ricstudioc

The Dyno label maker rules supreme - but then I run a pretty standardized set of fx. Stomp (1st stage dist) - Spec (anything, but most often 2nd stage) - Mod (again, anything) - Delay. For me it's less about remembering - it IS fairly standard - and more about quick visibility on a dark stage. By the same token I have all the ins/outs I use Dyno'd - more visible than the factory lettering. When you're doing a bunch of back-to-back festival sets, the minutes matter in setup.

Howdy Nick - Thanks for the input - so to be clear, the DI out on the amp DOES in fact model the combo's own speaker response? Cool. I went back in and removed the speakers models from the amp, am now just EQ'ing based on the onboard speaker. I've done the same with my HD patches when using Link. Just seems like too many variables to muck about with, and certainly the combo speaker sounds fine. As mentioned above, our sound tech thinks what he's getting from the DI sounds good, and I trust his ears - was just curious to know how closely that matched what I'm hearing from the amp... Thanks!

Alrighty then - Finally found some free time, updated my 25-112 to 2.0 - no problems, shot right in. Heh heh - OK, this is too much fun, fired up dtedit and began pickin' models for positions 1-4 on A & B. Again, no probs, smooth as silk. But the thought occurs - I went ahead and let the cab models load in with the preamp models, certainly each position has it's own sound, but do the cabinet models take into account the response curve of the physical speaker? Or are they strictly the "DI" use models from the HD's without any compensation? (And if not - heck, why not? They could certainly model the DT's own physical cab, use it as a "filter" of sorts for the modeled cabs. Just wishin..) And while I'm asking - first live gigs with the DT I've gone with the DI out, our sound guy's been happy with what he's getting for FOH. If I leave the modeled cabs in place, I assume they go to the DI - but if not, is it just some sort of "generic" speaker emulator going to the DI, or is it modeled on the actual response of the DT cab itself? As always, insights welcomed! Ric

Just for discussion - my GNX3, which is what I've replaced with the 500x, did 3 things (my opinion) better than the HD - The wah - like the OP here, I prefer a warmer, low end kind of wah. The GNX parameters were spot on, let me dial in just the range I was looking for. Not giving up on the HD yet, still tweaking - but I've blown the dust outta my 535Q and put it on deck. The univibe - the HD's (and M13's come to think of it) have way too much of a.... plateau? "scoop"?..... at the bottom of the cycle. Try as I might I can't get rid of it. GNX was buttah...... smooth and creamy. Intelligent pitch shifter - something's not quite right with the HD's implementation here, I'd love to see them "finish" it with more of the actual scales as opposed to their little chart "if you want E dorian, set it for "X" xxxxxx). I've been doing a couple tunes for some time using the IPS, and switching from the GNX to the HD some notes got changed. Haven't had time to sit down and side-by-side them, but someone's wrong..... Still - the HD's overall abilities smoke the GNX, one reason I decided to upgrade my 10 yr old tech......... But I'd love to see them nudge the modeling on those items....

Ah well - worth the ask. My Dancing Bear was Dave D - great guy, great memories - we attended RA back in the '70s in Lenox, Mass. The sig was a Lazurus Long quote - nice to meet another Heinlein fan. Can't tell you how influential his work was to me, and how much it shaped the philosophies I've lived my life by. Travel well, my friend....

Dave - A) The sig I got via Robert Heinlein, basically an admonition that, when you're faced with something truly amazing - don't beef about the details. Just enjoy the dancing. So much of the tech appearing these days qualifies as Dancing Bears.... B) If the name Rockwood Academy rings a bell with you - we know each other. (Not holding my breath here - but wierder things have happened in my life.....) Ric edit - and again with the B ). The space makes all the difference..

