Stiletto Ace is too warm!

[jab]

Never thought I would utter those words! I've been tweaking this thing for about 8 months for a great classic rock tone and this weekend at a gig I stepped out in front (I'm wireless) to listen to the band. It was so warm and rich, I had to go back on stage and turn my treble higher (like to 2:00). I'm not sure what it is as I've put in 450's, Doug's preamp tubes, a Sonic Stomp, and an eq boosting low/high just a tad all played through a Amer Deluxe Tele. But it wasn't until I added the Barber Tone Press with their "magic dust" setting (Blend 10:00-11:00; Sustain 10:00-11:00) that this thing turned into a warm, fat, smooth riding machine. Couple that with an OD on Fat Clean and you'll really darken/smooth it out. Now I think I just have to dial back in a little of that bite. My other guitarist is playing a Gretsch through a Fender and talk about an ice pick!

For those of you experiencing any of Stiletto's "harsh" character, keep working on it. You can make it what you want it to be.

 

[Platypus]

People complain about that amp being bright but in a band situation you will be heard for sure. I can see sitting at home alone playing it might be a bit ice picky but when it counts it sounds killer and you'll never get lost in the mix.

 

[insideout]

People complain about that amp being bright but in a band situation you will be heard for sure. I can see sitting at home alone playing it might be a bit ice picky but when it counts it sounds killer and you'll never get lost in the mix.

+1 8)

The open space of a club or especially an outdoor gig makes a huge difference compared to playing in a small room in your house. I also found that I was pulling way back on the treble until I played with my band. The other thing I noticed was when I played along with a CD, my tone was flat compared to the CD. I think when we hear people commenting about how harsh/trebly the Stiletto series is, it makes us paranoid and we over compensate. Just do what sounds right for you and life with a Stiletto is a wonderful thing

 

[polaris20]

Has anyone tried a C90 or CL80 in the Stiletto? I liked the one I played enough that I am now selling stuff and saving money to get it, but I definitely do not like V30's, and I imagine the Stiletto, as good as it sounds, would sound better with something more balanced.

 

[JOEY B.]

Has anyone tried a C90 or CL80 in the Stiletto? I liked the one I played enough that I am now selling stuff and saving money to get it, but I definitely do not like V30's, and I imagine the Stiletto, as good as it sounds, would sound better with something more balanced.

I opted for an Eminence Black Shadow (MS-12) 150 watt speaker and a 4 inch beam blocker in my 1x12 Ace. Then I put the V30 back in with the beam blocker and installed JJ preamp ECC83s tubes. I have heard that they will darken an amps' tone. In the case of the Stiletto, this is not a bad thing. Sounds good at low volume, but I have not had a chance to jack it up yet. The loud volume will be the test for the Celestion, no farting allowed :lol: .

 

[Dr GearHead]

I have just ordered a Celestion G12-65 for my Ace because I have found now I am running my orange 2x12 through the 8 ohm output and the internal speaker through the 4 ohm output the internal speaker is very harsh and quite a bit louder in comparison to the 2x12 (guess it could be a frequency thing).

As a side note the orange cab sounds amazing, I want another !!

 

[JOEY B.]

Updated my previous post. This is an ongoing quest for the vintage "M" word tone. :wink:

 

[KyleAnadora]

My Stiletto ace sounds to bright and hash when I play out but its fine in my bedroom. What am I doing wrong?

 

[Geiri]

to much presence.

Post your settings and maby we can figure this out for you

 

[jab]

post your settings, but I also wasn't happy with my Ace live sound for a while. I was using a Shure SM57 mic and was totally disappointed in my live sound through a PA. Very depressing after spending all that money on a Mesa Boogie and nice guitars.

I bought a Sennheiser e609 mic ($109), a set of Doug's preamp tubes ($70) and a Barber Tone Press ($140) and it sounds awesome out front now (priceless). If I were to guess, I think the two biggest improvements were that the Sennheiser took away some of that SM57 grit and cleaned it up, and the tone press smoothed everything out and rounded the sharp edges.