Setting the Mid-range

Rick Collins · From: Claremont , CA USA

For my ear, settings of the bass and treble are quite discernable; but setting of the mid-range introduces some ambiguity. Also, I'm unsure of the best approach to take when deciding what to set first.

I'm using a Webb 6-14E and just a volume pedal. Since the mid's control is scaled 1 thru 10, it would seem a good idea to start with it set at 5.

I play with the EQ on. I roll most of the bass on and most of the treble off; but the mid-range has always made me unsure of what I'm really doing. There seems to be an almost infinite number of setting combinations with just these three controls.

...appreciative if some of you good players on the Forum will describe your theory on how you get the sound pleasing to you by fine tuning of the controls.

Rick

b0b · From: Cloverdale, CA, USA

Moved to Electronics section.

Tony Prior · From: Charlotte NC

I'm on the fringe, I play with very little or less midrange..

Maybe my mid frequncies burned out in the 60's !

t

Brad Sarno · From: St. Louis, MO USA

I just did some EQ analysis of the Webb 614-E. By far the most dramatic control is the 3-position tone selector. #1 has a big dip at 375Hz and has reduced bass. #2 has a big fender twin style dip at 550Hz and lots of bass, very twin like. #3 is the flattest response with little mid dipping. Mr. Webb recommends #1 for fiddle, #2 for steel, and #3 for direct things like keyboards. There are no rules of course. Jimmy Day used #3 and the graphic EQ with the lows cut back and the mids and highs boosted. (according to one person's report of JD's settings)

The 3 band EQ is pretty gentle. The midrange control is a real broad band centered around 1.2kHz. You wont hear dramatic effects from that control. So the 3-position switch is your heavy midrange cut selector. The Graphic EQ is also not dramatic and Mr. Webb recommends leaving it off unless you've got a funny sounding instrument that really needs tone balancing. There are a number of Webb users that like the sound of the graphic EQ on.

I've found that #2 with treble back at around 9-10o'clock, midrange at 11o'clock, and bass at 3o'clock sounds real thick and warm. Some people seem to like more midrange so they'll use #3 and the graphic also to tweak. The Webb has lots of possibilites but I'd start with #2 and the graphic off, get a ballpark tone and then see if you need the additional eq circuit.

Brad Sarno

Larry Behm · From: Mt Angel, Or 97362

It depends a lot on the speaker you are using, from wire to wide tire. My rule is to make the lows as hard as I can and the highs as thick as I can without affecting the other areas. I am not concerned about the physical setting as much as the sound, close your eyes and set the controls to fit your ears.

Larry Behm

Bengt Erlandsen · From: Brekstad, NORWAY

I find this procedure to work for any amp to get the sound as I want. Quick and easy.

Step 1: set all bass, mid, treble, presence midway.
Step 2: Play a group of low strings and let ring while....
step 3: rotate bass from full CCW (counterclockwise) to CW and back to CCW
Step 4: listen for the point where the bass control starts to color the sound by either boosting or cutting the bass. Going beyond that point may not have that great effect on the sound. You want to find the point where it starts to change the color. Leave the control at that point.
Step 5: Repeat step 2, 3 & 4 for mid, treble and presence.
Step 6: Repeat step 2, 3 & 4 again for a quick doublecheck of bass, mid, treble, presence because the controls may interact and change the point where one control starts to change the sound.
Step 7: Repeat step 2 thru 6 while playing a group of high strings.

Don't be surprised if some of the controls seem to kick in some other place than midway and that things might not change very much going beyond the point on one side or the other.

This procedure should take no longer than 1 minute. When done you have the amp playing "neutral" so you are listening to how your guitar really sounds and this is the starting point to decide if you need a little more bass or highs or less mids or whatever. This makes tweaking the controls to find the sound you want much easier and faster (might take another minute or two). Also keep in mind that the acoustics in the room you are playing also affects how the amp/speakers will sound so one setting of the controls might work at one place and not when set up the same at another stage.

The rest of the sound is in your heart, mind and fingers.

Bengt Erlandsen

[This message was edited by Bengt Erlandsen on 06 January 2004 at 03:12 PM.]

Eric West · From: Portland, Oregon, USA, R.I.P.

Recently another previously unthought of possibility showed itself.

The band I'm playing with hired Larry Behm's sound man for a gig. Mike Millian.

I asked him what my "EQ" was like to him.

He said I needed to cut my 2k range, as it was "too heavy". I adjusted it accordingly, and it sounded MUCH better, and I was allowed to "get out" at the right volume.

VERY few sound men locally are as good as Larry's, but it's a suggestion if you have one. They can tell a lot.

A lot of it is mike placement, and whether or not you use a PA.

Until recently I had not EVER owned a mike, and was at the mercy of line out, or some "extra mike" that the band had. BOY what a difference with two 57s!.

Just something to think about. It's often more than what YOU are hearing, and hard to find "other ears" that you can trust.

EJL

Donny Hinson · From: Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.

I usually start by setting the bass full-on, or nearly so, setting the treble to about 1/3 of it's full setting, and then "dialing in" my tone using the mid-range control. Many times, I run the mids full-off (or nearly so) to get good bass response and string seperation. Personally, I think steels (almost without exception), have tons of mids, plenty highs, and insufficient lows.

I set the amp to "add" what the steel is lacking, and to "reduce" what the steel has too much of. It's that simple.

Ron Randall · From: Dallas, Texas, USA

I hope this helps. A trick I learned by accident one day. IF you have independent cut/boost control and mid-freq control....
I boost the mids all the way, and sweep thru the freqs to find the nastiest sound I can. Then...cut the heck out of that freq.

FWIW

Kevin Hatton · From: Buffalo, N.Y.

As Donny said, I find that too much mids contribute to poor string separation. I NEVER
run them more than 2.

Eric West · From: Portland, Oregon, USA, R.I.P.

RR. IT seems to me that Peavey amps have a formula that's like that and I'm dingdy danged if I remember it.

EJL

David Doggett · Posted 8 Jan 2004 1:17 pm

What Donny said really works. I have usually ended up with something like that after much tweaking on different amps. So I tried just starting out the way Donny said, and it worked for steel on every amp I tried, whether it was a steel amp or not. This is gonna save me a bunch of time. Also, not coincidentally, this bass boost and mid scoop is pretty much what is built into the Fender Twin Reverb/Dual Showman/Vibrosonic, which are the best sounding amps for steel I have ever heard. Thanks for hitting me in the face with the obvious, Donny. Sometimes that's really what is needed.

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