Gain/OD pedal recommendations

punchlinechar

punchlinechar

New member
How's it hanging everybody? I recently bought a Marshall DSL40C (the old one, non master volume), and I want to know what pedals to look at to make it work a little better for me. I like the tone for sure, but I find I need to hit really hard all the time to make it gainy. I like the touch responsiveness, but I'd like it to be a bit more gainy, maybe with a little more low end to open the amp up a bit more. I was thinking the 5150 OD, but I'm also intrigued by the Wampler Sovereign. What do y'all think?

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Re: Gain/OD pedal recommendations

punchlinechar said:
How's it hanging everybody? I recently bought a Marshall DSL40C (the old one, non master volume), and I want to know what pedals to look at to make it work a little better for me. I like the tone for sure, but I find I need to hit really hard all the time to make it gainy. I like the touch responsiveness, but I'd like it to be a bit more gainy, maybe with a little more low end to open the amp up a bit more. I was thinking the 5150 OD, but I'm also intrigued by the Wampler Sovereign. What do y'all think?
Click to expand...

To play what style of music? What guitar parts (lead, rhythm, etc.)? To sound like who by way of reference?

(One man’s “more gainy” is another man’s “swarm of angry bees” is another man’s “did you take it off Standby yet?”)


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Re: Gain/OD pedal recommendations

VinceT said:
To play what style of music? What guitar parts (lead, rhythm, etc.)? To sound like who by way of reference?

(One man’s “more gainy” is another man’s “swarm of angry bees” is another man’s “did you take it off Standby yet?”)


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
This would be for metal, 80's and some 90's. Metallica, Megadeth, that kind of stuff. Not typically a 5150 thing, but I love all the demos I've heard of it.

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Re: Gain/OD pedal recommendations

I strongly suggest a tc electronics Spark Booster. This is an amazingly clear clean and powerful boost pedal. It has a beautiful gain structure to enhance your amps gain. It has Warm mode boost mode and Mid mode. I personally use the Mid mode to get a better bite. I also use it on my clean channel to get a slight break up for some slight dirty clean tones to a light rock tone.
It's also amazing when you start stacking OD pedals. It works in front or behind OD , Distortion or even high gain pedals. It's the most versatile Boost light OD pedal I have ever plugged into.
I will always have a Spark Boster on my pedal board, it's simlply amazing.

The Ibanez Tube Screamer is a classic. It has a sound of it's own. It works similar to the the Spark but it is not transparent. It changes your tone. Many love the tube screamer, I simply can't get it to work for that I do, I'm a metal guy and I was never able to dial in the tube screamer to my tastes but it might work amazing for you. That is also a very good place to start.

With OD distortion and high gain pedals, this is a road you must trial and error over and over. Us guitar players are always trying out OD style pedals and thinking about the next one.
Wampler does no wrong when building these kinds of pedals. You can easily say they build the very best sounding pedals for this in the world. I share that opinion.
 
Re: Gain/OD pedal recommendations

The Spark is a good idea, but I already run a Pickup Booster, so I'm covered in that department. I need a pedal that will add some more low end and a bit of saturation into my signal.

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Re: Gain/OD pedal recommendations

Well, all of the Duncan gain pedals have an active 3 band EQ, so you can use that to boost the bass while cutting the other 2.
 
Re: Gain/OD pedal recommendations

punchlinechar said:
How's it hanging everybody? I recently bought a Marshall DSL40C (the old one, non master volume), and I want to know what pedals to look at to make it work a little better for me. I like the tone for sure, but I find I need to hit really hard all the time to make it gainy. I like the touch responsiveness, but I'd like it to be a bit more gainy, maybe with a little more low end to open the amp up a bit more. I was thinking the 5150 OD, but I'm also intrigued by the Wampler Sovereign. What do y'all think?

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Click to expand...
The MXR 5150 rocks. I've been thinking of getting one myself. I didn't like the Sovereign. It has sag when you dig in. I didn't like that. Check out the Jet city high gain boost, it works pretty good, if you want more gain.
 
Re: Gain/OD pedal recommendations

Gplayerzzz said:
The MXR 5150 rocks. I've been thinking of getting one myself. I didn't like the Sovereign. It has sag when you dig in. I didn't like that. Check out the Jet city high gain boost, it works pretty good, if you want more gain.
Click to expand...
Good to know about the sovereign, I don't like that either. The 5150 sounds so good on all the demos, I'm leaning towards getting it. If I can find a good pedal I'll be all set for when I get a guitar after I graduate (a gift from my parents)

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Re: Gain/OD pedal recommendations

Of the Tube Screamer type pedals I've tried, I've found the KHDK Ghoul Screamer to be the most conducive to metal tones. It seems to me oriented towards high gain and has Bass and Body switches for more oomph. I currently have the KHDK Ghoul Screamer on my board, and it really does call for Metallica-type riffing.

The B/M/T controls on the Seymour Duncan 805 are very powerful and certainly yield more low end if so desired.

The Boss SD-1W, the Waza version of the SD-1, has a Custom setting that's beefier than the regular SD-1 voicing. That may do the job also.

The Horizon Precision Drive is also a high quality TS-type pedal, though I find its personality to be, true to its name, "precise" and almost clinical. Very good for modern, djent-type stuff.
 
Re: Gain/OD pedal recommendations

punchlinechar said:
The Spark is a good idea, but I already run a Pickup Booster, so I'm covered in that department. I need a pedal that will add some more low end and a bit of saturation into my signal.

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Click to expand...
Check out the Fulltone OCD. It's an incredible Soft to hard rock pedal gain structure with a very warm inviting tone. I just picked one up a few weeks ago and I use it all the time. Love that thing. I think it is more of what you are looking for. It's very amp like as well.
 
Re: Gain/OD pedal recommendations

So far the 805/Forza, 5150, and the KHDK intrigue me. I just tried turning my amp up past 1 for the first time, and arrived at two conclusions:
1. This thing is $&#@ing loud!
2. This thing sounds great!

After turning it up, I realized that I don't need heaps more gain, just a little bit of gain and some low end definition. The 805 and Forza are interesting, I just need to listen to some demos and figure out which one sounds better to my ear. I'll also look at that ghoul screamer (what a great name for a pedal!)

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