Bright Switches on Grail, Brahma, and Ultra

[distortoman]

Hey everyone,
Just wondering about the bright switches 3 modules that I tried in a guitar store. I tried out the Grail, Brahma, and Ultra modules. And for all three, when the bright switch was activated, there didn't seem to be any sort of noticeable difference in the high end structure, or even an discernable increase in treble response for any of them. For my Blackface module, there is a noticeable increase in brightness with the bright switch on, but for these modules, there wasn't one. Have you guys found this same conclusion with your high gain modules? Any feedback would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks,
Distortoman

 

[okstrat]

Generally speaking, the higher the gain is on your module, the less a standard bright switch is going to affect it. So a module with the gain cranked won't show a change as much as a module where you keep the gain down (like a blackface).

Pete

 

[squealingfeedback]

I just picked up a Brahma and was wondering the same thing! Found this thread while Googling it and wanted to add that i had the same experience. With the gain way down i hear a VERY slight change but like you said nothing as drastic as a Plexi or Blackface. Kinda disappointing but it sounds good nevertheless. Perhaps i'll hear a bigger difference playing it through my RM4-speakersims-headphones?

 

[Hamner1]

Probably not. The standard Randall bright circuit on the modules is pretty worthless. However you are correct that as far as the stockers go, the Brahma is one of the best.

 

[Jaded Faith]

Bright circuits work by using a cap to send frequencies above a set point (determined by the value of the cap and the gain pot) around the pot rather than bleeding those frequencies to ground. The higher gain the module is, the less impact a Bright circuit will have. If you turn the gain down below noon on any of those modules the effect will be much more noticeable.

There are two main reasons for this. You tend to run the gain higher on the gain modules than the clean ones. Try turning the clean module gain up and lower it's volume and see how the stitch loses some effectiveness. Then there is the fact that there tends to be more high frequencies in a high gain signal by nature, thus less to add.

A good analogy would be the cap that many have added to their guitars to prevent loss of clarity when the volume knob is turned down. It's the exact same concept as a Bright cap.