Pod Go Patch for Slide Guitar

[millinke]

Hi, I'm a very new user of Pod Go and looking for advice / patches which might work well for slide guitar. Thanks

[voxman55]

I suppose it depends on what tones you personally like for slide. You can use slide with cleans, slight break up, crunch, or higher gain. Also depends on your guitar and pickups of course.  Do you have an example of a nice slide sound you've heard that you'd like to try & emulate? If so, please do post a link, let us know your guitar and pickup types and we can then try & guide you.

[millinke]

Hi voxman55,

 

Thank you for taking the time to reply - it’s much appreciated.

 

I’m after something like the Bonnie Raitt sound here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=krF6LpUXODc

 

I use a Squier Strat - with original pickups from ’83/’83 JV series Squier.

 

Kind regards,

[voxman55]

1 hour ago, millinke said:

Hi voxman55,

 

Thank you for taking the time to reply - it’s much appreciated.

 

I’m after something like the Bonnie Raitt sound here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=krF6LpUXODc

 

I use a Squier Strat - with original pickups from ’83/’83 JV series Squier.

 

Kind regards,

 

Bonnie uses:

 

Amps
Bad Cat Black Cat 30R 1x12 combo (Raitt uses only the EF86-driven channel 2)

Effects
Boss CS-2 Compression Sustainer, Pro Co Rat

 

So in the Pod Go, the nearest compressor to the CS2 is:

Blue Comp: BOSS CS-1
Blue Comp Treb: BOSS CS-1 (Treble switch on)

 

V1.30 of Pod Go now has the Ratatouille Dist based on the 1984 Pro Co RAT.  Don't use the older vermin distortion - Line 6 admits it modelled a broken ProCo Rat, hence the new model

 

But you could experiment with the other compressors too, to see which you prefer

 

For amps, the Pod Go doesn't model any of the Bad Cat amps but the nearest equivalent to try would I think be:

 

Matchstick Ch2: Matchless DC30 (channel 2)

Vox AC30

 

But it's just a case of experimenting to see what works best for you.  However, the key to her tone is the mix of compressor & ProCo Rat so the amp is secondary & I'd suggest that the above two amps will be absolutely fine to get you close enough. 

 

I'd also suggest you listen to her live tones - the problem with studio tones is there's a ton of engineering, EQ, compression etc that goes on and even she can't sound exactly the same live.  In fact, I much prefer it - it's completely different - less compressed and with much more punch, clarity and mids than her studio recording.  from her first bit of slide just hear how that hits you in the mix! 

Don't over do the distortion - she uses much less than you think.  Start with lower gain settings on the Rat, the amp should be set for slight break up only.  She uses Ch 2 just to give the base clean sound a bit of edge, not for distortion- that she leaves to the Rat. And the Compressor is to smooth her tone just a tad from the Rat roughness and add sustain.  Again, don't over crank the compressor or you'll lose the dynamics/punch & your tone will be too squishy and less defined.  

 

Regarding reverb, a touch of spring reverb is all you need. As it uses up a lot of DSP in Pod Go, if you should find any DSP issues, you'll probably find that room, hall, or plate reverb all work well too.  She doesn't use much so again go easy.  The biggest problem folk have when building a patch is that they over crank everything and it all sounds muddy & indistinct. A lot of tones are far more subtle than you might think.  I'd start off with the amp first, then add a touch of reverb, then Rat, then compressor (that's order to build, not chain order!).  Re chain order, I'd suggest starting with the following more 'traditional' order of compressor, then rat, amp, cab, & reverb.  But don't be frightened to experiment with the chain order as it can make some big differences eg compressor after the Rat or even one or both after the cab.  For Spring Reverb many favour placing this between the amp and cab. There really are no rules here - let your ears be your guide.   

 

And to help you hear the differences, here's a suggestion - create multiple similar patches but with different chain orders so you can switch & hear the differences quickly & easily.  Re parameter changes on amp & FX you can make these in snap shots so you can quickly switch between them to hear which you prefer. If you create a 'base' in Snap 1 or preset 1, then if you do lose your way in different versions, you'll always have your base reference to refer to.  A lot is down to trial & error - just be patient.  Re EQ block, I'd be inclined not to switch this on unless you need to but if you do I'd try it right at the end of the chain so you're total EQing your tone. It might help to add mids/punch but see how you go.

 

Re cab settings, I'd experiment with adding 50-75% reflection - you might find this is adding enough ambience & you don't need a reverb block.  I'd suggest start with a 57 dynamic mic for a more punchy live type tone, at 1-2", and on the cab raise the dB level to 3-5dB for a fuller cab tone.  But these are starting point suggestions only - it's so important to experiment to help you better understand what different parameters do.  Best way is to take a parameter and try it far left, in the middle, then far right - and then you'll say 'ah, so THAT's what it does" lol  - that's how I've learned (and am still learning!).  Ditto with effects order.  It's all part of the fun - and the beauty of Pod Go is you can do this in seconds instead of having to physically connect, unconnect, & reconnect real pedals/leads.  

 

When building patches, it is SOOO much easier in Pod Go Edit - it's way faster, and is much more visual. Also, it has an undo function so you can undo parameter, FX model changes or chain changes one at a time - or put them back.  That's not something you can do in Pod Go itself unfortunately.

 

I don't know what gear you're going through. The above is if you are using headphones/FRFR but if you are going through a real amp/cab you will probably want to turn the cab section off. Through a real amp, go through the FX return if you have one to bypass the pre-amp stage so that you are using your amp as a power-amp only.  If you can only go through the front of the amp, remember that your tone is going to be coloured by your amps pre-amp section so keep it as clean as reasonably practical or perhaps with just a slight break-up.  

 

Hope this is helpful to get you started, and good luck.

 

 

 

 

[millinke]

Wow, thank you for the comprehensive response voxman55,

 

I'll be experimenting over next few days and I'll let you know how I get on. I agree that her live sound does sound good.

 

I'm mainly going direct into Jamulus and monitoring using headphones - but get your point about using FX return when using an amp.

 

Many thanks,