Recording advice appreciated

[journo]

Hi,

I love to play my Suhr Classic and PRS McCarty through a tube amp where the power tubes are beginning to "sweat" a bit.

I also love to record with the convenience of the BOSS GS-10 or the POD xt.

What I would like to do is record with the feel/sound of the tube amp and the convenience of the BOSS GS-10/POD xt. So far I have not come across anything that helps me approach my goal.

As I record mainly at home there can be no sound except in headphones. That is the primary concern. I'm willing to invest in the solution and am not bound by a "POD budget".

Any and all ideas will be appreciated! No matter how off the wall.

Thanks in advance.

Cheers,

Journo

 

[Ugg]

Ugg like V-stack.

 

[enharmonic]

Hi Journo,

Nice pair of guitars you've got there . Without being able to open up a tube amp to get that power-tube saturation, it's going to be difficult to find a reasonable substitute. If you're looking for a way to "warm up" your models, perhaps try a tube D.I. like a TAB Funkenwerk (designs based on old Telefunken circuits).

Aside from that, you should be able to get some fairly respectable sounds out of the Pod. I'll tell ya, after playing a show where my band had about 8 grand worth of tube goodness on stage, the following band got up with two Vetta's, and the only people that were concerned with the tonal differences were the guitarists in the room. The "average" muisc listener didn't care...as long as it rocked

Good luck.

 

[Unburst]

You could try a THD Hotplate on your amp and run it through a speaker sim. like the Palmer or ADA MicroCab.

Another option is get a speaker isolation box like the Demeter silent speaker.
http://www.amptone.com/demeterssc1.htm

Neither system is ideal, it's not easy getting the sound of a cranked tube amp without moving some air.

 

[Scribe]

I'm faced with the same restrictions in an apartment and besides, I like to work late at night.

I use the V-Stack Classic (http://www.v-stack.com) and it's great. With a little EQ and sweetening in Cool Edit, I get a fairly good tone that's pretty natural sounding.

A really good tube amp, the right mike and a room are better but for the price and ease of use, this one's a really close second.

 

[ricoh]

I have had good results -w-the Pod -w-an ART tube pre and/ or an ART tube comp. Although they are not a "true tube circuit" I have had very good results. Easy on the $$$$$ as well.
Rico

 

[journo]

Hi,

Thanks for all responses. Like I said they are appreciated.

UGG and Scribe: I have tried the V-Stack Classic and Tweedy. The results are good but not anything I can't do equally well with my Yamaha DG-1000 and BOSS GS-10. Neither of them does the clean on the verge of breaking up especially well.

Unburst: Can you tell me a URL and a model of Palmer that you think is good?

Ricoh: Do you use the ART units before or after the POD? Which POD are you using?

Thanks in advance!

Cheers,

Journo

 

[ricoh]

Pod 2.0 I use them after the unit. Usually just the pre but sometimes both. Pre > comp>pod... The pre drives the comp. The pod drives them and gives it more warmth and dimension. The clean on the verge of break-up is one of my favorites. On the Pod I found a nice version -w- the Blackface sound -w- added drive{ to your taste and a strat.... 2nd or 4th position},add some outboard ambience or try a a 4x12 cab selection{ adds ambience rather than reverb} and jack the reverb on the pod and it sounded pretty convincing. Have fun and edit those sounds!!!!! Good luck.......
Rico

 

[tedm]

I do pretty much what Unburst says, use a low power fast breakup amp like a tweed deluxe, into a hotplate, into a cab sim (I use the Behringer Ultra G), you can do it 2 ways, amp to cab sim to hotplate (cab sim has 2 20db pads, for 40 db total), or amp to hotplate load, line out to cab sim, no pads enabled on cab sim.

Then Cab sim to mogami cable to mixer, further EQ possibly.

When I can get loud, I open up or remove the hotplate, and use an SM57 and e609 up close, and an MXL 990 LDC for some room sound.

I've got an ART Tube Mic pre, It has a lot of gain, if you need it, and some coloration, but I find a cleaner SS mic pre easier to work with, though the ART can be nice for certain sounds or guitars, not so useful with vocals, I've found.

