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None-Fuzzy overdrive

SwamiRob

SwamiRob

Aug 23, 2007
2,151
33
Scarborough, N. Yorks, England
#1
Every bass overdrive I've tried or heard seems to be pretty fuzzy so I was wondering if there's anything in the way of a slightly cleaner sounding pedal that I can get. I have a Tubescreamer DS9 and it's really nice, just not very clear, I'll probably keep using it but most likely on the Turbo setting for a more full on overdrive with a little fuzz if I got a second drive, but it'd be nice to have something a little cleaner that kept the low end a better.
 
#2
To maybe help with part of your question, are you running these overdrive pedals through a solid state head? If so you might want to try them through a tube head as overdrive pedals tend to be fuzzier through solid state gear, at least in my experience. Also, are you using horns? Horns can cause high end fizziness in conjunction with overdrives.
 
#4
assboglin said:
To maybe help with part of your question, are you running these overdrive pedals through a solid state head? If so you might want to try them through a tube head as overdrive pedals tend to be fuzzier through solid state gear, at least in my experience. Also, are you using horns? Horns can cause high end fizziness in conjunction with overdrives.
Click to expand...

Hmm... I don't know about the SS vs. tube thing, but I do agree that using horns or tweeters can - and pretty much always will - cause some really unpleasant high-end fizziness.

Also... if you like the Tubescreamer, you may want to look into some of its clones. IME, Tubescreamers and their clones tend to be rather clear and gritty overdrive pedals, which may be up your alley.

Perhaps you should also look into overdrive pedals with blend knobs, or consider combining an overdrive pedal with a blend looper to get the same effect. The job of that blend circuit is to mix the dry and overdrive signals together, which creates a similar effect to bi-amping with a clean rig and dirty rig - except you only need one rig this way.
 
#8
Wow I guess what they keep saying is true nobody reads or searches threads...lol

I hate to sound like a broken record...but recently i tried roughly 40 different brands of overdrive pedals in search for one that I liked and sounded good to my ears....

These three in my opinion were the best tried...

The Voodoo lab Sparkle Drive it is an TS808 clone but it has metal resistors and polyester film capacitors creating a better overall tone and much better note definition than the original 808, plus it has a clean channel built in so you can blend a clean signal with the ovedrive which restores the attack and feel which is usually lost in the highly compressed overdrive circuit. so its like layering two amps in one box. and you can turn off the overdrive for just a clean simple 20db boost can't be beat for $129.99

Second the BBE Green Screamer has a slightly brighter tone than the Voodoo Lab pedal but is missing the clean boost circuit....but when you pair it up with the BBE Boosta Grande (20db boost) pedal the combination cannot be beat....the Green Screamer goes for $99.99 with the Boosta Grande retailing at roughly $79.99 for a grand total of $180.00

last the T-Rex Moller Overdrive with Clean Boost does what the others listed above do just a little better...but at $279.99 not good enough IMHO but I'm a cheap bastard i went with the Voodoo Lab pedal...now if money were no object i would have bought the T-Rex

See "Overdrive" thread posted by McGroovin' for more details
 
#9
Snakeman1066 said:
Wow I guess what they keep saying is true nobody reads or searches threads...lol
Click to expand...

Why do you think I'm wearing a badge? :p

Some people aren't sure where to start looking. But now that he does... I'm sure he would've found your reviews, among plenty of others. :D

Usually, if it's something I've answered before, I either suggest a search with some helpful terms (if it's a broad question), or point them out to a good thread, rather than re-type everything I said before. It's much easier that way.
 
#12
Yeah sorry about the search thing, didn't really know how I'd go about articulating it properly, overdrive +clarity +bass -fuzz is about the best I can think of heheh.

I do like my Tubescreamer alot but it's pretty muddy, I wanna keep it specifically for mud though cos it does a good job of it, just want a clearer one for those occasions when you want to sound heavy as $%^& yet actually be able to make out what the Bass/Guitars/Drums/Vocals are playing/singing...

Snakeman1066 said:
last the T-Rex Moller Overdrive with Clean Boost does what the others listed above do just a little better...but at $279.99 not good enough IMHO
Click to expand...

It's pretty cheap over here, probably cos they're made in Denmark.
 
#14
sorry to revive an old thread but what's the FET overdrive Fulltone do like? Will that hold up in the low end department without being too fuzzy? Sounds like you can get a nice fuzz from it but it also does cleaner stuff. Anyone used one? The OCD sounds really awesome from the samples on the site, but a few extra things to play with might be nice.
 
#15
Swami.

I assume you're talking about the TS9DX Turbo Tube Screamer. If you like that for bass, but want more clarity, then having it modded my either Analogman, or Robert Keely, might be the answer.

(I'm a guitar player too... and an effects nut...) And what I've been finding lately is that some of the qualities that make me DISLIKE pedals for guitar, make me LIKE them alot for bass.

I've used the TS9DX on bass with great success in some past recordings.

The TS9DX, like any tubescreamer or clone, is op-amp based. A known think about op-amp overdrives, is that if they're hit too hard on the input, you'll get a "ghost note" - it will sound like the clean sound is coming through, surrounded by the overdrive buzz. Might sound bad on paper, but sometimes on bass, it works well to keep that fundamental note. of course, all effects are a little different with this. The TS9DX has the 4 settings: turbo, hot, etc... which all dramatically increase bass, making it suitable for a bass guitar. A regular TS9 cuts ALOT of low end...

As far as the OCD. That's my absolute favorite pedal for guitar. I'm I'm using a channel switching head, I'll use the OCD as my mid-crunch sound. If I'm plugging straight into a clean amp, I'll use the OCD boosed by another OD as my main overdrive sound. Love that pedal. Great harmonics, and juicyness, and tubeyness.

It's not super, super versatile, but it does what it does very well.

One thing I HATE about it, for guitar, is that if you crank the drive past 11 or 12 o clock, the bass just becomes WAY too unbearable on a guitar amp. However, on bass... it really stays nice and thick, which is nice.

Ok. I'll try to sum this up.

I don't think of the TS9DX as Fuzzy... but I do think it can get buzzy, like I described. And op-amp overdrives can sound plastic-ish sometimes.

The OCD has much more of a real-tube vibe going for it. While not intended for bass, it can do some very good bass heavy overdrive stuff. But I wouldnt try it with the gain set anywhere below 11... or else the bottom will just not be there.
 

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