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Post by gtrjunior on Sept 5, 2017 4:26:43 GMT -5
First thing to try...
Plug the guitar straight into the amp. I'm suspecting that your wah is the culprit.
When I first got my Quickrod I was experiencing something similar. There was a upper-mid type of harshness, a grating that was very fatiguing on the ear. Through experimentation I discovered my wah was the culprit. Most wahs aren't true bypass and even though they have a buffer, that buffer isn't the greatest.
So try plugging directly into the amp and see if that helps first.
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Post by splawndude on Sept 5, 2017 11:16:12 GMT -5
You could also try something other than Tung Sols in the preamp. They are a good tube and lots of people like them but they don't work for me. Too bright and too shrill in a QR. I like JJs for a more rounded darker warmer tone if you will.
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Post by gtrjunior on Sept 5, 2017 18:45:19 GMT -5
Agreed...Tung-sol is definitely not my first choice.
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Post by cvogue on Sept 9, 2017 17:51:15 GMT -5
First thing to try... Plug the guitar straight into the amp. I'm suspecting that your wah is the culprit. When I first got my Quickrod I was experiencing something similar. There was a upper-mid type of harshness, a grating that was very fatiguing on the ear. Through experimentation I discovered my wah was the culprit. Most wahs aren't true bypass and even though they have a buffer, that buffer isn't the greatest. So try plugging directly into the amp and see if that helps first. I have to second this. I have a Street Rod and was using a Crybaby 95Q and something wasn't right, the tone I had when I bought it was gone. gtrjunior had the same wah and the same problem... suggested I take it out and see what happens. Removing the 95Q made a BIG difference! Got myself a Crybaby classic which is indeed true bypass. THe buffers in most wahs are, uhh... not good and can really hammer your tone when bypassed. |
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Post by cvogue on Sept 9, 2017 21:53:15 GMT -5
Agreed...Tung-sol is definitely not my first choice. Yeah I never understood the hype. I've used them, they're OK, not the end all/be all tube. But it depends on the amp... I never liked JJ's but tried them in my Blackstar and they were great. |
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Post by gtrjunior on Sept 10, 2017 6:04:15 GMT -5
Agreed...Tung-sol is definitely not my first choice. Yeah I never understood the hype. I've used them, they're OK, not the end all/be all tube. But it depends on the amp... I never liked JJ's but tried them in my Blackstar and they were great. It really does depend on the amp. My Marshall absolutely shines with the NoS Mullard that's in it. The Blackstar loves the JJ's and for my Splawn, I'm still thinking the Chinese 12ax7 is the winner. I've been using a brand called PM Tubes. They are a Chinese Tube with some stricter specifications. Reasonably priced and they sound great. |
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Post by gtrjunior on Nov 13, 2017 15:02:33 GMT -5
I wanted to revisit this thread as I’ve made a lot of changes to my setup and I’m getting phenomenal results and I wanted to share.
A few months ago I swapped my BKP’s out for a set of Dimarzio’s. A Super Distortion bridge and a PAF 36th anniversary neck. I also took the PCB board out on my Les Paul and rewired it 50’s style. Now I struggled to find the right volume pots. I went from 500k audio taper...too bright.
Then 300K linear taper. I liked this better but the taper was terrible.
So I went with 250K audio taper...finally got it right!
For a while I couldn’t understand why my HSS Strat sounded so much warmer than my LP....then it dawned on me that the Strat most likely had 250K pots.
Next I lowered the pickup height. I had them professionally installed and when I got it back they were at Gibson factory height. That’s just way too high for a hot pickup like the Dimarzio. I was hearing too much excessive noise even when my technique was good.
Then I started swapping preamp tubes( yes...again!!). I read through a ton of posts here and on other forums. I decided on this:
V1: Mullard RI
V2: JJ ECC83
V3: JJ long plate high gain
V4: NOS Mullard Blackburn
Lastly, I’ve got a BB Preamp Comp set at slightly above unity, treble cut, bass boost, gain on “0”.
I’ve recently re-discovered Gear 1 OD 2.
Let me tell you, I am completely blown away with this amp. It just keeps getting better and better.
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Post by cvogue on Dec 9, 2017 13:28:41 GMT -5
Yeah I'm going to check out gear 1 OD 2 at practice this next week... there's a vid of a guy demoing a Street Rod (like mine!) and that combo with a the gain up a bit past noon sounded killer!
I'm also having a love/hate relationship with my MXR 10 band eq. :/ I'll adjust it during practice and the next time I play it, not so good. The amp changes character as it warms up and my ears also change in a loud band setting. Right now I've got a "hockey stick" setup with no adjustments in the bass and then ramping up the higher frequencies. Gonna have to back it off, just sounded tinny the other night. It does help but a little EQ adjustment goes a long way with that in the loop.
