Always on overdrive? Your picks...

[aaronjcurtis]

Barbershop V2. Always on. Amazing.

 

[Knaggster57]

The Wampler Pantheon could easily be an always on pedal. It’s also very versatile. My first Wampler pedal, and a very pleasant surprise.

 

[Mincer]

I either use an 805 Overdrive or a BYOC Silver Pony that I built.

 

[Rbh32]

Bluesdriver clone usually always on for me.. pushed by a Emerson Paramount when I want more.

 

[aaronblues]

Lovepedal COT

 

[Artie Fisk]

At the moment, my always-on is a Tumnus Deluxe. The EQ section is better, to my ears, than any other Klone I’ve encountered.

 

[cosmic_ape]

Timmy, but only if your vintage Fenders like it. I have heard some Fender amps do not agree with it.

It’s a great pedal!

If that’s not an option, go for a pedal that’s responsive to dynamics and guitar volume knob antics. I vote Suhr Eclipse. A LOT of gain and output on tap, but it’s the most amp-like pedal I have tried.

 

[Stratburst70]

Between my Strat and my Fender Princeton RI, the Mick side of the Keeley D&M Drive. It’s basically a Klone circuit.

The Dan side comes on when I want more grind.

 

[prowlinacage]

Barber 1/2 Gainer.

 

[Neptical]

Boss SD-1 always on

 

[<JT>]

I use either the Mad Professor Sweet Honey or a Timmy as an always on OD, right on the edge of breakup, pre-compressor to act as a preamp and gives me amp-like dynamics at more manageable volume levels

 

[Louiddur]

A Bluesbreaker clone is really great for that. The original version (which some kits are based on) don't have a lot of headroom. On mine, I must turned the volume at max to have a light volume bump. This wouldn't be an issue if it's an always on pedal

It's the best tone I get with a Gibson into a edge of breakup Super Reverb

 

[ZeBool]

I don’t play with a lot of dirt, but I do always have it. For me, the Keeley Super Phat Mod gives me what I’m looking for.

 

[JumpinBradFlash]

I don't do the always on pedal thing either but if I were to, the Kingsley Page would be my pick. If you didn't want to pay for the used prices I would probably consider something like a Barbershop, Lightspeed or Benson preamp. There's a bunch of good foundation style pedals to choose from depending on your tone preference. I would be shopping from the Menatone or Catalinbread range personally.

 

[Bluesful]

KoT.

 

[jimijimmyjeffy]

No pedal is always on for me, as I use amp settings for that kind of thing.

However, Klons, Colorsound Power Boosters, Fuzzfaces and Bosstones are all pedals that have the needed versatility to be on quite a bit. Each in their own way is potentially outstanding, depending on your needs. I would probably use one of those if playing a clean channel and looking for a base sound. You could also use an AIAB pedal for that, but I find those boring for some reason.

 

[Handmade Music]

You could try a Joyo Sweet Baby.
It's a clone of the Mad Professor SHO.
And you can pick one up for about $30!
If it turns out you like it, upgrade to an actual SHO.
If you don't like it, no big deal. Sell it. Or for only 30 bucks, give it away to some kid who's starting out.

 

[TYR]

As an always on pedal, I use my Pettyjohn Chime. Before that, was using a Vemuram Jan Ray.

 

[Hawkmoon269]

Honestly I don't see the point: why a pedal?

If you like the overdriven tone of your amp but you'd like to play at lower volume get an attenuator: I love dirt pedals for what they are, effects, but a nice vintage tube amp "in the zone" is the perfect overdrive for me. I generally play a vintage style (custom modded by me) Vox AC15 or AC30 amp or a DRRi, but I often experiment with a couple of Marshall 2x12 and 4x10 cabs, in either case my Weber MASS attenuators are a must. At this very time I'm getting a great classic rock\RnR tone with my AC15 played simultaneously through its Celestion Blue speaker (16 ohm) and a 4x10 Marshall cab (also 16 ohm): with the amp on ~6 I get an incredibly nice OD, extremely touch sensitive, open sounding, just better than any pedal in my possession, for that "natural" OD tone, all thanks to my attenuator.

Obviously pedals are fantastic to get a different tone, but for a "breaking up tube amp" tone, well, just use a tube amp if you have a nice one!

Kind of a weird hill to die on in the Pedals forum, but OK.

There’s no tube amp/attenuator combo that can copy what a transistor overdrive is doing. Transistors and tubes overdrive in different ways, with different harmonic overtones. For some people having transistor overdrive going is part of their sound, just as much as having a great amp is.

 

[danieloux]

Formula 5f6