Best cheap overdrive pedals for AC30

[artdecade]

It also adds mids in the same area where an AC30 (normal channel) is already pretty heavy.

 

[Doctorx33]

My Soul Food sounds pretty good into my AC30. I also have a Rangemaster clone I built which sends the amp into soul shattering overdrive.

 

[artdecade]

I guess we should possibly clarify which channel will be running - Normal or Top Boost. I love a treble boost through the Normal channel and the Crowther through the Top Boost channel, but not vice versa. When using the Klon, which channel are choosing? Both?

 

[RetroTeleRod]

AC30 and a Hotcake
Everything else and a Proco Rat

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A hotcake with my Vox and I'm going to be getting flubby real fast!

 

[Spaceboy]

AC30 and a Hotcake
Everything else and a Proco Rat

I wouldn't call the Hotcake cheap, but yea, essential pedal for an AC30.

 

[RetroTeleRod]

Can I get close to the Hotcake tone with a Flapjack?

 

[artdecade]

 

[HotDan!]

Most everything in this regard has been said so...It'd go, in order, silver modded 808, Rat and Soul Food in that order...

 

[artdecade]

^ Must have missed those Hotcake posts. It is the only pedal actually designed to go hand in glove with the EQ and gain structure of an AC30.

 

[JLC78TELE]

Hi I've got ac 30 ccx2, and here are some opinions.

Things I like:

DOD 250 overdrive preamp reissue - I am loving this pedal because it gives me a different flavor than the natural distortion of the ac30. It routinely goes for 50 bucks new on musicians friend.

Zvex Super Hard On - mine is a DIY clone, it adds chime and depending on how you push it it really makes the amp come alive at lower volumes. Can also make the amp huge ant high volumes.

Tube screamer cause you know tube screamers rock.

Thing I like less:

Soul food - sounds ok , but I haven't bonded with it at all

Mxr custom badass distortion. Makes 1 sound only no matter where you dial it in. A cool sound though.

Hope this helps.

 

[peavey30]

Proco Rat

 

[TelePrankster]

Nobels ODR-1.

 

[ambar_de_kotu]

Klon into an AC30? That is sounds like it will get flubby pretty fast.

I tried a silver archer into my Vox ac10.. Didn't like it one bit... I went back to my ts808

 

[Monotremata]

I bought a few, just because they're cheap and plentiful. I have a hunch guys buy them, realize they're not very clean or linear like the name promises (like that's a bad thing! ), and unload them. You can go the 'British' route and have one turned into a treble booster quick and easy. *WARNING!* The little boards for the footswitch 'feature' lousy thin-as-a-politician's-promise ribbon cable. I put some hot glue around the cable ends before I take the pedal all apart. Make it into a Rangemaster.

Whatever you do, DONT do the cap swap and turn it into an EHX Screaming Bird Treble Booster. Those things are god awful haha!

Do you have a link or anything on how to mod it to a Rangemaster?? I love how the stock LPB-1 gives the AC that thick grind, but I REALLY want to try a Rangemaster one day as well. For the price they go for its cheaper than buying a GGG/BYOC Rangemaster kit considering I probably have all the components here already.

 

[Georox]

Define cheap.

 

[artdecade]

Define cheap.

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=cheap

 

[RetroTeleRod]

Hey artdecade, I've read on the internets that a Vox has to be cranked up pretty loud for the Hotcake to do it's thing, true or not?

 

[ranjam]

.............. Do you have a link or anything on how to mod it to a Rangemaster?? I love how the stock LPB-1 gives the AC that thick grind, but I REALLY want to try a Rangemaster one day as well. For the price they go for its cheaper than buying a GGG/BYOC Rangemaster kit considering I probably have all the components here already.

Here is what I drew. These are the circuit board numbers from every LPB-1 I have had. I didn't note the capacitor numbers, my bad. I could open one up, but you get the idea. They're all .1uF capacitors now.
The capacitors are the key. The Rangemaster has the collector resistor as a volume control, but I doubt it makes much difference. Change the capacitors, and then decide; the emitter resistor in the LPB-1 is 390‎Ω for a lot of gain if you use β = Rc/Re. The Rangemaster has less gain by that formula, but the bypass capacitor is a lot larger, so the AC gain would be higher. I have a hunch it evens out, but I never did breadboard it and scope it out to 'see'. I only know for certain if I remove the input and out capacitors and use .005uF for both it's a very biting tone. If you have a 47uF capacitor that will fit on the board and in the enclosure, you can try. I have seen Rangemaster schematics that list that capacitor as 47uF, but also 22uF. I think 22uF would even more 'biting', and not as full on the frequency response. The Hornby-Skewes Treble Booster has it listed at 80uF! It's up to you to experiment, after you've hot glued the ribbon cable.
The LPB-1 is cheap and plentiful. It should be a lot cheaper than a GGG Rangemaster, and you have to build it, and finish the case. Just an hour or so with a cheap LPB-1, a hot glue gun, a couple of capacitors, some patience and a skilled hand, and you too can have a Rangemaster.

 

[artdecade]

Hey artdecade, I've read on the internets that a Vox has to be cranked up pretty loud for the Hotcake to do it's thing, true or not?

Depends on the Hotcake. The original one had a switch to control the tone. This one loves to be cranked. The ones since then have used a standard tone control. These ones seem to be solid at all volumes. Plus, the newer ones also have the switchable Bluesberry circuit built into them. This makes it even more versatile for amps that are less Vox-y.

 

[Lucky Day]

Hey artdecade, I've read on the internets that a Vox has to be cranked up pretty loud for the Hotcake to do it's thing, true or not?

As someone who owns an AC30CC2X and a (new model) Hot Cake, I say it's true.

Caveats: The Celestion Blues are one of the factors. They sound better louder. Greenbacks, in my experience, sound pretty good with the Hot Cake at lower volumes.