Should amp be eq'd same as pickup?

[SoCalSteve]

What I mean is to get the most out of a pup, say its bass is 6 mids are 3 and treble is 8, should the amp be set correspondingly? I know it's a matter of personal preference, but if a pup is eq'd a certain way wouldn't we get the most out of it by setting amp correspondingly?

 

[BlueSnMettle]

Re: Should amp be eq'd same as pickup?

What I mean is to get the most out of a pup, say its bass is 6 mids are 3 and treble is 8, should the amp be set correspondingly? I know it's a matter of personal preference, but if a pup is eq'd a certain way wouldn't we get the most out of it by setting amp correspondingly?

Good question. I don't know, my initial answer would be "what do your ears like?" I fiddle with the eq so much, I really should keep notes. I would start out flat & go from there. Sound good?

Peace,

Darrin

 

[slash857]

Re: Should amp be eq'd same as pickup?

Good question. I don't know, my initial answer would be "what do your ears like?" I fiddle with the eq so much, I really should keep notes. I would start out flat & go from there. Sound good?

Peace,

Darrin

i agree 100%. my eq on my marshall changes all the time. some days ill really like the tone for what im playing, then later i might come back to it and be like what the hell was that? and play with my eq for almost half an hour till i find a nice sound again! im very fickle when it comes to eq'ing anything. my dad tells me to stop playing around with it in the car stereo... lol

 

[59paul]

Re: Should amp be eq'd same as pickup?

I agree with these guys, You just have to " Trust Your Ears ".

 

[some_dude]

Re: Should amp be eq'd same as pickup?

There are no "rules", just make it sound good.

 

[Stratoplayer]

Re: Should amp be eq'd same as pickup?

Kind of off topic, but if your car stereo has EQ controls, I find if you set those to the guitar pup mostly used, the song sounds better (to me anyway). With amps, I like to change it up, but usually without paying attention to it I set it to the pup anyway.

 

[59paul]

Re: Should amp be eq'd same as pickup?

Yep. It kinda seems subliminal. With a Les Paul and a Pearly Gates, I usually turn the Treble way down on my JCM 800's. I've done it for so long, it's just 2nd nature. It helps keep the Pearly from being too bright on my particular amps.

 

[vic]

Re: Should amp be eq'd same as pickup?

Flat EQ will give you the best results to match freq.
You should only use EQ slightly.
Different Rooms produce various tones,such as cement floors vs. carpet flooring ect.
Speakers also play a role in freq . Try to stand away from your amp aprox 20 feet to get a real picture of what your projecting.

 

[mongrollo]

Re: Should amp be eq'd same as pickup?

Yeah, I agree. If you leave the EQ flat the "intrinsic" sound of the pickup will come out (plus all the guitar factors: wood, scale lenght...etc). If you set the EQ to the pickup setting you will make them may be too exagerated. If it lacks bass you will reduce it more. If it haves lots of treble it will have even more. Again it is a matter of personal taste.
In my case i tend to reduce this effects. I have a JB in the bridge and some times I found it too treble, so I tend to keep the treble low or sometimes I pull the bass up.

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: Should amp be eq'd same as pickup?

There is no flat setting on most guitar amps...especially vintage tube guitar amps. The tone controls on most stereo amps are flat when you have everything at 1/2 way...not so with vintage tube style guitar amps. The tone controls on vintage style tube guitar amps do not boost the treble, mids and bass at all...they only subtract. Much like the tone control on your guitar: it doesn't add treble...it only reduces treble. The guys who suggested to just dial in the tone tone that sounds good to you are correct, IMO...but don't expect the tone that works at home or when playing alone to work onstage with a whole band roaring away all around you. I find that I have to use less bass and more mids and treble onstage or when jamming with others...more mids and less bass especially.

Lew

 

[mongrollo]

Re: Should amp be eq'd same as pickup?

Yes, you are right Lew.
One question comes to my mind, if you set all the tone controls to 12 o'clock, do they substract the same amount of frecuency? I mean, Do they substract the same quantity of treble, mid and bass? Wouldn't it be like having the volume turn off a bit?

or probably the frecuency substract won't be perfect for each of the knobs, and the effect will be different from turning the volume down...

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: Should amp be eq'd same as pickup?

Yes, you are right Lew.
One question comes to my mind, if you set all the tone controls to 12 o'clock, do they substract the same amount of frecuency? I mean, Do they substract the same quantity of treble, mid and bass? Wouldn't it be like having the volume turn off a bit?

or probably the frecuency substract won't be perfect for each of the knobs, and the effect will be different from turning the volume down...

No...the frequency curve is like a roller coaster no matter how the tone controls are set on a vintage style guitar amp. Lew

 

[papersoul]

Re: Should amp be eq'd same as pickup?

I am with Lew in that with a band, I find the added mids and treble from the amp very helpful in being heard. It's a whole different ballgame jamming at home alone.
That being said I like a lot of body from the pickup so I gravitate toward pickups with fat bass and thickmids, pulled back highs. I like the beefy tone that gives me from the guitar but still cuts.

The most noticable change I made in playing with a band was increased midrange even with a midrangy pickup. I also slightly increased the high end at the amp, but keep the bass fairly plentiful. I also use a Line 6 vetta head and cab so I find the mids on the amp don't quite hit as hard as a tube amp but I find I have no issues if I use a pickup with fat mids. I think this is a big reason I do not like the C-5. I might love it on a tube amp for gigs, but my tube amp sits in the corner thsese days.

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: Should amp be eq'd same as pickup?

I am with Lew in that with a band, I find the added mids and treble from the amp very helpful in being heard. It's a whole different ballgame jamming at home alone.
That being said I like a lot of body from the pickup so I gravitate toward pickups with fat bass and thickmids, pulled back highs. I like the beefy tone that gives me from the guitar but still cuts.

The most noticable change I made in playing with a band was increased midrange even with a midrangy pickup. I also slightly increased the high end at the amp, but keep the bass fairly plentiful. I also use a Line 6 vetta head and cab so I find the mids on the amp don't quite hit as hard as a tube amp but I find I have no issues if I use a pickup with fat mids. I think this is a big reason I do not like the C-5. I might love it on a tube amp for gigs, but my tube amp sits in the corner thsese days.

Most bassplayers (if he/she's really good!) seem to appreciate having a little room for thier own tone if we guitarists keep the bass down a bit on our amps. Lew

 

[papersoul]

Re: Should amp be eq'd same as pickup?

I totally agree with Lew on this but at the same time I do notice we get a bigger overall sound on stage if I have plentiful bass....the bassist can still heard quite well. The other thing is we try to do some things differently from time to time in that I'll be playing a heavy line on the lower strings while the bassist will play it much higher up the neck to get a cool dynamic in the sound.