mids on my soloamp

[eyesore]

hi; I always hear talk about "Mids" on everyones sound system [on their acoustic guitars]. do you guys prefer more or less on the mids subject. hope this makes sense. thanks!

[eyesore]

any ideas?

[krisls]

Ah.. not very specific. But.. as a vague generality assuming a three band EQ on a guitar. ie Bass, Mid, High/Treble the mids would be pulled back slightly. This to clean up rumble/muddiness and give a cleaner more 'natural' acoustic sound.

On mine using a clockface rather than the actual sliders for visualising Bass is very slightly pulled, aprox 11/11.30 to stop boominess. The mids are pulled back to around 10 and the highs are either flat or very slightly boosted to 12.30.

This will vary depending on guitar, pickup/preamp, amp or PA and the room. But that's the rough 'usual' for me.

Kris

[eyesore]

thats great ! thanks a million!

[Marty C]

I don’t have a solo amp, but seems everything to me needs a cut in the Mids. I would be interested for more people to give their input.

[MrErikJ]

Mid-range is a very important band of frequencies for your guitar but most pickups, magnetic and piezo, tend to exaggerate these frequencies and they need to be cut to some degree. This is subjective as my spruce/rosewood Guild has lighter mids than my cedar/mahogany Alvarez. When amplified, I’ll prob have to cut mids in both of them but the frequency and severity of that cut depends on the pickup and the guitar’s natural response. For piezos, I typically expect a cut in the 1 to 1.6khz range. I’ve heard that magnetic owners cut in the lower mids around 7-800hz. I find my LB6 needs a cut at either 1 or 1.2khz, the “nasal” and “squawky” frequencies, and I usually cut them back enough that the sound smooths out a bit.

The guitar is a “mid-range” instrument but if you have a preamp with a sweepable midrange, it’s a good learning experience to play with that. Generally, the technique is to turn up the mid volume and then sweep through the frequency range while playing and finding the most offending frequency and then dialing it back until it sounds better. It’s a good lesson in EQ.

[eyesore]

great info! but i don't understand Hz thing. how do i know where the numbers are supposed to be if i just have bass, mid, and high? in other words i have dials.

[MrErikJ]

Originally Posted by eyesore

great info! but i don't understand Hz thing. how do i know where the numbers are supposed to be if i just have bass, mid, and high? in other words i have dials.

It depends on your EQ. Many amps have a simple 3-band EQ of bass, mids, and treble and the frequencies that they control are pre-configured. Some outboard preamps, like the Baggs Para DI, have a mids knob that is complemented by a knob with a frequency dial that allows you to fine tune specific HZ.

What the actual freq is matters less than the quality of the sound. I would just experiment with cutting and boosting the midrange until you find the sound you like that best reflects your guitar.

[earri]

On my Sloamp with K&K installed guitars (and an LR Baggs Element piezo in one guitar, and an old Fishman peizo in another), I do dial back the mids to about 10.5-11. Iv'e found that to be where I like it best. YMMV, of course.

[Andy Howell]

Originally Posted by Marty C

I don’t have a solo amp, but seems everything to me needs a cut in the Mids. I would be interested for more people to give their input.

Yep. Always start by cutting the mids.

[lpa53]

I've always pulled back the mids and trebles (mids especially) when playing through my SA220.

[El Conquistador]

I have the original "SoloAmp". I run my guitar EQ at 1:00 High, 10:30 Mid, and 12:00 Bass. But I run it all through my RedEye DI which made a HUGE difference for me.

Steve