Any other Fulldrive 3 fans out there?

[MakerDP]

I just picked-up a "factory second" Fulldrive 3 direct from Fulltone and wow am I impressed with this pedal! I used to have a Fulldrive 2 and quickly got rid of it since to me it was nothing more than a fancy Tube Screamer clone and the boost function was totally useless if it took up that much space and could not be used independently.

I absolutely LOVE the comp-cut mode with the boost before the OD to give it some extra edge for rhythm/lead crunch. Throw a boost pedal in front for extra lead boost when needed. Great transparent tone and dynamics!


I think my Plimsoul will end up on CL soon.

[Silence Kid]

Re: Any other Fulldrive 3 fans out there?

I love my Fulltone 2 Mosfet... The Fulldrive 3 clips don't sound as good to me, a bit rougher/less transparent. I find the FD2 to sound quite apart from a TS, in particular with flat-mid selected, using Mosfet mode... Really don't use non-MOSFET on that pedal (although I guess people don't tend to prefer the MOSFET version of the pedal anyway.)

I still want to test drive the three... I should add comp cut is pretty awesome on the two as well and I'm curious about the plim, seems like a different animal though?

[MakerDP]

Re: Any other Fulldrive 3 fans out there?

Yeah the Plimsoul is a different animal. It's basically a TS with a second gain stage that you can dial in on top of that. It's a nice pedal. I guess I've just never been a fan of the Tube Screamer sound, although with that second gain stage, it does more than just a TS clone. I got it off CL for about $50 so I thought it was a good gamble and it will be easy to sell again. I thought the FD2 did what it did well, but just not my cup of tea and the non-independent boost function with all the space it takes up killed it for me since I like to go with a more compact pedalboard.

I prefer a more "transparent" true tube amp overdrive which I think the Fulldrive 3 is nailing for me in CC mode. That dynamics knob really is sweet too. I like it so much I pretty much will have the boost on all the time whether the overdrive is on or not.

I'm going to try and experiment with Wide Asym mode a little more this weekend.

[Liam1963]

Re: Any other Fulldrive 3 fans out there?

I have a Fulldrive 3 on my short board, great pedal!

[PFDarkside]

Re: Any other Fulldrive 3 fans out there?

I'd like to try a 3, the 2 plays incredibly well with my Princeton Reverb and Strats. Like better than a lot of other TS based pedals. All three modes work well, Vintage, Flat Mids and Comp Cut.

By the way, the boost is simply named different than what we think of as a "boost" now. (Over 20 years old) The boost is actually a second, switchable gain control that adds to the base gain.

[MakerDP]

Re: Any other Fulldrive 3 fans out there?

Yeah after about a week with this pedal I am liking it more and more. Using it's boost after the OD always on because I like the dynamics control. Putting a Soul Food in front of it with just a tiny tiny bit of hair on it lets me get some awesome lead tones. Finally an SP compressor in lo mode after the OD really gives me some of that Dumblish mids-compressed overdrive that I just love.

[Gearjoneser]

Re: Any other Fulldrive 3 fans out there?

I lived a block from Mike Fuller when he first started. Without a doubt, the FDII blew away every TS variant when it came out, and it really launched Fulltone.

I always regret selling my orange FDII #4.
Since then, I've had a blue and custom shop cream. I haven't tried the 3, but assume it's the best summary of all his revisions.

[MakerDP]

Re: Any other Fulldrive 3 fans out there?

Yeah he most definitely makes some great products and he packs a lot of features and build quality into his stuff for a pretty low price.

The FD3 I bought direct was a "factory blemish" but I can't for the life of me see a thing wrong with it. Could be a warranty repair I suppose or a return from someone who just didn't like it for whatever reason and sent it back in perfect condition.

[Inkstained]

Re: Any other Fulldrive 3 fans out there?

The FD3 is my favorite TS-type pedal right now. The independent boost is its best feature. Great with 'buckers or single-coils.

[MakerDP]

Re: Any other Fulldrive 3 fans out there?

I just finished building a Zendrive from tagboardeffects and the FD3 in CC mode going into the ZD is a great combination!

The ZD on its own is pretty sweet to especially with the FD3 boost mode engaged for a little extra mids compression. That tiny dynamics knob is the thing that does it for me.