Review of Mustang GT40. (different POV)

[Cliffyg62]

Dude, that’s severe. Seems like things are going better.
IT, lolololololol. They say that all the time. But don’t tell em, I already dun it...teeheehee...

Worked out the GT some more today and had a fun two hours. No glitches. I love their basics. Evaluate on those not the older patches. And remember to check out the bandmaster and excelsior! I love saying that. EXCELSIOR!

Ya know, I got one of those fender fancy expression pedals and forgot I had an m-audio... didn’t even know it might work...well, the fender is shiny???
And um, oh yeah, tempt someone with that iommi eh?. I see your tony and raise you the st Vincent I found that fulfills my current GAS requirements, three mini humbuckers! Yes! Three! And um, well, since I’m a workin man well, it misses on one point... $1,900 USD! Eh, a boy can dream.
Can’t wait for you to get a hold of the amp. It’s hours of fun...
Btw ever tried a Harley Benton Guitar? I hear they’re good especially for the price. Was watching the GuitCom vids and they get good remarks.
Let us know how the amp works out. Def stay in touch on PM. If I ever get east of Bermuda, I’ll look you up.

 

[Cliffyg62]

Maybe it was your post, that i meant with "Someone wrote or said in a review, that the "boxy thing" does go away when he changed the presets to a different cab simulation".

I've been reading through so many posts and reviews that i did not remember where i got that info from. If it was you, then let me thank you! Because of that info i got the sense that i'll be well satisfied with the GT40 and i ordered it from Thomann.

Exactly these functionalities were ticking all of my "must have" boxes. I read somewhere that the output of the GT40 goes down pretty low and that would be a plus for me too.

I already tried a Blackstar ID:core and even the lowest volume was just too loud to be able to play guitar in my mancave. I was turning the volume knob and the sound was jumping, like from "nothing" to "way too LOUD".
I hope the volume is more even from really low to loud on the GT40.

The Marshall code does that too. Wish they could smooth that out.
Def switch cabs. It’s easy just click and play, then click another... on the app that is. I’m liking that thing more and more...

 

[Bluesshoe]

...And remember to check out the bandmaster and excelsior! I love saying that. EXCELSIOR!

If these are patches in the GT40 i will surely check them out! Whenever i get a new device i dive in deeply. I'll check out each and every patch and I totally want to know how the USB recording will sound on the recording software on my mac.

Ya know, I got one of those fender fancy expression pedals and forgot I had an m-audio... didn’t even know it might work...well, the fender is shiny???

True, the Fender pedal looks shiny and professional, but the money i'll put to good use! Go on reading below.

Btw ever tried a Harley Benton Guitar? I hear they’re good especially for the price. Was watching the GuitCom vids and they get good remarks.

Maybe you have missed what i wrote a few postings before:

...i was not sure enough i would keep doing it to take the "risk" of buying an original expensive Fender Mustang.
And do you know what? I bought the exact same guitar ( Harley Benton MS-60 VW LTD Edition ) for just €111,- (incl. post and package) and when i came it was perfectly set up with a set of D'Addario strings and i even got a coupon of €20 because it came a week too late than they first announced.

My Harley Benton MS-60 VW LTD Edition is a copy of the Fender Mustang ( here's the product page of that guitar on Thomann: https://goo.gl/AmFtBt ).
I was totally blown away when i unboxed it. It was perfectly setup, all the woodwork and painting was done flawlessly, the two Wilkinson WVSC Vintage Style single coils do sound like the original and the tremolo does work better than the one on the original Mustang.
There are only three things i'm going to replace:
I'll put on some proper locking tuners, a good roller-bridge and a Göldo Earvana Compensating nut. Even that the intonation was set up perfectly, the short scale of 610 mm does leave it's mark while playing some open chords. It's just a little, but even a small pimple on the butt can be annoying. And when i'm already working on that guitar, i'll shield all electronics with proper copper foil and treat the fretboard with some Lemon oil.
I paid just 111,.- Euro for that guitar and when i'm done with it, i'll have spend about 250,- Euro all together. That is nothing for a proper Mustang style guitar.

Now I'll buy myself a second Harley Benton guitar, the ST-57DG Black Tribute, that is a David Gilmour - Black Strat replica ( https://goo.gl/SwSJ7s ) for about 198,- Euro.
Listen to this guy playing that guitar:

Sweet eh?

Let us know how the amp works out. Def stay in touch on PM. If I ever get east of Bermuda, I’ll look you up.

Oh, i will!

