Mesa/Boogie TriAxis Owner's Manual download pdf (Page 22)

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for inaccurate playing. We like to think of these modes as having the built in qualities of a good teacher. What you put in is what you

get out. However, should you spend much time at all plugged into these modes, we guarantee you will become a master of nuance.

These modes are sure to make you a better player if you give them the chance. Though at times they are more revealing, you will ﬁnd

that they hold up better in a mix and are much more behaved on a stage full of live microphones. Usually they are also much

better for any kind of rhythmic high gain playing where you need urgent attack and tight cut-off points. Use the DYNAMIC

VOICE to enhance the lows and highs and you will ﬁnd LEAD 2 to easily have the hugeness of lows, but with an added tightness and

articulation that simply can’t be obtained in Lead 1. There are many times when these frequencies work much better in the studio or

in a larger live band situation. They cut through and stay focused much longer allowing your part to be heard and yet not get in

the way of other parts. In other words, LEAD 2 sits nicely in a mix. So with this overview of this super cool group of lead circuits,

lets get mode speciﬁc.

LD 2 GREEN: Unlike the LEAD 1 modes, all three LEAD 2 modes are actually very similar in their respective amounts of gain. In

LEAD 2, the gain is enhanced differently in each of the three modes by focused boosting of frequencies. This enables the player to

choose a particular mode for speciﬁc ranges of the instrument or simply for a given song or a certain part therein.

LEAD 2, as we said, was derived from the basic MK II style design, so we thought it ﬁtting to dedicate two of the three modes to

previously raved over classic Boogie ampliﬁers, the MK IV and the Mark II C+. These are represented in the Green and Yellow

modes respectively. The Green circuit is taken directly from a Mark IV Lead channel. Green is focused gain. It uses the con-

cept of the Mark IV’s Mid Gain, a feature added in 1989, to enhance the attack and to lower the medium midrange “meat” of the

sound. By enhancing this part of the spectrum a rich, bold, yet singing quality is produced. Thick would be the best way to describe

its’ character, while Punchy would accurately describe its’ attack. It does saturate the note fairly completely, especially at high gain

settings, but the attack envelope is so right at lower gain settings, that roots players usually love this Green mode. Its’ thicker mid-

range punch really helps melody lines played on the high strings, particularly high on the neck. With higher Gain and Drive

settings the high notes soar and sing, yet don’t get too soupy to be heard in a big mix. Green is especially helpful in getting rid of

unwanted fret buzz or other annoying idiosyncrasies of an instrument that may be set up wrong. It tends to cover up buzz leaving

just the note with greater purity. This is most apparent when a weak single coil is used for soloing. LEAD 2 Green is the cure for this

dilemma. It adds the needed frequencies and its’ gain is the steroid habit these weaklings need to deliver a bold lead voice. Green

is the mode of choice anytime you need to deliver a statement and you don’t have the luxury of several tracks. It is single

note authority at its’ expressive best.

NOTE: As we mentioned earlier in the Lead 1 Red description, the setting of the GAIN control in all modes is crucial to achieving the

sound you are looking for. Each mode has its’ magical optimum setting for this control and we can only give you our view and a few

factory settings to demonstrate our thinking on this. Ultimately, it may vary for each mode, guitar, player, and environment and it’s on

you to discover what ﬁts your situation. In Lead 2 we have come to a simple “rule of thumb” you might say as to where we prefer the

GAIN control to achieve the best blend of attack and quality of tone. Try this ﬁrst, then deviate from there in all three Lead 2 modes.

We like to see the Gain at either 7.0 or 7.5 (depending on your instruments output) for lower gain blues sounds or very articulate

medium gain solo sounds. When higher gain or straight up radical rock sounds are in demand, a GAIN control setting of 7.5

or 8.0 again depending on pickup output) should be more than enough.

With higher than recommended Gain settings a ﬂubby, indistinct attack will occur that the BASS control will have difﬁculty in

removing. Lower than optimum Gain settings will produce excessive high harmonic content, thin the notes out and even add

a buzzy quality to the sound. Like we said...Try these ﬁrst. Check the factory settings, as they were created to demonstrate what a

balanced tone would be for each mode. If you ﬁnd these lacking, then by all means...EXPLORE!

LD 2 YELLOW: This is Boogie. This mode is the sound that started the craze that became what is slanged as the “California” sound

or the “L.A.” guitar tone. Lukather, Landau, Keaggy, Lynch, Gillis, Prince, and Metallica catapulted this sound into the forefront of hit

making guitar sounds throughout the eighties. Metallica continues to search high and low for pristine C+ Heads to add to their ampliﬁer

collection - deeming them essential for recording, but you don’t have to! The Yellow mode is the reincarnation of the fabled Mark

II-C+ Lead mode. Its blend of bold punch and evenly stacked liquid harmonics produces a lead voice that transforms any player who

LEAD MODES: (Continued)

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Mesa/Boogie TriAxis Owner's Manual Page 22

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