gbr13697 Posted August 21, 2021 Share Posted August 21, 2021 I use the expression pedal with most of my amp models as a gain control. For instance, I may have the pedal set to increase gain and treble, whilst also decreasing bass and channel volume. Today I was tinkering with an AC30, trying to solve the perennial problem of ice-pick bridge pickups on Strats and Teles. With the pedal heel-down, I increased the Tone Cut until I got acceptable tone from my bridge pick-up. I checked that I wasn't over darkening the neck pick-up, and kept adjusting the treble and cut to get a nice clean tone. Then I put the toe-down on the pedal, and found that my gain had vanished! After a while it clicked that the Cut control is not part of the pre-amp tone stack, but operates further down the line. If you use too much cut, it also drops the signal and reduces overdrive. A bit more fiddling, and increasing the maximum gain to 10, got me a decent compromise. Incidentally, I also found that swapping the AC30 Bluebell cab for Greenbacks or Creambacks, and using a ribbon mic further out instead of dynamic close in, also helps. It still sometimes comes as a surprise to find that the modelling works as it should! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
codamedia Posted August 22, 2021 Share Posted August 22, 2021 Yep... that's how AC30's work. The tone cut is pure magic once you figure it out. Like you, I am also a fan of greenbacks in a VOX amp... there is a time for the blue bells, but for general use I prefer greenbacks. As for mics, I use a 121 ribbon on everything... often pulled back about 4" - 6". It's a much warmer tone than the dynamic models. On 8/21/2021 at 7:23 AM, gbr13697 said: It still sometimes comes as a surprise to find that the modelling works as it should! Exactly. amps are not dumbed down in a Helix... they work like the real amps do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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