Need drive pedal help, PLEASE!

[Jeron B]

Hey!

I'm struggling to fill "that" spot on my pedalboard. I'm looking for a really smooth, medium gain drive pedal for the heavier ZZ-Top / Bonamassa gain levels with single coils (mostly Strats, but Teles on occasion). As for tone, I'm looking for exactly what my Small Fry does, with just a bit less noise. The Small Fry with the gain at about 2:00 gives me that sort of smooth, yet biting mid, on-the-verge-of D-style tone and it's perfect. Just a bit too noisy for the venue that I'm playing at now (even with the gain at around noon it's still quite noisy).

Below is a list of pedals that I'm interested in, but have never played them, so I'm very curious about noise issues, if any. Quiet (with the right tone / gain level) is what I need. If I've left any out, please feel free to contribute! I should also note that a BB Preamp (gain at about 2:00) and JHS Morning Glory (gain at about 2:30 - just set as a very, very transparent boost that adds just a bit of sustain-y gain to an amp on the verge of breakup) are also on the board - just need something for a bit more gain and a slightly different flavor than the BB (actually, the BB into the MG is pretty darn close - if I could get that from one pedal, I'd still be able to get just a bit more by stepping on the MG).

-Wampler Ecstacy (but I've read this will be pretty close to my BB - if it's capable of more gain, it might be just right)
-Other Wampler stuff (Pinnacle? SLOstortion?)
-Bearfoot Dyna Red (4 knob, probably)
-Menatone? (Would a Blue Collar have enough gain? I really like how smooth it sounds.)
-Rockbox Boiling Point

Again, I'm sure I've left out a bunch, so please feel free to throw some suggestions at me!

Thanks!!

*DISCLAIMER* I absolutely LOVE the tone of the Small Fry, and really, really don't want this to seem like a bashing thread. I'd also like to avoid this thread from turning into diagnosing the noise issues. I've spent tons of time and really, really worked hard at getting rid of the noise, so I'd appreciate it if we can just discuss other drive pedals, please. Kudos to Dave for building one of my absolute favorite sounding drive pedals. Period.

 

[jazzfromhell]

Wampler Euphoria/Ecstasy is cool and has plenty of gain. Don't remember how it compares to the BB though. Also I'm guessing the Zendrive would be a pedal to check out. When I think of smooth and med gain that's the one that pops up.

 

[etc]

Maybe an Xotic AC Booster. Sounds similar to the Zendrive.

 

[mysterious1s]

I have almost the exact same setup as you and just picked up an Ecstasy/Euphoria. It is a great pedal once I figured out that I needed the bass knob turned almost completely off. It is very quiet, fat, smooth and stacks incredibly well with everything before it in my chain. It is my new favourite pedal currently!
You may also want to check out the Honey beest, I love mine!

 

[stevecuss]

I have only had the Ecstacy/Euphoria for a few weeks and I'm still getting to know it, but last time I was messing with it, I spent all my time on low gain/high volume settings and discovered a whole new set of tones I didn't know existed in it. It is a very fun pedal with such a wide variety of tones, I wish it had a channel switch.

 

[Jeron B]

Thanks very much for the suggestions, everyone!

mysterious1s - Thanks very much! Now that I know the Ecstasy / Euphoria is low-noise and won't overlap my BB Preamp, I might have to give one a shot!

 

[IgaGearDemos]

VFE Alpha Dog. Very flexible and lot of tone option, give it a try

 

[DocRock]

I think the Bearfoot Dyna Red 4k will get you there.

 

[Guitardave]

I've got the Xotic (BB, AC) and the Mentaone Red Snapper (old one) - I prefer the BB the best of the bunch at the moment.

For something completely different I've really been liking the Crazy Tube Stardust Blackface a lot lately - very interesting circuit - plenty of gain but responds incredibly to your guitars volume knob/picking attack.