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Topic: Tone control on Hilton volume pedal |
Cody Angel
From:
Nashville, Tn
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Posted 11 Dec 2013 6:12 pm |
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I just got a Hilton active pedal and it is very bright compared to my passive Goodrich. I have tried dialing it in at the amp but I'm not getting the warmth I really like. I love the pedal for smoothness and attenuation. Where do you guys put the treble trim control on yours, those who use these?
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MSA Legend XL, Quilter Amps, Peterson Tuners. |
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Carl Kilmer
From:
East Central, Illinois
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Posted 11 Dec 2013 6:32 pm
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Cody, I turn mine counter clockwize about a 1/4 turn.
Try turning the pedal upside down, and while picking
say the strings 3 and 4 turn the pot down just a little
bit at a time until you get the sound you like to hear.
Don't go too far or the lows will start sounding muddy.
_________________
aka "Lucky Kay"--Custom built Rittenberry SD10 3X5, Walker S/S, NV-112, and Hilton Pedal |
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Keith Hilton
From:
248 Laurel Road Ozark, Missouri 65721
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Posted 11 Dec 2013 6:39 pm
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| Cody, thanks for getting one of my pedals. The reason the Hilton pedal is brighter than your pot pedal is because the pot pedal is losing high end frequency. You are hearing a fuller frequency from the Hilton. If your idea of warmth is lower frequency-- cutting highs-- you can do that easily on your Nashville 1000 controls. Cody, I use a Peavey 1000 and for smaller rooms a Peavey 112. I set them both the same way, as I think both have basically the same pre-amp. I set the knobs as follows: Low +9 Mid -15 Shift 800 High 0 Presence 0 Reverb 4 The only thing that seems to change from room to room, or band to band, is the High and Presence settings. If I am getting too many highs I back both the High and Presence settings one notch the opposite way a clock turns- from the zero position. Likewise, if I need more highs I turn both the High and Presence settings one notch the way a clock turns-from zero. Over the last 30 years I have noticed the tone settings of great players and arrived at these settings for my own sound. This sound may not be for you, you may like a more bass muffled tone. Also, the buzz box you are using may alter tone, depending where it is at in the signal chain. Also your sound out front 20 to 100 feet may be totally different than what you are hearing on stage. I eliminated the tone control on all pedals starting in January of 2013. Tone controls on pedals after that date must be special ordered. Why did I eliminate the tone control? Because in the last 16 years I know of no professional player using the Hilton pedal who ever used the tone control. All the pro players use the knobs on their amps to get tone. Hope this information helps. |
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Jack Stoner
From:
Kansas City, MO
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Posted 12 Dec 2013 3:42 am
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+1 to what Keith said.
I have a Hilton, an older one with the tone pot, but I have never moved it from the factory settings.
I have a Franklin with Lawrence 710 pickups, which tend to be bright. With Peavey amps, as Keith noted, other than I set my mid to -2 to -3, I set my amps the same. The high and presence are set to "0" normally, but can be increased slightly with old strings. |
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Charlie Thompson
From:
South Carolina, USA
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Posted 12 Dec 2013 7:41 am Follow up question for Keith
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| Keith as a follow up where do you recommend setting the tone control on your older volume pedals? |
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Lane Gray
From:
Topeka, KS
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Posted 12 Dec 2013 9:49 am
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I'm not Keith, but the answer is "where it sounds good to your ears."
_________________
2 pedal steels, a lapStrat, and an 8-string Dobro (and 3 ukes)
More amps than guitars, and not many effects |
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Lane Gray
From:
Topeka, KS
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Posted 12 Dec 2013 9:51 am
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I'm not Keith, but the answer is "where it sounds good to your ears."
_________________
2 pedal steels, a lapStrat, and an 8-string Dobro (and 3 ukes)
More amps than guitars, and not many effects |
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Charlie Thompson
From:
South Carolina, USA
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Posted 12 Dec 2013 10:02 am
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| Well of course... but to ask the question as different way.. where is the setting on the tone pot that is equal to the pot not being there at all? Wide open?about half way? etc.. |
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Carl Kilmer
From:
East Central, Illinois
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Posted 12 Dec 2013 10:27 am
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From the factory it comes on all the way. Full clockwise.
_________________
aka "Lucky Kay"--Custom built Rittenberry SD10 3X5, Walker S/S, NV-112, and Hilton Pedal |
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Charlie Thompson
From:
South Carolina, USA
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Posted 12 Dec 2013 10:38 am
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| Thanks Carl hope you are well..didn't know that.. |
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Keith Hilton
From:
248 Laurel Road Ozark, Missouri 65721
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Posted 12 Dec 2013 10:52 am
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Good "Tone" is a complex subject that can mean different things to different people. Tone can change slightly from air pressure, humidity, size of a room, the volume of a band, how speakers are positioned,distance of where you hear speakers,and a thousand other things. Musicians search for that "special" tone they want to hear. From what I have said above, many things can cloud the issue. All of us have been in a position where we turned knobs on a amplifier all night long, and never could get a decent sound.
The point here is----Don't expect MAGIC from a little control on the bottom of a pedal that is marked "TONE". All the tone control on the Hilton pedal ever did was remove highs. That is all. The controls on a amplifier can remove highs and much, much more. The main issue I had with people and tone controls on the bottom of the Hilton pedal, was guys playing with the tone control until they broke it. A few people thought the tone control on the Hilton pedal was EVERYTHING they needed for tone. I don't know if it was frustration in trying to get a good tone, having too many drinks, or what--but I got many pedals in with the tone control twisted until it was broken. Imagine the tone control on a radio being twisted until it was broken. Usually when those pedals came in for repair, the person didn't know how in the world the control was twisted so hard it got broken. In the old days I really got tired of fixing those tone controls for nothing. Lane Gray is correct when he says: Where it sounds good to your ears. To answer Charlie Thompson's question: The tone control is a 500K pot. When I removed the 500K pot from pedals in January of 2013 I install a 249K resistor. So Charlie, that would be about half way on the 500K pot. I still install tone controls on pedals, but it is a optional $10.00 when the pedal is new. If there is shipping involved it is $14.00 more. Also--I still repair pedals no matter how old they are, or in what condition. I have had pedals come in that have been under water, and one I remember dropped off of a car that was doing 70 miles per hour. Hope this information helps. |
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Peter Harris
From:
South Australia, Australia
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Posted 13 Dec 2013 5:02 am
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".....and one I remember dropped off of a car that was doing 70 miles per hour"
..at least you've got to credit that guy with a lot of guts for keeping playing at that speed.. 
_________________
If my wife is reading this, I don't have much stuff....really! |
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Charlie Thompson
From:
South Carolina, USA
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Posted 13 Dec 2013 5:46 am
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| Thanks Keith |
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