cabinet sim with a combo amp?
this posting has been largely prompted by the 'are amps a thing of the past' post.
i've always turned the cabinet sim off my gnx1 as i generally play through the front of of my hughes and kettner. i figured why try to emulate a 2x12 american amp when i'm actually going through a 1x12 german amp! (that being said, i do use the amp sims!)
i'm sure i read on some forum somewhere that this is the thing to do and generally the cab sims are for when playing direct through a p.a. or mixer.
having read the 'amps are dead' post i must admit i thought the idea of just turning up for a gig with a guitar and gnx, without hauling an amp around, seemed like a good idea. so, i started playing around on the gnx, wearing headphones, playing with my patches and adding cab sims. wow, they make a huge difference to the sound - not always good, but like all new patches they need a lot of tweaking.
i'm always interested in how people use the gnx's (see my 'how do you create patches' post) so began to wonder:
do you guys use the cab sims even though playing through the front of amp? or do you use the cab sims and go through the effects loop - thus bypassing the 'sound' of your amp? do you use it at all or turn it off like i have until now? be interested in any responses to this issue. cheers.
i've always turned the cabinet sim off my gnx1 as i generally play through the front of of my hughes and kettner. i figured why try to emulate a 2x12 american amp when i'm actually going through a 1x12 german amp! (that being said, i do use the amp sims!)
i'm sure i read on some forum somewhere that this is the thing to do and generally the cab sims are for when playing direct through a p.a. or mixer.
having read the 'amps are dead' post i must admit i thought the idea of just turning up for a gig with a guitar and gnx, without hauling an amp around, seemed like a good idea. so, i started playing around on the gnx, wearing headphones, playing with my patches and adding cab sims. wow, they make a huge difference to the sound - not always good, but like all new patches they need a lot of tweaking.
i'm always interested in how people use the gnx's (see my 'how do you create patches' post) so began to wonder:
do you guys use the cab sims even though playing through the front of amp? or do you use the cab sims and go through the effects loop - thus bypassing the 'sound' of your amp? do you use it at all or turn it off like i have until now? be interested in any responses to this issue. cheers.
Comments
Oh yeah. You wanted to know about patches. There's some threads around on how to create them, use search. But...although I don't have the link for this one, it's one I actually saved the ext from, it was so good. It was posted by one of the ax-wizards around here. Thanks, 'tou or Ilia or endroc or whoever posted it. Here's the text of it:
\"I usually start with an idea of what I want the tone to sound like. Usually the choices are: clean, \"crunch\", heavy, lead.
With that idea in hand, I go to choose an amp model. Generally I'll cycle through the stock models and the custom models I have saved, or if not I might browse through the supermodels folders.
Next, I generally decide what controls I want available on my patch. In other words, do I want another channel of the same amp at different settings, perhaps for a \"lead\" channel of a similar tone? Or would I want a different channel of the same amp - that option is available with most supermodel amps. I usually choose the same cabinet model for each patch used within one song, per Guitar3456's suggestion - this way going from one amp to a completely different one doesn't sound as drastically different.
Another control consideration is the stompbox. Sometimes I'll use a clean amp with a DS-1 or TS-9 stompbox model to get a nice overdriven lead tone (check out verse 4 of Card Game - www.44lbs.net/download.htm). Other times, I'll want the distortion pedal to simply boost the red channel for leads. I love the SparkleDrive model, which lets you set the \"clean mix\" parameter and great for many effects... just to give it a little something special.
Of course it's important to decide what the expression pedal will be doing. Usually, a volume control is all I'll use; however, if the patch is for a song where a fade happens, I might assign it to the Warp parameter. Other times I'll set it to Pan parameters of modulation, delay, or reverb to widen the stereo field on the fly. Whammy is a good choice too.
For delay and modulation, I usually stick with simple unless I'm looking for an unusual sound. Generally, very light chorus and spread delay (for stereo patches), and most time very little reverb if any at all.
On GNX3/4, where footswitch controls are available, sometimes I'll add a control in MOMENTARY mode to be able to switch to the lead channel for just a second. Other times, I might have the auto-pan effect or tremolo assigned to it. Sometimes, I'll have the second channel amp identical to the first, except bass and mid rolled off, for a low-fi effect (like an Evanescence cover I did at a company-sponsored event a few months ago).
Once all this is ready to go, I'll usually play with the compressor settings. This will determine how much additional drive is added to the amp model, via the makeup gain parameter; also, how well the amp model gain reflects guitar volume is determined by threshold and ratio.
Finally, LFO assignments are lots of fun too! On one or two patches, I have the ducker attenuation amount (or threshold value) set to the LFO, so that the delay automatically fades in and out as I play.
To match volumes between channels and patches, I plug the analog outputs into my audio interface (or on GNX4/3000 using the USB audio outputs) and check input meters in Sonar or Audition so that they peak out at approximately around the same level. If not, I try to balance amp output level with preset level, so that green/red channels have roughly the same output. Here once again, a compression adjustment may be necessary to raise not just the peak but the RMS level - this is also a balance of amp model gain/volume parameters.\"
I always use amp & Cab modeling. I don't think I have ever used anything with direct selected?? I play into the front of a Crate Power Block. I tried the EFX Loop and thought the sound was not so great?? To Shrill. But out of the GNX4 into the front my tone is warmer, alive, almost tubelike qualities from a Solid State PA. I drive cheap Kustom KPC12 with Emminece Modeling 12 sub replaced the stock sub. I left the tweater hooked up for more full range type sound like what the house is hearing at Church. I have tried something new as well that seems to have a good effect on my tone!! I use the Line Output of the Block to get in the house, instead of XLR out of the GNX4. Some compliments I have recieved was that it was warmer just had better tone. Anyhow this is my usage, and I am well pleased!!
God Bless!!!
Partch
The main reason I bought the GNX3K was so that I could go direct through the house P.A and not have to lug amps around. 8)
I'm never shy about fiddling the knobs....you have piqued my tweeking curiosity. :?
I run through the front on my Peavey S/S amp set clean. On my Carvin tube amp...effects loop. My active monitors...as expected.
Peavey JSX all knobs set about mid...hooked to several stompboxes and a screaming demon....and I LAUGH in the face of amps be dead. :P Har..HAR ...says aye...Rrrrrr...gar...yar..RRrrrrrrh.
manitou - you said you might play around with the cabs too. anything interesting. also like to hear from any others...