eudaimonia02912
Well-known member
- Joined
- Jan 11, 2010
- Messages
- 581
- Reaction score
- 0
I mainly use a JP2C, but have a Roadster for a backup or for a different flavor. (Actually, my band is in hiatus right now, so I suppose I am once again a basement player. Alas.)
I like being able to get lots of sounds out of an amp without having to change the knobs each time. However, I found that getting a good lead tone out of channel 3 vintage or channel 4 requires very different settings from what you want in a good rhythm tone. I also found that getting, say, Foo Fighters or grunge tones requires different settings from what you'd want for hair metal or modern metal. Not a big surprise, of course. But given how finicky Mesas are, it's not so fun to have the change the knobs when you change songs, especially *live* and in the dark.
Also, even with EL34s, I could never get Brit mode on 2 to sound quite right.
However, this is where the 5-band comes in and saves the day. My Helix includes a model of the Mesa 5-band, which I tried placing right after the loop in the Roadster. Results: Sheer awesomeness. (For what it's worth, and as an aside: I tried using the 5-band model in the loop of the JP2C and compared that to the on-board 5-band. It's very close, though of course the JP2C puts the GEQ in a different spot.)
For one, I can now set channels 3 and 4 with plenty of mids to get that fullness I want, plus to get that fuzzy thick sound for Foo Fighter-type stuff. I can keep the presence low to keep the sustain going and avoid any harshness. But then, by having the 5-band EQ kick in, I can immediately change channel 3 to go from 90s hard rock/grunge to a hair/80s rock sound, and channel 4 to go from 90s alt metal to more Dream Theater/Metallica/pseudo-Mark tones. Since I have the mids up high on 3 and 4, I can use the 750 slider to cut some mids, but still have a full and *liquid* sound, the kind of liquid sound I found hard to get out of a Roadster or a Dual Re in general. Suddenly leads seem much easier to play. Further, using the 5-band allows me to make the cleans sparkle better, and to finally get Brit to sound right.
If you try this, I wouldn't try using the same settings you would use on, say, a Mark. Even with the mids up, Rectos are still relatively scooped. However, to my ears, it sounds like the mid control cuts a different band than the 750 slider. I'd try this: Keep the bass lower on the amp, but then boost 80 a bit. Cut 750 a bit. Keep the presence down but boost 6600 a bit. For Brit, boost 2200 as well.
More broadly, the point is that you can use an EQ in the loop to great effect on a DR. It allows you to tailor the sound far better than the on-board EQ knobs.
I like being able to get lots of sounds out of an amp without having to change the knobs each time. However, I found that getting a good lead tone out of channel 3 vintage or channel 4 requires very different settings from what you want in a good rhythm tone. I also found that getting, say, Foo Fighters or grunge tones requires different settings from what you'd want for hair metal or modern metal. Not a big surprise, of course. But given how finicky Mesas are, it's not so fun to have the change the knobs when you change songs, especially *live* and in the dark.
Also, even with EL34s, I could never get Brit mode on 2 to sound quite right.
However, this is where the 5-band comes in and saves the day. My Helix includes a model of the Mesa 5-band, which I tried placing right after the loop in the Roadster. Results: Sheer awesomeness. (For what it's worth, and as an aside: I tried using the 5-band model in the loop of the JP2C and compared that to the on-board 5-band. It's very close, though of course the JP2C puts the GEQ in a different spot.)
For one, I can now set channels 3 and 4 with plenty of mids to get that fullness I want, plus to get that fuzzy thick sound for Foo Fighter-type stuff. I can keep the presence low to keep the sustain going and avoid any harshness. But then, by having the 5-band EQ kick in, I can immediately change channel 3 to go from 90s hard rock/grunge to a hair/80s rock sound, and channel 4 to go from 90s alt metal to more Dream Theater/Metallica/pseudo-Mark tones. Since I have the mids up high on 3 and 4, I can use the 750 slider to cut some mids, but still have a full and *liquid* sound, the kind of liquid sound I found hard to get out of a Roadster or a Dual Re in general. Suddenly leads seem much easier to play. Further, using the 5-band allows me to make the cleans sparkle better, and to finally get Brit to sound right.
If you try this, I wouldn't try using the same settings you would use on, say, a Mark. Even with the mids up, Rectos are still relatively scooped. However, to my ears, it sounds like the mid control cuts a different band than the 750 slider. I'd try this: Keep the bass lower on the amp, but then boost 80 a bit. Cut 750 a bit. Keep the presence down but boost 6600 a bit. For Brit, boost 2200 as well.
More broadly, the point is that you can use an EQ in the loop to great effect on a DR. It allows you to tailor the sound far better than the on-board EQ knobs.
