building a guitar rig HELP!!

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Member Since: Jun 07, 2009

I am putting together a small home studio for guitar only. I have a pod xt pro, presonus fire pod, into a pair of jbl lsr studio monitors. I want to take it to the next level. What should i add? they guy at guitar center said a tube power amp would make a huge improvement in my sound. someone else told me to add a jbl subwoffer. I want to do this with out the use of a traditional guitar amp (rack gear only). Can someone point me in the rite direction?

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Typo Szar
Member
Since: Jul 04, 2002


Jun 08, 2009 03:57 am

if u have the pod xt pro u should be pretty much set, the subwoofer is for monitoring purposes only, it wont help the quality of ur recording, unless it helps u to hear something u want to improve. guitar wise however, there won't be a ton of stuff u need to do at the sub woofer range.

i think they mean a tube PRE Amp, which will sweeten ur guitar sound a bit before it enters ur computer... personally i think the Line 6 stuff, especially if ur only doing guitar negates the need for a pre, unless ur doing alot of clean work that could benefit from that sound.

maybe u dont need hardware? just buy more guitar based plugins, sims and such and see if it adds to ur sculpting power.

Czar of Midi
Administrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002


Jun 08, 2009 02:03 pm

I think they are talking about a guitar tube head indeed to record live with. If you are using the POD xt Pro you can hook it into a cabinet through the power amp or head. But you will be using the head at settings that are flat to utilize the sound of the POD to get your tone.

It is not really needed if your getting you tone and recording straight from the POD. You can as crux suggested shoot the POD through a Pre amp indeed, but there are far better pre amps that are not tube pre amps. Tube pre's can be very expensive to get into a decent one that I would say would improve the sound. But there are many affordable solid state pre's that will do far more good for your set up.

But again, that is not a needed item really. The Firepod has decent pre amps in it so that is kind of a moot point as well.

You don't state what your guitars are, or the pick ups used in them. That is another good place to look if you are looking to improve the guitar tone you are getting.

I am not a crook's head
Member
Since: Mar 14, 2003


Jun 08, 2009 02:17 pm

If you like the tone you're getting from your POD, then there's not much else to do. If it ain't broke, don't fix it, right?

If you want to get into the realm of recording an actual speaker moving air with a microphone, then that's a whole other can of worms to open. The amp, the cabinet, the microphone and its position, the preamp, the room, the phase relationship between more than 1 mic all factor in. these are all things that you don't have to worry about when you record direct through a modeller.

One thing you might want to try is reamping your direct guitar signal. This means recording your guitar direct, then taking that direct guitar track and sending it back through a guitar amp and recording that with a mic. This allows you to try several different amps, mics, mic positions, room treatments, etc without having to try to record a perfect take again.

Member
Since: Jun 19, 2009


Jun 23, 2009 12:43 am

Tubes are the best IMO
i use Engl Amplifiers, a german company. All their amps are tube driven. I've played over 100+ tube amps from Krank, Marshall, Bogner, Mesa Boogie, Soldano, Orange, Vox, Fender, Randall, Peavey, Carr, etc and Engl is the only amp company that truly leaves me speechless. They're awesome. Their heads are killer, their cabs are very high quality too. Engl, though, is very expensive. but, totally worth it

Member
Since: Jun 19, 2009


Jun 23, 2009 12:45 am

Or...for the studio only i'd suggest (besides Engl pre and power amps) the Fractal Axe-Fx. that's the only other gear besides Engl i'll own. It's like a pod but a billion times better w/ a billion more presets and options

I am not a crook's head
Member
Since: Mar 14, 2003


Jun 23, 2009 10:25 am

Engl are good metal amps, they seem to be popular amongst shredders and metalheads. Marty Friedman, Ritchie Blackmore, Steve Morse, and a couple other recognizable names use them. Then there's a huge list of no-names on their website that use them. Almost entirely metal artists.

Not quite my cup of tea, but those amps get good reviews from those that do enjoy that type of high-gain tone. They just sound a little sterile to me. I like a little more midrange and a little more character than what those guys seem to wring out of those Engl amps.

The OP seemed to be pretty satisfied with his POD, but was just looking for some way to improve his tone with it. Unfortunately with the POD, like all modelling devices, you're pretty limited when it comes to doing things outside of the kidney-bean-shaped-box. Reamping it or simply playing it through a power amp is just about it. I mean other than that, what are you going to do? Send it through more effects? PODs need more effects like I need another hole in my head.

The OP never came back to elaborate on what he was after. That always drives me nuts when people sign up, post one thread, then forget that they ever signed up. How many one-poster members have we had over the years? That'd be an interesting stat to look up.

I remember just a couple of months ago, a dude came on here desperately seeking help. He was just begging for someone to help him, even posting his email address and wanting help "ASAP!!!!". I spent an hour reading his post, looking up equipment and prices that might help him, phrasing my post as to be understandable by a beginner, the works. Then he never even returned to these boards. Another 1-post ghost.

