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Dynamic Punchy Overdrive Pedal with a Vintage Amp Possible???

#21
gregmon79 said:
I was suggesting that you try and add the fx10 to your existing setup. That way you could just run it on the treble side more after your OD you have now. That way it treats the OD and brings out more high end sparkle. not that you use it strictly as an OD. I'm not that would work anyway because the fx10 is so clean. Hopefully you'll find what you're looking for either way. It's not easy, finding the right tools for the job. I totally understand what you mean about not wanting to get too "metal" sounding. Yet you need an OD that's not going to mush up on you like a Blueberry would or the like. If you know how to solder at all, I can't recommend the Pork Loin enough. Modded though. All you do is swap one capacitor out and you're on your way. It removes the sorta blanket from the PL. It opens up the high end and you still get that lovely, more organic type drive with the high end sheen at the same time.

The rusty box will def give you that punch you're looking for and if you use it as a dirt pedal alone, you get all that other tone shaping then too. I used to have a GK rails pedal as well. This could also work for you quite well. Def packs some serious punch. Hopefully you'll be able to find one. As far as Rats go, it's def in the trebly side. But with a Rat like the Blower Box or Rat/Cat tail, these Rat variants are great on bass. They were designed that way. And they will also do great jobs at getting a drive tone. However, they could be a little too aggressive sounding like you said, even at lower gain settings.

But I honestly think the OCD circuit is the one you're after. I hear the new v2 that just got released supposedly took care of the low end loss of the previous ver. And the Dunwich and Bedlam are both wonderful with low end retention as well as being barley there drives with some serious sparkle. Great with tube heads.
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I agree with everything you've said so far. So I'll try out a OCD v2! Next on the list is a rusty box and then a GK Rails
 
#22
I see a lot about effects above, but is it possible the 2 15's are part of the issue?

Is it possible to try your same setup with a different 2 12 or 2 10 cab?
Disclaimer: Just a wild guess on my part...
 
#24
gregmon79 said:
I have the F800b. And while its a great pedal, I would be worried about the sweep of the gain pot. Its goes from not much but a volume boost to dist pretty quick. I'm not sure if he adjusted that in the Solace or not but it's based off the same thing. I used the F800b as a straight dist. Never really felt it excelled at OD really. But then I think he also made adjustments in the later versions for this maybe.....
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Good to know, thanks. I haven't heard much about that pedal or amp on TB, so I was curious when I saw a pedal that had the F800B circuit in it. I know JohnK made one as well, but that would be more in the custom pricing territory which I probably can't afford. At one point, I owned a JohnK Acoustix 370 power amp simulation pedal which was perfect. But unfortunately I had to sell it because of financial reasons. That pedal cost twice as much as any other standard boutique pedal
 
#25
jaroh24 said:
Good to know, thanks. I haven't heard much about that pedal or amp on TB, so I was curious when I saw a pedal that had the F800B circuit in it. I know JohnK made one as well, but that would be more in the custom pricing territory which I probably can't afford. At one point, I owned a JohnK Acoustix 370 power amp simulation pedal which was perfect. But unfortunately I had to sell it because of financial reasons. That pedal cost twice as much as any other standard boutique pedal
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Yeah Ryan's was a little cheaper but it was still pretty spendy. Rightfully so though. That pedal was birthed from a thread started here on TB from a group of pretty awesome minds that came together to make it happen so I can understand why it cost a little more. I've thought about selling mine but I just can't do it. Not only because it's plain awesome but because it has some sentimental value to me as well. That pedal is killer in the mix. I too haven't had too many JohnK pedals. He does great work regardless. That must’ve hurt when you had to flip that Acoustic pedal! Ouch. Been there before though. It’s never easy.
 
#27
jaroh24 said:
I loved the FX10, but I'm trying to not have a large pedalboard and instead learn to use my fingers more for slight tone variations. Maybe I'll have to buy one again, but I'd much rather buy an overdrive that mostly clips the high end and will give me the presence I need, instead of having to use an FX10 and an overdrive. Quite the tall order but I'm sure it's possible with the amount of amazing pedals that are on the market these days
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Oh I'm not suggesting a FX10 and overdrive. For me the FX10 just drives the amp on its own (should clarify: Tone Hammer amp, not pedal).
 
#29
IMG_0864.JPG
My search for the same thing stopped here
 
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#30
CryingBass said:
I see a lot about effects above, but is it possible the 2 15's are part of the issue?

