Mesa/Boogie DC5 - Manual (Page 8)

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This control blends in the lower frequencies and its effectiveness, again, depends on the setting of the TREBLE Control. It should be
set with moderation as extreme settings in either low or high directions can produce an unbalanced tone. Be “especially” careful in
higher Gain settings of either channel. Too much Bass will cause a flabby unfo-
cused sound that can’t be dialed out with the graphic EQ because excessive
Bass has been introduced to the pre-amp in the early stages. Try setting the
BASS control to
6 for clean sounds in the RHYTHM Channel and 4 or
below when dialing up high gain overdriven sounds in this channel. In the LEAD
Channel, try setting the Bass somewhere between
3 and 6 . These settings
will vary with the amount of Gain and Treble you have dialed up.
These two controls attenuate the high end and control dynamic compression in the power section. High settings produce more
sparkle, cut and lend a more open quality to the Channel. Low settings of the PRESENCE control compress the sound and enhance
the more vocal qualities of single notes.
This control can also produce a fatter, warmer character, especially in
the LEAD Channel. Lower Treble settings, combined with low Pres-
ence settings produce the richest, roundest lead sounds. Try setting
the RHYTHM Channels’ PRESENCE Control at around
5
or
6
for for the sweet blend of sparkle and cut. This range in the RHYTHM
Channel also tends to give the impression of more headroom. Try a
LEAD Channel PRESENCE Control setting of
3 to start with and
adjust to taste. Avoid setting the LEAD PRESENCE Control to
10
when high Gain and Treble settings are in use. This reduces the likelihood of annoying microphonic tube problems.
The DC-5 has an individual REVERB Control per channel. This enables different amounts of the rich ALL TUBE Reverb to be mixed
with the dry signal of each channel. It is normal for extreme settings of the REVERB Control to slightly alter the character of the
channel as the voicing of the Reverb circuit becomes more
dominant in the mix.
The individual channel MASTER Controls serve three purposes in the layout of the DC-5. FIRST: They serve as level balancing
controls for each of the two channels. This enables a wide range of front end gain settings
to be matched to a given listening level and the level of the other channel. SECOND: They
act as effects send controls, for each channel, in the Effects Loop. As with many of the
controls on the DC-5, the best results for balance and tone are usually found in the me-
dium range of this control. THIRD: The Master Control is the Recording jacks’ send level
control.
CONTROLS: (Continued)
BASS :
GAIN TREBLE MID BASS
INPUT
FOOT
SWITCH
6
5
PULL BOOST
PRESENCE:
GAIN TREBLE MID BASS PRESENCE
INPUT
FOOT
SWITCH
PULL BOOST
3
2
REVERB:
GAIN TREBLE MID BASS PRESENCE REVERB
PULL BOOST INPUT
FOOT
SWITCH
3
3
MASTER:
BASS PRESENCE REVERB MASTER
4
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