Problem using diezel VH-4 preamp pedal with my new amp

[man-in-moon]

I’m having problems with running my diezel preamp pedal with my new amp. Any advice would be appreciated. I have been using the diezel VH-4 preamp pedal for awhile now. I was using it with a Mesa 50 caliber plus head. It sounded great in front of the amp or plugged into the effects loop return.
But I just recently picked up a 5150 iii stealth 50 watt head. And the VH-4 doesn’t sound anywhere as good. In front of the amp the gain is weaker. In the loop with the volume all the way down it’s as loud as moderate speaking level. When I turn the volume on the pedal up to 0.5 it’s as loud as my amp running on 3. And the gain is still weaker. Nothing I do or have tried gets it to sound anywhere near as good as it did

 

[Bogner]

The stealth is very saturated while the VH-4 is not a saturated type of gain. Running the VH-4 pedal with any gain coming from the amp is going to most likely be a problem or really alter the overall sound.

 

[CaptainWhizz]

It looks like the 5150iii 50w only has channel volume controls, not an overall master/ power amp volume control, is that right? But the 50 Caliber looks like it has a master volume. That’s probably the problem you have with it in the effects return of the EVH.

With gain-stacking, supposedly the last gain section is going to dictate the majority of the sound, so running the VH4 into the front of the EVH is going to mean the EVH dominates the tone.

You could try putting a volume pedal or EQ after the VH4 into the power amp, to act as a master volume control?

 

[man-in-moon]

After doing more research on it I don’t think the circuits are compatible with each other. I found some posts of people saying the VH-4 is a little picky about amps. Which is a disappointment as it’s been one of the main components of my sound the last few months.

 

[Bogner]

Have you run the pedal out front through the clean channel?

 

[man-in-moon]

Have you run the pedal out front through the clean channel?

Yeah that’s usually how I run it. There or into the loops return. To just add another flavor of distortion. With my Mesa I could use it in either spot and nail tool tones all day. With the evh it sounds like a weaker version of the blue channel.