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Post by melancholyprimate on Aug 16, 2005 21:27:21 GMT -7
I have been reading some of the threads about the problems w/ OD pedals and the Ghia. I have a 2004 blonde 2x10 combo and my Fulldrive II also sometimes sounds buzzy (through the compcut mode is much better I think). Anyways, I was considering purchasing a Keeley Java Boost and I wanted to know what people thought about that pedal with this particular amp. I was also wondering if anybody had tried a high quality compressor like the Keeley one with the CG. I know it has quite a bit of natural compression, though for leads I thought it might be useful. If anyone has tried one of those I would also be curious what you think - is a compressor too much?
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Post by G'OlPeachPhan on Aug 17, 2005 7:13:11 GMT -7
java works great. i think if i had to chose one or the other though, i like the hellbilly even better, and it's half the price of the java.
i certainly didn't find a compressor useful with the Ghia.
if you want singing leads, try the MI Audio Blue Boy. Production is temporarily suspended on that pedal, so if you want one right away, you might have to find one used. The thing about the Blue Boy is the internal trimmers that allow you to completely tailor the voicing of the pedal, as well as the unique tone control (works sort of like the Ghia's tone control actually).
You can use it to slightly EQ your sound for leads if you want, or make it a completely flat full-range boost. This pedal also generates a nice amount of extra harmonics, and yields a very natural sustain type of compression on the trails of note without screwing with your original pick attack -- i've never found a dedicated compressor pedal that works as well at this as what the Blue Boy does. So the compression of the pedal basically has a slow attack and a slow release... I *think* that's accurate anywyas.
Seriously, if I had to pick one dirt pedal that I thought could potentially work for EVERYONE out there with the Ghia, almost regardless of musical taste, it'd be the Blue Boy. It's THAT flexible, and really any way you set it up seems to be in it's wheelhouse to sound good. It's probably the best designed pedal I've ever used in this regard. I literally think it could work for anybody. You can certainly dial in a tubescreamer-esque sound if you want to, but you can also dial in sounds that range from clean boost, to tubescreamer, to flatter OD that sounds like a cranked tweed, to distortion, to some great fuzz.
I really don't think there's a better single dirt pedal out there. The Blue Boy in combination with the Hellbilly into the Ghia is perfect for covering a HUGE range of dirt tones, and you can get both of those pedals for the price of one Java Boost.
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Post by melancholyprimate on Aug 17, 2005 12:21:27 GMT -7
hmmm.... my last post does not seem to have appeared. Anyways, I was wondering how the MI compares to the fulldrive - tonewise. Is it less buzzy? Is there anything comparable to the blue boy since it is currently out of stock? Also, what are the sonic differences between the java boost and the hellbilly into the ghia? I also am curious if you know how MI Audio's new Blues Pro compares to the Blue Boy, if you've tried it out that is.
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Post by G'OlPeachPhan on Aug 18, 2005 6:57:34 GMT -7
The Blue Boy is anything but buzzy. I can't stand most of the Fultone products. The Fulldrive II is a damn tubescreamer with a few extra options, and in my opinion, it's not even as good as many of the real Ibanez screamers.
The Blue Boy is NOT a tubescreamer clone. That's just the pedal most people would intially compare it to. Trying one out is going to be worth a thousand words (which I AM capable of ;D), and I recommend finding a used one. They do pop up if you look for them. Haven't tried the Blues Pro, but it's basically a stripped-down Blue Boy from what I understand.
The other nice thing about the Blue Boy is the socketed IC. There's tons of info on thegearpage.net about different IC's you can try, some are smoother, some are grittier. Overall, it's a subtle tweak, but yet another feature offering versatility.
The Hellbilly seems like it was MADE to be used with the Ghia, in that you can't dial in a bad sound with it through the Ghia. The single tone control is very cool, and much of what makes me prefer it to the Java Boost... it allows you basically to tailor the bass reponse of the pedal perfectly, as it has a very gradual taper to allow you to get it *just* right.
At any setting on the tone control, you'll get a bit more upper mids and sparkle added to your tone, which works great for times when you need to really cut through and jump out in a band mix.
The Java Boost has a simple treble roll of control and a 3-way toggle for tone shaping. The treble roll off works well to tame the pedal back a bit. The 3-way toggle offers three settings that are really all quite drastically different from each other. I often find myself wanting to be somewhere in between the 3 positions though... the differences in lower mids and bass are too drastic, where the Hellbilly's tone control allows you to get it dialed in perfect.
The other nice part of the Hellbilly is the external bias control, along with the drive control. With the Java you only get an output volume knob - the unit is pre-biased. The Hellbilly is easier to dial in a perfect interaction response between your guitar, the pedal and the amp. You can control the way the input signal hits the pedal, and the overall amount of dirt and output leaving the pedal. The Java is not as feature friendly in this regard, allowing you to only control output.
By the way, neither of these pedals are what I'd recommend for using as a clean boost or a transparent boost... While they both integrate very well with the Ghia's sound, they both add their own tonal color to the sound, which is exactly why I use them -- different flavors.
SO, you may ask, if the Hellbilly is better in all these ways, and is 1/2 the price of the Java, why do I still have the Java? The Java is simply the most musical pedal I've ever used. The Hellbilly is 96% of the way there, but the Java is just slightly sweeter or more vintage sounding, where the Hellbilly is a tad more modern and clinical sounding (but still very musical).
I mostly use the Hellbilly as my MEANER biting fuzzier Ghia-on-Steroids sound, and I use the Java on fullrange mode with the tone control rolled back a bit to give a THICK FAT singing, almost fuzzface tone type of sound. By both of these descriptions I'm referring to the pedal being used with yoru guitar volume full-up. By rolling back your volume control, both of these pedals clean up extraordinarily well, which in my opinion is a great thing because it stays true to the Ghia's character of functioning this way as well.
Using the Java and Hellbilly with the volume control on your guitar gives you that many more shades of cleanish to meanish... I've found LOUDER cleanish tones are available with the Ghia if you're using one of these pedals with your volume control back. Roll back your guitar volume to "3" with one of these pedals, and you've got a louder, more sparkley present cleanish tone. Click the pedal off and the gets quieter and darker than when the pedal was on... that's also a great sound, just different.
So there's my 1000+ word essay on the comparison/contrast of the Hellbilly v. Java Boost topic. I'd highly recommend getting the Hellbilly just to try it and see if Germanium boosters are for you. By the way, I have yet to hear anyone say anything bad about either of these pedals. They seem to work for a LOT of people, probably because they are relatively versatile as far as boost pedals go. HAVE FUN!
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Post by jvdunne on Aug 19, 2005 13:55:47 GMT -7
I use the Keeley Compressor with the CG ( I have a blond head with a 2 x 10's cab). At high vol., its not needed, as the amp has so much natural compression. However, at low vol., it really makes to single notes pop right off the fretboard., and I find it very useful. I also use the Barber Direct Drive, again at low vol. only. At high vol., the amp's normal distortion sounds wonderful.
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Post by bschmidt00 on Sept 12, 2005 17:11:23 GMT -7
It all depends on what you are looking for, but the Keeley Compressor is a great tool. It really can smooth out any sound. Some people won't like it, but many consider it the industry standard. Same with the Fulldrive 2. I love my FD2 so much, I'm not exactly sure why everyone doesnt have one. But hey, that's just me. The OCD is good too.
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