Overdrive Pedals - Need Your Honest Opinion Please

[Dusty Rhodes]

I have heard a lot of positive hype regarding overdirve pedals and what they can do for your tone. However, I need an honest opinon as to their effectiveness when used with a Mesa. Let me first jot down what my amps and guitars consist of and tell me (in your honest opinion) if I would see any benefit tone wise for even looking into an overdrive pedal. I would like to put this notion to rest. Thanks.

Mesa Stiletto Ace Combo
Marshall DSL 401
Les Paul Standard Gold Top ('57 custom shop)
Les Paul Junior ('57 custom shop)
Dean HardTail
Fender Telecaster
Fender Stratocaster

Well there you have it guys. Fire away!!

 

[recto-robbie]

Whether you need one or not is up to you but I will say that after owning a ROV combo and my deuce and a couple other non mesa amps I always like to use an overdrive.
I only use overdrives in one way. To overdrive my already overdriven amp. I rarely use an OD pedal alone on the clean channel.
What I do is set my amp up to the right overdriven/gain sound I like.
Then on the OD pedal, set the volume high and the gain almost off or just above,, tone to taste. Kick the OD on and you will have a more saturated sound, better sustain, better harmonics, your sound will be tighter and you will most likely hear a more singing beautiful lead voice out of the amp. Honestly I normally keep an overdrive on most of the time. Some use them to boost their sound,, I use my boost switch on my stilettos floor pedal for that.
Id bet if you tried one, you'll be glad you did.

 

[Dusty Rhodes]

Thank you for that bit of feedback. I would love to add some more punch and tighten up the already overdriven sound of my amp. From what you are saying, an OD device might just be the ticket.
I won't get into reviewing the various brands at this point.

Thanks again,

 

[Jak0lantern01]

I just lowered the gain dramatically on my recto to clean up my sound and found that using my ZW OD with the gain up a bit really cranks. I didn't think the amp could be made more versatile, but it is now. Leads are awesome and the amp is nice and tight now.

 

[xscottx9]

Boss SD-1 .. Tightens bass, adds a tad of crunch and a tad of compression. Works great for low volume-medium volume. Gig volume I do not need a boost ..

This is for High Gain use ..

I have, and tested these pedals as Boosts with my Road King II .. ie, Output Max, tone to taste, Drive ZERO .. or jst a tad for some crunch.

Boss SD-1 *cheapest, and best for tightening things up, adding a hair of crunch*
Boss BD-2 Blues Driver *yuck*
Keeley Boss SD-1 *same as SD-1 without tightening up bass*
Zack Wylde OD *like the SD-1 without tightening up bass*
OCD *awesome on clean channel*
Barber LTD *works as a boost*
Barber Direct Drive *works as a boost*
Tube Screamer RI *same as below*
Original Tube Screamer *ok, works like the SD-1,just more middy*
Marshall Blues Breaker "original" *ok*
Marshall Guv'nor "original" *ok, mids are nassaly*
Bad Monkey *ok*
Sybdecay Stupid Box *to bass*


Out of all of those pedals, to add tightness and a little crunch, the CHEAP Boss SD-1 still wins. To get a decent old school Marshall bluesy sound, the OCD on the clean channel works great ..

 

[recto-robbie]

Getting into which overdrive is the best for you is a touchy subject that ive seen so many threads go on and on about it its ridiculous.
xscottx9 provided a nice review of many available. You simply need to decide how much money your willing to drop on an OD because honestly although boss OD's do the job, there are many out there that really arent even in the same ballpark IMHO. No you dont need to spend 3 or $400 to get a nice OD like some will suggest.
Persoanlly from my experiance in affordable excellent OD's I would try
MI Audio blues pro or blues boy, OCD, Barber Direct Drive,
Ibanez ts-808 RI, Maxon od-808 and believe it or not that bad monkey for dirt cheap is a pretty decent OD,, to name a few more. There is nothing wrong with Boss although many will argue that point.
Good luck and make sure whatever you buy,, its from a dealer who will accept returns.

 

[Dusty Rhodes]

Getting into which overdrive is the best for you is a touchy subject that ive seen so many threads go on and on about it its ridiculous.
xscottx9 provided a nice review of many available. You simply need to decide how much money your willing to drop on an OD because honestly although boss OD's do the job, there are many out there that really arent even in the same ballpark IMHO. No you dont need to spend 3 or $400 to get a nice OD like some will suggest.
Persoanlly from my experiance in affordable excellent OD's I would try
MI Audio blues pro or blues boy, OCD, Barber Direct Drive,
Ibanez ts-808 RI, Maxon od-808 and believe it or not that bad monkey for dirt cheap is a pretty decent OD,, to name a few more. There is nothing wrong with Boss although many will argue that point.
Good luck and make sure whatever you buy,, its from a dealer who will accept returns.