 

[Cliffyg62]

If these are patches in the GT40 i will surely check them out! Whenever i get a new device i dive in deeply. I'll check out each and every patch and I totally want to know how the USB recording will sound on the recording software on my mac.

True, the Fender pedal looks shiny and professional, but the money i'll put to good use! Go on reading below.

Maybe you have missed what i wrote a few postings before:

My Harley Benton MS-60 VW LTD Edition is a copy of the Fender Mustang ( here's the product page of that guitar on Thomann: https://goo.gl/AmFtBt ).
I was totally blown away when i unboxed it. It was perfectly setup, all the woodwork and painting was done flawlessly, the two Wilkinson WVSC Vintage Style single coils do sound like the original and the tremolo does work better than the one on the original Mustang.
There are only three things i'm going to replace:
I'll put on some proper locking tuners, a good roller-bridge and a Göldo Earvana Compensating nut. Even that the intonation was set up perfectly, the short scale of 610 mm does leave it's mark while playing some open chords. It's just a little, but even a small pimple on the butt can be annoying. And when i'm already working on that guitar, i'll shield all electronics with proper copper foil and treat the fretboard with some Lemon oil.
I paid just 111,.- Euro for that guitar and when i'm done with it, i'll have spend about 250,- Euro all together. That is nothing for a proper Mustang style guitar.

Now I'll buy myself a second Harley Benton guitar, the ST-57DG Black Tribute, that is a David Gilmour - Black Strat replica ( https://goo.gl/SwSJ7s ) for about 198,- Euro.
Listen to this guy playing that guitar:

Sweet eh?

Oh, i will!

That’s what got me looking at them. I do this from a tablet so tricky to scroll back and forth. Another nice vid...Cool.
Got my Mac back up and running yesterday.

Still learning all of the tech stuff about guitars. I should get round to modding and all that but I like mine and don’t want to sacrifice any to the old learning curve. Not yet... winter is coming and the night is long...lol. And I’ll be short of cash. Soldering isn’t that expensive...lol

Maybe I’ll finally hook up the 40 to the Mac today... still need the clear room but it’s small. Need to play with GarageBand.

 

[Bluesshoe]

That’s what got me looking at them. I do this from a tablet so tricky to scroll back and forth. Another nice vid...Cool.

Oh, you are using a tablet... I understand.
You are totally right, that can be tricky on a tablet.

The Guy in the video did a second one of the Harley Benton ST57DG
)
were he had the David Allen " Echoes" pickups installed.
They are pricy, but seem to be an amazing set of pickups:
http://www.dallenpickups.com/Echoes_pickups_p/ap-echo.htm
The guy is using a Line 6 amp, but i'm sure one could get a similar sound out of the GT40.

Oh, by the way... Apropos GT40!

Fender GT40

• Bluesshoe
• Oct 9, 2017

TOMORROW! :-D

Got my Mac back up and running yesterday.

Cool, you do own a Mac too! Which one do you own, a Macbook or an iMac?
What means "back up and running"? Did you had problems with your Mac?

Still learning all of the tech stuff about guitars. I should get round to modding and all that but I like mine and don’t want to sacrifice any to the old learning curve. Not yet... winter is coming and the night is long...lol. And I’ll be short of cash. Soldering isn’t that expensive...lol

Personally i don't count changing the standard tuners to locking tuners and changing the tunomatic-bridge to a good roller-bridge as "modding". Everybody can do that and because i don't use high end stuff i do keep the price relatively low.
Changing the installed nut to a Göldo Earvana Compensating nut is a little more advanced than the other two things, but i'm sure something like this will be of no problem for you. The locking tuners, the roller-bridge and the Göldo Earvana Compensating nut will cost me about 100,- Euro. So if you add the price of the Harley Benton MS-60 VW and those three things i have paid 211,- Euro for a good guitar.

Maybe I’ll finally hook up the 40 to the Mac today... still need the clear room but it’s small. Need to play with GarageBand.

Garageband is a totally cool piece of software! I love it!
Many years ago i switched to using a Mac because of Garageband.
Here is an simple demo of what i did with Garageband and a little time:
http://soundcloud.com/bluesshoe/slowmotion-take32

I hope the demo did not make your ears bleed...

