Is this going to help me?

[BriGuy1968]

As some of you may know, I have recently made and acquired some guitars and pedals... and now I'm having a little trouble with my sound. I think the problem has two basic elements that I'm hoping to fix with one solution, but I'll outline what I have to work with first.

• Guitars: Until a few months ago, all my guitars had similar output levels to one another making it pretty easy to switch from one to another mid-gig without a huge change in how the rest of my rig reacted... just a change in the sound of the pickups themselves. Two of my builds feature single coils (a Strat with typical SSS setup and a mutt with a set of GFS Dream 90s... HB-sized P-90s, but still very jangly with lower output like a typical single coil). My newest addition, an Ibanez Artist AR325 has Super 58s which sound great, but are more PAFish in terms of output. I generally take three guitars to a gig (my BC Rich 10-string and two 6-strings) and I like to "spread the love" among my other guitars, taking turns with them in terms of which ones go with me.

• Pedals: The previous incarnation of my rig was:

1. guitar -> AKG Perception Wireless SR45/PT45 -> Behringer PB100 PreAmp Booster -> Zoom G5 (modeler & effects) -> Fender Champion 100 (clean channel only w/ reverb)

I've always used the PB100 to give a little boost to my signal when using split coils or OOP and keep the level similar to the series humbuckers. I liked the sound I got, but wanted to have more flexibility for distortions without having to change banks on the G5 all the time. I decided to use the G5 for a configuration that would allow me to leave it on one bank with the effects I wanted readily available, buy a pedal board, and add other pedals in the positions I wanted them. My new rig goes like this (new stuff in orange):

1. guitar -> belt-clip boost (S-D Pickup Booster Circuit) -> AKG Perception Wireless SR45/PT45 -> Behringer PB100 PreAmp Booster -> Morley PDW-II Distortion-Wah-Volume -> Electro-Harmonix C9 Organ Machine -> GFS Twin Overdrive -> Zoom G5 (effects only) -> Donner Black Arts Multi-Digital Delay -> Fender Champion 100 (clean channel only w/ reverb)

For what it's worth, the G5's internal chain is:

• [*=1]6-band EQ -> Marshall Guv'nor (dirt) -> Phaser -> Cry (talk box-ish) -> Tremolo -> Flange -> Pitch Shift Harmonizer -> Chorus
  [*=1]note: the only thing that's always on is the EQ

The belt-clip boost is my own little contraption for giving me a solo boost when I'm not near my board, so it's usually not on. I'm not terribly concerned about the C9, the Black Arts, or the G5 because they're all only active when the effect is needed as well.

My first problem is that I need to boost the signal of the three aforementioned guitars into the rig, otherwise I have to boost the gain on all the distortions in order to get to the amount of dirt I want out of each one. The PB100 boosts the signal just fine in order to get there, but it's a different level than where I would use it for boosting a split coil up. The other problem is that, while I like the sound of the distortions from the Twin Overdrive, I think it's making my whole signal a little too thin by the time it gets to my amp. The PB100 has a bass & treble control, but they're too heavy-handed.

I was looking at the Source Audio Programmable EQ last night, and I'm thinking it might help me solve my problem. It has four programmable settings which include total output, so I could have it ready to go for different guitars AND adjust the tone to compensate for the tone of the distortion.

Question 1: Do you think this will work?

Question 2: Where would it (and possibly the PB100) go in the chain?

I'm thinking of leaving the PB100 at the front, continuing to use it for split coils and OOP. Then the EQ... or maybe have the EQ (or the PB100) AFTER the Twin Overdrive to beef up the tone. The goal is to be able to have the ability to compensate for the tone, for different guitars, and for split coils all without having to bend over and make adjustments... just a quick pedal-tap.

Thanks boys and girls!

[shupe13]

Re: Is this going to help me?

I don't know if this works for you but...

I run my modulation effects thru the amp's effects loop. I go wah to OD to OD (I stack) to distortion to amp.

You could double up ODs and stack or AB them.


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[BriGuy1968]

Re: Is this going to help me?

I don't know if this works for you but...

I run my modulation effects thru the amp's effects loop. I go wah to OD to OD (I stack) to distortion to amp.

You could double up ODs and stack or AB them.


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I haven't tried sending the modulation effects through the loop, but I already have the various OD/distortions stacked out front. I've played with the idea, but I have to admit that I like the simple one-input-one-output of having the whole board out front. I will probably mess with it sometime just for grins, but the amp's bass/mid/treble don't seem to be able to compensate for the particular problem I'm having.


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[shupe13]

Re: Is this going to help me?

When you use multiple guitars with different or major tonal differences it can be problematic. I used multiple but simple boards in the past. That's a pain. Idk man.


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[shupe13]

Re: Is this going to help me?

I set my rig up with my volume between 4-7 on my guitars and from there I boost by maxing the guitar's volume.


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[Hank-]

Re: Is this going to help me?

The Source Audio could work for what you want with its presets.

I would is it in place of the PB100.

But before that, you could use Bank function on the G5 to change the 6band EQ settings while keeping everything else same in the chain, unless its disabled in stompbox mode. If you never use all the effects in the chain at once then perhaps a different planned approach to preset changes may work better than a new eq pedal.

[PFDarkside]

Re: Is this going to help me?

