Darkglass B3K vs Aguilar AGRO

[scottfeldstein]

I've never been entirely satisfied with my overdrive/distortion/dirt effects. And I've had a few on the board over the last five years or so. I've tried a couple of Sansamp, an MXR bass DI, a couple of Source Audio, a cheap Joyo, and more. Lately I've been using the Aguilar AGRO and it's ok. But I decided recently to try Darkglass so I bought a used B3K. The results? A little better, but not leaps and bounds.

The dirt circuits sound remarkably similar between the two. They diverge mostly on the EQ controls. The Darkglass is easier to get a deeper, darker EQ while the Aguilar is more brittle, even with it's Contour knob fully scooped.

Am I missing something? What I really want is some sizzle, like I'm running my signal under a broiler. Like it's a cast iron plate of fajitas arriving at the table in a cloud of steam. I lean more traditional. More Geddy Lee/Geezer Butler/John Entwistle than modern metal players.

I bet quite a few of you can weigh in with advice on settings or maybe alternate pedals to try.

 

[monsterthompson]

For the Agro, try not scooping it and bringing the presence and gain way down. I found that the three knobs were pretty interactive. Adjusting one usually meant tweaking one or both of the others. I was able to get some decent tones in the bedroom with my J and Agro.

The DG B3 sound isn't my thing, but I enjoy their new Alpha Omega. Of course, it's got an Omega price tag.

If you're not getting what you want with these two boxes, try a Rat based unit, like an IdiotBox Blower or a Cat from Fuzzrocious (or a Volt Thrower if you can find one). The Blower is a high gain pedal but does really well at lower gain settings. The gain and EQ curve peaks for Rat pedals around 1k.

There are other good boxes out there, and others will suggest.

 

[blindrabbit]

I've never been entirely satisfied with my overdrive/distortion/dirt effects. And I've had a few on the board over the last five years or so. I've tried a couple of Sansamp, an MXR bass DI, a couple of Source Audio, a cheap Joyo, and more. Lately I've been using the Aguilar AGRO and it's ok. But I decided recently to try Darkglass so I bought a used B3K. The results? A little better, but not leaps and bounds.

The dirt circuits sound remarkably similar between the two. They diverge mostly on the EQ controls. The Darkglass is easier to get a deeper, darker EQ while the Aguilar is more brittle, even with it's Contour knob fully scooped.

Am I missing something? What I really want is some sizzle, like I'm running my signal under a broiler. Like it's a cast iron plate of fajitas arriving at the table in a cloud of steam. I lean more traditional. More Geddy Lee/Geezer Butler/John Entwistle than modern metal players.

I bet quite a few of you can weigh in with advice on settings or maybe alternate pedals to try.

I'd suggest trying a Rusty Box, that should nail what you are looking for.

A Volt Thrower / Iron Pig / Soothsayer / Knightfall 66 (i.e. RAT based bass friendly pedals) *might* also work for you as well.

 

[RockDoc]

There are so many variables at play (bass, strings, amp, pick-or-fingers, etc.), to say nothing of personal taste and "tone goals," that there is no real "one-size-fits-all" solution. That said, I second the suggestion to give the Idiotbox Blower Box a try. I run one at low gain (through an always-on SABDDI). It retains (or boosts) the low end and the highs, adds a nice grit, is very dynamic ("touch sensitive"), and sounds really good in the mix -- for me at least!

 

[2010P]

The op should buy a Landphil. It brings much sizzle to the table. So much more versatile than the Blower Box.

 

[taylor16]

Dunwich Volt Thrower. Stupid good.

 

[RickyWoo]

Get a Beta. Problem solved.

 

[Nephilymbass]

I've never been entirely satisfied with my overdrive/distortion/dirt effects. And I've had a few on the board over the last five years or so. I've tried a couple of Sansamp, an MXR bass DI, a couple of Source Audio, a cheap Joyo, and more. Lately I've been using the Aguilar AGRO and it's ok. But I decided recently to try Darkglass so I bought a used B3K. The results? A little better, but not leaps and bounds.

The dirt circuits sound remarkably similar between the two. They diverge mostly on the EQ controls. The Darkglass is easier to get a deeper, darker EQ while the Aguilar is more brittle, even with it's Contour knob fully scooped.

Am I missing something? What I really want is some sizzle, like I'm running my signal under a broiler. Like it's a cast iron plate of fajitas arriving at the table in a cloud of steam. I lean more traditional. More Geddy Lee/Geezer Butler/John Entwistle than modern metal players.

I bet quite a few of you can weigh in with advice on settings or maybe alternate pedals to try.

I replaced my b7k ultra which has the same circuit as the b3k with the Darkglass alpha omega and am very happy.

 

[JimboP]

You might have seen this already, but it gives a few different options for B3 settings

 

[crguti]

The Agro has more gain than the B3K. Put an eq after the Agro and you will never leave the house.

 

[AngelsBassBall]

I third the Blowerbox recommendation. (If that even makes sense). I went through 2 B3K's, Finnish and Seattle models, they were ok but did not have the "sizzle" I was looking for.

