ASAT Classic Tribute with Blues Junior; best settings

OK, my eBay-acquired ASAT Classic Tribute has arrived through the post and I had a chance to play it for an hour before busting a string. I'll stick on a set of new Dean Markley regs after getting tonight's dinner together.

First impressions favourable. Not quite sure about the colour - it seems more custard than butterscotch! - but other than that, all good. The intonation in particular was spot on, which is not always the case with T-styles. For £200, I ain't complaining.

I found it easy to get bluesy/Stonesy rock sounds by plugging the thing into my Blues Junior but then, that's my default groove. And I note that the billing for this guitar stresses its ability to do country and jazz as well.

So I was wondering if experienced owners could save me time by recommending guitar and amp settings for other styles?

Thanks, guys.

I put a lot more thought into settings on bass than on guitar, but then again I am mainly a bass player. I do play an ASAT Classic into a Blues Junior, though, so here's my approach:

1. I usually keep the tone controls on the amp about halfway up. I just checked where they are set now, and I have the treble on 8, the bass on 9, and the middle on 4. I don't remember what led me to put them there, but I was probably going for a tone like Lou Reed had on the last Velvet Underground album (for example, Sweet Jane).

2. With some of my G&Ls I push the volume way higher than the master volume to get overdrive. For some reason I don't need to do that as much for the ASAT Classic.

3. I add reverb to taste, according to the sound I'm after.

To me, the bigger part of the picture is the guitar settings. Unlike some other manufacturers, G&L doesn't design guitars to be run with all the controls on 10 as a default. I tend to keep the volume on my ASAT Classic around 8, start with the tone halfway, and tweak it from there. If I make a big change on one knob, I tweak the other to dial in the best tone. IME, each of the three pickup selector settings responds to differnt volume/tone combinations. I would suggest setting the amp up for a decent, middle-of-the-road sound, and then exploring each of the pickup selector settings. It shouldn't take long to find some things that appeal to you.

I hope this helps!

Ken

I almost forgot:

And I note that the billing for this guitar stresses its ability to do country and jazz as well.

For country twang, I would go with the bridge pickup and run the tone knob toward the high end. When I play jazz chord progressions, I go with the neck pickup and roll the volume and tone knobs back around halfway.

Ken

My settings are similar to Ken's, but I'd also suggest engaging the Fat switch for some lush jazz tones. The neck pickup on the ASAT Classic is a thing of beauty for finger style jazz.

Thanks both.

I'm noticing that the tone control on this guitar seems to *do more* than the tone controls on other guitars I own.

Many of them might as well be a bright/dull switch for all the variety they offer, and I include some axes by expensive manufacturers in this (looking at you, FMIC ...).

I guess it's mainly a matter of getting used to this.

I'm noticing that the tone control on this guitar seems to *do more* than the tone controls on other guitars I own.

Many of them might as well be a bright/dull switch for all the variety they offer, and I include some axes by expensive manufacturers in this (looking at you, FMIC ...).

Remember that although Leo Fender designed both the Tele and ASAT Classic circuits, he had about 40 more years' experience under his belt when he did the ASAT Classic. As prototypes go, the Telecaster was one of the best.

Ken