1086 just not doing it... Ultra XL?

[AVWIII]

Hey there! My name's John. Long time lurker, first time poster!
I bought Mike's (super efficient seller by the way.) 1086 thinking it would suit my style pretty well. I like tight, modern voiced amps, but with lots of clarity, smooth mids, and no excessive use of gain (my gain generally lives between 2-5). Fizzy highs are my absolute biggest pet peeve in an amp.
The 1086... hmm... It seems almost... brittle? It's kinda over-the-top trebly, even cranked with the treble below 2. I've tried JJs, '69 Mullards, Mesas, and the EH and eden tubes that were in it when he sent it. Still harsh, with plenty of that fizzy high end I love so much :roll: . Almost as bad as my old pod XT!
I've been thinking about the Ultra Xl. I've heard randomly that it's a little smoother. Hell, I've even been thinking about trading my lynchbox for an RM50 to see if it's the famed thin RM100-itis.
Any advice would be greatly appreciated! My band gets back to writing and practicing next week, and I just can't bear to face them with weak tone! :lol:
In fact, if there's an (unmodded) module out there that fits my description, I'm game for anything at this point!

 

[audioholic]

The Ultra XL is also bright, but if you dial in with your ears, you can make that module sound awesome (I think my treble was only at like 10 o'clock. I preffered it with ruby whatever relabled tubes they have, sounded nice. Its tight, great for rythm and lead, an all around awesome module.

but it also has uber gain, that is all it does really. I didn't think I turned the gain up past noon tops

 

[maximus1]

thin tone on this amp comes from a schwag cabinet

 

[Shinozoku]

The Ultra XL is also bright, but if you dial in with your ears, you can make that module sound awesome (I think my treble was only at like 10 o'clock. I preffered it with ruby whatever relabled tubes they have, sounded nice. Its tight, great for rythm and lead, an all around awesome module.

but it also has uber gain, that is all it does really. I didn't think I turned the gain up past noon tops

I actually got my favorite tone from this module by copying the In Flames guys' 5150 settings from a photo in an ad xD

Gain: 1:00-1:30
Bass: 11:00-10:30
Mids: 1:00-1:30
Treble: I adjust this between the same setting as the mids, and a bit higher, up to 2:00
Bright switch: Left
Master: 11:00-1:00

With your amp's density a bit under noon, and presence closer to 10:00-11:00.

This setting works best with uber drop-tuned guitars. and can get a bit fizzy with the treble so high, which is why I adjust it to be a little lower sometimes. For standard tuning, you might want the bass turned up a little, and the treble down to smooth it out some.

 

[Mailman1971]

thin tone on this amp comes from a schwag cabinet

+100 on that! I had a cheapo cabinet. Lynch box sounded good but not great. Bought a Lynch box Cab and had to re-dial in the whole amp! Gave the tone new life and BALLS! :lol:

 

[AVWIII]

Thanks for the replies! No cheap cab here. I've been using a Randall R412CB since the MTS series came out, I just recently got into the actual amp side of things. Guess I should've mentioned that, huh?
I think I'll take a chance and order/swap for an XL.
For now I'll play around some more with power tubes and bias settings.

 

[Mailman1971]

You know what adds "depth" to the whole amp is a BBE Sonic Maximizer. I use a 482i rack mount thru the effects loop and it makes a HUGE difference in the tone of that amp. Check one out. Just makes everything sounds "right" 8)
It will make your overall tone sound HUGE!!
But over use it and it will make you sound like you are playing with a cheap solid state combo!
Jus' my 2 cents worth..... :wink:

 

[Shinozoku]

Also, where do you keep your presence and density at? If you have them all the way down, I'd suggest raising the density control. Also, turn your FX level knob all the way up to add depth and a bit more overall punch and warmth to the sound.