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Post by gtrjunior on Dec 9, 2017 14:46:15 GMT -5
For a while I was using the same MXR eq. Then one day (I posted this in a thread here about how my Blackstar sounded so good at a gig and I wondered why I couldn’t get the QR to sound that good) I plugged straight in to the QR, no pedal board (that’s how I found out my wah was sucking tone) and was absolutely blown away....I’ve never plugged the MXR back in since. I don’t miss it one bit.
I will say this....if you have the chance to plug a BB Preamp into your amp similarnto how I describe above, by all means try it. I can’t explain it but the tone is just staggering.
There are several other pedals people are using as a boost too, iirc splawndude loves his Bad Monkey( is that what it’s called?). And the guy that was posting videos here a while back from France was using a BB Preamp too. And he had some killer tone.
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Post by cvogue on Dec 9, 2017 15:41:05 GMT -5
Interesting... yeah I saw the Bad Monkey on a pic of splawndude's board. I wasn't thrilled with it in one of my old rigs but as we are all finding out, different things (tubes, pedals, speakers) sound better or worse with different amps
I'm going to check out the BB preamp... thanks!
Edit: Just to be clear that's the Xotic BB Preamp, not someting by BBE true?
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Post by gtrjunior on Dec 9, 2017 15:49:28 GMT -5
I’ve never used a Bad Monkey but yeah, the BB is absolutely killer.
I have the BB comp version where you can set the level of compression the pedal gives....very cool feature.
There’s also a mid boost version but with a splawn I really don’t think that’s necessary!!! Lol
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PDC
Junior Member
Posts: 85
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Post by PDC on Dec 10, 2017 8:16:36 GMT -5
Fully loaded 50 watt QR. 1st Gear / toggle between OD1 and OD2 for different tunes on the song list. Mesa SPAX7s + GT-E34LS Tonestar thiele ported 2x12 loaded with 90 watt Celestion Creambacks (pic is my Splawn 4x12 with 65 watt creambacks) Earthquaker Devices Dispatch Master in the loop (Verb and Delay in one pedal) MXR Phase 90 / MXR Micro Flange / TC Corona in front of the amp Partscasters - 1 Mahogany, 1 Ash Warmoth necks - Wizard profile, 6100 SS frets Hipshot non-locking trems with Planet Waves staggered locking tuners / graph-tech nuts EMG 57 bridge pickups (Currently playing in a DLR Era VH tribute band) Ive also got a Nitro that I have used with my current band. Roll the resonance all the way back, and the minds all the way up and back off the gain, and she gets a convincing early VH tone! |
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PDC
Junior Member
Posts: 85
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Post by PDC on Dec 10, 2017 8:19:47 GMT -5
Not quite sure why these are loading sideways Attachments:
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Post by rodburner on Mar 1, 2018 22:21:35 GMT -5
Greetings Fellow Splawn Quick Rod Lovers,
I 'm new here and a noob to the Splawn Quick Rod. Heard the Quick Rod and sold all my Marshall's, and haven't looked back. I'm looking for recommendations on setting it up to maximize the Quick Rod. Reaching out to the experienced experts here for guidance setting up my first Quick Rod.
I believe its an early one with standard features not the B+ feature. none the less, it's the baddest monster I've heard yet. As some other unknown owner once put it, "The Quick Rod the greatest Marshall amp that Marshall never built". I think that in essence sums it up beautifully. Beat by one man at their own game. If that isn't the ideal of the American success story, I don't know what is......
So as a noob here and to the Quick Rod I am reaching out to the experienced experts here for guidance in setting up my new head for maximum effect.
All input is welcome and tremendously appreciated.
In closing I am glad to now be a member here and hope to at some point make meaningful contributions too.
Best regards, Rodburner
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Post by gtrjunior on Mar 2, 2018 5:42:40 GMT -5
Greetings Fellow Splawn Quick Rod Lovers,I 'm new here and a noob to the Splawn Quick Rod. Heard the Quick Rod and sold all my Marshall's, and haven't looked back. I'm looking for recommendations on setting it up to maximize the Quick Rod. Reaching out to the experienced experts here for guidance setting up my first Quick Rod. I believe its an early one with standard features not the B+ feature. none the less, it's the baddest monster I've heard yet. As some other unknown owner once put it, "The Quick Rod the greatest Marshall amp that Marshall never built". I think that in essence sums it up beautifully. Beat by one man at their own game. If that isn't the ideal of the American success story, I don't know what is...... So as a noob here and to the Quick Rod I am reaching out to the experienced experts here for guidance in setting up my new head for maximum effect.All input is welcome and tremendously appreciated.In closing I am glad to now be a member here and hope to at some point make meaningful contributions too. Best regards, Rodburner Welcome aboard!! I’d suggest starting a fresh thread on the subject so you don’t get lost in this one. Plus it will be an easier to find reference for anybody else that may be searching for some specific info similar to what you’re looking for. |
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