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Topic: Sarno Freeloader vs. Goodrich Steeldriver 111 |
Jason Williams
From:
Seattle, Washington
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Posted 19 Jul 2009 2:33 pm |
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| While both are cleverly named, can anyone give me their opinion on which they like more and why? |
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Jim Palenscar
From:
Oceanside, Calif, USA
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Posted 19 Jul 2009 3:09 pm
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| To my knowledge, as limited as it is, they are two totally different pieces of equipment. While both enable the user to change the tone, the Steeldriver III has both an impedance matching transformer as well as a distortion device and the Freeloader is a device that shifts the resonant peak. I am far from an expert in electronics however it might be an apples vs. oranges question. |
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Jason Williams
From:
Seattle, Washington
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Posted 19 Jul 2009 3:30 pm
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That is kind of why I asked. I obviously don't know a impedance matching transformer from a device that shifts resonant peak. Just looking for a solid, portable, tone shaping device, but I'm not very fluent in the language. Pardon my ignorance  |
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Jim Palenscar
From:
Oceanside, Calif, USA
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Posted 19 Jul 2009 5:16 pm
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| Believe me- most of us are in the same boat. Unless you want the distortion device, consider Brad's Freeloader or even a Goodrich Matchbox (the Steeldriver w/o the distortion). |
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Mark van Allen
From:
Watkinsville, Ga. USA
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Posted 19 Jul 2009 6:51 pm
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| Jason, i don't know if you're looking for a radical tone-shaping device, or something more subtle. The Freeloader changes the tonal response on my rig in just the way I need, warming it up for a C6thish fattening, or brightening the top end and giving it more projection. But they are fairly subtle changes- I remember the eq in the steeldriver units as being more strident. Some years back I built some EQ units based on the Craig Anderton "Electronic Projects For Musicians" book that made radical tonal changes with a parametric eq section, very useful. I built them into clip-on boxes that i always ended up selling to other steelers. For something pre-built like that I think a stereo rack eq, like the Alesis graphic or JoeMeek semi-parametric would be ideal. |
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Brad Sarno
From:
St. Louis, MO USA
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Posted 20 Jul 2009 8:08 am
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The SteelDriver III does a few things. It is an impedance matcher, which means that the high input impedance of the pickup gets converted to low impedance at the output. A low impedance output insures that the device can drive long runs of cable without the tone suffering for it. While it does "transform" the impedance from high to low, I don't believe it actually uses a "matching transformer" to achieve it. Then the SteelDriver also offers a gain knob, a tone knob and a distortion feature.
The FreeLoader is also quite similar in that it too is an impedance matching device and provides all the very same benefits. What makes the FreeLoader unique is that it offers a very effective tone control using the method of "variable impedance loading", hence "freeLOADer". Variable loading actually uses the pickup's coil itself to take part in the tone circuit. There are a number of advantages with this method. Every pickup has it's own unique resonant peak, and the FreeLoader naturally finds that peak and lets you control how "tall and sharp" or "low and mellow" that peak sounds. Some call it a twang control or a harshness control. It's proven by many to be one of the most useful tone knobs a steel guitar can have, and instant access to it can really help dial in the perfect amount of bite from song to song and depending on how loud and brash the band is playing. Also it's an ideal tool for balancing the tone of C6 and E9 necks. The FreeLoader does NOT have a distortion effect built in.
I hope that helped.
Brad |
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Jim Palenscar
From:
Oceanside, Calif, USA
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Posted 20 Jul 2009 8:28 am
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What Brad said  |
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Hook Moore
From:
South Charleston,West Virginia
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Lee Baucum
From:
McAllen, Texas (Extreme South) The Final Frontier
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Posted 20 Jul 2009 11:59 am
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| I ordered a FreeLoader today. Can't wait for it to come in. |
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Jason Williams
From:
Seattle, Washington
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Posted 20 Jul 2009 12:21 pm
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| The reason I ask is, when I am playing live with the entire band blaring, I don't have any problem with volume. The problem is, I feel my tone suffers dramatically. The highs are way too shrill. At lower levels, I really kind of like the sound of the tonealigner pup, but I need something on top of my amp eq to help round out the sound a touch. I appreciate the help from everyone. |
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Jon Light
From:
Saugerties, NY
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Posted 20 Jul 2009 12:27 pm
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| The Freeloader does a nice job of taming shrill top end. What amp? What speaker? |
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Jason Williams
From:
Seattle, Washington
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Posted 20 Jul 2009 1:52 pm
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| Fender Deluxe with a stock speaker. |
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Jon Light
From:
Saugerties, NY
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Posted 20 Jul 2009 2:06 pm
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If that's a reissue Deluxe Reverb....I played thru a backline one once and found it to be a shrill amp. I have an old silverface DR that couldn't be sweeter. Tube choice, proper tube bias and speaker replacement will go a long way to taming a RI DR. If it is a non-reverb Deluxe, same comments but I have no direct experience.
