The Mids Are Back!!!

[Sleeping Martyr]

I had the day off yesterday so I decided to crank up my .50 cal+ halfstack in my cousins home studioo and **** with the tone a bit, and in the process brought back the majority of the mids into my tone!! I guess the last couple of years i've been into the heavily scooped tone but I pushed up all 5 of the eq sliders and then basically dropped out the middle one (gives a full middy sound with that hollowness right in the middle to keep it toight). . . . HOLY ****!!!! fat tight boutique like tone!!!! Thank god I've come out of the juvenile "mids are bad" mindset. . . . I'm in love all over again!! hahahaha. The only thing is that I seem to be getting some microphonic squeal, i swapped around the preamp tubes (some new some NOS) and have relatively new power tubes?? any ideas what else it may be?? They are all just "Mesa" tubes . . . . maybe thats the problem





sorry for a long ass self indulgent post:banana: :banana: :6:

 

[WhoFan]

Re: The Mids Are Back!!!

In a live setting you need some mid's to be able to cut thru.... sometimes a little more then you would think... A lot of metal players say they scoop the mids in interviews and stuff... but i bet their sound guys are just adding them back if they are!

As far as the microphonic problem i have no idea... could it of been a case of extreme volume in a small room? Maybe the pickups?

 

[Sleeping Martyr]

Re: The Mids Are Back!!!

I don't think so, It seems to happen on ALL of my guitars so it probably isn't that

 

[FamousForSustain]

Re: The Mids Are Back!!!

In a live setting you need some mid's to be able to cut thru.... sometimes a little more then you would think... A lot of metal players say they scoop the mids in interviews and stuff... but i bet their sound guys are just adding them back if they are!

True... on Zakk's Wikpedia entry it lists his settings as 10-3-10 (out of 10), and I strongly doubt that he can get away with that in a live setting with a rhythm player in the mix. If you're only playing with drums and bass you can get away with a little scooping but otherwise you're gonna have to dial some mids in. I know that doesn't really do much for addressing the original post.

Oh, and don't worry SM, you're nowhere near as bad as yours truly with the long winded posts or the self-indulgent rambling.

 

[ErikH]

Re: The Mids Are Back!!!

Zakk's mids are more around 5 or 6 than 3 (out of 10).

I was never one for scooped mids. I've always them around 4-6 depending on the guitar. My pickups tend to bring out the mids too so that setting is perfect for me.

 

[James Rock]

Re: The Mids Are Back!!!

True... on Zakk's Wikpedia entry it lists his settings as 10-3-10 (out of 10), and I strongly doubt that he can get away with that in a live setting with a rhythm player in the mix. If you're only playing with drums and bass you can get away with a little scooping but otherwise you're gonna have to dial some mids in. I know that doesn't really do much for addressing the original post.

Oh, and don't worry SM, you're nowhere near as bad as yours truly with the long winded posts or the self-indulgent rambling.

I heard that Zack Wylde used a wah in mid position which majorly BOOOSTS the mids.

 

[Dirtyking]

Re: The Mids Are Back!!!

I heard that Zack Wylde used a wah in mid position which majorly BOOOSTS the mids.

That and his EMG pups add to those mids.

I have an old pic of Zakks gear during the "No more tours" tour with Ozzy and his 800's where at 6/6/8 L/M/H. But that was like 10+ years ago.

And regarding the orginal post. I too rediscovered my mids while playing in a full band. I couldn't hear myself in the mix so I cranked my mids from 3 to 6 and BAM!!!!!In your Face....:blackeye:

 

[metallicaxlxl]

Re: The Mids Are Back!!!

if you have mesa 12ax7's those are just sovtek 12ax7wa + a 6 month warranty. i i dont like sovtek tubes too much, but thats youre choice, not mine.

 

[Diego]

Re: The Mids Are Back!!!

Mids are a must. Sometimes I toy a little and play without mids with the CD, but when playing with others they go to 7 normally. :amish:

 

[Jeff Dunne]

Re: The Mids Are Back!!!

I take a weird approach to this...

I take a mid-heavy amp (5150), boost it with a tubescreamer, for even more mids and a bass cut, and then scoop the mids out of the amp. Leaves the midrange frequency nice and present, but gives the amp a tight feel.

 

[FamousForSustain]

Re: The Mids Are Back!!!

For the record, I only mentioned the ZW wikpedia thing because a lot of people think he scoops like crazy (i.e. whoever submitted that piece of info which has since been removed) but that more than likely isn't the case.

On gain amps I prefer a rather scooped setting (8-3-8 or thereabouts) in terms of tone but I never get to use it live.

 

[Dr.Mavashi]

Re: The Mids Are Back!!!

ok, how many albums of heavy rock with scooped mids are there that gonna take the test of decades??? I mean, are there any Virgin Killers, Somewhere in Times, Iternal Idols, Balls To the Walls, No Rest for the Wickeds, Rising Forces, were recorded with unpluged midds ?? Albums that twenty years from now will be remembered not just for the tunes but for the tone just as much, how many?