Help with picking a transparent guitar Overdrive pedal!

[SureShot]

just reading the last few replies. I forgot to mention that i run my fender twin (it's a red knob "the twin" version) with the 2 middle power tubes removed which brings the 100 or so watts down to 65 watt. That in combination with a 100 / 25 watt switch that's on the amp, makes the amp switchable from 65 watt to 15 watt.

Great for easily overdriving the power tubes at a normal volume. And if i want to stay clean-er i just switch back to 65 watt. Only thing to remember when removing the middle power tubes is to rebias your amp. just for the record i don't know if this is possible on all fender twins.

[Madguitrst]

The Syemour Duncan SFX-03 Twin Tube Classic is by far my favorite of all OD pedals I have ever tried. It is very natural and doesn't alter your tone. It's much more like a part of your amp then an effect. Yes, it can be used to just push the input of your amp with lots of cleanish-to-barely-breaking-up gain.

I sold every other OD device I own after buying one. Good pedals suddenly sounded so small, processed, and unnatural in comparison.

[kevin_soda]

This thread is a bit silly because there are literally thousands of overdrive pedals. In my experience there isn't any sure thing. You need to try everything before you buy it. Anyway, here's a few that I like:

T.C. Electronics Dual Distortion (overdrive/distortion)
T.C. Electronics VPD Preamp (overdrive/boost)
Voodoo Lab Sparkle Drive (overdrive/boost)
Fulltone Fulldrive 2 (overdrive/boost)
Fulltone Fat Boost (clean boost)
Carlo Diaz Texas Ranger (hi/mid/treble boost)
Maxon OD808 (overdrive)
Maxon OD9 (overdrive)
KLON Centaur (overdrive)

That's about it.

[tdbajus]

Got a few things to say here:

"I really just want a KLON clone! BUT Haha, I've heard rumours about the actual circuitry in the KLON is covered in some kind of "BLACK GOOP!" That way the paranoid designer keeps it hard to replicate! "

Well, reading this post, I can see why. Bill Finnegan is, like a lot of other people who do cool, small batch audio stuff, unbelievably cool. I took me about 3 months to get my Klon, and it was worth twice the money and twice the wait. He called me a couple of times to check in and see how I was doing and took a special interest in the capacitance problems i was having using George L cables with his buffer.

I would be bummed out that he was being cheated on his R&D for both his bost and his very nice buffer circuit by having someone rip off his hard work. He deserves every penny he gets, and a lot more.



"For my Hotrod Deville, I use a Boss Compressor in the effects loop. I crank up the output of the amp to cook the power tubes but turn down the output of the compressor so I don't blow off my ears. "

The FX loop generally comes (or every one I've heard of) BEFORE the power amp, and after the preamp. You are probably getting the sound you like because the compressor is functioning sort of like a master volume. It wouldn't suprise me if you were also getting 1) distortion from slamming the living crap out of the front end of your pedal and 2) distortion from some kind of impedence mismatch (not sure about the 2nd one- anybody want to chime in?)


now- my 2 cents on the overdrive debate-

first- sounds like your rig is sort of close to mine. I'm a Jazzmaster man myself, though I use a Deluxe.

Try switching the input you use one the amp- there is a cap (i think it's a cap, anyway) on the 2nd input of both channels of the stock blackface/silverface amps. Yours may have been removed, but if it is there, plugging into in put 2 should reduce the gain a hair, as well as roll off a little bit of high end where some of the 'hair' in your overdrive distortion lives. Try switching between the inputs on your favorite channel. I, personally, think it makes all the difference in the world.

Also, your Super, like most of the BF/SF fenders, has two totally different channels -not switchable like a Mesa/Boogie, of course, but they have significant differences in their sounds. The vibrato channel has an extra tube gain stage in it for the reverb/tremelo, and tends to soften/compress the signal in what I find to be a significant way. The normal channel tends to have more transients and headroom, and what you might characterize as a 'sharper' sound.

So, if you want a buttery-smooth overdrive sound, I might start with plugging into the 2nd input of the 2nd (Vibrato) channel of your Super.

Some people seem to have noticed that there are 4 fairly different sounds in these amps. It suprises me, and sometimes I think it might all be in my head. With all of the other voices.





my opinion on some of the pedals mentioned here, almost all of which I own, or have owned. Bear in mind these are my opinions, and while they are all absolutely correct, results my vary.



Klon Centaur: If I could erect a giant bronze statue of Bill in the square across from my Brooklyn apartment, I would. The lower gain settings give you just a bit of a boost, but the presence it gives you makes you pop to the front of the band. Think Sean Eden on Luna's Bewitched (though I'm pretty sure he doesn't actually use one of the Klons)



Super Duper- Z-Vex rule. This pedal does sort of the same thing as the Centaur, but it's a bit glassier sounding- more like Angus Young on the lick in "back In Black'. Also sound pretty damned astoundingly great a 2 stage boost for a rhodes/wurlie.



