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Post by gotmojo on Apr 3, 2019 20:58:33 GMT -7
I have a number of amps I’d like to gig with, but they are not MV pieces so to get any nazz, I’d have to jack ‘em up Way loud, and we don’t play way loud (thank god for my ear’s sake). A perfect example is this Stang Ray I just got. Glorious tone, but even when the volume knob is dimed and Brakelite set to 4, the tone is superb, but I need a little more nazz. A second example would be my old tweed Bandmaster (or a Bassman) - such great tone, but WAY too freaking loud. All the distortion pedals I’ve ever tried make the Tele sound generic - like it could be any guitar, not very Tele like. To my ears it’s like a mid frequency buzz that totally kills the tone of my Tele. I have 5 or 6 pedals now and I’ve been through another (prolly) 15 or more through the years, all of them I couldn’t abide by (including an original Klondike Centaur). Anybody have a pedal that keeps the tone of the guitar totally intact? I need a pedal that sounds like my guitar through my amp jacked!!!! (Methinks me asks too much!)
jj
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Post by Deleted on Apr 4, 2019 5:47:42 GMT -7
You're not wrong--there's a lot of similarity in the sounds of overdrive and distortion pedals. One soft-clipping pedal sounds a lot like another; hard-clipping pedals, ditto--the difference is often mostly in the tone controls, where the pedal's sweet spot is in relation to volume levels, and so on. To some extent it depends how you're running the pedal in relation to your amp--it is mostly a boost, set up to whack the amp's front end and push it into preamp distortion? Or are you cranking the pedal's drive control and getting most of your dirt from the pedal itself? Really depends what you're after, what works with your rig, and what sounds good to your very individual pair of ears. That said, if you're looking for a great medium gain overdrive pedal that will, at moderate settings, offer a high degree of transparency, I'd recommend the Jetter GS-124. Sounds great with single coils or humbuckers, and your Tele will still sound like a Tele. Things tend to get less transparent as the gain cranks up, but for a useable and super fun distortion pedal I'd recommend the Friedman Dirty Shirley for higher gain sounds, or the BE-OD for the really heavy stuff.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 4, 2019 11:10:46 GMT -7
Also I really like the Wampler Paisley Deluxe—left side’s nice a low gain boost, right side’sa pretty ballsy OD/distortion.
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Post by gotmojo on Apr 4, 2019 11:56:11 GMT -7
Thanks Flea! Never even heard of the Jetter GS-124, Friedman Dirty Shirley, or the BE-OD. Kinda always wanted to try the Wampler Paisley. Saw an article that said the Wampler Tumnus was pretty transparent primarily as a boost. None of ‘em have ever matched real tube amp distortion. I have a Fryette Power Station that is supposed to be good, but I never messed with it, as it came in during my ‘evil-woman’ period of life - that was a major distraction. Need to get it back out and give her a whirl. Is a bit more trouble for hook up and doesn’t work for a 2 ohm output amp like the Bassman or the Bandmaster (? 2.67 ohms?). And doesn’t help with adding gain to the StangRay, or can it? Maybe the key to the StangRay is simply using one of my existing pedals as a boost pedal!
Thanks for the suggestions, Ima go research ‘em!
jj
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Post by zpilot on Apr 4, 2019 13:47:30 GMT -7
The Tim/Timmy is generally regarded as the best "transparent" OD pedal. I'm very fond of mine. I have a Fryette PS2 and it is a great piece of kit. But it is not something you switch in and out like an effect pedal. I also recently acquired a Wampler Ecstasy (currently the Euphoria) and it seems to be able to do the "transparent" thing very well also. I have not been able to verify if it can do it at a live gig though. You know how that goes. Lots of things seem to work well at home but when you play them with a band it doesn't go so well.
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Post by gotmojo on Apr 4, 2019 18:08:47 GMT -7
Gah! Funny you should mention it just now, because I have a Tim pedal! Haven’t used it in a few years and my son (also a player) just found it, lost in a box after two moves in the past year, I didn’t know where that bad boy was!!!! So that’s another one I need to give a whirl. I remember it doing a decent job, and I think it can be used as simply a boost also. Might make the StangRay nazz out a bit more.
jj
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Post by premiumplus (Dave) on Apr 4, 2019 18:32:07 GMT -7
I've got the Dirty Shirley pedal too, and it's great. Lots of usable tone in there. The Xotic RC booster is another good clean/transparent boost. Not a lot of dirt in it, though.
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Post by j4gitr (John) on Apr 4, 2019 18:39:21 GMT -7
I like the Timmy for its transparency and dirt. The RC Booster I recently rediscovered after 3-4 years ownership for its transparent boost. The Timmy will do that as well but has added grit if you choose.
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Post by gotmojo on Apr 4, 2019 19:53:15 GMT -7
It’s possible this discussion will be a mute point for me.
This morning I ordered a DB4 1-12 combo, so might just be the answer to the perfect gig worthy combo quest! That thang on half power and a brake or the Power Station might just do the trick.
