Tech 21 Sansamp California?

[GibsonLives]

I started a thread the other day looking for an overdrive pedal to use between my SFPR and Strat Plus, and got lots of cool suggestions. But after doing a ton of online research, I remembered that, although I wasn't crazyoverall about the Boogie MkIV I once owned, its third channel did get some pretty sweet tones. This led me to Tech 21's "character" series of pedals, and specifically, to the California, the Boogie of the bunch. So, anyone have experience with the California, or with any of the character pedals? There's some stuff about the Cali on Youtube, but there's way more about th Liverpool, BLonde, and British pedals of the series. Tell me anything and everything you can about the California, along with the others in the series, and I'll be most grateful. Thanks.
Steve

[GibsonLives]

Bump! Nobody has any experience with these pedals? Seriously? If they're honestly that terrible, just spill the beans and help a brother save some cash...or better yet, give me some other Boogie-esque pedal suggestions that'll do what I want. Thanks again :)
Steve

[Freeman]

I'd like to know also. I had the MI Audio Tube Zone....people say it sounds like a Boogie. I didn't hear any MK tones, plenty of Recto type tones. Hope someone who has owned one of these shares their thoughts on the California.

[harpinon]

Watch any demo's? Jump to 1:30

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[sodapopinski]

I've owned a liverpool and a blonde... I wasn't happy with either one. I was using it with my pedalboard direct into the mains. It did a pretty good job, but I found that I would rather carry a small tube amp and mic it.

[southpaw pete]

I've got the Cali and the Liverpool. The Cali has nice cleans, relatively flat mids. Sounds good. And then when you hit it with an od, it really thickens up nicely. And, like I'm sure you've seen on youtube, when you dial up the character and drive, you can get some GREAT tones for thick sustaining solos etc...

That being said, I'm more of a Vox guy, so I tend to use the Liverpool more. But I still dig the Cali as well.

[peridot1]

I've got the Cali and the Liverpool. The Cali has nice cleans, relatively flat mids. Sounds good. And then when you hit it with an od, it really thickens up nicely. And, like I'm sure you've seen on youtube, when you dial up the character and drive, you can get some GREAT tones for thick sustaining solos etc...

That being said, I'm more of a Vox guy, so I tend to use the Liverpool more. But I still dig the Cali as well.

pretty much how I see it. I have the liverpool and calif as well. Use to have the blonde and british. The calif at the end of the chain with slight breakup you get some very nice raw tones I can't find elsewhere. In the higher gains imo you need to find the sweetspots, but they are there. Liverpool is just awesome.

[GibsonLives]

Thanks. I knew I'd get some responses if I just pushed hard enough lol. Lots of Vox fans here, and it sounds like the Liverpool really delivers in that arena. Me, I'd plan on using the California as the only pedal between my guitar and amp, so I wouldn't need to worry about order, or about pushing it with another OD, etc. I've also always dug the Hiwatt sound, so if all goes well with the Cali, I could possbily see myself picking up a Leeds in the future. Any other thoughts on the California, or character pedals in general, as well as other ODs of the type I might want to consider, please give me a shout. Thanks again.
Steve

[Fretgears]

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[GibsonLives]

Harp and Fret, thanks for the videos; these combined with what little I've seen on Youtube have definitely got my curiosity peaked, and for a measely $150, it sounds like I can't really go wrong. Even still, I probably won't move right away, it being the holidays and all - gotta at least try to think about buying for others first, you know? - so please keep the suggestions, reviews, videos, etc. coming. Thanks once again.
Steve

[papersun]

I used one direct for awhile with a Crunch Box, phase, and delay in front of it. Sounded great. southpaw pete's description nailed it. Great pedal.

[62Tele]

I have a hard time understanding why anybody would not have at least ONE of these pedals around. Name another device that can fit in a guitar case pocket and back up either an amp or a gain pedal and sound as good as they do for $150. They are incredibly useful and as far as I'm concerned a hell of a bargain. Pick whatever flavor suits your tastes - if it's not the best answer for your original needs, it's a dirt cheap backup and a great amp alternative for the right settings.

[GibsonLives]

Thanks, all. Since I've got everyone here, indulge me with one more question, please: why do some of the character pedals feature a button to cancel out the speaker emulation while others don't? The California, of course, does not, which is made odder still because the U.S. Steel (Recifier emulator) has the feature. I've emailed Tech 21, but they tell me to expect to wait a week for a reasponse...and being that it's close to Christmas, who knows when I'll hear back? Seeing as how I plan to use the pedal strictly to drive the front end of an amp, and not any direct recording, etc., will not having the option of switching of the speaker simulator prove to be a handicap? Thanks again.
Steve

[Fretgears]

Thanks, all. Since I've got everyone here, indulge me with one more question, please: why do some of the character pedals feature a button to cancel out the speaker emulation while others don't? The California, of course, does not, which is made odder still because the U.S. Steel (Recifier emulator) has the feature. I've emailed Tech 21, but they tell me to expect to wait a week for a reasponse...and being that it's close to Christmas, who knows when I'll hear back? Seeing as how I plan to use the pedal strictly to drive the front end of an amp, and not any direct recording, etc., will not having the option of switching of the speaker simulator prove to be a handicap? Thanks again.
Steve

What that button does is lower the EQ volume level. But you can do the same thing on models that don't have the button, you just have to start the volume turned all the way down and move up slowly.

