boss overdrive

[mastershake]

hey, i recently purchased a boss ds-1 pedal. the pedal is rock solid, looks, and operates perfectly. but it doesn't satisfy my distortion needs. a great example is fade to black, clean intro, and then i need a highly distorted sound, clean again, and then distorted. if i use a slighty distorted amp i get the sound i want, but i need to use the amp clean alot of the time. im curious to see which is favored more for that type of play- the metal zone or the metal core. (or any other distortion pedal, kinda wanted to stick with boss though)

[Dreamland_Rebel]

a lot of metal bands use the metalzone on the clean channel to get there sound. and lot of bands use a distortion pedal and an overdrive pedal together to get their sound or 2 overdrive pedals.

that is one rout.

i prefer the boss SD-1 overdrive pedal. the yellow one. i use the amps distorted channel with the gain set somewhere between noon and 2. i set the SD-1's gain off and the level all the way up with the tone to taste. (clean boost style)

now for cleans i use the amp's clean channel. i set the channel changer pedal right beside the overdrive pedal so that i can hit both at the same time with my foot.

this allows me to go from sparkly cleans to hi fi distorted shred tones instantly.

what i've noticed about using an overdrive as a clean boost to a distored channel is that it gives it that hi gain edge and sustain to the sound that most people try and emulate by adding too much treble and presence from the amp. its a very subtle difference in tone. but i wouldn't want to play a gig without it. the distortion is so much more natural and pleasant while screaming with harmonic overtones without being noisy or harsh.

[thetroy]

i prefer the boss SD-1 overdrive pedal. the yellow one. i use the amps distorted channel with the gain set somewhere between noon and 2. i set the SD-1's gain off and the level all the way up with the tone to taste. (clean boost style)

That is the recipe for the best high-gain tone ever IMO.

[lynchfan6]

I love that SD-1 myself with my SLO. I kick it on in front of my Soldano SLO100's clean/crunch channel and also my overdrive channel for solos/leads. Over the clean /crunch channel, it's a nice boost for country rock type solos.....over the overdrive channel,,,it's great for a little more drive/sustain for rockin' solos. I only set the overdrive channel gain to like 6 or so on the SLO for a nice Scorpions type rock sound, so for leads I like a little more "hair." I also set the pedal's level high, the drive near zero, and the tone around neutral. To me, it is a very warm sounding pedal with great harmonics and tone. I find my DS1 kinda harsh and sterile.......I never use it. However, the SD1 won't have the distortion of a true distortion pedal...so if your entire "high gain " sound needs to come from a pedal,,,the SD1 is not gonna do it. I think it's mainly to enhance a tube amp's gain and tone...and for this,,,it really shines.

[Bengal65]

Keeley "5 Star Ge mod" SD-1? Just a thought. I've heard good things about this mod although I haven't played through this unit.


.....or a DS-1 Ultra Mod since that's the pedal you already have.

[chrisolson]

The DS-1 is a distortion pedal, not an overdrive.

BTW - it helps to know what kind of amp you're using.

[mastershake]

cheap line 6 spider 3

[mastershake]

i looked at line 6s foot switchs which are cool, but im trying to set up a rig that i can play on any amp. besides i play on my freinds jvm more than my POS 15 watt amp

[mastershake]

thanks for the input though, the wheels are turning!

[chrisolson]

Well, the little Spider doesn't really need any pedals IMO, and since they're channel switching amps, I'm suprised you're having the problems you're having. Don't use the pedal, and set up two channels.

Buy the FBV Express - it's $99 new, so probably a lot cheaper used. It'll do everything you need.

Trying to get a setup that will work with all amps are a fool's errand. Too mnay differences to try to account for. Find a good combo amp that YOU like, and take it with you when you're going places. Problem solved.

[mastershake]

i want i rig i cant play on other amps, i did check that out tho and i did like it but i was planing on getting a good metal pedal a boss flange a boss acoustic pedal and a crybaby from hell. my friend has a band and he has a couple good combos, and he wants my to play for his band, thats why i would like a univeral setup.

[Tim]

Don't bother with pedals with the Line 6, if you're not satisfied get a new amp. Once you try and play in a full band setting with that amp cranked up it will completely go to pieces, so I think it's time to look at getting a better amp rather than wasting money on pedals.

IMO, of course.

[mastershake]

also if i had another overdrive pedal could i use both of em to get the sound i want. i could get another ds-1 for next to nothing

[mastershake]

thats a great idea tim, but i was going to get a good set of pedals first, because i will play on his amp. i would have to sell my car to get an amp better than his, so why wouldnt i play on his, beside it will probably be a coulpe years before i get a higher powered amp.

[mastershake]

nevermind i can afford a new half stack, two words ORGAN HARVESTING