A couple of amp questions..

J

Jouni

New member
Hello all!

Haven't been around much since a band of mine got a deal with a label and I've been busy getting an album done on a rehealsalplace budget... Still a lot to do there..

But!..

I'm still sorting some things out in my head, of what do I want from my next guitar amp.

First, why is the TMB-tonestack in so much favor in amps, against the more controllable graphic EQ?.. Not many amps have graphic EQ...

Second, I've had issues with the "spongyness" of small tube amps in metal stuff, so I figure getting the power in some 100 watts would help this?..

Third, are there obvious cons in putting 2 separate preamps of different type into the same amp? Making it a 2-channel amp. Both high-gain?


There's the things on top of my head right now.. Thanks in advance for any replies, I'd really appreciate.
 
Hey there. I'll drop my opinion.

1) TMB-tonestack - All I know is that many people who do this end up un-doing it later. Seems to be a fad that will pass.

2) "Spongeyness" is, IMO, more related to the brand of tube amp you use and your pickups. The spongey sound is not so much effected by wattage. All youd get is loud spongeyness. If you are after tight sounding cruchiness, Hughes and Kettner is fantastic. So is Bogner. But most go for Marshall. For pickups, you cant go wrong with Seymore Duncan.

3) Hooking up multiple preamps to one power section is common. No issues I know of as long as you are plugging the pre's into a true POWER amp...not just a regular amphead.
 
The question about a couple of pres was regarding inside a single head. Not rack-systems, sorry for being unclear.

The underline being that I'm going to have a head built as custom work, and I know I might want a single head, about 50 or 100watts. And thought that a graphic eq would be more precise, more wattage would diminish powertube characteristics, and I'd like some variety to the sounds, hence two different preamp sections sharing the EL34 or 5881 powersection.
 
Jouni said:
The question about a couple of pres was regarding inside a single head. Not rack-systems, sorry for being unclear.

The underline being that I'm going to have a head built as custom work, and I know I might want a single head, about 50 or 100watts. And thought that a graphic eq would be more precise, more wattage would diminish powertube characteristics, and I'd like some variety to the sounds, hence two different preamp sections sharing the EL34 or 5881 powersection.
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kinda like my Mark V which essentially has various preamps in one chassis.
 
The sponge is definitely related to the type/brand of tube amp. If you play a lot of riffy material that needs definition then look into Engl. They are expensive but well worth the cost IMHO. They have the tightest most defined response out of the hi-gain tube heads I have owned (Marshall, Mesa, Framus). A cheaper Hi-gain alternative is the Peavey 5150. Pay attention and you will see them at dozens of metal shows. They do great hi-gain metal rhythm tones but they suck for just about everything else :) so....it really depends on how versatile you need it to be.
Lastly if you do some reading on the Andy Sneap forum you will see that there is literally a sticky dedicated to the practice of placing a tube screamer in front of a hi-gain head. The circuitry helps cut some of the low end mud and boost the mids to get a more defined tone out of a bloated hi-gain head such as a rectifier. Do a search, the exact TS model is debatable but we do this at a studio I track in and it really does make a difference.
 
hmmmmm...

I think I need to step away and asses things again.:rolleyes:

Because, I had an ENGL preamp, and GAVE it away for being too tight in the bottom end... OK, the music has increased in speed somewhat, but I still like my bottom roaring...
 
just get a mesa rectifier and run it through a couple of orange 4x12's. Then get yourself a nice esp or dean, and thats just about everything in my opinion you could ever would for a metal rig.
xxxx
 
billabob said:
just get a mesa rectifier and run it through a couple of orange 4x12's. Then get yourself a nice esp or dean, and thats just about everything in my opinion you could ever would for a metal rig.
xxxx
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Rectifiers sound great but they are BLOATED as hell and don't work for shit IMHO on anything that has the need for definition in extended chord voicing and quick riffing. We always use one for a blend in the studio but I wouldn't own one as my main amp. He is complaining about Spongyness and I rank the Rect as one of the spongiest out there in high gain heads.


jouni you sound like you want two things on opposite ends of the spectrum. Perhaps try something in the middle ground? I played a Voodoo modded JCM 800 recently and it was a great middle ground between say Engl and a Rectifier.
 
Ive personally always preffered the orange amp heads to any other. My mate used to use the thurdertherb 200 and that thing could get heavy as hell mate. He used a dean razorback dimebag special and man that was a great combo. But thats quick abit of money. The rocker 30 can also get some pretty liquid distortion with no real set backs studio wise. .
xxxx
 
Wireneck said:
Rectifiers sound great but they are BLOATED as hell and don't work for shit IMHO on anything that has the need for definition in extended chord voicing and quick riffing. We always use one for a blend in the studio but I wouldn't own one as my main amp. He is complaining about Spongyness and I rank the Rect as one of the spongiest out there in high gain heads.
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I can't say I agree - really, it comes down to how you dial them. Keep the bass low, run in Modern/Bold/Solid State rectification, don't scoop the mids, and then don't overdo the gain (depending on pickups and setup anywhere from 1/2 to 2/3 seems to work pretty well), and they're fairly tight, seriously defined, and incredibly sensitive to pick attack. A fair amount of juice from the poweramp, and possible hitting the front end with a TS9 as a clean boost to tighten up the bass a hair further, also goes a long way. :)
 
Wireneck said:
The sponge is definitely related to the type/brand of tube amp. If you play a lot of riffy material that needs definition then look into Engl. They are expensive but well worth the cost IMHO. They have the tightest most defined response out of the hi-gain tube heads I have owned (Marshall, Mesa, Framus). A cheaper Hi-gain alternative is the Peavey 5150. Pay attention and you will see them at dozens of metal shows. They do great hi-gain metal rhythm tones but they suck for just about everything else :) so....it really depends on how versatile you need it to be.
Lastly if you do some reading on the Andy Sneap forum you will see that there is literally a sticky dedicated to the practice of placing a tube screamer in front of a hi-gain head. The circuitry helps cut some of the low end mud and boost the mids to get a more defined tone out of a bloated hi-gain head such as a rectifier. Do a search, the exact TS model is debatable but we do this at a studio I track in and it really does make a difference.
Click to expand...
In fact, I have a guitar rig thing from the back of a Guitar World magazine where the guys from Killswitch Engage talk about the TS808 being the secret to their tone. So definitely look into one of those.

As for the TMB... if you're looking at kit amps, you probably won't find 5-band EQ (or more) because it would just be more parts and TMB is fine for most people. I don't think I could get by with just one knob, unless it happened to be tuned to exactly where I wanted it to be, but even TMB tonestacks aren't always tuned where I want them to be. If you're building an amp, you might be able to talk them into putting in the fancy EQ section.

Also, several of the guitar rigs for metal bands showed Hughes and Kettner heads, so definitely check them out. Lamb of God and Metallica use Mesa Mark IVs, which you could mimic with a Mark V. So... it just depends. I liked the Bogners better than the Mesas, personally.
 
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