Tube Screamer

[Hardtail]

I'm finding that I'm not too thrilled about the distortion I get with the Strat/HRD combo.

 

I'm thinking about trying out an Ibanez Tube Screamer this week.

 

Any suggestions would be welcome. Again, I'm looking to make the Strat sound better. I like the way my LP sounds just fine. I'd really like to hear from the Strat guys (at least those using Single Coil PUs) here.

 

Thanks.

[Tone Taster]

Get the Maxon instead of the Ibanez

[souvenir]

Another option is the Marshall Bluesbreaker. It's one of the few pedals that I'm happy with. It's got a volume booster mode as well as a blues mode which gives some gain.

[Ol Boy Rivers]

Well...Another option is dont worrie about the pedals and work on the electronics. If its a higher quality strat it has the noiseless pickups and if its the lower quality strat it has standerds. Before searching for your pedal id go and look at GFS's pickups, Or anyone elses for that matter. It really depends on what sound your looking for, Fat, Skinny, Jangly, Smooth. IF you said you LP sounds nice then that means your probally looking for a hotter pickup, or Possibly even looking into hot rails. Texas specials, Sufer overwounds, OR the hotrails is what i would go and look at, But hey...Thats just me. Hope this helps, Rock on guy!

[Ol Boy Rivers]

Originally posted by Ol' Boy Rivers:

Well...Another option is dont worrie about the pedals and work on the electronics. If its a higher quality strat it has the noiseless pickups and if its the lower quality strat it has standerds. Before searching for your pedal id go and look at GFS's pickups, Or anyone elses for that matter. It really depends on what sound your looking for, Fat, Skinny, Jangly, Smooth. IF you said you LP sounds nice then that means your probally looking for a hotter pickup, or Possibly even looking into hot rails. Texas specials, Sufer overwounds, OR the hotrails is what i would go and look at, But hey...Thats just me. Hope this helps, Rock on guy!

Further more, Forgot to add. Your strat probally is routed for a humbucker at the bridge guy, I dont know if your looking for the better rythm sound or wanting to use that neck pickup as a fatter Umph.

[Scott Fraser]

<>

 

Is it kinda thin & harsh sounding to you? That was my sense with that combination, which pushed me in the direction of a Marshall.

 

Scott Fraser

[Ol Boy Rivers]

I dont play an HRD, I play a marshall..Umm...Harsh...Yeah, Mabye just a tad on the lower coils but that is usually a result of too much treble. I say tweak with it guy. My marshalls are driven softly, And the treble mid and bass are all at a little over half. With your strat, Mess with the tone knobs on the guitar, Pedal, Then amp.

[rotosound45]

If you like the Tube Screamer, you will love this thing....

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v320/wadebeka/ibanez%20sd9/DSCF0020.jpg

 

Don't flame me, I just have a passion for this pedal.

[Rock Soldier]

I put a Seymour Duncan Hot Rail in my MIM Strat and it has a sound similar to my Les Pauls. I put one in my Squire Telecaster as well. True Strat and Tele players cringe when I say that. I'm just used to that thick humbucker sound is all.

[Bluesape]

Your Strat is a new US Hardtail, as some folks here may not know, still under warranty, I believe. Don't change your pups. Take your guitar to a shop where they'll have amps like yours, and try out several pedals. Allow yourself some time. The TS is good, as are others mentioned here. Elwood has a Klon Centaur he raves about, though it's a lot costlier.

[Rock Soldier]

Ooooh .... warranty. Yeah, I wouldn't be too quick to change that then.

[Caevan O'Shite]

Bluesape shoots straight and speaks the truth.

[Hardtail]

I have absolutely no intention of swapping out my pickups. Nor did I ever.

[picker]

While you're at the store trying out pedals, try out a few other amps to see if there is one or more you like better in combo with your Strat. you might be surprized what you find. If they have an HRD, try A/B-ing it with other amps to see if you can find what the HRD is missing in another amp.

FI all else fails, get a Keeley modded BD-2. SCHWEET!

[Trucks]

I like Tube screamer for Acoustic guitars.... I prefer a Boss Blues Driver for electric single coils.

[Dr. Ellwood]

Originally posted by Bluesape:

Your Strat is a new US Hardtail, as some folks here may not know, still under warranty, I believe. Don't change your pups. Take your guitar to a shop where they'll have amps like yours, and try out several pedals. Allow yourself some time. The TS is good, as are others mentioned here. Elwood has a Klon Centaur he raves about, though it's a lot costlier.

Right I do rave about the Klon Centuar for clean boost, but I also have a old TS-8 and two TS-9's and I don't compare the TubeScreamers to the Klon Centuar because they are so different from one another. The Klon drives my amps into earlier natureal tube breakup with a complete transpanency, the amp sounds like the amp only at lower levels. The TS seems to be more of a artificial effect to me and is colored in it's own unique way and in certain circumstances gives a good crunch and tube breakup simulation. I always carry one of the Tube Screamers if I'm going to use some one elses amp because I know I can get more sustain at lower volume no matter what the amp is, even a SS amp.

[Darklava]

Voodoo lab sparkledrive nice buttery o/d

and can also be used as a clean boost and

its much cheaper the klon oh and you can hear

some clips on voodoolab.com

[Hardtail]

ellwood,

 

You gots to give us some Klips with the Klon.

