I
itsme
Well-known member
Or is it always gonna be bright and tight? Just curious?
Random Hero
New member
I find it very squishy and smooth on ch3??
I run the global presence at around 10:00, so perhaps that's it. Try these settings and let me know how you find them...
Bass 2:00
Mid 2:00
Treble 11:00
Gain 2:30
Master 9:00
Presence 10:00
Deep 12:00
I sometimes clean boost mine too, but not always.
I run the global presence at around 10:00, so perhaps that's it. Try these settings and let me know how you find them...
Bass 2:00
Mid 2:00
Treble 11:00
Gain 2:30
Master 9:00
Presence 10:00
Deep 12:00
I sometimes clean boost mine too, but not always.
S
Sacha
New member
An overdrive used as a clean boost is always a good trick to get more sag and tweak the EQ / add compression. I use a Lovepedal Eternity with my Herbert on channel 3 for solos and it sounds killer. An EQ pedal could also work for more drastic shaping.
A
Anonymous
Guest
I can get the Herbert to sound squisshy by not running the global volume up too high and being conservative in my use of EQ settings. The amp naturally will tighten up a bit as it gets into the power range of the 6 power tubes. Any amp with that much horsepower will get that way.
If it is too tight, and you can re-bias, try making the bias a bit hotter, but only slightly. Sometimes an amp that is biased too cold tends to sound hard and sterile. However re-biasing too hot can shorten the tube life. Somewhere in there is a happy medium.
I also remove pairs of power tubes to help soften the amp's feeling, but you lose some sub-bass power and must remember to set your impedance accordingly.
Also using slightly weaker pre-amp tubes is another way to soften up the initial attack.
I have done this to both my VH4 and Einstein with great success. I have very low hours in on my Herbert because I am using the Einstein more for the type of gigs we play at this time.
If it is too tight, and you can re-bias, try making the bias a bit hotter, but only slightly. Sometimes an amp that is biased too cold tends to sound hard and sterile. However re-biasing too hot can shorten the tube life. Somewhere in there is a happy medium.
I also remove pairs of power tubes to help soften the amp's feeling, but you lose some sub-bass power and must remember to set your impedance accordingly.
Also using slightly weaker pre-amp tubes is another way to soften up the initial attack.
I have done this to both my VH4 and Einstein with great success. I have very low hours in on my Herbert because I am using the Einstein more for the type of gigs we play at this time.
fuzzyguitars
Active member
another trick is to use a pedal compressor such as the 4 knob keeley.
set the compression low, add clean boost, set the attack 50%
smooth city!
works equally good for channel 2!
set the compression low, add clean boost, set the attack 50%
smooth city!
works equally good for channel 2!
hunter
Active member
Hmm, for this purpose maybe Peter should build a Herbert Classic (in analogy to XTC Classic) with a bit more sag and classic voicing.
On the other hand, you can already have that with the Einstein.
On the other hand, you can already have that with the Einstein.
B
Bato
New member
That´s the correct answer! 
With Herbie, you can get almost every Sound you want!
With Herbie, you can get almost every Sound you want!
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fearhk213
Well-known member
Hmm, I've always felt the Herbert had a darker voicing with a natural sag/squish to it. If anything I thought it was hard to dial this out. Anyway, what kind of pickups do you use? I find my guitar with EMGs is a lot harder to get squishy than my guitar with passives. I've never heard an amp highlight the differences between passive and active pickups like the Herbert does. For me the biggest issue in the squish factor is the Herbert's gain. If I want it squishy I keep the gain at 12 o'clock and beyond for channel 3 and maxed out on channel 2 w/+ engaged depending on the hottness of your pickups.
Frank
Frank
bleedblack
New member
Yea, my passive's sound much better through my VH4 than my EMG's also. Must be a Diezel thing!
JohnRageOn
Member
Well active pickups were used in the 80s on amps which had less gain than nowadays. There's no use of using active circuitry on contemporary high gain heads IMHO always. Of course if it is a matter of tonal preference then things change, but you must set your amp's controls according to the impedance of the input signal that feeds it.
Me
Member
Active pickups are for wusses! If you're truely rock and rock you should be able to rock so hard live that your top string catches over the bobbin of your neck pickup. This needs to be done repeatedly live til you've done it enough times that you notice within a second or two what the problem is so you can "ping" the string back out and keep rockin' before anyone even notices! 
You can only do that with passives as actives all seem to be square "blobs" with all the windings inside. Seriously, I need to do the old dimebag trick of putting electrical tape over the ends of the neck pickup to my parker, so it doesn't happen. I have direct mounted pickups in my parker though so it's not as easy to do as on my old jackson.
Now I've upset a load of you by saying actives are for wusses I may as well finish myself off by adding what I keep telling my friends with 7 string guitars; you only need 6 strings if you buy a decent amp and play it the right way!
You can only do that with passives as actives all seem to be square "blobs" with all the windings inside. Seriously, I need to do the old dimebag trick of putting electrical tape over the ends of the neck pickup to my parker, so it doesn't happen. I have direct mounted pickups in my parker though so it's not as easy to do as on my old jackson.Now I've upset a load of you by saying actives are for wusses I may as well finish myself off by adding what I keep telling my friends with 7 string guitars; you only need 6 strings if you buy a decent amp and play it the right way!
bleedblack
New member
Nice analogy!! he he!
I had the chance to try a late seventies LP custom with Bareknuckle Cold Sweats today through my rig................Fuckin Awesome! This has been the turning point, and i'm now definatley going back to passive. Every note is thick and harmonicaly rich, and sounds so sweet yet gritty and mean. I know woods play a huge part in the sound and so i'm thinking of selling my '90 Custom and gettin a 70's custom instead. Acousticly you can hear a big difference in the guitars too. I never thought there could be such a difference in the same model as that. Darker, thicker tones from the 70's model, as opposed to a more brighter light weight tone from the 90's.
I had the chance to try a late seventies LP custom with Bareknuckle Cold Sweats today through my rig................Fuckin Awesome! This has been the turning point, and i'm now definatley going back to passive. Every note is thick and harmonicaly rich, and sounds so sweet yet gritty and mean. I know woods play a huge part in the sound and so i'm thinking of selling my '90 Custom and gettin a 70's custom instead. Acousticly you can hear a big difference in the guitars too. I never thought there could be such a difference in the same model as that. Darker, thicker tones from the 70's model, as opposed to a more brighter light weight tone from the 90's.