I've been looking at amp reviews, and occurred to me that most folks barely turn any knobs and prefer to use them flat! Is that the preferred way you like to run your rig or do you like to dig into the controls? These companies put so much effort into customizing their heads only for a lot of folks to simply run them as neutral as possible! What say you?!?!
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To tweak or not to tweak, that is the question.
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As Jimmy says......"don't listen with your eyes"
... That great advice gives me encouragement to experiment but generally I prefer "flat", there is still plenty of "color" on most amps when they're set "flat"
Otherwise I turn knobs to suit the environment.
... That great advice gives me encouragement to experiment but generally I prefer "flat", there is still plenty of "color" on most amps when they're set "flat" Otherwise I turn knobs to suit the environment.
I twist the knobs until I get a sound I like, this varies from venue to venue. I have a sound in my head that I aim for but don't always achieve it mostly due to sound check time constraints.
I ran a preamp for a while that was flat (no tone controls), it sounded ok at best and I was glad to get a preamp with proper tone shaping.
As you probably know a lot of amps are not flat with all one controls at 12 o'clock but have a "baked in" sound there.
I ran a preamp for a while that was flat (no tone controls), it sounded ok at best and I was glad to get a preamp with proper tone shaping.
As you probably know a lot of amps are not flat with all one controls at 12 o'clock but have a "baked in" sound there.
Depends on how the amp sounds with the cabs, how the bass sounds, if it's an active or passive bass, the kind of music i'm playing, etc. With my own rig (GK MB500, two GK Neo 112 cabs), I usually have the contour at 10 o'clock, bump the bass knob down a bit, low mids up a bit, high mids flat and treble down to about 10 o'clock. If I'm running both cabs i turn the tweeter off on one and have it about 10db down on the second.
I judiciously apply minor tweaking from time to time, but if the amp doesn't sound good at noon it won't be in the stable for long.
Set everything flat first.
Then I listen with my ears to what I want and/or need.
Then I listen with my ears to what I want and/or need.
i think most of us would start with 'flat' and then tweak from there if necessary or desired. the room into which we play has more to do with how we end up shaping the tone, overall, i think. at least that's my story. i'm sticking to that!
Noon is often quite a bit not flat.
GK flat, 10 2 1 10 o'clock postions
Fender flat, 2 10 2
Tweak.
GK flat, 10 2 1 10 o'clock postions
Fender flat, 2 10 2
Tweak.
The valve is run flat, with the mods tweaked depending on the room.
The GP12 hybrid head is fairly well tweaked, I just love that preshape and the EQ sliders bumped for low and high mids. So tasty.
Been using a lot of different rehearsal spaces recently with backline provided into an Ampeg 8x10. I run those all flat, often with the mids boosted and a cut in the bass if necessary
The GP12 hybrid head is fairly well tweaked, I just love that preshape and the EQ sliders bumped for low and high mids. So tasty.
Been using a lot of different rehearsal spaces recently with backline provided into an Ampeg 8x10. I run those all flat, often with the mids boosted and a cut in the bass if necessary
If your amp sounds good and how you want it too sound with the controls at or near noon then you're in the sweet spot. Then you just need the amp and cab to be nicely matched and you won't need to touch any controls for the whole gig. My TH500 and Barefaced SC's stay the same for every gig. I'll sometimes make minor adjustments on the bass but not often.
Tweaking is fine.
I hate to see knob turners who keep adjusting their amp throughout the show.
I hate to see knob turners who keep adjusting their amp throughout the show.
Right hand and my bass' tone knob are constantly changing, but I'm basically a nooner, if not a frownie-facer to a degree.
There be knobs on there... Sure seems a terrible waste not usin' 'em.
Depends on what instrument I'm plugging in and the environment I'm playing in.
At home, my main bass sounds pretty darn good flat. But my rig is far from being flat itself when adjusted to flat.
There's a lot of low end baked in to the preamp and even a little in the compressor. So if I turn the bass knob very far above flat I get a lot of flatulence.
At home, my main bass sounds pretty darn good flat. But my rig is far from being flat itself when adjusted to flat.
There's a lot of low end baked in to the preamp and even a little in the compressor. So if I turn the bass knob very far above flat I get a lot of flatulence.
Tweak them knobs, man! Dial in what sounds good! They are there for a reason. I change them all the time, during sets between songs. I've gotten pretty accustomed to my amp, so I know what its pretty much going to sound like when I make adjustments before I even do so. I tweak depending on the song I play to a limited degree.
I'm not much of a tweaker, mostly in the low mid area. But, it depends on the gig acoustics, stage, etc. Mostly, I've found that, the lower volume gigs sound better to me as far as getting " my sound ". Once the volume starts heading north, it's more of a struggle to keep " my sound " and stay close to that volume.
- Jan 1, 2014
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