Can I do this? TC Nova amp switching...

photek

Before I go ahead and buy a Nova system can you guys help me to confirm this is possible please.

What I want to do with the Nova:

- Switch between crunch and super crunch on my Blackstar Series One 100 head via midi.
- Have the Nova in the loop for a bit of reverb and a bit of delay.
- Possibly have a clean boost setting on the nova as a lead boost through the FX loop?


Looking at the manual I am pretty sure this is possible using a couple of presets but just wanted to check as this is new to me!

Many thanks.


EDIT: Typically I have found this which seems to confirm my thoughts
http://forum.tcelectronic.com/topic/12595/channel-switching-blackstar/

benvall

I have a Nova System. I ran it in the loop of a single channel amp and used the reverb, delay and boost, no channel switching though. Pretty sure it can do all the things you want. I was thinking of getting a JVM and doing the same thing, using midi to switch channels with the Nova in the loop. While looking around I found this http://jvmforum.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=5654 It might help a bit other than the fact it's for a JVM not a Blackstar.

photek

Actually that is very useful, I am pretty confident it can do what I want as I only really use 3 sounds live just with different volumes.

My reservations are now based on people having trouble setting up levels when using it through a loop or the Nova causing tone suck but it seems the boost function on the pedal is actually a volume attenuator for the rest of the unit and setting that to 0db brings it back up to unity.

I don't suppose you know if using the EQ in an FX loop gives plenty of volume boost do you?

benvall

When I first used it in the loop i had loads of tone suck. I'll check later tonight if i get a chance, but there is a setting under advanced options that really helped. I didn't really notice the tone suck after messing around with that. 

ragingben

If you get tone suck the nova is set up wrong or its a bad loop. It can't boost the signal as you have pointed out, only attenuate it. I'm not sure about the eq, I'll try if tomorrow. The drive section can actually boost the signal as it is full analogue, but then probably you wouldn't be using it that way in the loop anyway. I think people hear the volume drop when the boost is disengaged as tone suck, but it is just a side effect of hearing a quieter signal. If you turn the amp up to compensate you hear the same tone as with the boost cut. The novas midi is generally pretty good so you shouldn't have any problem, especially as you will be bypassing the drive so you can set it in preset mode and only loose the reverb and compression switches to have switching without having to hold down one of the 3 number switches for 2 seconds

photek

Thanks Ben, I was reading your review earlier actually. 

Am I right in saying that as I am going to have the thing on all the time I could live with the attenuated normal signal, compensate for the volume drop by having my amp louder then still use the boost in the loop? That would be very handy indeed.

ragingben

That's correct. If you have the boost function 'off' (i.e to attenuate the signal by 3dB for example) you could then crank the amp 3dB louder and it will sound the same as it did with the boost 'on' (i.e not attenuating) when the amp was at the original volume. I notice no loss off tone this way providing that the input gain is set up correctly.

One thing I hate about my setup with the Nova is this tough - you need to be very careful what you set the input gain to when using it in the loop with some amps. On my Traynor I have individual preamp volumes for each channel which are set by to pretty much the same whether I play live or at home, and then I use the master volume to control the overall volume, which is after the fx loop. This works very well with the Nova because I can set the input gain so that the nova doesn't clip and then adjust the volume of the amp without worrying. On my regular gigging amp - a H&K Tubemeister 36 - each channel has a volume control, but there is no overall 'master' volume. When you crank the amp the signal that gets sent to the send jack is the signal that is increased, so I guess it is a preamp volume control. This means that the input gain setting on the Nova now is too hot causing it to clip, which means I have to adjust it when setting up for a gig. No biggy and you get to know the appropriate values but still a bit of an annoyance.

Going back to the midi - the Nova has full program change mapping which makes setting up your amp control easy - have program change 1 set to amp clean, 2 to dirty etc, and then each patch you want to use the dirty channel of the amp you just need to map it to send, for example, program change 2, which makes rig management much easier than other multis I've used.

photek

Great stuff Ben have another wisdom fret. The Blackstar has a overall master volume and the crunch and super crunch channels share volume and gain controls so should be fine. Saying that there is a built in volume jump when switching between the 2 so I will have to see if that causes a problem.

I might just go back to a Bassman and a tubescreamer lol.

ragingben

Thanks!

Yeah sounds like you will be fine. I've done the same many times - gone back to just using a few pedals in front of my Blackheart Little Giant, but in the end I succumb to the lust for delays and reverbs and go back to the Nova. At home I have my midi rig:

G- Lab BC1 (boost and compressor) > Tubemeister 36 > amp send > Source Audio EQ > TC Nova System > amp return, all controlled with a Behringer FCB1010 with the Uno firmware. This is pretty much the perfect as everything can be controlled by the FCB1010 and the rest forgotten, but is too much for most gigs. Which is my point really, because of the lack of 4CM with the Nova you may find yourself lusting for some stomps up front, so you end up putting the nova on your board with the stomps, then you suddenly find yourself needing 3 guitar cables going between amp and board, 1 midi cable, 2 power cables (nova kettle lead and pedal boards psu) and suddenly you have a right mess on stage!

photek

Thanks for all of the advice, I have got an NS now and it does what I wanted and I am very happy with it, it changes the channels well and is really easy to set up. I actually find it quite easy to use the interface but maybe that is because lots of people have said it was hard to use so I was prepared for a battle!

Only issue I have so far is a bit of sound overlap / lag when switching between these 2 presets:

Preset 1 - Blackstar on clean channel with drive sound coming from NS
Preset 2 - Blackstar on crunch channel no drive coming from NS

When I do this there is about half a second of the drive effect from the NS spilling over to the crunch channel. Not a big deal live as you can't really notice it but pisses me off at home.

Delays, reverbs and the fake leslie sounds are awesome, the boost is handy and the drives really are very good indeed.

photek

Just got back from first rehearsal using the Nova System and it is brilliant. I used it straight in to the front of the amp with a midi cable running to the back of my amp to switch the channels. I have 3 presets:

 

1 - Selects Warm clean on amp and adds a bit of drive and reverb from the Nova. Boost gives me a bit more gain and volume 8db. Cleans up lovely with the DGT and is my base tone.

2 - Selects Warm Clean again with a bit more drive from the Nova and the boost on. This setting has switchable phaser for a couple of songs plus a nice analog delay that I can switch in and out as needed.

3 - Selects Super Crunch on amp and because that has its own volume control I can have lead boosts as loud as I want them by turning the channel up, simple! No gain added from Nova as I like the amp for leads. Boost adds more gain and I have a ducking delay that I can bring in plus a slowish phaser to give fast bits some movement.

Now all I need to do is create the same 3 presets on the next patch and add a bit more gain and low end so I can switch to my strat.

Bloody marvelous

monquixote

That sounds like an ideal set up for the Nova. 

It's a great unit, but a pain in the arse for a lot of rigs. 

photek

I can imagine with a complicated set up it would be a pain plus if you needed to tweak the sounds on the nova at gigs it is risky. Luckily I am pretty simple haha. The presence and resonance controls on the blackstar are up the job of matching the amp to venues so hopefully they will suffice.