The source audio EQ looks super nice, but I think if you just need to get guitars in the same ballpark it's a bit overkill. You can get something like the TC Mini spark booster new on reverb for $50. Just step on it when you have a lower output guitar. I like to use an EP booster for the same purpose, it gives and little more output and fatness to a Strat.

Of course if you really wanted to you could put the Source Audio at the beginning of the chain and set 4 settings of EQ and level to even out tonal differences... Kind of like what Billy Gibbons does with his huge MIDI rack EQ.

[BriGuy1968]

Re: Is this going to help me?

The Source Audio could work for what you want with its presets.

I would is it in place of the PB100.

But before that, you could use Bank function on the G5 to change the 6band EQ settings while keeping everything else same in the chain, unless its disabled in stompbox mode. If you never use all the effects in the chain at once then perhaps a different planned approach to preset changes may work better than a new eq pedal.

I thought about using different banks with different EQ settings/levels, but I prefer the modulation effects AFTER the dirt... and the G5 doesn't have a loop to separate the effects from one another. Maybe I'll try changing the order and see if I can make it sound good to me with the mod effects first. It WOULD be nice to NOT spend more money!


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[BriGuy1968]

Re: Is this going to help me?

The source audio EQ looks super nice, but I think if you just need to get guitars in the same ballpark it's a bit overkill. You can get something like the TC Mini spark booster new on reverb for $50. Just step on it when you have a lower output guitar. I like to use an EP booster for the same purpose, it gives and little more output and fatness to a Strat.

Of course if you really wanted to you could put the Source Audio at the beginning of the chain and set 4 settings of EQ and level to even out tonal differences... Kind of like what Billy Gibbons does with his huge MIDI rack EQ.

That's pretty much what I'm doing right now with the PB100, but I was thinking the EQ might also help to even out the tonal differences from the addition of the new overdrive.


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[Hank-]

Re: Is this going to help me?

Actually I was wondering, what is the donner delay doing there ? The G5 can cover that ground in there, unless there isn't a tap tempo feature in it dedicated to a footswitch.

[BriGuy1968]

Re: Is this going to help me?

Actually I was wondering, what is the donner delay doing there ? The G5 can cover that ground in there, unless there isn't a tap tempo feature in it dedicated to a footswitch.

Good question. The delay was a bit of an afterthought when I was planning this thing out. You're right, the G5 has a perfectly adequate delay with tap tempo capability, but I wanted to free up a slot. I got separate overdrives for the same reason. Delay seemed like the next most logical thing to forego in the G5 because it's always at the end of the chain. This allowed me to put the modulations wherever I wanted them.

The G5 has 4 effects with buttons showing at any given time in stomp-box mode. I leave it with Phaser, Cry, Tremolo, and Flange. The Z-Pedal also has a toe button and can work left to right as well as up and down. The toe switch turns on/off the effect that is connected to "up and down." So I have the Gov'ner connected to the toe switch and as you roll the pedal back the gain goes up. I have the chorus always on, but the mix is zero at center and you bring it into the mix by rolling the pedal to the right. The harmonizer is set up the same as the chorus but you roll the pedal left instead. The only combination of the 8 effects I can't have is the harmonizer and the chorus.


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[VinceT]

Re: Is this going to help me?

The source audio EQ looks super nice, but I think if you just need to get guitars in the same ballpark it's a bit overkill. You can get something like the TC Mini spark booster new on reverb for $50. Just step on it when you have a lower output guitar. I like to use an EP booster for the same purpose, it gives and little more output and fatness to a Strat.

+1

The Spark Mini was my first thought. I use on at the end of my pedals as a more/lead level - it's clean, and doesn't shape tone at all.

Of course, Seymour Duncan offers the Pickup Booster targeted at just what you're describing - I haven't tried it, but it would seem an easy option?


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[Hank-]

Re: Is this going to help me?

Good question. The delay was a bit of an afterthought when I was planning this thing out. You're right, the G5 has a perfectly adequate delay with tap tempo capability, but I wanted to free up a slot. I got separate overdrives for the same reason. Delay seemed like the next most logical thing to forego in the G5 because it's always at the end of the chain. This allowed me to put the modulations wherever I wanted them.

The G5 has 4 effects with buttons showing at any given time in stomp-box mode. I leave it with Phaser, Cry, Tremolo, and Flange. The Z-Pedal also has a toe button and can work left to right as well as up and down. The toe switch turns on/off the effect that is connected to "up and down." So I have the Gov'ner connected to the toe switch and as you roll the pedal back the gain goes up. I have the chorus always on, but the mix is zero at center and you bring it into the mix by rolling the pedal to the right. The harmonizer is set up the same as the chorus but you roll the pedal left instead. The only combination of the 8 effects I can't have is the harmonizer and the chorus.


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I dig your approach with the Z pedal.

Well, I think stuff like the pickup booster, ep preamp, etc. recommendations would also work for ya. The source audio preset feature is alluring though.

[Mr.Sneaky]

Re: Is this going to help me?

I owned and sold the Source Audio programmable EQ. It will do a good job of providing you with the multiple settings but too my ears it has a sterile like sound similar to a BBE Sonic Maximizer/Sonic Stomp. Just my .02 but it's not a cheap unit .