Bare Knuckle Pickups Forum
Forum Ringside => Guitars, Amps and Effects => Topic started by: sambo on September 17, 2008, 02:21:28 PM
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Right chaps, my tone is currently better than ever with Martamp + Sig. LP w/Black Dog. But I've got a bit of cash at the moment and really want something to push the Plexi into the (even) higher gain territory that it can't quite stretch to. (Also a pedal that will help get a more usable tone at bedroom levels as it's flippin' loud as you can imagine!).
Currently considering:
-BB Preamp
-Box of Rock
-Crunch Box
-Blackstar pedals
-Fulltone OCD
Budget is around the £100+ mark (willing to save a bit longer if it's worth it)!
Crunch Box seems like a good option as it's the cheapest and has more gain than a couple of the others. Having said that the BB is also tempting as Andy Timmons uses one and I'm currently going through a serious Andy Timmons love-fest at the moment!
What do you reckon?
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Sambo
Might not fit the bill (and even be a dumb response) but....
Have you thought of trying a Mark 1 Marshall Guv'nor?
Mike
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I reckon the Xotic effects BB Preamp is well worth considering.
Bit expensive in the UK but if you imported one from America it would be cheaper, crazy I know but we always get stuffed like mugs.
But to be honest there is not a duff box in that list in my opinion and its down to personal taste
Martin
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Nah Get a Vox Cooltron Bulldog its a tube pedal and it makes your SS amp sound warmer or if you have a Tube Amp Like a Plexi it kicks its ass way over the top if you set the gain high. It cleans up with the volume knob as well which is a nifty feature. It also has two channels that you can set differently for Lead and rhythm or both for rhythm or whatever. I was listening to all of those, and some other ones Like Fulltone OCD and the BB xotic, and none of them really kicked ass except the fulltone was ok, but there is better. Go on YOutube, and the Bulldog sounds great there, and everyone knows that the sound services of youtube suck.
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Having tried or owned all of those pedals, I don't think they're quite what you want. They're more suited to clean or lighly crunchy amps.
As you have a master volume to control overall output I think you need something that's quite tight sounding, so the high gain tone doesn't get flabby, which can boost the signal a bit to push the pre-amp. I would suggest:
Phil Hilbourne Fat Boost
Rothwell F1 Booster
ZVex Super Hard On
etc
I use the Hilbourne boost with my M45/100 for home practice to get Holy Diver/Crazy Train style tones. It works very well and is very flexible with internal dip switches to alter the character of the pedal.
As a really cheap option, the Electro-Harmonix LPB Nano (Linear Power Boost) is very, very good for about £30!
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I was sent both the Blackstar dual and crunch box by a company to try as i couldnt decide and they let me post back the one i liked the least. I only had to play them for a minute side by side to hear the difference. Its not fair in a way cos the Blackstar is much more expensive but imho its a lot better. Sounds more natural and has a variety of sounds not just a jcm800 type one tone.
The other 3 pedals are all really great. The BB and OCD will give you more sustain and i think more what your after vs the the Box of Rock. The BOR is great with a clean marshall and will give 70's rock sound to a T. However, I dont think its going to add alot more gain. I havent heard the BOR in person but only from clips on this forum and youtube.
I'm really into Andy Timmons atm aswell so if i had some cash id def compare the BB to my Blackstar.
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I think you might wanna look at the new Ibanez Jemini.
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Thanks for the advice so far guys.
Mikeluke: I hadn't considered one at all no. I remember trying a MKII (I think) Marshall pedal, which I wasn't too keen on but I've never come across or looked at a Mark I Guv'nor. Would you recommend it?
Gizmo what you said about the Box of Rock matched exactly what I had thought from various sound clips. Don't think that's really what I'm after.
Dave- very interesting! I'll google the 3 you mention in a sec. How much more gain will they actually provide though?
EDIT: TO- googling as we speak, thanks. :)
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the good ol' Maxon 808.
Vox Satchurator
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Well, I am biased because I have one....
You will find them quite often on the Evil Bay - if you are lucky you'll get one for under £45 and if you hate it you'll get your money back on it.
Early Mark 1s were made in England - like rocking horse doo-doo now - and then in Korea. The Mark 2s are nowhere close.
If it is good enough for Gary Moore then maybe worth a try?
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Korean and English ones sound the same to me - I have one of each of course ;)
Great pedals the Guv'nors, and worth a try?
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^Googled that Phil Hilborne boost; looks extremely interesting and possible exactly what I'm looking for.
Trouble is I can't find any examples of what it SOUNDS like. :? And nowhere that stocks them except his website.
Mikeluke- the Guv'Nor is now officially on the "look out for" list, cheers. :wink:
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There's a Hilbourne at my place if you bob round ;)
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Maybe if you move a few hundred miles to the South-East!!! :lol: :wink:
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Sambo - where are you in the South East?
btw - there is a nice Mark 1 on Evil Bay at the moment
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/MARSHALL-THE-GUVNOR-ORIGINAL-DISTORTION-PEDAL_W0QQitemZ170261557327QQcmdZViewItem?hash=item170261557327&_trkparms=72%3A12|39%3A1|66%3A2|65%3A12|240%3A1318&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14
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I second the BB preamp. Fantastic sounding pedal, really has the cranked marshall tone with the gain and levels up. Can get really filthy, yet is a perfect clean boost with the gain all the way down.
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Depends what sort of high gain you're after I guess but I think a basic tubescreamer type overdrive might work for you? Tim posted a clip of him playing Miracle Man in his Ozzmosis band with a zakk wylde 800 with Keeley SD1 in front and its probably the best metal tone I've ever heard.
