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Overdrive without tone loss??

#101
Yeah. I didn't like the way the barbershop broke up. Not smooth at all. IMO.

I love preamps with tubes. If you don't quiet love the tone you can switch out tubes till you do. I love the Mullard for smooth overdrive but there's time when I need fast harder overdrive, switch the tube for a JJ or Ruby and your all set.
 
#102
johnk_10 said:
the Fairfield circuitry barbershop. there's only one of them. it doesn't have a tube in it:
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]


BK Butler (the designer of the 903) still makes the tube driver. it doesn't have the mid control, but you can get it with an added bias control.

http://www.butleraudio.com/
Click to expand...

Hey John, what's that bias knob on the 5 knob butler do? The price difference is HUGE compared to the regular tube driver.
 
#103
Weshunter413 said:
Yeah. I didn't like the way the barbershop broke up. Not smooth at all. IMO.

I love preamps with tubes. If you don't quiet love the tone you can switch out tubes till you do. I love the Mullard for smooth overdrive but there's time when I need fast harder overdrive, switch the tube for a JJ or Ruby and your all set.
Click to expand...

Wait, what?? What pedal are you talking about? What are you using?
 
#104
gregmon79 said:
Wait, what?? What pedal are you talking about? What are you using?
Click to expand...


Talking about the BlueTubes 903. I guess it's not considered a preamp but it has a 3 band EQ so I look at it like one.

Top middle pedal:
11B8722B-8E9B-40C4-9D6B-C0A0E509C481-4108-000006BF3FD3B786.jpg
 
#107
gregmon79 said:
Nice board. Which one do you like better, the Three or the blue tube?
Click to expand...


Different animals. BlueTubes is like a bear's growl and the three is like a lion's roar.

Three has more grit and grind and works awesome in high gain. Also has the best breakup I've heard for finger style. But I let it go due to space and funding. The BlueTubes is still on my board for now. I like having a EQ on my dirt.

With that said I love the way a tube sound dynamically. And the Three KILLS

But Nothing's safe on my board!
 
#109
Weshunter413 said:
Different animals. BlueTubes is like a bear's growl and the three is like a lion's roar.

Three has more grit and grind and works awesome in high gain. Also has the best breakup I've heard for finger style. But I let it go due to space and funding. The BlueTubes is still on my board for now. I like having a EQ on my dirt.

With that said I love the way a tube sound dynamically. And the Three KILLS

But Nothing's safe on my board!
Click to expand...

Cool, that's the answer I was looking for. I want a Three. Bad now.
 
#111
gregmon79 said:
Hey John, what's that bias knob on the 5 knob butler do? The price difference is HUGE compared to the regular tube driver.
Click to expand...

yeah, IMO, he's asking way too much for the bias control. it's a simple mod that changes the cathode bias of the tube.
BK Butler describes it like this:
"Technically it varies the electrical 'strength' of the tube and that affects gain, texture and dynamics. It does not change the EQ directly but because the way the tube responds can be varied; you will hear EQ differences at various settings.".
 
#112
johnk_10 said:
having the barbershop and a bluetube (as well as two other bluetubes that I built myself), while the 903's are awesome, I actually use the barbershop more. YMMV.
Click to expand...

It has been awhile since I had my Blue Tube, but I'm going to guess from memory that I too would use my Barbershop more if I had then side by side on the same board. That is NOT to slight the Blue Tube in any way, its just that the Barbershop, IMO, is *that* good.

So you didn't think it broke up that smoothly? Interesting. I guess I can get mine to have a "rougher" breakup if I really roll back the sag, but otherwise I find the pedal to be smooooooth.
 
#113
blindrabbit said:
So you didn't think it broke up that smoothly? Interesting. I guess I can get mine to have a "rougher" breakup if I really roll back the sag, but otherwise I find the pedal to be smooooooth.
Click to expand...


IMO, the barbershop can do a clean boost, an extremely smooth overdrive, to some pretty gnarly distortion, and anywhere in between. it's my current 'go to' pedal out of the 150 OD's that I own. I also love it's simplicity and doesn't require any re-eq'ing.
 
#114
johnk_10 said:
yeah, IMO, he's asking way too much for the bias control. it's a simple mod that changes the cathode bias of the tube.
BK Butler describes it like this:
"Technically it varies the electrical 'strength' of the tube and that affects gain, texture and dynamics. It does not change the EQ directly but because the way the tube responds can be varied; you will hear EQ differences at various settings.".
Click to expand...

Yeah, that is QUITE a price difference for one knob and what it performs. I can see how it could be very beneficial though depending on what you're going for. I like the looks of that barbershop. It does indeed look very simple. Going on the list.
 
#116
Unemploid said:
mxr bass overdrive. i have the bass fuzz deluxe n love it. it's like splitting your signal to two cabinets.
Click to expand...

I have to agree with you on the MXR fuzz. I have and use one as well. I didn't like it the first time I jammed love with it, got completely lost in the mix. But I had to learn how to use it. I'm getting better results with it now a days. But I'm still on the hunt and finding what looks to be better options in fuzz. Particularly the bass bloom by facehugger.
 
#118
johnk_10 said:
IMO, the barbershop can do a clean boost, an extremely smooth overdrive, to some pretty gnarly distortion, and anywhere in between. it's my current 'go to' pedal out of the 150 OD's that I own. I also love it's simplicity and doesn't require any re-eq'ing.
Click to expand...

I'm with you there John. I have you to thank for turning me on to the Barbershop. I made the mistake of selling my first one, the second one isn't ever going to leave my board. :D
 

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