Middle Man Posted June 1, 2000 Share Posted June 1, 2000 Craig, I know you said not to use amps but there was a master volume mod you published years ago for Marshall and Fender Amps. I think I still have a copy of the article. Once implemented on my 1980 Vibrolux, this has the best distortion sound I have found. That said, I occasionally use my Rat distortion unit from 1983 for all out singing sustaining killer distortion. More recently a purchased a Digitech RP-7. The RP is a a bear to program but once you establish a system you can pre-punch a whole evenings worth of tones in sequential order. Really is nice not to turn knobs all night long and to concentrate on the playing. It also doubles as a complete effects rack for my home studio. I plug it into my boards effects loop and voila, low cost reverb, compression amp modeling etc. Lastly my 1978 Ibenez Analog Chorus makes an occasional appearance for that Retro thing. Love that swirly sound. ------------------ Middleman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anderton Posted June 1, 2000 Author Share Posted June 1, 2000 Originally posted by philgrab@pacbell.net: Craig, I know you said not to use amps... Actually I think I said that I prefer not to use amps because of the variability, but of course, people should use whatever works for them. There is a certain sound that amps give, but I think the boxes give their own sound too -- something cleaner, and more clinical, that works real well for the kind of music I do. Most of the time, my guitar sits in a track with electronic instruments. Using that Delta Blues Tube Sound makes it incongruous sometimes, but if I put the guitar through a digital box (never without substantial tweaking, of course!), the sound seems to fit better in the track. But I'm not sure I'd use a modeling box if I was going to play rhythm guitar for James Cotton, know what I mean? Craig Anderton Educational site: http://www.craiganderton.org Music: http://www.youtube.com/thecraiganderton Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/craig_anderton Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sustainindy.net Posted June 1, 2000 Share Posted June 1, 2000 Originally posted by alphajerk: i dont know about modifying my guitar. i get sustain for days anyways. sit there and hold a note for hours. dickie betts style. its all in the guitar connection.... ........i did used to own a boss cs-2(?) compressor/sustainer. it was noisy but it could make some killer distortion in the amp to orgasmic feedback levels. all these boxes, while they might model to a degree have little soul to them. sure they have some fancy effects and i love to get lost in a vg8 but for tones sake, they are all pretty lame. i guess is prefer amp distortion. There is a great void of understanding out there of what a true sustainer is. You need to go to the Sustainiac website and read a little bit, alphy! A true sustainer is not a "signal-processor" type effect. All other effects (distortion boxes, so called "compressor/sustainers", chorus units, etc. )are SIGNAL PROCESSING effects. A sustainer operates on the strings of the instrument. It sustains and modifies (at the musicians command) the string vibrations and the harmonics of the string vibrations. Also, you don't have to modify your guitar in order to use some sustainers. (See the Sustainiac Model B) I have been fighting an uphill battle over this for about a decade, because there is very little info out there about what a sustainer is and does. While you can get infinite sustain by cranking up your Marshall, and even manipulate some note harmonics by moving around (if the room acoustics will let you), you cannot get the kind of control over note vibrations that you can with a true sustainer. You only get a small fraction as much. Sustainers open an entirely new creative avenue to those who don't close their minds, and are willing to learn about something new. I'll try to regain my composure, now. Alan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted June 2, 2000 Share Posted June 2, 2000 I also like the VG-8 a lot, although I don't take it out live. Has anyone tried the new VG-88?[/b] I have indeed tried the VG-88. It is quite different in many ways compared to the VG-8. The VG-88 is, in my way of seeing things, more of the old COSM guitar from the VG-8 hooked up to a mix of a Boss GT-5 and a GT-3. The amp sound seems a bit more authentic and responds better to playing dynamics and guitar volume control changes. The overall sound of the HRM algorithms are "darker" in sound and feel but still trigger quite well. The main disappointment with the Nylon String Guitar. It sound more like they put nylon strings on a banjo. Otherwise I was very impressed with the VG-88. It was nice to be able to use the amp simulations with any guitar thru the 1/4" input. You still need a GK-2A equipped guitar, however, to use the COSM guitars and HRM. If you are interested in hearing it I have posted a MP3 demo I made when reviewing the VG-88 for the swedish guitar magazine FUZZ. The review is in swedish and unless you read swedish it will be of limited use/enjoyment but you can still listen to the demo. I have posted the demo at http://home.swipnet.se/Nermarks_hemstudio/tester.htm Klick on the VG-88 link and the scroll down till you see the link VG-88 Ballad. That's it! If you want to use the sounds I used for the demo you can download a MIDI dump with the next link "Programdump". Have fun! Mats Nermark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted June 2, 2000 Share Posted June 2, 2000 As I have done all my recording projects at home since 1986 I think I have tried all possible ways of recordning direct since Tom Scholtz first released his Rockman. My favourite unit for recording direct today is the Yamaha DG-1000 rack mount preamp. What turn me on is how it reacts to picking dynamics and how I dial my guitar's volume and tone controls. Really nice. It covers all sonic ground I need although I sometimes use distortion and fuzz boxes in front of it to get even more gain and/or whackiness out of it. Great for clean and distorted sounds. Where it really excels is the in between gritty bluesy sounds where you control the amount of distortion with you picking. I use together with a TC Electronic G-Force and I just consider it a killer combination. I think Yamaha has just decreased the price of the DG-1000. Check it out. Mats Nermark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted June 2, 2000 Share Posted June 2, 2000 This is a follow-up to my own post. Sorry about the mistakes in spelling. I really do know better. Mats Nermark[/b] I forgot to mention hte motorized chicken head knobs. You always know at a glance where you're at and thus it's sooooo easy to program that I've never hesitated to make a new sound when I felt like it. Mats Nermark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
