Guitar & Musician Forums

I’ve got a 30-watt valve combo that breaks up pretty early. I love the overdrive, but sometimes I need a really clean rhythm tone and it’s hard to get without turning way down.

Any tips for getting more headroom without buying a new amp?

Using lower-output pickups or rolling back your guitar’s volume knob can help a surprising amount.

You might also try an EQ pedal in the effects loop or front end.

Cutting some mids and boosting a bit of top end can make a slightly breaking-up tone perceive as cleaner, and it gives you another level of control without changing the character of the amp itself.

Try lowering the gain and increasing the master volume if your amp has separate controls. That sometimes keeps the preamp cleaner.