But still, the Freeloader will sweeten up a harsh top end. |
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Jason Williams
From:
Seattle, Washington
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Posted 20 Jul 2009 5:22 pm
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| Thanks Jon, do you have suggestions on speaker replacements? |
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Jason Williams
From:
Seattle, Washington
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Posted 20 Jul 2009 5:24 pm
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| It is a reissue by the way. |
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Tony Dingus
From:
Kingsport, Tennessee, USA
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Posted 20 Jul 2009 5:26 pm
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I love my Freeloader. Sweet is the word!
If you have a solid state amp you might want to think about Brad's Blackbox. It has a tube plus the Freeloader and it makes a solid state sweet.
Tony |
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Jon Light
From:
Saugerties, NY
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Posted 20 Jul 2009 5:53 pm
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| Jason--much has been written here about DR's in general. Do some searching for a good read. The reissue is a different animal from vintage so although I've read about speaker choices I don't recall what they were. A Weber California, ceramic, is wonderful in my old amp but there are other choices too. I'm not sure if that is the best option for the RI. If a search doesn't answer the question, why don't you start a new topic for that. I know that there are other DRRI users here. |
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Olli Haavisto
From:
Jarvenpaa,Finland
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Posted 21 Jul 2009 4:52 am
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Brad,
I have a Freeloader and about twice a week some fellow musician asks what does that red thing do. I`ve been telling them that it`s a buffer with a variable input impedance . Anywhere near the mark ?
Great unit, I use it all the time , BTW
_________________
Olli Haavisto
Finland |
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Bob Watson
From:
Champaign, Illinois, U.S.
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Posted 22 Jul 2009 4:00 pm
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| I play a P/P Emmons and lately I've been playing it through a Roland Cube 60 using the Blackface Twin model called "Black Panel" on the amp. I turn the tone knob on the Emmons down quite a bit to get what I want to out of the Cube 60. I have an old Sho Bud Professional that I take out occasionally and I have to use my Peavey LTD with it because it has too much high end with the Cube 60. I can crank the Bass and the Mids up and turn the Highs all the way off and it still has too much high end for my taste. I have played the Sho Bud through a Silver Faced Twin once and had the same problem. I was wondering if the Freeloader or the Steeldriver have a wide enough range of tone to cut the highs enough to enable me to use my Sho Bud with my Cube 60 or a Twin Reverb. |
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Bob Watson
From:
Champaign, Illinois, U.S.
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Posted 22 Jul 2009 4:01 pm
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| I play a P/P Emmons and lately I've been playing it through a Roland Cube 60 using the Blackface Twin model called "Black Panel" on the amp. I turn the tone knob on the Emmons down quite a bit to get what I want to out of the Cube 60. I have an old Sho Bud Professional that I take out occasionally and I have to use my Peavey LTD with it because it has too much high end with the Cube 60. I can crank the Bass and the Mids up and turn the Highs all the way off and it still has too much high end for my taste. I have played the Sho Bud through a Silver Faced Twin once and had the same problem. I was wondering if the Freeloader or the Steeldriver have a wide enough range of tone to cut the highs enough to enable me to use my Sho Bud with my Cube 60 or a Twin Reverb. |
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Bob Watson
From:
Champaign, Illinois, U.S.
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Posted 22 Jul 2009 4:01 pm
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| I play a P/P Emmons and lately I've been playing it through a Roland Cube 60 using the Blackface Twin model called "Black Panel" on the amp. I turn the tone knob on the Emmons down quite a bit to get what I want to out of the Cube 60. I have an old Sho Bud Professional that I take out occasionally and I have to use my Peavey LTD with it because it has too much high end with the Cube 60. I can crank the Bass and the Mids up and turn the Highs all the way off and it still has too much high end for my taste. I have played the Sho Bud through a Silver Faced Twin once and had the same problem. I was wondering if the Freeloader or the Steeldriver have a wide enough range of tone to cut the highs enough to enable me to use my Sho Bud with my Cube 60 or a Twin Reverb. |
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Bob Watson
From:
Champaign, Illinois, U.S.
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Posted 22 Jul 2009 4:02 pm
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| I play a P/P Emmons and lately I've been playing it through a Roland Cube 60 using the Blackface Twin model called "Black Panel" on the amp. I turn the tone knob on the Emmons down quite a bit to get what I want to out of the Cube 60. I have an old Sho Bud Professional that I take out occasionally and I have to use my Peavey LTD with it because it has too much high end with the Cube 60. I can crank the Bass and the Mids up and turn the Highs all the way off and it still has too much high end for my taste. I have played the Sho Bud through a Silver Faced Twin once and had the same problem. I was wondering if the Freeloader or the Steeldriver have a wide enough range of tone to cut the highs enough to enable me to use my Sho Bud with my Cube 60 or a Twin Reverb. |
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