I may be the pickiest player there is when it comes to drive pedals. I've been through butt-load of them since 1978, but only several ever made the grade with me. BOSS DS-1, Ibanez TS8O8/TS9, Big Muff, KLON, early RAT, Rangemaster TB, T Rex Alberta, and OCD are my favorite drive pedals. I don't like crowded pedalboards, and so I generally would choose one OD and one Fuzz to place on my board. When I first saw the Elektron Analog Drive, I thought to myself; "Right! That thing will have 2 or 3 usable drives, and the rest will be sh!t!"
Never one to back-down from a challenge, I decided to place my order for the Elektron. It arrived at approximately 11 AM today, and I didn't stop playing through it until 2:45 PM. THIS PEDAL ROCKS!!! I have no idea what is up with negative comments regarding this pedal? it is no noisier than any other OD/distortion pedal out there. IMO, there are a lot of players who have no concept on how to properly set up a drive pedal.
Proper drive pedal etiquette:
Set the amplifier MV to an acceptable room level, then adjust the pedal MV level to unity gain with the amplifier, no higher. Done! Using a drive pedal to exceed the stock volume specs of any amplifier is going to result in excessive noise. I don't "stack" drive pedals, nor have I ever needed to. If you have to stack pedals to get a great tone, you need to rethink your rig.
The High Gain and Thick Gain were the settings I thought I would never use... Wrong! Not much larger than a KLON, this pedal covers my drive and distortion needs, expertly! As a matter of fact, I'm ordering a second one. Any piece of gear that I love this much is sure to be discontinued.
Never one to back-down from a challenge, I decided to place my order for the Elektron. It arrived at approximately 11 AM today, and I didn't stop playing through it until 2:45 PM. THIS PEDAL ROCKS!!! I have no idea what is up with negative comments regarding this pedal? it is no noisier than any other OD/distortion pedal out there. IMO, there are a lot of players who have no concept on how to properly set up a drive pedal.
Proper drive pedal etiquette:
Set the amplifier MV to an acceptable room level, then adjust the pedal MV level to unity gain with the amplifier, no higher. Done! Using a drive pedal to exceed the stock volume specs of any amplifier is going to result in excessive noise. I don't "stack" drive pedals, nor have I ever needed to. If you have to stack pedals to get a great tone, you need to rethink your rig.
The High Gain and Thick Gain were the settings I thought I would never use... Wrong! Not much larger than a KLON, this pedal covers my drive and distortion needs, expertly! As a matter of fact, I'm ordering a second one. Any piece of gear that I love this much is sure to be discontinued.
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