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Creation Audio Labs MK.4.23
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Recommended By
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Average Price
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Average Rating
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100% of reviewers
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None indicated
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9.0
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Description:
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Clean boost pedal. Made in USA, true bypass.
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Author
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bongomania
OVNIFX
Registered: October 2005
Location: PDX, OR
Posts: 30219
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Review Date: Mon June 29, 2009
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Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Price you paid?: None indicated
| Rating: 9
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Pros:
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TRULY clean boost, low noise, good range of gain
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Cons:
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maybe too clean for some tastes
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I've owned a few previous clean boosts, all of them based on the same Jack Orman FET design (as the majority of clean boost pedals are), and I'll have to refer to my memory when comparing against them. Presently I have here a Creation Audio Mk.4.23, a Radial PB1 "class A" booster, and a Maxon CP9Pro+ which is a compressor, except if you turn the ratio down to 1:1 and raise the threshold all the way up, it is simply a clean booster.
I tested all three using a passive J bass and an active PJ bass, as well as running them into a Countryman Type 85 DI (solid state, with high input impedance) and an A-Designs REDDI (tube and transformer, with low input impedance). Then each into a clean mixer with high-fidelity headphones. All of these pedals run on normal Boss-type 9V DC power supplies.
Honestly, their overall performance quality was very similar, such that in a live gig or full band mix they would be exactly equals. The differences were audible in my controlled hifi listening station, if I listened carefully, so I'd say those differences are pretty much only worth considering if you are in a recording studio at a professional level.
The Creation Mk.4.23 is obviously the best-looking one here. It is also built very solidly and gives the impression of robustness. Of all of these pedals, it had the flattest EQ profile and the most high end clarity. It also seemed to have more resistance to ambient EMF noise. The flatness and the clarity in the highs actually worked against it for me on a subjective "tone" level, as the slight mid emphasis and slight extra harmonic content of the other pedals was more pleasing to my ears. The bright highs of the Mk.4.23 could seem harsh sometimes, though to be honest that is probably just because I'm not used to hearing that upper "air" so clearly.
The Orman FET boosters all share the quality that the harder you drive them, the more they distort, everything from subtle added harmonic content all the way to buzzy overdrive. They can be super clean as well, depending on the specific design and how you drive it. So someone looking for more audible "fatness" in their tone would do better with one of those FET boosts.
The Mk.4.23 does not get fatter or overdriven at any level of boost that I tried. For some people that will be a good thing, especially if you want a lot of boost without the tone getting muddy or smeared.
The Radial and the Maxon both sat in the middle of that spectrum. They add a slight bit of harmonic content, a touch of fatness, but it's subtle and they will not overdrive.
In terms of gain amounts, the Radial had the least, IIRC its max is +15 dB. The Maxon and the Mk.4.23 have significantly more gain available, and are about equal to each other in that way. However the Mk.4.23 sounded clean and clear at the max gain level, while the Maxon sounded somewhat more colored at its max.
The Mk.4.23 and the Maxon are both "true bypass", though they use different switching systems. The Radial has a buffer engaged on the line at all times, so that the footswitch only turns the boost stage on and off. For a piezo-equipped bass, for long cable runs, and long pedal fx chains, the Radial would be most useful, as it would buffer and pass a clean strong signal at all times, with the switchable option of boost. For more typical basses, shorter cable runs, and fewer pedals, however, the always-on buffer might not be needed.
None of these pedals were able to adequately drive a Carvin DCM1000 power amp, which has a 1V input sensitivity. The Mk.4.23 and the Maxon produced enough levels to play at a moderate volume, but the tone of the lows was weak, which is a sure sign of inadequate input gain into the amp. I don't think any of these manufacturers made any claims about driving power amps, but the question is asked pretty often here.
So, wrapping it up, the Creation Mk.4.23 is a very fine piece of equipment, and at a subtle level it is "finer" than the other boosts I tried. On the other hand, I personally liked the tone of the other pedals better, and found the ultra clear highs of the Mk.4.23 to be distracting. On a real world gig, the differences would be inaudible, but in a recording studio I might give the edge to the Mk.4.23 for its flat clean presentation and resistance to external noise... or I might give the edge to a pedal with fatter tone, depending on my mood.
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