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Post by guitarboy02451 on Feb 9, 2006 9:02:55 GMT -7
Just got an email from Alf stating that he just shipped my Zen Drive... I'm pretty phsyched! Can't wait for it to get here!
pg
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Post by Bill on Feb 9, 2006 9:29:24 GMT -7
Nice pedal, different than any other OD I've owned. Let us know what you think...
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Post by myles on Feb 11, 2006 11:37:56 GMT -7
You are going to be pretty happy.
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Post by guitarboy02451 on Feb 11, 2006 11:38:48 GMT -7
Got it today! Very very very very Happy!!! ;-)
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Post by guitarboy02451 on Feb 11, 2006 15:38:33 GMT -7
Well, over all first impressions is: It seriously kicks!!! Love it!!! Everything in a pedal that I love. It was a pleasure dealing with Alf Hermida as well.
The OD is really tight!!! Some OD pedals sound great for solo's but not for chords, others sound great on chords but not so great on solos... The Zen does everything; and does it exceptionally awesome! Tight chords, singing leads and nice sustain. No discoloration in the sound!!!
Zendrive also does all of this without changing the color of the amp. So the Z-tone rings through without discoloration.
Only weird thing was when I added it into the power chain, other pedals started acting weird. They started power flickering... No big deal though, I gave it it's own power supply and all is well now.
The wait is roughly 10 weeks, which is what I would expect for any botique anything and it's well worth it.
So, if your looking for the Holy Grail of OD's, send Alf an email!
TTYL... PG
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Post by myles on Feb 12, 2006 12:23:08 GMT -7
Well, over all first impressions is: It seriously kicks!!! Love it!!! Everything in a pedal that I love. It was a pleasure dealing with Alf Hermida as well. The OD is really tight!!! Some OD pedals sound great for solo's but not for chords, others sound great on chords but not so great on solos... The Zen does everything; and does it exceptionally awesome! Tight chords, singing leads and nice sustain. No discoloration in the sound!!! Zendrive also does all of this without changing the color of the amp. So the Z-tone rings through without discoloration. Only weird thing was when I added it into the power chain, other pedals started acting weird. They started power flickering... No big deal though, I gave it it's own power supply and all is well now. The wait is roughly 10 weeks, which is what I would expect for any botique anything and it's well worth it. So, if your looking for the Holy Grail of OD's, send Alf an email! TTYL... PG PG .... I have used and loaned my Zendrive to a lot of folks and installed it in many different pedal boards and never saw the issue you brought up. I'd maybe look into the other pedals as there may be something there or you may be close to being on the edge of the capacity of the boards supply. Also, try the pedal with almost no gain, just a bit of level to raise the level of low level pickups such as vintage tele pickups into clean amps such as Twin reverbs ... the pedal is just the ticket for clean tones too and the "voice" knob does all sorts of wonderful things.
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Post by Lefty on Feb 12, 2006 13:37:05 GMT -7
Crap, you guys are making me wonder if there was something wrong with the one I had.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 12, 2006 14:22:32 GMT -7
I have a Mosferatu and Zendrive on order. Not the Zendrive 2, but maybe next time. I can't wait!
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Post by guitarman1 on Feb 14, 2006 7:58:58 GMT -7
Be forewarned that if you live/play in a RFI prone area, the Zendrive will pick up stations like a transistor radio. I've been through 2 and also swapped out chips Alf sent me. I've had at least 20 other pedals in my home that didn't have the RFI problems of the Zendrive.
BTW, I L-O-V-E-D the sound of the Zendrive....best Dumble tone out of all the Dumble type pedals made..
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Post by sicktone on Feb 14, 2006 18:17:22 GMT -7
Did the Zen Drive pick up good stations at least I've never heard of that with a pedal. Years ago, a buddy of mine had a Magnatone (sp?) solid state amp that would pickup the local news station. He could check traffic in the mornings with it. I'm on Alf's list--we'll see...
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Post by LittleBlindShakey on Feb 14, 2006 20:08:38 GMT -7
I hate to be the only one who agrees with Lefty but.... ;D
It is clear that the majority of the posts regarding the Zen drive are favorable and that I will be in the minority on this note. But this is a great forum and so don't mind putting my neck out.
I found the Zen Drive to dark for my taste with my Strat. It seemed to do the same thing an old Drive-O-Matic (when was the last time you heard that pedal mentioned) did. Super lovely on my tele with a Deluxe Reverb, but not so hot with my humbuckers or Strat. The Zen Drive, to me anyway, matches up perfectly to a Tele as it is balances against the "Albert Collins" style/tone bright tone. For a modern rock or classic rock tone with my Strat it definitely brings out the bottom end in a very nice way. But overall it was not for me. I ended up giving it away to a professional player friend of mine who otherwise would not have been able to lay out the cash (the very definition of most professionals, killer ability but no cash...) and he LOVES it. No problem with the pedal.
