Got a Microtubes B3K v2. Don't like it. What do I want instead?

[EpicSoundtracks]

In short, the B3K is too... something. Too well-behaved? Scooped? No matter how I tweaked it I couldn't dial out what I experienced as a "scoopiness" although I'm not convinced that's what I'm objecting to. Ultimately it just wasn't as gnarly as I wanted it to be. I ran it before and after my Rustybox and on its own, and it got thoroughly trounced by my modded Rat.

This is my first Darkglass pedal; are any of the other offerings ... less polite? Are there non-Darkglass things I should be looking at that are burlier?

thanks in advance!

 

[dannybuoy]

Perhaps a Darkglass Alpha Omega, or Tech21 YYZ?

 

[TodaysTomSawyer]

The Damnation Audio MBD-1 is among the burliest, imo

 

[EpicSoundtracks]

Perhaps a Darkglass Alpha Omega, or Tech21 YYZ?

assumed the Alpha Omega was the next thing to try, but the demos i listened to had the same general "character" as what i was hearing and not loving from the B3K. I'm still down to try it though! Thanks Danny.

The Damnation Audio MBD-1 is among the burliest, imo

will investigate this! thanks much

 

[cardinal]

The two dirt pedals I like to use are the B3K v.1 and a Turbo Rat. The B3K really is very polished sounding; I use it for a mild overdrive and think it sounds great. The Rat I use as an almost-fuzz type distortion that is much more wild.

Sorry I can't really help. From the demos, some of the other Darkglass offerings sound more wild and over-the-top.

 

[Agosix]

Damnation MBD1, Tech 21 YYZ,

 

[chanson]

Shift Line Buzz!

 

[vivaknoxvegas]

Dunwich Olde Dirty Bass, Darkglass X series

 

[Vic Winters]

How old are your strings?

 

[kranahan]

MBD-1, Volt Thrower or Blower Box.

 

[Deleted member 271037]

I didn't like the B3K either but I liked it SLIGHTLY more when I ran a clean boost into it to push it into harder distortion. It would certainly make it less polite. I you have any way of hitting it with a louder signal, try it before you give up on it.

It won't help with the "scoopiness" though. I ended up selling mine. I can see it working great for technical metal but other than that I really don't understand the hype.

I've tried other Darkglass pedals since and none of them have really impressed me to be honest. I think they are very hit or miss depending on your style/genre. But at least I liked the others better than the B3K.

 

[FaithNoMan]

In short, the B3K is too... something. Too well-behaved? Scooped? No matter how I tweaked it I couldn't dial out what I experienced as a "scoopiness" although I'm not convinced that's what I'm objecting to. Ultimately it just wasn't as gnarly as I wanted it to be. I ran it before and after my Rustybox and on its own, and it got thoroughly trounced by my modded Rat.

This is my first Darkglass pedal; are any of the other offerings ... less polite? Are there non-Darkglass things I should be looking at that are burlier?

thanks in advance!

The Alpha-Omega is the most impolite Darkglass pedal, as well as the Alpha-Omicron.

I had a tough time between it and the MBD1 and wound up keeping the Alpha-Omega.

 

[somebrains]

Rat pedal into a Bass 400 or SVT was me from 15-25.
You’re trying to poke something mean with a cattle prod, swinging the prod at nothing ain’t gonna work.
I didn’t use the RAT with an 800rb, too much table saw, so I got a 400rb and dimed it naked instead when I was going thru a “other half lives” phase.

Go down to wherever has an SVT and try your pedal thru it.

 

[K2000]

In short, the B3K is too... something. Too well-behaved?
----------

Ultimately it just wasn't as gnarly as I wanted it to be. I ran it before and after my Rustybox and on its own, and it got thoroughly trounced by my modded Rat.

Wrong tool for the job? Maybe you don't want an overdrive... you might really be looking for a distortion pedal.

 

[okabass]

Original BJFE Blueberry Bass Overdrive. Rare and expensive, but you can DIY. (I don't mean Mad Professor BBBOD)

 

[LowRenzo]

If you're still open to trying out some Darkglass, then I second the Alpha Omicron suggestions.

The B3Kv2 has nothing on an AOm set to the Omega side, with both toggles on and the drive turned up. It's incredibly grindy and can get very coarse, which is something they usually don't show in demo-vids.

 

[onda'bass]

Damnation MBD-1 for the win, darkglass is not all its cracked up to be.

 

[anton72]

I had both B3K and Alpha-Omicron. I kept Alpha-Omicron. It is not mid-scooped as B3K and has much more tone options. And it's crazy aggressive.

 

[Kerem Koseoglu]

I tried Alpha Omega and didn't like it. I couldn't saturate it as much as I wanted to - unless I used a clean boost.

Darkglass Duality is another story though; it is subjectively the nastiest fuzz I ever played (in a good way) which doesn't choke when pushed hard. If you want high gain, I recommend checking that one.

 

[Frank77]

Posting a soundclip that includes the kind of bass tone you'd like to achieve would help if you want suggestions!

I haven't hopped on the Darkglass bandwagon yet (I'm clearly not in the target audience) but their dirt pedals sound interesting, it seems to be the new standard for metal bass. If I was regularly playing harder-hitting music I'd check them out (my main band is a funk outfit), along with the Tech21 dUg Pinnick pedal - really liked what I've heard of this one but can't justify getting one at this time.

One critic I have of this type of distortion (which may entirely be due to the DG demos I've heard) is that whatever bass you plug in to them, the output sounds exactly the same (to my ears, at least)...but on the flipside, it's a good sound for certain genres.