 

[maximus1]

that effects knob does add to the tone like shin said, seems to give it more mids maybe

 

[AVWIII]

I found some tung-sols lying around and I'm enjoying it a lot more now. Still playing with settings. Odd how the effects knob does seem to fill out the tone!
I'm either going with kt88s or a mixture of kt88s and el34s for the power section. We'll see how it goes.
Thanks again everyone!

 

[maximus1]

thats a good tube combo, but for me i like 2 kt-88 and 2 6l6, but i used to swear by 4 e34l's until i got a vht cab. seems like my celestion liked the e34ls much btter than the vht, but the vht has eminenc speakers which are quite different than celestions and seem to have more of everything. excellent brand for metal :twisted:

 

[crankyrayhanky]

The 1086 is a stock mod I never really loved- diverse, but doesn't do one thing better than another module....maybe deep drop tunings, it's tightness becomes an asset there, instead of a thin weakness when tuned to E....lol, not a ringing endorsement for my classifieds sale!

 

[ashishk]

The Ultra XL is also bright, but if you dial in with your ears, you can make that module sound awesome (I think my treble was only at like 10 o'clock. I preffered it with ruby whatever relabled tubes they have, sounded nice. Its tight, great for rythm and lead, an all around awesome module.

but it also has uber gain, that is all it does really. I didn't think I turned the gain up past noon tops

I got an Ultra XL a few days ago to replace the Recto I had in there previously, so my set up is now Ultra XL, 1086 and a Blackface in my RM100. I find the Ultra XL to have a gain structure very similar to the 1086, but very 1-dimensional. The 1086 IMO is one of the best sounding modules ever made. It's just... ballsy and clear.

The Ultra XL has the same clarity and gain (more gain actually), but very little depth (which I tend to mistake for smoothness at certain volumes). The 1086 cuts through more (which I like). I'm using it for now as my main rhythm tone cos its not too overpowering in a twin-guitar band, and the 1086 works wonders for leads.

 

[schlagdog]

Wow, I think the 1086 is total junk. I doesn't have enough gain for one and is thin and fizzy. The only use for it I have found so far is to use it as a clean module. The Ultra XL is a million times better for any high gain stuff. I basically get tone exactly like 'Supernova Goes Pop' by Powerman 5000 from the Ultra XL.

 

[harsh]

Wow, I think the 1086 is total junk. I doesn't have enough gain for one and is thin and fizzy. The only use for it I have found so far is to use it as a clean module. The Ultra XL is a million times better for any high gain stuff. I basically get tone exactly like 'Supernova Goes Pop' by Powerman 5000 from the Ultra XL.

Hey man...I think I know what the issue with your 1086 is. What tubes are you running? When I bought my 1086, it sounded nothing great. I changed the tubes to Tung Sol (V1) and an old EH (V2) and it made a HUGE difference.

I also have an Egnater E-Rect that I paid a lot of money for, and I was a bit cheesed off when I was able to dial in a tone close to it on the 1086. :wink:

Let me know what you think.

 

[Mailman1971]

I loved the 1086 stock. wasnt over the edge HEAVY but really tight and had good dynamics. Very versatile and covered lots of territory. Once it was modded though...it became a whole new animal. easily replaced my Engl Invader and Framus Cobra.
It is just that good! 8)

 

[schlagdog]

I have JJ's. It tried Ruby, Groove Tubes, and EH. Tonally and gain wise the module is terrible. Just listen to Dan Donegan's live tone! Its the smallest, thinnest, and weakest tone for a heavy band you will ever hear.

 

[maximus1]

the dan's live tone is pathetic, but the 1086 isn't as bad as some seem to make out of it. i think it depends on your cab and pickups, more than anything. its actually the biggest sounding module imo, and i've owned all the high gainers at some point or another. it has big deep bass, the mids aren't great , the high end is decent though. stock the scooped side is garbage but the marshall rips pretty good, my only beef with it is that it doesn't have enough gain and that scoop channel isn't clear at all but other than that. get a good cab and some emg's and crank it up. boosted it rips pretty good in its stock form :twisted: . i'm getting a modded one for sure though :twisted: