Clearing Out a Couple of Pedals

[LucSulla]

I've been building a second, simplified pedal board designed for going straight in to a clean amp for shorter gigs, shared backlines, and so on. Getting all my dirt off the board and finding the right time-based effects has been a bit of an adventure, and, I ironically, I 've found myself mostly using stuff I already have or, in the case of the Keeley Caverns, just buying another. Some of the pedals that didn't seem to work on my main board work great when they aren't going into dirt - go figure. I never touched an overdrive/distortion pedal for the first 25 years I played and relied on the amp for all of my dirt. I think that's why I'm kind of having fun with this because it makes me feel like a complete n00b again, but it is leaving me with some good pedals which weren't good for what I'm trying to do with them.

I may add some more stuff to this thread over time as I keep taking stuff on and of

Anyway, here's what I do want to move on All prices include CONUS shipping with PayPal F/F. 

Catalinbread Dirty Little Secret MKIII - $100  - Basically a Super Lead/Super Bass amp in a box with a lot more gain. There is an internal switch that switches between a Super Lead and Super Bass circuit. There is also and internal presence. The EQ does WAY more than the eq on a Plexi (which isn't saying much), so while it does emulate the circuit, diming everything won't workout the same. There is a noticeable difference between the two modes, and they both have their uses.  

I've literally owned this pedal for a week and gigged it once after buying it new. It must suck if I already want to dump it, right? Not at all!. I need a good base dirt for my stripped down board, and, given my biases, I of course thought, "and that should be a hot rod Marshall tone!"  Well, as it turns out, that was not the right way to go for what I'm needing to get done with this set up. Like I said, I'm still learning a lot about this kind of setup.

If this was going on a board where I was doing a lot of 80s/90s/00s hard rock and needed to make damn sure I had a Marshall sound on tap, it would definitely stay. 

 

Edited July 22, 2024 by LucSulla

[LucSulla]

3. Earthquaker Devices Analog Optical Vibe - SOLD- EQD's description 

 

 

Edited July 25, 2024 by LucSulla

[Ham Rex]

On 7/13/2024 at 4:34 PM, LucSulla said:

3. Earthquaker Devices Analog Optical Vibe - $125 - EQD's description "

The Depths is our take on the classic optical vibe circuit. Now you can swab the decks with the same lush, pulsating, three-dimensional swirling sound you know and love, with some modern accouterments for all you land-lubbers out there.

The Depths is optimized for use with all kinds of instruments, pickups, and to play well with dirt, so nobody’s left waiting on shore. If it’s got a ¼” output, plug it in and get deep!"

My take - I've decided I like vibes with a treadle, so on my main board, I'm going back to a Deja Mini v2. I also have a Lovepedal Vibronaut, which is an absolute killer Univibe copy, but it's a bit unstable. Mine tends to make a high pitch oscillation when running into a dirty amp even when bypassed. I contacted Sean, and there is a story there, but too long for here. I bought The Depths as a more quieter alternative to the Vibronaut, and it's a killer box. My ear likes the Vibronaut a bit more though. Since I'm using one of these on my small board with the dirt coming via pedal, the oscillation isn't an issue. If I was running it in front of a dirty amp, I'd stick with The Depths because it gets 95% of the way there and is a quieter pedal overall. 

Bought used, so no papers and box with this one. A little bit of residue on the label on the back as well. 

 

I've found putting a vibe on the actual amp input instead of in a chain on effect loop works best or at least 1st in the chain.

But that's just me.

[LucSulla]

2 hours ago, Ham Rex said:

I've found putting a vibe on the actual amp input instead of in a chain on effect loop works best or at least 1st in the chain.

But that's just me.

I never use mine in the loop. On my main board, I run them Guitar -> Tuner -> Comp -> EP Boost (always on) -> Mini DejaVibe Mk2 -> Wah -> Phase 90 -> ODs -> Big Muff -> Amp. Loop is Send -> Chorus -> Wampler Tape Echo -> Keeley Cavern -> Return. 

The second, sort of "flyboard" I have is Guitar -> Octopussy -> Tuner -> Vibronaut -> OD -> Eternity AMP11 -> Keeley Caverns -> Amp with nothing going to a loop. 

