Guitar Amplifiers

[strauchy]

HI. I recently bought a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe edition 3

It's a terrific sounding amp and am really impressed. The Clean tone really blows me away and i cant be happier with the clean sound and the power it has.. however, the distortion is raising some question marks just recently.. I didn't realise at the time when i bought it. It still has a good crunch sound..but it hasnt got the high gain and power you get from the likes of Marshalls. the clean tone in fact has more bass and power which is strange.

i was wondering what i can do in this situation? I still love the fenders clean tone but I am wondering what the best thing to do is as i also want to get that classic hard rock sound you hear in most marshall amps.

those head things that go on top? I dont understand how the amps are built. all i know is what the nobs do, the sound i want and how to play

Thanks

 

[eldorado]

It's not unusual for tube amps to develop problems that affect only one channel; I have a Laney VC100, where the gain channel has had some problems with one of the pre-amp gain-stage tubes (12ax7), while the clean channel was fine.

I suspect, if there really is such a noticeable difference in sound quality, it could be one of the pre-amp tubes.

These are pretty cheap, but the amp tech would probably re-bias or check the power-amp tubes as well, as they would have been working "wrong" (for want of a better word) if the pre-amp tubes are dodgy

 

[eldorado]

Also, the fender gain is never going to sound like the Marshall gain; Marshall has a much thicker midrange sound.

But the Fender gain should be nice on it's own merits; hopefully the 'problem' you are hearing is not just that the Fender sound is not what you like (Marshall sound), in which case, you'll need a Fender for clean, and a Marshall for dirt

 

[patsmith]

Buy a nice distortion pedal and use the clean channel. I've also found that the fender distortion is too mid-rangey, which is nice for a crunchy tone, but not so good for that wailing Marshall sound (which I assume you are aiming for). As eldorado said, get it serviced first just to be sure there's nothing wrong with it. Tube amps can sometimes be a bit finicky, where the slightest thing wrong can really affect the sound, but that's the price you pay for that beautiful tube tone.

 

[strauchy]

thanks guys. but theres no need to get it serviced or anything. Like, there arnt any problems with it. It still sounds really good the overdrive sound..but the quality just doesnt compare to the high gain of a Marshall i have noticed. It is deffinetly more Bluesy and Hendrix like which is good..but not for every song.

just like to note that this amp - Hot rod deluxe 3rd edition has the drive..and then even more, the overdrive.. but the (over-over) drive sounds pretty much exactly the same as the first overdrive.. theirs hardly any difference which is a bit unusual. just a tiny bit more feedback.

anyway thanks. il head to a music shop and see what they have to offer in regards to Distortion pedals.

 

[KaLL]

thanks guys. but theres no need to get it serviced or anything. Like, there arnt any problems with it. It still sounds really good the overdrive sound..but the quality just doesnt compare to the high gain of a Marshall i have noticed. It is deffinetly more Bluesy and Hendrix like which is good..but not for every song.

just like to note that this amp - Hot rod deluxe 3rd edition has the drive..and then even more, the overdrive.. but the (over-over) drive sounds pretty much exactly the same as the first overdrive.. theirs hardly any difference which is a bit unusual. just a tiny bit more feedback.

anyway thanks. il head to a music shop and see what they have to offer in regards to Distortion pedals.

Yeah the Fender Twins are are known to have a large need for foot pedals, but the good thing is that the pedals sound wonderful in front of them. Grab yourself a tube screamer + Fuzz Pedal + A Zendrive (if you're a lead guitarist) and you should be right.

 

[Partridge]

Yeah the Fender Twins are are known to have a large need for foot pedals, but the good thing is that the pedals sound wonderful in front of them. Grab yourself a tube screamer + Fuzz Pedal + A Zendrive (if you're a lead guitarist) and you should be right.

Alternatively, you can use Fender Twins directly through a decent cabinet (like a Marshall 4x12). Plenty of guitarists have used that setup to great effect too.

 

[strauchy]

Thanks. and yeah i am a lead..
i went today to a good music place and they suggested the Boss ST2 power stack foot pedal to get that higher gain and distortion power that Marshalls use. Together with my other zoom pedal for Wah, it will fix everything

 

[strung_out7]

if you want that marshall sound, then why dont u get a marshall??

 

[chrstphrwnstn]

Treat yourself and get an Orange.

 

[Sebastian Balboa]

Thanks. and yeah i am a lead..
i went today to a good music place and they suggested the Boss ST2 power stack foot pedal to get that higher gain and distortion power that Marshalls use. Together with my other zoom pedal for Wah, it will fix everything

So give us an update on how it went...please.

 

[strauchy]

if you want that marshall sound, then why dont u get a marshall??

il say it again.. because the clean tone is no match. and once youve found an amp with that perfect clean tone. you can readjust it - i.e pedals to create the distortion that you want.

 

[strauchy]

So give us an update on how it went...please.

i havent got that pedal just yet. I will look around and wait a bit longer to make sure its the right one and a good price. But from what ive heard, the sound it creates is that Hard Rock higher gain than the fender is capable of. Will give you an update once im sure

 

[KaLL]

il say it again.. because the clean tone is no match. and once youve found an amp with that perfect clean tone. you can readjust it - i.e pedals to create the distortion that you want.

This.

Replicating a Fender Clean in a Marshall is a hell of alot harder (most would say near impossible) than getting a Marshall distortion via a Fender.

 

[eldorado]

And there are few things more beautiful than some sparkly single coils going through a Fender tube amp...

 

[Sebastian Balboa]

il say it again.. because the clean tone is no match. and once youve found an amp with that perfect clean tone. you can readjust it - i.e pedals to create the distortion that you want.

Agreed, it's all about the tone...