Another pedal question

[Alnus Rubra]

I went to see a show my daughter was performing in at a local theatre and got talking to the guitarist and bass player on the orchestra pit.

The guy on guitar was using a line 6 pedal. His attitude toward pedals, guitar sounds was that the audience didn’t really know the difference between that and an expensive amp. He was a working musician and wanted to come to the venue with as little equipment as possible.

He wouldn’t even consider bringing his expensive PRS to the gig and was playing a semi-hollow D’Angelico (still a very nice looking/sounding guitar). He was treating the gig as a job and there was no emotion there as far as his gear was concerned. This was his working rig.

On the flip of the coin, I have a friend who works professionally every night and raves about the Kemper amp the venue provides for him.

I guess it really is about how much you care about your sound and that it’s a very personal thing to each and every one of us, partly depending on your genre, amp, style of playing etc.

I’m on the same journey as you at the moment, re-acquainting myself with the myriad of pedals that are out there, to create my first (well second on my lifetime) pedal board.

Good luck.

 

[Bill SAS 513]

Definitely a personal thing...try 'em all !!!! I'm in the Wampler / Keeley Camp...Love every Wampler pedal I've ever played.
And have fun while you're doing it, too. Good luck.

 

[shinksma]

I have none of the pedals listed in the poll, and only one of the pedals otherwise mentioned in this thread. Yet I have a wide variety of tones that I quite like, that I use in front of a wide variety of amps.

So...OP, you need to just go ahead and buy something that sounds good to you in a YouTube video or better yet, in a store in front of a clean Archon-like amp (probably have to use a Mesa Boogie on a clean channel in most stores). Something that if you are disappointed after a few days you can either return, or flip on the used market, and try something else.

Look at the pedals your guitar heroes use (or don't). I love David Gilmour from Pink Floyd. So to me getting a Big Muff Pi-like pedal would be where I would want to start, or maybe a RAT (he used RATs in the 80s, IIRC). As it turns out, I did so quite accidentally, when I first started playing: I got a Boss HM-2, which is sometimes like a BMP crossed with a RAT with some attitude thrown in.

Maybe it doesn't really matter in the end - you'll get something now (say, a Tube Driver type), then have a hankering to try a BB type sound, then a Klon/Klone, or Dumble, or RAT-like, or OCD...

 

[Dusty Chalk]

So...OP, you need to just go ahead and buy something that sounds good to you in a YouTube video or better yet, in a store in front of a clean Archon-like amp (probably have to use a Mesa Boogie on a clean channel in most stores). Something that if you are disappointed after a few days you can either return, or flip on the used market, and try something else.

This. The only way to know what a pedal sounds like in your rig is to actually put it there.

 

[drdoom8793]

My two favorite drive pedals are the Wampler Tumnus and the Keeley Red Dirt. As others have mentioned, the Tumnus is a Klon type pedal. The Red Dirt is basically the culmination of all of Keeley's work modding TS pedals. It's probably the best TS-style pedal I've ever heard.

 

[andy474x]

Every time I see this thread, I jut want to say "buy a bunch of pedals."

Buy a bunch of pedals.

 

[drdoom8793]

In other news, JHS just unveiled their Bonsai pedal; 9 different analog TS Circuits built into one normal sized stompbox, including a Keeley modded TS808. I don't even use pedals anymore since I got my Kemper, but I might get one of these just to have it around.

 

[Rider1260]

I made my own pedals and tuned them to my needs and others seemed to like them unfortunately I am a better builder than marketer.
if you are looking to add a "3rd channel" I would look for a pedal with lots of output so you can add signal without undue noise since the tubes are already saturated any increase in signal should add what you are looking for, its also handy to have some EQ handles as you low end can get overwhelming.
I believe you can use a Boost pedal or overdrive pedal , an EQ pedal or a compressor all with equally good results also don't forget a good Volume pedal

 

[GoBlue]

Thanks for all of the input guys!

 

[GoBlue]

So...OP, you need to just go ahead and buy something that sounds good to you in a YouTube video or better yet, in a store in front of a clean Archon-like amp (probably have to use a Mesa Boogie on a clean channel in most stores).

I agree, I've got it narrowed down to just a few pedals. Just need to make a final decision and buy it.

 

[László]

Well your list is a very good one.

I’ll put in a nice word for Suhr’s pedals; I have a bunch of them (though not their overdrive), and they sound great, they’re very quiet, no switching noise (some pedals make a loud pop), and they’re machined from anodized billet aluminum, so they’re not only absolutely bulletproof and virtually scratchproof, they’re extremely strong.

However, all the other pedals on your list are terrific and you can’t really make a mistake with any of them.

The main reason I don’t have their overdrive, the Shiba, is that I haven’t tried one in person, and I have other ODs.

 

[SteelHorse]

Not on the list but I use the newer Boss (I know) OD-1X and DS-1X and put my hand built (by me) stuff away in boxes or cannibalized them for other projects. You have to learn to use the knobs on them but they are very versatile and can really sound great as your only 2 drive pedals. I love that they are quiet and add almost no noise to the pedal chain.

