Treble Bleed Mod

thegummy

I'd forgotten I'd installed a treble bleed mod in my PRS SE Bernie Marsden until I had a look in it to check what tone caps I was using for someone in another thread.

I realised I've never really liked the way the volume control responds so decided to snip it out - definitely prefer it without.

Weird thing is though, it seems to also sound better (not as bright) with the volume at 10 - is that possible or am I mistaken in thinking that?

Funkfingers

Difficult to comment without knowing the control circuit in your SE Marsden. e.g. Two volume pots, one treble bypass mod. Which volume pot got the bypass network?

ICBM

thegummy said:

Weird thing is though, it seems to also sound better (not as bright) with the volume at 10 - is that possible or am I mistaken in thinking that?

Mistaken, unless the pot is faulty and isn’t going fully to maximum. When the pot is at maximum the treble pass network should be bypassed completely.

thegummy

I've changed it to a single volume but I'll easily believe I was mistaken to think it was having any effect at 10.

I know better than to trust a comparison of the subtleties of two sounds when not heard right next to each other (or even when they are depending on the subtlety).

Reminds me of a pet peeve I have with video comparisons when they play one sample then, instead of immediately switching to another, they stop and say "okay and now for the second clip" making it near impossible to reliably compare!

borntohang

If you have removed a volume pot from the circuit it could easily be slightly brighter - even if it is only in parallel with the second pickup there will be a slight load on the circuit. As you say, it's difficult to tell without doing a direct comparison.

Funkfingers

ICBM said:

unless the pot is faulty and isn’t going fully to maximum. When the pot is at maximum the treble pass network should be bypassed completely.

The stock pots in some PRS SE instruments are nothing to write home about. I always change them out to DiMarzio Pro Parts. I like the resistance taper on those. I use the volume pot to govern valve amp overdrive saturation.

thegummy

borntohang said:

If you have removed a volume pot from the circuit it could easily be slightly brighter - even if it is only in parallel with the second pickup there will be a slight load on the circuit. As you say, it's difficult to tell without doing a direct comparison.

Sorry I don't mean that the difference is after the volume pot was changed to tone, that was done when I first got it. I meant between the treble mod being in and it being snipped out.

thegummy

Funkfingers said:

ICBM said:

unless the pot is faulty and isn’t going fully to maximum. When the pot is at maximum the treble pass network should be bypassed completely.

The stock pots in some PRS SE instruments are nothing to write home about. I always change them out to DiMarzio Pro Parts. I like the resistance taper on those. I use the volume pot to govern valve amp overdrive saturation.

It's CTS pots. Honestly, I doubt there's anything happening that's causing a difference, far more likely it's just in my head.

ICBM

thegummy said:

I know better than to trust a comparison of the subtleties of two sounds when not heard right next to each other (or even when they are depending on the subtlety).

Reminds me of a pet peeve I have with video comparisons when they play one sample then, instead of immediately switching to another, they stop and say "okay and now for the second clip" making it near impossible to reliably compare!

Exactly. That's why I always try to set up direct-switching tests to compare this sort of thing, if I'm not sure by measurement.

If you switch something actually on the fly while sound is being produced, you will know whether there's an audible change or not - even if it's very subtle, you can hear a step-change in the tone or volume. If there's nothing audible, it's pretty safe to conclude that there is none. (Assuming that you're listening through something that will actually let you hear it! I prefer a clean amp with the speaker right in front of me, facing directly at my ears.)