Member
Since: Jun 19, 2009


Jun 23, 2009 01:27 pm

^ that sucks bro, nice avatar lol

Member
Since: Jun 19, 2009


Jun 23, 2009 01:28 pm

Oh, and I'd say Engl is the furthest thing from sterile i've ever heard. When i think sterile i think Mesa.

Diezel and Engl are the nut busters of guitar amps

Czar of Midi
Administrator
Since: Apr 04, 2002


Jun 23, 2009 08:45 pm

While I'll agree tubes are the best. not everyone can have that in a small studio. So making the best of what you can get, or afford. Not everyone can afford the $3000 for the Fractal. And a billion times better??? I'm not sure that is near true. I've worked with both and own several Line 6 pieces. I've written dozens of patches for the Fractal and indeed it is good, plagued with a batch of problems in the beginning but he's working it out. And even though its a bit of a step up from an XT or the like its still got issues that really need to have a guitarist spend hours working on a patch to get that tone out of it.

While I like both Diezel and Engl amps, and agree they are nut busters (read that painfully loud) I wouldn't say they can even come close to covering the quantity of tone that a Mesa can, that does not include the Triple recto as that is in the same vain as the above mentioned amps, pure power and gain.

And how do I speak with confidence on this. I've played through not 100's but thousands of amps over the last 35 plus years.

But as the OP was looking for something affordable, Engl would be pretty much out of his comfort zone and not really what he was looking for anyway.

I think one of Deon's bandmates uses Diezel and he gets a killer tone indeed, but again its high gain metal.

Member
Since: Jun 19, 2009


Jun 23, 2009 09:43 pm

They (Engl) make a Rack Preamp for about 500 all the way up to 3+k, and all of them smash
I owned a triple rec for a few years, hated it too sterile and not enough gain, i'd have to max them out and add a boost. the Engl needs none of this, i find myself rolling back the gain more than even thinking about boosting it, and as far as options: read the spec sheet on the Engl SE versus any Mesa, the Engl is staggering! Im not bashing anything else, but the Engl is for my taste the best amp on the market

but, back to topic, did the OP state what music he was playing? thats critical, as well as pickups, body wood, and construction of his guitars all have a big influence on the sound.
for instance, me:
mahogany / maple neck thru > BKP and Dizmarzio pickups > Engl
oh, and if you have actives like EMG's throw them out and get passives. thank me later
people always think EMG's are the best cause they're high gain, a BKP warpig is equally hot but with more definition than an EMG. the blackouts aren't bad, but after replacing batteries for so many years i rerouted all my axes for passives. do not regret it. (this tidbit is for all those high gain players)

Typo Szar
Member
Since: Jul 04, 2002


Jun 24, 2009 06:30 am

Woah, no offense to u Engladdict but Mesa sterile? maybe some of the models in the past 5 yrs or so, but on the whole i think their one of the more lively amp makers... now Krank...

Pinnipedal Czar (: 3=
Member
Since: Apr 11, 2004


Jun 24, 2009 08:15 am

Quote:
I want to do this with out the use of a traditional guitar amp (rack gear only). Can someone point me in the rite direction?


I can't believe that I'm about to agree with a guy from banjo center, but if you were to be able to do something like this...

PODxt w/FVB foot-controller--> Rack-mounted, tube power amp--> 1x12" 2x12" or 4x12" cabinet.


... I think you'd be be pretty well off. An SS power amp wouldn't be that bad of an option either, within the same configuration, as long as you tweak your POd well enough. : ) I miss my XT terribly. What a great bit o kit those PODs are.


Member
Since: Jun 19, 2009


Jun 24, 2009 08:52 pm

crux, the only mesa i ever liked was the Mark4, even then...
their bass amps and cabinets, on the other hand rule
omg, Krank, ugh... hard to believe they're in business with their cheap parts and horrible QC
i made the mistake of wanting a Krank a long long time ago, tried the revolution and the krankenstien and was very disappointed.

amp wise: VHT poweramps (or freyette now) are killer, here's a pic i found on photobucket, and coincidently so is the engl preamp i was talking about
[IMG]i120.photobucket.com/albu...T0499.jpg[/IMG]

here's the some of the Engl products (rack gear) im very fond of

The E580, awesome but expensive

http://i373.photobucket.com/albums/oo173/daemonicmysticism/e580_1.jpg


The E530 bout $500 and 110% worth it

http://i373.photobucket.com/albums/oo173/daemonicmysticism/e530_1.jpg


The E850/100, awesome power amp

http://i373.photobucket.com/albums/oo173/daemonicmysticism/e850_100_1.jpg


and to complete the Engl pornz here's two of my favorite heads and two killer stacks :D

http://i373.photobucket.com/albums/oo173/daemonicmysticism/engl01.jpg


http://i373.photobucket.com/albums/oo173/daemonicmysticism/IMG_1395.jpg



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