Trouble with Focusrite Scarlet 2i2 3rd Gen and EMGs

[BahamaDada]

So, first off... I like my EMG guitars. I have 1 with a 81/58 (yes, 58) and 1 with a 57/66 combo. My bass is active, too (no EMG). Actually only one of my guitars here is passive and... I like it active. With that out of the way:

I hate how they sound with my Scarlet 2i2. And that can't be the guitar, bc when I used my Helix as interface it sounded just amazing. Yes, even the cleans were clean. Squeaky clean.

As of now, no matter how I dial in the gain knob it distorts. In INST and LINE mode. Even when the dial stays absolutely clean no matter how hard I dig in.

Take the Archetype Clean for example. In my Helix I don't have to change any stock value (Gain at 6 IIRC). It's clean. On the 2i2 I can dial down the Gain to 3 or even 2 and have the 2i2 Gain at all green and still ir distorts. Is it a lost case and I should fo back to using my Helix as THE interface?

So before I sell this thing on Ebay does anyone have a final hint to get my EMG guitars and my 2i2 to be friends?

 

[TheTrueZoltan!]

You could try a passive DI box and connect it to the Mic input of the interface. The instrument input with the gain at the lowest setting should usually be fine, though.

 

[laxu]

Try simply setting the input to to line/mic input and see if it sounds better that way. Active pickups don't need a high impedance input.

 

[BahamaDada]

Thanks @TheTrueZoltan!

A DI is kinda out of the idea, bc I don't want to add another thing on my already overcrowded desk. I could definetly try one if the band has one somewhere in the depths behind the drum kit... Will report if I find one.

The lowest possible Gain setting kinda helped a bit, but isn't that too few gain? If I dig in the LED shines green, but goes blank again after like 2 seconds. In Cantabile/Helix Native it shows me around 12-18 db on the meter. Is this how it is supposed to be? It definetly sounds cleaner on the clean amps. Maybe it was really me setting it up wrong?

@laxu thx. As I said to Zoltan I tried it today and it sounds way cleaner, yet the LED doesn't flash as much as it did before. Or should I just not look for the LED when using e.g. HX Native, but go for the dB Input meter?

 

[Alex Kenivel]

Make sure you're setting the gain to about nothing.

I assume you're using Helix Native? Fiddle with the input slider on the left of the signal chain to make sure you have the input levels hitting the sweet spot.

 

[laxu]

The lowest possible Gain setting kinda helped a bit, but isn't that too few gain? If I dig in the LED shines green, but goes blank again after like 2 seconds. In Cantabile/Helix Native it shows me around 12-18 db on the meter. Is this how it is supposed to be? It definetly sounds cleaner on the clean amps. Maybe it was really me setting it up wrong?

@laxu thx. As I said to Zoltan I tried it today and it sounds way cleaner, yet the LED doesn't flash as much as it did before. Or should I just not look for the LED when using e.g. HX Native, but go for the dB Input meter?

As you can see from the picture Alex posted, 12-18 dB would be right in the optimal range for Helix Native.

The LEDs on the audio interface don't really matter, they seem to be designed for mic level signals so for guitar level they often don't work well. Even with passive humbuckers I find I can keep the audio interface gain knob pretty low.

 

[James Freeman]

For Scarlet 2i2 on INST keep the gain knob at zero (all the way to the counter-clockwise), that should be equal to Helix.
If you used the pad on the Helix, drop the input gain in Native another -4db.

Edit:
It makes me sad that nobody read the "Calibration" thread, it's only 200 pages, a quick bedtime read.

 

[PLX]

For Scarlet 2i2 on INST keep the gain knob at zero (all the way to the counter-clockwise), that should be equal to Helix.
If you used the pad on the Helix, drop the input gain in Native another -4db.

Edit:
It makes me sad that nobody read the "Calibration" thread, it's only 200 pages, a quick bedtime read.

If you have the 2nd gen 2i2 (like me) set it to "1"

 

[MirrorProfiles]

yep, interface gain all the way down is what you need. that setting for every guitar and bass

 

[BahamaDada]

Make sure you're setting the gain to about nothing.

I assume you're using Helix Native? Fiddle with the input slider on the left of the signal chain to make sure you have the input levels hitting the sweet spot.

View attachment 10715

Okay, this is really interesting, bc when I put the input to INST and dial the Gain completely off I get like 12dB peak when I really dig in. And clean HX amps are actually clean. Now when I use ML Sound Lab sims they are undergained again at stock settings.

As you can see from the picture Alex posted, 12-18 dB would be right in the optimal range for Helix Native.

The LEDs on the audio interface don't really matter, they seem to be designed for mic level signals so for guitar level they often don't work well. Even with passive humbuckers I find I can keep the audio interface gain knob pretty low.

Yeah, the LEDs kinda suck or... they ar at least misguiding. The other interface I had and the Helix Floor were like "Yeah, dial gain until it clips and your good".

For Scarlet 2i2 on INST keep the gain knob at zero (all the way to the counter-clockwise), that should be equal to Helix.
If you used the pad on the Helix, drop the input gain in Native another -4db.

Edit:
It makes me sad that nobody read the "Calibration" thread, it's only 200 pages, a quick bedtime read.

Need the audio book for that!

yep, interface gain all the way down is what you need. that setting for every guitar and bass

I read (or skimmed...) the 2i2 manual but haven't found the page where it explains further how to dial in instruments. But it works this way. Though not for everything. As I wrote above ML Sound Lab sims seems pretty weak sounding this way.