To really drive all the Zen Drive users nuts I have to admit that I am now going Srobostomp > AnalogMan Compressor > OCD > Maz 38. I push the amp kind of like the Buddy W settings. The compressor is set with Sustain at 9:00 and Volume at unity. The OCD is set with the micro switch down, Volume at slight boost, Drive at 9:00 - 10:00, and tone at 10:00. I use the amp Volume in combination with the Master Volume to get most of what I want. The volume pot on my Strat helps as well.
Anyway, no offense to the mass who like the Zen. As always, tone is in the ear of the beholder.
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Post by hollywood5150 on Feb 16, 2006 21:25:20 GMT -7
Got my Zendrive today. Haven't had much time to play with it, but I'm very happy so far.
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Post by rodeoclown on Mar 7, 2006 22:34:33 GMT -7
Didn't like my Zendrive all that much and sold it. Too much bass loss, colorization, and not enough grit. I like my 4 knob Mosferatu much better, even at low gain settings. Much livlier at medium to high gain settings, which are greatly affected by the Voice knob.
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Post by bluzsteel on Mar 7, 2006 23:17:08 GMT -7
jury is out right now for me , BB Preamp is next and AC Booster
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Post by greenmachine on Mar 13, 2006 17:02:30 GMT -7
I love my Zendrive and Alf was great to deal with. I hate effects for the most part and played many years without.Tried alot of pedals OCD,Fulldrive2,T808 and the Zendrive is a keeper. I use it for soloing and it sounds great with slide. I would like to try an Eternity Lovepedal to compare.
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Post by southpawtone on Mar 14, 2006 20:39:31 GMT -7
Hey all... I have yet to try out a Zendrive. I am pretty happy with my Maxon OD820. There must be something to it though, it seems to be a rule of thumb around here to use a Zen Drive, and Xotic AC & RC boosters with the Z's. Is it fair to assume it's got to do with Brad Paisley using these pedals? hmmmmm.........i am curious to try a Zen Drive out though........but i kinda dont want to be just another sheep following the Zen Drive/AC/RC Booster herd............ just teasing guys....
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Post by hollywood5150 on Mar 14, 2006 23:39:12 GMT -7
It may be the tube amp picking up the radio signals. I had a neighbor with a big ham radio and I knew every time he was on it. It sounded like he was in the same room with me.
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Post by guitarboy02451 on Mar 15, 2006 3:42:14 GMT -7
Hey all... I have yet to try out a Zendrive. I am pretty happy with my Maxon OD820. There must be something to it though, it seems to be a rule of thumb around here to use a Zen Drive, and Xotic AC & RC boosters with the Z's. Is it fair to assume it's got to do with Brad Paisley using these pedals? hmmmmm.........i am curious to try a Zen Drive out though........but i kinda dont want to be just another sheep following the Zen Drive/AC/RC Booster herd............ just teasing guys.... It's not a Brad Paisley thing... It's just that these pedals area voiced really well with Botique amps (well, any amps really). Actually, I think it's Robben Ford and Scott Lerner who's the big Zendrive users... I ordered the Zendrive because it's a little tighter than the Voodoo Lab Sparkle Drive I use. Also, it add's OD without discoloring the amp's original tone. When I get my Ghia I plan on getting the AC. I use the Zen to play everything with my band; from Rock Originals, U2, Zeppelin, The Who, The Police, Rush even LIT, ZZ, and Greenday etc... The AC Booster pushes the amp to the 'break-up' zone. The RC offers a clean boost. I haven't tried a BB yet. There is a thread about "hype" in the effects area. It is true that you can often follow a trend around new products, and then 6 months later find them on ebay by the folks who started the "buzz". So if your happy with what you got... then thats cool too! pg
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Post by Tom the Guitar Guy on Mar 15, 2006 8:30:00 GMT -7
Hey all... I have yet to try out a Zendrive. I am pretty happy with my Maxon OD820. There must be something to it though, it seems to be a rule of thumb around here to use a Zen Drive, and Xotic AC & RC boosters with the Z's. Is it fair to assume it's got to do with Brad Paisley using these pedals? hmmmmm.........i am curious to try a Zen Drive out though........but i kinda dont want to be just another sheep following the Zen Drive/AC/RC Booster herd............ just teasing guys.... Well, I'm guilty. I tried out and ordered the pedals at first because they were on Brad's board. Yes, I admit, I'm a Brad fan. Although that can't be too bad, since it was Brad who got me onto the Z's too! tomtheguitarguy
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Post by southpawtone on Mar 15, 2006 21:15:55 GMT -7
Dont get wrong, Brad is a fantastic player...... im not a fan of country, but i can acknowledge when someone can really burn on a guitar. There are sooooo many overdrive pedals out nowadays, well into the hundreds probably. I could go crazy wanting to try out the newest one, or most popular one. I dont think there are any dealers of the Zendrive in my area anyway. I just think it's funny how so many guys on this board use the Xotic stuff and Zendrive. Generally, i dont think you can go wrong with a pedal from a "boutique" company, you get a quality product(%90 of the time) as well as great customer service. Keeley, Analogman, Menatone, Maxon, Fulltone, etc...they are all great companies. I am SUCH a pedal junkie........sigh. My Keeley Katana Boost should be in the mail within the next couple of days...
