pedal board ideas ?

subzero12

so lads ive decided that im gonna build a pedal board.i just wanna change my tone up a bit instead of just going straight into the powerball with the c7
i guess i need to tell what music im into , Meshuggah,Opeth,At the gates , Inflames.and Dark tranquility are the staple of what i listen too.

so i need help ive about 400 euro to get the basics down first i.e
distortion,overdrive, compressor , and maybe a noise gate

but what ive neen thinking about getting so far is
a ELECTRO HARMONIX NANO LPB-1 a booster
a ELECTRO HARMONIX SIGNAL PAD an Attenuator
a ELECTRO HARMONIX NANO POCKET METAL MUFF
a ROCKTRON BIG CRUSH compressor
a MXR M 109 6-BAND-EQ
and a BOSS SD-1


any other ideas ?

Doctor J

A booster and an attenuator? Does one not cancel out the other?

Voodu Child

It seems like you want a lot of boost/overdrive/distortion pedals. Do you need that many with a multi-channel amp like the Powerball? One nice OD should be enough if you want some different types of distortion tones.

The ISP decimator is a popular noise reduction pedal used especially by high-gain guys.

darrenw5094

I recently bought a ISP Decimator for the high gain channel on my Marshall JVM. It does the job perfectly, cutting out the feedback/noise pollution and lets the amp/guitar stay the way it is.....no tone degrading.

As for the pedal gear.....pedals all add up financially too.
My solution: TC Electronic G-Force and a Voodoo Lab Ground Control Pro.
End result: You win at music.

Check out the TC Electronic G-Force on www.gak.co.uk for under €800 with the current exchange rate.

subzero12

Doctor J wrote: »

A booster and an attenuator? Does one not cancel out the other?

it does indeed i was waiting for someone to ask that , my reasons where to be able to get valve distortion at lower levels and then boost that signal which probably defies an logic, out there but i like to experment with gear and getting different sounds .

Doctor J

Your guitar has a volume knob

Is the powerball not giving you enough gain? You've got the muff in there too. Where is the amp deficient in what you're trying to achieve?

I used to have a C7, I always felt it could've been a bit brighter. Perhaps a change of pickups might help, rather than a load of pedals out front, some EMG's perhaps?

subzero12

Doctor J wrote: »

Your guitar has a volume knob

Is the powerball not giving you enough gain? You've got the muff in there too. Where is the amp deficient in what you're trying to achieve?

I used to have a C7, I always felt it could've been a bit brighter. Perhaps a change of pickups might help, rather than a load of pedals out front, some EMG's perhaps?

yeah i actually have seymor duncan blackouts in it ,i think its the amp infairness im just not happy with it in genral im not say its bad cause its not at all just ,my overall tone im getting , i might just sell it and buy a 5150 which i know i can get the tone i want with but then again no 2 amps are exactly the same either,
nah the muff was just in there cause i wanted to try it out and its only 50 euro so its not bank breakingly expensive ,for from what i heard seemed like decent distorton.

Doctor J

If the amp ain't doing it for you then no amount of pedals will fix that. You'd be better off spending the money getting a tone you're satisified with and then using any pedals to enhance/effect that as desired.

Flesh Gorden

I knows you could buy a van for less...

But That Marshall Kerry King Head does everything your after

You should check out the Guitar World review on You Tube

Its the first Marshall in a long time (last being TSL 602) thats really got my attention

Karl Hungus

subzero12 wrote: »

yeah i actually have seymor duncan blackouts in it ,i think its the amp infairness im just not happy with it in genral im not say its bad cause its not at all just ,my overall tone im getting , i might just sell it and buy a 5150 which i know i can get the tone i want with but then again no 2 amps are exactly the same either,
nah the muff was just in there cause i wanted to try it out and its only 50 euro so its not bank breakingly expensive ,for from what i heard seemed like decent distorton.

How long have you had the amp? Have you changed the tubes yet? Is it still using the stock tubes?

You really should be able to get the tones you want from a Powerball, the amp really is tailor-made for the kinds of heavy sounds those bands get, so ditching it in favour of another amp could be a mistake. The tubes engl amps ship with aren't bad, but a bit lifeless and sterile. I think you should try a Tung Sol 12ax7 in V1, it makes a pretty big difference to the amp.

