Roadster 2X12 combo

A couple of years ago I purchased a Roadster 2X12 combo. It is a great amp for most stuff but I can't seem to get a good lead tone out of it for Satriani, Vai and that sort of stuff. I have tried all kinds of distortion and overdrive pedals and nothing helps. I have a late 80's Hamer guitar which sounds great for leads on other amps. Am I doing something wrong or is this just not the amp for that type of tone. It was pretty expensive and I don't want to have to buy another amp just for lead playing . Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks.

Have you tried an EQ in the effects loop? I use my Boss GE7 in the loop of my Single Rec for leads and it works great (loop modified to serial). I bump the mid sliders up a notch and it sounds great and cuts well during gigs. I also run my TS9 in front of the amp with the drive off, tone at 9:00 and level at 3:00 for leads and it sustains for days. I have the gain on the amp set at noon...bass and treble around 11:00, mid around 1:00....presence around 10:00....set to modern. Vintage is very dark on my Single. I am sure the Roadster is different but I hope some of this helps. This is not necessarily the Vai tone but a great lead tone that works for me.

You probably trying to achieve a sound closer to a Marshall than a Mesa seeing as thats what Satriani uses and Vai's Carvin Legacy is more Marshall than Mesa. A broad generalization that I use when gauging an amps tone are the power tubes: EL34's = Marshall, 6L6's = Mesa.

So first off, you could try changing the power tubes to EL34's. If that doesn't sound appealing, an EQ in the effects loop can completely change the character of your amp. Depending on how comfortable you are using EQ's, a boost followed by an EQ in front of the amp, followed by an EQ in the effects loop can make the Roadster sound like anything you want it to!

But lets work with what we have first. Lead tones usually sound the best on Channel 3. Here is the range I like to use:
Back of the amp for Channel 3: Recto Tracking, 100watt, FX wherever you want it
Front of the amp for Channel 3: Gain - 1:00 - 3:00
Treble - 10:00 - 11:00
Mid - 10:00 - 11:00
Bass - 11:00 - 12:00
Presence - Off
Vintage Mode, Bold
You might want to bring in a little bit of presence to sweeten up the tone. Try Spongy mode instead of Bold, 50 watts instead of 100 watts, etc. Also a bright humbucker would help too.
I aim for a more Petrucci - like tone but I'm sure there are more experienced Roadster users who can chime in on how to dial in a Vai tone.

Thanks guys for the info. I have tried your ideas and they have helped. I think maybe its a beast of it's own. I went on vacation for a couple of weeks and did not play the guitar at all. When I returned I said to myself I'm going to forget about trying to get those specific sounds and see what I can do with this thing. Wow! It may not be satriani's sound but after a few days of just playing this thing I was able to achieve some pretty incredible tones. A guy at a local music store recommended I try a Plim Soul pedal by Full Tone. I don't usually find the advice of music store salesmen much help but this thing really helped. No comparison to a boss DS-1 or tube screamer. Seemed to actually work with the amp as opposed to just adding more distortion or drive. I don't think this amp lacks anywhere in the distortion area, just needs something to clean it up a bit and give it some serious needed sustain(which this pedal does). Only used it for a few days so I'll see what happens. Cheers!