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Post by Beckanon on Jun 18, 2005 8:54:08 GMT -7
As we all know, this is a loud amp. I have been using an attenuator just so I could get the amp into that clean/gritty area for base rhythm tones. All of my dirt pedals sound great with this amp, but I think my favorite boost right now is the BJF Sea Blue EQ. The volume boost hits the EF86 preamp nice and hard if I want it to, and the treble and bass knobs are so refined in their spectrum...it is easy to tweak to an overdriven/boosted sound you like. I imagine the way I am using this "EQ" pedal is similar to what the Klon might do.
What are you all using to boost....Klon, Hot Cake, Fat Boost? Let 'er spill.
(BTW, I would love to just run the amp wide open. I've done that before, but its just not practical for my band. I'm not getting rid of this amp any time soon either!)
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Post by Laroosco!! on Jun 18, 2005 18:35:45 GMT -7
I gigged my 66 for the first time last night. It's my old school blues gig.
I played my Red Epi Dot(thanks again Joe!) w/ a Duncan 59 bridge pup.
Treble 3:00 Bass 3:00 Vol 11:00
I used my Mini Mass to take the volume down a bit.
The tone was perfect. Big and fat. When I would dig in it would crunch like a Mutha!
I used my Bronto to kick it up a notch for the few rockin tunes we did. The Bronto is a killer with this amp. I wish you could all hear it.
I have a big festival gig on the 9th and I plan to use my Strat most of the show. I'll be using my Easy Face as well as the Bronto. I hope I have my Hellbilly by then too so I can give that a whirl. Should be fun.
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Post by stormholloway on Jun 18, 2005 19:35:26 GMT -7
laroosco: I've heard that by cranking the treble and bass that you can boost the drive of the amp a bit, kinda like a secret gain knob. Is this true? And do you know how the mini mass compares to the z air brake?
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Post by Laroosco!! on Jun 18, 2005 21:15:28 GMT -7
I've never tried a Z Air brake but the mini mass works great(especially for the $100 it cost)
The tone knobs on the Route 66 act like gain knobs for there respective frequency as well as shaping the tone.
If you turn the tone controls way up then you get a more aggressive tone as lower volumes. If you keep them down you get cleaner tone higher up on the volume. It's a lot of fun to play with. Not like other amps.
The KT45, Z28 and Delta 88 share the tone controls as well.
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Post by Beckanon on Jun 19, 2005 19:01:11 GMT -7
Glad to hear you still have the Epi! Cool, I bet it sounded killer with the new rig. Lately I have been thinking 335 again...I would get another Epi probably.
What's the Hellbilly?
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Post by Laroosco!! on Jun 19, 2005 21:24:48 GMT -7
The Dot is great. I gave it to my brother for Christmas but missed it so much that I gave him my G&L ASAT Classic and he let me have the Dot back. That guitar plays so nice. The Hellbilly is a Bob McBroom creation that can only be bought thru Tonefactor.com. It's a Fuzz/rangemaster thing. The clips sound realy good. www.tonefactor.com/proddetail.php?prod=hellbilly
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Post by Beckanon on Jun 20, 2005 7:05:23 GMT -7
Those clips sound real nice. I'm gonna have to think about getting one of those.
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Post by guitarhero on Jun 21, 2005 6:25:09 GMT -7
Best way to boost the RT-66 depends on the size of the stage. For small stages, I crank the treble and bass all the way and use a 2x10 cab. Then I kick in the Fat Boost (Fulltone) when I need the hair on the back of my neck to raise a bit. Without the Fat Boost, I kick in my AC boost, which is a little too buttery or mushy for chords but it does make for a nice lead tone as long as the volume is turned up and the gain turned down on the pedal. The tone of the amp gets lost if the AC boost is too gainy to begin with at this particular amp setting.
For larger stages or outdoor stages I use a 2x12 cab and I keep the tone at 12 o'clock. This allows me to dial in more gain from the fat boost and the AC booster. The only problem I find with the pedals is that you lose some of that shimmer in the chords, so it is nice to have the RT-66 set up with a little gain in the sound either from the volume knog cranked, OR the treble and bass cranked.
Using smaller speakers on smaller stages makes a huge difference with the RT-66 on smaller stages. I highly recommend the 2x10 or 1x12 for that purpose. But nothing is better than the z-best 2x12 cab for an outdoor arena or larger club. The only problem with the z-best cab is that you have to crank the amp in order to make those 2x12's sing. That is why it is so good on larger stages. Soundmen have remarked about how much the sound carries and how pleasantly loud it is on these bigger stages. I played an outdoor show recently and the soundman did not even put me in the PA because the z-best engulfed the area with so much sound. It is also essential in packed clubs where there are so many bodies absorbing the sound. The z-best can be a detriment when you are on a smaller more responsive stage unless you have an Airbrake to get the right gain level.
