GUITAR- PEAVEY PREDATOR 1990-2000 Made in the USA ...more Strat than a Strat ??? YES!

 PEAVEY PREDATOR USA 1990-2000 

from $100.00 to $400.00 USD 

So what's the big deal? USA or not who cares about another Strat copy???

Well the big deal is it 'IS' an American made guitar. It is 29 years old and the wood has reached it's Golden Age.

It was a budget mid priced American alternative to the Japanese who were dominating the market. Especially Ibanez. Fender of course were making a Strat called a Strat in Mexico
and I am sure the made in USA badge brought in more than a few players that were headed to the MIM Strats.

About 3 years ago these went for $100.00 USD but a really good one now sells for as much as $400.00

I got mine on an even trade for a Korean made DeArmond that I paid $280.00 USD for. 

USD. Real collectors know when to jump in. This has of course bumped up the price over a very short time. There are still bargains at small town thrift stores and a few pawn shops. Of course the proverbial garage sale or even someone getting that guitar someone's Dad abandoned buried in a dirty corner of a basement. lol
This is the last of the defunct US made guitars so guys this is IT ...unlike the Harmonys and Kays etc. It can handle modern playing demands as is so it will never become a 'Wall Hanger' which is a major bonus!!!

This guitar will increase rapidly for a few years but the great thing is it is not so precious that you should feel you can not upgrade it to a real players guitar.

THE BUILD
It has a body of American Alder the same used for an American Strat. The shape is mildly different in that the routing on the edges is more curved then a Tele but not nearly as sloped as a Strat. The pickguard is almost a matt white and is one piece and is not beveled.
The 3 single coils are a bit hot and use ceramic PU's not Alnico. They sound very Strat like but slightly harsh and very animated. The harmonic's and the Strat 'chime' are very exaggerated. The result is a love hate thing. You either love the overkill or want the warmth but much subtler tone of the standard Strat Alnico.

I tend to use it with a low gain OD. I set it with just a bit of gain. I get a Sultans of Swing tone but with much more sustain. The OD smooths out the harshness completely.
Later models offered a hummie in the bridge position. You then could choose it  red or white
as well as the black and get a rosewood fretboard too.

The all maple neck is 'bi-laminated' ...which means it has been sawed in two then flipped over and glued. The grain is so straight it is near impossible to see but it has a plywood effect of being very strong and very stable. It also means the truss rod can be put sandwiched between both halves. It is all handmade stuff ...not cheap to do. These days they use a CNC machine and put the tod under the skunk stripe. My Peavey is 28 years old and still dead straight. The fingerboard radius is not 9.5 like a Fender but the much flatter 12 like a Gibson. It is stellar for bends and finger vibrato as it does not drag or even choke out on the tighter curve.

The tuners are very cheap, in fact you can buy a new set for $5.34 USD. LOL  It is hard to tune but once in tune they do not slip. The nut is graphite and ideal as it lets the strings glide back and forth smoothly helping to keep the strings in tune when using a whammy. The whammy is there own the Power Bend using the Fender's Vintage Strat design as it's basic template. The 4 screws holding the bridge to the body are not evenly spaced like the Fender. The inside two are closer to the center. The whammy bar is threaded.  I had to buy a replacement. I was lucky to find one with a short arm that unlike most lies flatter to the body instead of pointing into the air. It allows me to waver over the bar while still picking. I do not like that dead moment while grabbing the bar ...most players do that so it makes quick pitch glisses in the middle of a phrase impossible. I got this technique from Reeves Gabrels. I read an interview where he kicked down a few doors about how to use a whammy for more then a WOW!
The metal quality is fine. I was not sure it would be as the tuners are Chinese. Using it as if it were a fixed bridge gives you a typical Strat sound and sustain. The electrics are great. Mine are 29 years old and still working like new.

Bottom line ...a damn good guitar!!! That has already stood the test of time. With perhaps a few mods for some ...others will just play it as is. A keeper that will only increase in value.
To the underground it already has a cool factor and in a few years everyone will think so.
Remember it is an American made guitar using good stuff where it counts... the workmanship  and wood. Anything else is easily upgraded.
It is both a cool guitar and a bargain!!!
It can not but increase in value and prestige.

Mine (pictured above) was made in 1992. It needed a good set up and cleaning. I would like to get the whammy in action I needed new springs or add 2 more to the 3 in there so I sorted out that.
It had not been maintained for so long that it needed many small but annoying adjustments. The whole bridge had shifted about a sixteenth of an inch and needed to be reseated ...it was not rocket science but the kind of thing to make you nervous. lol
The action was easy to get to a standard low one. I used to want it so low it was under the frets. lol 
I ordered some Wilkinson locking tuners. They are a very impressive 19:1 ratio. The quality is very impressive. They are made in south Korea most likely by Artec who make the Grover tuners for all American company's having guitars made in Asia. 
The whammy is staying in tune OK but since I have ordered the locking tuners I figured why not finish it all off with graphite string trees. So I will pick up a pair of Graph Tech Tusq string trees.