The reason 5 don't have the button is that they came first, and the button design came into being after the originals were manufactured. The 3 newer ones were able to take advantage of the switch.

It is rumored that when Tech 21 manufactures a new batch of the original 5, that they will also have the switch.

It isn't necessary, but is nice to have. Just be very aware where that volume button is set because it can put out some serious juice.

[Black Squirrel]

What that button does is lower the EQ volume level. But you can do the same thing on models that don't have the button, you just have to start the volume turned all the way down and move up slowly.

The reason 5 don't have the button is that they came first, and the button design came into being after the originals were manufactured. The 3 newer ones were able to take advantage of the switch.

It is rumored that when Tech 21 manufactures a new batch of the original 5, that they will also have the switch.

It isn't necessary, but is nice to have. Just be very aware where that volume button is set because it can put out some serious juice.


Wow I wish I read this before I spent the money to have my Blond modded to put a switch to turn off the speaker sim, Oh well , I love the pedal it sounds freaking great as a preamp.

[GibsonLives]

Fret, thanks for the description; very enlightening. A few of these pedals look like something I may be interested in at some point, but I'd get the California first, and take it from there if all went well with it. I still wish it had the button, but it doesn't, and I doubt I would wait for it. I guess it's just my luck lol. Another thing I'm anzious to see is if/when the good folks at Tech 21 respond to my question, and what they say. I'm not sure a lack of response would prevent me from getting the pedal, but a fairly quick, well-thought-out response would definitely go a long way toward making me want one that much sooner :).
Steve

[tech21nyc]

Thanks, all. Since I've got everyone here, indulge me with one more question, please: why do some of the character pedals feature a button to cancel out the speaker emulation while others don't? The California, of course, does not, which is made odder still because the U.S. Steel (Recifier emulator) has the feature. I've emailed Tech 21, but they tell me to expect to wait a week for a reasponse...and being that it's close to Christmas, who knows when I'll hear back? Seeing as how I plan to use the pedal strictly to drive the front end of an amp, and not any direct recording, etc., will not having the option of switching of the speaker simulator prove to be a handicap? Thanks again.
Steve

The speaker emulation switch was requested by some customers and was added to our 2010 line of Character Series Pedals. The Speaker emulation in our SansAmp products was designed with a flat response curve in order to work in tandem with your guitar amps speaker. The problem that most people encounter with the speaker emulation has to do with your amp's "preamp" section, not the speaker in your amp. It's the same reason so many on this forum have trouble with overdrives, fuzzes, distortion etc. Many amp's have a built in bright boost that adds high frequency content to your straight guitar tone. The bright boost has the most dramatic affect when your amps preamp section is set on the lower settings and diminishes as you turn up your preamp volume. The other problem is that most amps don't really have a "flat" tonal response and many players turn up the high and low end and have a very scooped midrange tone as there basic tonal platform. This may sound good for a really clean tone but works against you for overdriven tones. The speaker emulation button just makes it a bit easier to overcome this problem but with the active tone controls on the Character Series you can get close to the sound of the Speaker emulation bypassed. Personally I own both our Liverpool and Leeds pedals. Funny thing is whenever I use the Leeds (with the switch) into my amps power amp return as the preamp I always leave the speaker emulation on. In front of the amp I can make it work either way.

Whether using our pedals or another manufacturer's it's best to keep in mind that setting your amp with a more flat tonal response will make it work better with most distortion units. If your amp has a bright switch try turning it off. Another helpful thing is to either turn up your amp's preamp gain higher or try using the second input that many amps have. This padded input is usually a bit darker and will help when using a distortion pedal. Part of the appeal of channel switching amps or multi rigs like Eric Johnson uses is so one channel (or amp) can be optimized for clean tones and the other for distortion tones.

[GibsonLives]

Tech, thanks so much for the quick and informative response. My rig is extremely simple: stock Strat Plus into a silverface Princeton Reverb, and I won't be adding any other pedals right away, if at all. So, no bright switches, presence knobs, etc. on the amp; just Bass and Treble for EQ. Would you suggest turning both knobs to zero, the midway position, or something else? Obviously, I can tailor them to my liking from there; I'm just asking for what you would consider a good starting point. Thanks.
Steve

[tech21nyc]

The information above is just to let you be aware of the reasons why there can sometimes be problems interfacing our pedal with you amp. I wouldn't suggest putting the tone controls on "0." For me with most Fender amps that have just a bass and treble control the settings I use (ymmv) are about 6 on treble and a little under 3 for the bass. If I'm at home playing softly I will sometimes turn the treble down to about 4. Anything that works for you really.

Also just because there is no bright switch on the amp doesn't mean that it is not there. When I looked at the basic scematic for the Princeton there did appear to be a bright cap on the input. The absence of a switch is quite common on the smaller Fender amps. You can always try the 2nd input if the first is too bright. As I said the more you turn up the amp the less that bright boost will come into play. As I recall when the amp is around 6 on those Fender circuits the bright boost is prett much defeated. I will check with our engineer when I am in tomorrow.