A smoother, gentler overdrive?

[Stan Martin]

Sparkle drive can do the low gain and keep the dynamics

[Mark N]

Originally Posted by Stan Martin

Sparkle drive can do the low gain and keep the dynamics

+1 Stan....wouldn't hurt to try the Barber STD SR, it's low gain as suggested by a poster above

I also have a Fulltone Fatboost 2 that I added to my board tonight, man, that pedal floored me, I never shut it off all night, put that in front of a nice tube amp on the verge of breakup and turn it on and look out, nice hairy tele tone that is perfect for almost anything, very touch sensitive and transparent!

[black_doug]

It could be that you just want a boost pedal, such as the Fat Boost 3, from Fulltone.

[don jon]

Short of recommending boost pedals (which may be something you should look into), here's a short list of great sounding pedals that should get you in the ballpark of the tone you seek.

Nobels OD1 ******

Timmy or Tim

CMAT Mods Butah OD *****

Dano TOD

All very musical, transparent overdrives that have a mild and smooth breakup character when dialed in to push an amp that's just on the verge of breakup already. That's a key to using most OD's in this category and even SD, TS, 808, and Sparkle Drive types that will make or break the effect. Mild to medium OD's are meant to push the front end of an amp that is very close to clipping already. That is where you will find it easier to dial in sweet spots at lower pedal gain settings, and avoid the harsher tones of having to push a sparkly clean amp with an "overcranked" overdrive pedal.

You should try cranking the Classic 30 on the clean channel to just on the verge of clipping when you dig in with your pick attack. Then put one of the OD's you already own in front of it with the pedal gain at or below 8 o' clock. Set the pedal volume so that you don't boost or decrease your output when it's engaged. Set the EQ so that it also doesn't offend your tone when the pedal is engaged. Then try to dial in sweet spots in the pedal's gain without moving the volume or EQ until you are happy with the breakup characteristic you are hearing. Once you find the sweet spot in the gain leave it there and use only the pedal master volume or your guitar volume to control output level. You may find that you already own some very good dirt boxes. If you're still not happy though try some of the ones I listed above.

[Kungpow!]

try a Zendrive

[Big_Bend]

Again I have to give some love to the Way Huge Pork Loin "Soft Clip Injection" pedal... which is definitely a smoother, gentler overdrive. Highly recommended.

[Whoa Tele]

I think the Jetter Gain Stage Red does that. It's very smooth to my ears. Good luck.

[eddie knuckles]

I have a plush drive - very nice.
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[eddie knuckles]

sorry bout that - try this link

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZIzdX...eature=related

[jmclaren]

I've been using my Barber Direct Drive for this purpose with the gain set really low. This gives me fuller gain settings available when needed.

[Televised]

I'm very happy with my modded Ibanez Ts9/808. A fellow charged me $20 to have the JRC4558? chip installed and it really warmed things up and smoothed it out. However, reading through these threads I have been seeing good press and bang for the buck either with the "Bad Monkey" or the "Delta Labs" versions. There's hundreds of different ones to choose from with slightly different flavors which makes it tough.

[vanguard]

the menatone blue collar is the smoothest OD i've played. for a little less bux, but still WAY smooth and warm look at the maxon OD808 (NOT the OD9).

[Telephonic]

Control>Print this entire thread! Excellent suggestions as well as some interesting pedal science stuff...thanks for all of the comments.
As many times as the Bad Monkey popped up, I think I'll start there (getting one Sat) and then go from there...a close second is the Barber LTD which may be my second step. My board is always evolving so I appreciate all suggestions for my future "addictive" purchases!

Thanks guys,

Scott

[Big_Bend]

Originally Posted by Telephonic

As many times as the Bad Monkey popped up, I think I'll start there

I found out about the monkey when I joined here a couple of months ago. I bought one from MF.. then sent it back the next week. Definitely not what I was looking for. Obviously others feel differently but I much prefer the "smoother, gentler OD" of a sparkle or pork loin vs a BM.. YMMV tho good luck I hope you like it..

[Jimmy Dean]

Fulltone Full Drive 2 in comp cut mode. This is the first overdrive that I have owned that had a tone that I like.

[Telephonic]

Big Bend, thanks again for the suggestion...a Sparkle and the Pork Loin are both on my list. I tend to rotate things on my board (especially OD's) until something sticks...(and my budget allows :) so maybe within the year one will end up under my foot.

[Tele-phone man]

I find the OD3 to be much smoother than the BD2 or the SD1 when used by itself. If you push an OD3 with another pedal (like the SD1 or the Dano TOD) you can get great, smooth, singing sustain that still has pick attack, and isn't really dependent on high volume to sound good, although most overdriven circuits sound better at higher volumes.

What I like about the OD3 is that its frequency response is very flat. No mid-hump or bass boost. The clipping character is very smooth, so it transitions from clean to dirty very nicely.

[nrand]

Originally Posted by Telephonic

I'll try to keep this simple and to the point:

I am playing a Nashville Tele through a Classic 30. I like the OD pedals I am currently using - Dano CO-1 (whatever clone it is), a Blues driver and a Hyde.

It seems that these overdrives are "Brittle, harsh or crunchy" - not bad if a song calls for that. What I'm looking for are recommendations for an OD pedal that is "smoother, creamier...softer" lol!

Is there such a thing?

To the point - Maxon Overdrive Soft Distortion OD 880 - designed for exactly what you want I would say. these were MIJ for Japan market only in the 70s and then reissued in the 90s - I found one on ebay for around $129.00

[JeffOlson]

There are lots of great options.

Here's one I did not see mentioned: T-Rex ToneBug Overdrive. $99.

Check this out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EIWuVPsZWQ0

[Charlie Bernstein]

And has anyone mentioned the Mosferatu?

http://www.vendio.com/stores/Hermida...tu/lid=2384685