Inverted boost pedal

[Coma]

This might sound stupid as all hell, but you could easily build a volume cutting pedal using just an enclosure, two jacks and a pot. Connect it, turn it down and turn your amp up to compensate. Turn it off again and your signal would be louder.

But no one does that, so I guess there's a reason for it. Why?

[VinceT]

Re: Inverted boost pedal

It is doable. My custom Whitney amp has Modern and Vintage gain stages, that cascade - with the Modern cutting gain/volume at its lower end, and boosting at its upper end (with unity being around 6 on the dial).

The reason it's less prevalent is that, typically, people are looking to push the front end with pedals, saturating/compressing the pre-amp - using a variety of gain pedals, you can get several flavours out of one pre-amp - with a "cut pedal", you're only ever subtracting from the one pre-amp, so there's only one place to go.

This is very similar to riding the volume control on your guitar, in essence.


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[Blille]

Inverted boost pedal

This might sound stupid as all hell, but you could easily build a volume cutting pedal using just an enclosure, two jacks and a pot. Connect it, turn it down and turn your amp up to compensate. Turn it off again and your signal would be louder.

But no one does that, so I guess there's a reason for it. Why?

Some people do it. The most notable is the EHX Signal Pad.

https://youtu.be/cC3twvskKEw

Many people use volume pedals that way.

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[dotsdad]

Re: Inverted boost pedal

Soldano Soundman Eliminator.

[devastone]

Re: Inverted boost pedal

Paul Gilbert used the HBE Detox for just that.

http://www.soundscheapmusic.com/product/hbehomebrewelectronicspaulgilbertsignaturedetoxeq

[TimmyPage]

Re: Inverted boost pedal

Both the Xotic RC Booster and the TC Electronic Spark Booster can be used for this. You turn the volume beneath unity and turn the brightness up a touch so that when the pedal is active your amp is being driven LESS and thus has less gain. I think someone also produces an 'Underdrive' with this effect as well.

[PFDarkside]

Re: Inverted boost pedal

I believe Wampler had the Underdrive for a while.

Doing it with a simple pot halves the resistance to ground with your volume pot. If you always want to do this (to get a preset "rhythm tone") then you could double your current volume pot (500k -> 1M) and use the same in the box to compensate.

If you knew your priest volume it's a good idea.

[JeffB]

Re: Inverted boost pedal

Both the Xotic RC Booster and the TC Electronic Spark Booster can be used for this. You turn the volume beneath unity and turn the brightness up a touch so that when the pedal is active your amp is being driven LESS and thus has less gain. I think someone also produces an 'Underdrive' with this effect as well.

And the Dunlop Echoplex pre-amp.

I often use it as a "clean-er" pedal as it beefs up lows and highs so you don't lose any punch or clarity like rolling off the volume on the guitar. At a certain point, no volume, but you CAN roll down a fair amount from unity.

[jeremy]

Re: Inverted boost pedal

ive used timmy to do this with my tweed amps. set the amp so its breathing fire and step on the pedal to clean it up. works well but with those amps, i find it almost unnecessary since they clean up so well

[Mincer]

Re: Inverted boost pedal

Yes, people have been doing this with overdrive pedals for years. You don't hear about it as much, because most guitarists want MORE. LESS isn't sexy.

[Securb]

Re: Inverted boost pedal

[DrNewcenstein]

Re: Inverted boost pedal

If you knew your priest volume it's a good idea.

Of course if you're talking Painkiller vs Defenders......
:P

[JeffB]

Re: Inverted boost pedal

I get the "common sense" post, but not the same. As I mentioned in post #8.

[PFDarkside]

Re: Inverted boost pedal

Of course if you're talking Painkiller vs Defenders......
:P

[beaubrummels]

Re: Inverted boost pedal

The problem with attenuating the signal is you are applying resistance which filters and darkens the tone. There's better technology now for adding clean gain than clean attenuation.