 

[Cliffyg62]

Wow! Nice tune. Didn’t know GarageBand was that good.
Mac-allytically I’m not a user but a novice. Seems the Mac folks I helped with winders don’t know jack about Mac either. They just do surfing and email... Now that I have it dedicated to a specific function and accidentally synced it up with my maxiPad I’ll give it a real go. Tons of music apps to install and configure. It’s a Mac mini i5 2012 but I bumped up the drive (5400 rpm? Seriously?) did an SSD fusion on that and put a grownups amount of ram in it. I had disconnected it when I started remoting into work part time from that room but couldn’t stand being in there another minute afterward. Eventually separated work space from music space. Now need to reconnect everything using just the Mac.
So I’ll be following your lead on tones for the GT. Could be a fun 4th quarter. Can’t wait to see what patches you come up with. Hope they can still be shared. To be honest, I’m having a ball with modifying the basics then experimenting with the pedals.
Oh snap, almost forgot. I get to work, go for tea instead of manly coffee, and two it guys start talking about a monitor issues and the senior guy asks, "did you have him turn off the pc? I mean all the way off." This went on for five minutes. Yeah, I was cracking up all the way back to my desk...
(Btw, can you work that magic on the lottery? I put in for a share of a pool and could really use the win... lololololol. )Anyway, it was surreal...

 

[Bluesshoe]

Wow! Nice tune. Didn’t know GarageBand was that good.

Garageband has gotten way better over all the years, since i've recorded that demo. Nowadays it's more like a Logic Studio for beginners.
The funny thing is: For that demo i just used my Seagull S6 acoustic guitar, a small USB - Keyboard and a cheap podcast microphone. Yes, no electric guitar was used in that demo! (Remember, at that time i've already sold them all.) Some tracks of the S6 acoustic guitar i ran through one of the amp simulations that is included in Garageband. The bass was played on the USB - keyboard and for the drums i used some loops out of the big loop library that came with Garageband.
Honestly, i was blown away how easy it was to put down some ideas and to record a halfway decent demo of these ideas with Garageband.
But i'm guessing you know that already...

Mac-allytically I’m not a user but a novice. Seems the Mac folks I helped with winders don’t know jack about Mac either. They just do surfing and email... Now that I have it dedicated to a specific function and accidentally synced it up with my maxiPad I’ll give it a real go. Tons of music apps to install and configure.

You don't need tons of music apps. When you dive deeper into Garageband you will find out that it has way more to offer than you may be able to use right now. I see Garageband as an high advanced version of the Tascam Portastudio ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portastudio ) that i have owned decades ago.

There are quiet a few bands and artists who have recorded albums and songs using Garageband.
For example, load the "Vintage Funk Kit 03" loop. Slow the loop down to about 90bpm and listen to what it will remind you of. Ok, i tell you now: it's Rihannas "Umbrella".
Kate Nash, Limp Bizkit, Fall Out Boy, Erasure, Nine Inch Nails, Courtney Love, Seal and many others have used Garageband as a song writing tool, as a demo studio and most of them did import the demo project that they have recorded with Garageband into Logic Studio, so you still can hear some part of Garageband in the final song.

First you should download all the additional content packs from inside of the Garageband program! These are a few GB of size, but they are totally worth it. There are many sites and blogs that have many tips for Garageband, like these:
http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/download-guide-to-garageband/
http://thegaragebandguide.com/
and many others.
Somewhere i still have a few ebooks about Garageband.
Drop me a message if you are interested.

It’s a Mac mini i5 2012 but I bumped up the drive (5400 rpm? Seriously?) did an SSD fusion on that and put a grownups amount of ram in it. I had disconnected it when I started remoting into work part time from that room but couldn’t stand being in there another minute afterward. Eventually separated work space from music space. Now need to reconnect everything using just the Mac.

Back in early 2005 I started with a Mac Mini too. That one was still the one with a PowerPC-G4 CPU and the performance was not good, so a year later i bought an Intel based 17" iMac that was way better.
2006 i bought a 24" iMac (BTO to the highest available specs) that is still in use for Office stuff, surfing the net and some email stuff and stands in my living room.
Early 2013 i bought an 27" iMac i7 that was also BTO to the highest available specs. That machine is still in daily use in my office/man cave.
Up to 2013 i still ran a Windows based PC as a dedicated machine just for gaming, but with the 27" iMac i can run Windows 10 on an external SSHD - drive, that i'm just plugging in when i want to play some games.
After working as an IT - tech and tutor for so many years, i'm quite satisfied that i don't have to waste a lot of time to keep my computers at home up and running.

So I’ll be following your lead on tones for the GT. Could be a fun 4th quarter. Can’t wait to see what patches you come up with. Hope they can still be shared. To be honest, I’m having a ball with modifying the basics then experimenting with the pedals.

