Overdrive/Distortion - Need one.. suggestions?

nick · 2009-09-26T14:05:01+00:00

I have a Tubescreamer, the TS10 model though and I have a cheapy Behringer Ultra Metal. So far: 1) TS10, too little too trebley 2) Boss DS-1, also too trebley, could take paint off the walls (single coil strat) 3) Behringer UM100, fine for Metallica or early Green Day, terrible for Pearl Jam etc. 4) Boss MT-2, too digital and not warm enough Other suggestions, want to try out a Rat, went to MusicMate/Bothners but neither had. Looking for the 90s alternative sound, Pearl Jam, early Smashing Pumpkins, Foo Fighters etc.

Tokai-SA

My winner, the Fulltone OCD.

IMO, it kills all others. ?

aja

Tokai SA wrote My winner, the Fulltone OCD.

IMO, it kills all others. ?

Haven't heard that yet. Where can I go listen to one?

I am still in love with the MI Audio Tubezone...

AlanRatcliffe

I looked into the OCD at one point. Very nice pedal - very responsive (almost amplike) and a huge range of gain. Ultimately not my kind of thing (but that's me rather than any fault of the pedal - I'd rather have something that has a more usable low gain range like the Barber LTD).

Usually when I want to see/hear pedals, I check the vids on http://proguitarshop.com/ (or their YouTube channel) first. Excellent, consistent reviews, same amp and same few guitars.

msch997

+1 on the OCD

kayDUB

hmm, now this is not good for GAS. Been thinking about selling my maxon sd9 and getting an OCD, since i'm currently using the turbo rat as my "heavier" pedal.

any suggestions as to where i can order both an OCD and a BBE supacharger or Pedal Power from the same place?

AlanRatcliffe

I just ordered my Nova Drive this morning. I'll have it in a few days :dance:

Tokai-SA

Wow, that Nova looks very cool...hmmm, looks like I need to do some TGP homework on it. ?

CDee

Alan Ratcliffe wrote I just ordered my Nova Drive this morning. I'll have it in a few days :dance:

I also had a look at the Nova drive, it looks and sounds very good (on Youtube). Please give us a review of it when you get it. I'm getting my Nova Delay soon and might indulge in getting the Nova Drive aswell.

AlanRatcliffe

Tokai SA wrote Wow, that Nova looks very cool...hmmm, looks like I need to do some TGP homework on it. ?

I reviewed it for the October issue of Muse Mag: http://museonline.co.za/web/articles.php?articlescat=muscor (you have to click on the link on the second page to load the review - I can't link directly for some reason).

shadow1

Alan! that thing sounds AMAZING! i LOVE the transparency of it ? often thats all i want is more drive/no colouring of my sound etc.

sweet...think i might get this instead of something else...where did you order it from?i see in your artical its more/less R4k.

CDee

Thanks Alan. Sounds good then... Have you reviewed the Nova delay perhaps?

AlanRatcliffe

shadow1 wrote Alan! that thing sounds AMAZING! i LOVE the transparency of it ? often thats all i want is more drive/no colouring of my sound etc.

The Rat-like distortion is surprisingly uncoloured, but the overdrive is not quite as uncoloured as something like the Barber LTD, but is fairly neutral. The little bit of hype it has works well without being over-the-top like a Tube Screamer. I used it for my Blue Spy comp entry: http://ratcliffe.co.za/music/a_alan_blue_spy.mp3

- The rhythms are a touch of distortion and the lead is both. A clean Fender Twin is the amp.

where did you order it from?i see in your artical its more/less R4k.

I got mine directly from the importer - sadly you can't do the same. I think most places will discount it by about a grand if you push ? Yes, it's expensive, but it's worth it when you take that it gives you both a high quality OD and a distortion and lets you save patches.

CDee wrote Thanks Alan. Sounds good then... Have you reviewed the Nova delay perhaps?

This coming issue. In short: a very good sounding delay, with a lot of features. Better than the Boss - both sound and features - but not quite as full featured as the Eventide Time Factor. Very nice, but it didn't excite me quite like the Nova Drive did.

ed

Hi Alan. I am also interested in the nova drive but more interested in the overdrive section. Would you say that the overdrive section is better or as good as a Paul C Timmy drive or a divided by 13 joyride. Reason I ask is because all three pedals are in the $250 range but you seem to get more pedal with the nova drive.

AlanRatcliffe

They are similar, but not exactly the same. They both have a little hype, but I think the Timmy's hype is a little higher up in frequency - there's a bit more sparkle, while the ND's OD has a bit more "oomph". The Timmy can't get as much drive, but does the clean boost thing a bit better, IMO. The ND is a lot more flexible with more gain range. I also have to say: I've never been much of a distortion person, always preferring overdrive, but with the ND I surprised myself by using DS more often than overdrive. It's that good.

BTW, If you want to try a "Timmy" without too much financial outlay, try a Danelectro Transparent Overdrive - the exact same circuit without the boutique components or price.

The ND's ability to mix in clean, bypassed tone with the overdrive is a nice one (although I didn't use it much in the time I had) - but it means that you can mix distortion and bypass too (by setting the overdrive for all bypass and paralleling it with the distortion). Or even distortion, bypass and overdrive all together in parallel. The only configuration not possible is OD and DS in series with bypass in parallel.

I found I was turning the amp's drive down and relying more on the pedal (which for me says a lot). I played with it for a few weeks and, while I was getting good tones immediately, still felt I was still scratching the surface when I gave it back. So I had to buy one (to carry on experimenting ?).

I do think that if the minutiae of tone is your thing, you'll probably be happier with two boutique pedals - the ability to mix and match brands/models is always going to trump two preselected circuits in one box. But the Nova Drive is boutique quality sound and offers far more flexibility - particularly in any kind of a performance situation where the minutiae are lost anyway. It also lets you do things you can't do easily with multiple boxes (like the parallel thing), and does them flawlessly.

Finally, one thing I didn't get to mention in my review due to space limitations (and the fact that few locally would be able to make use of it), is the ND integrates seamlessly into the Nova System, so you can write and store patches for the ND in the NS.

nick

Crunch Box has arrived! I paid R165 to collect. Box it comes in is awfully small. ?

nick

So just under a month to arrive, just over R1k to buy and ship and R165 to collect. Still beats R2399 local price ?

shadow1

OOOOO!!! how i want one of those! STOKED NICK! you got the whole arsenal of overdrive tones now!

MIKA-the-better-one

I order in all pedals + shipping is way cheaper than buying here. Everything here is double what it should, just wish i could do the same with guitars....

nick

shadow1 wrote OOOOO!!! how i want one of those! STOKED NICK! you got the whole arsenal of overdrive tones now!

If you still want to test it out let me know, I want to play your Peavey 8)

shadow1

nick wrote
shadow1 wrote OOOOO!!! how i want one of those! STOKED NICK! you got the whole arsenal of overdrive tones now!
If you still want to test it out let me know, I want to play your Peavey 8)

YES x2 ? lets organise a hookup soon, we can abuse eachothers gear ?

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