Jaded Faith
Well-known member
The most common question I receive is "what benefit will I see from modding my module?" This week I was in the position to actually A/B it for myself first hand.
I finished a basic (meaning no added options) base mod to a stock 1086 for a customer this week. I performed the basic tune up which includes upgrading parts and revoicing the gain and tone stack to make it more defined. This particular mod actually revoiced the entire EQ and gain structure to decrease the gain from stock. The idea is that through proper tuning of the tone and gain structure, the perceived gain is actually increased even though it is technically decreased. This was done because the customer was happy with the gain levels on the stock module and this maintained that while adding clarity and definition. The gain now comes on more gradually and has more usable variation throughout the knobs travel.
The MP3 below is a 45 second clip that features the stock module for the first 20 seconds and the modded module for the final 25 seconds. All knobs on both modules were set EXACTLY the same, except for the volume. The stock module needed to be set at 5 to be at the same level as the modded module at 4. The settings were modest and middle of the road to showcase the differences:
Gain: 5 (noon)
Bass: 6 (1:00)
Mids: 5 (noon)
Treble: 6 (1:00)
Level: 5 on stock (noon) and 4 on modded (11:00)
Gain Boost switch is on
Mid Voicing is on the scooped setting (to the right, which is often considered useless to many)
RT2/50 on 1 (8:00) with Presence and Density at 5 (noon)
Here is the audio link: http://www.soundclick.com/player/single_player.cfm?songid=10784111&q=hi&newref=1
The gear used was a PRS CU22 with Dragon II stock pickups, an Egnater M4, Randall RT 2/50 with Tung Sol 5881's (all 12AX7's in the amp and modules are JJ ECC83S's) and a Marshall 1960A. The speaker was a Celestion T75 miked with two Shure SM57's. One was on the edge of the dust cap and the 2nd was about 2" out from that. Preamps were a UA 710 on the inner mic and an SSL Alpha Channel on the outer (no added EQ, only the Low Cut bass roll-offs engaged). It was recorded into Cubase 6 with absolutely no additional processing. The meters on the modules were set to be at the exact same levels for each module. It was recorded in one take for each with a break in between to switch modules cleanly.
The stock module has a noticable "blanket over the speaker" quality to it. There is much more useable range on the modded modules knobs, so the amount of gain and EQ stll on tap beyond the test settings is significantly more than the stock module has to give. It should be pointed out that the other side of the Mid Voicing switch is the one most like best. True to form, the improvements on that side are just as present. Bumping the level on the modded module up to 5-6 really brings it to life.
Hopefully this helps to clear up some of the confusion over modding modules and if it is really worth it. For a modest investment (about the same as a Boss pedal) this stock module is now a very useable beast.
I finished a basic (meaning no added options) base mod to a stock 1086 for a customer this week. I performed the basic tune up which includes upgrading parts and revoicing the gain and tone stack to make it more defined. This particular mod actually revoiced the entire EQ and gain structure to decrease the gain from stock. The idea is that through proper tuning of the tone and gain structure, the perceived gain is actually increased even though it is technically decreased. This was done because the customer was happy with the gain levels on the stock module and this maintained that while adding clarity and definition. The gain now comes on more gradually and has more usable variation throughout the knobs travel.
The MP3 below is a 45 second clip that features the stock module for the first 20 seconds and the modded module for the final 25 seconds. All knobs on both modules were set EXACTLY the same, except for the volume. The stock module needed to be set at 5 to be at the same level as the modded module at 4. The settings were modest and middle of the road to showcase the differences:
Gain: 5 (noon)
Bass: 6 (1:00)
Mids: 5 (noon)
Treble: 6 (1:00)
Level: 5 on stock (noon) and 4 on modded (11:00)
Gain Boost switch is on
Mid Voicing is on the scooped setting (to the right, which is often considered useless to many)
RT2/50 on 1 (8:00) with Presence and Density at 5 (noon)
Here is the audio link: http://www.soundclick.com/player/single_player.cfm?songid=10784111&q=hi&newref=1
The gear used was a PRS CU22 with Dragon II stock pickups, an Egnater M4, Randall RT 2/50 with Tung Sol 5881's (all 12AX7's in the amp and modules are JJ ECC83S's) and a Marshall 1960A. The speaker was a Celestion T75 miked with two Shure SM57's. One was on the edge of the dust cap and the 2nd was about 2" out from that. Preamps were a UA 710 on the inner mic and an SSL Alpha Channel on the outer (no added EQ, only the Low Cut bass roll-offs engaged). It was recorded into Cubase 6 with absolutely no additional processing. The meters on the modules were set to be at the exact same levels for each module. It was recorded in one take for each with a break in between to switch modules cleanly.
The stock module has a noticable "blanket over the speaker" quality to it. There is much more useable range on the modded modules knobs, so the amount of gain and EQ stll on tap beyond the test settings is significantly more than the stock module has to give. It should be pointed out that the other side of the Mid Voicing switch is the one most like best. True to form, the improvements on that side are just as present. Bumping the level on the modded module up to 5-6 really brings it to life.
Hopefully this helps to clear up some of the confusion over modding modules and if it is really worth it. For a modest investment (about the same as a Boss pedal) this stock module is now a very useable beast.