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Blooped at rehearsal today. Sonically it’s killer. I love what it brings to my dirt. Functionally I see how it might not easily accommodate multiple pedals in a loop, as each pedal or combination might need different settings to optimize performance. I found one setting that worked really well with the four pedals I had in the loop, but I think the best choice is to buy two or three more Bloops.
We do a medley of You Really Got Me and All Day And All Of The Night. I stacked the 5th Gear and Boneshaker in the loop, and it was glorious.
We do a medley of You Really Got Me and All Day And All Of The Night. I stacked the 5th Gear and Boneshaker in the loop, and it was glorious.
I was playing a bass of mine that doesn’t usually get much play time earlier today. This bass has Darkstar pickups and wears Labella black nylon tapewound strings. It’s a very particular sound that I describe as highly articulate old school thump. I used my typical MBD-1 “high gain mixed in fairly low” setting and added my 3Leaf Chromatron into the mix. The combination of the short decay from the tapes, and also the relatively bright top end from the tapes worked in a really interesting way with the MBD-1. It was heavily divorcing the clean bottom from the distorted top end, and then the Chromatron turned the whole thing into this excellent and highly funky Moog facsimile. Another win for the MBD-1. Easily my favorite distortion to date.
Decided to pick one pedal for the loop and go for it. I chose the Dunwich ODB. My first impression is that this is a much better way to use it. Dialing in the Bloop just right for one pedal really makes it shine. Stacks better with the 5th Gear and the Boneshaker too.
The Dunwich 125b ODB is one of my favorite pedals ever. Your settings are almost identical to mine except I max my gain. I haven't tried it in the Bloop yet because I didnt think it needed bloopness but I definitely will now.
I like the ODB as a stand-alone pedal, but the bass EQ was always at 3-5 o’clock. By using the Bloop to support the low end, you open up all kinds of variation in how you EQ the ODB.
I won’t have another band rehearsal before our gig in two weeks, but I’m sticking with this setup.
How do you use the Bponeshaker? I have been messing with mine again recently and I've kinda been trying it as a preamp. It's not bad. It's just a dirty one. But seeing one your board I'm curious how you're running it.
Your board is like a Disneyland of tone.
I use distortion on about 20% of my bands material. I switch between the ODB and the Boneshaker, both set for medium gain distortion, each with their unique sound. I have the Boneshaker in a scooped EQ set up, with the highs somewhere between 2k and 4k, around +6db, and the lows somewhere between 80hz and 200hz, about +6db. Gain about 1 o'clock. It has this wonderful grindy bite that doesn't get too brittle or harsh. On something like The Strokes "Last Night", it just kills.
Yeah I really like the slightly scooped drive tone it can get. I pull the gain way back and bump the output up, it sounds great. Can't beat it for $20!!
Hey @father of fires , After spending the couple months with my Parallel Drive, I am super impressed with not only how good it sound as a stand alone rat for bass, but also how well it interacts with the MBD. I know someone asked you in the past why you haven't dipped you toes in a muff circuit and you said because there are plenty of good ones out there already. Was just wondering which ones are you partial to?
I can only imagine it’s because the muff is the most copied and modified circuit in history and there are already tons of builders doing awesome versions of it already. Not to say Jeff’s wouldn’t be bad a$$. But for a smaller builder, I’d imagine they would want to put most their eggs in something they’ve created themselves or something they felt was missing on the market for the most part. Not that there aren’t any great bass ODs on the market. Cause there are. But I’ve played a ton of them and I have to say, the MBD is in its own league when it comes to bass OD. There is no other OD I’ve ever played quite like it. That’s the way I see it anyway. Not speaking for Jeff.
I sent my parallel driver off to my builder and I’m sending the first payment to him this Friday!!! So I should have one in the next few weeks
can’t wait!!! I’m getting some of the mods I’ve seen posted here in the thread. It’s gonna be boss.
father of fires
Commercial User
I don't doubt I could make a good muff pedal I'm just not sure what I could add to a crowded market. The reason the DIY Parallel Drive is a kit and not a production pedal is because I didn't want to release yet another Rat when Ryan and Nick do such a great job.
As for muffs the Bluebeard is king and I like Moose Electronics' take on it.
As for muffs the Bluebeard is king and I like Moose Electronics' take on it.
I wish someone would re-release/revamp/redo (whatever you wanna call it) the Bluebeard since it's like a hugely rare pedal now. And expensive. Partly because it's rare. They are a B to find and once you do you're spending $350+ for it. Same with the Depth Charge. I've always wanted both these pedals hard but either I couldn't afford them or I could never find them when I could afford them. Of all the bass fuzz circuits out there these days, these 2 seem to still be highly coveted and would fill a medium sized hole.....
haha
father of fires
Commercial User
Also, can anyone remember who used a Bloop with a tube amp? I got some questions from a customer about doing the same thing.
father of fires
Commercial User
I wish someone would re-release/revamp/redo (whatever you wanna call it) the Bluebeard since it's like a hugely rare pedal now. And expensive. Partly because it's rare. They are a B to find and once you do you're spending $350+ for it. Same with the Depth Charge. I've always wanted both these pedals hard but either I couldn't afford them or I could never find them when I could afford them. Of all the bass fuzz circuits out there these days, these 2 seem to still be highly coveted and would fill a medium sized hole.....
FYI they're building them again.