[Darklava]

Originally posted by lee83:

I like Tube screamer for Acoustic guitars.... I prefer a Boss Blues Driver for electric single coils.

yes with a keeley phat mod bd is way cool

[musicalhair]

There are so many pedals that based on the Tube screamer, Jaques at www.ts808.com , then Keeley and analog man I think both tweak or do their own "homage" on the tube screamer.

 

There really are so many cool distortion/fuzz/overdrives that each sound different and good that it is tough to single out just one-- besides the Fulldrive II that is

[Dr. Ellwood]

Originally posted by Darklava:

Voodoo lab sparkledrive nice buttery o/d

and can also be used as a clean boost and

its much cheaper the klon oh and you can hear

some clips on voodoolab.com

Have you ever used a Klon? Does the Sparkledrive do transparent boost as well as the Klon?

[Ol Boy Rivers]

Sparkle drives rock. A friend of mine has one and he lets me use it every now and then. What it is is like...You can use it as an gain-pedal, A overdrive whatever you want to call it OR you can use it as a clean boost. But...The coolest thing is what gives it its name. When you use it as a clean boost you can turn on the gain side of the pedal and have an awsome sorta distortion backdrop behind the cleans you play. There good little pedals, Sound great too.

[Darklava]

Originally posted by ellwood:

Originally posted by Darklava:

Voodoo lab sparkledrive nice buttery o/d

and can also be used as a clean boost and

its much cheaper the klon oh and you can hear

some clips on voodoolab.com

Have you ever used a Klon? Does the Sparkledrive do transparent boost as well as the Klon?

dude your talking 400.00 for the klon and 115.00

for the sd,now maybe tail has your money if he does go for it

[Wolfgangsta]

You might consider a Seymour Duncan Pickup Booster. I tried one out through my Epiphone Valve Special amp and was really surprised how much more gain I got (especially at lower volumes) without coloring the sound. I normally run a cheap Danelectro 7-band EQ and a Tube Screamer, but I think I'm going to replace them both with the PU Booster. Also, at $75, IMHO, it's a helluva bargain!

[Wolfgangsta]

You might consider trying a Seymour Duncan Pickup Booster. I tried out one thru my Epi Valve Special and LOVED it. I normally run a Tube Screamer and a Danelectro 7-band EQ, but I'm probably going to replace them with the PU Booster. I adds a surprising amount of gain without coloring the sound. And at $75, IMHO, is a great bargain!

[Dr. Ellwood]

Originally posted by Darklava:

Originally posted by ellwood:

Originally posted by Darklava:

Voodoo lab sparkledrive nice buttery o/d

and can also be used as a clean boost and

its much cheaper the klon oh and you can hear

some clips on voodoolab.com

Have you ever used a Klon? Does the Sparkledrive do transparent boost as well as the Klon?

dude your talking 400.00 for the klon and 115.00

for the sd,now maybe tail has your money if he does go for it

Ok wait a minute, I asked if anyone had compared them side by side? I think that's a reasonable queston don't you? If there is no comparison in what a product does specifically HOW can you beging to assign value against performance? I didn't pay 400 for it anyway, delivered to the door it was 314 bucks..it's only unreasonable when a product costs less and does exactly the same thing. It's got nothing to do with abiilty to pay it or not, but what are you getting for the money. I think there must have been at least 10 different Sparkledrives in this house at different jams and rehearsals and unless everybody didn't know how to adjust them or there was something wrong with all of them they don't even come close to what the Klon does.

[Hardtail]

Originally posted by Darklava:

Originally posted by ellwood:

Originally posted by Darklava:

Voodoo lab sparkledrive nice buttery o/d

and can also be used as a clean boost and

its much cheaper the klon oh and you can hear

some clips on voodoolab.com

Have you ever used a Klon? Does the Sparkledrive do transparent boost as well as the Klon?

dude your talking 400.00 for the klon and 115.00

for the sd,now maybe tail has your money if he does go for it

My wife has all my money.

[fantasticsound]

Originally posted by HardTail:

Originally posted by Darklava:

Originally posted by ellwood:

quote:

---

Originally posted by Darklava:

Voodoo lab sparkledrive nice buttery o/d

and can also be used as a clean boost and

its much cheaper the klon oh and you can hear

some clips on voodoolab.com

Have you ever used a Klon? Does the Sparkledrive do transparent boost as well as the Klon?

dude your talking 400.00 for the klon and 115.00

for the sd,now maybe tail has your money if he does go for it

My wife has all my money.

---

So now you need to convince her she wants a Klon Centaur. Or better yet, that she wants you to have a Klon Centaur.

[Hardtail]

I was at the website and it sounds cool but I have to hear it first.

[Dr. Ellwood]

Like Warren Hayes tone? some people do,

 

Effect-wise, I'm using a Boss Octaver, a DiscumBOBulator, a Crybaby wah-wah, a Chandler Echo, and one of Bob Bradshaw's Custom Audio Stereo Tremolos. That's predominantly it. Although I have been using a Klon Centaur, and I've been using this Diaz pedal called Texas Ranger, which basically has a bass boost, midrange boost, or a treble boost depending on how you run it. I've been using the bass boost on it to get, like if I'm playing a Firebird and I go to the bass pickup, it has that kind of Hendrix "Red House" tone that's real warm and smooth. I also use it with my Les Paul sometimes. It opens up the sound in a real nice way. I also use a Hughes & Kettner Rotosphere, which is a Leslie simulator.