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8 BLOCKS GUIDE
Master Volume
– The almighty Master Volume is a very important control. It determines the distortion and
dynamics characteristics of the power amp simulator, and its setting at any moment can dramatically change the
amp’s sound. As it is turned up, the tone controls will have less influence, and the sound will have more “bloom”
and touch sensitivity. Settings for Master don’t necessarily correspond to knob positions on the amp being
modeled. With a little experimentation, you will learn to dial in different great sounding Input Drive and Master
combinations.
When you select an amp type, the Master will change to an appropriate/typical setting for that amp. If a real amp
doesn’t have a Master, the “correct” setting will be applied—i.e. “10”, or “wide open.”
At high settings, less Input Drive is usually required, especially for high-gain types.
Amps designed for preamp distortion will typically sound great with the Master set low to
prevent the tone becoming muddy or noisy. This includes the “USA Lead” types and others.
Amps with negative feedback tend to have “crunchier” power amp distortion, which can get “raspy” when
driven too hard. Experiment with the interactivity of Negative Feedback and Master on distortion tone.
With Power Amp Modeling disabled, either globally or in one specific block, Master Volume
becomes a simple level control with 40 dB of range. For more on disabling Power Amp
Modeling, see Supply Sag (
p. 61
) and
“Global Settings: Config Page” on p. 112
.
If more power amp gain is desired, Master Volume Trim in the
Advanced menu can be used for increased range.
LEVEL
– This controls volume with NO EFFECT on tone, making it ideal for setting the overall level of a preset.
ă
PREAMP PAGE
Input Boost
– Toggles an additional 12 dB of gain at the input of the amp type.
Fat Switch
– Emphasizes midrange and adds “body” by shifting the tonestack center frequency.
Cut Switch
– Reduces the amount of low frequencies coming into the amp simulation. This can be used to
achieve a “tighter” tone or to reduce low-end “flub”.
Saturation Switch
– This engages a popular mod between the preamp and the tonestack for a thicker, more
aggressive distortion character. The “ON (AUTH)” and “ON (IDEAL)” settings differ only in volume. “IDEAL” gives
you the hotter output you wish a real amp had with saturation engaged. ;-)
Saturation Drive
– Controls the amount of saturation (see above). The default value differs for each model.
Preamp Tube Type
– Changes the characteristics of the virtual preamp tubes, based on real world examples.
Cathode Follower Compression
– Determines the amount of compression in the virtual cathode follower. This
parameter interacts with the other parameters listed in the Cathode Follower section of the Advanced page (Time,
Ratio, etc.)
Preamp Bias
– Sets the bias point of the last triode (not counting the cathode follower). Depending on the
bias points of the previous stages, increasing or decreasing this value can alter both harmonic content and
attack characteristics. Typically, if the previous stage has a negative bias then increasing this value will be more
noticeable (and vice-versa).
Bright Cap
– Sets the value of a virtual capacitor to determine the sonic effect of the Bright switch. Increasing
this will make the preamp brighter and vice versa.
High Treble
– Think of this as an extra tone control, useful to add “zing” or tame harsh highs.
