can result in either too dark or too bright a sound, from mued and choked to sizzling and thin, so you want
to apply it with taste and musical sensibility.
The most common application where the 6600 kHz slider is boosted is seen in heavy rock and metal sounds for
the fabled “V” setting. Here, the 750 Hz slider is dipped below the center line for a midrange scoop, the 2200
kHz band is boosted to near or above the upper line above Center for the attack that heavy crunch sounds
need, and then boosting the 6600 kHz band somewhere around the line above Center adds the harmonic
edge and haze. The two lowest sliders are most often boosted to near the line above Center for these sounds
as well, to add the “chug” on the low end. In total this “V-Curve” all adds up to a huge sound that has been a
staple on classic and modern rock and metal albums since the late 70s when the Boogie 5-Band Graphic EQ
adorned our MARK I Boogies.
Dipping or cutting the 6600 kHz slider is most often associated with searching for warm, round single-note solo
sounds, be they clean for jazz-style sounds or higher gain for rock and fusion music. Dropping the 6600 slider
below the center line begins to remove the harmonic content from the sound and this happens rather quickly.
Some players dip both the 6600 and the 2200 bands for ultimate warmth; others boost the 2200 a bit as the
6600 is being reduced to swap in its frequency to add clarity to the attack as the sound gets darker up higher.
Either way you go, the 6600 kHz slider comes in handy when you want to customize your sounds – especially
those infused with gain – and for a bright guitar with weaker, vintage-style pickups you love for clean work, but
perhaps struggle with trying to get a warm overdriven solo sound from.
Now that you have an overview of the Graphic EQ and a better understanding of the frequency points and
how they might be used to enhance or attain the sounds you want, we suggest spending some time exploring.
Getting to know how the 5 bands interact with not only the other adjacent bands but also with the rotary Tone
controls and what is most eective where, will help you navigate the sounds available in the two Modes more
quickly and accurately. Regardless of how you choose to apply it, the Boogie 5-Band Graphic EQ helps set Mark
Series amplifiers – older or newer – further apart from others in creating an ultimate palette for your expression.
STANDBY
The STANDBY provides a warm-up/idle state for the tubes in your amplifier. It should ALWAYS be used at power
up, even if the amp’s chassis is warm to the touch from recent use. This is because tubes cool far more quickly
than other components like the chassis, and even when they are warm, it is far easier on their filaments to have
30 seconds of warm-up/prep time before being hit with the high voltage.
The STANDBY also doubles as a mute feature for set-up before and breaks during performance. Use the
STANDBY any time you are pausing from playing and want to keep your amplifier in a warm and ready state.
If you’re going to take a break for a couple of hours, it’s probably best to power down to save electricity, just
be sure to use the Cold Start Procedure (under the POWER instructions below) when you return and want to
power back up and use the amplifier again.
NOTE: A little preemptive troubleshooting instruction here that you may never need, but is good to know anyway
as a tube amp owner/user:
Should you ever flip the STANDBY to ON and hear a loud hum or loud static, or should you smell something
hot/burning, quickly flip the STANDBY to OFF. What you could potentially be hearing (or smelling) may be a
power tube arcing or shorting. While this is rare, it can happen if a power tube were to become faulty. In the
event it ever does occur, flipping the amplifier to STANDBY stops the incident right away. On occasion, it will
correct the problem, but often it can reoccur. You can troubleshoot the problem using the method below:
While looking at the Rear of the amplifier and watching the power tubes (you may need to move the Tube Cage
by unhooking the nylon clips and moving it out of the way or removing it altogether), flip the STANDBY to ON.
If a power tube(s) is arcing or shorting, you will likely see it flashing brightly rather quickly or perhaps glowing
red in the tube’s center metal parts more than the rest of the set. Sometimes an arcing or shorting tube can
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