I’m trying to simplify my rig for gigging, as I retire in September and hope to play out way more! I played an outdoor gig a couple weeks ago, took my old tweed Deluxe and it just did not do the job like the Remedy or Therapy or Wreck or Matchless do - very disappointing. I’m on a quest for 1-12 combo perfection in all situations! I’m over carrying cabinets and heads, and the DC30 weighs 85 lbs! No more! Hope the DB4 will be here by Saturday for some NAD fun over the weekend! Purty psyched.
jj
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Post by zpilot on Apr 4, 2019 21:16:34 GMT -7
Gah! Funny you should mention it just now, because I have a Tim pedal! Haven’t used it in a few years and my son (also a player) just found it, lost in a box after two moves in the past year, I didn’t know where that bad boy was!!!! So that’s another one I need to give a whirl. I remember it doing a decent job, and I think it can be used as simply a boost also. Might make the StangRay nazz out a bit more. jj Just remember that the bass and treble controls are cut type controls. For maximum transparency you set them close to the same position as the gain is set. I think I remember that from the instruction sheet and it has always worked well for me.
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Post by gotmojo on Apr 4, 2019 21:19:41 GMT -7
Just remember that the bass and treble controls are cut type controls. For maximum transparency you set them close to the same position as the gain is set. I think I remember that from the instruction sheet and it has always worked well for me. Oh yeah! They’re cut! Forgot about that! jj
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Post by Deleted on Apr 5, 2019 3:57:31 GMT -7
I think you're really going to like the DB4.
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Post by digs57 on Apr 5, 2019 7:24:31 GMT -7
run timmy before rc boost...happy with this combo.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 5, 2019 7:28:39 GMT -7
What in the world is a transperant distortion? Do you mean a clean boost?
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Post by bryan0418 on Apr 5, 2019 7:37:59 GMT -7
It’s possible this discussion will be a mute point for me. This morning I ordered a DB4 1-12 combo, so might just be the answer to the perfect gig worthy combo quest! That thang on half power and a brake or the Power Station might just do the trick. I’m trying to simplify my rig for gigging, as I retire in September and hope to play out way more! I played an outdoor gig a couple weeks ago, took my old tweed Deluxe and it just did not do the job like the Remedy or Therapy or Wreck or Matchless do - very disappointing. I’m on a quest for 1-12 combo perfection in all situations! I’m over carrying cabinets and heads, and the DC30 weighs 85 lbs! No more! Hope the DB4 will be here by Saturday for some NAD fun over the weekend! Purty psyched. jj You will love the DB4. I set mine with the volume about 6, rotary on 4 and cut to tame the high end with my Tele. Use an attenuator to control the overall volume and you will always have a great thick sound that cuts through. You just control your gain with the guitar volume. Simple!
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Post by markT on Apr 5, 2019 9:48:46 GMT -7
I've been through many many OD's, Distortions & boost's..... I really dig the Lovepedal Tchula. A very simple pedal for a simple guy like me.. Two switch's and one knob. Sounds great with every amp I've played it with, but spectacular with the tweeds~ reverb.com/item/21509552-lovepedal-tchula-boostYou can find them cheaper. but this is the only one on reverb right now. I recommend the Gold version.
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Post by helmi on Apr 5, 2019 16:29:39 GMT -7
What in the world is a transperant distortion? Do you mean a clean boost? My thought's exactly. (lol)
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Post by trojanhov on Apr 5, 2019 19:41:38 GMT -7
Black box 2 —> Timmy —> RC booster v2
Looking to put a muff in the beginning of that chain soon. Either a hoof or a fallout cloud.
The Timmy to me is the best transparent boost/drive I’ve come across. Has a Strong eq and has worked well with any amp I’ve played it through. Does not emphasize the mids so it works extremely well with my z-28. The bb2 is my favorite drive overall now though, but I wouldn’t call it transparent per se. The overdrive stack I have now is the best I’ve heard so far through my rig. I’ve mainly played gretsches and teles for the past few years through the z-28. Have a prs stripped 58 coming in with PAF style pups. Will have to make adjustments, but I’m confident it’ll sound good with my drives with some minor tweaks. Ymmv
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Post by zpilot on Apr 5, 2019 22:49:01 GMT -7
What in the world is a transperant distortion? Do you mean a clean boost? My thought's exactly. (lol) I have always thought that meant a pedal that makes the amp sound like it is turned up into overdrive, with out actually having to turn the amp up and deal with the increase in volume. The "transparent" part is making it sound like it is still the same amp and not adding unnatural EQ the way a typical TS type pedal does or just adding gain at the input like a clean boost.
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Post by gotmojo on Apr 6, 2019 6:54:00 GMT -7
My thought's exactly. (lol) I have always thought that meant a pedal that makes the amp sound like it is turned up into overdrive, with out actually having to turn the amp up and deal with the increase in volume. The "transparent" part is making it sound like it is still the same amp and not adding unnatural EQ the way a typical TS type pedal does or just adding gain at the input like a clean boost. Exactly Roscoe! I don’t know anything about electronics, but why can’t they make a pedal that does just what Helmi says? Turns out, I’m a dumbarse. I had the very thing I’m looking for all along, or at least the real world thang (still want the one that Helmi describes). I finally got a chance last night to rock that new (to me) Stang Ray! Then cranked in the old Tim pedal that we just re-found. That pedal is as “transparent” as one can hope for I suspect. Actually worked quite nicely. And may I run one more repetitive sentiment into the ground here: that Stang Ray! What a freaking a great tone! jj
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