supersize

so i need a solo boost to get over the rest of the band live. we play a throwback to 80s metal, so the solos are a big deal and must be heard....or else we wouldnt get any ladies at the end of the night in true hair metal fashion.

ive tried the mxr micro amp in stores as a boost both in front of my amp (after my dirt pedal) and in the loop but those positions dont give enough of a volume jump!

what if i set it where it actually lowers the volume of my sound while ON, and then turn it off to let the full, presumably louder, version of my signal through to the amp.

on but turned down for rhythm, off letting the full signal through for solos? thatd work in theory, right? or am i not seeing this clearly?

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Guitars:
FENDER Sugar Rush, Scala-Caster Strat
KRAMER Striker600ST (from 86)

Amps:
MARSHALL Haze 40

Pedals:
Rocktron Banshee 2 Talkbox
Boss MD2
Crybaby
Visual Sound Tremolo
FAB Chorus

chip46

What amp are you running through? I would say that's not the ideal use of the pedal, but it'll be easier to help knowing the rest of your rig.

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supersize

im running through all the gear in my sig. a marshall haze 40 watt combo

__________________
Guitars:
FENDER Sugar Rush, Scala-Caster Strat
KRAMER Striker600ST (from 86)

Amps:
MARSHALL Haze 40

Pedals:
Rocktron Banshee 2 Talkbox
Boss MD2
Crybaby
Visual Sound Tremolo
FAB Chorus

chip46

Are you being mic'd at your gigs? 40 watts is plenty loud if mic'd (I use to gig with a Peavey Classic 30), to the point where the Microamp should still give a good boost.

If you're not getting much volume increase, I'd try backing off on the gain a bit. If you're running too much gain and then engaging the pedal, then it's probably just compressing more and adding saturation, but without much increase in volume. Lowering the gain will give it more room to do it's job, adding volume, and some saturation, without as much compression. That would be the first thing I would try.

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supersize

sometimes were mic'ed and sometimes no. ive tried it clean too. it ads some nice top sparkle but just not volume. should i just go for an eq with the level knob and highs boosted?

__________________
Guitars:
FENDER Sugar Rush, Scala-Caster Strat
KRAMER Striker600ST (from 86)

Amps:
MARSHALL Haze 40

Pedals:
Rocktron Banshee 2 Talkbox
Boss MD2
Crybaby
Visual Sound Tremolo
FAB Chorus

chip46

Well it might be a problem with the pedal. Running clean with the microamp, you should be getting a considerable volume boost. Unity volume is well under noon on that pedal, like 9 or 10 o'clock or so usually.

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supersize

hmmm, i could just have been trying a bum one then...

any other budget ways to boost the solo volume?

__________________
Guitars:
FENDER Sugar Rush, Scala-Caster Strat
KRAMER Striker600ST (from 86)

Amps:
MARSHALL Haze 40

Pedals:
Rocktron Banshee 2 Talkbox
Boss MD2
Crybaby
Visual Sound Tremolo
FAB Chorus

chip46

You've got one of the best budget ways, a simple one knob linear boost pedal. You could try the EQ option, if you want more tone sculpting for solo's AND volume boost, but honestly, the microamp should do what you need.

Know anyone else with a boost or OD pedal that you could use? I would see if using another pedal fixes the volume boosting issue, then you know it's a problem with your pedal and not how you're using it.

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supersize

i know a guy with a joyo line driver......along the same lines, no?

__________________
Guitars:
FENDER Sugar Rush, Scala-Caster Strat
KRAMER Striker600ST (from 86)

Amps:
MARSHALL Haze 40

Pedals:
Rocktron Banshee 2 Talkbox
Boss MD2
Crybaby
Visual Sound Tremolo
FAB Chorus

chip46

Not familiar with the Joyo line, but more than likely. Alternatively, try your pedal with another amp and see what it does.

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Maximus_2005

It might just be that your amp doesnt have enough balls for the job...

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Wrst_Plyr_Evr

Entirely possible. My recommendation is a Danelectro Cool Cat transparent overdrive. There's a pretty healthy bit of gain that you can add with it and a bass/treble knob for shaping. I use one as a boost and it's earned itself a place on my board.

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