Most common uses of Workbench

[Indianrock2020]

My JTV59 is on order so I'm chomping at the bit to get into both HDEdit for my POD500x and the WorkBench software to see what can be done.

 

What are some of the most common changes people do in Workbench?    My focus will be mainstream rock tones ( not metal ) and  some use of things like R-billy Greth and Chime ( rick 6 or 12 string ) for softer tunes we use in church.

[Matt_Brown]

When I 1st got my JTV I had a play with some weird body/pickup combinations but to be honest I can't improve on the sounds of the factory guitars. I've mostly used it to add a couple of virtual capos on the actual guitar rather than do that per patch in Edit. Much more useful in worship stuff than some of the tunings that are loaded...

[Indianrock2020]

When I 1st got my JTV I had a play with some weird body/pickup combinations but to be honest I can't improve on the sounds of the factory guitars. I've mostly used it to add a couple of virtual capos on the actual guitar rather than do that per patch in Edit. Much more useful in worship stuff than some of the tunings that are loaded...

That's where I'll be using mine, in a worship band.  We've been working on arrangements lately ( with one acoustic and two electrics on many Sundays ) to try and not step on eachother's sonic turf.   So despite the controversy, I've been using capo on my Strat to get up into another register above the acoustic, while the other electric plays the really high bits.

 

Or sometimes I capo just because we don't get the set list more than six days in advance and I don't want to play in Eb, for example.  So looking forward to how the JTV is going to open this up.      Electric rhythm is what I'm excited about these days.  The high parts in most worship songs isn't all that exciting and the acoustic guitar is often buried in the mix so I see electric rhythm as a real "driver."

 

We're also working on using the mixer's high pass filter to keep piano and keys out of the prime guitar frequencies between 100 and 600 hertz.

[cruisinon2]

You're gonna have to play with individual string volumes...almost everybody does. Piezo outputs vary, and you will most likely find that some strings (B and high E strings in particular) are a little quieter than others. It varies from model to model, and from JTV to JTV. But workbench allows you to adjust the output for each string separately, and then save it to the guitar. There are also global string volume controls, though I find these of little use. Because some models suffer from this more than others, one universal adjustment isn't gonna help you much...you just end up fixing one model, and ruining everything else. All the models default to 100% output across all the strings, so it's actually a case of lowering the volume of the strings that are drowning the others out (sometimes by a lot...I've got the low E and A strings at 50-60% on some of the Strat models).

 

It can be a royal pain in the arse to get them all balanced, especially if you end up using lots of different models frequently, but you only have to do it once. Save, and done.

[mcbeddall]

Yeah I had to do the same with string volumes , and I also ended up with the wound strings down to 50-60%

 

I also turned all the models up a bit so that they matched the output of the magnetic pickups , so that I don't get a sudden jump up in volume or distortion if I switch or lose power to the guitar

 

I also tried creating some of my own models but couldn't better the presets either though when I find the time I plan on having another go at this (as I'm using a firehawk it seemed a lot of hassle to set up so that I could hear the guitar while adjusting sounds to be honest , so I don't do it that often , I mean I have guitar, firehawk, usb interface, laptop, tablet, speaker to all connect up , it's a right pain , I have no idea why the firehawk couldn't at least replace the usb interface)

[Charlie_Watt]

Yes - setting string volumes and model volumes are the most used features in WB for me also.  I have not messed with the models much.

[clay-man]

Edit models, volume settings, and specs of certain models, 

custom models I prefer to add to the roster (fender jaguar, fender jazzmaster, 3 way humbucker strat, bass model, JTV 89 models, SG model)

 

I like to also still use the model tunings for any tunings that I might want to access on certain models when I already have so many tunings on the tuning knob (Yes, I use that many tunings). Usually if I really want a random tuning, I'll just throw it on Open D and edit that, but sometimes it's nice to just have a tuning more instantly than fiddling with virtual capo.

[ajcrowder]

When I 1st got my JTV I had a play with some weird body/pickup combinations but to be honest I can't improve on the sounds of the factory guitars. I've mostly used it to add a couple of virtual capos on the actual guitar rather than do that per patch in Edit. Much more useful in worship stuff than some of the tunings that are loaded...

 

This was my experience.  I love pretty much all of the factory guitars but having some extra tunings is helpful.  

 

FWIW, it was more helpful for me to setup alternate tunings on the Variax that could be used universally.  Granted, I couldn't change the label on the dial, but it is nice to be able to throw a 1st fret capo with relative ease onto any of the models.

[DarrellM5]

I almost exclusively use Workbench to set up alternate tunings.  I've got my JTV-69 loaded with some Devin Townsend tunings (open C and open B ) and some tunings for Keith Merrow, Adrian Legg and Leo Kottke songs.  I also loaded the JTV-89 models in it.

[cruisinon2]

I almost exclusively use Workbench to set up alternate tunings. I've got my JTV-69 loaded with some Devin Townsend tunings (open C and open B ) and some tunings for Keith Merrow, Adrian Legg and Leo Kottke songs. I also loaded the JTV-89 models in it.

Ah! A fellow Legg-head, lol. Very unique player. See him live if you get the chance...he's hilarious. Half the show is a comedy routine.

[Indianrock2020]

Some "virtual capo" tunings would help me.  Ideally I could have one for Capo 1st fret, 2nd, 3rd and 4th.   This helps when you don't like the key chosen for the song by others and/or you're trying to get into a sonic space between other instruments.

I was surprised a while back when I read that guitar fundamental frequencies really only go up to about 1000 hz

Instrument EQ  Chart

 

 

* 82.4 E - open 6th string
* 87.3 F
* 92.5 F#
* 98.0 G
* 103.8 G#
* 110.0 A - open 5th string
* 116.5 A#
* 123.5 B
* 130.8 C
* 138.6 C#
* 146.8 D - open 4th string
* 155.6 D#
* 164.8 E
* 174.6 F
* 185.0 F#
* 196.0 G - open 3rd string
* 207.6 G#
* 220.0 A
* 233.1 A#
* 246.9 B - open 2nd string
* 261.6 C - "middle C"
* 277.2 C#
* 293.6 D
* 311.1 D#
* 329.6 E - open 1st string
* 349.2 F
* 370.0 F#
* 392.0 G
* 415.3 G#
* 440.0 A - 5th fret on 1st string
* 466.1 A#
* 493.8 B
* 523.2 C
* 554.3 C#
* 587.3 D
* 622.2 D#
* 659.2 E - 12th fret on 1st string
 

[Charlie_Watt]

And standard guitar amps only have a bandwidth of about 6KHz.