Studio Pre sounds "muffled" :(

[mesaprs]

I've been having a lot of bad luck trying to find good settings for my studio pre and was afraid that, because of it's age, it may need to be re-capped or some of the older resistors replaced?
After quite a while of messing with the settings at home and with the band, I've determined that I can't get rid of the "muffled" and "muddy" sound the lead channel is giving me (no probs with clean, however). Is this lack of a clear sound just part of the preamp (I already know to dial out a LOT of the bass to keep it from getting flubby), do I need to keep messing with the EQ, or do you think something might need to be replaced? The tubes are new Tung-Sol RI and shouldn't be a problem...
Thanks for any help-
John

 

[Whoopysnorp]

How do you have it hooked up, and are you using the recording outs or the main outs?

 

[mesaprs]

Hey thanks for the response -
I have it run from the main outs to a VHT fifty two fifty w/ 6l6's, then into an AC30 2x12 copy. You're right, the tone I'm trying to fix sounds as if I ran it through the recording outs (but worse...). I've tested this setup with a different preamp (ADA mp-1) and it sounds fine ... but I know the Studio Pre "should" IMHO sound better than the ADA, right? Or maybe the bass in this unit is just too much for an openback 2x12...

 

[4nkam]

What are your settings? Try running out from the FX Send instead of the main out.

 

[mesaprs]

I started out originally with:
Vol 7.5, master 5, treb 6, bass 2, mid 5, lead drive 2.5, bright & fat boost on...
...and then last weekend dropped the bass to 1, treble up to 7, mids to 4, and took off the fat boost, and it sounded a little better but still sounds a little off.
This Saturday at practice I'll try hooking it through the FX send - I'm guessing it might indicate if there's something with the output transformer??
Thanks for the help
John

 

[mesaprs]

I tried running it into the front end of a Champ, through the recording out and the FX send and they sounded about the same - the send was a little quieter. After messing with the EQ's again and using the graphic to cut the bass a lot more, it sounds pretty good through the little amp - I'll just get to find out if it translates over to the bigger amp.
Thanks for the help! I think I just need to keep adjusting!