boomer
Junior Member
Posts: 54
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Post by boomer on Nov 13, 2006 10:22:30 GMT -7
I just purchased a new StangRay. It easily has one of the most beautifull sounds I have heard. The only thing is, it is really bright. I usually end up running my cut almost off and it still has plenty of sparkle. I also am having a hard time finding a good boost and Od to work with it. What have you guys done? Speakers? Tubes? Beam Blockers? thanks Boo
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Nov 13, 2006 10:42:17 GMT -7
The 'ray can be plenty bright, especially with the Alnico Blues. If it's too bright, going to a warmer speaker might be just the ticket for you. Speakers make a huge difference in this regard. I happen to like it bright, but I know I've seen others here mention this. When I had my Mazerati, I wasn't thrilled at first with the speakers, and bought some Weber Ceramic Blue Dogs in 50W. They sounded pretty good to me until they broke in, when a LOT of the top edge just went away. They still sounded good, just not bright. I still have those - I should put them up on the for sale board... As far as pedals go, I'm using a BB Preamp with the treble turned down to about 10 o'clock and it's working really great. If I leave the treble up, it gets pretty fizzy. But with the treble down, it just roars. YMMV. Since I like more top edge than you do, my advice should be taken with due consideration. I still think the BB would be worth trying because there is a long way on the treble control from where I run it to where you hit the stopper... Try some different speakers - I think that's going to be the biggest bang for the buck here.
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boomer
Junior Member
Posts: 54
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Post by boomer on Nov 13, 2006 10:47:15 GMT -7
Yeah I have a BB preamp and it is the best combo so far. I am thinking speakers might be the way to go. There is a big difference b/t my 2 Celestion Blues and my V30 G12H30 combo. Let me know if you decide to sell those Webers. Thanks Boo
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Nov 13, 2006 11:15:44 GMT -7
Yeah I have a BB preamp and it is the best combo so far. I am thinking speakers might be the way to go. There is a big difference b/t my 2 Celestion Blues and my V30 G12H30 combo. Let me know if you decide to sell those Webers. Thanks Boo I'd sell them to you but I'm heading out of town for a couple weeks right after work tonight, so we really can't talk turkey till end of the month.
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Post by Bill on Nov 13, 2006 12:59:11 GMT -7
Generally speaking the 'Ray is not really a bright amp IMO. If the tone knob is at noon or below, it can be very bright though. I prefer a loud, dark tone (like Brad), and run a Cannabis Rex hemp speaker with the amp tone at almost 3:00, and the cut knob around noon to 2:00. With this setting I get loud, tight, thumping lows and sparkly highs. One big key to acheiving all this is a Keeley comp and an RC Booster hitting the front end. I also always use the Tele bridge pickup, and roll the tone back to 7 or 8...never full on except in "extreme" situations.
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Nov 13, 2006 13:40:14 GMT -7
Madison makes a great point - I've been running my tone at about 10 o'clock to noon - the amp has a LOT of bottom from noon to the right on the tone knob. You must have tried it over there at some time...
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Post by billyguitar on Nov 13, 2006 14:59:01 GMT -7
If you stay on the bridge pickup you can push that tone knob high but watch out if you go to the neck pickup! Usually on a gig I turn the cut off and then open it a hair. I set the tone control at about 10:00. I usually stay on the neck humbucking pickup with my Tom Anderson. My amp seems to like pedals fine but then I don't swap pedals around much. I just stick with what works. Benttop mentioned the BB being a little fizzy and that's what I thought too when I tried one with my amp but it could work.
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Post by hdahs143 on Nov 13, 2006 22:22:51 GMT -7
Tone is usually in the 11-12 o'clock range and cut in the 9-10 o'clock range. As mentioned above, speakers play a big part. I would also mention that when I replaced the Sovtek rectifier tube with a decent NOS tube, the sound got beefier in a hurry. It's a great amp, so just experiment and give it some time. You will find it to be probably the best amp you've ever played. Good Luck
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Post by Hohn on Nov 13, 2006 22:56:51 GMT -7
I'm glad Bill mentioned the relationship between the Tone and Cut controls, because I find that the higher I run the TONE, the more CUT I can add and still get a pleasant sound.
It's because of the weird way the Tone control works. At first, the tone control seems to just add a little midbass. Then as the bottom end fills out, you get to about halfway on the knob. After that, you get a little more bass AND a little less bite, which the cut can restore.
I find that if I run the Tone below 10:00 or so, I can't run the Cut up past 9:00 without the ice pick coming in. But if I run the tone up to 3:00 or so, I can run the Cut up to noon or even higher and still get a balanced tone.
FWIW-- I run the Tone on all my guitars pretty much wide open (I know, rookie player), and mostly have the volume cranked at the guitar.
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Post by Bill on Nov 14, 2006 8:18:16 GMT -7
The tone knob at 2 or 3:00 with cut at noon works only with the bridge pickup. The few times I may go to neck, I'll turn and quickly dial the amp tone knob straight up along with maxing the guitar tone. If I switched a lot like most players, this would be an aggravation. But I dig the fat, compressed Tele bridge tone and pretty much stay put all night. If you need a bit more twang, just pull a Pete Anderson and pick back near the bridge
If I ever go back to playing strats where I tend to use all 5 positions, the knobs would have to find a compromise somewhere.
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boomer
Junior Member
Posts: 54
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Post by boomer on Nov 14, 2006 8:54:18 GMT -7
I am digging this thing more and more. Today was the day I had to decide to keep it or not. I think I will keep it. I use a wide variety of guitars. I think this thing is going to be great on sessions. Can't wait to try some tube and speaker swapping. Thanks Boo
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Post by Bill on Nov 14, 2006 8:59:18 GMT -7
I am digging this thing more and more. Today was the day I had to decide to keep it or not. I think I will keep it. I use a wide variety of guitars. I think this thing is going to be great on sessions. Can't wait to try some tube and speaker swapping. Thanks Boo Welcome to the 'Ray club! +1 karma for making, at least what I consider, an excellent decision. ;D
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Post by Hohn on Nov 22, 2006 1:04:32 GMT -7
OK I just did some playing with my "tele" with Bardens.
Brand new strings went on (DR coated in blue to match the guitar, haha)
I sat RIGHT IN FRONT of the amp and decided to dial in a tone I thought sounded good in all three pickup positions. To my surprise, Tone was at 1:00, Cut was around 2:00. Volume was low, as it was late and I had the 'plate on -4db.
I kept cranking the Cut up higher and higher, and it got a hair brighter, but NEVER got harsh. This is TOTALLY different than I remember it being. My memory is that this amp is really bright. Then I actually sit in front of it and mess around a bit only to find that it really isn't that bright after all.
What changed? Did my Blues shift on me? The Blues are smoooooth, and the sound on the Tele bridge pup is totally 3-d on the plain strings-- just totally surreal.
I'm starting to think that setting up this amp is gonna be real easy-- just set the tone and cut to noon, then crank of the volume to the right level. Add cut as needed.
Getting great sounds from this amp is just silly easy. It's not capably of bad sounds, just misadjusted ones. At any sane settings, the sound varies from really good to positively magical!
Lord, I love this amp! God Bless Mike Zaite!
Justin
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