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Post by StrangeC on May 3, 2006 20:52:48 GMT -7
I'm interested in Paul G's comment regarding the Zendrive, "Only weird thing was when I added it into the power chain, other pedals started acting weird. They started power flickering... No big deal though, I gave it it's own power supply and all is well now." I am having problem with my Line 6 pedal (see Line 6 Problem thred in the effects area of this Forum). This started about the time I got the Zendrive. The Zendrive also came with a bad switch- Alf has Finally sent out a new one to replace the bad pedal. Could a bad switch casue it to drain power off my Pedal Power 2? Anyone else have problems when using a Zendrive?
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Post by hiftbso on May 16, 2006 9:32:23 GMT -7
After hearing the clips and reading other posts I am now in the market for a Zendrive or Mosferatu. I wanted to see if anyone has both or has A/B the two. From all I can tell the Mosferatu has a little more drive in it. I use a Fulltone Fulldrive 2 & OCD right now. I'm not looking to really replace them just want a different color on the pedalboard. Also has anyone played a Zendrive 2, with the tube in it yet? Is it worth the extra $$?
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Post by quinto on May 16, 2006 18:31:58 GMT -7
I'm in the market for one too. Oh wait, I almost forgot that I already ordered one on Dec. 27th. still haven't seen it. I hope I like it a lot. Should have paid the price and bought it on ebay.
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Post by RC on May 18, 2006 19:50:15 GMT -7
I'm in the market for one too. Oh wait, I almost forgot that I already ordered one on Dec. 27th. still haven't seen it. I hope I like it a lot. Should have paid the price and bought it on ebay. I did the same thing. I ordered it back in January and just forgot about it until I read this thread.
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Post by Telemanic on May 19, 2006 11:15:54 GMT -7
I'm still lookin for anyone whos been able to play both an Eternity by Lovepedal, and the Zen. The Zen has a lot of press, if you will, and players more or less endorsing it. The Eternity on the other hand is a little less well known? Perhaps. I own several lovepedals and think Sean is a fantastic builder, and the clips sound great as well. I'd love to hear any input on the Eternity! Lou
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Post by quinto on May 19, 2006 17:35:04 GMT -7
I'm in the market for one too. Oh wait, I almost forgot that I already ordered one on Dec. 27th. still haven't seen it. I hope I like it a lot. Should have paid the price and bought it on ebay. I did the same thing. I ordered it back in January and just forgot about it until I read this thread. I feel sort of bad being so snotty about waiting. It showed up the very next day. What a jerk I am! Sounds good so far.
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Post by RC on May 20, 2006 10:03:44 GMT -7
I did the same thing. I ordered it back in January and just forgot about it until I read this thread. I feel sort of bad being so snotty about waiting. It showed up the very next day. What a jerk I am! Sounds good so far. I'm glad to here you finally got it. Using yours as a time line mine should be here in a few more weeks. I just hope it lives up to the hype.
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Post by stratman89 on May 20, 2006 16:00:59 GMT -7
I ordered my Zen Drive Apr 19, I've got a long way to go. I'm using a Fender Am. Strat and a Maz Jr. Hows anyone else using this combo with the Zen drive find it for overdrive?
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Post by quinto on May 20, 2006 17:45:33 GMT -7
Well, so far it's okay. When I compare it with my Keeley Blues Driver, it sorta sounds sterile. I've tried it with 3 different Strats on 3 different days for about an half hour each. At least you can make money on ebay if you don't like it.
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Post by guitarboy02451 on May 21, 2006 8:46:52 GMT -7
The Zen sounds very sweet w the Ghia combo. Very smooth.
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