Help on LSS/LSC clean tone

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SimonRoseUK

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Love my LSS, had it for 12 months. Mostly use drive in CH2, at moderate levels in rehearsal (drive 10 o'clock, gain 1 o'clock), 5W, for creamy singing bluesy lead and slide , (LP and SG); cleans up nicely on the guitar volume pot for finger-style rhythms. Digging in with a pick get a lovely crunch. Can't fault it.
I'm using CH1 for a couple of songs and getting a lovely warm clean chord and lead tone BUT to my ears is nothing like as vibrant, shimmering and alive as my (cheap, Mexican) Blues Deluxe on low gain (high volume) on either channel. The tone is so alive with great articulation. Tried both 5 and 15w setting on the LSS.
So, my online chums.....as I read my posts about how great the Lonestar cleans are:
do you think this is usual?
Have you ever compared the 2 amps, mentioned?
IS it a difference in valve types? IS, therefore, the Classic on 6l6s more shimmering than the Special ?

Really keen to hear your thoughts. Thanks for reading.
 
I think the key to the LSS (and Mesa amps in general) is to think of the tone controls according to ‘feel’ as much as ‘EQ.’ I don’t know if the clean channel can jump and respond just like a Fender, but I would try this:

Set your bass lower than usual, like 9:00. If using single coils, you can bring it back up a bit. The key is to keep from overloading the preamp with mud.

Set your mid at least that low... depending on the guitar, you can even turn it all the way off without getting a mid-scooped sound. I have never experienced this on any other amp before. What it does is it softens the attack and makes you want to play a little harder.

Treble: turn this one up. About 2:00. This is where the signature of the amp lives anyway, and it’s set at a frequency that doesn’t sound too harsh.

Presence: kill it if using singles, low if using humbuckers. If you decide to turn the Treble down you can bring this back in.

I would try the power at 15 Watts if you want a bit of breakup but not too much.
 
SimonRoseUK said:
Love my LSS, had it for 12 months. Mostly use drive in CH2, at moderate levels in rehearsal (drive 10 o'clock, gain 1 o'clock), 5W, for creamy singing bluesy lead and slide , (LP and SG); cleans up nicely on the guitar volume pot for finger-style rhythms. Digging in with a pick get a lovely crunch. Can't fault it.
I'm using CH1 for a couple of songs and getting a lovely warm clean chord and lead tone BUT to my ears is nothing like as vibrant, shimmering and alive as my (cheap, Mexican) Blues Deluxe on low gain (high volume) on either channel. The tone is so alive with great articulation. Tried both 5 and 15w setting on the LSS.
So, my online chums.....as I read my posts about how great the Lonestar cleans are:
do you think this is usual?
Have you ever compared the 2 amps, mentioned?
IS it a difference in valve types? IS, therefore, the Classic on 6l6s more shimmering than the Special ?

Really keen to hear your thoughts. Thanks for reading.

Have you read the manual? I find the sample settings very useful.
If you don't have a manual you can download one here: http://mesaboogie.com/media/User%20Manuals/LS_Special.pdf


Try the sample settings for "sparkling clean" on page 4 as a starting point.
I have a Lonestar Classic with 6l6's and get the best clean sound I have ever heard. I use the 100w setting and it sounds fantastic at any volume. I've played the LSS but never had a chance to actually play one side by side with the Classic. I would set your LSS to 30 watts in the clean channel with the gain low to take advantage of the higher headroom.
 
I use a LSC 212 on 50 watt setting with diode
I get the best low end and shimmering highs at the same time
my settings are
gain 11 oclock
treble 2 o'clock
mid 5 o clock
bass 3 o clock
presence 5 o clock
master 9 o clock
 
Thanks all - yes: tried the base settings from the manual. It's a lovely sound from the amp and can get beautiful tones rolling the gtr volume, it's just not as sparklingly alive as the (cheap) Fender. Currently set up a stereo rig for the cleans and it's lovely
 
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