Harsh sounding at loud volumes.

[27duuude]

My JCA2112RC 20 watt combo sounds really harsh/trebley when its loud, too harsh for me, I'd like to have a smooth overdrive to a punchy/djenty crunch. I've been thinking about what might be causing it but I'm not sure. Heres a list of what I've been considering.
Active pups
I'm using blackouts in my guitar and I've heard that actives can sound harsh/trebley when an amp is loud, but other bands that use actives like EMG's usually sound just fine.
Not enough watts
Since its only 20 watts active pups might make it sound really bright, but I'm not sure about this either.
Small cabs
The cab I'm using is only a 1x12 (the combo is a 1x12 also) so maybe the smaller cabs could make the sound harsh/trebley.
I'm just not used to loud volumes
I'm not too sure about this one, but it might just be me and I've been playing at high volumes only just recently but I've been to some metal concerts that had cranked amps and only a couple had really harsh/trebley amps.
I'm clueless
Speaks for itself

What do you amp/gear pro's know about this kind of thing? If I can narrow it down to one thing I can fix it but idk what the problem is. Any suggestions are welcome.

 

[ampoverload]

Its because the amp lacks headroom, it is of low wattage and will break up faster at higher volumes and sound just like you described.

Kinda like when you zoom in on a low quality picture, it becomes lower quality looking and 'harsh'.

A way to possibly fix that is by mic'ing up your amp and running it through a PA system and keeping the amp at a lower volume where it doesnt break up as much.

It could also be the EQ'ing. i know with my randall head, even though its 150 watts and has plenty of headroom, one set of EQ settings will sound much different at low volumes compared to when it's cranked.

 

[27duuude]

Ok thanks for the input. I kinda figured this was the most likely cause but I had my doubts. Now to save up to get a new amp . At least now I know what the problem is.

 

[Sephael]

rolling down the tone on your guitar can do wonders to mellow out treble.

 

[Floppystrings]

When I had to deal with Celestion G12T-75's a piece of tape near the center did wonders for smoothing the high end.

Stevie Ray Vaughan did this too.

 

[27duuude]

When I had to deal with Celestion G12T-75's a piece of tape near the center did wonders for smoothing the high end.

Stevie Ray Vaughan did this too.

Please elaborate...

 

[incinerated_guitar]

Turn the treble down, thats your issue. I had the same issue with my B-52 before I bought the boss me-70 as a new preamp. I actually had my treble at 1 at live volumes

 

[yingmin]

Tube amps react differently at higher volumes than lower ones, so an EQ setting that sounds good quiet may not work as well when you have power tube and/or speaker distortion added to the mix.

 

[Floppystrings]

Please elaborate...

On the grill cloth in front of the center area you can add a piece of tape (onto the grill cloth) to dim the high end.

 

[Stealthdjentstic]

You'll find as you crank the volume the EQ will feel more and more like a V. That's why when playing loud you'll find yourself cranked the fuck out of the mids and then cutting bass like a whore and and probably treble as well.

 

[27duuude]

I would turn down the treble but I loose a lot of attack when I do this but I think I'll try the tape thing and save up for a 100 watt amp.

 

[AzzMan]

I recently started dropping my treble and pushing my mids back up too. This did WONDERS for my tone at practice or show level volumes. At bedroom levels (albeit loud bedroom levels, I don't play quiet) I had my mids scooped back a bit, and ran my treble at 2:00. Now I've managed to boost mids up to 12:30 (from about 10:30 or 11:00) and treble back to 11:00.

I find a lot of my attack comes from my boost and my bass being big but tight, hence why I run it higher than some people would do, to counteract the boost a little. It tightens up still, I just want the punch instead of the grind.

 

[TemjinStrife]

Drop the presence on the amp. That's a bright amp anyways.