Boosting my Volume for Lead Solo's

PermanentWaves

I just spent ages going through lots of pointless videos on YouTube about Boost pedals to try to get an answer to one question!

Can I use it to boost my volume for solos.

I know I can do it through the clean channel but I tend to use the dirty channel.

A boost in the front end will just dirty it up more.

Will a Boost be a good idea in the effects loop to boost volume?

Or should I put a volume pedal onto my pedal board (and probably also run that in the FX loops as probably the last pedal?)

Basically, how are people doing it here?

Thanks
Mike

not_the_dj

I have a TC Spark Booster in my FX loop. Works brilliantly. I'm actually selling a Blackstar LT boost I used to use for that which'll do the same thing (link in my sig ;-) )

d8m

I've been told by more than one person that an overdrive pedal with the gain at 0, volume a bit over unity, placed at the end of a pedal chain makes for a good solo boost.

Teetonetal

I use a Messa Boogie Tone burst to do just that - my tone but louder, I also use a EHX Soul Food when I want a thicker lead tone. Both work really well pushing a slihtly to mid dirty amp.

viz

http://thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/comment/463148/#Comment_463148

smudge_lad

Clean boost/OD pedal in the fx loop - however, if you still have some headroom on your dirty channel, a boost in front will also work. I for one have never mnaged to NOT get a volume boost from a pedal out front, so I guess I must have my amp set up wrong as I seem to be the only one who doesn't get a boost pedal only adding gain without volume into my dirt channel

mike_l

Depending on how dirty the amp is.

Mild Crunch, an OD or clean boost pedal in front will give a volume/gain boost. On a heavily driven amp, it'll just make the sound more compressed, and won't lift the volume (worst case it'll cause a volume drop). If the amp is heavily driven, a clean boost (My preference is the MXR Microamp) in the FX loop, which will give a nice volume lift.

Don't put OD or distortion pedals in the loop, as it is possible to damage the amp by doing that.

Voxman

mike_l;468219" said:

Depending on how dirty the amp is.Mild Crunch, an OD or clean boost pedal in front will give a volume/gain boost. On a heavily driven amp, it'll just make the sound more compressed, and won't lift the volume (worst case it'll cause a volume drop). If the amp is heavily driven, a clean boost (My preference is the MXR Microamp) in the FX loop, which will give a nice volume lift.Don't put OD or distortion pedals in the loop, as it is possible to damage the amp by doing that.

Big plus one! I use a BBE Boosta Grand in the fx loop that works very well.

RaymondLin

Caroline Guitar company Icarus is a good clean boost. Or Keeley Katana.

hubobulous

I guess I always ask this, but.....

Do you want a volume increase because you want it to literally be louder, or because you want the solo to be heard?

They can be two different things with the latter arguably better achieved by boosting mids rather than volume, (although mids + volume obviously works!!)

Not meaning to patronise by asking this....many people believe that volume is the only answer, but mids should at least be a part of a solution IMO.

Kebabkid

The Xotic EP Booster can do that but it does impart something, pushing the sound even more into gain as well as giving it a lift. The best straightforward, non-sound-changing volume boost I've found is the old Catalinbread Serrano Picoso (the mini-sized, one knob one). Used ones do come up.

PermanentWaves

hubobulous said:

I guess I always ask this, but.....

Do you want a volume increase because you want it to literally be louder, or because you want the solo to be heard?

They can be two different things with the latter arguably better achieved by boosting mids rather than volume, (although mids + volume obviously works!!)

Not meaning to patronise by asking this....many people believe that volume is the only answer, but mids should at least be a part of an solution IMO.

Not patronising at all. I assume there's a pedal I can use to boost mids for the solo?

hubobulous

@PermanentWaves - A lot of pedals will achieve this. Tube Screamers and their many derivatives were designed for this very purpose. I believe that this was originally due to Fender amp voicing requiring mids, but I could well have that wrong.

I love the a Suhr Koko Boost which gives both a clean and mid boost depending on which switch you hit. You'll get many suggestions here, but I just really wanted to help you understand the principle of boosting in a mix and that it's not necessarily volume that you're looking for.

ICBM

PermanentWaves said:

hubobulous said:

I guess I always ask this, but.....

Do you want a volume increase because you want it to literally be louder, or because you want the solo to be heard?

They can be two different things with the latter arguably better achieved by boosting mids rather than volume, (although mids + volume obviously works!!)

Not meaning to patronise by asking this....many people believe that volume is the only answer, but mids should at least be a part of an solution IMO.

Not patronising at all. I assume there's a pedal I can use to boost mids for the solo?

Graphic EQ, set to a mid boost - a 'frown' or a 'breaking wave' shape.

You might find that a classic overdrive pedal - Tube Screamer or Boss SD-1 (or derivative) - in front of the amp does all three things at once though - more mids, more sustain, *and* more volume. They really do work, even if the amp is overdriven, unless it's really fully saturated. There is a reason this method is still popular! You do generally want to add at least a bit of extra dirt with the pedal too, not just volume.