I had a Crunch Box and when I set the gain on my Laney low it sounded almost exactly the same as when I had the Laneys gain turned up. That may be a good or bad thing for you :lol: It sounds very 80s rock if thats the sort of high gain youre after. Barber pedals look quite good, the Burn Unit and Direct Drive in particular
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I've got a mkI Guv'nor and a Crunchbox - the latter is a WAY better sounding pedal.
Also, the cool thing about the CB is that you can set your amp fairly loud, then kick in the CB with the volume low and the tone is juicy as hell (volume & tone controls are fairly interactive too). I've not heard a better pedal for Marshall tones than the CB AND the price is right.
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I've got a mkI Guv'nor and a Crunchbox - the latter is a WAY better sounding pedal.
Funny - I thought the opposite so I sold my CB!
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^Ahhh good ol' opinions! :wink:
Don't suppose you want to sell your Hilborne boost, TwinF? :D
Got a bit more cash today so I'm ready to pull the trigger on:
BB Preamp
Hilborne Boost
or potentially CB/Guv'nor.
What is the Hilborne actually capable of? The internal adjustments look very useful.
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I've got a mkI Guv'nor and a Crunchbox - the latter is a WAY better sounding pedal.
Funny - I thought the opposite so I sold my CB!
I also didn't think much of the Crunchbox. It easily got lost in a band mix when I used it.
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The Hilbourne boost is a very powerful clean boost with a treble boost/cut knob. It has a hit of fuzz character about it, so it's not great into a clean amp as it just sounds edgy. Into a dirty amp however, it pushes it into singing lead lines and a tight bass if you increase the treble. The dip switches inside alter how fat or fuzz like it behaves.
Mine's not for sale, even though I don't use it that much. It's a handy thing to have around!
It's a shame you're not local, I've got all three of your options (minus the CB) that you could try :(
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^AND you have that AD9! :(
Okay so Hilborne compared to the BB-P; BB is presumably a more typical overdrive and can be used with both clean/dirty amp?
That's what I find attractive about it over the Hilborne I think.
EDIT: Hamfist- out of interest- what pedal(s) are you using now if any?
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I can make a clip using the Hilborne if you want.
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That would be absolutely awesome TO!
Off/On comparison specifically too, would be great :)
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Sambo - where are you in the South East?
I'm in Hertfordshire- little town near Stevenage. :)
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Okay so Hilborne compared to the BB-P; BB is presumably a more typical overdrive and can be used with both clean/dirty amp?
Yep, exactly that :)
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EDIT: Hamfist- out of interest- what pedal(s) are you using now if any?
I have a Blackstone Appliances Mosfet Overdrive (amazing pedal !!) and a CMATMODS Brownie for use into a clean amp. Although I haven't had a chance to try them into a driven amp yet, as both the pedals are fairly new, and I'm still awaiting delivery of my Ceriatone 2204.
Recently, I had been using an MI Audio Blue Boy Deluxe and an SPF Ego Booster into a dirty amp. Both pedals, I would highly recommend.
The BBD is a highly tweakable TS-9 like pedal, which can range from clean boost thought to extra overdrive, with all sorts of EQ options (having 4 EQ knobs). You don't have to have the mid-hump, bass loss of a TS-9, that's for sure. It can take a while to dial it in, but it is very versatile. This pedal has worked well with every dirty amp I have ever used it with. It sounds truly horrible into a clean amp though !
The Ego Booster is a very nice Clean Boost, with options to use it as a treble or bass boost instead.
Both pedals should be easily available.
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Sambo - ah - if you were closer to me (Hampshire) then I was going to offer you a loan of my Guv'nor - Herts is a bit of a schlep....
Good luck with the choice/decision
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Hertfordshire is a little town near Stevenage?
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If you're asking that question I presume you know exactly what I meant!
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Ibanez TS808.. does anything else push a plexi quite like it?
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Ibanez TS808.. does anything else push a plexi quite like it?
Had mine a few years, the one pedal I'm sure I'll never sell
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or BYOC if you want to build your own...or the maxon version or J&hyde...
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i agree with the people who say the bb preamp.
i have an rc preamp, a hilbourne and a crunchbox myself. i know (from clips) the bb has plexi-type distortion, but at the same time a powerful clean boost (i know this from the specs) and a nice eq (from my rc boost) - it sounds a really useful thing to have in many ways. the crunchbox doesn't do clean boost, but it has that authentic jcm800-y tone and its a great price, it does what it does and it does it well. the hilbourne is a funny one, in certain situations nothing can touch it, and in others i don't really like it... its perfect for what would be considered a high gain tone in the late 1970s, and perhaps early 80s, works best with low-output pickups.
after a-bing my modded sd-1 with my rc boost, i have doubts about modded pedals, i'll probably go boutique only in future if i want another pedal. not sure what this pedal would be at the moment. maybe a BB actually.
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Here is a really raw video showing clean, Hilborne for the rffing, and another boost on top of the Hilborne for solos (Power Screamer). As you can see, it remains super-clean even with two boosts engaged. Amp was a Bruno Underground 30.
Song is not intended for public consumption, it's just a quick as-done rehearsal transcription.
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=CI0QW9OD
The Hilborne was set for gain at 12 o'clock, cut at about 10 o'clock.
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The Hardwire Metal Distortion pedal looks cool. £89 seems good. total guitar gave it god marks!
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Blackstar pedals are great, i have the dual and the dist models. They get my vote.
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Just finished watching TO:
That's brilliant, thanks! :D
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Just been watching a Mark 1 (Made in England) Marshall Guv'nor go for £90 on EBay...
:o
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What about the Visual Sound Jekyll and Hyde. Visual Sound's pedals are awesome and I quite like the Jekyll and Hyde, it pushes a bit harder than the Route 66 (which is basically a tubescreamer circuit). They even have one that has both pedals combined in one.
http://www.visualsound.net/v2dt.htm
Check out their sound clips.