Was noodling around on the Vypyr Tube 60 tonight and found a pretty cool tone on the 6505 green model. I was hunting for something with light distortion and kinda chimey.
As I still do not have a mic, I recorded this direct from the amp. Not bad, but not as good as what I'm hearing in front of the speakers. Anywho....here is what I came up with...see linky...
Nice! More open than I'd expect a 6505 clip to be! Nice classic rock vibe to it.
Oddly enough, the 6505 green model tone on this amp is the only model that lets my guitar really 'quack' in the second pickup position....while at the same time maintaining a very solid low end.
Like I said...the clip is nowhere near as good as what I am getting in front of the speakers. Running direct has a long way to go.
I get better 'quack' from several other model and pedal combos....but there is no low end whatsoever. Which leads me to a question....why do Tubescreamer pedals drain all low end? I loved the Jekyll and Hyde pedal I had. But when the TS 808 button was engaged, ALL bottom end just dropped out. Same thing on every Screamer pedal I have ever tried.
Do I need a Bassman amp with the lows cranked to get a solid sound out of a Tubescreamer?? Maybe. But my 6505 model has that covered :) Gain cranked a notch and the lead tone is killer.
Sounds like you just need an OD that doesn't chop off all the bottom.
why would I lie-ie-ie-ie...
First thing you hit on a Tubescreamer is an RC filter that rolls off everything below, ~720Hz. Goodbye bottom end! The circuit later adds bass back in but to me it never really comes back in. I set mine to 72Hz... sounds thicker and meatier to me, and more useful... of course millions of people like the TS the way it is...
Lots of boutiquers make it 340-ish, or put it on a switch to choose two different rolloff points. I'm always mildly amused when people say that a screamer "really tightens up the bass" or such, and especially with that type comments about the Mesa Dual Rec. it gets rid of the fizz and tightens the bass because it rolls both of them out of the picture! :) I know there is a bit more to it than that, but...
But that also explains much of the popularity of the design. Think classic or hard rock, or 80s hair stuff. Marshalls with the mids scooped for rhythm tone, then a pedal that adds gain, rolls off tons of top and bottom and pushes mostly mids through for solos. A perfect match for most cases.
Oh, but DTR, SRV turned the gain all the way down and the level all the way up and didn't use it like you said. But... Same principle. Take a Fender blackface amp (scooped mids) and for solos, used his way, a pedal that rolls off top and bottom, pushes mids, and while not adding gain it now slams V1 into more gain/ compression.... And again, great solo tone.