 

[Deleted member 5962]

I've read all this and tried to figure out exactly what OP wants before suggesting something. Many suggestions have been made. As always, what you want from the pedal is the most important thing in deciding what to recommend. You said "late 80s, early 90s crunch tone." I would ask for an example of whose tone you are trying to get close to. But shy of that, couple of thoughts...

One, the amp you have can do this tone extremely well with no pedals. As Elvis has mentioned, here and other threads, you can use the Archon either "gain up to solo tone/roll back guitar volume for rhythm" OR you can use it "gain down for rhythm tone/solo-boost-OD pedal kicked on for solos. The amp really works great either way.

If you want to do the former, you don't need a pedal (I still like a boost on even when I am). If you want to do the latter then you start to look at how you EQ for rhythm tone and want you want to add to that for solo tone. If the answer is "volume, gain and mids" then somewhere in the world Elvis suggested (some form of TS type pedal) is indeed normal place to start. And starting with a "standard" as he suggests, or a modded version is usually a trial and error (more accurately "trial and preference") process. You could start with the basic TS, or go to a modified one (Keeley Red Dirt is very good!). I prefer the Barber Gain Changer with it's added tonal flexibility, and with two gain ranges available it can be a nice low gain solo boost, or can add a completely different gain type to your clean channel for a true different voice.

Whether you go with one of these vs. a "boost" pedal, depends again on what you want. Some just want "louder" for solos. I like to change the character. I like to add some volume, some mids/upper mids or treble, and some gain. I want my solo tone to not be just a louder version of my rhythm tone. Going this route allows me to choose a bit more scooped rhythm tone, and still punch plenty of mids for solos.

That said, even with the above preferences, I like to leave a boost on all the time and set my base tones that way. Both channels just sound better with a boost on. I don't slam V1 hard, just a bit.

 

[Deleted member 5962]

More, since I waited so long to post: LOL

The reasons I suggest the Gain Changer are numerous. First, it's a great sounding pedal. But one big factor is it's versatility. With it's 3 way mids switch, you can choose flat, smaller narrower mid boost, or bigger broader mid boost. This feature alone is worth a lot! If you do want a flat boost, it can do it. Flat boost with a touch of hair, done. Big mids boost to fatten up those single coils, done. Small mids boost to punch either SCs or humbuckers through for solos, done again. And then, there is that gain switch. Switch it over to the higher gain mode and watch the clean channel of your amp suddenly be a fat smooth singing channel, very different from the Archons OD channel. In fact, while it was never claimed to be one, when I told David that I thought it was a better "Dumble" pedal than many of the Dumble pedals I'd tried, he replied that he never wanted to market it that way but that it certainly could be that.

If you start with even a modded screamer, you often have gain and tone controls only. I'm just saying, this is a MUCH more versatile place to start, it's CHEAP for a pedal built like a work of art (look inside a Barber pedal!) and it offers a lot of tones. I am not the pedal geek I used to be now that I have great amps. But if I could have only one OD pedal, this is the one I'd have. Of course, I'm still a little bit of a pedal geek, so I have 3 different versions. LOL

 

[Alnus Rubra]

I bought a Tech 21 NYC Oxford sans amp pedal a couple of months ago. It was a bargain.

I believe it’s supposed to re-create Orange amp sounds. Quite pleasing tones and in addition to my baby Mesa amp, works very nicely.

As others have said, sometimes you just have to take a leap of faith (informed decision) and see what works for you!

 

[andy474x]

Well... since I have Thursday mornings off, and I wanted to get in trouble with my wife by avoiding doing anything helpful around the house, I put together a little clip of some drive pedals, including those from your list that I have on hand. Just so you could hear some things side by side on the same rig. 5 pedals, in this order: Tumnus (non-deluxe), Bogner Wessex, Wampler Clarksdale, MXR Super Badass, and Friedman Dirty Shirley. The Tumnus, Wessex, and Clarksdale all have the gain up around 3/4, whereas the MXR and Friedman have a LOT more gain on tap and are therefore set pretty low. The Tumnus especially gets a very mid heavy tone when the gain is maxed, for that reason I would definitely recommend the Deluxe version if you plan on trying to get a good amount of crunch from it.

Did a familiar riff per your like of Skynyrd on the bridge pickup, and a little neck blues, in each clip. Maybe it will help! And it just gave me something to mess around with!

https://soundcloud.com/6stringthunder/drive-off-2

PS - rig is a Mira 25th, into a Fender Vibrolux, with a touch of reverb. A fairly neutral platform, with probably less midrange than your Archon.

 

[GoBlue]

Thanks Andy!! I really like that Tumnus.

 

[bodia]

I dug the Tumnus too!

 

[László]

They were dialed in to sound so similar! I couldn’t decide. They were all nice. And I liked the track, too.

 

[Deleted member 5962]

Funny how we do that, isn't it. We can take 3-4-5 very different pedals, and dial them to sound similar in a demo.