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In part 2 of our discussion with Miles Harshman, Miles continues telling us about being a student at Berklee College of Music: his famous roommate, the ensembles available to students, etc.
Then we really dig into the details of modding guitars, amps, and pedals. Modding is a way to get new sounds out of the equipment that you already have by changing physical components of that equipment. Miles shares a wealth of information on how to change/improve your gear by changing out capacitors, rectifier tubes, pre-amp tubes, and power-amp tubes, speakers, etc. Did you know that changing out a rectifier tube in your amp can cause it to naturally break up sooner (for more natural overdrive at more reasonable volumes) or later (for more clean headroom).
Miles also helps to clear up the mystery revolving around biasing tube amps. Please keep in mind that any work involving the internal components of a tube amp can be very dangerous if you don’t know what you are doing, even if the amp is off and unplugged.
The more you learn about your equipment, the more you can get the most out of it. Even things as simple as knowing when your amp’s tubes are going bad can make a huge difference to your sound on stage or in the practice room.