Is it possible to try your same setup with a different 2 12 or 2 10 cab?
Disclaimer: Just a wild guess on my part...
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Right now I only own an Acousic 370 and a 215. I don't have the money to get any other cabs, but I could bring the head to guitar center and see how OD sounds with a 410 or something.

You're honestly probably right. 10 inch speakers would yield a much punchier OD tone, but I love my 215. It pairs with the 370 so well. I also built it with Faital 15PR400 speakers which actually have a fair amount of high end. Cutoff is at about 2500-3000Hz for just 2 15" speakers!

The 370 amp also has a bright switch which really compensates for the 215 setup. But I'm sure different speakers would yield more midrange content in any OD I use
 
#31
gregmon79 said:
Yeah Ryan's was a little cheaper but it was still pretty spendy. Rightfully so though. That pedal was birthed from a thread started here on TB from a group of pretty awesome minds that came together to make it happen so I can understand why it cost a little more. I've thought about selling mine but I just can't do it. Not only because it's plain awesome but because it has some sentimental value to me as well. That pedal is killer in the mix. I too haven't had too many JohnK pedals. He does great work regardless. That must’ve hurt when you had to flip that Acoustic pedal! Ouch. Been there before though. It’s never easy.
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Which pedal do you have, the JohnK F800B or the Big Game version? And yes JohnK's stuff is incredibly well made so it's definitely worth the price. I just couldn't afford keeping a pedal that cost more than my amp, which is an exact clone of my amps power amp! Haha. I was hoping to sell it and buy a cheaper OD that can push my amp into the same territory as the 370 pedal
 
#35
jaroh24 said:
Which pedal do you have, the JohnK F800B or the Big Game version? And yes JohnK's stuff is incredibly well made so it's definitely worth the price. I just couldn't afford keeping a pedal that cost more than my amp, which is an exact clone of my amps power amp! Haha. I was hoping to sell it and buy a cheaper OD that can push my amp into the same territory as the 370 pedal
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I've had his submarine and blueberry OD tuned with more treble content. But I had the big game F800b.
 
#37
gregmon79 said:
I've had his submarine and blueberry OD tuned with more treble content. But I had the big game F800b.
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Gotcha. Yeah the blueberry got really muddy for me. The treble mod would probably make it a much better pedal. And ah the submarine. I've been looking at the new ictnacio by Southampton, but I'm afraid my amp tone is pretty great by itself. If I ever ran into a DI, maybe I would pick one up
 
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#40
jaroh24 said:
Gotcha. Yeah the blueberry got really muddy for me. The treble mod would probably make it a much better pedal. And ah the submarine. I've been looking at the new ictnacio by Southampton, but I'm afraid my amp tone is pretty great by itself. If I ever ran into a DI, maybe I would pick one up
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Yeah even with that little treble addition mod he did it was still pretty mushy for me as well. I loved it at home by itself through my Ampeg B50R but with at bumpin levels it just fell apart. It’s just the nature of that circuit I think. I could see how it can fit in many other genres though. Great OD.

You know the Ictineo may be a great thing for you too. It’s on the pricier side but for what it is, it’s a steal. This pedal could also add clarity and punch to your existing setup although I don’t think it’ll give you “drive” per say, it would def drive your tubes hard. In fact, it could be better that the GK Rails for this possibly. See, this is what I ended up with after I got an all tube head:

DOD fx10 > Rusty Box > Darkglass B7K Ultra > Ictineo. Plus I have my onboard preamp with a 3 band EQ. That is my whole tone shaping/EQ/preamp section. I run my onboard almost flat with the bass bumped a tad and the treble a little higher depending on string condition.

Now I know that is a lot. Most likely too much for some. But it’s what worked for me and I love my tone these days. But all these layers come through those tube singing a glorious song of bass nirvana ;) add all my drives and dirt, I’m very happy, let’s just leave it at that. But It took me a while to settle on combos and certain dirt pedals. Hell I’m still open to trying new things of course. But my tube head changed a lot of things for me. In a great way. All by itself the Electric has a wonderful, full, tube sound. But the EQ on it is minimal which leaves a lot of frequency to be covered. So it’s perfect for a bassist with a pedal fetish haha So that’s why I can relate to your situation so much because I always need that treble bite, that high end sheen. And without some key components I would be missing that. But as far as dirt goes, the ones I named worked really well for me. Albeit my setup is most likely a little more in depth than yours, I feel those can help you get to where you want to be in the end.
 

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