-
Been thinking of selling some things and buying a Bud 6 for solo guitar. Won't give up my Evans Re200 but the Little Bud 6 seems pretty cool but is it 'boxy' or does it have a nice full tone for small rooms like an assisted living place? I'm using a GB10 and Tele.
-
04-23-2024 02:33 PM
-
Like most things, some love them and some don’t. I rarely use mine out, but when I do I like it. It’s not for everyone. I’d recommend trying one out if you can.
-
ps - Because I have a Quilter 8 and Genzler 8 for acoustic, both already small and light.
Originally Posted by Woody Sound
-
In terms of convenience (size, weight, volume, features) it's unmatched. Tone is much more subjective. It's a very neutral, PA-like sound. It does not have the warmth and the grit of a tube amp (or a good tube amp emulation). Adding a preamp or overdrive pedal into the mix does help considerably, but that takes the convenience score down one notch. I will say that I like it with archtops but I don't like it with Teles.
-
I do a solo jazz guitar gig every Saturday with a Bud 6 and either a Les Paul or a Strat. The answer to your question is yes.
But make sure to use a wedge....
-
How about the Blu, or do you need two channels?
[The Blu is excellent, IMO!]
-
I have a Blu 6 as well and I mostly use the Bud 6 as I like having a second channel in case I have a guest artist sit in. Originally Posted by marcwhy
-
+1000000 on the wedge.
I've also given EQ tips for people who prefer a more fender sound. Also have tried pedals with it to give it more tube like response. I'm a huge fan of the Bud6. I don't ever play it at home when I have some nice vintage tube amps to choose from, but when I need an ultra portable rig there's no better amp.
-
Count me in as a big fan. My Blu 6 has become my main gigging amp. The tube amps have stayed home mainly since I bought one.
-
Yes, it's boxy compared to a Fender. I've done side-by-side comparisons with a friends amp and my Princeton TM, tweaking the tone stack this way and that, and without some sort of assistance from a pedal, it just doesn't compare. But I will say for a louder environment like a full band, that mid-range helps it sit in the mix well. I ain't giving up my Fenders, though.
-
I lack experience with a wide range of amplifiers, so making a comparison wouldn't be fair. However, I've been using the Blue 6 in both quartet and big band setups, and it performs well (IMHO) in both contexts. My guitar is Gibson ES-175.
-
I am a big fan of the Bud 6 and I rate it on its own terms as well as in terms of portability
I play principally with an Elferink (solid carved, floating pickup, roundwound strings) and it is a great match.
As others have said, it is worth using a tilt, playing around with the EQ (another vote for cutting the high-mids, also the presence but that depends on the guitar), and using a good pedal (Barbershop or Modele B would be my recommendation). I don't find it boxy but depending on the room, you might want to turn up the lows and it works well with a nice extension cab (defeating, of course, the point of the portability)
I'd wager it would work great with your GB10. I'd be less sure about a Tele but others with much more knowledge than me have already confirmed it works well with a solid bodies
-
Yes. It is that good.
-
In addition to the two channels, I like that Bud 6 has a preamp gain control (Blue does not). By turning it all the way up, you get a more saturated tone. It is not exactly tube-like, but you can't call it "sterile", "PA-like" or "uncolored" either.
-
I have been very pleased. I use both channels, one for vocals the other for guitar (usually a 36 L-5 or a Holo gypsy jazz guitar). For the guitars I am using either an ischell contact mic, AT 831b, Shure KSM 137, or a DeArmond FHC), playing in some loud places. I also used it with a '50 ES-150 and was happy with the sound. The Bud 6 has been a great amp, comparable to the Acoustic Image Clarus 4 that used to be my main amp, better in some ways.
-
I actually much prefer my Bud 6 sitting on the floor. Originally Posted by Stringswinger
I love mine. I agree with most of the comments here. It is very clean and perhaps not warm, but I would say it has a fat clean sound that I really like. My archtop, semi-hollow, and nylon (tweeter on) all sound great through it. I have found similar to Andrew that my tele sounds a bit uninspiring through it. That is about the only time I still grab my Quilter Micro Pro 8 these days
-
I bought a Bud a couple of years ago to replace an 80 watt Roland that was becoming too heavy for me to lug around. I tried it sight unseen, having been impressed with the reviews...and the return policy. I have used it with a variety of guitars, mostly archtops with both a set and floating pickups: humbuckers, JS and Lollar floaters, and most recently, P90s. I have been impressed. Sure, tweaking is necessary with each - but it is a very adaptable amp, IMO. The only guitar I had some issues with is my Martin flattop - but I still made it work. I have a nylon string Godin Encore that it does NOT work well with - but I think it is more the guitar than the amp.
I am not sorry I bought it - it works well in a small to medium setting - and meets my needs. Good Luck if you decide to purchase it.
