Just Ordered A Seymour Duncan Diamondhead Pedal

[Demanic]

i wouldnt think it would be overly difficult to do. probably too confusing for the masses which is why we dont see it. its much easier to get a terrible sound if you have that much control

Of course.
But then, if you do know what you are doing..

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[Jeffblue]

Gentlemen...........I am supposed to receive the Diamondhead pedal today. I'll be trying it out on my homemade pedalboard. I am also using a Fuchs Plush Valve Job when I'm looking for more of a Dumble-ish tone. I will be bypassing all of that to acquire more of a hard driven Marshall tone and going between bypassing and engaging my HX Stomp amp modeling tones. I'll be running in quasi stereo with a 1969 Fender Bandmaster Reverb on the left channel and a Trace Elliott Bonneville 4X10 on the right side. I'll let you know how it goes.

 

[Jeffblue]

I received the Diamondhead pedal, placed it on my pedalboard and plugged it in. This pedal sounds excellent and it is a worthwhile purchase. Great ability to dial in awesome tones. I'll be keeping this on my pedalboard.

 

[Mincer]

How would you describe it? What kind of music are you playing with it?

 

[Jeffblue]

This pedal does capture 70s and 80s driven Marshal sound on the recordings of that era. There is more gain than I can use, The SAT switch makes the pedal burn and the boost is huge. I mainly play along with my compact discs. I haven't had enough time with the pedal yet to explain much more. I'll give more info when I've spent more time with it.

 

[dave74]

I always have wished for 3 mid knobs to go with the lows/highs/presence. (low-mids, center, high-mids)
Maybe that only would work on an active eq section. Aren't most tube amps passive eq?
With attenuating/passive eq sections there might be too much confusing overlap or inter-activeness with too many pots. (???)

 

[Jeffblue]

I get what you are looking for as far as eq goes. I think that would be a superb idea, but would probably be a more complicated prospect causing some difficulty in dialing in tones.

 

[Demanic]

How about the Baxandall tone stack? I think my old Carvin tube amp had one.

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[Jeffblue]

Isn't the TMB itone stack what most guitar amps use? I believe so. I don't know enough about the differences to make an educated statement. The tone stack on the Diamondhead pedal is powerful and affects the overall tone greatly.

 

[Mincer]

This pedal does capture 70s and 80s driven Marshal sound on the recordings of that era. There is more gain than I can use, The SAT switch makes the pedal burn and the boost is huge. I mainly play along with my compact discs. I haven't had enough time with the pedal yet to explain much more. I'll give more info when I've spent more time with it.

Is it pretty dynamic? I mean, can you get different tones by using the volume knob on the guitar or with the pick attack?

 

[Jeffblue]

Very dynamic! Cleans up nicely when the guitar volume is backed off. Huge difference in tone using the eq settings. Huge boost and large gain using the SET switch.

 

[jeremy]

sounds like a fun pedal. might have to try one down the line

 

[eclecticsynergy]

And I probably meant that the graphic would go at the end of the preamp before the power stage. But the standard b/m/t tone stack would be replaced by three parametrics.

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The DOD Boneshaker distortion has EQ like that - three bands, all sweepable, plus another knob for the extra-deep lows. No bandwidth controls but semi-parametric is enough. I had a couple of Tascam mixers back in the day that had 10KHz shelving highs with sweepable mids & lows. It was a big step up from the typical 3-band or 4-band fixed-frequency boards I'd been used to. It required using your ears but it gave a lot more versatility for sculpting.

Still, when it comes to amps IMO fixed tone controls are the best fit for the majority of guitar players. We can choose trebleboosters or other gain-shaping tools on an individual basis, but I think for general use amps need something that's simple and foolproof. Many have difficulty enough with the interactions of a traditional tone stack.

As for the Boneshaker, it's a good flexible pedal - I used to travel with one when I didn't know what flavor of backline would be available. That said, it's definitely a distortion, not an OD. I used it occasionally for corrective EQ but mostly as a hot lead channel. For that it's great. Definitely at its best as a high gain animal, not so great for edge-of-breakup or grit, and not amplike in its cleanup when you roll back the guitar volume. I could see using one for metal rhythm though. Plenty of chunk and the Depth knob is especially handy for low tunings or bass guitar. (Still, for bass I much prefer the SansAmp Bass Driver which does behave a lot like an amp.)

I imagine pedals like the Palladium & Diamondhead - which were designed to serve as a complete preamp circuit - probably use an extra gain stage (or two) compared to your typical pedal. This is likely to make them far more graceful in their interaction with your hands & guitar, especially when it comes to dynamics & cleanup. I have a few four-stage pedals including the Ethos TWE-1 and the little Blackstone Mosfet; they seem more touch-responsive than the usual suspects. I can feel the difference.