i have a fender hot rod deluxe valve amp and a digitech hot head pedal. When i have the amp on a low volume the pedal gives a big boost but as soon as i turn it past 2 (beleive me thats still loud) it doesnt boost my volume at all even when the level knob is on full.....it makes no difference whether i have it in line with my guitar or in the effects loop...whats up with that? help me.
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My 2c... It sounds like you've got ...
My 2c...
It sounds like you've got a very loud pedal, and your Deluxe is running out of headroom. First things first- try keeping the level of your pedal as close to 'unity gain' as possible e.g. keeping your overall volume the same whether the pedal's on or off.
Keep an eye on the bass response of the pedal/amp, and back it off a bit- this will obviously affect your tone, but you'll get more useable volume if your amp isn't busy wading it's way through the low-end content of your signal.
Guitars live in the mid-range frequencies, so if the amp's eq is 'scooped' i.e. no mids, the amp really won't seem as loud. Crank the mids up & see if that helps. From the looks of things your pedal has been designed with a scooped sound in mind, so this might be a moot point.
It's possible that the amp/pedal is simply faulty. If they're still under warranty then get them checked out by a technician.
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hey man, thanks for the advice...and ...
hey man, thanks for the advice...and when i do that there is no conflict between the two but i think the pedal must have a cut level or something cause it just wont give a boost, the whole point i have it is to boost volume and distortion, but it doesnt boost the volume, i think due to something in its circuitry....i was thinking of buying a seymour duncan sfxo1 pickup booster pedal....will that do the same thing?
I'd always figured that volume pedals ...
I'd always figured that volume pedals work the other way, in that they cut the level rather than boosting it. Essentially they are just a potentiometer connected to a foot pedal. When the pedal is full on all the signal goes through, when the pedal is full down no signal goes through. Don't confuse 'Volume' with 'Gain'.
dude....i have played guitar for a long ...
dude....i have played guitar for a long time...i know what a volume switch is and what gain and volume are...its an overdrive/boost pedal....and its not boosting when i play at higher volumes...even when the level knob is on full
Yeah, I realise this. I'm an idiot and ...
Yeah, I realise this. I'm an idiot and didn't really read very carefully before I wrote that.
I really think your Hot Head pedal is ...
I really think your Hot Head pedal is the weak link- lets just confirm the way you use it though:
guitar - hot head - distorted amp (right?)
I reckon if you're after a volume boost, you could try:
guitar - hot head - amp - effects send - EQ pedal- effects return
EQ pedals work great in the effects loop as a volume boost and/or tone shift.
You could also get rid of the Hot Head and try:
guitar - treble booster pedal - amp
There's tons of great treble boosters out there at the moment. HBE do one called 'Germania', Zvex do one called the 'Super Hard-On'- I haven't read many reiews of the Seymour Duncan Pickup Booster, but try it and see... basically a treble booster adds mids and upper mids to your guitar signal, and maybe add a little fuzz... oh, and a whole lot of volume, up to 30db or more.
Most decent valve amps love being driven by a good treble booster- eg Brian May from Queen could not make his signature sound without one. If you go the Zvex website, you can listen to samples of someone playing with the effect on as well as bypassed, so you'll be able to tell straight away if a treble booster does what you need it to.
[ http://www.zvex.com/hardon.html ]
ooh, one more tip: try deliberately ...
ooh, one more tip: try deliberately turning your Hot Head down , as in lower than your normal amp volume.
That way it will kind-of work in reverse:
pedal on- main sound, very overdriven.
Pedal off- louder sound, tighter, more definition.
I've seen a couple of bands use their pedals this way, it can work really well!
thanks foetusboy you've been a real ...
thanks foetusboy you've been a real help...im going in to try the seymour duncan tommorow...and il try the set up you gave..cheers man, keep rockin
When you refer to volume you mean the ...
When you refer to volume you mean the master (power amp) volume right? ... while all this is going on whats the gain set to? If you have the gain up to the point where its already breaking up then raising the input signal shouldn't be making it louder, only more distorted.
You've obviously got plenty of power in reserve at the power amp side of things, but maybe you are running out of pre-amp headroom? Maybe you could get a better result by dialing back the gain and increasing the volume to compensate?
I just had a look at the specs of your ...
I just had a look at the specs of your pedal, and I'm no expert on this stuff by any means, but maybe you should try and get your hands on something like a crowther hotcake or a tubescreamer and compare them. My guess would be that you are using a distortion pedal to do the job of an overdrive pedal, so its not that that pedal isnt working correctly, its that its the wrong pedal for the job.
cheers...il see what happens, it was a ...
cheers...il see what happens, it was a case of..pedal did what i wanted it to in shop....not at home kinda thing..aah well
Yeah the Seymour Duncan pickup ...
Yeah the Seymour Duncan pickup booster's are good, they give you 20db of boost.
[ http://www.8forty8.co.nz ]
yeah i just bought one...guys the ...
yeah i just bought one...guys the problem is solves...it even boosts my hot head pedal if i need it to....sounds sweet! cheers for the help
I'd say get a russian Migmuff (Pi) - ...
I'd say get a russian Migmuff (Pi) - goddammitzagoodun.