Most Nolatone amp designs offer a wide variety of tonal options. This page has describes some tips I've though of that yeild the best results from the tonal options of various Nolatone amps. Some of these tips are just general tips not specific to any given Nolatone model. They represent things I've learned over years of being a tone fanatic myself. If you already know this stuff, outstanding, if not, hopefully it will help you with your quest for tone.

This is just the start of this page. I get ideas I'd love to share all the time, so I will be adding to this list as things come to mind, so please check on occasion to see what's new especially regarding tips on using Nolatone designs..

General tips:

1. Avoid the mud
2. Series effects loop: What it is and what it is not



Wicked Garden:

3. For fattest overdrive


4. Not used to dual gain controls?



Wicked Johnny:

5. Wicked Johnny Bright Switch


6. Wicked Johnny Fat Boost Mode


7. Not used to dual gain controls?



Road Hogg:

8. Bright Mode


9. Bright Blend


10. Plexi Boost


11. Master Volume: what it is and what it is not

General tips:



1. Avoid the Mud: Using the neck pick, middle pickup, or any combination of pickups other that just the bridge pickup can yield beautiful and expressive tones. However, using pickups which produce more low frequencies (like a Strat neck pickup for example) can produce muddle, farty tones when hitting full open position chords or low power chords on low strings. This is especially true when pushing an amp into distortion.
   
   Most of the huge rockin' sounding open chord riffs we know and love from the past 50 years since elecric guitar became a main part of popular music were played with the bridge pickup, which emphasies the crunch, chime and ka-rang that is so wonderful about those sounds.


2. Series effects loop: What it is and what it is not: In most cases Nolatone amps which offer an effects loop option use a series "unbuffered" effects loop, this is by design because it is the simplest way to get the signal out of the amp and back into the amp without disrupting the balance of the circuit design. Some Nolatone models simply do not have the real-estate for a tube buffered effects loop, and others we've opted not to add to the price of the amp to add one. So in order to offer a low cost option for you to get a preamp out and power amp in jack, this is our simple approach.
   
   It is important that you understand the nature of this type of loop. It very simply just delivers the signal from the output of the preamp so it can be used by external pedals. It is an unbuffered, hard wired connection to the send jack. There is no circuitry on the send or return jacks to adjust levels going to or coming from the attached effects. It may be necessary to use an external buffer box (example: The Dumblator) to match signal levels up.



Wicked Garden:



3. Fat Overdrive: For the fattest tone from the Overdrive channel, turn the OD volume up 100%. Reducing the level of that control can yield different textures and also help balance volume levels between overdrive and clean channels, but for the most balls, crank that puppy up!


4. Not used to dual gain controls?: For those of you who are used to having just one gain control and don't want to be bothered with the extra gain control on the Wicked Garden OD channel, simply crank the "Stripper Gain" control to full clock-wise. I encourage you to explore the settings of both gain controls though. You may be surprised at what you find!



Wicked Johnny:



5. Wicked Johnny Bright Switch: The Wicked Johnny includes a bright switch. That switch is intend for achieving more sparkly clean tones with pre and post gain controls turned down below noon. You may like the edge having the bright switch engaged at higher gain sounds, but if things are sounding a bit raspy, make sure that switch is off and "Top" control is turned down to taste.


6. Wicked Johnny Fat Switch: The Wicked Johnny also includes a 3-way boost switch. Use that for various textures, but not that the "fat" position is great for getting thicker funkier clean tones at lower gain settings. It may also be just the ticket for that fat/fluid high-gain lead tone you love as well, but if you find that tone muddy or flabby at higher gain settings, you might try "off" or "crunch" modes. Also make sure you've selected a pickup position to avoid the mud as well.


7. Not used to dual gain controls?: For those of you who are used to having just one gain control and don't want to be bothered with the extra gain control on the Wicked Garden OD channel, simply crank the "Post Gain" control to full clock-wise. I encourage you to explore the settings of both gain controls though. You may be surprised at what you find!



Road Hogg:



8. Bright Mode: Bright mode on the Road Hogg is the same as the treble channel of a 4 input Plexi. If you have a bright guitar, you may prefer the "normal" mode unless you REALLY like bright tones! If you have a darker sounding guitar, the bright mode may be just the ticket to liven things up.


9. Bright Blend: When in "Normal mode" (Bright disengaged), the Bright Blend control acts like the treble channel volume control on a 4 input Plexi: It adds treble and gain to the sound as you turn it clockwise. It's great for tuning the level of bite you want to a brighter guitar.


10. Plexi Boost: When engaged you get the full power of the Plexi tone stack with all the mids and low mids that give the Plexi that "grunt". The original Plexi amps were typically played through 2x12, 4x12 or even two 4x12 cabinets. I personally find that voicing can be challenging in general to a 1x12 combo. It might be just the ticket for your hands and guitar, but for full on rythem chords, it make be a bit brutal for that lone speaker in a 1x12. However, for single note lead lines it is very thick and expressive. Worth considering since the 1x12 combo is a popular config these days. Road Hogg Lite uses should consider this especially.


11. Master Volume, what it is and what it is not: I notice many people when approaching an amplifier with a Master Volume control on will immediately crank the gain up and turn the master down low for low volume/high gain jamming. I can't blame them, I love doing that too! Note however that the amps that work best at that low volume/high gain setting are those with a high gain preamp, which can get distortion without relying on overdriving the output tubes.
    
    The Road Hogg series amps are designed to be played at volume in stage settings providing good clean headroom and distortion when the output section is pushed to overdrive. I added a Master Volume to control the overall volume to allow the amp to be used in a wider range of situations.
    
    Because the Road Hogg preamp is not a high gain preamp, to my ear, it is not as pleasing at low master/high gain settings as other Nolatones like the Wicked Garden, Wicked Johnny, and, to a lesser extent, Rotten Johnny, which have substantial amounts of gain in the preamp. You may love the sound of the Road Hogg in this mode, many do, but I want to be clear, that is not the intended use for the Road Hogg. If low volume distortion is important to you, you should consider one of the other above mentioned models that deliver great satisfaction in that area (as well as at higher volumes).

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