Another King of Tone option advice post

[Strumlord]

I’m finally on the top of the list and I’m wanting to add a toggle switch which only works with the red side.

Those of you who have the high gain option on one side(either yellow or red) which side is it better to have it on?

As I understand it, you can run the red side into the yellow side.
Is it better to have high gain on the yellow or red side?

 

[aaronjcurtis]

What about higher gain on both sides?

 

[Morpeli]

I think that Analogman himself recommends that you use the yellow side as the cleanish boost, so the red side would be best as the hi-gain side I would suggest.

 

[aaronjcurtis]

Curious, what configuration does @analogmike have on his board these days?

 

[RockDebris]

I’m finally on the top of the list and I’m wanting to add a toggle switch which only works with the red side.

Those of you who have the high gain option on one side(either yellow or red) which side is it better to have it on?

As I understand it, you can run the red side into the yellow side.
Is it better to have high gain on the yellow or red side?

I got the option for 4 jacks. With that, you can change which side comes first and try them out. You can also use each side on a bypass looper (which is the main reason I got that option).

 

[JackButler]

Had mine a few weeks. Debated same thing. Went with as Mike says, high gain red. Glad I did. This pedal has been killing it lately! Any amp, it rocks.

 

[Strumlord]

I got the option for 4 jacks. With that, you can change which side comes first and try them out. You can also use each side on a bypass looper (which is the main reason I got that option).

I’m considering the 4 jack option too, thanks

 

[crazymauler]

I got higher gain on the Red side, as I use the Yellow side for cleanish boost. Plus, in general I keep lower gain/cleaner pedals later in the chain.
But you can keep the gain knob low even if it's a "high gain" option and it'll still sound great.
If I had to do it over I'd get high gain both sides.

 

[Strumlord]

Maybe I’ll go high gain both sides, thanks fellas

 

[plextasy]

First off, the toggle is absolutely key IMO. I would go crazy if I had to open mine up just to switch between clean boost/od/dist! None of these modes are an afterthought as they all sound stellar.

I’m one of the few who seem to have stuck with normal gain both sides and there’s plenty on tap. If I had to choose a side for higher gain I’d probably go with Red, but maybe that’s because I can easily toggle between modes on that side so I use the distortion mode quite a bit.
I usually prefer using a clean boost or light overdrive stacked in front of a higher gain pedal as it usually seems to sound better (unless I’m just going for a volume increase) but with the KOT, a somewhat high gain distortion sound on Red sounds fantastic going into Yellow set to a light od.

If you are going to keep one side set to OD and the other to a clean boost, it’s a tough call. You will get more of a volume increase if you keep Yellow clean and Red is the higher gain OD. If you use a switcher then the 4-jack option might be of interest. That makes the stacking direction a non-issue.

 

[meowmers]

Went normal gain for both on mine. Little to no regrets because my higher gain obsessions didn't need to come from the KOT having extra gain. Truly only felt like I needed extra gain option when KOT was the ONLY pedal I brought out to rehearsal, which has stopped being the case anyway.

 

[Stratofreak]

I have higher gain on the red side, but I set both sides to overdrive. I don't really us a clean boost, so I have the original normal gain overdrive voicing on the yellow and the higher gain overdrive on the red. I actually prefer the normal gain to the higher gain. To my ears, it's a bigger, more natural sounding overdrive where the higher gain is smaller sounding, kind of like a master volume versus opening up the amp's power section. I got back on the list for another and got the order email years ago, but haven't pulled the trigger. When I do, I'll order the normal gain on both sides, pick which one I prefer and trade the other for a Sunface.

 

[Strumlord]

I have higher gain on the red side, but I set both sides to overdrive. I don't really us a clean boost, so I have the original normal gain overdrive voicing on the yellow and the higher gain overdrive on the red. I actually prefer the normal gain to the higher gain. To my ears, it's a bigger, more natural sounding overdrive where the higher gain is smaller sounding, kind of like a master volume versus opening up the amp's power section. I got back on the list for another and got the order email years ago, but haven't pulled the trigger. When I do, I'll order the normal gain on both sides, pick which one I prefer and trade the other for a Sunface.

I was only gonna have Red high gain but swayed to get both sides high. You’re making a compelling argument for normal gain.

 

[tonedover]

cool beans, mike himself has repetitiously stated that the voicing is exact, low or high gain, there is just more gain available.

 

[cosmic_ape]

I got my first KOT standard. My second one will probably be 4 jacks, high gain red side.

 

[Stratofreak]

cool beans, mike himself has repetitiously stated that the voicing is exact, low or high gain, there is just more gain available.

I've heard Mike say it, many times, but anyone with a KOT with one side normal gain and the other side higher gain can A/B and judge for themselves. No matter where I put the knobs, what I hear is completely different. And while I prefer the normal gain, I don't dislike the higher gain sound. It's pretty good, but IMO, nowhere near as good as the normal gain.

BTW, I'm running the KOT into a 6L6, Fender clean amp. The more I can turn up the amp, the better the KOT sounds.

 

[Stratofreak]

I was only gonna have Red high gain but swayed to get both sides high. You’re making a compelling argument for normal gain.

If you haven't ordered it yet, I'd try to find one and listen the normal gain setting before going with both sides higher gain. IMO, the normal gain is where the special sauce of this pedal lives. Worse case, if you get yellow normal gain and red higher gain and end up wanting both sides higher gain, you can always send it back and Mike can mod it for that.

 

[RockDebris]

cool beans, mike himself has repetitiously stated that the voicing is exact, low or high gain, there is just more gain available.

You have to decide that by having a KoT with two different sides and comparing. Put me down as someone who believes there is a subtle difference, enough to say that I prefer the normal gain side of mine more, but not enough for me to put the High Gain side down. If I did it again though, I'd get the normal gain on both sides. You can also get a PoT and satisfy the Higher Gain requirement. The PoT has the Higher Gain option (no choice), and I happen to like the Dist mode on the PoT more. For me, KoT Normal Gain plays to it's best strengths. PoT Dist mode plays to its best strengths. YMMV.

 

[hippieboy]

both sides higher gain is where is at for me, you get all the killer low gain sounds that normal gain offers plus more, a no brainer really.

 

[stagolee]

Sold my PoT recently and here I am at the precipice of the order-list. May 28 entry and they are up to May 27, three short years ago. I’m not going to agonize over options but your thread was helpful. I’ll just go high gain red side since that seems to be the consensus, and might consider four jacks like my sun lion if the price is right.

I expect it to go one of two ways:
1) really great but eventually too big a footprint to win out over the Timmy for as infrequently as I use OD, so it goes on a shelf to admire
2) somewhat underwhelming so I flip it and buy some more analogman fuzz pedals

who knows, if the legend is true, perhaps there is a third possibility...