I’ve recently started the pedal adventure. I’ve got a compressor, chorus, and phaser and a pretty good idea of how/when I want to use them. The pedal I’m less clear about is an overdrive. I want something subtle. We play mostly classic and southern rock (ZZ, Skynyrd, Allman Brothers, etc.), so I think a little grit will fit in nicely. I’m not sure if this should be an always on part of my sound or an as needed effect for certain songs. How are you guys using your dirt pedals? Experience and suggestions welcomed.
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How do you use your dirt pedals?
- Thread starter shivers
- Start date
A few ideas:
You can use it to set apart songs that feel a little grittier or you want to stand out with an edgier tone, so you have a more dynamic sound throughout the gig.
Stomp it on for some guitar solos so your tone sounds fatter and fills more sonic space that is now vacated by the soloing guitar.
Combine it with other effects (for me, an octave-down) to mimic certain synth bass tones.
Use it for unison lines when played along with an overdriven guitar, to blend your sound tighter to theirs.
You can use it to set apart songs that feel a little grittier or you want to stand out with an edgier tone, so you have a more dynamic sound throughout the gig.
Stomp it on for some guitar solos so your tone sounds fatter and fills more sonic space that is now vacated by the soloing guitar.
Combine it with other effects (for me, an octave-down) to mimic certain synth bass tones.
Use it for unison lines when played along with an overdriven guitar, to blend your sound tighter to theirs.
I recommend to always set the pedal in context of the full band mix, never when playing solo.
I use a very subtle always on overdrive (JF Capo A side) and a heavier distortion for certain songs (B side of the Capo).
A couple of years ago, when listening to isolated bass tracks, I realized that many songs had slightly saturated bass sounds, even though I thought they were clean. So I set the level of the always on overdrive during rehearsals, at a level where you would not really tell I'm using overdrive, but it ads texture.
I like my OD (currently klon type) always on. I'd love to find space for a footswitch that can switch to two different pots for gain & output. Low gain at unity, high gain boosting a little. Distortion after it should sound good when being fed by low gain OD settings. Never using dist solo. Currently Muff or HM2 clone or Rat offspring is getting pushed. Running a clean line too using an AMT A-Brick always on which makes it clean with benefits.
I used a Boss OD-3. No, not the ODB-3; the OD-3. I use it for the occasional boost, with just a touch of dirt to help it cut through the mix. It's pretty subtle, bt it lets some of those key licks and other parts stick out as needed.
Right now my fav OD pedal is the Darkglass Microtubes B3K. And it's on all the time. I just keep it very subtle for music ranging from 70s classic rock to 90s grunge, and just rock n roll in general and blues as well.
Always on for me. The level depends on the style of music I'm playing. For harder rock I use an aggressive clang, it's so much fun. But even for pop and oldies I use warm overdrive.
This! Subtle overdrive can disappear in the mix. Even when using subtle OD, I still want to hear it in the mix.
To each his own. I don't necessarily want to hear it in the mix, there's a level where it brings a texture that I like, even if the audience think it's a clean sound - that's fine for me. But we agree on the fact that the level of perceived OD tends to dissapear in the mix, so we must do the settings with the full band playing.
My OD journey w/ the goal of an always on relatively clean tone when played lightly and some OD when digging in:
-1st I found many OD pedals have a loss of low end.
-2nd I found when you land on an OD pedal that doesn't lose low end there's a loss of high end so won't cut thru or gets lost in the mix.
-3rd I found most OD pedals are either on or off but don't provide both depending on attack.
Solution:
TC Electronic Spark. You can dial in the low & high end you desire, add the perfect amount of OD, & it still retains a clean tone until you dig in for some glorious breakup. The 3 toggle switch allows which frequencies you want to enhance. A compressor, EQ, & boost all in one pedal.
Which I modified to this:
-1st I found many OD pedals have a loss of low end.
-2nd I found when you land on an OD pedal that doesn't lose low end there's a loss of high end so won't cut thru or gets lost in the mix.
-3rd I found most OD pedals are either on or off but don't provide both depending on attack.
Solution:
TC Electronic Spark. You can dial in the low & high end you desire, add the perfect amount of OD, & it still retains a clean tone until you dig in for some glorious breakup. The 3 toggle switch allows which frequencies you want to enhance. A compressor, EQ, & boost all in one pedal.
Which I modified to this:
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The way I approach the kinda music you're playing is I just find one tone that works and set and forget it. A little dirt for those genres is very effective. I use an Xotic BB for that sorta thing, basically simulating a little tube-ish amp grit. That way I'm DI'ing that sound to FOH, regardless of what the amp is (or if there's no amp). I don't think the chorus and phaser would come into play much with that music, but hey, go crazy!