A clean boost tends to work less well in front of the amp and better in the loop, but it can still be good in front depending on the pedal (some are cleaner than others) and the amp.

Voxman

hubobulous;468265" said:

I guess I always ask this, but.....

Do you want a volume increase because you want it to literally be louder, or because you want the solo to be heard?

They can be two different things with the latter arguably better achieved by boosting mids rather than volume, (although mids + volume obviously works!!)

Not meaning to patronise by asking this....many people believe that volume is the only answer, but mids should at least be a part of an solution IMO.

Definitely need to up mids to cut through the mix. As volume increases you get the fletcher munson effect ie our ears perceive the mid range frequencies most clearly. That's why I really like the BBE Boosta Grand because it emphasises the mids as you crank it.

nickp

try a graphic EQ pedal - cheaper than a boost and you can define the frequencies to boost most.  having said that I use a tc spark booster but the other guitarist inna band uses an EQ pedal with his marshall

exocet

You'll need to experiment a bit. As others have already stated, what works for you will depend upon your amps internal gain structures and how they set for your "base tone".

Another approach that might work would be to place a foot switch attenuator in the FX Loop (Volume pot in a box with a switch). Set the Volume "low" for unboosted sound and then switch the volume pot out of the loop via the foot switch for your "boosted" level. Might just work for you?

Nerine

The amount of misinformation about this is staggering on the Internet.

You need a line driver or EQ pedal with a level control in the LOOP of the amp.
And then you have to make sure the amp's fx loop is also capable of providing extra level. The one on the Marshall Vintage Modern for example, isn't.

Pedals that will be perfect for the job =

Suhr Iso Boost
MXR/CAE MC 401 or 402

Even a Boss GE-7

Etc.

You can run a boost pedal in front of your amp only if:

The amp is set pretty much clean and has headroom to spare for your desired "louder" needs.

The drive sounds come from a unit or other pedal before the volume boosting pedal

If you run it vice versa, you're just adding gain and compression; A hotter signal into the pedal that's providing the overdrive tones. I.e. No extra volume.
As that's defined by the output of the pedal providing the overdrive tones. Putting more signal into it is just increasing the squash in the circuit. Which basically just always equals more gain.

Some pedals, such as the ZVex Box Of Rock and Bogner Ecstasy blue/red have dual volume controls that can be switched between.

I used to run a JTM45 set clean with all pedals in front. It loved pedals. But when it came to solo time, I had nowhere to go. No way to get any more volume out of it. The amp was already giving as much as it had. The extra boost pedal at the end of the chain just ended up giving me more power section breakup. So no more volume. Just more gain.

The 1987 on the other hand. More headroom than you'd ever sensibly need. Great pedal platform IMO.

The 1959... Plain silly loud.

Nerine

The Bad Cat unleash is also perfect for this application.
It's actually an attenuator but has footswitchable master volumes.

midiglitch

Nerine said:

...
I used to run a JTM45 set clean with all pedals in front. It loved pedals. But when it came to solo time, I had nowhere to go. No way to get any more volume out of it. The amp was already giving as much as it had. The extra boost pedal at the end of the chain just ended up giving me more power section breakup. So no more volume. Just more gain.

Its not my intention to be argumentative here, but I find that a bit contradictory.  I play a JTM45, set clean with pedals in front, and there absolutely is headroom for volume boost if required.  

On the other hand if everything is set to 10, then I can imagine there not being anywhere to go, but that wouldn't be 'set clean'... Even then i'm not sure: boosting with a treble booster (which cuts bass and adds mids) helps to tighten out this amp and gives an effective volume boost (in the sense that the guitar amp appears louder in the mix). 

Is it possible that the speakers where compressing/limiting in the cab you were using?

Nerine

midiglitch;473792" said:

Nerine said:

...

I used to run a JTM45 set clean with all pedals in front. It loved pedals. But when it came to solo time, I had nowhere to go. No way to get any more volume out of it. The amp was already giving as much as it had. The extra boost pedal at the end of the chain just ended up giving me more power section breakup. So no more volume. Just more gain.












Its not my intention to be argumentative here, but I find that a bit contradictory.  I play a JTM45, set clean with pedals in front, and there absolutely is headroom for volume boost if required.  

On the other hand if everything is set to 10, then I can imagine there not being anywhere to go, but that wouldn't be 'set clean'... Even then i'm not sure: boosting with a treble booster (which cuts bass and adds mids) helps to tighten out this amp and gives an effective volume boost (in the sense that the guitar amp appears louder in the mix). 

Is it possible that the speakers where compressing/limiting in the cab you were using?

Oh right,

Yeah. At lower volumes it would work.

I meant that the power section was already pretty much flat out, hence demonstrating that headroom is required to be able to volume boost effectively.

The JTM wasn't a loud amp in my books. Broke up quite early and the 30w output just wasn't enough for my requirements.

Other than that, it sounded fantastic and as long as you're keeping the volume sensible-ish, I'd recommend them. Great pedal platform.