I can imagine that you'll come up with some great patches first. I still have to learn the basics, after i have unboxed the GT40 this evening.

Oh snap, almost forgot. I get to work, go for tea instead of manly coffee, and two it guys start talking about a monitor issues and the senior guy asks, "did you have him turn off the pc? I mean all the way off." This went on for five minutes. Yeah, I was cracking up all the way back to my desk...
(Btw, can you work that magic on the lottery? I put in for a share of a pool and could really use the win... lololololol. )Anyway, it was surreal...

Hrhrhrhr..... THAT IS FUNNY!

Ok, i'll keep my fingers crossed for you and the lottery.

 

[Bill]

This thread's about the Mustang GT40, right?

Just checking. [emoji6]

 

[Bluesshoe]

This thread's about the Mustang GT40, right? Just checking. [emoji6]

Oh! Right! I misunderstood the title: (different POV)

It seems CliffyG62 and i have to move over to the "Bad Dog Cafe" - forum...

Oh, by the way...
About an hour ago I received and unboxed my Mustang GT40.

After connecting it to my WLan router, i upgraded the firmware of the GT40 and installed the Fender Tone App on my iPad & on my LG - G6. Then i connected both devices with the GT40 and downloaded a few patches and i noodled with them for a few minutes.

All of the above happened without one glitch or problem! Absolutely flawless! Something like this i've only experienced from the user experience of my Macs before.

After reading through this thread and watching some of the critical videos i have to say, that i am absolutely and positively surprised in every way!

Now the fun begins... More to follow...

 

[Lambieka]

Yeah!
Have fun with it

 

[Cliffyg62]

Oh! Right! I misunderstood the title: (different POV)

It seems CliffyG62 and i have to move over to the "Bad Dog Cafe" - forum...

Oh, by the way...
About an hour ago I received and unboxed my Mustang GT40.

After connecting it to my WLan router, i upgraded the firmware of the GT40 and installed the Fender Tone App on my iPad & on my LG - G6. Then i connected both devices with the GT40 and downloaded a few patches and i noodled with them for a few minutes.

All of the above happened without one glitch or problem! Absolutely flawless! Something like this i've only experienced from the user experience of my Macs before.

After reading through this thread and watching some of the critical videos i have to say, that i am absolutely and positively surprised in every way!

Now the fun begins... More to follow...

Yes! Now the GT40 fun begins.

(Mr. Bill, sorry about the digressions we were filling time waiting on a GT40 delivery. )

 

[Cliffyg62]

Yes! Now the GT40 fun begins.

(Mr. Bill, sorry about the digressions we were filling time waiting on a GT40 delivery. )

Don’t wanna get in trouble but is it ok to mention an FB group that’s nice to check out too? It’s about fender amp discussions... there’s info on the latest update out there. If not, I apologize for bringing it up.

 

[Bill]

That's ok. I'll give you permission this one time.

Signed,

The Internet Police

[emoji6]

 

[Bluesshoe]

Hi Guys!

Today i tinkered a little with the GT40 and my Guitar ( Harley Benton MS-60 VW LTD Edition - a replica of the old Fender Mustang guitar ) and i came up with my first patch:
https://www.fender.com/tone/presets/jamie-hince-fss-lead-riff-1292020621

Jamie Hince Future Starts Slow - LeadRiff

• Bluesshoe
• Oct 11, 2017

My first patch for the Mustang GT40.

This is just my first try how the sound of the main riff of the life version of The Kills "Future Starts Slow" could be rebuild on the GT40. So i would be thankful for any tips and insights.

It's pretty hard to rebuild Jamie Hince's setup and sound, because he uses multiple amps at the same time and even sometimes uses multiple units of the same stompbox effect at the same time. At some point the Fender Tone app showed me the white flag, so i guessed i could not add the two PostFX i wanted anymore...

I got some of my ideas for that patch from this "Rig Rundown" video:

 

[Bluesshoe]

This thread's about the Mustang GT40, right?

Seems this old thread would be pretty silent, if the people would just stay on topic. At least some good communications are going on, when people roam off-topic.

 

[Cliffyg62]

Hi Guys!

Today i tinkered a little with the GT40 and my Guitar ( Harley Benton MS-60 VW LTD Edition - a replica of the old Fender Mustang guitar ) and i came up with my first patch:
https://www.fender.com/tone/presets/jamie-hince-fss-lead-riff-1292020621

Jamie Hince Future Starts Slow - LeadRiff

• Bluesshoe
• Oct 11, 2017

My first patch for the Mustang GT40.