richt Posted June 2, 2000 Share Posted June 2, 2000 My current recording setup: Les Paul Standard or Strat into ART Tube MP into Roland VS 1680's GTR input. The clean tone from this sounds sweet, but stick an (original) Ibanez Tube Screamer after the Tube MP and the result is to die for! Then, with all the amp modelling goodies in the Roland you can just go to town! Often I will reamp the direct track and the results are really great. It is truly amazing what we can do with all these toys! -Rich T. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anderton Posted June 2, 2000 Author Share Posted June 2, 2000 Originally posted by sustain@indy.net: There is a great void of understanding out there of what a true sustainer is. Sustainers open an entirely new creative avenue to those who don't close their minds, and are willing to learn about something new. In addition to the Sustainiac, there's also the Heet E-Bow, which I've used for decades now. It also operates on the strings, and while not polyphonic, it allows for almost synth-like timbres. I've also use the Sustainiac -- it showed up on a lot of samples I did -- and sustain devices are indeed cool. They're a lot more controllable than amp feedback, that's for sure! Craig Anderton Educational site: http://www.craiganderton.org Music: http://www.youtube.com/thecraiganderton Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/craig_anderton Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anderton Posted June 2, 2000 Author Share Posted June 2, 2000 Originally posted by mats.nermark@swipnet.se: As I have done all my recording projects at home since 1986 I think I have tried all possible ways of recordning direct since Tom Scholtz first released his Rockman Hey Mats, thanks for checking in, it's an honor to have you here. I'm glad the magazine is doing well, now if I only spoke Swedish... I found your comments on the VG88 interesting. If you want to update us as you learn more about it, please feel free to do so. And don't worry about spelling mistakes, most Swedes speak English better than Americans . Craig Anderton Educational site: http://www.craiganderton.org Music: http://www.youtube.com/thecraiganderton Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/craig_anderton Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alphajerk Posted June 2, 2000 Share Posted June 2, 2000 i know what sustainers are, they are for hacks who really cant play a guitar. no i dont have to turn my amp on earbleed to get my sustain. its all in the bone. and btw: i mentioned the CS@ not as opposed to having a sustainer pickup but to really feed the distorion box or amp to get the superthick overdrive. [This message has been edited by alphajerk (edited 06-03-2000).] alphajerk FATcompilation "if god is truly just, i tremble for the fate of my country" -thomas jefferson Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anderton Posted June 3, 2000 Author Share Posted June 3, 2000 Originally posted by alphajerk: i know what sustainers are, they are for hacks who really cant play a guitar. No, they're for people who want to turn a primarily percussive instrument into something that more closely resembles wind or brass. Craig Anderton Educational site: http://www.craiganderton.org Music: http://www.youtube.com/thecraiganderton Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/craig_anderton Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Uh Clem Posted June 3, 2000 Share Posted June 3, 2000 A guitarist I'm working with lately is using a little Digitech box which unfortunately may be discontinued. The 12AX7 tube makes it. They have a bass version - BP8 that also kicks that we got since the other one was so cool. Craig or anyone - any ideas on where to get that Palmer Box in the US? Seems hard to come by. Steve Powell - Bull Moon Digital www.bullmoondigital.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted June 9, 2000 Share Posted June 9, 2000 Originally posted by alphajerk: i know what sustainers are, they are for hacks who really cant play a guitar. B] It's just one more tool. I can get sounds with the Sustainiac Type B that you cannot reproduce with traditional amp feedback in any kind of reasonable time frame. Denigrating people who use a particular tool doesn't advance your art. It just limits it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alphajerk Posted June 9, 2000 Share Posted June 9, 2000 ive used them, but the setup i am using now i can get pretty much the same thing going on. or just by using an ebow. sometimes if i want the clean sounding sustain, i just run top distortion in a amp and split to a clean amp. im just screwing with you. but honestly, i would never trade out a pickup for it. i LOVE my combinations and put many kinds in to get the right combo of sounds. i got a strat that will go from a 60's quack porn sound to a 90's superlead hotrod to a creamy frippotronic. i do have a jag in pieces right now i could hotwire with a sustainer. ahh but too much else to buy lately. like a new royer mic for the guitar. craig: you cant get those brass/wind sounds with a volume pedal and a good tone? and hands down, the vg8 gets sounds that are more suited for those purposes. do you know if there is a way to use a gr30 and a vg8 at the same time? i wish the y would just include midi conversion on the vg88. alphajerk FATcompilation "if god is truly just, i tremble for the fate of my country" -thomas jefferson Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted June 9, 2000 Share Posted June 9, 2000 Originally posted by alphajerk: ive used them, but the setup i am using now i can get pretty much the same thing going on. or just by using an ebow. sometimes if i want the clean sounding sustain, i just run top distortion in a amp and split to a clean amp. I must agree when it comes to the pickup-based sustainers. Frankly, none of them impress me. But the Sustainer Type B is a completely different animal. It is unique in my decades of guitar experience. I won't harp on this again... but anyone who loves harmonic-based sustain effects on guitar who doesn't check it out... has missed something. The Type B is one special tool I'll always cherish and enjoy. Rock on! Ben Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.