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Topic: best fuzz box for steel? |
William Johnson
From:
Statesboro, Georgia, USA
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Posted 20 Jun 2005 11:58 am |
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i have not had good luck finding a good fuzz sound for a PSG. most are just too muddy with not much defintion.
i heard a Goodrich version (Steel Driver i think?) that sounded good years back.
any opinions?
settings on a TubeFex you can pass on to me?
thanks,
Billy
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William Johnson (Billy)
Grievous Angel Productions
Statesboro, GA. 30461 USA
www.grievousangelpro.com |
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Bob Cox
From:
Buckeye State
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Posted 20 Jun 2005 6:08 pm
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| Check out a rat or Boss Tone |
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Darryl Logue
From:
Raytown, Missouri, USA
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Posted 20 Jun 2005 6:30 pm
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| I like the Hot Cake for overdrive not fuzz.Crother Audio New Zealand. |
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Jerry Hayes
From:
Virginia Beach, Va.
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Posted 23 Jun 2005 9:45 am
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I have a bunch of distortion boxes, and by far the best sound I get with my steel is with an old DOD Overdrive pedal. It's the yellow one with only two knobs. You can get a great Duane Allman slide guitar tone out of this pedal.....JH in Va.
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Livin' in the Past and Future with a 12 string Mooney Universal tuning.
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Buck Dilly
From:
Branchville, NJ, USA * R.I.P.
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Posted 23 Jun 2005 10:52 am
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| Fulldrive II sounds quite good. It lets plenty of bottom end through, and has lots of punch for an overdrive sound. |
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William Johnson
From:
Statesboro, Georgia, USA
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Posted 23 Jun 2005 11:01 am
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BTW:
My old rock group Critical Mass opened for the Allman Bros in ~1972 in Statesboro, GA. the Allman Bros had all the members still living, i.e. Barry Oakely and Duane. they opened with Statesboro Blues. so i had on reel tape recording with a FOH feed of the Allman Bros with Duane and Barry, playing Statesboro Blues in Statesboro, GA. (where Blind Willie stayed for about 2 years in the Jeykell Hotel). it was a GREAT show! after show, i like a young college kid might do, played back some of the tape thru the house speakers. well an offical man with suit and brief case appracjed me and told me give the tape to him or go to court. so i did.
rock & roll trivia.
PEACE,
Billy
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William Johnson (Billy)
Grievous Angel Productions
Statesboro, GA. 30461 USA www.grievousangelpro.com [This message was edited by Billy T. Johnson on 23 June 2005 at 12:33 PM.] [This message was edited by Billy T. Johnson on 23 June 2005 at 12:34 PM.] |
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Bob Carlucci
From:
Candor, New York, USA
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Posted 23 Jun 2005 11:14 am
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| I really like the Boss Blues Driver,,, Nice sound, cheap too... bob |
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Larry Robbins
From:
Fort Edward, New York
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Posted 23 Jun 2005 12:23 pm
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Hey Billy ,
Check out the Voodoo lab "SuperFuzz"
www.voodoolab.com
They have sound bits on the site as well!
Its basically a 1968 Jordan Bosstone W/added
tone and resonance controls..[This message was edited by Larry Robbins on 23 June 2005 at 01:25 PM.] |
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Larry Robbins
From:
Fort Edward, New York
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Posted 23 Jun 2005 12:33 pm
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I see there is a used "voodoo" for sale over in ,"For sale..amps and acc.  |
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William Johnson
From:
Statesboro, Georgia, USA
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Posted 23 Jun 2005 12:49 pm
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the Vodoo labs superfuzz is great sounding fuzz/overdrive. about like some sounds of the '60/'70s with stacked Marshals with 'green-back' speakers. the green-backs were a great speaker for rock guitar, they broke down so smooth and sweet. they were i feel, a lucky design as they were actually a poor speaker but yea, great for Led Zep and others.
will try to get one.
thanks,
Billy
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William Johnson (Billy)
Grievous Angel Productions
Statesboro, GA. 30461 USA www.grievousangelpro.com [This message was edited by Billy T. Johnson on 23 June 2005 at 02:05 PM.] |
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Leslie Ehrlich
From:
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada
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Posted 23 Jun 2005 12:50 pm
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| Just recently I got a Fender Ultimate Chorus amp. The distortion in it is buzzy enough to sound like a fuzzbox. |
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Jim Sliff
From:
Lawndale California, USA
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Posted 23 Jun 2005 3:32 pm
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It really depends on whether you're looking for "Fuzz" or "Overdrive". Two similar, but quite different effects.
