MDA board?

[The Rossness]

I have a JF foglifter in one of my RM100's. I hate it so much, it makes me not want to play my amp and to my ears, makes every module sound bad. When I have modules in my other RM100, a stock one, they sound terrific. Even with the knob turned all the way down, I cant get close to what my stock RM100 presence sounded like (on a stocker, i kept my presence pretty low). If I got a Salvation MDA board, would I be able to get close to what my stock RM100 sounded like? I saw that have a "stock" sound".

If I just removed the foglifter, would the amp work without a presence/ density board?

 

[Spencer4hire]

Is it possible you installed it backwards? It was quite an improvement in my RM100.

 

[MarcoR]

Ross,

I remember you posting how you had your presence and density once before and the settings seemed unusual (that?s fine) but your constant dissatisfaction with amps and modules makes me wonder about the acoustics in the room you?re in. I?ve seen a few of the videos you posted and it looks like you are in an apartment or small room? Do you have any bass traps or acoustic treatment? I would strongly suggest that the room is properly treated before doing any critical sound analysis; it may save you time and money in the long run and you might not be constantly swapping gear in search of the tone that works for you.

 

[The Rossness]

Is it possible you installed it backwards? It was quite an improvement in my RM100.

Rob installed it while I was at his shop.

 

[Rising Farce]

My personal impression of the MDA, one of which I have in my RM100, is that it adds clarity, presence, and volume when engaged. With the knob pushed in, it simply offers a less pronounced version of the same effect. (It also comes with a jumper pin, which, when installed, effectively halves the impact of the modification.)

To be honest, I'm torn as to which setting I prefer, as my amp tends to sound a bit bright anyway.

 

[VitaminG]

Is it possible you installed it backwards? It was quite an improvement in my RM100.

Rob installed it while I was at his shop.

Did you test it at the shop? What were your thoughts at the time? Did you walk out dissatisfied with the tone, or has it degraded since?

 

[Jaded Faith]

If I was a betting man, something is wrong with your amp. It's not the Foglifter.

If I remember correctly, you were also doing something bad with that amp like running it with two power tubes pulled and the impedance mismatched...for quite some time. Nine out of ten MTS amps that guys bring in or send to me have problems that the owner was unaware of or were blaming on the wrong thing.

Although I doubt it will help, I'll gladly swap you your Foglifter out for a stock board. Simply send it back and cover $6 for return shipping. Hate to see you so unhappy. Hate is a strong word.

 

[Kapo_Polenton]

Ross,

I remember you posting how you had your presence and density once before and the settings seemed unusual (that?s fine) but your constant dissatisfaction with amps and modules makes me wonder about the acoustics in the room you?re in. I?ve seen a few of the videos you posted and it looks like you are in an apartment or small room? Do you have any bass traps or acoustic treatment? I would strongly suggest that the room is properly treated before doing any critical sound analysis; it may save you time and money in the long run and you might not be constantly swapping gear in search of the tone that works for you.

+1000

Your room is small, boxy, and you will have excessive lows which you will compensate for with more treble. I had similar issues before i finished off my basement studio room with 4 inch thick bass traps in corner and 2 inch reflective panels on each wall. You could do your entire room for under 200$ if you DIY.

Second observation is that you are in fact dissatisfied with everything that I don't think anything could make you happy.. furthermore, the way you critique gear is often a little..."dramatic". Why not say it "isn't my thing, I don't like what it does to my sound..is the MDA board any better?" That would go over a lot better I'm sure than " it's a sack of garbage and I hate it".. especially after Rob allowed you to spend time in his shop, jam on a bunch of mods, and installed the board. It's ok not to like it and say you don't like it, but you come across as compulsive and a bit of a d_ck here.

 

[The Rossness]

Ross,

I remember you posting how you had your presence and density once before and the settings seemed unusual (that?s fine) but your constant dissatisfaction with amps and modules makes me wonder about the acoustics in the room you?re in. I?ve seen a few of the videos you posted and it looks like you are in an apartment or small room? Do you have any bass traps or acoustic treatment? I would strongly suggest that the room is properly treated before doing any critical sound analysis; it may save you time and money in the long run and you might not be constantly swapping gear in search of the tone that works for you.

+1000

Your room is small, boxy, and you will have excessive lows which you will compensate for with more treble. I had similar issues before i finished off my basement studio room with 4 inch thick bass traps in corner and 2 inch reflective panels on each wall. You could do your entire room for under 200$ if you DIY.

Second observation is that you are in fact dissatisfied with everything that I don't think anything could make you happy.. furthermore, the way you critique gear is often a little..."dramatic". Why not say it "isn't my thing, I don't like what it does to my sound..is the MDA board any better?" That would go over a lot better I'm sure than " it's a sack of garbage and I hate it".. especially after Rob allowed you to spend time in his shop, jam on a bunch of mods, and installed the board. It's ok not to like it and say you don't like it, but you come across as compulsive and a bit of a d_ck here.

