Eddie and MXR 6 Band EQ or Roland 10 Band EQ

[rgorke]

Well, on one hand there is the question.."what did Ed use?"

Then there is, "how can one get Ed's tone?" For this second question, there are lots of answers. Mark Day gets great early Ed tone with a BE100 and a MXR 10 band.

So there are two paths you can go by...and there's time to change the road you're on...

but you may not have to.

[dirtycooter]

Whats interedting is how refined the other records are after VH1. Vh1 to me sounds as though it woulda been a little hairy noisey. VH2 and on are more natural and cleaner sounding. So if per sey, he indeed uses the variac with eq inline method then I think the cleaner boss 10band would be the go to box vs the 6. IF eq is essential for all roth era tones.

[guitar007]

Or...VH1 was 90v and VH2 was 80v for example. The lower the input voltage the smoother the dynamics...and less in your face sound.

[eljodon]

Nope...and they sound nothing alike.

They don't sound nothing alike because each eq boosts different frequencies,but you can approximate certain frequencies. If you boost 1 db of 400 Hz on the 6 band and 1 db in the 500 Hz on the 10 band it would be difficult for many people tell the difference unless you're an audio engineer.

[guitar007]

Nope...and they sound nothing alike.

They don't sound nothing alike because each eq boosts different frequencies,but you can approximate certain frequencies. If you boost 1 db of 400 Hz on the 6 band and 1 db in the 500 Hz on the 10 band it would be difficult for many people tell the difference unless you're an audio engineer.

That's not where I was going. I'm very familiar with both pedals as I've owned and have used them for a very long time. The actual tone and feel of the pedals, regardless of the frequencies, are just plain different. The original 6 band is more aggressive sounding while the 10 is smoother.

[eljodon]

Nope...and they sound nothing alike.

That's not where I was going. I'm very familiar with both pedals as I've owned and have used them for a very long time. The actual tone and feel of the pedals, regardless of the frequencies, are just plain different. The original 6 band is more aggressive sounding while the 10 is smoother.

I owned 3 MXR 10 band in the 36 years I've been playing(yes I'm old!), one blue one and 2 newer ones. I had the 6 band when I was 16 and I just purchased a vintage 78" 6 band awhile ago ,and you're right the MXR 6 band eq is more aggressive and perhaps is due to the additional 6 db's (18db)that you can boost on each frequency as opposed to the 10 band which you can boost 12 db. But the point I was trying to make is that you can get the MXR 10 band to sound close to the 6 band to a certain extent.
I wouldn't say that they don't sound nothing alike ,unless you're cranking a specific frequency all the way up. I think that the circuitry inside both eq's are the same, the only difference is the frequencies that you can boost on each pedal and the volume and gain sliders that the 10 band has.

[dirtycooter]

Anyone have experience with Boss Half Rack EQ's?? Some are parametric and some graphic and have dedicated instrument AND line level inputs. I find this interesting.
You can find these on ebay often and they aren't exactly cheap either. As well as the Boss PQ4 pedal, There are a slew of other EQ's out there as well-some half rack-full rack-from years gone by.
I wonder if the boss half rack graphic is on par with the old GE10????? As far as noise and all that is concerned.

I been combing through things for pseudo boosts/EQ's and one thing that kinda catches my interest is that Suhr Koko Boost Reloaded. Clean clean clean and natural sounding sounding! Kinda like a super clean transparent boost mated with a parametric mid range adjustable boost and you can use the mid boost, the straight boost, or both together

Here-take a whiff of this bad ass little bastard
[youtube] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65p9PGrwhTM [/youtube]

Whats kinda cool about it is it can be used as a signal buffer as well-like a Axess BS2 or RJM ToneSaver kinda thing for long cable runs. After thinking about it and seeing Ed using the hissy 6 band mxr's I am not totally against a gooser in the front as much as I used to be.
I like the way when a EQ is trimmed in slamming the front the way it brings out so much natural OD from the amp. Its like its really undetectable but adds so much more balls.
Also I am looking for better cleaner ways of doin business as well. I think Ed woulda done the same if stuff existed back in the day like it does now

[eljodon]

I actually prefer using a parametric eq because it gives me more flexibility on a specific frequency you want to boost and you can narrow or widen the frequency you're boosting. I own 2 Furman PQ3 and a TC Electronics 2204 stereo 4 band parametric eq.Both of them gives you 20 db of boost!
The Furman does a better job in boosting the signal because it has a preamp and it sounds better when you want to overdrive your amp, but it's noisy. I don't know if the TC Electronics has a preamp, but it's cleaner, but when you crank it, it starts sounding weird.
I have the regular KoKo boost and I love it, but the boost part can make the bass a bit overwhelming unless you engage the mid boost. I wish it would give you a frequency selector instead of just 3 option, but I love who it sounds! I haven't tried the KoKo boost reloaded, but it looks really nice.One cool thing about a parametric eq is that the wider you make the q(or bandwidth ) setting of a frequency you're boosting, it sounds less like using a wah pedal. With a graphic eq you're stuck with a preset q or bandwidth.
I like the Boss GE 10 band eq because the gain slider doesn't deteriorate the tone like the newer MXR 10 band eq. The Furman PQ 3 does an excellent job in boosting an amp that doesn't have that much gain, but the more you turn up the level, it can get very noisy. I can get my non master plexi amps sounding very heavy with plenty of sustain with out using an overdrive, but I use the ISP G string which does a good job of getting the noise under control.

