Low gain sound, high gain feel?

[bshields]

Hi guys - need some guidance.

I love the way a Fuzz Factory feels super responsive at high gain, so easy to play, but still controllable and clear.

I've never been able to get that easy-to-play-but-not-choked/congested feel without fuzz, using a clean tone through a compressor (usually optical, sometimes with a blend knob). I feel either like the sound is completely choked, or weak and doesn't sustain the same way.

Have any of you found a way to achieve extremely responsive feel with low gain? What did you use? For the record, often talking about pretty quiet amps, really looking to get those tones via pedals vs. from the amp alone.

 

[thesjkexperienc]

I use a treble booster into an OD pedal and adjust the gain with the guitars volume knob.

You might try going over unity gain on the volume and lower the compression until there is no pumping with the compressor.

 

[Purple_Plexi]

Not sure I get the Fuzz Factory analogy, but I imagine you'll get what you're looking for by stacking a couple nice touch sensitive pedals hitting the front end of your amp.

 

[prowlinacage]

Barber Gain Changer

 

[TimH]

Hi guys - need some guidance.

I love the way a Fuzz Factory feels super responsive at high gain, so easy to play, but still controllable and clear.

I've never been able to get that easy-to-play-but-not-choked/congested feel without fuzz, using a clean tone through a compressor (usually optical, sometimes with a blend knob). I feel either like the sound is completely choked, or weak and doesn't sustain the same way.

Have any of you found a way to achieve extremely responsive feel with low gain? What did you use? For the record, often talking about pretty quiet amps, really looking to get those tones via pedals vs. from the amp alone.

How quiet are we talking here?

 

[smj]

For me... sometimes just a simple boost into a slightly dirty tube amp w/a bit of delay.... lower wattage amps like 15-20watts. The amp is really the key component here.

Sean Meredith-Jones
www.seanmeredithjones.com

 

[Big in Japan]

The Lovepedal Super Lead MKII feels like a cranked up high headroom amp. It's not totally clean, but it has that response without a lot of gain or a ton of compression.

 

[jvin248]

.

You are caught in the Venn vortex of tone between these two video techniques.


.

 

[Tom Gross]

Try a germanium fuzz with the guitar volume down. I use a Keeley Fuzz Head with my strat's volume on 4-6 with some delay and get a wonderful clean to cleanish sound that really rings and feels great.

 

[Anytime]

Zendrive or Euphoria is what I use, depending on the amp.

 

[Daytona57]

Fairfield Barbershop V2, will boost amp for lower gain break up with touch sensitivity, picking dynamics and string separation.

You can dial in sag, with the Sag knob. A very flexible preamp or boost pedal.

YMMV

 

[bshields]

How quiet are we talking here?

More that I can't rely on amp gain / power amp anything. Loud enough to get over a drumkit when placed literally in front of it, but backline could be a 100W aimed into a crowd 10 feet away. Really not enough to get it breathing.

More than anything else, I'm trying to make a stiff, pretty cold amp (barely moving the speaker cones) to feel like the real deal - an amp turned up loud enough to sound powerful, not just over-the-top distorted. Going for chunky. Somehow, I'd like recreate that killer easy-to-play feel at low volume with a pedal chain.