As always, YMMV - but as I mentioned I was in rehearsal, didn't seem to be getting there. Looked at the amp, channel pre/posts seemed decent, and amp master was around 75%. Said heck with it, jumped the master up - WHOA!!! It was certainly NOT "a bit" more. Seems like there's a LOT of push in that last quarter throw on that knob. Hey - I'm still learning this rig. But from now on, I start w/the master maxed, and back down if/as needed. There's plenty of juice in the 25...

Thanks guys - appreciate the insights! David - yeah, for some years now when I change p/u's on a guitar I've prefered doing it "wire to wire", if only because a few moments too long on the pots with an iron and you've toasted them. Never had a problem doing it that way - in fact the Tele I mentioned is a test-bed of sorts, and I actually have it's p/u's wire-nutted in to facilitate quick change outs. No probs.... And one reason I've asked - no way am I going near the pots/switches on this thing. I have yet to open it up, but I'm certain those ain't your run of the mill controls, they're doing way too many things. Any mods would need to be "on wire", or maybe adding a jumper or such on a board. I'm fairly tech-savvy - but part of that is knowing what not to muck about with. I'm curious David - was there a notable tonal difference w/the DiMarzio's (other than the noise)? Those ARE essentially stacked 'buckers, yes? I've been a Duncan guy for a number of years - thought I'd give'em a call (they're quite nice folks) and discuss my situation with them, see what they'd suggest. Some excellent points above, guys - thanks so much!! The quest continues.... OH, and a quick followup to another post I recently made - I've installed a Fishman TriplePlay on the JTV a couple days back. I'm a long time 13 pin guy, and I'm here to tell ya - freakin' amazing!! Super easy install, tracking definately exceeds the Roland stuff, I have access to all the sounds in my live keyboard rig lappy - and NO CABLE!! Halle-freakin-luah!! Run the JTV thru my Relay, wireless to MIDI........ woof. I'm not getting rid of my Steiny - but the JTV has become my "magic" guitar - all of the modeling & synth access I've had in the past, and I'm not moving one. single. piece. of extra gear. Hot damn!!!! (Will that become "Hot Lollipop"? Let's press "post" and find out....)

Uhh - I'll resist the urge.... Responsively A) because when engaging a model (which do seem to be more "in the park" tonally) I'd then have to roll it back up to avoid them being muddy, and B) I prefer my instruments to default to the desired tonality. If this were a standard passive guitar (or even an active type like my Steiny) I wouldn't be asking this - I'd have already modded the electronics to my desired effect. But there is effectively a computer inside this thing - so I'm asking questions before grabbin' the knife. If it's possible to achieve the desired goal without spending money on p/u's I'd give it a go..... edit - that smiley shoulda been a "B )" - this board does seem to have a mind of it's lollipoppin' own....

Howdy hey - This is for the guys (gals) that have gone into the guts of the JTV's - swapped pickups and such, and maybe familiar with the circuitry in the thing - this is regarding the mag pickups - Having worked with the JTV69 for the past six weeks or so, I've come to the conclusion that the mags are just too damn bright for my tastes/style - this thing makes an ASAT sound muddy by comparison. Note that I am NOT slamming it here - it's a great axe - but for my style/sound it's just so piercing. My "main" axe is a Steinberger GM Pro, with fallbacks being Strats and a Tele - and when I have my sound dialed in for all of those (warm, full - well, not so much the Tele...) the JTV just drills thru like an icepick. (Note - mags only, the models - say "Lester" for example - seem just right..) As I say, fair enough - it is what it is, nothing "wrong" in any sense of the word, it's the nature of the beast. But it's far enough away from my usual sound that I want to do something about it. And I'd rather not have a bunch of separate settings just for one axe (and what if I'm out jamming or such, using someone else's gear?) SO - the obvious option will be to swap out p/u's to ones with less teeth. Somewhere around here I've seen pictures of the circuit board the p/u's solder to - no big deal it would seem, I'm handy enough with an iron. But I was wondering if any of the "mod gods" around here know - is there anyplace in the guts of this thing to intercept the mags signal, maybe lay a filter cap across the line and just globally roll of some high? Or for that matter are there any adjustments (trim pots, etc) to be found in there? Not optimistic, it seems to be a highly integrated environment in there - but it's worth asking, It would, after all, be faster/simpler/cheaper to just drop a cap on the passive line before it merges to the outs. Just thought I'd ask before I start tearing into this puppy (and spending bucks on new p/u's...) All insights welcome!!