[dirtycooter]

The Q dial on the Reloaded looks nice and seems it would be effective for what you exactly mentioned [breadth of frequency manipulation] while clips sound like its clean as can be so that may be something I snag for myself.
I mean I know guys are lovin the 6 band but... people rave about the koko transparency, the sound of the buffer, clean sound.
But man they got some serious price on that little sucker

Empress ParaQ may be ideal as well-that's quiet spec'd and looks promising as an option. Demo doesn't show it with gain but here it is-not cheap either

[youtube] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hsVl-0VI5Z4 [/youtube]

[eljodon]

Yeah, the Suhr pedals are quite pricey! I have the Riot which I got for $180 used and that's still expensive! The Para eq looks promising and it's compact. The KoKo boost reloaded looks like it would work better for me than the old one.
I produce Metal bands on the side(I write music for TV which is my main gig) and many guitar players end up loving the Furman eq PQ3 because it can make the amp sound heavy and a couple of them ended up buying one. The Furman is the best eq I have used for boosting an amp because you can crank it up and it doesn't sound like when you increase the gain or volume on the new MXR 10 band eq. It sounds horrible!
You can once in a while,find them on eBay.

[dirtycooter]

Just snaggetized a Griffin FX modded brand new 6 band mxr off ebay.

[youtube] http://www.ebay.com/itm/221317065818 [/youtube]

My reasoning is if its quieter then why not? I will still have the same amount of adjustable gain in those specific frequencies.

All it should do is address the noise floor of the pedal everyone has had issues with but still smack the front end the same.

I had the mxr 10 band and while it added some cool stuff and balls it was too much of a hissy bastard This mod is stated to reduce the noise in half and half is a lot really.

I was reading up on why they don't do this from the factory and it has to do with the amounts of op amps needed in graphic eq's that are exponentially increased due to each slider needing its own vs something like the Suhr koko that utilizes only one for the needed frequency its boosting in broad or narrow fashion depending on the Q of the boost/cut frequency. It adds up to quite a bit of extra cost to manufacter easily. Instead of one or two high quality you need hand full of those op amps.
That makes total sense to me and is quite logical looking at it from a mass produced manufacturer stand point.
I think everyone likes the boost in the frequencies they choose with it but nobody likes that damn noise that comes along with it.
Noise is hooey-garbage-junk!
So maybe I will be able to report back on this soon and if its worth a shit
I think it will also work probably in getting channel 2 on my 5153 over that hump that's not quite enough gain, but more open than channel 3, but needs that edge in balls.

Later though depending.... that Suhr Koko is on my list for sure if I think I need a little more uumph. It sounds so clean and natural.

I have so much shit to buy extra though right now-I have maxed out my PP2 outputs so I am gonna need a 2nd one.
First one runs Axess grx4, midi mfc5 controllers x2, chorus at 18v, flanger at 18v, phaser at 9v, and my Peterson strobe stomp at 9v. It all adds up quick My pedal board is gonna weigh about as much as my shock rack!

Note also-with my Mojave cranked I am getting plenty of vh level gain with a dsd, so maybe I can get my PAF up to meet it output wise but more refined somehow. That's kinda my goal too. Gonna be a lot of experimentation trial and error.
Including googly moo extra cable length between board and amp to see the effects of added capacitance roll off if I need sweeter top end and rolled lows.

[eljodon]

That's really cool that you're getting a griffith modded MXR 6 band! I wonder if they would mod my 78' 6 band blue eq? It's quite noisy! Let me know what you think when you get it because although I use the ISP G string for just my pedals and it works great, but it has it's limitations.
I have all my pedals plugged into a RJM Gizmo that has 12 loops in a rack using the Fractal MFC 101 because I don't have to much room in my studio because I keep buying amps, pedals and studio gear! I think I have a severe case of GAS!

I use various types eq's in front of my amps like 75% of the time. I also use the OCD as a mild boost, even on my Suhr PT100 or my other high gain amps because I don't like my gain control pass 4 or 5.

Please let me know how the MXR 6 band turns out, I'm really curious!

[dirtycooter]

Will do. But its gonna be a few days probably next week or something.
But I did get my variac today.
Knocked it down to 70v and maxed this bitch ass peacemaker right out!
Holy fricken shit! Thats all I have to say baby

[eljodon]

I didn't know you can go down to 70 volts and the amp would actually work!!!
I've been using them off and on since 1981 so I can crank a Fender 75 and later a Mesa Boogie Mk IIc all the way up and it work great! I use to go from 80 volts to 98 volts depending how big the club was.Now I'm using a Powerstat.

[dirtycooter]

Dunno if I would try it on a channel switcher or other amps but it works great on my plexi. Get lower volume than my MV 5153. It really works awesome for volume.