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Post by stormholloway on Jun 21, 2005 13:05:06 GMT -7
So is the general consensus that the 66 doesn't provide enough gain and that a pedal is necessary?
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Post by Laroosco!! on Jun 21, 2005 14:26:20 GMT -7
So is the general consensus that the 66 doesn't provide enough gain and that a pedal is necessary? No. When I play my 335 or my and I have the volume at 11:00 it has plenty of gain. I can play leads and rhythm without pedals, but don't choose to all the time. Of course it depends on what you consider plenty of gain.
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Post by Beckanon on Jun 22, 2005 7:37:14 GMT -7
Dime everything on the Rt66 and it will shake the foundation of any building. It is a "classic" sounding gain, no modern distortion sounds in there. Of course with humbuckers, you get there much easier...with single coils and everything dimed, it's nice and crunchy but not as silky as with good humbuckers.
I'm talking about boosts for when you have certain stage volume requirements...which, for me, is often.
I still from time to time don't use any pedals and dial in my MiniMass to a usable volume while putting all Rt66 dials on max.
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Post by hawkeyeinexile on Jun 28, 2005 8:01:16 GMT -7
So is the general consensus that the 66 doesn't provide enough gain and that a pedal is necessary? in my experience (i've had 3 Rt66s), yes - with lower-output single coil guitars, in which case i used a Pharaoh Amps Class A Boost or a Menatone pedal. less need w/higher-output humbuckers.
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Post by stormholloway on Jun 28, 2005 11:32:32 GMT -7
Even cranked? Do you use an attenuator?
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Post by Laroosco!! on Jun 28, 2005 11:55:18 GMT -7
If you crank your Route 66 it is going to overdrive even with a Strat, but it night still be too loud for most people.
I use an attenuator and when I use my Strat I put the volume at 11-12:00. It gets a great old skool OD tone.
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Post by myles on Jun 28, 2005 13:09:40 GMT -7
So is the general consensus that the 66 doesn't provide enough gain and that a pedal is necessary? in my experience (i've had 3 Rt66s), yes - with lower-output single coil guitars, in which case i used a Pharaoh Amps Class A Boost or a Menatone pedal. less need w/higher-output humbuckers. First ..... Welcome to the forum. Second .... Have you tried running the tone controls in unison almost to the end of being maxed? This will increase the agressive aspects that this amp can do with other settings.
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Post by taswegian on Jul 2, 2005 21:17:55 GMT -7
I use the Fulltone Fat Boost and/or the Fulldrive 2 on Compression Cut for a non coloring boost. Quality products Recently I tried an Ulbrick Music "Megalodon" and it is wonderful. It received rave reviews in Guitar Player Mag. www.guitarplayer.com/archive/1204/1204_BenchTests11.htm Dave Ulbrick is the tone guru of Australia. His 12AXE also takes "tubescreamer" to another level. I have his Pro Octave fuzz. Can't go wrong with Dave.
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Post by stormholloway on Jul 2, 2005 22:03:29 GMT -7
Well, my RT66 is sucking big time. It doesn't distort, drive, crunch--whatever you want to call it. I've cranked it max on all knobs. It's loud, but it isn't touch sensitive. Needless to say I'm extremely disappointed and borderline depressed. I made a thread about it but nobody is responding. Seven views though... hmm.
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Post by hambone on Jul 6, 2005 11:18:18 GMT -7
I've never tried a Z Air brake but the mini mass works great(especially for the $100 it cost) The tone knobs on the Route 66 act like gain knobs for there respective frequency as well as shaping the tone. If you turn the tone controls way up then you get a more aggressive tone as lower volumes. If you keep them down you get cleaner tone higher up on the volume. It's a lot of fun to play with. Not like other amps. The KT45, Z28 and Delta 88 share the tone controls as well. Just a clarification here. The Tone and Bass knobs act as straight EQs up until 12:00. After 12:00 they add saturation to those two frequencies. Instead of more treble or bass, you get fatter treble and bass. It is very unique.
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Post by fretts on Jul 13, 2005 23:15:41 GMT -7
Fulltone FatBoost will send it over the top for sure. The OCD will do it too, but it is more like an amp all by itself.
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Post by fretts on Jul 13, 2005 23:20:27 GMT -7
Well, my RT66 is sucking big time. It doesn't distort, drive, crunch--whatever you want to call it. I've cranked it max on all knobs. It's loud, but it isn't touch sensitive. Needless to say I'm extremely disappointed and borderline depressed. I made a thread about it but nobody is responding. Seven views though... hmm. This must be tube problems, weak input from the guitar or else a defect in the amp. The 66 is one crankin' M-F and getting it to sing is no problem. How sure are you about the tubes? Did you get this amp new or used? It is possible that some uninformed person replaced the first tube with a 12AX7 instead of an EF86. It will fit in the same socket. That would take all the fight out of it.
