Reverb Combo Amp
March 15th, 2011 | 
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How can I get that shred metal tone?
Ok so i was wondering how to get that shred metal tone.
I have an ibanez rg170 with stock pickups I'll probably upgrade them to dimarzio x2n later.
I have a bugera 6262 combo amp so i just use the distortion and reverb on that.
So what do i do with that gear to get the shred tone?
Do i have to change the bass/mid/treble/gain/reverb on the amp?
If so to what? (more treble, more bass, more mid, etc?)
Thanks
I mean rg 120
EDIT: Y!A cut off my full response. Had to cut it short! =(
Alright... so to start, you need to make sure your guitar is properly set up and intonated. Don't do that, and you'll sound out of tune and/or buzzy. Not good times for shredding.
To begin with, it is important to understand that to get a very clear, precise tone you need to limit the amount of bass going into your distortion device - whether amp or distortion pedal. The easiest way to do this is to drop the bass side of your pickups (the side underneath your lower strings) a little. This lowers the response of your lower strings and helps your upper strings cut through a little more. You will probably have to compensate a little with your EQ and gain settings to balance this out, but its nonetheless an important first step.
Your neck and pickups should be balanced, volume-wise, so that they're basically the same volume. This usually means dropping the neck pickup at least, and paying attention to the volume control for your neck (if you have one.... I forget for that particular model. You have an HSH, right? You'll need to balance all three then. I don't like that setup, but whatever. Your middle settings will probably end up being a little lower output than your bridge only and neck only, and that's normal and acceptable. The only way to balance that out will probably be getting noiseless single coil pups like Fender Lace Sensors or Seymour Duncan Hot Rails.
EQ settings and paying attention to your gain are very important!
In general, the EQ settings I use is (on a scale from 1 to 10):
Bass 6, Mids 5, Treble 7, Gain usually no higher than 7. This should work decently for what you want, depending on your rig and amp, of course. Some variation will probably be appropriate... for playing solo, you'll probably want more bass, and a little less mids. If you are playing live, you will want to drop your bass by 2-3 and if recording, also lower your gain by 1-2. This makes your guitar sound "weaker" when played solo, but it translates into a sound that mixes much better in a band context.
For this particular tone, use very little to no reverb, ie no higher than 3 or so. As the other answerer said, reverb mucks it up and can easily reduce the clarity of your notes. Use it very sparingly, only enough to provide a little color. If you can hear it noticeably, you're probably using too much. If recording, use none, and instead apply reverb while mixing.
The X2N is a decent pickup for your bridge pickup, but it can easily overwhelm your middle single coil if you aren't using the aforementioned noiseless single coil. A pickup with less output and bass response is often better though, since it correlates into a more dynamic tone with less bass (which, again, is better for shred).
Examples of these types of pickups are the Seymour Duncan Full Shred and '59, which I was surprised to learn that Lamb of God uses! DIdn't see that coming at all..... Really, any PAF style pickup should work here, especially if its rated on the lower side for bass. If you want a more traditional higher-output bridge pickup (for a heavier chunk, especially a pickup you won't be using as much for leads) then anything from the x2n to the Seymour Duncan Alternative 8 to many of the Rockfield pups are great choices there.
I suggest a *lower* output pickup for your neck. Any PAF style pickup is appropriate, but I would point you specifically to the DiMarzio PAF Joe, as that is exactly the type of tone it is purported to have (ie virtuouso style).
Swapping out the tubes will give you more tonal options as well. The power tubes will change the final tone - 6L6's have more bass than the EL34's, but the EL34's tend to have a nicer midrange and treble response.
Preamp tubes change how much distortion the amp will put out when you turn the Gain knob up.... for less maximum distortion use a lower output tube like the 5331 or 12AT7 in the first position (ie V1, the first tube the signal hits. Consult your amp's manual or mfg for which one that may be). I tend to prefer higher output tubes for the preamp, though, especially for that kind of tone... the JJ ECC803S, I believe, is a spiral-wound filament 12AX7 tube with good mid and bass response.
You can also consider getting converters that plug in to the power tube sockets that allow you to use lower wattage tubes.
Lower power tubes mean you can turn up to "7" and get some power tube saturation (ie, a far better tone!) and still have a "3" volume... very nice!!! They also make attenuators that can do the same basic thing (ie THD Hot Plate), but they're harder to incorporate into combo amps.
Something you can also do is put a booster pedal in front of your amp... Examples of these include Voodoo Sparkledrive, Boss DS-1 (for a more alternative tone), Ibanez Tubescreamer, Zakk Wylde Overdrive (great pedal, btw, very versatile), MXR Distortion+ (what Randy used), etc etc. Any pedal that has a clean sound when you turn down the gain would work, as long as you like the basic tone of the pedal. To use a distortion pedal this way, turn the gain way down, turn the level way up, and put any tone controls basically to midway (ie 5), or slightly higher for treble. I've actually used a wah pedal that has a solo boost on it for this, too....
Hope this helped...good luck!
Saul
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