Anything Similar to Tronographic Rusty Box?

I had experience comparing the Rusty vs Darkglass Alpha-Omicron: The Omicron could almost exactly mimic the Rusty at the light-medium overdrive settings. I had a slight preference for the Rusty perceiving a bit more clarity. I imagine the Alpha-Omega could get even closer, having the expanded EQ ability.

 

I hear one of Tb’s favorite builders has one in the pipe. I know nothing about the layout or any details but I would bet my life it will be at least easier to power than the Rusty Box.

 

The new Rusty Box doesn't need a separate power supply, it's 9V now.

 

I have no idea if it's the same size as the earlier version, but seems the same to me. 9V Is a great improvement anyways. And Darkglass Alpha Omega doesn't seem much smaller...

 

Sooo, anything new?

I really like the Rusty Box but it”s really heavy (weight) and the boost switch is pretty useless because of the massive volume jump.

 

Yes, there have been some similar pedals released in the last few years. The Trainer TS-100 from Drunk Beaver in Poland is much smaller and seems like a good alternative. The newly released Cosmic Trigger from Moose Electronics looks interesting too, but be aware that it's a cross between a TS-50 and an Acoustic 360. You could also have someone assemble the Aion TS-50B preamp kit for you.

In the "no longer made/unobtanium" category, you might be able to find a used Broughton Helion, which has the smaller form factor as well. There was also a guy named Jason Zdora who made some rackmount preamps based on the TS-120B, but it's unclear whether his pedal version ever made it past the prototyping stage. Unfortunately, I haven't seen any Traynor TS-based pedals with an option to tame the boost switch.

 

Really helpful, thanks.

 

Would you mind sharing your settings for the MXR? I have one laying around unused and getting a Rusty Box vibe might be a way to put it to use. Thanks.

 

Very cool, thanks. I have a GK 400RB as well so I will give it a shot.

 

Here is my dream pedal: a Rusty Box but the boost has a level knob and can be used independently of the pre and the order can be switched. Added Cab sim XLR out and Headphone out.

 

If you're relatively handy with a soldering iron, Aion Effects has a PCB to build your own TS-50B preamp.
TS-50 Bass Preamp / Traynor TS-50B - Aion FX
I built one and it sounded VERY Jesus Lizard/Shellac, but it ended up just being a bit much for what I wanted.

Also, from what I was hearing, the EQ is boost-only -- flat would be all knobs at zero.
Setting all the EQ knobs at noon created a lot of peaks and valleys in the frequency curve, which (along with the multiband compression/distortion) seem to define the trademark sound of this circuit.

 

I don't think there is a flat setting for the RB. With all knobs at zero there's an emphasis on bass and low-mids, but cutting seems to work better than boosting from noon, especially since each EQ knob increases the gain/distortion.

If I can't find the Steve Albini production tones I'm looking for from playing around with it some more and reading older threads, I'll try a used MXR M80 into my GK.

 

What kind of bass and amp are you using? What settings are you using on those?