For Fuzz I like the ZVex Fuzz Factory, as it allows you to tweak it to just about any classic fuzz sound plus some that don't even exist yet! An amazing tool. On a budget --- look for the old Ibanez FZ-5 Soundtank Fuzz. A nasty, ratty, great sounding little box.
Overdrive is a different animal. With a SS amp none of them work real well, allthough the previously mentioned Fulldrive II is pretty good. If you're using a tube amp, you HAVE to drive it fairly hard for an overdrive to live up to its potential - and the best IMO are the Klon Centaur, old non-LED MXR Micro Amp, the Nobels ODR-1 and again the Fulldrive II.
Hope that helps. I'm an effects junkie so feel free to ask me about this stuff. |
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William Johnson
From:
Statesboro, Georgia, USA
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Posted 23 Jun 2005 3:49 pm
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yea, i understand the diff. i'm a 60's hippy type having played for years. got into country-rock about 1969 or so.
yep, there is a diff in fuzz verses over-drive. i just did not detail that.
do you know the Supper Fuzz? the mp3 sampoles are fairly versile sounding, i.e. pretty good fuzz + great over-drive.
opinion?
thanks,
Billy
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William Johnson (Billy)
Grievous Angel Productions
Statesboro, GA. 30461 USA
www.grievousangelpro.com |
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William Johnson
From:
Statesboro, Georgia, USA
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Posted 23 Jun 2005 3:50 pm
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who has pretty fuzz an/or overdrive sound setup on a Peavey TubeFex?
thanks,
Billy
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William Johnson (Billy)
Grievous Angel Productions
Statesboro, GA. 30461 USA
www.grievousangelpro.com |
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David Doggett
From:
Bawl'mer, MD (formerly of MS, Nawluns, Gnashville, Knocksville, Lost Angeles, Bahsten. and Philly)
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Posted 23 Jun 2005 8:09 pm
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| Jim, are your observations from pedal steel or from regular guitar? They are completely different animals. Effects that sound good for one don't necessarily sound good for the other. Has anyone tried the Voodoo Lab Sparkle Drive? It lets you blend a clean boost with a Tube Screamer type sound, so you can get as much note definition and attack feel as you want. In theory it should let you tame the fuzz back to something that sounds good with steel, but I haven't tried one to see how well this works. [This message was edited by David Doggett on 23 June 2005 at 09:10 PM.] |
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William Johnson
From:
Statesboro, Georgia, USA
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Posted 23 Jun 2005 8:41 pm
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i agree, lead guitar overdrive and/or fuzz requirements are often quite diff from PSG overdrive and/or fuzz.
that's why i was asking about diff players choices. i have always been disappointerd with by choice of fuzz on PSG. on electric guitars, they may work as desired.
i think a PSG needs more definition than maybe a guitar, i.e. sliding, bending an slurs on a pedal that 'breaks' down alot often gets lost in the mix. BUT of course it depends on teh effect you are chasing. consider Sneaky Pete PSG work on some of Flying Burittos material,i.e. fairly 'blurred', but fits.
later,
Billy
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William Johnson (Billy)
Grievous Angel Productions
Statesboro, GA. 30461 USA
www.grievousangelpro.com |
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John Macy
From:
Rockport TX/Denver CO
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Posted 23 Jun 2005 8:56 pm
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My faves are:
SparkleDrive
Blues Driver with the Keeley mod (once you hear the mod the stock one sounds pretty pathetic...)
Ibanez TS9 TubeScreamer with the Keeley mod
(though I am sending a BluesDriver to www.indyguitarist.com for his mod--Brent Mason is using some of his mods these days.)
 [This message was edited by John Macy on 23 June 2005 at 09:57 PM.] |
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David Mason
From:
Cambridge, MD, USA
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Posted 24 Jun 2005 4:19 am
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The Voodoo Lab Sparkle Drive ($160?) has a mix knob that lets you blend clean signal back in. This seems critical to me. Rather than buying a whole bunch of fuzz tones trying to find the "perfect" one, develop a way to split your signal. You can buy little Y-adaptors at Radio Shack, run two lines out of your volume pedal, run your line to a mini-mixer etc. - there are a number of cheap ways to do this. Big-time rock stars have two, three, even four amps running all the time and the soundman turns them up and down for different effects, we should all be so lucky.