This is just my first try how the sound of the main riff of the life version of The Kills "Future Starts Slow" could be rebuild on the GT40. So i would be thankful for any tips and insights.

It's pretty hard to rebuild Jamie Hince's setup and sound, because he uses multiple amps at the same time and even sometimes uses multiple units of the same stompbox effect at the same time. At some point the Fender Tone app showed me the white flag, so i guessed i could not add the two PostFX i wanted anymore...

I got some of my ideas for that patch from this "Rig Rundown" video:

I love all those switches

 

[Risible]

It's really a shame that the entire GT line got savaged by reviewers early on. I can't speak to the GT100 or 200 but the GT40 is a fine modeling amp and a tremendous value.
The whole "boxy" crap is overblown.
Guess what, some of the presets and models in my new Helix sound boxy. I can't say this enough, modelers require effort. Whether it's properly setting the global eq; finding the right cab for an amp model; adjusting the eq for the patch; etc, you have to devote some effort to dial in the right tone. However, I found some of the base models on the GT40 to sound as good as what I'm hearing on the Helix. Yikes! Likewise, I liked some of the options on the Firehawk more than I like the Helix.
Additionally, the presets on the Helix are mostly "meh" just like other modelers.
In short, modelers are no different than amps themselves: they have their nuances with good things but also things that make you go "wtf".

I keep hearing people say this but I can't find examples.

I have the GT40. I love EVERYTHING about it except the sound. Maybe some of the amps are duds right out of the factory, I don't know. With the exception of very few of the presets, the sound is definitely muffled/muddy/boxy - whatever you want to call it. It is very noticeable and is present in pretty much everything.

I've tried starting with a blank preset and then messed with different amps/cabs, and it's hard to get a bright, sharp, clean sound.

Would someone care to post on of their presets that supposedly cleans up this muddiness and gives me a nice clean non-muffled bright?

 

[Bluesshoe]

...I have the GT40. I love EVERYTHING about it except the sound. Maybe some of the amps are duds right out of the factory, I don't know.

Same with me. I totally dig this little wonder!

With the exception of very few of the presets, the sound is definitely muffled/muddy/boxy - whatever you want to call it. It is very noticeable and is present in pretty much everything.

Strangely i don't experience this with none of the presets. I don't like quite a few of these patches, but that is for other reasons. I changed the Global EQ to my needs, right at the first time when i tried the amp.
With my replica of the old Fender Mustang guitar i get exactly the sound i want. Bright, sharp, proper heights with the right amount of bottom. So i can not relate to the opinion of some people, that the GT40 would sound "muffled/muddy/boxy". For me it sounds like it should and i love it.
Just a guess, but maybe it's up to the guitar that is plugged in? In this video the two Andertons guys were pretty surprised, how much of a difference the guitar made playing a Marshall MG15CFR. You can even hear the difference in the video.

Don't get me wrong, I'm just guessing here...

 

[DougM]

Try adjusting the tone controls. They're very responsive. On most amp models an increase of the treble goes a long way. And some cab models are a lot brighter than others. Some are a lot darker sounding. Don't just assume the default cab is the best one for any amp model. Also try the low cut or bright boost global eq. I use the low cut one.

 

[burntfrijoles]

I keep hearing people say this but I can't find examples.

I have the GT40. I love EVERYTHING about it except the sound. Maybe some of the amps are duds right out of the factory, I don't know. With the exception of very few of the presets, the sound is definitely muffled/muddy/boxy - whatever you want to call it. It is very noticeable and is present in pretty much everything.

I've tried starting with a blank preset and then messed with different amps/cabs, and it's hard to get a bright, sharp, clean sound.

Would someone care to post on of their presets that supposedly cleans up this muddiness and gives me a nice clean non-muffled bright?

What @DougM said! The Global EQ settings can help a lot. It can't be stated enough to mix and match cabinets, fine tune the EQ settings. Don't let your views of the way you would use the EQ on a tube amp cloud your decision to drastically reduce or increase the bass, treble, presence settings. This is also true for higher end modelers like the Helix as well. Don't get trapped into matching an artist's amp. For example, if you're trying for a David Gilmour sound don't assume you need to select the Hi-Watt model. Maybe the Bandmaster will be better for Gilmour's tones. You just never know.
I will restate this: Modelers require some TLC. On the Helix forums there are folks who have routinely insert EQ blocks in their signal chain to get a treble boost, more high end, etc.
No matter what else is said, modelers are not really plug n play.