Another New Guy Wanting Advice!

[Cleef68]

Hello David & Ronni and anyone else from the Barber family!

I guess new people on the forum always start off wanting some advice so here's my cry from the UK....

I play single coil Fenders mainly into a 1980's Fender Super Champ. At the moment I'm running through a standard Direct Drive and of course it sounds great (you probably knew that) but I'm looking for the option of playing rhythm through a mild, jangly overdrive with a slightly mid-rangey tone and then being able to kick a boost for any lead lines (tuneful solos - not gratuitous widdling!) - pretty basic fare and that's all I need.

Having read millions of great reviews about the LTD I have been sorely tempted to get one and partner it with my Direct Drive however I'm wondering if you have ever considered sticking a mid range trim pot inside the LTD to go with the bass and presence trim pots? I like the look of the LTD but might like the option of giving it a mid range punch.

You may tell me that that is where the new Half Gainer comes in but I also note that the 2 channels on that share the tone & mid controls. Therefore, am I looking more at a Dual Discrete and if I am, then what pedal would you pair with the LTD to give me what I'm looking for? Another LTD perhaps?

Great forum by the way chaps!

Cheers in advance

[CalebT]

Hello David & Ronni and anyone else from the Barber family!

I guess new people on the forum always start off wanting some advice so here's my cry from the UK....

I play single coil Fenders mainly into a 1980's Fender Super Champ. At the moment I'm running through a standard Direct Drive and of course it sounds great (you probably knew that) but I'm looking for the option of playing rhythm through a mild, jangly overdrive with a slightly mid-rangey tone and then being able to kick a boost for any lead lines (tuneful solos - not gratuitous widdling!) - pretty basic fare and that's all I need.

Having read millions of great reviews about the LTD I have been sorely tempted to get one and partner it with my Direct Drive however I'm wondering if you have ever considered sticking a mid range trim pot inside the LTD to go with the bass and presence trim pots? I like the look of the LTD but might like the option of giving it a mid range punch.

You may tell me that that is where the new Half Gainer comes in but I also note that the 2 channels on that share the tone & mid controls. Therefore, am I looking more at a Dual Discrete and if I am, then what pedal would you pair with the LTD to give me what I'm looking for? Another LTD perhaps?

Great forum by the way chaps!

Cheers in advance

Welcome to the forum!

My recommendation will depend on what sort of boost you need for solos. Do you need a transparent clean boost, or an additional OD pedal for adding more gain to your signal? If you get the Dual Discrete, you won't be able to get a transparent clean boost as one of the channels.

The LTD V2 has the most mids amongst the LTD models, and will probably be the best choice for you. My suggestion would be to try one out or listen to some sound clips.

[plan-x]

Hmmm, I got LTDsr/mod and V1mod, and I don't think of them as "Jangely". Your description

I'm looking for the option of playing rhythm through a mild, jangly overdrive with a slightly mid-rangey tone and then being able to kick a boost for any lead lines (tuneful solos - not gratuitous widdling!)

at least to me, since Barber doesn't really have a dual pedal w/boost, off the production line so to speak, would be a Tone pump(more jangle than a LTD IMHO). And it comes with a mid trim stock.

[Cleef68]

Hi guys,

Many thanks for your replies - all help is appreciated.

When I say "jangly" I mean that early REM kind of jangle (ok, I know Mr Buck genrerally played clean but you get the idea!). I can get that from the Direct Drive if I turn the drive control down low and that's fine but I guess I need to pair the DD with something else - either something to take over the rhythm and let the DD do the lead or continue with the DD on low and let something else take the lead.

That is what turned me onto the LTD as a possibility 'cos it sounds kind of what I'm looking for on the rhythm side of things but I was a bit concerned about its lack of an internal midrange trim pot although I have heard it said that the standard LTD has a slight "midrange hump" anyway so it may not need a separate mid control.

Then of course the Half Gainer turns up and makes things a little more difficult as it looks like 2 LTDs in one box but it's not really....it's 2 LTDs sharing a tone circuit which means a tweak of the mid control for one will affect the other.

I do have a Tone Pump aswell but I find channel one a little thin (even with the Tone turned down low) and channel 2 a little too "raspy" for my liking. I carried out an A & B between the Tone Pump & the Direct Drive I prefer the warmer sound of the Direct Drive which is why I'm exploring possibilities that way rather than taking the easier option of relying on my Tone Pump.

I could go on for hours..

[Cleef68]

Caleb T,

By the way, forgive my ignorance, but what is an LTD v2? If that has more mids as you say then that might be what I'm looking for. Is the V2 just the latest version? How will I know if it's a V2?

Thanks for your help!

[mjcyates]

The v2 is the latest version. You can tell by looking at the pcb, it is labeled v2. It has less mids than v1, more than Silver or SR. Cleef68 sounds to me like you may want a DDLG. I believe you can get those with mod boards as well which would provide the midrange trimmer you are looking for.

[Cleef68]

Thanks for that..

I've just discovered that there's an LTD v2 with a mod pcb - which offers an internal trim pot for midrange.

Any idea where I can get one of these? They're probably not in the UK

[mjcyates]

Looks like David has a dealer in the UK
[url]Strings Direct[/url]

I believe you can order directly from David as well, not sure what the shipping charges would be.

[David Barber]

Thanks for that..

I've just discovered that there's an LTD v2 with a mod pcb - which offers an internal trim pot for midrange.

Any idea where I can get one of these? They're probably not in the UK

Strings Direct is your dealer in the UK, I'm sure they can get you any of our products.

[Cleef68]

Thanks David and to all who replied....

I have ordered from Strings Direct before but I wasn't aware that they would be able to get hold of an LTD with pcb mod. I will let them know what you said and maybe they'll be able to order one for me.


Thanks again!