The Amps/Overdrives Thing

[andross182]

You could always sneak the BE-OD into the box with the AX8 and P24...

I actually don't have to run pedal purchases by her, or even larger ones, I just do it out of common courtesy! I snagged a rare one apparently who 100% supports my noodling hobby. The amount I spend on gear to my play skill is embarrassing though.

 

[László]

I actually don't have to run pedal purchases by her, or even larger ones, I just do it out of common courtesy! I snagged a rare one apparently who 100% supports my noodling hobby. The amount I spend on gear to my play skill is embarrassing though.

Oh, I only sneak my gear into the house because I like the challenge; it's a game of skill, spy vs spy, etc.

My wife doesn't care. She's not supportive...but she doesn't really mind.

 

[bodia]

I actually don't have to run pedal purchases by her, or even larger ones, I just do it out of common courtesy! I snagged a rare one apparently who 100% supports my noodling hobby. The amount I spend on gear to my play skill is embarrassing though.

Ditto this! Especially the skill to gear ratio

 

[László]

Especially the skill to gear ratio

[Puff of smoke]

I the Great god of Music Apollo bring thee very good news:

Music ain't a contest!

[clanging of giant cymbal somewhere in the distance, accompanied by pan flutes]

There's no trophy, and no downside. No matter how good you are, or how badly you play, there's someone else who's better or worse. Everyone gets to play, enjoy him/herself, and get whatever enjoyment/frustration comes with that.

I, Apollo, do hereby empower you to buy as much GEAR as you want, regardless of how good/bad/indifferent you are on the instrument!!

Go forth and shop without guilt or apology!!

[Apollo strikes lyre and departs in another puff of smoke]

 

[bodia]

[Puff of smoke]

I the Great god of Music Apollo bring thee very good news:

Music ain't a contest!

[clanging of giant cymbal somewhere in the distance, accompanied by pan flutes]

There's no trophy, and no downside. No matter how good you are, or how badly you play, there's someone else who's better or worse. Everyone gets to play, enjoy him/herself, and get whatever enjoyment/frustration comes with that.

I, Apollo, do hereby empower you to buy as much GEAR as you want, regardless of how good/bad/indifferent you are on the instrument!!

Go forth and shop without guilt or apology!!

[Apollo strikes lyre and departs in another puff of smoke]

I am so showing this to my wife! Way to make me feel good! Thanks Les!

 

[Rider1260]

I don't have to sneak pedals in since I make them ( I wish more people would try them instead of just getting another big box brand )
Guitars she sees all , all she says is " That ones pretty " and rolls her eyes

 

[Dusty Chalk]

[Puff of smoke]

I the Great god of Music Apollo bring thee very good news:

Music ain't a contest!

[clanging of giant cymbal somewhere in the distance, accompanied by pan flutes]

There's no trophy, and no downside. No matter how good you are, or how badly you play, there's someone else who's better or worse. Everyone gets to play, enjoy him/herself, and get whatever enjoyment/frustration comes with that.

I, Apollo, do hereby empower you to buy as much GEAR as you want, regardless of how good/bad/indifferent you are on the instrument!!

Go forth and shop without guilt or apology!!

[Apollo strikes lyre and departs in another puff of smoke]

Hear hear!

 

[BolinTrucks]

I use the drive channel on my Sonzera 20 and goose it with BB Preamp for leads. The same setup doesn't work with my DSL 40. With that amp I use the clean channel with drive as high as it will go and goose it with TC Mojomojo OD. Interesting thing is this...when switching between the Tele and LP while using the Marshall/TC setup, both guitars work as desired. When switching guitars while using the Sonzera/BB setup, I have to account for the output variance with adjustments to the BB.

 

[László]

I use the drive channel on my Sonzera 20 and goose it with BB Preamp for leads. The same setup doesn't work with my DSL 40. With that amp I use the clean channel with drive as high as it will go and goose it with TC Mojomojo OD. Interesting thing is this...when switching between the Tele and LP while using the Marshall/TC setup, both guitars work as desired. When switching guitars while using the Sonzera/BB setup, I have to account for the output variance with adjustments to the BB.

Actually, that makes perfect sense, because Marshalls have more compression in the front end of the amp.