Originally posted by ricoh
I have had good results -w-the Pod -w-an ART tube pre and/ or an ART tube comp. Although they are not a "true tube circuit" I have had very good results. Easy on the $$$$$ as well.
Rico

 

[journo]

Hi,

Thanks agin folks.

I will look into the hotplate issue.

I have a Hughes & Kettner I got as a birthday gift but the week after I got it I stopped playing in the band where I wanted to use it so it's still in the closet.
Would that be as good a speaker sim as the Behringer?

Cheers,

Journo

 

[tedm]

Journo, It depends on your ears. I bought the H&K red box pro after I had the Behringer GI100 thinking that if it cost twice as much, it must be better, but never liked the sound of the red box, so I sold it.

Try your red box, and if you like it, go with it until you find something you like better. Remember that you still need a load with a cranked tube amp with these cab sims.

Originally posted by journo
Hi,

Thanks agin folks.

I will look into the hotplate issue.

I have a Hughes & Kettner I got as a birthday gift but the week after I got it I stopped playing in the band where I wanted to use it so it's still in the closet.
Would that be as good a speaker sim as the Behringer?

Cheers,

Journo

 

[journo]

Hi,

Has anybody tried the Koch load box with speaker sim for this purpose?

Cheers,

Journo

 

[Scribe]

Neither of them does the clean on the verge of breaking up especially well.

What's a good example of the tone you're talking about?

Would the guitar in Sweet Surrender on the rhythm track be similar to what you mean? Of course we're talking money and craft on that recording: everything in the chain is top shelf.

Since you mentioned the light break-up idea, I've really been listening to that song a few times and love the way it lays in the track, sounds full yet all the notes are clear. That's the sound I'm going after when I get some more money.

 

[journo]

Hi Scribe,

I see your point. I'm not sure I've heard Sweet Surrender. Who's the artist
I do have a few good examples of fat cleans and cleans on the way to breaking up. Also a few that are more or less distorted.

Larry Carlton
CD: Saphire Blues
Tracks: Friday Night Shuffle, A Pair Of Kings, Slightly Dirty

Robben Ford
CD: Talk To Your Daughter
Tracks: Help The Poor, Ain't Got Nothing But The Blues, Revelation
CD: RF & the Blue Line
Tracks: The Brother, You Cut Me To The Bone, Tell Me I'm Your Me
CD: Blue Moon
Tracks: Up The Line, Make Me Your Only One, It Don't Make Sense

Tony Galla
CD: A.S.A.P.
Tracks: The Blues Would Slip Right In (rhythm & lead), The jealous Kind

JK
CD: What's the Word
Tracks: Off The Hook

Jeff Golub
CD: Dangerous Curves
Tracks: Dangerous Curves

Michael Landau
CD: Tales from the Bulge
Tracks: Every sound on every track

There are more sounds (of course but these cover a lot of ground.

Cheers,

Journo

Originally posted by Scribe
What's a good example of the tone you're talking about?

Would the guitar in Sweet Surrender on the rhythm track be similar to what you mean? Of course we're talking money and craft on that recording: everything in the chain is top shelf.

Since you mentioned the light break-up idea, I've really been listening to that song a few times and love the way it lays in the track, sounds full yet all the notes are clear. That's the sound I'm going after when I get some more money.

 

[Scribe]

Sweet Surrender. Who's the artist

That would be Sarah McLaughlin.

I've been talking to OOG about this sound and he's pretty sure I'm looking for something using EL34's because he knows that I like a bright shimmering sound.

Here's a link to it that I'll leave up for a short time so you can check it out--

Sweet Surrender

 

[Bassomatic]

Originally posted by splatt
i've been doing this for a very long time:

1) amplifier-of-choice>
2) hotplate-set-to-'load' via line-out>
3) ADA ampulator (tube amp & spkr simulator w/many controls>
4) (OPTION: insert rack fx, if desired, here, followed by ADA micro-cab2)>
5) out to recorder.

works great, really; feels better than any modelling device, & can sound good, too.

dt / spltrcl

In case you guys missed this....

This is a cat known for stellar guitar tones *and* keeping a family intact (not to mention the JB Shammie).

 

[Scribe]

This is a cat known for stellar guitar tones ...

Yes, OOG just gave me the same lecture off-line to listen carefully to splatt.