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I use my overdrive pedals (one at any given time on the board) as "spice" for a song here or there - most of the time I play without them. I play church gigs, and it's rare that you want dirt for every song in a set (it has happened, but it's been a couple years since that happened). Anyway, they are still important - if you need some edge/extra energy for a given song (often the opener), you need some dirt.
I have a couple Darkglass pedals (B7K, Vintage deluxe), and a YYZ. All of these can be set to as subtle as you want, and they all have clean low end. The Darkglass pedals have 3 different filters you can use going into the distortion circuit, and 3 coming out - you have 9 different overdrive flavors in one pedal the choose from, and a 4 band eq on the combined signal (distortion plus clean). Despite all their demos sounding the same and very aggressive, the reality is that their pedals can do a LOT of different sounds. The sound in my head is VERY far from anything you hear on a Darkglass demo, yet it's fairly easy to dial "my sound" in - you have to figure out a couple things (notably, as you dial in more distorted sound, you lose some low end, but the eq on the sum signal works great for restoring that), but after that, it's pretty straightforward.
I sound like a Darkglass devotee. Well, I am now, but it took me a while to get there. For years, I bought cheaper overdrive pedals, returning some and keeping others (online demos don't tell you what it will sound like in your rig), but never wanting to spend the amount of money that a Darkglass pedal costs. I ended up with a shelf full of overdrive pedals, and a few blending pedals to make up for the deficiencies of the pedals I had. Last year, I sold off my cheap overdrive pedals, and (surprise!) I had more than enough credit from that to buy the 2 Darkglass pedals, and the YYZ. If I had started with the Darkglass pedals, I would have saved myself a lot of time and money - they are flexible enough that, as your tastes change, you can dial in another sound, and not have to buy even more pedals.
I have a couple Darkglass pedals (B7K, Vintage deluxe), and a YYZ. All of these can be set to as subtle as you want, and they all have clean low end. The Darkglass pedals have 3 different filters you can use going into the distortion circuit, and 3 coming out - you have 9 different overdrive flavors in one pedal the choose from, and a 4 band eq on the combined signal (distortion plus clean). Despite all their demos sounding the same and very aggressive, the reality is that their pedals can do a LOT of different sounds. The sound in my head is VERY far from anything you hear on a Darkglass demo, yet it's fairly easy to dial "my sound" in - you have to figure out a couple things (notably, as you dial in more distorted sound, you lose some low end, but the eq on the sum signal works great for restoring that), but after that, it's pretty straightforward.
I sound like a Darkglass devotee. Well, I am now, but it took me a while to get there. For years, I bought cheaper overdrive pedals, returning some and keeping others (online demos don't tell you what it will sound like in your rig), but never wanting to spend the amount of money that a Darkglass pedal costs. I ended up with a shelf full of overdrive pedals, and a few blending pedals to make up for the deficiencies of the pedals I had. Last year, I sold off my cheap overdrive pedals, and (surprise!) I had more than enough credit from that to buy the 2 Darkglass pedals, and the YYZ. If I had started with the Darkglass pedals, I would have saved myself a lot of time and money - they are flexible enough that, as your tastes change, you can dial in another sound, and not have to buy even more pedals.
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I have a lot of pedals in general but how I would add in the distortion depends on the pedals. Some really love to be heavily saturated with gain while others are better on a lighter gain. I like either a mxr m80 with low gain distortion engaged or dark glass with more heavier gain and leaving the low end cleaner to preserve it. I do like being able to do this. I'm in the middle of trying to make up a second pedal chain with more emphasis on distortion and grind so this has been an interesting read.
Yep, and listening to isolated bass tracks from famous tunes where it sounds like "clean" bass very often reveals some grit, most often from a DI'd bass hitting a mic pre hard and clipping, or from an amp (or both).
I use them two ways (church gigs)
1. Always-on light OD to provide a bit more harmonic mid edge and compression. This is to simulate a tube amp just starting to break up. To me this gives some clarity to the bass and lifts it out of the background just a bit. Note to self, never do this when backing a choir.
2. As-needed heavier OD to provide an energy boost and more drive to the music. Kick it on in the big chorus of the big high energy song. Off for the lighter songs and lighter parts of the big songs.
1. Always-on light OD to provide a bit more harmonic mid edge and compression. This is to simulate a tube amp just starting to break up. To me this gives some clarity to the bass and lifts it out of the background just a bit. Note to self, never do this when backing a choir.
2. As-needed heavier OD to provide an energy boost and more drive to the music. Kick it on in the big chorus of the big high energy song. Off for the lighter songs and lighter parts of the big songs.
I run my amp a little dirty which would probably cover everything you need. I use a Damnation Audio MBD3 for crunchy distortion or a RAT for all out fuzz.
