Tourmaster with Delay + OD Pedals = Not good

[Revman]

Hey fellow Egnaters,
Just picked up a Tourmaster 4212 on a trade. I went for this combo amp due to the great sounds I heard it when I played with one at a GC. I didn't try it with pedals. I'm having problems with my Carbon Copy delay and my two OD pedals. For the Carbon Copy, it just lost its warmth. Generally doesn't sound good. I have not "looped it yet.

In regards to the OD's, they generally sound very distorted. Not warm and bluesy like I could get on my Fender HR Deville and my Blues Jr.

My settings on the power grid are: Clean 1 - 100 w, Cl 2 - 25w, OD1 - 25w, OD2 - 25w.

Newbie here so any help would be appreciated.

I like a nice clean foundation to work from then add color with pedals.

 

[dan desy]

Well, it's a different amp, so you probably need to tweak your ODs...
But the delay HAS to go in the loop. Trust me.

 

[Len Rabinowitz]

This amp is WAY better then the Fenders, but WAY more complicated. You are definitely going to need to work with it and adjust your settings accordingly.

No question, the delay has to go in the loop. Make sure to set the loop properly also. Tourmaster is a great amp, but it takes a good deal of work to master it.

 

[Anonymous]

make sure you put your delay in the loop...and try both different modes.


this amp for sure, takes some time put in to learn how to dial it in....but once you figure it out....really, there isn't an amp sound you cant get out of it. particularly useful to know is, dial in a good sound with just the gain, treble and bass...then add mid to match. mix in some contour if you so choose...remember, contour engaged and fully turned on, is almost like contour bypassed....but not...almost. as you back it down, it scoops the sounds more. once you get where you want, now you can spice things up with the depth and presence. remember, those two are power amp tones, so they can get pretty strong, pretty quick.

like i said, there honestly isn't an amp sound that i can't get, or get really close to with this amp.

learn it one channel at a time. dont worry about fucking with preamp and poweramp tubes..just learn your amp.

if you're looking for warm and bluesy, and adding in pedals...might i suggest you back the power grid down to 10 watts on every channel and play the amp there for a while....get a feel for what those power tubes sound and feel like...THEN increase the grid settings.

experiment with the settings in the manual. learn where your particular amps channel volume sweet spots are, as well as the master and presence sweet spots....this is all part of the fun, but when you figure out where each knobs sweet spot is, it'll make it easier to dial in an amp setting.

dont dial this amp with your eyes, and where you think knobs shoud be set. oft times, on ALL channels, i find myself with each channels' tone knobs very close to 12:00 if not at 12:00 or 1:00, and then i add/subract contour depth/presence to match.

heres a pic of my most recent dirty tones. maybe it'll help. im pretty sure i was in half power mode/both channels on 50 watt...but with my attenuator on the combo...and my randal ported 2x12 cab unattenuated. both contours engaged. obviously, i was practicing late at night so the master wasn't opened up all the way, but today...that sound right there just got bigger and better sounding as i increased my master.



gtr/cable/amp right now...as im still learning my amp.

also, that od1 setting i have will get you pretty close to this tone:

 

[Anonymous]

i've been GASsing for so many amps lately, and have put in more time than i'd like to admit on youtube drooling over a TON of different amps...so i got to thinking (and berating myself for falling into that trap and wasting time and not playing MY amp)...how could my constant gas for other amps actually help me dial in my tourmaster?????

it was kind of time intensive, but i took each high quality youtube clip of each amp i liked and recorded them into my sound editor (cool edit pro)...and i edited them down timewise to just hear like the first 30 seconds or so of each amp and saved as a high quality mp3.


i dumped them to my ipod...and i use them for a reference to try and get my tourmaster tones as close as i can. In my little jamspace i have my 200 watt sony stereo that has a flat eq setting i use...it adds minimal color to the ipod clips..i've listened to the ipod clips side by side of my computer monitors, and they're really close...so, it's a good reference to go by..

soon i will be getting a looper/delay pedal that will allow for me to focus on dialing my amp when im dialing it in...and not playing.

if anyone wants a copy of any of clips i have from the actual amps that i use for comparison, pm me and i'll shoot them over.

that diezel sound can be had in the tourmaster.
so can this one

 

[Len Rabinowitz]

I play this thing down at 10 watts a lot myself. It adds a little character to it.

 

[hbucker]

Pay attention to where the gain on your clean channel is set. That can really affect how my Renegade sounds with od boxes. Too much gain on the amp, even if it isn't much to the ear, can really muddy up the od pedal.

good luck

 

[Anonymous]

too much gain in the tourmaster period can muddy up the amp. there's a fine line between just the right amount and too much...easily heard by the icepick effect that kicks in around...say 3oclock.

 

[ramblin390]

shouldn't need od pedals- I ran mine at 50 watts contour on nearly full counter clock wise on most of the channels.

 

[Revman]

Dropped power down to 50watts and dropped each channel down to 10. Tweaked clean channels to my ears. Still have to tweak the OD channels. Thanks for all the good tips. I knew this amp could sing with a little time and effort. Ran delays and chorus through loop. Delays are working nice now.
Thanks again.

 

[dan desy]

Good to hear, man!
I run all my digital/mod effects in the loop and once dialed in, they sound great.