CJReaper
Member
- Messages
- 2,231
OK, here is my situation. I play in a "classic" Metal cover band (Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Dio, etc) and although I use a Marshall JCM800 2204 half stack, I need to plug into the low gain input for cleans and solo boosts. So, I need a pedal that NAILS the classic early to mid 80s high gain Marshall sound with TONS of midrange grind. I have tried:
Barber DDSS (2003 model, PERFECT tone but just shy on the gain)
Barber Dirty Bomb (great but too fuzzy in the mix)
MI Audio CB (v1) (too fuzzy & scooped sounding, fades in the mix)
Menatone KOB (not enough UMPH and I don't like dual switch pedals)
HBE Full Metal Jacket (meh)
T-Rex Bloody Mary (too modern and sterile)
Boss Metal Zone (blech!!)
Subdecay Blackstar (too fuzzy)
ProCo Rat (several versions, including the "good" ones, hated them all)
I'm finding that most "high-gain" pedals usually fade in the mix, even though I don't max out the gain (usually keep it at 3 o'clock). I AM BEGGING ANY PEDAL BUILDER READING THIS!!!! Can you PLEASE build a pedal that gets damn close to say:
Accept: Balls to the Wall
Iron Maiden: Piece of Mind
Slayer: South of Heaven
All Marshall tones, and all have that big, growling power tube grind. Not fuzzy, not overly compressed, and not scooped in the slightest. Hell, you could call it Balls-in-a-Box, lol! I know that NO PEDAL will emulate the real thing exactly, but why can't someone make a HIGH GAIN pedal that stands out in the mix and growls more than buzzes? For features, nice and simple:
True Bypass
ONE footswitch
Level, Gain and Tone, maybe one extra gain or voicing switch but nothing fancy.
There are plenty of pedals for the "Blooze" and the "Brootalz" but I can't find any pedal that just peels paint off the walls for good old classic METAL (NOT hair bands!!). If this pedal already exists PLEASE enlighten me! And please, nothing over $200 with a damn waiting list.
Cheers,
CJ
Barber DDSS (2003 model, PERFECT tone but just shy on the gain)
Barber Dirty Bomb (great but too fuzzy in the mix)
MI Audio CB (v1) (too fuzzy & scooped sounding, fades in the mix)
Menatone KOB (not enough UMPH and I don't like dual switch pedals)
HBE Full Metal Jacket (meh)
T-Rex Bloody Mary (too modern and sterile)
Boss Metal Zone (blech!!)
Subdecay Blackstar (too fuzzy)
ProCo Rat (several versions, including the "good" ones, hated them all)
I'm finding that most "high-gain" pedals usually fade in the mix, even though I don't max out the gain (usually keep it at 3 o'clock). I AM BEGGING ANY PEDAL BUILDER READING THIS!!!! Can you PLEASE build a pedal that gets damn close to say:
Accept: Balls to the Wall
Iron Maiden: Piece of Mind
Slayer: South of Heaven
All Marshall tones, and all have that big, growling power tube grind. Not fuzzy, not overly compressed, and not scooped in the slightest. Hell, you could call it Balls-in-a-Box, lol! I know that NO PEDAL will emulate the real thing exactly, but why can't someone make a HIGH GAIN pedal that stands out in the mix and growls more than buzzes? For features, nice and simple:
True Bypass
ONE footswitch
Level, Gain and Tone, maybe one extra gain or voicing switch but nothing fancy.
There are plenty of pedals for the "Blooze" and the "Brootalz" but I can't find any pedal that just peels paint off the walls for good old classic METAL (NOT hair bands!!). If this pedal already exists PLEASE enlighten me! And please, nothing over $200 with a damn waiting list.

Cheers,
CJ