Depends - are you relying on the amp alone to get your sound out to the audience, or mic'ing thru the front of house? If the first, you might want more wattage. If the latter, I've found my 25 to be more than adequate for my needs - and since I designed my bands sound system with 5 discrete monitor sends everyone on stage can get what they want blasting away at them. BTW - I used the term "mic'ing" - I've actually been using the DI on the amp to send to the FOH. We have a very good FOH engineer, quite experienced, and he's been very happy with what he's hearing out front... edit - btw, I've found there's a hell of a lot of volume difference between 75% and 100% on the DT master knob. Tripped me up in rehearsal last night in fact. Just pin that puppy to max and adjust levels on the channel controls...

I've also got an M13, been gathering dust for a while (well, I've got closets full o' gear getting dusty). I've been tempted to pull it out in the same way you're using it - but my primary band is a "business" band, and I just don't need that much processing for it. Plus I also haul around a keyboard rig w/this band, and simple logistics discourage me from moving more gear. Having said that - if a side project comes along, something w/a little more creativity involved - I'm there!! Break out the Swiffers, get the dust offa some of the "closet" gear, and start patching..... I also use the G50 - bang for the buck is just stupid, very solid unit. I HAVE had a couple "one note" dropouts - literally, like a single note - have not determined where that comes from. But a dead quiet, highly reliable unit - I bought extra transmitters for the other 2 guitars I use live. And I had a local elec shop put 90's on the current cables - gotta say L6 is asking silly money for their 90-equipped ones.

...and that's my last word on "lolli-gate"....

Thanks guys - ordering today!! (Gotta go back and re-watch Wizard of Oz - exactly what does the "Lollipop Guild" do...?)

I got in a bit late on the "midi jtv" thread, no one has picked up on my questions there, so new thread - I'm dying to jump into the TP - I mean come on, a wireless Variax w/wireless MIDI - but have a few questions: For just the basic "driver/gui" install - not any of the included synths - are there any licensing issues, perhaps other than a basic challenge/response (if even that)? I noted a thread somewhere where the poster mentioned a problem with the physical spacing of the pickup (i.e. the TP pickup was wider than the available space and he had to route and move the bridge pickup) - I'm using a 69, anyone know if I'll have to lollipop around with such on installation? And perhaps the biggie - does/can the TP show up as a controller source inside a DAW? In my current live keyboard rig (which is what I'd like to access with the TP) I use Ableton as a host for the plethora of soft synths I already have (hence my dismissal of the included synths, above). Perfect world, the TP would simply appear as another MIDI source, like any of the keyboards I currently have attached. Anybody done this? (Btw - 32 bit environment...) I'm eager to go into the TP, lose the 13pin cable and commitment to Roland sounds that entails, but to do so means I'll have to muck about with a thoroughly-debugged and smoothly functioning music laptop, which I hesitate to do until I'm sure it will do what I want/need. So - you TP users out there, enlighten me please.... Thanks! Ric addendum - "lollipop"?? "LOLLIPOP"?? What the heck is that?? I sure didn't type that - am assuming some little 'bot objected to whatever word I used and auto replaced it - but I'm not given to unneeded vulgarities in public forums. Wish I could recall what I typed there. Oh well - lollipop it. (I did type that one....)

