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Thin Distortion Sound On Spider Iv Hd150


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Hey all,

I recently purchased the Spider IV HD150 and didn't have much of a chance to listen to it before it updated the newest firmware last night. I'm trying to pull a lightly distorted tone out of the amp and have tried a few different combinations of FX on the tone. I'm Using the Clean Red and adding a little drive (about 45%-55%) to mess it up a little, and if I decide to use the Classic Distortion effect, it just sounds as muddy as it can get. If I pull the drive off of the amp, it sounds really thin and brassy.

Does anyone have any ideas on how to set the distortion to pull a gritty, yet clear enough to hear individual notes, type of tone out of these things?

Any suggestions would help. I've tried various amp types, but the Red Clean is pretty much the nicest tone IMO. Good tone, a little grit, and some delay and chorus fun on top...that's what I'm going for.

Guitar: '97 Les Paul Studio Lite w/ Burstbuckers
Amp: Spider IV HD150 w/ FBV Express MKII
Cab: Raven 4x12

Thanks for any help!
-Steve

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Sometimes it is easier to use one of the presets and then adjust it to get the tone you want.  There's no simple answer, because everyone has their own idea of what a 'good sound' is.  There are so many factors in dialing in a sound - 1st step is how high you have the volume adjusted on your guitar, 2nd step is the amp basic settings, including the modeling (you like Clean Red) and Drive, 3rd step is the FX.  You could try a different distortion, or dial back the amount of distortion.

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Thanks, Mike. I played with those suggestions. What managed to happen was that I noticed that the distortion (Classic Distortion as FX1) was the part that seemed thin. I agree with the concept that everybody has different tastes in what sounds good. Mine tend to be along some pretty common lines. I guess my question is more geared around what other distortions would you suggest? The screamer is a little too much (for the sound I'm developing now), but I'm open to other ideas.

 

The tone and volume settings on the guitar are generally maxed, but even that isn't necessarily what I'm listening for. If I were to bring any of those levels down, it would effect tone, yes, but it probably wouldn't do much against the thin sound I was getting from the FX1 settings.

 

Is there maybe a good Bass, Mid, Treble feq. setting that may help keep it cohesive, will maintaining a little dirt?

 

I hate to drop this out there (but it's popular, and people can identify with it), but oddly Brian Adams' sound in "Run to You" is the family of sound I'm trying for. My style is more post punk, with a slight hint of metal in there. Something in that sound would be awesome, if I can get the right grit into it without making it all mushy/tinny sounding. I'm hoping this isn't a limitation to the effects that are provided in the spider IV. I've moved the distortion's gain, level, and drive to similar positions that I have on a Amplitube setup i have on my PC, and the outcome is practically night and day. lol. I know there's differences, but these are quite a separation.

 

I'm removing the "answered" status from this to encourage other input - this is no reflection on the answer you provided, in any way! All of your points were great, and I thank you!  :)

 

-Steve

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Many guitarists who like the 'natural' overdriven sound of a tube amp (I would suspect that is what B Adams has on that song) do not like the distortion one gets from a solid state amp - whether it comes from the model-driven 'drive' or the model-driven FX.
One solution used by many solid-state amp guitarists is using an outboard distortion stompbox pedal.  I know it seems counter-intuitive to have an amp with built-in effects and then use more, but its a fact that some (especially premium) foot pedals produce unique sounds.

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Thanks again, Mike. I have considered outboard stomps. It makes the most sense at this point. I guess I was just hoping I could pull a good distortion out of the built in effects, but ya can't have everything.  ;)

 

www.guitargeek.com has some pretty cool setups for popular guitarists. So maybe a combination of what the Spider has, and some outboard gear, I can pull it off. 

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