When you have a split signal, you can do stuff like running a MXR Dynacomp full blast into a distortion box with the drive way, way up, but then blend this in as maybe 15% or 20% of your total signal so that the chords come out all sweet and clean and shimmery as always, but with a vicious psychotic haze lurking in the background.
I have a bunch of stompboxes, I prefer the Ibanez Tube Screamer and a Tubeworks Real Tube Overdrive, but I think the splitting process is more important than the brand model. The downside is it's harder to manage quick changes onstage. |
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Robbie Daniels
From:
Casper, Wyoming, USA
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Posted 24 Jun 2005 9:08 am
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That is what makes PSG's so great. Everyone has their own individual taste and sound as to what they want to hear. Experiment and use what sounds good to you, that's my motto.
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MSA D12, MSA S12, 1956 Rickenbacker D8, Evans FET 500LV, Evans SE200, Peavey Transfex Pro |
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Smiley Roberts
From:
Hendersonville,Tn. 37075
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Posted 24 Jun 2005 9:43 am
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GOOD NEWS:
BEST "fuzz" EVER,made for steel,(I.M.O.) was the Jordan "Boss-Tone". (later,known as "Sho-Fuzz".)
BAD NEWS:
They don't make 'em anymore! Best bet would be to find a WORKING used one. I specify "WORKING",'cause its VERY difficult to find parts for 'em. I own 2 of them.(in case one "takes a dump" on me.)
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~ ~
©¿© It don't mean a thang,
mm if it ain't got that twang.
www.ntsga.com
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Alan Kirk
From:
Scotia, CA, USA
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Posted 25 Jun 2005 6:45 am
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A dozen or so of the boss tones have passed through my hands. The incarnations of the boss tone, as I understand them and as they are shown on the backs of the units:
Jordan
Jordan/Victoreen
Sho-Sound
Sho-Bud
Music City Mfg.
I've never seen a "Sho-Fuz" I guess that might be a new one to add to the list.
It's really not that hard to find parts for them, except for the germanium diodes--which usually aren't the component that goes bad. The pots get scratchy, the thumbwheels break, and the capacitors go microphonic. Easy to find those parts. Although I haven't found an exact replacement for the pots I've found a replacement that can be made to work.[This message was edited by Alan Kirk on 25 June 2005 at 07:53 AM.] |
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William Johnson
From:
Statesboro, Georgia, USA
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Posted 25 Jun 2005 7:36 am
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i owned a Marshal Super Fuzz Tone and Boss i think, it was round,both in the 60's and early 70's. actuslly we perferred stacked Marshals (50w and 100w) with 'Green-Backs'!
thanks,
billy
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William Johnson (Billy)
Grievous Angel Productions
Statesboro, GA. 30461 USA
www.grievousangelpro.com |
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Jim Sliff
From:
Lawndale California, USA
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Posted 25 Jun 2005 11:02 am
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"Jim, are your observations from pedal steel or from regular guitar?"
Primarily regular guitar, but with some experience trying the same things on steel (lap and pedal) before I sold my old pedal steel.
I think there is still a certain similarity in how they alter the signal no matter which instrument is plugged into it. It's not as much a "them vs us" issue as some people make it out to be. |
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Jon Light
From:
Saugerties, NY
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Posted 25 Jun 2005 11:13 am
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I've been using the Sparkle Drive as my primary dirt device for a few years now. It is an excellent clean boost for pushing a tube amp into giving it up and also a good dirty boost for more of the same. Its actual distortion, when the amp is not really being pushed, is a little buzzy and thin (IMO). It also loses most of the bottom end. I got a Fuzz Factory a while ago and the thing is so much fun but it is any BUT a set and forget unit--it cover so much sonic ground but I find it all but unusable in real playing situations--it's tweak city. And tweak and tweak and tweak....
I wanted something way over the top so I just got, cheap on ebay, a Boss MT-2. Very compressed, very processed, very extreme. Still playing with it. |
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Bob Cox
From:
Buckeye State
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Posted 3 Jul 2005 8:34 am
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| Another one I forgot to mention that would make Jimmie Hendrix rise up and smile is the maestro stomp box from the 60s. |
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