, I just happen to have settled on AC+.
- Sonic Stomp. It's a slight difference, but nonetheless noticeable. I've tried to take it off my board but always leave it on. Just clears things up, and it really helps on cleans.
- ST450 tubes and Doug's preamp set. Probably a 20% improvement in tone.
- Given no reverb, I put a faint slapback delay and leave it on all of the time. Fills it out a bit.
- Run ouput around 12:00, then adjust masters to taste.
 
I guess I like the Stiletto simpler. That's the whole reason I went to the amp.

To be honest, the more I play, the more I think I might be ditching my pedal board...the amp sounds SOOO good by itself. What I'm trying to say is play the amp, and enjoy it. It doesn't need ANYTHING to sound good.

The only thing I am currently debating over is speakers. I think I might be ditching the V30s for Greenbacks, or some clone of them. I think their slightly darker and more compressed nature with the Stiletto.

Enjoy man! It is an amazing amp!
 
Thanks guys! All good tips. I've got my GT-8 for effects and distortions, etc so I should have plenty to work with! I'm going to try to dial in the amp plugged straight up first and then mess with effects. Delay is my all-time favorite effect by far... I was dying to hear delay with the Deuce I played at the store several times before finding the Ace...
 
ibanez4life SZ! said:
I guess I like the Stiletto simpler. That's the whole reason I went to the amp.

To be honest, the more I play, the more I think I might be ditching my pedal board...the amp sounds SOOO good by itself. What I'm trying to say is play the amp, and enjoy it. It doesn't need ANYTHING to sound good.
Click to expand...


Yeah, same here. When I'm on stage, I only really need a couple different sounds, and that's playing covers. Too many options just becomes a drag. That's why the Stiletto is so great--you don't need tons of extras to get it to sound good.
 
It's always nice to be able to plug straight into an amp and like what you hear... That was the case with the Deuce at the store I played. I'm thinking the same will be true with the Ace...

****, it's been less than 24 hours. The wait is killing me!
 
Unless you are going for a rock/classic rock tone I dont suggest the green backs. They are very mid heavy, saggy bottem end and not much highs. Before doing any ditching, bring your head to a guitar center and plug into a marshall cab with greenbacks and you will get the idea if you like it or not.

ibanez4life SZ! said:
I guess I like the Stiletto simpler. That's the whole reason I went to the amp.

To be honest, the more I play, the more I think I might be ditching my pedal board...the amp sounds SOOO good by itself. What I'm trying to say is play the amp, and enjoy it. It doesn't need ANYTHING to sound good.

The only thing I am currently debating over is speakers. I think I might be ditching the V30s for Greenbacks, or some clone of them. I think their slightly darker and more compressed nature with the Stiletto.

Enjoy man! It is an amazing amp!
Click to expand...
 
I couldn't agree more with the comment about cranking it up. I know there have been complaints about "ice-pickiness" with the Ace but my experience has been that is due to the speakers not being broken in and the amp being run at too low a volume. I have three suggestions that worked great for me; (1) break the speaker in, (2) get a Hotplate (this really gets the output tubes cooking for that EL34 roar/growl and cuts some high end out), and (3) use the Output as a master volume while running the channel volumes a little higher. Doing this I have gotten a tight, articulate gain out of the Ace. Also, if you don't use effects all the time, I highly recommend that you get a true bypass loop pedal. They're only about $50 and although it's an extra stomp you have to do, I think it pays off big time in that you get that "plugged straight into the amp" tone when you're not using any effects. You can also use it to test your pedals to see what affect they have on your tone. Anyway, you've made a good choice with the Ace; it is a great amp!
 
Yup, the Hot Plate works great not just for home volume levels; I use mine at gigs to get that cranked wide open tone while keeping a reasonable stage volume for mic'ing through the PA. You will need a female-to-male speaker extension cable though, because the combo speaker cable is too short. I had Mark at Lava Cable make me one; I highly recommend him.
 
I had 1 beam-blocker installed in my 2x12 Ace and it made a world of difference - those V30's can be harsh. I feel I got the best of both worlds that way. I've never heard the 1x12 version, but I'd guess it would be a bit more bassy.

Let us know when it arrives!
 
I had a Fizzy Lifter in my Rectoverb combo with a V30 and it made a difference for sure. I guess i'll do the same for the Ace! I'll also have a guy here locally build me a attenuator. He made a Dr Z AirBrake clone that was awesome! It was ugly as sin but it worked like a charm!
 
Congrats !!!! and welcome to the Stiletto Club :) I have been jamming on my Deuce II all day long and can't get enough . I have been really enjoying Channel 2 on Crunch mode, of course I use Tight gain for lead, but crunch mode on channel 2 is killer for a classic sound. I have been nailing a Jimmy Page tone and it sounds so sweet. You will be locked up for hours once you get yours. It's been a year for me and I am still in honeymoon stages just loads of sounds out of the Stiletto.

Here is a clip of what to expect on crunch mode channel 2. Pay close attention to when the bridge pickup kicks in in the first half. Then the Les Paul
is another great example.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7Iz7gdhh_E
 

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