I hear what you are saying. Tone is purly subjective. I love the sound of an EL34 amp. Hence my decision to get the Marshall DSL 401 and Mesa Stiletto Ace. What I'm looking for is something to tighten up the overdriven channel and add some blues grit and soul to the clean channels. Distortion is not my goal. I am just wanting to add that little bit of extra flavor to what I already like. i.e. I don't want to change my tone but ranter enhance it. Perhaps I just need to explore what has already been bread into the amp. and practice on technique more. In retrospect I don't think Randy Smith left anything out.

 

[xscottx9]

I think the Boss SD-1 is a poor Overdrive, but it does ONE THING very well .. it adds a slight crunch, and tightens the bass on HIGH GAIN stuff. Level 100% - Tone 30% - Drive 0% ..

in my opinion, it does this better than the some 40 or so OD's I own. *I never sell them*

 

[jamme61]

bad monkey is killer $39. I have been through a lot of the higher priced pedals, save the money, if you can, I can't lol. I think you have to go out there and spend hundreds of bucks on the latest greatest until you find out for yourself. With this post you'll get a lot of different answers, like I like my OD on the clean channel, where I get the most boost and punch. I think the people like the Boss DS on the high gain stuff because it cuts the bass a lot and gets rid of the flub. I have also read(trying not to spend another $200 on a pedal)and saw (on you tube) the BB preamp pedal get raves.

 

[reo73]

I have a F-30 that I only use on the clean channel with OD pedals and it works marvels. There are millions of OD pedals on the market but really only a few ways to use. Here is really the basics:

Boost- A pedal like a Boss SD-1 or a dedicated clean boost pedal works great to add drive and sustain to an already overdriven amp. It can also kick a midly overdriven amp into more hi-gain territory. Set the pedals volume up and gain way down to slam a cleaner signal into the front end of your amp. I think this is just about as necessary piece of gear for any lead player out there as the guitar/amp/cab.

OD Pedal into Clean Channel - There are countless players who only use OD pedals to generate their OD and tons of pedals on the market to cater to different tones and gain levels. I find that a good OD pedal is as good or better for low to medium gain sounds as any amps drive channels and sometimes a good OD pedal is easier to control. Two of my favorites are the Fulltone OCD and Fulltone Fulldrive II which both work beautifully with my F-30. You can also run a boost pedal into an OD pedal to give it more drive.

I would think that the ACE would take a variety of pedals well but just like all other things in the guitar world you will need to explore this territory and find what works best for you. Once you open the door to OD pedals and get hooked it will consume you as much as amps and guitars do. I currently own about 10 different OD pedals.

 

[Platypus]

Here's my opinion as it seems like you're after the same thing I like,

I like to add a clean boost to my overdriven tones as well as to goose a clean tone into slight overdrive. With the Ace I've had a lot of luck with the Fulltone OCD and a plain old TS9 tubescreamer. The OCD works a bit well as it tends to be a bit more midscooped in nature and doesn't get too middy when boosting.

Set volume around noon, gain almost off and the tone knob slightly above noon for brighter or below noon for darker.

I don't like to drive a really overdriven channel with more gain so the clean volume boost gives me the punch I want without sacrificing tone.

Good luck with your search!

 

[Dusty Rhodes]

Lots of great input guys. Thank you.
Has anyone done an A/B test between MI Audio and Fulltone overdrives?

 

[Platypus]

Lots of great input guys. Thank you.
Has anyone done an A/B test between MI Audio and Fulltone overdrives?

If you're referring to the MI Audio Crunchbox I have not played that one with the Ace but it's got more of a marshall flare than the OCD does. They're both marshallesque overdrives but I think the CB does that sound better.. however I found the OCD to be more transparent and since I already love the tone of my Ace I'd rather just boost that sound more. The CB is an awesome pedal to throw on a clean amp for a marshall in a box type tone.

I have not played anything else in the MI Audio line, sorry

I will try to record some OCD+Ace clips this weekend if I have time for you if that would help. Shoot me a PM here if I forget

 

[Dusty Rhodes]

Lots of great input guys. Thank you.
Has anyone done an A/B test between MI Audio and Fulltone overdrives?

If you're referring to the MI Audio Crunchbox I have not played that one with the Ace but it's got more of a marshall flare than the OCD does. They're both marshallesque overdrives but I think the CB does that sound better.. however I found the OCD to be more transparent and since I already love the tone of my Ace I'd rather just boost that sound more. The CB is an awesome pedal to throw on a clean amp for a marshall in a box type tone.

I have not played anything else in the MI Audio line, sorry

I will try to record some OCD+Ace clips this weekend if I have time for you if that would help. Shoot me a PM here if I forget

I am leaning towards the OCD based on your input. You know what I am playing through and you aslo seem to know what I am after. My brain starts to run out my ears after spending a couple of hours reading the reviews on sites like HC. You always find that ONE guy that has a totally contrary opinion to everyone else. I will look forward to your clip.

