how to boost volume for solos?

[playsabadguitar]

Best way to boost solo when it is time to take a solo?
I feel like the obvious answer is to use the expression pedal, keep it on a medium setting, and floor it when it is time to solo. Tried this though. Maybe I need a better pedal, but it doesn't seem to give me a good spectrum of volume. It is almost binary and if I do really carefully find a medium spot, the signal is not great. I wouldn't want to sound like that for most of the show.

Any suggestions?

[playsabadguitar]

What you need is a well defined basic volume you can easily get back to after soloing. Having the expression pedal basically somewhere in the middle doesn't meet these needs.

I simply use the overall volume of my Stage 3. But there are way trickier solutions. Just have a look into this Stage 3 thread: post145715.html

[playsabadguitar]

I set my volume level at 12:00 so I have headroom to turn it up for solos/songs as needed and it's easy to know where to turn the knob back when done. Also, I sometimes create a second program for solos and use the original program with some EQ and Compression to make things sound louder.

As for your expression pedal, try different settings for pedal brand/model. They each have different curves, so a different selection may yield a smoother response. I don't think that's the best way to manage solo volume, but it will work better for your other programs.

[playsabadguitar]

Never had an issue in 30 years using the volume pedal, both the Yamaha FC-7 and Moog EP-3.

-dj

[playsabadguitar]

Best way to boost solo when it is time to take a solo?
I feel like the obvious answer is to use the expression pedal, keep it on a medium setting, and floor it when it is time to solo. Tried this though. Maybe I need a better pedal, but it doesn't seem to give me a good spectrum of volume. It is almost binary and if I do really carefully find a medium spot, the signal is not great. I wouldn't want to sound like that for most of the show.

Any suggestions?

Hi,

I‘m with the ones who use both the control pedal and the master volume pot. The reason is that the control pedal also influences the drive rate by its „input“ level. You seem to have realized that as well because it changes the sounds.

At soundcheck I give the FOH my loudest signal (master pot usually around three o‘clock, pedal fully pressed) whereas during the gig I control my volumes with the help of good monitoring - loud where desired or softer where needed.

Cheers from Germany

[analogika]

I never adjust the overall volume during a gig (unless the balance in the monitors radically changes for some reason during the show).

For organ, it’s the swell pedal and, if that’s not enough, the drawbar settings (usually the sixth drawbar for some more bite — my „standard“ setting is 888800124 or so).

For other sounds that need to cut through, I usually morph the individual engines‘ volume to either the mod wheel or the volume pedal.