OD/Distortion pedal for Mesa Mark series type drive

[Miracle Man]

Hey guys,

This is my first post here so be gentle

Here's the thing:
I really like the type of distortion of the Mesa Boogie Mark series amps. You know, lots of gain, but really smooth, without the buzzy sound... Is there a distortion pedal out there that sounds similar to the mark series? I know I'll never be able to get the exact same sound with a pedal but I can't afford a new amp right now.

Any suggestions would be great help!
Thanks in advance,

Miracle Man

 

[bigdan19]

try the mxr dist+ very transparent high gain pedal which works brilliant with a little amp od.

 

[fatboy135]

proco rat

 

[Russ]

I was about to say Proco Rat. I have one and I find that I can get similar sounds from it into my Marshall as I get from my Mark IV alone. This might be why James Hetfield took interest in Mesa amps. He used to run a Proco Rat into the Jose Arrendodo modified Marshall.

 

[Miracle Man]

Yeah, I have one of those Rat pedals. But as good as it is for creamy leads, it sounds very fuzzy if I palm mute on the low strings. Are there any pedals out there that are similar to the Rat but less fuzzy?

Thanks guys

Miracle Man

 

[ursinus]

IMO there is nothing better than the BB preamp. I use it in front of my MK IV for RHYT 1 and RHYT 2 alternate tones. My settings are Vol. 12:00, gain, 9:30-10:30, Bass and Treble on the center detents. Give it a shot....

 

[Miracle Man]

That sound's great! How much gain does it have? The clips on their website don't really give me an ide of the gain availible. I want to use the pedal into a clean amp and get quite a lot of distortion. Not for metal, mostly hi-gain punk and rock.

Oh, and thanks for all the help so far! Great forum!

 

[fatboy135]

:shock:
I feel like a deja vu :lol:

 

[recto-robbie]

I agree with ursinus about the bb preamp,,,very nice but its better used as an overdrive I believe with a tube amps distortion. One pedal you can look into is the MI Audio Crunch Box. I was a bit shocked how well this pedal sounded through my rectoverb. Its a very warm,tube like, high gain marshall sounding pedal. I bought it simply to try for a marshall sound out of my boogie. A different sound to mess with. I have to say at first kind of funny,,,I was a bit upset because it did sound truelly great through my rectoverb. Different than me recs gain but just about as good in a different way. I couldnt believe a pedal could sound like that. Not at all solid state sounding to me. I almost returned it because I didnt want to wind up using it more than my amps gain. After a couple weeks I found out how I like using it the best and needless to say nothing really beats a boogies gain anyway... Just a different sound for me. The gain it offers is about even with the rectoverbs gain on vintage at 6 or 7.

 

[recto-robbie]

http://www.miaudio.com/CB1.htm

 

[Miracle Man]

It's the other way around for me: I have a few Marshalls (JCM800, 900, Super Lead) but I want to try something...let's say not as marshally sounding The Mark I really caught my attention because of it's smooth overdrive (marshalls have that agressive upper mid range) but it's soooo expensive

 

[X-1]

I like the Carl Martin Hot Drive N Boost with my MkIII Simulclass.

 

[Russ]

Have you tried a MarkIV? or even a Mark III?

 

[mxr2000]

How about a bad Monkey?

 

[pjrake]

i use a TS9 and although the crunch sounds better, it's a little thin. then again, i really haven't had time to mess around with it yet.

i was surprised to see that the dude from chevelle now uses mark IV amps and a sans amp gt2 as an overdrive pedal. his tone is awesome. you might want to check that pedal out. they have a few audio samples on their website.

 

[chedgeco]

I've been playing Mark Series amps for close to 25 years and the only pedal I've heard that comes close is the Hermida Mosferatu.

I keep one in my guitar case at all times when I travel. I will always have close to that cherished sound when I sit in with buds out on the road.

Chris... 8)