DG30: A 'Swiss Army Knife' Studio Amp

[László]

You know the old saw, the more you work with a tool, the better you understand how to use it.

Ever since getting the DG cab (designed for the DG amps) last month, my DG30 has morphed from an amp I use as an "alt" amp, to a real studio tool that can do almost anything. I just finished an ad campaign where the amp sound I was going for was more like a Vibro-King than something I'd ordinarily dial up. I rarely go for a sound like the VK.

The beauty of the Grissom amp is that because I've worked with it a lot, I have a pretty good idea of how to dial that in. Flick the bright switch on, boost mode off, and gain just at noon, turn the treble up a bit, take a little off the mids, and put the master at about 2 o'clock, and there it was. The only thing that would've gotten me closer would have been a 3x10 with the Jensen alnicos.

With a BB pedal, I was able to morph the amp into something closer to an HXDA for a quick overdub solo to finish the spot - turn off the bright switch, put the amp in boost mode, fatten up the mids and bass, dial the treble back a little, and boom. Done. Sounded great. Why not just set up the HXDA? Still haven't pulled the trigger on a cab for it. So it's a good thing I could get what I need with what I had set up!

Two opposite ends of the tone spectrum covered with one amp in a very short session with a tight deadline? Priceless.

 

[sergiodeblanc]

Doing more with Les.

 

[László]

Doing more with Les.

Ha!

Les' lesson: less.

 

[jfb]

Ha!

Les' lesson: less.

Nice one.

Les I recently picked up a Bogner Ecstasy 20th Ann. head. I thought of you while learning what all the buttons/switches did. I thought...I wonder if Les would like or dislike all these buttons and options cause he really gets a lot done with less.

 

[László]

Nice one.

Les I recently picked up a Bogner Ecstasy 20th Ann. head. I thought of you while learning what all the buttons/switches did. I thought...I wonder if Les would like or dislike all these buttons and options cause he really gets a lot done with less.

I like oysters and snails, Spartacus.

 

[jfb]

I like oysters and snails, Spartacus.

I'd like to hear you find some sounds in it. It took me a bit of tinkering to find what I liked the most.

 

[László]

I'd like to hear you find some sounds in it. It took me a bit of tinkering to find what I liked the most.

Wait...you...actually...moved the knobs??

 

[jfb]

Wait...you...actually...moved the knobs??

Nah I set them all to noon. I did play with the different switches though. There are a few of them per channel. :biggrin:

 

[László]

Nah I set them all to noon. I did play with the different switches though. There are a few of them per channel. :biggrin:

Don't stare at this picture too long if you value your sanity omfg disorganized knobzzzzz...

 

[László]

You know what's crazy about this amp? Well, I'll tell you:

It's not as ideally suited for my playing style as the HXDA, but I really love working with it, and I think the tone is off the chart.

What's the difference that makes the other one "more me?" It's the spongy nature of the HXDA, you dig in and the amp "gives" a bit. With this one, there isn't that "give." On the other hand, this amp is definitely suited to more styles of music, as far as I'm concerned. So as a studio tool, it's off the chart.

I know I've beaten this topic to death, but there's something about this amp that I find is really gorgeous sounding and addictive.

 

[vchizzle]

Glad you found another one that floats your boat! Options are good. I know a lot of your work isn't focused on guitar parts, but the next time you do a nice rhythm part, track it stereo with the DG and HXDA. I'd love to hear them both on, 1 right, the other left. Bet it would sound WIDE.

 

[jfb]

Don't stare at this picture too long if you value your sanity omfg disorganized knobzzzzz...

My eyes! Look at this mess.

 

[László]

My eyes! Look at this mess.

Rock and Roll isn't pretty, my friend.

 

[Boogie]

Don't stare at this picture too long if you value your sanity omfg disorganized knobzzzzz...

Whats the volume like at that setting? I'm noticing a similarity here...


SuperD settings July 2014

 

[Boogie]

For some reason I couldn't add any more text to he previous message

Mine is very bass heavy, so the bass control will naturally be lower than yours. And I set the SuperD for a cleaner signal as a good basis for the pedals. In fact, I've had a hard time finding a crunch sound that I really liked out of this amp. The clean is off-the-scale beautiful, and with the pedals it's insane. Anyone know exactly how Grissom set his SuperD?

Btw, my output at those settings is very dynamic, but if I dig I'm with the pedals engaged, you'd better be 25' back. :biggrin:

 

[Boogie]

Here's another interesting comparison...Grssom's HXDA settings used for the PRS Exp 2012 clinics (with pedalboard shot for extra droolage). Sadly, the photo angle blew away the bass volume and treble settings but everything else is pretty clear.


Grissom Settings

DG Pedalboard 2012

And I've come to the conclusion (for the next 2 weeks, then all bets are off) that I'm a 50w amp guy. Maybe a 30w would suffice if it has the headroom, but at the volumes we play, I miss the clear definition of the cleans in a small amp. A Deluxe Reverb would probably handle the job, but there's something magical about the speaker abuse a solid 50w amp can dole out. That, my friends, is rock 'n roll. :rock:

 

[László]

Whats the volume like at that setting? I'm noticing a similarity here...


SuperD settings July 2014

My amp is pretty loud at the setting I have in the picture. But if I goose the master as high as yours it's very loud. If I put the amp into boost mode, it's very, very loud. It sounds a lot bigger than 30 watts. The amp is as loud as a 50W HXDA.

 

[László]

I would really like to try a DG one of these days....

It's a fundamentally different amp from the 50 watt models, and not just because of the power tubes. It's more on the American side of the equation than the Brit side.

It's taken me a few months to learn how to use it, because I'm not used to this kind of amp. It's capable of a lot, it's a player's amp, but it demands accuracy and exposes bad playing, something that haunts me because...well...you've heard my tracks, I'm no Grissom.

When I'm on, I love the amp. It's brilliant. When I'm off, the amp laughs in my face and says, "WTF were you thinking when you bought me?"

 

[Rookie]

Don't stare at this picture too long if you value your sanity omfg disorganized knobzzzzz...

It's like Apple or Harley, every part is refined to an art form. The handle, the knobs, the finish. Nothing screams, "Just get this thing out the door."

 

[László]

It's like Apple or Harley, every part is refined to an art form. The handle, the knobs, the finish. Nothing screams, "Just get this thing out the door."

Not to mention how great it sounds!

It is a professional, first class, hand wired amplifier, made with mil-spec tag boards, great build quality everywhere you look, and tremendous attention to detail. There is nothing on this amplifier that I would change. Nothing.

Same with the HXDA. They are amps made for elite players that just happen to be available to mortals like me.