I'm not trying to bash anything and don't mean to be a dick, I'm just sharing what my ears hear. Compulsive... maybe. However, I won't talk about anyone like they're a god and can do now wrong. I don't try to be nasty about how I feel. If I come off that way, I appoligise. If it helps, I recently picked up an AngelE and have only positive things to say about it. It sounds waaay better than a stock Angel which I was 50/50 on.

How about this... I like to run my amps on the darker side of things and really dial my sound in with a preamp's eq. I keep my presence dialed back, I don't really use the depth control. With the foglifter installed, my speakers push more air, which is nice, but the effects on the high end have too fizz/ treble. I can't get the high end or fizz out of my sound. When Dialed back, I can't get the amp to sound dark. It sounds bright and brighter. When I swap modules between my two RM amps with the same settings, the stock amp sounds much better. Could the foglifter be modded to sound stock when pushed in and engaged when pulled out with push/pull knobs? So that way if you like your stock sound or a modded sound, you're satisfied both ways. How about a bigger tonal sweep on the knob between dark and bright?

I didn't try the foglifter out at rob's shop. I might take him up on his offer to swap the stock board back in. Is it a simple plug and play job, or do I have to solder it in/out? I'm basically in a cluttered studio apt and sound-proofing isn't really an option here.

 

[MarcoR]

I'm basically in a cluttered studio apt and sound-proofing isn't really an option here.

Sound proofing and acoustic treatment are two entirely different things.

You need bass traps. You can build them with Owens Corning 703. There are plenty of DIY instructions on the web.

The most common mistake with home recordings is TOO MUCH BASS; it might sound great in the room when you mix but take it to the car or your buddy?s house and the bass is overwhelming and your mix sounds like arse. This applies with guitars or any sound for that matter.

The common guitar player mistake is setting up presets at home that sound great, then going to practice or the gig and it just doesn?t work anymore. In this case, what you hate in your apt. might be awesome at the gig.

Regardless, starting with a flat, transparent listening environment (that does not color your sound) will always translate better from location to location.

 

[Kapo_Polenton]

What I am hearing is that you are a guy who also prefers darker amps... you were therefore not the best candidate for a foglifter as the whole point is to bring out detail and clarity/presence. I think a correct spec presence board is all you need and might even have been what you had before.

This also makes me understand why you have flipped so many mods or not really liked a lot of the amps you have owned. I'd say try to find a used Bogner ecstacy if "warmer" tones are your thing. Running an amp with no presence up must mean you crank the treble. Without it yikes, that's woofy.

 

[The Rossness]

What I am hearing is that you are a guy who also prefers darker amps... you were therefore not the best candidate for a foglifter as the whole point is to bring out detail and clarity/presence. I think a correct spec presence board is all you need and might even have been what you had before.

This also makes me understand why you have flipped so many mods or not really liked a lot of the amps you have owned. I'd say try to find a used Bogner ecstacy if "warmer" tones are your thing. Running an amp with no presence up must mean you crank the treble. Without it yikes, that's woofy.

Theres a used ecstasy locally for $2200 on CL. People always recommend that amp to me. I think it sounds honky and never really tried one besides the stock randall xtc. Maybe I should try a modded module first though.

I think a stock presence might be exactly what I need. I just took the foglifter out. The chassis was not easy to get out of the headshell. wowsers!

 

[MarcoR]

Perhaps just a good thick blanket over the amp?

 

[The Rossness]

So, I took the board out and the amp still sounds kind of weird. Better, but weird. Maybe rob's right about something inside the amp not being 100%. Worse comes to worse, I'll have a nice speaker cabinet...

 

[Kapo_Polenton]

Maybe check the preamp tubes in the amp (not the module) by swapping them out with fresh ones to see if you still have issues. I'd start with that if something doesn't sound right.

 

[MarcoR]

Maybe check the preamp tubes in the amp (not the module) by swapping them out with fresh ones to see if you still have issues. I'd start with that if something doesn't sound right.

Maybe, read Rob's reply above; he probably has a messed up transformer.

 

[The Rossness]

so, I put a fresh set of KT66's in the amp and whalla! It sounds good again. I'm also running the amp without a presence/density circuit and it doesn't sound bad. I once had a Traynor amp that had a button where you could take the presence/ density coltrols out of the circuit.

 

[Kapo_Polenton]

Maybe check the preamp tubes in the amp (not the module) by swapping them out with fresh ones to see if you still have issues. I'd start with that if something doesn't sound right.

Maybe, read Rob's reply above; he probably has a messed up transformer.

Guess it's not the transformer then.. I've had a blown transformer..mine lost major volume and sounded fizzy. This just sounded like Rossness's ears or tubes for starters. He also clearly does not like presence!

 

[yourguitarhero]

I put an MDA board in my RM50 combo.
TBH, I prefer it without the button pulled out. Otherwise it is too 'blaring' if that's the right word? Doesn't fit in the band mix as well.

I'm probably just gonna take it out and sell it. I'm aware that it has an effect even when not engaged, but I was happy with the amp's sound before anyway.

Worth a try though.