Oh, come on now Gonzo with the analog vs digi wars. ReValver software models circuitry behavior to the point of being able to adjust individual component variables. I'm sure they didn't forget to include high end damping in the algorithms. Sure, it's not exactly like a real amp, but the only real issue now with digital models is in getting the “feel” right. Some modelers are better than others, blah, blah. I have no problem getting good hi gain sounds with modelers and my BL pickups. It's probably something else.

It could be something as simple as adjusting the pickup heights. It would be helpful to know more details about the cable. Cable capacitance is part of the guitar tone equation. The website has data pdf's. The TSK1032 guitar cable pdf states it's 115pF/mt. 12' of that plus (~50pF?) plug capacitance is about 2x the pF of my cable. You might get harsh peaks on your single coils with it, but it shouldn't matter much on the 500XL, especially with 250k pots. I'd use a 200pF (w/plugs) or lower pF cable to open up the single coils. BL-150 cable is ~19pF/foot. Planet Waves Cable Station cable has been rated at 16pF/foot, and is also a very good deal with solderless plugs. ~10' of either cable should be good.

The 8” speaker could well be the issue, but there are other thing s to check. First, make sure the instrument type on the amp is set correctly, and you are not using instrument modeling. Perhaps an internal input setting is driving the first gain stage too hard? You should also try turning the amp Presence and Treble down to ~3 to and boosting the midrange to ~7 or 8 start. High gain amp sounds also benefit from the master volume used to limit power amp saturation for a tight, yet fat sound. I find ~8 on many amp sim master volumes is a good reference point. You don't want to get too much harmonic hash by driving the power tubes too hard. Driving a preamp tube too hard can also sound terribly harsh. Finally, the 8" speaker may be able to reproduce higher frequencies than a typical Celestion guitar speaker. If there is speaker cab/mic modeling included, try micing off center/axis if possible. I'm not sure the capabilities of that amp. You might try asking over at http://www.thegearpage.net It's more oriented towards this issue.

In the meantime, perhaps you could upload some dry/direct/unprocessed samples of each pickup in the guitar? I could run them through my S-Gear presets to see what's up with the sound. Mono 24Bit/48kHz files would be best, but 16bit is OK if that's all the amp can do. Of course, make sure there's no clipping in the files. I usually get -6 to -3dBu peaks playing strongest on the loudest pickup up high on the neck. That's a good recording level.

BL Equipped Guitars:
-Parker NiteFly V1 Strat type: Wilde L280SN/L200SM/L200SL/L280SL w/L-filter & MT.
-Agile ST-625EB: Wilde Microcoil S set.
gckellochguitartech