Which OD pedal am I describing?

[GazzaBloom]

I play a Gibson R8 and a Fender AV52 Tele through a Victory V40 amp.

The amp has a unique tone to it. It's a 40 watt dual EL34 single channel head and I use a 1x12 Celestion G12M-65 creamback cab. The tone is quite thick with a creamy mid-rangey vibe. Not quite tweed but along those lines, more like a old Vox/Marshall but without any piercing highs.

I need a drive that will give me no or next to no boost in the mids, not add bass but allow me to add medium drive Mrshally grind and add highs to give it bite as required. The V40 can be dialled fairly clean and loud allowing most of the gain to come from the pedal, or can be dialled to give out it's own overdrive which is medium at best needing a pedal to add some smoothness and extra drive to finish it off.

I also do not like the soft compression of a TS style pedal (or the mid hump as I don't use a Strat). I like a fast transient attack to be retained, I have a J Rockett Archer which works OK but is still a bit middy especially with the Les Paul, but it does have plenty of volume on hand and has a great sharp fast attack which makes chugging muted chords sound good.

The amount of gain and tone territory I am aiming for is Back in Black era ACDC, Electric era Cult, Sex Pistols, The Clash etc.

I tried and Angry Charlie but found it too gainy with humbuckers, sounded OK with single coils though.

What drive pedal is it I'm after? I'm thinking OCD latest version?

I live miles from anywhere where a decent range of pedals would be available to try so have to rely on buy then try and have been through enough TS style pedals already.

Gazza

 

[Sociophile]

I would look at the ThorpyFX offerings, the Peacekeeper if you want low-to-medium gain, the Warthog if you want medium-to-high.

Best of luck!

 

[ZerglotMarine]

JHS Morning Glory?

 

[MBT74]

Don't let the cheap price and the Yngwie association put you off. Grab a DOD250. Or a Distortion Plus would work too. They will be basically flat EQ and will cut the bass a bit as the gain goes up. Both pedals don't get the respect they deserve compared to the high priced boutiques.

 

[jdel77]

Why would you not just grab a decent EQ pedal?
Use the volume slider to slam your preamp harder and dial in frequencies as needed.

 

[Phase45child]

+1 on the Dod 250

 

[NielsM]

Timmy. Transparant and has a bass control.
Or a Barber Gain Changer

 

[Daka3]

I'm thinking that you've pretty much described one of the many sounds in the Tech21 British. IMO, this particular unit is so much more than a 'sansamp', and can hardly be beat for sheer tweakability. Myriads of Marshall flavours. Sculpt EQ, basic character and grind to taste.

Give it a try in front of an amp and see. Also doubles as a great-sounding direct solution on the gig if your amp goes south.

No affiliation, just real happy with mine.

 

[Silenceborn]

I know exactly what you are describing. There are many I can suggest, but the two that I am using and IMHO are among the top five best ODs ever are: Dawner Prince Diktator (medium-high gain) and Bondi Sick As (low-medium gain). Especially I would suggest you to use the JHS Andy Timmons on 100w mode, Drive at 12 o'clock and feed it with the Sick As with the gain at 2 o'clock. Pure heaven for that Marshal tone but better! I always loved the Boogie sound and I have couple of Boogie amps, The above combinations give you some of the best of both worlds. Diktator with the Hard clipping setting into Dark mode is also magic.

 

[froglord]

Sounds like something with a three band EQ would help you dial in the tone.

I'm still in the honeymoon with my Kingsley Minstrel, but it's a seriously brilliant pedal, as long as you don't mind (a) the price, and (b) the power requirement (500mA). Mode 3 on the switch gives a slightly scooped, harder-edged sound, and then there's bass, mid and treble for further adjustment. It also gives a beautifully gradual clean-up with the volume control.

On a lower budget, how about the Dirty Little Secret MkIII?

 

[mach1]

Zvex Distortron.

 

[add4]

A rat ? Can add bite and the bite can be controlled by the filter. Can be a cleanish boost into amp or really add its own dirt. Not filtering a lot of highs means fast attack feel and precise sound.

I use mine like that

 

[AgusAD]

I'd go with an OCD, the LP mode can spice up your amp if it's already distorted, and the HP can work with a clean base too. The Distortron is great too. Maybe you could get a Double Rock for more versatility.

 

[davimre]

Sounds like you need a treble booster.

 

[gearscrubs]

Timmy or OCD

 

[62Tele]

Take a look at the Skreddy Hybrid Fuzz Driver. It's as much an overdrive as it is a fuzz and fits what you're describing nicely.

 

[GuitarMD]

Timmy will give you great control over bass. It can get into some excellent classic rock tones.
OCD works well with many amp types and in HP mode has quick transients - won't sound too soft.
I might also consider a Crowther Audio Hotcake. Very gritty, wonderful detail in the treble.
Good luck and let us know what you decide on.

 

[Auditory Driving]

I m not a huge fan although i played one for years, but check out the boss od3, slight mid scoop, nice in low gain territory. The boss blues driver might serve a similar purpose for higher gain. From the ones that have not been mentioned, check out the tc electronic dark matter.

Good luck!

 

[Jet Age Eric]

VFE Distortion 3 is based on the 250/D+, but you can dial in top (and low end, which affects midrange) and tweak compression and clipping. -E

 

[Drewthemusical]

BB Preamp is rocking that territory for me right now. I find it works equally well with singles and hums, though it does seems to really excel with my tele. If you found the Angry Charlie too gainy, the BB Pre goes from clean to almost distortion. Great classic rock drive. And to my ears, it's pretty flat in the mids.