Flesh Gorden

Turns out you can get that Marshall Kerry King for 649 pounds in most places in the UK -(€770 at moment)

Would be worth the day trip just to give yourself an idea - try things out - A 1 day return flight to Manchester or London would cost less then most of those pedals you mention

And if you spot an amp you want - head back home - into the car - back on the ferry to trade in

The Post offices in the Uk give the best exchange rate anywhere - especially if your trading in euros - thats where I always go - credit cards will rip ya off big time

subzero12

Karl Hungus wrote: »

How long have you had the amp? Have you changed the tubes yet? Is it still using the stock tubes?

You really should be able to get the tones you want from a Powerball, the amp really is tailor-made for the kinds of heavy sounds those bands get, so ditching it in favour of another amp could be a mistake. The tubes engl amps ship with aren't bad, but a bit lifeless and sterile. I think you should try a Tung Sol 12ax7 in V1, it makes a pretty big difference to the amp.

yeah ive had it about two and a half months , that was my thinking but it was just kinda driving me mad that i couldnt get a tone i know i should be able to get .yeah there the stock valves . i might try it out thanks allot for the info

Karl Hungus

subzero12 wrote: »

yeah ive had it about two and a half months , that was my thinking but it was just kinda driving me mad that i couldnt get a tone i know i should be able to get .yeah there the stock valves . i might try it out thanks allot for the info

Did you buy it new or second hand? What settings are you using?

subzero12

i got it brand new,
yeah my settings are

4th channel
gain 8,
bass 8,
midopen 6,
midfocused 5,
Treble 7,
Presence 7,
Bright switch is on
Depth Boost normally 8
Lead Bottom switch is on too

1st channel

gain 4
bass 6
mid 4
treble clean 7
treble crunch 0
presence 6

bright switch on too

Karl Hungus

Try it with the prescence turned down to 3, and let us know how you get on.

subzero12

Karl Hungus wrote: »

Try it with the prescence turned down to 3, and let us know how you get on.

thanks allot man i will do.

Karl Hungus

How'd you get on so far? I'd say it's definitely an issue with your settings more than anything.

The prescence on the amp can be vicious, and too much of it can really sound nasty. You'll probably want to turn the gain and depth boost down a lot as well, because the powerball has preposterous amounts of gain on hand. I wouldn't have it higher than half way up, because even then it's fairly extreme. There's also a hell of a lot of bass as well, so turn that depth boost down. I can only imagine that with your settings, you're drowned in muddy lows, ice-pick highs, and fizzy overgained distortion.

Try it with the bass mid and treble controls all at half way, the gain less than half way, the bright switch off, and the depth boost and prescence down to about 2 each. Then start playing, and bringing in a bit more treble or depth slowly, but keep that gain below half way.

subzero12

Karl Hungus wrote: »

How'd you get on so far? I'd say it's definitely an issue with your settings more than anything.

The prescence on the amp can be vicious, and too much of it can really sound nasty. You'll probably want to turn the gain and depth boost down a lot as well, because the powerball has preposterous amounts of gain on hand. I wouldn't have it higher than half way up, because even then it's fairly extreme. There's also a hell of a lot of bass as well, so turn that depth boost down. I can only imagine that with your settings, you're drowned in muddy lows, ice-pick highs, and fizzy overgained distortion.

Try it with the bass mid and treble controls all at half way, the gain less than half way, the bright switch off, and the depth boost and prescence down to about 2 each. Then start playing, and bringing in a bit more treble or depth slowly, but keep that gain below half way.

thanks allot man it helped loads im still trying to dial in my exact tone but im close . i have to try get some sound clip of it , if i can get a loan of a video camera,yeah the amps a differnt beast altogether to the iommi model laney i had before it .

Karl Hungus

subzero12 wrote: »

thanks allot man it helped loads im still trying to dial in my exact tone but im close . i have to try get some sound clip of it , if i can get a loan of a video camera,yeah the amps a differnt beast altogether to the iommi model laney i had before it .

Oh, excellent stuff man!

Yeah, it takes a while to really get to know how your EQ works, because amps always react differently. I'm really happy to have helped.