Overdrive 101

Its all in the fingers, or is it?

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Molly
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Overdrive 101

Post by Molly »

Not sure if this is worthy of its own thread but I've quickly discovered that I need a degree in electronics and music history to help me choose an overdrive pedal.

So, if I understand it correctly, there was this Centaur (sp?) one that Moses brought down the mountain and it's been copied unsuccessfully until someone found a hidden stash of German-unobtainium diodes somewhere or other which led to .... Oh, I dunno. I've no idea how all this passed me by. All I recall is that all my mates used the TS9 and I used a Boss OD1. These days there's endless choice.

Anybody want to simplify it for me and share the pros and cons of the more popular ones that might be a good fit with an essentially clean amp?

I like the tones in this Hot Cake demo actually but it's YouTube and I've come unstuck this way before:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FXuRpPXRBa4[/youtube]

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Re: Overdrive 101

Post by jeremyb »

Hotcakes seem to favour EL84 amps, the thing I've found with OD pedals is that they can either cleanly boost the input signal to make the amp give more of what it does well, or add some colour and flavour to it... not always for the better.... either way it's a bit of a lottery... so you should just buy a joyo sweet baby and be done with it, best $50 you'll ever spend! www.guitarstuff.co.nz :)
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Re: Overdrive 101

Post by shafter »

I'm just as lost, I have 5 od pedals and counting, mind you I have a DT25 so I can change things quite a bit
depending on the sound I want. i'm just buying and trying.. not that smart really !
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Re: Overdrive 101

Post by Kris »

eno trouble (OCD clone) was the best 25 bucks i ever spent on gear.

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Re: Overdrive 101

Post by JHorner »

The problem is that the player, the guitar, the amp, the speakers, the mic, the production and the speakers you listen to it on affect the sound so much that the demo becomes 99% pointless.

The only way is to have the pedal, play the pedal, decide it fits in your rig or not, and then keep it or move it on.

If you're also changing your amp and guitar regularly, well... Thats a lot of variables.
Last edited by JHorner on Sat Feb 13, 2016 9:11 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: Overdrive 101

Post by alanp »

I've been told that overdrives can be VERY dependant on the amplifier. Some overdrives work well with a specific amp's voicing, others do not.
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Re: Overdrive 101

Post by Reg18 »

alanp wrote:I've been told that overdrives can be VERY dependant on the amplifier. Some overdrives work well with a specific amp's voicing, others do not.
I second this! It's unlikely to find a great overdrive that sounds equally as good through a Marshall as it does through a Fender as it does through a Vox etc etc.
generally you can find a forum with some people who have already tried a bunch of over drives through your amp and done the leg work for you but it would be a little harder with the Boutique stuff.

This is worth a watch

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Wzs2g1nz4JQ

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Re: Overdrive 101

Post by Kloppsta »

All jokes aside Molly, u should grab the modded m5 i am selling. If u r toying with the idea of playing with some effects its the perfect way to get into it without breaking the bank. With the audio mod the overdrives, distortions and fuzzes are entirely usable. The compressors are excellent and the modulation, delays and verbs are fantastic! Just putting it out there....
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Re: Overdrive 101

Post by Kiwiaxe »

Get a kemper already and forget about all this crap!

Molly I'm almost minded to have you borrow one from me just so that I can stop telling you this! I have already invited you to come check it out in Auckland

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Re: Overdrive 101

Post by JHorner »

Molly wrote:I dislike too many permutations. I'd just as soon the guitar and amp worked well together. That said, I do miss the battered old OD1 I had for years
Kiwiaxe wrote:Get a kemper already and forget about all this crap!
Molly wrote:I dislike too many permutations. I do miss the battered old OD1 I had for years
Kiwiaxe wrote:Get a kemper already
Molly wrote:too many permutations
Kiwiaxe wrote:kemper
Molly wrote:miss the battered old OD1 I had for years
https://reverb.com/item/1543722-boss-od ... -sn-788200

https://reverb.com/item/803228-boss-od-1-1986-yellow

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Re: Overdrive 101

Post by JHorner »

Pricey... but... looks like a mint condition piece of history

https://reverb.com/item/452132-boss-od- ... 4558d-chip

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Re: Overdrive 101

Post by hamo »

Seems like the non-booteek ODs are among the cheapest pedals to buy, especially second hand. Considering the gear you go through that costs 10 and 20 times as much Molly, I doubt you'd have difficulty trying out ODs til the cows came home. Might help you hang on to some of that tasty top end gear too, scratch the itch on effects instead.
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Re: Overdrive 101

Post by null_pointer »

Once you finish moving and settle your gear in at the new digs I'm going to send you some to try for a few weeks. Yes it may be a slippery slope but given what you like playing I reckon a Klon and a Honey Bee will be everything you never knew you needed...

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Re: Overdrive 101

Post by bender »

OD pedals depend more on the player than anything else I reckon. Amp/guitar next.

Some act as a kind of "fixed eq" in that they cut lows, emphasise mids, scoop mids, or tame hi frequencies (or any combination thereof really). Some soften pick attack, some emphasise it. Some add sustain through compression, some are more dynamic. All of these things will either work for your playing, or not. Sometimes the ones that don't work for your playing will actually sound utterly shite, despite working really well for others. The only answer is to try a bunch, and work out what you like/dislike about each.

I'd highly recommend the Catalinbread foundation pedals- either DLS (Marshall), SFT (Ampeg), Formula 5F6 (Fender Bassman) plus something from Silverpistol (TMcB)- probably a Rogue (Klonish) or Bronson (which is its own thing- in the Timmyish camp). The foundation pedal to give you a different amp flavour and the Rogue or Bronson to bump the front end of your amp or the foundation pedal. That'd be a great combination.

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Re: Overdrive 101

Post by bender »

BTW- I have a Silverpistol Bronson and it's awesome (for me)

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