Hey there - I've been giving a lot of thought to the Triple Play, reading some comments above I'm concerned/curious - is there some kind of copy protection involved with the TP itself ("software key" was mentioned), or is that only if you're gonna use the bundled software (which I'm not)? And - if not using any of the bundled stuff (I'd be running this into my live keyboard rig which is laptop/Ableton based), does the TP simply show up as an available controller in whatever host software you're using? VERY pleased to see comments from other 13 pin users - the TP tracking is notably better than GK-based, eh? I could deal with "as good as" - been living with that for years, but if it actually exceeds the GK response... suh-weet!

OK - took a quick look thru the Advanced Guide for the HD - see Appendix B4 for info on configuring bank/program changes messages leaving the HD.. IF you have some form of sequencer/DAW, it might save you some time if you hooked up the voicelive to it's midi in/out, hit record, and start stepping thru the programs on the VL. This would let you see the messages it sends out for a program change, which in turn would let you know what messages you need to send to it. The sheer number of patches available on the HD may require you to get familiar with Bank Select messages, which can get kinda involved - we're cursed by our abundance of choices! Like said above - lotsa reading, and trial and error - but it seems that you should be able to get things to work after a bit of poking and prodding... Happy Hunting! quick edit - go down thru those Appendixes a little further, appears that the HD has some pretty flexible midi send options, looks to me like you should be able to get on the right track fairly quickly...

Cool - nice to know you'll still be using the Variax. Hey, I love what it can do and appreciate it's flexibilty - but my go-to axe is, and always will be, my Steinberger GM Pro. The Variax is seeing good use, but when it's "grab a git and play" the GM is my baby..... Enjoy the Strat - cluck away....!

Late to the party here, but in reading this thread I'm curious (to the OP) - it seems that definitive Strat sound was your goal, certainly that's the point of this entire thread. So why would you buy a multi-instrument-modeling guitar in the first place? Honestly curious - and I congratulate you on your recent acquisition, sounds like you're reaching the tonal nirvana you seek. I didn't purchase my JTV with the assumption that I'd be getting actual '63 strats, or a real Martins, or an honest Deering banjo - I (correctly) assumed that I'd be getting "pretty damn close" profiles of the various instruments, and a flexible sonic arsenal of tones that I otherwise would not have. And - for me - it's working out quite well on those fronts. Why wouldn't you have simply purchased a real Strat in the first place? Are you planning to use the Variax for other purposes? Like I say, honestly curious - this thought started in on me the moment I started reading the thread......

... the quest to settle in on a way to use all this stuff continues.... If you're using the 25's FX loop (as opposed to the 50), have you found the lack of a level control to be an issue? Particularly if using the 4-cable routing with an HD, any problems getting levels right? Does the master on the HD act as your "return" level control - or would it also impact the "front of amp" signal (I'm thinking NOT, but.....)? Insghts welcomed... Ric

i'm certainly a newb with this thing, but seems simple enough - assign both amps channel vols to the pedal w/inverse values. 0 to 100% on one, 100 to 0% on the other. (i assume here such an inverted assignment is possible). edit - I notice rad got in ahead of me, interesting point/problem. Suppose it would be asking a bit much for non-linear curves on the pedals.....?

Well - wa-a-a-ay back in the day I used to use RotoSound .006's - don't know if you'd find them anymore. I'm pretty much a 9/10 guy these days http://youtu.be/u6DrxfrbbF8?t=5m20s see if this link will fly, takes you right to the part of Gibbons' techs interview. Like I said, buggered the hell outta me, this guys tone is just slightly this side of Godzilla - from 007's!?!?. Never cease being amazed

And yet, MUCH to my surprise, I recently discovered that the King of hi-cholesteral, pork-fat greasy BBQ tone - Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top - uses 7's. Considers 8's to be heavy! Coulda knocked me over w/a .006.... Different strokes.........

If I may be so crass - BITCHIN'!!! Know what I'm up to for part of the weekend......

More fun than I've had with my pants on in quite a while....... @ColonelForbin - "Have you done the DT25 firmware update and messed with switching out the onboard amp models?" Not yet, but I asked about it here the other day and will definately be trying this in the near future. (something went funny with the multi-quote there....)