Sparkledrive- Like a lot of the TS808/TS9 inspired pedals, the distortion on this kills your bottom end. The compression from your all ready overdriven amp can make this not such a big deal, but the TS9 is responsible for innumerable live shows where the band (the guitarist wearing earplugs, with their amp pointed at their knees) hits the chorus, steps on their pedals, causing the bottom to fall out of their songs, and making my ears bleed.

There is a solution for this. See below- I loves me a tube screamer...



Robert Keeley pedals- he sells some pedals he's bought and modified, and he also modifies pedals that are sent to him. There are a lot of options, and everyone I've tried absolutely rocks my world. I bought one of his modified DX9 pedals (the turbo tube screamer from Ibanez) and it is astounding- more bass, more gain, a far superior tone control. It works as a subtle boost, clean or overdriven, or will get absolutely ape-shit crazy on your sorry ass. Most of what it does, it does buttery smooth.

He also mods the Sparkledrive, which I would guess would be pretty fantastic



Fulltone Fulldrive2- I've had one of his pedals for a long, long time, and it may be the best all-around overdriver going. When I bought it, $200 was a fortune to pay for a distortion, but now it seems sort of like a deal. The compressor built into it is fantastic (though with it engaged, i wish it had just a touch more output) and it sound great with the compressor off too. There are MOSFET versions out there too, but I love my white knob/blue paint FD2 from the mid90s.



I need to pull my ancient MXR microboost out of the closet- those things when you turn them all the way not only bludgen the front end of your amp, but also distort themselves. Used to beat up an old Blues Deville 15 years ago with it.


Also, speaking of smooth, that frying pan sound is not the only sound in a Big Muff- on some of them if you roll the tone all the way down (counterclockwise) the sound smooths out, the fizzy/fuzzy disappears, and it starts to sound almost like a cello with a Ebow.

[Michael.E]

tdbajus,

Your description of your set-up resembles very closely my set-up..
And yes your totally correct about the smoother creamier characteristics
of the vibrato channel #2 input vs #1 and same with the VIB vs NORM
channels... that said, I am always going into my amp via #2 on the vibrato channel
I already knew about the cap, i think input 2 is a -10dB from
the input 1, but never thought about why I used the vibrato channel
instead of the clean channel (since they both have access to the vib
and reverb switches via pedal), but to my ears I DID always find that
channel to get the best resuilts.

Anyway, your pedal descriptions are excellent, thanks.
SO, Do you recommend the KLON or what though?

PS. Loved Luna (R.I.P.) and MBV

[ashcat_lt]

Somewhere along the line somebody said you wanted more power tube crunch. I don't recall reading that in any of your posts.

If that is what you want you could try both preamp channels. It's an old trick I've used a number of times.

I don't think it'll give the sound that you've described in the posts I've read, but...

[pootkao]

I'm a fan of the HomeBrewElectronics (HBE) "Hematoma".

Its actually a bass overdrive pedal, but its got a separate pre-amp on it that I use for little boosts and then a full-on overdrive which sounds really really cool. There's a couple EQ options on the overdrive section which make it work for guitar.

Check it out:
http://www.homebrewelectronics.com/products.htm[/url]

[Electro-Voice 664]

I just wanted to add the Fulltone O.C.D. to the mix. Keeps your amp's tone and has two different voices (HP LP). It's worth pluggin' into one and seeing for yourself. But I'd say it has a great quality to it that just sounds right, whatever the hell that means.
http://www.fulltone.com/ocd.asp

[natas]

Ibanez TS 808 RI.

[electric sound of jim]

i have a keeley boss blues driver that does a good job of this. it's like 'massey tape head' in a pedal

[jaguarsg]

the vox valvetone is another sleeper boost/OD.

[mjau]

the vox valvetone is another sleeper boost/OD.

oh hell yeah

[fremitus]

wow this post got dumb in a hurry.

so here's my drunken rant for the moment:

if you can't build a decent 'boost' or 'overdrive' pedal yourself, then you shouldn't be allowed to record anything, not on a neve, not on a mackie, not on a wire recorder...

building a good sounding boost or overdrive guitar pedal is not rocket science, it's not expensive, it's just plain simple. you want the cheap way out? how about the boss bd-2 blues driver, good clean gain for a bunch of db, but a VERY useful overdrive if you need it. maybe $50 on eBay, but you could build it for $20.

boutique pedals ARE great, sure enough. but if you're on a geek board like this and talking about gear and compressors and circuits and what not, you should be able to realize just how simple it is to pull that shit off on your own. paying $400 for a klon is ridiculous. unless you don't know shit and and can't solder, in which case, you should go back to your job flipping burgers and stop posting here. i know this isn't a DIY board, but seriously, if you don't understand a little bit of the guts of these things, then what the fuck is the point?

unless i just clicked the bookmark for 'shithead guitar player that likes to buy expensive stuff that won't cure his acne message board' in which case, i apologize.

. rant over .

i love you.

[JohnDavisNYC]

i love you colby.

how's things?

j

[kayagum]

I'll have whatever fremitus is drinking