The Vibronaut is a little wild when going into the front end of a dirty amp. Sometimes I get the oscillation, sometimes not. However, it never happens when going into a pedal providing the dirt. Since that second board is made for showing up and having to do my whole Zakk-Wylde-Meets-David-Gilmour thing I seem to gravitate toward into god knows what kind of backline amp (usually a Twin Reverb around these parts), it's absolutely perfect for that, doubly so since it is also to be intended to be a little more grab-and-go than that unwieldy bastard I used when I want the full meal deal.  

I never use the comp and vibe on the same stuff. I only use the Comp on country songs. The EP Boost I'm really just using for a little warmth and a minor line drive, but, otherwise, the Vibe is the first major tone-shaping effect the guitar's signal sees unless I put the wah first. I've been screwing around with using both at the same time lately, and like the wah after more when I do that.

[JGale]

Luc.

was looking through pedal kits at Fuzzdog and it struck me that this pedal might fulfill your wishes for flexibility on a pedalboard.

https://browneamps.com/theprotein

Left side a Blues Breaker with increased output

Right side an OD-R with reduced gain.

I know nothing of what I speak just thinking of you. 

[Ham Rex]

On 7/17/2024 at 1:09 AM, LucSulla said:

I never use mine in the loop. On my main board, I run them Guitar -> Tuner -> Comp -> EP Boost (always on) -> Mini DejaVibe Mk2 -> Wah -> Phase 90 -> ODs -> Big Muff -> Amp. Loop is Send -> Chorus -> Wampler Tape Echo -> Keeley Cavern -> Return. 

The second, sort of "flyboard" I have is Guitar -> Octopussy -> Tuner -> Vibronaut -> OD -> Eternity AMP11 -> Keeley Caverns -> Amp with nothing going to a loop. 

The Vibronaut is a little wild when going into the front end of a dirty amp. Sometimes I get the oscillation, sometimes not. However, it never happens when going into a pedal providing the dirt. Since that second board is made for showing up and having to do my whole Zakk-Wylde-Meets-David-Gilmour thing I seem to gravitate toward into god knows what kind of backline amp (usually a Twin Reverb around these parts), it's absolutely perfect for that, doubly so since it is also to be intended to be a little more grab-and-go than that unwieldy bastard I used when I want the full meal deal.  

I never use the comp and vibe on the same stuff. I only use the Comp on country songs. The EP Boost I'm really just using for a little warmth and a minor line drive, but, otherwise, the Vibe is the first major tone-shaping effect the guitar's signal sees unless I put the wah first. I've been screwing around with using both at the same time lately, and like the wah after more when I do that.

Wow That's an awesome setup!

Thanks for sharing.

[LucSulla]

On 7/18/2024 at 9:51 AM, JGale said:

Luc.

was looking through pedal kits at Fuzzdog and it struck me that this pedal might fulfill your wishes for flexibility on a pedalboard.

https://browneamps.com/theprotein

Left side a Blues Breaker with increased output

Right side an OD-R with reduced gain.

I know nothing of what I speak just thinking of you. 

That's a pretty sweet looking pedal!

[LucSulla]

Dirt B. Hinds Mastodrive - $215

This is a Klon Klone with a couple of extra settings. There is a voice switch, which, to my ear, seems a somewhat subtle shift in gain and highs. There is also a headroom shift. Up feels more like a 100 watt amp and down a 50 watt amp. 

Great pedal built in Prague in conjunction with Brent Hinds from Mastodon. Despite Mastodon being very much a modern metal band, this pedal leans more toward vintage sounds. I'm not a Klon nut - actually never played anything else with that circuit or desired to. I bought it because I like Mastodon and tend to buy merch and stuff from bands I like. It just so happened that this pedal is great! It lived on my board for a year or so. It never seems to make it back on these days though. It's not quite right for the current setups I'm running.

I've gone back and forth on selling it because it's a somewhat limited release (this is from the first batch of 500), and it is super cool. I've been kinda concerned that if I sold this one that I wouldn't be able to afford another one, but it seems prices have come back down to Earth. Plus, I have too much stuff sitting around that I'm hanging on to because I like it but is nonetheless not getting used. 

The only other Klone I've spent any time with is a Tumnus, and I like this one better than that one. That being said, I couldn't tell you how close it is to the original Klon sound. My suspicion is probably pretty damn much the same. I mean, if you can make a Bad Monkey sound the same, stands to reason most any OD will. As far as feel, I can report it works nicely like a good amp. It responds well to the guitar volume and all of that business. 

It has a couple of little nicks in the case from use but is overall in great shape.