Tube overdriveish pedal?

[deathness]

Well i seem to have found my own solution. I am about to head out to pick up a bk butler blue tube pedal! Found one in my area and guy will take 90 for it. From what i have read it might just be exactly what im lookin for! Thanks for all the awesome answers though guys. If this blue tube doesnt work out i will hunt down the recommendations made here.

The blue tube is a nice unit. It does take some getting used to the fender tone stack if you don't have familiarity with it. IIRC the "flat" setting is bass and treble around 3 and the mids cranked all the way.

 

[deathness]

Glad to hear you like your blue tube. It's worth sharing that the controls on this pedal are little counter intuitive. The bass and treble eq are boost only, so flat is with them both at 0. The mid is cut only, so flat is with it at 10. The eq knobs definitely have a more complicated interaction than that - the bass knob seem to cut treble as you crank it, and visa versa. Start with them flat (0,10,0), then experiment from there.

The cleanest sound can be obtained by putting the output at max then raising the drive until unity is achieved.

You might be right about the flat settings, it's been a few years since I've used the pedal. I thought treble/bass was flat at 3, but it totally could be 0. Def mids need to be cranked tho.

 

[funkytoe]

The blue tube is a nice unit. It does take some getting used to the fender tone stack if you don't have familiarity with it. IIRC the "flat" setting is bass and treble around 3 and the mids cranked all the way.

Bass and Treble are boost only. Mids are cut only. So, "flat" is technically bass and treble on zero and middle on 10. Glad you knew that. A lot of folks never realize that the blue tube has a Fender tone stack and wind up setting everything at noon and complaining about the sound. Congrats on the acquisition. Great pedal.

 

[belowthesun]

Bass and Treble are boost only. Mids are cut only. So, "flat" is technically bass and treble on zero and middle on 10. Glad you knew that. A lot of folks never realize that the blue tube has a Fender tone stack and wind up setting everything at noon and complaining about the sound. Congrats on the acquisition. Great pedal.

I actually came to that conclusion within a few seconds. Started it at noon and recognized the fender tone stack right away and cranked the mids. Bass and treble are at about 9 o clock and the thing sounds great! Thanks!

 

[belowthesun]

I agree that it definitely is a better grindy distortion than an overdrive pedal. I usually use it with the Presence knob almost off.

Same here presence is basically never above 1/4 ish.

 

[RiZzBot]

This'll get you there for pretty cheap. Works well with my PF500. Good luck.

 

[Nephilymbass]

Well i just aquired an ampeg pf 500 and love it. Closest thing ive heard to my old svt cl. The eq and overall frequency response is spot on to the cl imo. Problem is it lacks the overdrive, spongey dynamics, and harmonics im used to with tube amps. Please help me on my quest to find a pedal to fill that void. Im looking for something that will add said qualitys of overdrive etc.. without messing with the eq. In other words i guess i need a transparent tube sounding overdrive?Any ideas are much appreciated! Thanks.

Edit: i want add that this pedal will be always on. So used as a preamp essentially. Budget is about <150 used.

I'd go with a used Darkglass b3k or vintage Microtubes. More and more of them should be popping up for sale used as many people have upgraded to the deluxe an ultra versions.

 

[NortyFiner]

EHX Bass Soul Food. Transparent boost and light OD based on the famous Klon Centaur circuit, would fit well within your budget.

 

[mmbongo]

Creation Audio Grizzly.

Went through most everything mentioned here. The Grizzly stands alone. No Kazoo, no fizz, no fart (from the pedal anyway), by far the most transparent, the most versatile, most what I consider tubey sounding of any of them.

 

[rodv66]

The Aguilar Agro is a very versatile pedal that can definitely add the touch sensitive breakup to your tone without altering it much.

Argo is a great pedal and will give anything from a slight overdrive to a thick assed fuzz. If you are lucky, you might score one on an eBay auction for 80-100 bucks

 

[RedJag]

If you put an SVT on the floor does it count as a pedal?

 

[RedJag]

Also I haven't tried it with my bass yet but I hear people get good results with the EQD Palisades

 

[REV]

I really like my Bearfoot Blueberry and I liked it even more when I compared it to some other pedals. There is a subtle something that the Blueberry has that the others lacked. It's also especially interesting when combined with a VT bass pedal.

 

[Snowglo]

Creation Audio Grizzly.

Went through most everything mentioned here. The Grizzly stands alone. No Kazoo, no fizz, no fart (from the pedal anyway), by far the most transparent, the most versatile, most what I consider tubey sounding of any of them.

Bongo, any chance you have paired the Grizzly with a VMT, or Any DG pedals? I'm trying to choose between a Grizz, or a LeBass.

Sorry for the derail OP.

 

[cheechi]

I actually like the Idiotbox Blower Box at low gain settings for just this. The bass and treble knobs can add more meat back in or grind for an aggressive sound. They can also be had for $129 brand spanking new, the guy who builds them is awesome too. Will answer your emails in no time and is super polite.

I really like the lower settings on the Blower Box. At first it felt like it must be wrong because it's got such a range. But it's 'just right' at about 8:00 on the gain. Always happens I buy something for what I think I want and wind up finding something else on the other side of the dial. This was supposed to be my heavy fuzz pedal.

 

[bassbrad]

Lots of choices, I like my EHX Hot Tubes for warmth and a bit of grind. It has a bypass for the tone stack.

 

[ThatLowEnd]

Loving my Lightning Boy Audio Thunder King - 2 tube bass preamp / distortion with EQ. Custom built but worth every penny!

White pedal on left:

Full Board minus my recent purchase - Broughton HPF:

And the power supply which is also custom built by Lightning Boy:

 

[Feral Feline]

If you put an SVT on the floor does it count as a pedal?

Only if you've got feet big enough to stomp on it!


@belowthesun : Congrats!

 

[Lowbrow]

Darkglass Vintage Microtubes hands down

Absolutely. Worth the bucks and you may find one in the TB classifieds.

 

[Lowbrow]

A VMT for $175 on eBay right now.