Drive & Dirt + Modulation = Gross Or Great?

[EOengineer]

I LOVE me some dirty modulations. The catch is that I prefer them through the front of the amp. The convention seems to be that you should place modulation after drive but a number of the tones we chase (some of which are listed in the post that starts this thread) were stomboxes through distorted Marshalls or whatever.

EVH - MXR 117 flanger and phase 90 both typically through the front of his amp. His later career fx rack stuff sounded like plastic.

Adam Jones - Boss BF2 flanger into the front of multiple amps.

The 80s rack chorus tones sucked outside the Roland/Boss stuff.

 

[metropolis_4]

I LOVE me some dirty modulations. The catch is that I prefer them through the front of the amp. The convention seems to be that you should place modulation after drive but a number of the tones we chase (some of which are listed in the post that starts this thread) were stomboxes through distorted Marshalls or whatever.

EVH - MXR 117 flanger and phase 90 both typically through the front of his amp. His later career fx rack stuff sounded like plastic.

Adam Jones - Boss BF2 flanger into the front of multiple amps.

The 80s rack chorus tones sucked outside the Roland/Boss stuff.

100%

I almost always prefer running modulation effects in front of the amp/distortion rather than in the loop or after the amp

 

[James Freeman]

Amplitude or Phase modulation after distortion sounds great to me, time modulation like Chorus and Flanger are a little harder to make sound good before or after distortion in my opinion.

 

[EOengineer]

100%

I almost always prefer running modulation effects in front of the amp/distortion rather than in the loop or after the amp

There’s a big enough contextual shift between how they sound out front vs in a loop that I really consider “pre” amp chorus/flanger/phaser and “post” amp c/f/p as totally different fx.

There are times where I do like the loop version, but yeah, for the tones I use and love most those fx are out front creating texture.

 

[TubeStack]

My two faves, and really the only ones I use with dirt, are phase and vibe, both always in front of the amp, and both with the neck pickup (phase LP, vibe Strat).

 

[TubeStack]

Phase is just the sound of the 70s to me, and I think it imprinted on my brain growing up hearing my dad's records around the house all the time (Peter Frampton, Amazing Rhythm Aces, Johnny Winter).

 

[EOengineer]

Phase is just the sound of the 70s to me, and I think it imprinted on my brain growing up hearing my dad's records around the house all the time (Peter Frampton, Amazing Rhythm Aces, Johnny Winter).

I LOVE me a good lumpy phaser into a breaking up tube amp. At volume it breathes and feels alive - like it’s part of the instrument. It gets even more pronounced with something like the dejavibe.

 

[Stone]

If its required for a song and well dialed in

 

[PLX]

Phase is just the sound of the 70s to me, and I think it imprinted on my brain growing up hearing my dad's records around the house all the time (Peter Frampton, Amazing Rhythm Aces, Johnny Winter).

That Van Hagar guy used one to.

 

[EOengineer]

That Van Hagar guy used one to.

Are you sure it wasn’t just a guy in a van?

 

[PLX]

Are you sure it wasn’t just a guy in a van?

 

[newpedals]

The hair in this pic reminds me of steve from stranger things. But I am on team robin anyway.

 

[dcburn]

Are you sure it wasn’t just a guy in a van?

Was behind this fella at the stoplight in front of our local Wegmans.
Gotta be him!