So as must of you know, running a buffered device (such a guitar wireless) into a Treble Booster (and some vintage Fuzz pedals) results in a thin, harsh and brittle sound, much different from a cable connection.
The TB specifically is made to react directly to the guitar volume. So, the guitar is high Z (impedance) and the TB medium Z. Under normal circumstances the treble booster would just suck the high frequency detail from the guitar and that’s just what it does when the guitar is at full volume. The volume pot is fully open, and the low Z load of the TB drags down the high frequency detail of the guitar. This is what provides the creamy, warm and fully distorted tones. However, when backing off the guitar’s volume, the signal distorts less and cleans up to his renowned glassy tones. This happens because the guitar’s volume pot is wired to effectively provide the pick-ups with a constant high Z load, whilst driving the TB with a varying source impedance. So, when the guitar volume is backed off, the guitar’s pickups see a high Z load, but the TB ‘thinks’ it’s being driven (pushed) by a low Z source, and so the TB can’t suck the high frequencies any more and delivers the glassy cleans.
So, it is imperative to make sure the guitar and the TB can ‘talk’ to each other and interact with each other, because that is where the magic happens.
My question is: would it behave exactly the same on the TB block on the QC? Or as this is a digital representation of a TB, it would react the same as being connected thru cable…? And, lastly, does anyone with a guitar wireless willing to give it a shot on the QC and see what happens? I don’t have any and I want to go wireless but I rely heavily on the Treble Booster so I need to know which route to follow.
sorry about the delay, but finally got to try it:
(I don’t have a Rangemaster pedal, so I can’t really judge how the virtual version compares)
What I find is that it reacts the same whether cabled or wireless. No difference in response of the Rage Booster block or its effect on other blocks (fuzz, amp, etc)
What I’m not so sure of is the RB block’s response as compared to a real Rangemaster. It pretty much does what you describe; lowers the ‘gain’ element of an overdriven tone and retains the hi-freqs, but just HOW much it does that is debatable.
What’s your opinion on that, since you say you use it a lot?
Something else I discovered; the RB block does something I haven’t experienced before- it introduces a TON of hiss/static/white noise (like, enough to make it unusable) if you place it AFTER a fuzz or amp or OD block. I always like to experiment with placement, you never know what results you’ll find. Well this surprised me, I’ve never seen another block react that way. Makes me think it definitely reacts to the signal it’s being fed in a different way than other blocks.
Many thanks for taking the time checking this for me.
Yes - rolling back the guitar volume at 50%, should clean up beautifully and retain the high-end. Then, as volume goes up, it moves to crunch and at full blast a more high-gain sound.
Many thanks again for your trouble