Fred
-
I have found that the tone is more balanced on the wedge and that I can hear it better. In fact, without the wedge, my Les Pauls sound downright muddy when played through the Bud. Originally Posted by drbhrb
Regarding solid body guitars and the Bud: I have had great results with humbucker equipped solid body guitars (one of my Strats has Fender Noiseless pickups which are essentially humbuckers). My single coil Strat does sound better through my Quilter than with the Bud, but it still works OK.
-
I know some forum members have stated this before but I never heard the difference people claim. I.e. input gain up doesn’t seem to make a difference in the level of compression or saturation. I was curious about this when people mentioned it so I tested it out with a db meter and found that there’s no difference in compression between output vol up and input gain down vs output vol down with input gain up. Originally Posted by medblues
I actually emailed Peter Henriksen about this today and this was his response.
So I think people might be unconsciously biased to hear something that doesn’t match the physical phenomena. I recall a similar comment from a user who claimed they heard a difference between the different cab sims on the quilter superblock when plugged into a speaker. Well, the cab sim is not in the signal path of the speaker out, it only operates on the line out/headphones.Hi Juan, the input gain on the Bud is an input gain, not a preamp gain. Think of it as a variable hi/low input switch. It is not designed for distortion or compression.
-
Interesting. How do you test compression with a dB meter?
-
Thanks for this. I don't think I understand the difference between preamp gain and level control. Apparently, the level control doesn't affect the sound in the way a preamp gain control does. Is that much correct? So, the level control just affects where the signal is in relation to the noise floor. Or does it do anything more than that? I'd have thought that the level of the input signal would affect the overall sound, but I don't claim any expertise. Originally Posted by omphalopsychos
Why then, does the Bud have it and the Blu does not? What do you "gain" from having the extra control?
On a separate issue, isn't the second channel of the Bud recommended for voice? Doesn't that mean it is "PA-like"?.
The center frequencies of the 5 band EQ are not the same on the two models.
-
RP,
My guess is that it allows you to match the signal strength coming into the input while the output from the gain to the volume is fixed. My pickups are hot so I keep my input gain at around 7/8 o'clock. Otherwise, I can get some noisy distortion.
As to why its not on the Blu, my guess would be ways to control costs without affecting the core purpose of the product.
Nothing in the manual mentions ch 1 vs 2 so my guess is that maybe in the past that was true but it no longer is (?)
From the manual:
"INPUT GAIN
The INPUT GAIN control is to accommodate a variety of instrument outputs.
There is no one correct input gain setting, so the input gain control setting
should be experimented with in concert with the volume control setting for the
best results for any given application. For higher output pickups, active pickups,
condenser mics, or effect devices, the input gain may be reduced to avoid un-
wanted distortion. For lower output devices, such as piezo-electric transducers or
dynamic mics, the input gain may be increased to maximize overall output. Each
application will be different, so start with the control at 12:00 and go from there."
-
If you have two sound sources and hypothesize that one is more compressed than the other (in this case, a guitar plugged into both channels of the bud with an ABY pedal; one channel with input gain up/master down and the other reversed), then you could measure compression by doing the following: Originally Posted by medblues
(1) Gain match the two sources on low volume signal. Measure the db of both signals. The db meter should be matched on both.
(2) Then, increase the volume of the signal fed into both sources, potentially reaching the compression threshold. If one of the sources exhibits compression, its measured dB level may increase at a slower rate compared to the signal that remains uncompressed. If the gain of the input signal surpasses the compression threshold and both output signals maintain the same dB level, it suggests that either both signals compressed concurrently or neither experienced compression.
Overall, this method can serve as a practical technique to compare the relative compression levels between two sound sources, but for a more in-depth and precise analysis of compression levels, using specialized audio analysis tools or software may be necessary.
Originally Posted by rpjazzguitar
Originally Posted by TheGrandWazoo
My understanding is that the Blu is designed primarily to work with electric guitar while the Bud is primarily designed for acoustic instruments. Honestly I prefer the Bud across the board. But in terms of why it would be useful for acoustic instruments is that perhaps you have quiet piezo pickup and want to boost the level at the input stage. Or perhaps you have a very hot mic and want to attenuate it. Since the Bud is essentially a 2 channel mixer, I can see how this might be a useful feature so that you can match the input gain and from then visually match the output gain by keeping the master vol at the same spot for both.
You might not need this functionality as much on the Blu. Personally, I think it's quite useful in both cases. I use it if I am using effects in the loop that have low headroom. I.e. I can attentuate the signal to ensure the effects don't distort, and then use a clean boost at the end of the fx loop to boost back to a reasonable level.
-
Thanks. I will try to come up with an experiment that would explain why I heard differently, it possibly could be a psychoacoustic illusion.
-
Originally Posted by rpjazzguitar
Reply With Quote
Modified Johnny Smith
Today, 04:19 PM in Guitar, Amps & Gizmos