Booster Pedals

rogercollege · Post by **rogercollege** » Tue Apr 08, 2008 4:58 pm

Anyone have any tips on good booster pedals. I've got a vintage Les Paul that's a bit murky and I'm looking to get more out of its pickups.

I've looked into MXR Micro Amps, Zvex SHO, Prescriptions Treble booster, and some others. What else is out there, how can they help me, and which are considered the best?

RefD · Post by **RefD** » Tue Apr 08, 2008 5:13 pm

with a couple of turns of the knobs the Crowther Hotcake can be set as a totally clean booster.

very low noise, mucho gain and also works as a buffer.

damn, i sound like an advert!

I'm Painting Again · Post by **I'm Painting Again** » Tue Apr 08, 2008 5:13 pm

the black box xray bass makes a sweet booster pedal on guitar..right up into distortion & fuzz territory..they make a guitar one too but the bass is full range and can be used on both..

joninc · Post by **joninc** » Tue Apr 08, 2008 5:20 pm

i am a big fan of the mxr dynacomp - set the comp all the way down and the output all the way up and you get a nice sustained sounding boost without major compression.

i initially bought it for playing a dinky sounding lapsteel through - it seems to help me get sustain at lower volumes and also a slight boost when set right.
sounds like you got the amp more juiced than you actually do.

mjau · Post by **mjau** » Tue Apr 08, 2008 6:22 pm

The SHO is my desert island pedal (when paired up with a small tube amp). Gets the guitar sounding a little more sparkly, and it does the clean boost thing amazingly well.

curtiswyant · Post by **curtiswyant** » Tue Apr 08, 2008 6:37 pm

If you're into DIY, there are tons of LPB-1/booster kits out there.

fremitus · Post by **fremitus** » Tue Apr 08, 2008 8:16 pm

depends totally on your tone, but for a good clean boost, the keeley modded BD-2 smokes. i rarely use it clean (except in the studio) as i happen to like it's overdrive a hell of a lot with my tele. yessir...

kayagum · Post by **kayagum** » Tue Apr 08, 2008 9:10 pm

What is up with people staring a different thread, continuing on the same topic THEY started?

http://messageboard.tapeop.com/viewtopic.php?t=54201

Get the SHO. Be done with it. Don't make me recommend it multiple times.

cgarges · Post by **cgarges** » Tue Apr 08, 2008 9:59 pm

Timmy.

On the cheap, EH LPB-1.

Chris Garges
Charlotte, NC

Alex Netick · Post by **Alex Netick** » Tue Apr 08, 2008 10:55 pm

I'm not an electrical engineer, but these can't be too complicated. I can't see what some of these boutique battery powered booster pedals have over the mxr micro-amp other than a boutiquey name and a higher price. I remember Joe Satriani used to use the micro-amp -- not that it means much (other than he had plenty of money to buy anything he wanted).

RefD · Post by **RefD** » Tue Apr 08, 2008 11:06 pm

Alex Netick wrote:I'm not an electrical engineer, but these can't be too complicated. I can't see what some of these boutique battery powered booster pedals have over the mxr micro-amp other than a boutiquey name and a higher price. I remember Joe Satriani used to use the micro-amp -- not that it means much (other than he had plenty of money to buy anything he wanted).

Alex Lifeson also used the MXR Micro Amp until around late 1986.

you could always tell when he switched it in cos it sounded like you'd been transported to the nearest ocean during a storm.

hillfield · Post by **hillfield** » Thu Mar 12, 2009 7:41 am

I was quite surprised by how good the telenordia pedals are - the guitarist in my indiepop combo had been using a big muff, then picked up a Telenordia TA24 Treble Booster to go with his Epiphone Sheraton/Fender Tele and vintage Fender Twin setup. the pedal give quite an amazing sound - adding grit without going to 'metal'... not cheap, but good for recording and gigging.

http://www.telenordia.de/en/products_ta_24.php

teleharmonium · Post by **teleharmonium** » Thu Mar 12, 2009 7:50 am

First you need to decide what type of boost you are looking for - clean boost, treble boost, or "overdrive".

Personally I like a nice germanium treble boost (Keeley Java Boost with NOS mullard OC44 was my choice) sometimes, they're great if you are using a not overly bright guitar into a vintage amp with a single tone knob; and I need a clean boost sometimes (I have a Barge Concepts DB-1 for that, but I can also get some extra clean gain from a Diamond compressor), and on my gig pedalboard I have a Catalinbread Hyperpak, which is a mini pedal that does low to medium gain overdrive.

As far as the overdrive pedals, there are a ton of choices, I've also been happy with a Vox Valvetone and a Klon Centaur; any decent Tube Screamer clone should work pretty well for most folks unless they have very specific EQ preferences.

bipedal · Post by **bipedal** » Thu Mar 12, 2009 7:52 am

If you're up for it, build yourself a Mosfet Booster. Simple DIY project (you can find perfboard layouts online); CLEAN, sorta similar (component-wise) to a SHO, but many stompbox DIY'ers seem to think this is the better-sounding circuit. Good for guitar and bass.

RefD · Post by **RefD** » Thu Mar 12, 2009 9:10 am

wow, back from the dead!

still liking the Hotcake.

Snarling Dogs Very Tone Dog is also a great and quiet clean boost when the tone control is in bypass...alas, the pedal is long out of production.

i think The Edge uses a Boss FA-1 FET buffer/booster with active bass and treble boost/cut knobs and a switchable high-pass filter.

Message Board

Booster Pedals

Booster Pedals

Who is online