Good boost for a Mark IV?

[primeholy]

I am currently using a blues driver and it does ok. What is a good pedal to boost the rhythm 2 and lead channel? Is there a general consensus on this board? If it is expensive is there a cheaper alternative?

 

[theroan]

Depends on what kind of boost.

If you want a simple clean boost then the MXR micro amp will do fine. If you want grit the Barber Direct drive is a great and inexpansive tube screamer variant.

 

[straitouttahell]

I own a Danelectro Transparent Overdrive and a TS808 clone, and they both sound good on my MkIV's R2.

I also have a Danelectro Vibe and a T-Rex Comp Nova and, although they are not technically boosters, they provide a good boost effect bost on R2 and Lead.

 

[woodtones]

I currently use the BB preamp. Its not cheap though, but it boosts R2 really nicely. I also have a modded TS-9 Tubescreamer that works OK, but the BB sounds much more natural and has the better EQ on it.

 

[zebpedersen]

+1 on using a compressor as a boost, nice way to preserve amp tone. One thing I used to do with my Electro Harmonix Wiggler (tube tremolo) was turn the tremolo all the way off and use the little bit of boost that the pedal had built in to drive the amp a tiny bit harder. The cascading gain preamp on a Mark IV acts like a massive multiplier and at high volume it only needed a teeny boost just to cut a bit extra through. I'm sure you can get the same effect with a compressor.

 

[straitouttahell]

+1 on using a compressor as a boost, nice way to preserve amp tone.

The CompNova has two big advantages over other pedals I've owned:

1) it is very transparent when active. It sounds more as a "sustain enhancer" than an average compressor. The typical bubbly compressed tone is not there, you can hear the very sound of your guitar, just longer. For this reason a lot of people don't like it as a compressor.

2) it is not truebypass. It has a VERY good buffered bypass, which makes all the pedal chain sound better, even when the pedal is inactive.

 

[Fronzil]

bb preamp is sick of course..maybe the most popular OD around here for any channel on the IV...a good tube screamer would work..the diamond J drive is deadly..has a OD section and separate clean boost section..I have some deadly tones recorded using the BB alone, J drive alone and both together..over rhythm 1 and 2..i'll let you know when I get the final mix back from my buddy and you can be the judge.