Fender + Tech21 Liverpool = Vox?

[tony_clifton]

Hi everyone,
It's been a while, I hope you're all good

I'm playing a Les Paul Special (P90s) or a Strat into an Eventide Timefactor into a Princeton Reverb RI. I'd like to add something decent for dirt and could use some advice.

Although I'm not a fan of U2 I love Dave Evans' sound. The tones I get from my gear are nowhere like his, but I feel like the delay is bringing me close enough. Not ballpark-close, but I like how it sounds.
Sometimes I use my Bass BB preamp for overdrive/distortion but that obviously doesn't sound as good as a proper guitar pedal.

So I figured I might add a Tech21 Liverpool. Although often used with a DI I guess it should turn a clean amp like a PRRI into ballpark-Vox for cleans, and make a good dirtbox with gain set high.

Any opinions?

Cheers!

[Bensen]

I own the Liverpool and I really like it as a Ampsimulation into the board but not before my real amp. It just sounds wrong before another preamp, maybe its the speakersim. don't know. I believe there are other other pedals for voxtones. I love the Z.Vex Box of rock into my deluxe reverb, but that is more of a Marshall-Bluesbreaker Sound.

[Le Chat Noir]

Nice to see you on here Hope all is well! I've heard the Menatone Top Boost In A Can does a good Vox impression through clean amps.

[a.hun]

Hi Tony, nice to see you back!

That should work pretty well into a Fender I'd think. Plenty of variation in the tone controls (both amp and stomper) to get things sounding good.

Better through a Hiwatt of course, but I would say that wouldn't I...


Andy.

[tony_clifton]

I own the Liverpool and I really like it as a Ampsimulation into the board but not before my real amp. It just sounds wrong before another preamp, maybe its the speakersim. don't know. I believe there are other other pedals for voxtones. I love the Z.Vex Box of rock into my deluxe reverb, but that is more of a Marshall-Bluesbreaker Sound.

Thanks! I've read this before; it seems like there are a lot of people who think it can be done, and at least as many who think it doesn't sound right. Wish I could test drive one myself but stores don't seem to stock them over here.
Are you running it into your Deluxe Reverb btw? If so, Normal or Vibrato channel?

I borrowed a Box of Rock for a while and even though it's a great pedal it just wasn't my cup of tea I'm afraid. At this point I love these tones more:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xMw8NjCs ... re=related" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Getting somewhat closer than I do now without breaking the bank would be pretty cool . I'm already aware of the blue Herdim picks btw.

Nice to see you on here Hope all is well! I've heard the Menatone Top Boost In A Can does a good Vox impression through clean amps.

Alright, thanks! Checkin' it out, but it seems fairly unknown on Youtube.

How's the new album gonna be ? I'd love to hear it

Hi Tony, nice to see you back!

That should work pretty well into a Fender I'd think. Plenty of variation in the tone controls (both amp and stomper) to get things sounding good.

Better through a Hiwatt of course, but I would say that wouldn't I...

Andy.

Haha yeah, I guess I should run it into a Leeds before going to my amp .

But this is exactly what I was thinking. I have a hard time believing the Princeton would add too much of it's own flavour as it is the cleanest amp I have heard so far. But yeah, compared to Vox-cleans I think the PRRI has more body instead of top-end chime. I guess it's plausible 1+1 might not equal 3 this time...


Anyway, if I ever buy a box like the Liverpool or TB In a Can I'll post some clips.

[Bensen]

...
Are you running it into your Deluxe Reverb btw? If so, Normal or Vibrato channel?
...

It's a custom from a German Ampmaker with the schematic of the vib channel

[a.hun]

But this is exactly what I was thinking. I have a hard time believing the Princeton would add too much of it's own flavour as it is the cleanest amp I have heard so far. But yeah, compared to Vox-cleans I think the PRRI has more body instead of top-end chime. I guess it's plausible 1+1 might not equal 3 this time...

As I say I think you'd get good usable sounds. How 'authentic Vox' a sound you'd be getting through your Fender is a bit tough to say. I think that Fenders tend to have less mids than most UK amps (including Vox) but that the powerful tone controls on the 'Liverpool' should minimise that problem. Total authenticity matters less than good sounds though. I reckon it would sound better than just 'fine'.

FWIW I love the idea of these 'Character Series' pedals, and knowing how effective the (always analog) Tech 21 Sansamps have always been I'd love to be able to grab them all. In fact there is a competition right now in one of the Dutch guitar mags to win 6 of the dedicated guitar models - all bar the 'California' one in fact. Wanna win, wanna win!!!

I'm definitely grabbing the VT bass model anyway. Just waiting till I find one of the newest ones fitted with the speaker sim in / out switch - the original didn't have that switch.

My own thought is that any of these boxes through my Hiwatt (and a suitable cab) should do a pretty good take of the real thing(s). Though to be honest you'd probably be very nearly as well using a really good solid state amp (like a Roland JC120) or even just a good audio amp as a clean and neutral sounding amp to use these things with. And the built in speaker sims should make direct to PA just as practical as direct recording.

Ironically I think Oranges would be among the very worst possible amps to use them with. Way too much character of their own. I'd reckon an 'Oxford' through my Hiwatt could sound pretty much like my Orange, but a 'Leeds' through the Orange is never going to sound like the Hiwatt...


Andy.

[Le Chat Noir]

I've tried a few of the Character Series and didn't keep any in the end... though the VT Bass or possibly a Leeds would definitely be on my board if I was gigging with bass. If my bass amp wasn't being miced I'd definitely have one ready to put in front of the sound guy's DI, which seems to be the norm for FOH bass sound at mid-level gigs these days.

I have to say, I didn't like them in front of amps at all - but I don't have any ultra-clean 'blank canvas' amps these days.

Generally I found they sound quite good straight to desk or into a computer - they give a pretty authentic 'mixed' sound. I briefly considered a rig with a switching system and a couple of Character pedals directly to the PA and my own powered wedge for monitoring, but I eventually gave up due to this setup lacking the thump and vitality of a real amp - putting these through a PA almost makes it sound like a CD is playing rather than a live band, if you know what I mean! I've found the same when using amp sims to record - they sometimes seem to sound great, but when you put them next to a real amp something's missing.