The signal is pretty squooshed going into the first gain stages, even without a pedal; adding the pedal drives it to even greater compression. With the signal so compressed, output variance from the guitar is much less of a factor, and sonic differences between guitars are less distinct.

The front end of the Sonzeras compress less, so even with pedal, you’re going to hear greater differences switching off between the two guitars.

 

[BolinTrucks]

Actually, that makes perfect sense, because Marshalls have more compression in the front end of the amp.

The signal is pretty squooshed going into the first gain stages, even without a pedal; adding the pedal drives it to even greater compression. With the signal so compressed, output variance from the guitar is much less of a factor, and sonic differences between guitars are less distinct.

The front end of the Sonzeras compress less, so even with pedal, you’re going to hear greater differences switching off between the two guitars.

Well, when put it that way........Cool, thanks for the breakdown. Love that low-cost Mojomojo, btw. Great pedal.

 

[WeFixFlats]

In 2017 I went thru/demo'd/tested several overdrive/boost pedals(at the least the ones I could afford): EP Booster, Paisley Overdrive, Brent Mason Hot-Wired, Wampler Plex-Drive, Tumnus, Strymon Sunset, Keeley Super Phat and Red Dirt...All have been sold. Now it's just guitar into amps(Lonestar-100watt, DG 30, Mark V:25), use the gain/volume and master controls, and let the pre-amp/power tubes, and guitar volume/tone controls(a very important factor) do the work to shape the tone even if it gets 'a little loud'. Throwing hands up in the air...that's it, no more chasing and spending; it's futile for me now; over and done with those type of pedals.

 

[Deleted member 5962]

Try a simpler boost that shapes tone in the way you want your solos to be changed. I like a change in character for solos. Not just a level boost. Either more mids, more upper mids, more treble (more modulation! LOL) something! I do not want just a louder but otherwise unchanged version of what I’m already playing. And yes, multiple amps and multiple guitars might require a few pedals to get what you want for each, but once you roll thru a few, it’s easy to find ones that “fit” each guitar/amp/solo tone you’re after.

If what is right for you IS a flat boost that just makes your existing tone louder and does nothing else, you can find one of those.

 

[László]

Now it's just guitar into amps(Lonestar-100watt, DG 30, Mark V:25), use the gain/volume and master controls, and let the pre-amp/power tubes, and guitar volume/tone controls(a very important factor) do the work to shape the tone even if it gets 'a little loud'. Throwing hands up in the air...that's it, no more chasing and spending; it's futile for me now; over and done with those type of pedals.

I get it! I’ve gone back and forth with pedals and no pedals, over the years.

I like that I can alter the tone for different projects in interesting ways using pedals. With a good buffer in front of the pedalboard, I can bypass the pedals and not lose tone, so it’s kind of a “best of both worlds” thing.

Two of my pedals are usually on all the time, the “Chime” side of a Pettydrive 2 set quite clean (adds something nice), and the Pettyjohn EQ that I use to add back a little top end when I roll back the guitar volume, and cut a little bass when I need to do that to tailor the guitar/amp combination. It also adds a little something to the tone that I like, kind of a “more better” thing, even when it’s set flat.

 

[Bran_Flakes]

I've gone through a few different overdrives here and there, but have finally settled down on the BE-OD for the past several months. It has the sound I was looking for at the time, so it's been a fun little time. That being said, it sounds like the sonic version of what comes out of my cat if I plug it into the Fenders that I have, my Hughes and Kettner, or my Grandpa's Divided by 13 amp (not a great amp to run it through, but the point still stands). It does however sound absolutely fantastic through my Marshall and Orange. I've always found it interesting how different pedals react to different amps (or vice versa).

 

[László]

I've gone through a few different overdrives here and there, but have finally settled down on the BE-OD for the past several months. It has the sound I was looking for at the time, so it's been a fun little time. That being said, it sounds like the sonic version of what comes out of my cat if I plug it into the Fenders that I have, my Hughes and Kettner, or my Grandpa's Divided by 13 amp (not a great amp to run it through, but the point still stands). It does however sound absolutely fantastic through my Marshall and Orange. I've always found it interesting how different pedals react to different amps (or vice versa).

Bran, I love that your grandfather has a /13.

