The Effects Section - Hughes & Kettner Grand Meister 36 Manual

3 The channel section
GrandMeister 36 sports four channels, each voiced very differently
and accessible via a chicken-head selector switch. The power amp
feedback circuit, which has a formative hand in shaping your tone, is also
reconfigured during channel switching. The programmable knobs (see 2.1)
afford you full access to all sound parameters in every channel. We even
painstakingly fine-tuned the knobs' control ranges and characteristics to
match the selected channel's voicing.
1 Clean Channel: GrandMeisters Clean channel certainly merits its name.
It delivers sparkling fresh sounds and offers tons of headroom. It's worth
your while to experiment with different Gain settings in combination with
the switchable Boost.
2 Drive Channel: Your first stop for classic overdrive at its finest. This
channel sweeps the sonic spectrum from clean to mean, and countless
tones in between. Engage Boost to conjure a rude rock roar.
3 Lead Channel: This channels masterfully musical compression sends
those riffs and licks flying off your fingertips. Hit Boost for an extra
helping of in-your-face solo sound.
4 Ultra Channel: Get your high-gain tone right here. The Ultra channel's
top end slices, dices, but never sacrifices its thunderous low end for
raging metal riffs and larger-than-life lead tone. Dropped tuning conjures
a quasi religious experience.
5 Gain: The Gain knob determines input sensitivity and therefore the
preamps saturation level. Paired with Boost, it is your most important
sound-sculpting tool.
6 Boost: Boost targets specific frequency ranges and kicks them up a
notch. This yields even more assertive, creamier, or punchier tone,
depending on the channel.
7 Bass, Mid, Treble: The three-band voicing section's sound-shaping
action is fine-tuned for each channel, and it specifically addresses the
frequency ranges that define each channels characteristic tone.
Heads Up: These are classic passive tone controls that influence one
another. For example, if you crank the Mid knob, the Bass knob will be
less effective than when you back the Mid knob down. Presence and
Resonance are independent of the three-band voicing controls; that is,
their action remains unaffected by other knobs settings.
8 Volume: Use the Volume knob to adjust preset levels and adjust their
relative balance to other presets.
Heads Up: Unlike a conventional Volume control, this knob does not
bring the level all the way down; it merely boosts or cuts the given level.
The 12 o'clock position is the best starting point for adjusting volume.
Caution: Please don't use this knob to control the amp's overall output
level – that's the Master knob's job (see 5.1)!

4 The effects section

GrandMeister 36 offers three independent effect modules with reverb,
delay and modulation effects as well as a noise gate. All of them can be
used simultaneously.
Heads Up: The far left knob positions of the "Reverb", "Dly Level", and
"Intensity" knobs bypass the given effect. Twisting those knobs counter
clockwise to the far left takes the given effect module out of the signal
path.
1 Reverb: GrandMeister's digital reverb matches the warmth and musicality
of classic spring reverbs. A genuine improvement over its analog forebears,
it automatically adjusts the reverb tail – the higher the Reverb volume
setting, the longer the reverb time.
2 FX-Access: You always have direct access to the "Reverb". In order to
access the Delay and Modulation effects, just press the FX-Access button –
it will start flashing. Now you are in the FX-mode, and the channel control
knobs now serve as effects controls. To exit the FX-mode, press FX-Access
again. It stops flashing and you are back to the tone control mode.
3 Delay: The Delay module's "Dly Level", "Feedback" and "Dly Time"
knobs afford you total control over all parameters.
3.1 Dly Level: Adjusts the volume of repetitions, sweeping from all the way
off to just as loud as the original signal.
3.2 Feedback: Adjusts the number of repetitions from one to infinite.
3.3 Dly Time: Adjusts the time to the next repetition from 80 milliseconds
to 1.4 seconds. When you're tapping in delay time on the FSM-432's Tap
button (see section 2.3), the effect adopts the new time after your second
tap. The Tap LED flashes for about five seconds in sync with the beat to
give you a visual indication of delay time. The Tap function only works
when the Delay is active. If the Delay is off – or more accurately, bypassed
– the effect will not adopt your Tap tempo.
4 Modulation FX: This module serves up four modulation effects – Chorus,
Flanger, Phaser, and Tremolo.
4.1 Mod Type: Each effect is assigned to one quarter of this knob's control
range. The first quarter addresses Chorus, the second addresses Flanger,
the third addresses Phaser, and the final quarter addresses Tremolo. You
can adjust the modulation effect's rate within its assigned quarter. The
more you turn "Mod Type" up, the faster the rate gets.
4.2 Intensity: This knob adjusts the volume of the modulation effects.
5 FX-Loop: This serial loop lets you patch in external effects devices:
Connect the Send jack in the FX-Loop section on the amp's rear panel to
your effects processor's input and the Return jack to the processor's output
(see chapter 6.6). The FX-Loop button activates and deactivates the loop.
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