Look - An MXR Blowtorch Soundclip!

People were begging for more clips of this thing, so I finally got around to recording a decent one of my own. If you want to read my review of it, check out this thread.

CLICK HERE FOR THE DEMO

Don't use the "Hi-Fi" sample - Soundclick is still screwing up the Hi-Fi versions, so they'll sound slow and detuned. I'm thinking of looking for another site to host my clips, because it's getting on my nerves. Please use either the Lo-Fi clip, or if you want better quality, just download the MP3 instead.

I should also point out that the recording setup I've got sucks. It's just a cable directly into my laptop's soundcard. Nothing fancy... so you might hear background hiss or have to crank up your volume. The pedal itself is actually pretty quiet, even at high gain settings.

I recorded the clip with my EBMM Stingray, D'Addario XL strings (45-65-80-100), standard EADG tuning, and my new board arrangement, but only the Blowtorch is on. The clip was done in fingerstyle, but you can get some cool sounds out of it with a pick, too. I usually roll the Blend back a bit to get more of the clean sound when I use a pick.

The clip has six segments. The settings are the same for each segment, except for the Torch and Mid Shift switches. You will be able to easily hear when it changes, because of the Midrange boost.

BASS: 12:00
MIDRANGE: 3:00
TREBLE: 12:00
BLEND: 3:00
GAIN: 12:00

RIFF 1: Torch OFF, 750Hz
RIFF 2: Torch OFF, 250Hz
RIFF 3: Torch OFF, 2Khz
RIFF 4: Torch ON, 2Khz
RIFF 5: Torch ON, 750Hz
RIFF 6: Torch ON, 250Hz

As you can see, I put the blend up to give you more of the Blowtorch's distortion effect, and I also boosted the Midrange to illustrate how useful the Mid Shift can be. I didn't do any Midrange cuts, but if you do, you can get sounds a bit like the Big Muff (but more modern, less vintage). My Little Big Muff has a smoother (but less stable) fuzz and a tone the Blowtorch can't match, but if you're looking for an alternative to any Big Muff, turn on the Torch switch on this baby!

You can get a wide range of distortion, from mild growly overdrive to modern fuzz, and the cool thing is that I haven't heard any pedals out there that sound like the Blowtorch on higher-gain settings - at least, not one this flexible for the price.

My normal settings aren't featured in this clip, but I like to roll back the treble a bit and boost the bass. I also don't boost the Midrange as much as I did in the clip, and I roll back the gain a bit so I can get a thick overdrive with the Torch switch off, and some smooth distortion with the Torch switch on.

Enjoy, and if you own a Blowtorch, please post links to your samples and demos here for the benefit of the TB community!

EDIT: I added another new clip, this time with some different settings, less gain and blend, and a pick.

 

Try this one on for size, then:

http://www.soundclick.com/bands/songInfo.cfm?bandID=578779&songID=5418018

I did this one with some overall EQ boosting, a pick, lower gain, and Blend at 12:00.

 

LOL... those were improvised. I'll have to transcribe it so I don't forget it!

 

No problem

I've been experimenting with the controls more to see what else the Blowtorch can do, and I'm still impressed. I'm currently using it with Blend at 12:00 - I really like the clean/dirty mix I'm getting with my amp and the Blowtorch.

I've also been toying with it to see how close I can get to the tones of my Little Big Muff. So far, it has the higher registers covered, with hardly any noise and a greater degree of stability. But overall, the Muff has a signature "vintage" feel and sound that the Blowtorch can't entirely capture. The Blowtorch's high-gain fuzz sounds are distinctively modern, while the Muff has a more "lo-fi" feel.

It's difficult for me to justify having both pedals on my board, but in the end, I might end up keeping my LBM on the board anyway.

Either that, or I might have another special use for it on a separate pedalboard I might be working on soon...

 

I've got four sources of distortion right now - the LBM, the Blowtorch, the Bass Micro Synthesizer, and my amp's overdrive channel (via footswitch). And it's five if you count that side switch on the Blowtorch for the "Torch" mode.

...maybe you're right, and the real problem is that I need more distortion...

 

I got rid of that clip a long while back

The new ones work fine. You'll find them here:

www.soundclick.com/mysticboo

I also posted them in a recent thread dedicated just to my new soundclips.