Crunch Box Vs. Box of Rock

+1 Box of Rock, though I gotta say I was getting some VERY cool tone with a strat and a Crunch Box tonight.

 

The BOR is one of the most touch sensitive pedals out there. The boost is very natural like and made my Vinnie sound even better which I thought wasnt possible:AOK

 

I think it mainly depends on what kinda low end you want: the BOR has that really really saggy JTM low end, whereas the CB is tighter cause it is more modern sounding...

 

Totally different sounds. I think the CB compares more to say, the Kaden Brown Creeper....

 

I have a CMATmods brownie which is essentially the same pedal as the brown creeper (both are BSIAB circuits) and the BOR while similar in some respects is definitely a different beast. The BOR has ALOT less gain, is smoother, has more bass (2 much bass IMO) and is more responsive to picking and volume knob adjustments.

I like the Brownie though my Deluxe Reverb quite a bit more than the BOR and the CB (both of which I have owned) for Marshall tones but as always YMMV.

 

Box of Rock is the bomb - extremely hard to beat for what it does (both the clean boost and overdrive). Keep in mind, from what I've read and experienced, the BOR was designed for optimum use on a Marshall-type platform/EQ, where mids are already high. Blackface Twin amps have an inherent mid scoop and a lot of bass, but the mids on the BOR are not as forward and the bass is accentuated on the BOR more than many other Plexi-type OD pedals. As great as that BOR is, it might not be best for you. Just a thought.

 

I tried the BoR out twice before finding a used one, once through a Rivera Quiana 6l6 amp and once through a Fender Twin. Both times I was very impressed. Through my own EL84 low watt amp, it didn't have as much gain, but still sounds really really good. The BoR sounds great through a Twin, IMO. I also have the CB, and am keeping both. As others have stated, two different Marshall sounding pedals. For med gain through a Twin, BoR FTW, the CB is much more of that high-gain or 80's modded JCM800 sound. The CB doesn't work as well at lower gain settings, but the BoR is good at any gain setting from low to med.

 

BoR working great so far, on Victoria Victorilux, Victoria 5112, and Headstring Lil' King. To me, the fact that this pedal has less mids, since it's supposed to go with Marshalls, is what makes it sound so good with Fender-sounding amps. I've never liked it when I've put a very mid-heavy pedal in front of more or less mid-scooped Fender amps.

Only tried the CB briefly, too much gain for me, also a more modern (JCM?) sounding pedal.

 

I have to agree with this. I think the BOR through my DRRI sounds great. Yes, a little too much bass, but i can work around it. The clarity is uncanny though. Whereas so many pedals change the sound of the guitar, the BOR keeps my Strat sounding like a Strat. Much better than the OCD IMO.

I wonder what would stack nicely with the BOR that won't affect it's clarity?

 

Hey Blues Jr,

Does the Box Of Rock has lot more drive than the Fulldrive 2?

I'm asking cause I have the Fulldrive and the tone is great but could
have some more gain for better sustain, but it is made as such...

I also got a DRRi and a Fender Strat american standard.

My next purchase, power supply, Fralins and maybe the BOR!!!

 

The BOR doesn't have a whole lot of gain. Less than the fulldrive in boost mode.
The CMATmods Brownie has more.

 

I have both the BoR and the FDII and the FD definitely has more gain in boost mode, however it is of a more saturated/searing character without most of the pleasant focused "chunk" I can get from the BoR. I prefer the BoR for rhythm and the FD for lead. I'm running a strat into a Mesa Heartbreaker using 6L6's and find that it sounds best when the amp is pushed a little already (gain at 9oclock on the drive channel). I don't like the BoR as much on the clean channel, where I have a scooped mid eq setting for a fenderesque sound, but I experimented with stacking the BoR with my FD's lowest gain setting, vintage mode, and more trebly tone setting to compensate for the BoR's bass boost. This sounded pretty good and loud as hell.
N

 

I have both. Neither are my main go to boxes but I truly enjoy noodling around with both. Both have great tones coming out of them. The C.B. has a lot more gain on tap. The BOR has the added feature of a boost.

My guess is as others have stated the BOR seems to fit what you are looking for.

My suggestion is buy both!!! The C.B. is only about 125.00. Test them and if the C.B. is not your thing put it on the emporium and it will be gone in hours. I'm sure you would get 100.00 for it as it would still be in perfect condition. If you choose the CB the same goes for the BOR. It will sell ASAP.

brianf

 

Has anyone tried using the BOR as a boost or overdrive with a JCM 800?