Situation 1:
Mic Warmer
I don’t know how many times I’ve gotten
a lackluster sound from my mics. I go
through all the trouble of setting up my
SM57, and finding the perfect sweet
spot after an hour of tweaking. After
hitting record and playing my piece, I’ll
get a really uninspired, dull, and overall
boring sound. The sound coming through
my speakers is most definitely not the
sound I hear in my room. I would like to
mention now that the Colour Box is no
substitute for bad mic technique; it’s akin
to putting a Band-Aid over an amputated
limb. However, players who have tried
absolutely every trick in the book and still
dislike their amp’s sound, the Colour Box
may be able to help.
For this clip, I used my Stratocaster
equipped with D. Allen Echoes pickups,
into a Buffal o FX TD-X, running out through
a Hi-Tone DR-30. It was miked with an
Shure SM57 into a Focusrite 2i2, and I
apologize in advance for the clipping.
22
TONE TALK //
The difference here is subtle, but if you’re
listening to the right frequencies it’s
quite noticeable. In this clip, the highs
open up beautifully and the low-mids are
sort of rounded out a little. The drive’s
characteristic is a little more hi-fi, and you
can more accurately hear what’s going on
in the room.
Outside the Box: Four Outstanding Uses for the JHS Colour Box