Have I been using too little gain??!?!?!?!?

  • Hmmm....I was finally able to listen to your clips, and through my semi-decent headphones and laptop DA converter, they sound almost exactly the same.


    If you like higher gain, by all means use it though! We all have different opinions and ears.

  • I think you're oversimplifying it. If turning up or turning down the gain was all it took to get a great tone we'd all sound fantastic all of the time.


    The problem with high gain is that it tends to smooth everything out and subtlety and grit is lost.

    Well it depends what pickups are used. Active ones like EMG, Lundgrend M6 and a few other pickups don't suffer from that problem.

    Think for yourself, or others will think for you wihout thinking of you

    Henry David Thoreau

  • I've been recording with a full band for a few weeks, reamping with a KPA. I used the same profiles i use live for the parts i recorded and frequently found that the gain was too low and delay mix too high.


    Maybe it's that live I need clarity to avoid having to keep turning it up and also being loud makes it sustain better but it was very noticeable.


    I'm not over thinking it, it needed more gain; I turned up the gain!

  • Don’t forget that it hugely depends on how many guitars you stack. If you only have one guitar left and right you need pretty much gain. But most modern metal productions have two guitars in each side of the stereo spectrum and that is when you need to lay back on the gain, since stacking guitars has a tendency to “multiply the impression of gain”.


    I have recorded many albums with Jacob Hansen as producer and his approach is two guitars that are fairly high gained and then two guitars (using a different amp) that are fairly low gained.

    And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make.

  • Stacking guitars does however not increase percieved gain... Different amps/cabs just switch up the frequency spectrum


    I have proven this in another thread

    How can you even prove perception....

    And in the end, the love you take is equal to the love you make.

  • @Kim_Olesen


    Here's a riff double (2x) tracked (low gain setting)

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    Here's the same riff 12x tracked (yes, TWELVE times!) the exact same low gain setting

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    Almost no difference at all.


    And here's the same riff, 2x tracked but with MORE gain.

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    As I said, stacking low gain on top of each other makes almost no difference in how the gain sounds