King of Tone opinions

[Charlie Bernstein]

I'm on the wait list for an Analogman King of Tone. I don't have to pull the trigger until the order comes around (it takes months), but I'm thinking of getting it, trying it, and if I love it, keep it and (since it costs a fortune) sell my other overdrives - a Bennett Brown Sound and a Barber LTD.

Any flaws in the plan? Can a single two-stage pedal sound better than two one-stage pedals? Should I stop fiddling with gadgets and go practice scales?

[ruger9]

LOL. The KOT is one of the best ODs ever made, IMHO. I ended up selling mine only because I found something *I* liked better, the Fulldrive. But the Fulldrive isn't "better"- I just liked it better. It's just different. If the KOT had the same tone as the Fulldrive, I'd still have it. 2 independent drive channels, each with their own controls, and each can be set for different gain ranges, in a smallish box? Design perfection I say.

That Barber LTD is a good one, the yellow side of the KOT is similar, I don't know anything about the Bennet.

And besides... if you don't like the KOT, put it up on ebay for a profit.

[Charlie Bernstein]

That helps, sounds like a plan. The Bennett adds crunch and hair - a more steel-woolly sound than the LTD. At its most extreme, its kind of a moderate fuzz. For the little kazoo in all of us.

[romo]

I got my King of Tone last year after being on the list for 18 months or so. Worth the wait IMO. It is a good pedal, fairly versatile and sounds good with a variety of guitars and amps. My only disappointment in it is that it doesn't function well as a clean boost. It doesn't have the volume boosting capability as a few of my other pedals, like the RC Booster or Tim. As an overdrive it is great, two high quality effects in one small box, but you may still need a separate clean booster.

At its price, its really not that expensive either. Most single overdrives that are Analogman quality cost $150 and up. The KoT is two of them for 235. You could easily sell it for 300+ if you don't like it.

[Telenator]

I have a KoT and love it.

I don't use it as a solo boost though. Playing classic rock music from the 60's to current requires a lot of different guitar sounds that need to be there at the touch of a switch.

My pedal board is set up with several stages and qualities of gain. Nothing extreme, but I'm a firm believer that the best way to add excitement to a guitar sound, is to keep making subtle changes to it all night.

That said, I use my KoT much differently than most.

First and foremost, my approach to making a good sound is to concentrate on getting a great rock rhythm sound from my amp alone. Then I add subtle enhancements to that sound for specific songs and such. When the rhythm sound is great, the solo tone just takes care of itself. It almost doesn't matter what pedal you use for the solo boost as long as the foundation is solid!

I have the left side of my KoT set for a low volume roaring OD sound for songs where I need that BIG drive but don't want to drown the vocals or imbalance the band. I set the drive high and the level low so I get a big, rich driven sound without getting any louder. I can switch in and out of 80's 90's and current drive sounds seamlessly using the left side of my KoT.

The right side I set for a slight boost with a little hair on it. This is particularly useful when I need to add a little sustain, fullness, or extra gain to my TS9 on certain songs. Again, I am able to switch seamlessly between so many sounds that make the guitar just right for a huge variety of songs.

So, I use the KoT more as a tone shaping, gain shaping, amp simulating tool. I tried using it as a straight OD/solo boost pedal and feel there are several other offerings out there that do a better job. But in the role as described above, it's hard to beat! It's like adding 3 amps to my set-up!

For a clean boost, I really dig the Boss GE7. I have mine set up so it gives my single coils a little boost to get on parity with my humbuckers. The cool thing is, I have the EQ pre-set for a great tone, and the level set for just a little boost. Works great! If I decide I'd like a little sizzle instead of the clean GE7 boost, I click the right side of the KoT. I can switch guitars several times and achieve perfect balance with the tap of a switch! No fussing with the amp settings.

Lastly, my analogman modded TS9 handles most solo boosts. It just screams, cuts and bites. Love it.

Some people look at my pedal board and snicker at all the pedals. Then the show starts and the laughing stops.