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Post by myles on Jul 14, 2005 8:45:02 GMT -7
Well, my RT66 is sucking big time. It doesn't distort, drive, crunch--whatever you want to call it. I've cranked it max on all knobs. It's loud, but it isn't touch sensitive. Needless to say I'm extremely disappointed and borderline depressed. I made a thread about it but nobody is responding. Seven views though... hmm. This must be tube problems, weak input from the guitar or else a defect in the amp. The 66 is one crankin' M-F and getting it to sing is no problem. How sure are you about the tubes? Did you get this amp new or used? It is possible that some uninformed person replaced the first tube with a 12AX7 instead of an EF86. It will fit in the same socket. That would take all the fight out of it. The amp will not work if a dual triode (12AX7) is put into V1 where the pentode (EF86) is supposed to go.
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Post by bern1 on Sept 16, 2005 11:42:37 GMT -7
I love the way this thing sounds with the treble at 3 o'clock, bass at about 10 or 11 and the volume at 1 o'clock. Uniquely fat! That's why I got this amp!
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Post by taswegian on Sept 16, 2005 18:41:44 GMT -7
I'm the opposite. I like the Route 66 with the bass on 3 oclock and the treble around 1/2 past 12. For Rock it gives you all the grunt but also beautiful definition. Volume I like around 12 to 2 oclock.
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Post by Laroosco!! on Sept 16, 2005 21:05:54 GMT -7
Treble Full Bass Noon Volume 11:00
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Post by fireball on Sept 17, 2005 8:20:47 GMT -7
Historic Les Paul with Voodoo '59's > Route 66 > Germino closed back 2x12 with Greenbacks....
Treble- 2:00 Bass- 2:00 Volume- 3:00
Sometimes I use a Klon set for a pure clean boost (gain off) for a little extra "kick".
With my strat, I'll often use an Analogman TS-9. When using the TS-9, I usually run the volume on the amp slightly less because I typically dime the pedals volume control.
I play blues based rock and this setup has been one of the most satisfying rigs I've played!
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Post by ducmike on Sept 18, 2005 8:26:02 GMT -7
Trebel = 3:00 Bass = Noonish Volume = 1:00-3:00 For boost I use a Hellbaby with gain off, or a Maxon OD9 for more gain, and both for heavyer R&R.
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Post by janinedoubly on Sept 28, 2005 14:41:39 GMT -7
Any good true transparent booster/overdrive will work well with the 66 to give it more gain. I like Fatboosts, Klons, Cornish Linear Boosts and Keeley's Katana Boost (especially!). If you need modern gain tones, try the 66 clean into a Z Best 212 or a Bogner Cube 112 with a Keeley Modded DS-1, BD-2 or (I dare say it...) Metal Zone. For that kind of sound, the 66 literally blows away any Mesa Dual/Triple Rectofire. It takes these pedals so well, you'd never know it isn't a pure tube signal path.
Chris Mass Street Music
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Post by taswegian on Sept 28, 2005 15:43:09 GMT -7
Well said Chris! I think the versitility of the 66 gets overlooked. With a decent overdrive/boost/distortion you can pull some of the most toneful yet aggressive tones to cover anything from Van Halen 1 through to Foo Fighters/modern rock...or "Jessie" by Paw, ha ha! We played "Owner of a Lonely Heart" the other night and with a fuzz/overdrive combination and the ad-80 I had the meanest intro sound for that song. The amp inhales fuzz! Any 70's rock it will just kill. Take it to your jazz gig! Tele it up for country! and we all know it is just about THE blues amp but... Far from just a blues amp.
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Post by taswegian on Oct 1, 2005 11:13:12 GMT -7
Tonite I gigged with the Tonefactor Hellbilly for the first time (filling in my brothers coverband) and really, really dug it. Played Lenny Kravitz and Jimi and Cream, some Bowie, Queens of the Stone Age, and it sounded great. The weird thing was as I was playing it I kept hearing early Black Sabbath tones ala Ionni and his rangemaster, and also some Blackmore tones. A nice change up with the Rt 66 overdrive when you just need to get a little nasty. And it's so affordable! Great pedal.
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Post by kc on Oct 2, 2005 8:23:05 GMT -7
In these type of discussions, I think it would be helpful to give an idea of what kind of sound you are shooting for. I play blues and 60's/70's rock, so I have no need or want for a high gain sound. So here's what works for me ...
I recently purchased a Banzai Cold Fusion and it's pretty good. I haven't used many of the other OD stomp boxes mentioned in this forum, so I can't compare it to those.
But ... what really works for me and what I use 95% of the time is the mid boost in my Clapton Strat. I'm really happy with the sound I get thru this chain -- not very much a typical Strat sound because of the DiMarzio, but great IMO:
Clapton Strat w/mid boost > DiMarzio VV Solo bridge pup > Route 66 > Air Brake > 1 x 12 cab w/Celestion Blue
kc
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