 

[Deli6505]

I posted this some time ago, but seems appropriate to this thread. I ran the MDT and HX/DA through a Radial Headbone head switcher. Set the amps up as close as possible with a clean setting. Then ran a couple of overdrive pedals while switching between heads. Surprisingly different tones. Unfortunately I was overdriving the mic preamp a bit, but I tend to stink at recording, so there is that....

I just love the fact that I get to hear Dave Brubeck, The Cult and Lynyrd Skynyrd all within the same clip. Huge win.

 

[Boogie]

I've gone through a few different overdrives here and there, but have finally settled down on the BE-OD for the past several months. It has the sound I was looking for at the time, so it's been a fun little time. That being said, it sounds like the sonic version of what comes out of my cat if I plug it into the Fenders that I have, my Hughes and Kettner, or my Grandpa's Divided by 13 amp (not a great amp to run it through, but the point still stands). It does however sound absolutely fantastic through my Marshall and Orange. I've always found it interesting how different pedals react to different amps (or vice versa).

Why do I get the feeling that your Grandpa is probably my age.

That not withstanding...some pedals sound great with certain amps, others not so well, and some completely stink. I discovered that certain basic pedal designs worked well with a particular amp, so I sought those variants...like colorsound, TS, Klon, Rat, Distortion+, etc. So many good pedal makers build their take on the classics but add compelling features, like Keeley, Fulltone, Suhr, JHS and others. Granted, I paid $$ for a Keeley ModPlus TS-9 years ago, but that’s the best TS I’ve ever encountered, without the flaws of the original, broader tone control range, more gain control, and silent. While I don’t use it right now, eventually, it will get used again because it’s a timeless classic that works with every Fender amp out there. On a Marshall, not so much. The Klon - though a variation on a classic, too - does some esoteric stuff that I love. Pair/stack it with other stuff (EP Booster, BB Preamp, Kalamazoo, for example) and it stays musical and loads the amp’s front end beautifully on certain amps.

My point is to keep up the experimentation. Think of yourself as a chef and your sound as a signature recipe with the elements of your rig as ingredients. The pedals are the spices and herbs that you add for uniqueness. A little can go a long way, but the fun is in the discovery.

 

[Bran_Flakes]

Bran, I love that your grandfather has a /13.

I've gotten some pretty sweet sounds out of it. It wouldn't normally be my cup of tea, but that doesn't mean I can't enjoy it for a day here and there ;-)

 

[mikemjr12]

Trying to find a super versatile drive pedal is difficult. I started getting really obsessed with chasing the perfect pedal, that I decided to turn to boost pedals instead and it's worked out alright. I have the Fulltone 2B and the Mesa Boogie Tone Burst. The 2B is a sweet clean/neutral boost. Doesn't really color the amp tone, just provides more gain and slightly more volume. Maybe adds more 'bloom' to the signal. The Tone Burst has bass and treble EQ knobs, which makes it versatile. I can tweak it for a fat lead signal, sharp treble boost, or a neutral clean boost. It also has separate knobs for gain and volume, so I can use it for more overdrive or simply a volume boost. What I've really started to notice lately is that I don't really need a ton of added gain in my signal, but rather a small amount of gain and a noticeable amount of volume. Keeps the signal more uncompressed and cuts through a mix better. But it's not as good for thick, creamy leads. I still have trouble with those kinds of tones in a band mix.

 

[Deleted member 5962]

You just have to find the pedal that does the creamy OD tone with the boost in the right frequency range. Then it can be think and creamy but still punch through a band mix.

I had the idea years ago that I was going to design a TS type OD pedal but one that had a parametric mids control. So, you could control how much of a mid boost, where it was centered and even how wide the EQ boost curve was. I had it laid out on paper and planned to use a BYOC Screamer board, then take the mids para EQ section off to a hand wired board. I never got around to building it... but a couple years ago BYOC came out with a new version of an old pedal (that I had never heard of... thought I invented the idea! LOL) which does the same thing. You might want to look one of those up.

A few years back, I got more and more into amps, and less into building pedals and I've never build one of the new ones that does this. Note also that there are numerous graphic EQ pedals,but a few nice parametrics as well that could work for this type thing along with your chosen OD or amp OD channel.