Thanks for taking the time to do this.

 

[Platypus]

Yeah reading reviews can be a double edged sword, no doubt.

If you have the chance to try one out I would definitely recommend that because I don't want to lead you astray but it seems like we're on the same page as far as tones so I think you'll like it!

A lot of people find the Ace to be very bright so that tone knob is actually really nice to have on the OCD because you dial out some of that brightness without changing the tone too much.

Is there anything in particular that you'd like to hear? I was thinking of a clip of channel 1 with boost on and off as well as the tight gain with boost on/off.

 

[Dusty Rhodes]

Yeah reading reviews can be a double edged sword, no doubt.

If you have the chance to try one out I would definitely recommend that because I don't want to lead you astray but it seems like we're on the same page as far as tones so I think you'll like it!

A lot of people find the Ace to be very bright so that tone knob is actually really nice to have on the OCD because you dial out some of that brightness without changing the tone too much.

Is there anything in particular that you'd like to hear? I was thinking of a clip of channel 1 with boost on and off as well as the tight gain with boost on/off.

I would love to see how it can tighten up the overdrive channel on the crunch setting and the recto set to "tube". I don't really use the fluid drive much except when I'm after a Santana-type sound. I'm hoping it doesn't muddy anything up. I llike it clear, punchy and tight with just a touch of Jimmy Page dirt.

 

[Platypus]

Yeah reading reviews can be a double edged sword, no doubt.

If you have the chance to try one out I would definitely recommend that because I don't want to lead you astray but it seems like we're on the same page as far as tones so I think you'll like it!

A lot of people find the Ace to be very bright so that tone knob is actually really nice to have on the OCD because you dial out some of that brightness without changing the tone too much.

Is there anything in particular that you'd like to hear? I was thinking of a clip of channel 1 with boost on and off as well as the tight gain with boost on/off.

I would love to see how it can tighten up the overdrive channel on the crunch setting and the recto set to "tube". I don't really use the fluid drive much except when I'm after a Santana-type sound. I'm hoping it doesn't muddy anything up. I llike it clear, punchy and tight with just a touch of Jimmy Page dirt.

Alright cool, so Channel 2 set to crunch with and without boost?

I'll use a Les Paul unless you'd prefer something with single coils.

 

[Dusty Rhodes]

Yeah reading reviews can be a double edged sword, no doubt.

If you have the chance to try one out I would definitely recommend that because I don't want to lead you astray but it seems like we're on the same page as far as tones so I think you'll like it!

A lot of people find the Ace to be very bright so that tone knob is actually really nice to have on the OCD because you dial out some of that brightness without changing the tone too much.

Is there anything in particular that you'd like to hear? I was thinking of a clip of channel 1 with boost on and off as well as the tight gain with boost on/off.

I would love to see how it can tighten up the overdrive channel on the crunch setting and the recto set to "tube". I don't really use the fluid drive much except when I'm after a Santana-type sound. I'm hoping it doesn't muddy anything up. I llike it clear, punchy and tight with just a touch of Jimmy Page dirt.

Alright cool, so Channel 2 set to crunch with and without boost?

I'll use a Les Paul unless you'd prefer something with single coils.

Also Channel I set to Fat Clean and Tube. I use a Les Paul Standard, Les Paul Junior and a Tele for most of my stuff.

Thanks a million. You are too kind.

 

[recto-robbie]

See what you started now, LOL!, this thread most likely will become the hottest topic on the boogie board soon enough.
Platypus suggested a great OD the OCD. This is one that has beat out many for me and continues to sit on my board. Works great as an OD with your amps gain and also a stand alone on your clean channel.
And in the OD world its realatively inexpensive.

 

[G.I.G.]

I might be out on an island on this subject, but I prefer plugging straight into my amp with no overdrive or distortion boxes.

I used to be always looking for something to improve my sound. EQ pedals (which can work like a boost), OD pedals, etc. What I found was less is more. Right now my live rig is guitar-Boss TU-2 tuner pedal, ZW Dunlop wah-Mesa Roadster. That's it. I play in a cover band so versatility is huge, but I also like a straight up, face melting tube amp with nothing in between. After I ditched all of that stuff I was like "Wow!, I've been covering up that sound for how long?!?"

I did own a ZW Dunlop OD pedal a couple of years ago. I played with every setting on that thing and all I noticed was that it created more noise and feedback. I tried it on my dual rec and my old Tube Works combo. Same result with both.

I think that with the right pickups (no better way to boost your signal) and the right settings on an amp (especially a Mesa with tones of gain and distortion) that your sound can breathe a bit more without an OD pedal.

Am I the only guy that runs straight through to my amp? Feel free to start throw'n the rotten tomatoes!