I now have 2 Blowerboxes, one on each of my boards (2 different projects) and they work extemely well. They can be dialed in for over the top fuzz/grit, subtle Overdrive and everything in between. I have however found that they require isolated power to be consistently quiet in various rooms/clubs/etc.

Hope this helps!

 

[2010P]

I third the Blowerbox recommendation. (If that even makes sense). I went through 2 B3K's, Finnish and Seattle models, they were ok but did not have the "sizzle" I was looking for.

I now have 2 Blowerboxes, one on each of my boards (2 different projects) and they work extemely well. They can be dialed in for over the top fuzz/grit, subtle Overdrive and everything in between. I have however found that they require isolated power to be consistently quiet in various rooms/clubs/etc.

Hope this helps!

Interesting. I am using my Landphil (which is an upgraded Blower Box) as my always-on for my slightly dirty clean sound. One flick of the distortion knob and I get all the grind I want. I wasn't expecting it to be as good a preamp as it is. I had a Blower Box, but the Landphil takes it to the next level. The sound is 3D with the Landphil.

 

[T Bassman]

Tech 21 British pedal gets me to that special place, and they show up used regularly in my local stores.
No loss of low end, usable mids and full on Lemmy in a box, all the way to smooth scooped distortion when needed.

 

[Buzz E]

I've gone through every pedal mentioned here and then some. Finally settled on a Grizzly Bass into Volt Thrower. Soooo much versatility, and that combination can replicate the sound of any previously tried pedal with ease. BOOM...!

 

[Fuzzbass]

I've never been entirely satisfied with my overdrive/distortion/dirt effects. And I've had a few on the board over the last five years or so. I've tried a couple of Sansamp, an MXR bass DI, a couple of Source Audio, a cheap Joyo, and more. Lately I've been using the Aguilar AGRO and it's ok. But I decided recently to try Darkglass so I bought a used B3K. The results? A little better, but not leaps and bounds.

The dirt circuits sound remarkably similar between the two. They diverge mostly on the EQ controls. The Darkglass is easier to get a deeper, darker EQ while the Aguilar is more brittle, even with it's Contour knob fully scooped.

Am I missing something? What I really want is some sizzle, like I'm running my signal under a broiler. Like it's a cast iron plate of fajitas arriving at the table in a cloud of steam. I lean more traditional. More Geddy Lee/Geezer Butler/John Entwistle than modern metal players.

I bet quite a few of you can weigh in with advice on settings or maybe alternate pedals to try.

I love sizzly tone and for that my weapon of choice is my B7K, or B7K Ultra -- the Hi Mid control really delivers. It's voiced at 2.8K on the non-Ultra, and I set it for 3kHz (essentially the same thing) on the Ultra. The attack boost setting (which is present on the B3K) also delivers high end grit, but I will assume you tried it and didn't like it. Attack boost isn't quite the same as Hi Mid, but even so I won't recommend the (expensive) B7K.

Instead I'll recommend the Tech 21 Oxford pedal. I think it's now out of production, but you might be able to find one used at a nice price. I'm a huge Entwistle fan, and to me the Oxford does a fantastic job of getting close to his clanky Live at Leeds tone... even better than the Tech 21 Leeds pedal, which surprised the heck out of me. I've read that the Rusty Box also works well for this, but I haven't tried one.

EDIT: the Oxford is definitely NOT a one-dimensional pedal. Sounds great at a wide variety of gain levels. It isn't just for Entwistle... it'll do all kinds of cool clanky tones, including the Jesus Lizard vibe. And non-clanky ones too, but I love top-end aggression.

I also love the Blower Box at low, medium, and high gain levels.... but wouldn't call it the best for in-your-face sizzle.

 

[Fuzzbass]

Oh... for top-end sizzle I would also recommend one of the Brimstone Audio dual-band overdrive pedals: either Crossover Distortion, or the new Basilisk (which I haven't tried yet).

Background: the classic Entwistle tone (emulated by Chris Squire, Geddy Lee, Billy Sheehan, and others) is to use a pair of amplifiers (or more). For Entwistle and Squire, one would be a guitar rig set for distorted mids and highs, the other would be a bass rig set for mostly clean lows. You're probably like me and have no intention of setting up dual rigs even if there's space on stage. That's where dual band overdrive can work very well. A dual-band OD has a crossover that allows you to keep lows clean and mids/highs dirty. It can be tricky to set up, but when dialed in correctly it sounds fantastic.

The Tech21 dUg 1000 amplifier is based on this very concept. I'd definitely recommend that if you don't mind getting a new amp (it's expensive, btw).

I also have the VFE Triumvirate which is actually a three-band pedal: different OD levels for lows, mids, and highs. It also kicks butt, but I don't believe it's in production any more.

Finally, the Empress Multidrive has band-pass filters at a fixed 500Hz. It also works well for clean lows, dirty highs, but I prefer having a variable crossover such as on the Brimstone pedals I mentioned.