Yeah Rmilbeck and Y'all,
I have been using an MTS RM100 head since early 05'. So I got a bit of experience with this gear myself. As of late I have used stock modules because I was able to get really tasty tones with just a few tweaks like putting an overdrive in front of the pre or using high quality compression.
First off:
I agree that pickups are one of the most important factors because the sound hitting the preamp section is predicated upon the source of the vibrations. I have several guitar with pickups by Dimarzio, Bill Lawrence, Rio Grande, Vintage Teisco, Tom Anderson, and Lace. Each pickup does a slightly different thing and seems to "like" a different module more than others. I have noticed that using the volume knob opens up a lot of possibilities with the modules. I think sometimes people run their preamp gain too hot and a simple taper back of the pot cleans it right up. Many of these modules have 4 gain stages!!! With the clean modules and lower gain modules, especially with higher output pickups, must be adjusted with the guitar volume control to get a true clean with enough headroom to not easily break up. Even the beloved KH1 will breakup.
Secondly:
Eq's will have a different effect depending upon whether or not it is used in the loop or in front of the preamps. In the loop it will work like the Eq on your stereo and give you a fairly predictable cut/boost of frequencies. On the other hand, when put in front of the preamps, it is a different animal. It affects the way it drives the preamp tubes and acts similar to an OD in some ways. Boosting certain frequencies pushes the pre into distortion while cutting certain frequencies can smooth out the sound and clean up a module very similar to rolling back the volume knob. While they function differently, compression and ODs perform a pre-shaping of the signal before it reaches the preamp section and fundamental eq and output adjustments can be made. IMO a full on Eq in front of your amp is probably overkill. Plus you can make final tweaks with the eq in the loop and be just fine. Using pedals in front of your amp also perform a very useful function. More on that...
Thirdly: Cables are one of the most misunderstood parts of the signal chain. They have the ability to change the Eq quite a bit depending upon capacitance per ft, overall length, and construction materials. I disagree that anything above Mogami and Canare is just silly. That is simply not true. Let me elaborate...Most of the time guitars are going to be passive electronics which means that the signal going from your guitar to the first effect in your chain will be a high-impedance signal. This type of signal is prone to degradation based on several factors incuding capacitance, resistance, and pickup output. An active pickup will produce a low-impedance signal which is hardly affected and can drive long cable and signal chains with ease. It almost doesn't matter if you use a coat hanger. :lol: Check this demo of a device that converts signal into low impedance right from your guitar pot: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5tbkwXX054
If you are running a passive rig, like 90% of folks, the first cable in your chain is the most important and quality does make a major difference. My first cable is a Zaolla Silverline with a solid silver conductor. I have tried everything and I mean everything. I have used Evidence Audio, Canare, Mogami, Monster, Lava, Dimarzio, Cornish Etc... I went through a phase. What I learned was the pre-shaping qualities that just a cable can have on eq and harmonic content. Zaolla Silverline is simply the best cable that you can get for the money. Period; and it has a very real impact on tone. With Evidence Audio Lyric as a close second. If you really like a bright sound try the Elixir cables, very low capacitance and high end attenuation. (That one is for you Fig) That said I only use 1 expensive cable in my rig. Why? because I use my OD pedal as a buffer. Everything that comes in line after that in pushed by a low-impedance signal. My guitar goes into my OD, which converts the signal into low-impedance signal after that cable quality amount of circuits in the chain becomes significantly less important. (as you could see from the demo he used an extension cord.lol) You get a more consistent signal pushing your preamp and a fuller more detailed sound. I don't suggest using a cheap cable to get a jazz tone or using cable to get eq effects. Thats what the knobs on the amp and guitar are for. You can always cut, it's much harder to add. Get a good full range cable that translates as much of your pickups signal to the first circuit in your chain, buffer to low impedance, and adjust to taste. I am in good company with this concept. Check out this article from Guitar Player. Dave Friedman, Pete Cornish and others represent their ideas and it's a killer informative read. Take a few minutes and read it:
http://www.guitarplayer.com/article/chairmen-boards/apr-08/35211
Tubes I am not super familiar with outside of JJ, EH, and Sovtek. While the subtleties of tubes can be subjective, like fine wine, usually the good stuff rises to the forefront of peoples attentions. While the changes in tone may be slight to negligible that knowledge is valuable. I would like to learn more and decide from an informed standpoint what the truth of the matter is. Without buying a billion dollars worth of tubes I choose to rely on my friends on the forum. They know their **** and I respect their input. I research everything that I hear and I have been blessed plenty of times by the folks on the MTS forum. Top notch guys. So the standard is that: everybody has their own opinions, all information is valuable, and no one is the fucking authority. It is wise to listen twice and speak once. Or is it measure twice and cut once...
OK...More tube stuff please, my brain is hungry.