A BETTER WHAMMY?

I want to eventually put the new Wilkinson Gotoh 510 type whammy.  in. It looks like the standard one but it is a locking whammy. With locking tuners and a graphite nut (which the Predator has) it is as stable as a Floyd Rose ...No sh@t I am not exaggerating ...it is that good even though it looks as tame as a standard Strat.
At $230.00 USD it ain't cheap but this is my only guitar with a whammy and I wish to have the flexibility that extreme use of it can give me.

I am a big fan of better PU's but I really love these Peaveys. Remember though I have many guitars. I even use 7 of them live changing from one to the other on every tune.
I love it and the crowd loves it too. Remember you 'wear' a guitar and mine are mostly in wild colours.

Or?

VEGA TREM VT1 UTRA TREM

The Italian company a hand machined precision made unt that drops right in to standard Fender trad routing.

It quite literally like a Floyd moves in both directions. It can handle anything the average Metal guy dive bombing and pulling back can give it and stay in tune. Guys that just want a no fuss that use a whammy in the average tradional way say it keeps tune for a whole set when they take it to the gig.

PICKUPS?
I can get a set of 50's spec PU's 
they are made by Artec in Korea who make everyone's American brands but made in Korea guitars like Seymour Duncan etc. 

They are largest PU maker in the world with literally state of the art facilities.
These are definitely Duncan quality 
and for $45.00 USD a set it's a nobrainer.

FUN TIME

I am totally loving this guitar but a black Strat is pretty boring with everyone from a 6 year old beginner to a seasoned pro with one.
I decided to deck it out. (nothing that can not be reversed) lol 
in ....

So way back when ...a store had a $60.00 USD heavy leather guitar strap ...in green? No one wanted to buy it (not even me) They decided to blow it out at ...$10.00 USD. I did not like it and I did not need it . So I bought it. LOL
Anyhow it comes in handy now. It took a month to break it in.

OVERDRIVE WHEEHBO Plexdrive ...yes another Plexi ! ...but oh how aggressive this one is!!!

WHEEBO PLEXDRIVE

$270.00

Eike Hintzen has been making OD's one at at a time in his shop in Hanover Germany for years. He now offeres you 14 choices!!!

Eike's Plexi is very aggressive. Keep in mind that there were Plexi amps from 1965 to 1981 with both 100 watt and 50 watt always on offer and even lower and higher wattage's. 
The amp was updated every few years. One of the last version's has a USA model with 6550 tubes in it instead of EL 34's.
Like cars some years are classic and others not.
At any rate you can never truly pick one pedal over another as perfect ...just different. I have several Plexi pedals myself and I love them all. Lawrence Petross has done several different years. Right now the 74 is the newest.

CONCLUSION
I can not find anything not to like for a straight up Plexi sound.
The most accurate is probably the Surprise Sound Lab HVO.
I have one and love it ...but it is not the most exciting.
Right now I favour the Dawner Prince Red Rox for shredding!

OVERDRIVE- ROCKBOX Red Dog Distortion ...originally designed as an always on OD

 ROCKBOX RED DOG DISTORTION 

$100.00 USD

It is a low to medium gain OD that has been around so long they named it a distortion pedal. How simple is it just level and gain.
They saw the pedal as an always on to beep up a clean Fender. Over time it got used for a boost for other pedals etc. and became an alternative to a Tube Screamer.
In many ways it has gone full circle as many players are looking for a dynamically sensitive near clean sound with some punch.
It is the dynamics of this that were the number one concern of the designer. Yes and it has them too!!!



CONCLUSION
On one hand it has a nice warm mellow tone. On the other hand it has a nice warm mellow tone.
The dynamics really are great but if you want some serious bite or shine to your sound it just won't do it.

FUZZ- DANELECTRO Eisenhower Fuzz ...do we need another Super Fuzz? Hell no but bring it on !!!

$150.00 USD

 DANELECTRO EISENHOWER FUZZ 
Well good ol' Dano is back with a 'classic' Fuzz. Gone is the
standard Dano box of the Billionaire Series ...replaced with a standard 'B' style box.
The slightly trashed look is new too. The whole look is a total flip from the Deco look of past Dano pedals.

It appears to be yet another take on Shin-Ei FY-6 better known as a Univox Super-Fuzz. It is hardly a clone with it's scoop switch and EQ.
If you want an authentic clone Ananashead Super Fuzz is the only one to nail it.
But is it a Fox Fuzz...it was me too Super Fuzz or as we say now. A clone. LOL

It really is quite a decent sounding Fuzz but with a standard B box
and unlike the Billionaire pedals it is priced in a territory bloated with choices.

CONCLUSION

Nice!!! 

BUT ....there are no end of Fuzz pedals to choose from.

One thing I do like it is not a gimmicky Fuzz so it is very usable in any situation that a Fuzz is 

the best musical choice.

