MIAB

[Tung-Sol Tube]

I like the EHX Glove with the tone shift on (equivalent to HP on an OCD) for Marshall-esque tone.

Best MIAB's I have had are the Bogner Lagrange and especially the Bogner Blue mini. The bogner blue mini fixes all of the issues I had with its big brother and has better tone control than the lagrange.

Just out of curiosity, how useful do you find the variac switch on the Lagrange and Blue Mini? It's hard to tell from demos how overt or subtle it is. I'd love to have something that really nails the VHI tone.

 

[fr8_trane]

I like the EHX Glove with the tone shift on (equivalent to HP on an OCD) for Marshall-esque tone.

Just out of curiosity, how useful do you find the variac switch on the Lagrange and Blue Mini? It's hard to tell from demos how overt or subtle it is. I'd love to have something that really nails the VHI tone.

Personally I have no use for it. It basically reduces the voltage from 18v to 9v and makes it noticeably more compressed and quieter. I much prefer the more open and dynamic sound and feel of the higher voltage setting ("variac" off). In fact the higher voltage/higher headroom aspect is what makes this pedal more amplike IMO. I wouldn't bother with any MIAB that doesn't run at more than 9V.

 

[Tung-Sol Tube]

Personally I have no use for it. It basically reduces the voltage from 18v to 9v and makes it more compressed sounding. I much prefer the more open and dynamic sound and feel of the higher voltage setting ("variac" off). In fact the higher voltage/higher headroom aspect is what makes this pedal more amplike IMO. I wouldn't bother with any MIAB that doesn't run at more than 9V.

Thanks, this is helpful! The Tsakalis Room #40 reduces voltage down to 7.5 volts (or up to 21), but it sounds super subtle to me at low settings.

I'm running my Glove at 18v internally and it reminds me a bit of the Bluesbreaker, JCM800, and MOSFET Marshalls I've played.

 

[fuzzaholic]

I tried about a dozen different od's looking for something with a jcm800/guv'nor-esque vibe and decent low gain capabilities...

Ended up with a JHS AT. The original one, not the pricey version with the two footswitches that are too close to each other

A couple others that came really close, but I guess some of them were voiced for different kinds of Marshall tones: Carl Martin Panama, Xotic BB Preamp, Zvex Distortron, Dawner Prince Red Rox distortion, Wampler Super Plextortion,...oh and the Angry Charlie V3 sounded nearly as good as the AT.

More than decent, but didn't work for me, at least not with my amp: Rat, OCD, Crunch Box, BE-OD, Burnley V2,...

Kinda still wanna try a Super Crunch Box V2. I'm usually a "less is more" kinda guy when it comes to dirt pedals, but being so nitpicky with miab pedals, I figured it'd make sense to see if some extra tweaking is what the original Crunch Box was really lacking...

 

[LikeAMotherF]

I have to confess that I don’t hear much MIAB in my FD3. Not enough bass for a Marshall type tone to my ears. But if it works for you, that’s what counts, no?

I think we should give @johnh an award, as he was apparently the only one who read past the title, read the first post, and responded to *that*.

I think every other post was just someone spouting out their favorite MIAB, despite the fact that the OP never asked about that and wanted to discuss the Fulldrive 3.


This is some peak TGP ish, y'all.








(I'm not mad at y'all. I do the same thing! )

 

[Albertus Magnus]

I’d suggest trying the Lilt Gladiator distortion. It’s an exceptional clone of the Dyna Red distortion. I have both pedals but the Gladiator has a three band EQ, looks much cooler, and cost about $100. Exceptionally touch sensitive and dynamic. Highly recommended.

 

[Tdog]

I think we should give @johnh an award, as he was apparently the only one who read past the title, read the first post, and responded to *that*.

I think every other post was just someone spouting out their favorite MIAB, despite the fact that the OP never asked about that and wanted to discuss the Fulldrive 3.


This is some peak TGP ish, y'all.








(I'm not mad at y'all. I do the same thing! )

Feverdog was talking JMP too! I picked up something from him too!

 

[Tdog]

I have to confess that I don’t hear much MIAB in my FD3. Not enough bass for a Marshall type tone to my ears. But if it works for you, that’s what counts, no?

I can't argue about the bass. A little boost from my Boss EQ helps. I'm just so enamoured with that certain frequency in the mid range that it seems to have

 

[Tdog]

The SL Drive has those internal switches for tweaking the type of Marshall tones it emulates… to my ears, it did a great job with the JMP or Plexi-type stuff. In fact, I always thought it was too gainy for Bluesbreaker stuff, and not gainy enough for JCM stuff. So I’m surprised it didn’t work for the OP

For these type of tones through a Fender amp, I’d also recommend a Barber Direct Drive… killer pedal!

About the SL Drive. Maybe my memory of how it sounded is not accurate. My comparison is 20 years apart! And i did find the SL a nuisance to set. Pull the back cover, set the tiny knobs.... I might have given up too soon

 

[CohenTheBarbarian]

The issue is that there are a lot of different Marshall tones so "MIAB" does not mean much eventually.

I have tried a lot in my all elusive search for roaring tones and those I like the most are the PedalPalFX pedals.
The Pal800 is a great JCM800 in a box and the Pal959 does a very convincing Super Lead 1959.

Also honorable mention to the Menatone The King which sounds great and is super versatile.

 

[Deuterium]

The issue is that there are a lot of different Marshall tones so "MIAB" does not mean much eventually.

I have tried a lot in my all elusive search for roaring tones and those I like the most are the PedalPalFX pedals.
The Pal800 is a great JCM800 in a box and the Pal959 does a very convincing Super Lead 1959.

Also honorable mention to the Menatone The King which sounds great and is super versatile.

Agreed! PedalPalFX PAL800 is awesome, amaze-balls.
Equally impressive, is the LPD Eighty7 or Eighty7 Deluxe. Another great MIAB, which is no longer being made, is the MI Audio Super Crunch Box.