OVERDRIVE-Dr.Scientist Heisenberg Molecular Overdrive ...cutting edge high tech yet totally analog!!!

  DR. SCIENTIST HEISENBERG MOLECULAR OD 

$400.00 USD

 So if you want a better OD then reinvent the DIODES.  Not easy ...in fact an S.O.B.
So our dear Doctor (Ryan Clarke) with the help of the University of Alberta, The National Institute for Nano Technology and a grant from the National Research Council of Canada set out to solve the problem.
Yes ...hi tech.. BUT high tech analog with all
that warmth and fullness of analog technology.
A room full of Einsteins to make a better shredder. LOL
Now that 'IS' funny!!!

Dead cool!!!
But ...
Price ...OUCH!!!
The supply of the Heisenberg  is small because the nano diode thing has to be made in a lab by hand.
Double ouch!!! This is the way to go though. Make it better. Keep it analog!!!

OVERDRIVE-JOYO Hot Plexi ...for chunky rhythm it is hard to beat. ...$35.00 USD!!!

$35.00 USD

 JOYO HOT PLEXI 

I have bought and sold many Joyo pedals. They are well made and mostly clones that manage to get dead close to the originals with a minimum of compromise. I find they often loose some sustain in the process 'but' the bulk of your playing is never all soloing. They can be a real asset even
if you have a couple of high end killers on your board already.
The best OD they make is without doubt the Ultimate Drive It is a very accurate knock off of an OCD. With a generous 22 OD's on my boards it is still sitting contently beside pedals that cost literally 10 times more.

The Hot in Hot Plexi just plain stupid! It suggests a tear your face off shred pedal which this is not. It is a mildly scooped but very full sounding pedal that will earn it's keep accompanying the vocals in a tune with a full biting tone.
Clone?? Yes it gives a nod to a Carl Martin Plexitone.

Joyo have been making this pedal for years and it has gained a tidy following of admirers that have an honest respect of it's value.

OVERDRIVE- JLD Mosfet OD ...chunky, fat & creamy yet unusually transparent

 JLD MOSFET OD 

$150.00 USD

A handmade OD from Brazil. A little different.
very fat but chunky and clean with lots of headroom.
It reminds me off a vintage Ampeg amp or to some degree a
Hi Watt from the late 60's.

It is a low to medium gain transparent OD. The low gain setting is seriously fat. This is unique in any low gain pedal.
The high gain actually is not as fat but the rich clean tone is
100% free of anything even bordering on fizz or fuzziness.

It is neither a Tube Screamer or a Klon but has a bit of both
in it. You can get a good rock aggression like a ts but you also
get a rich creamy mid sound like a Klon. At the same time unlike either it has a tube amp like sound.
It lets a Fender sound like a Fender but makes it as fat as an LP. ....Hard not to love this one.

WAH- DAREDEVIL PEDALS Atomic Cock Wah ...self explanatory ...LOL ...yes a variable fixed wah boost

  DAREDEVIL PEDALS ATOMIC COCK                          

$180.00 USD

A cocked wah can create a great sound but setting up the wah after turning it on and finding the sweet spot is not instant. Some players have a wah they use only for this and never rock the treadle ...it is just a tone control.
Some players use a wah in this way as a permanent mid boost.

So the Atomic Cock saves you a lot of aggravation. It also allows you to tweak the sound by boosting the gain or blending it with your guitar signal. The treadle ...is of course replaced with a knob ...so you can dial it in to the sweet spot in a second.

Do not see this as JUST the standard real wah left set in one position. With a real wah you can not control the gain of the pedal. It can be too strong or too weak for just the right boost or it can take over the whole sound. With a 'fixed' pedal you can boost the harmonics that increase sustain or feedback that make your a note soar up to a higher octave. In short make your guitar scream!!!

They have been making this pedal since 2013.  It has been a big success.
In part because it is a great pedal and partly because no one else sees enough sales to bother.

They brought the new smaller one in Dec/2018. They claim they only changed the box. The old one had much larger box. Six years ago bigger was better. lol

CONCLUSION
I had just recently pulled my wah from my board. I was using the treadle in a slow sweep and when I hit the sweet spot I may move it around a little but having it fixed on the sweet spot ahead of time makes a lot of sense. I never used it for the rhythm thing. I find that does not fit my current music. It was too much pizzing around so it is in the pile to be Reverbed.


HANDS ON
I bought one!!! It does not disappoint.
I love setting to the sweet spot on the dirt pedal and just give it a nudge. Just enough to hear,
Not on lt does a Fuzz or OD sound better but sings and sings and sings!!
if you had only one dirt pedal you will be unlikely to turn it off.
If you own a wah you will find you can easily use both.
This thing is a well made great sounding gem!!!
In my book John has done a stellar job. Check out his other pedals
as he says as virtual full time player ...he makes these pedals for his own gig and he is not going to pay any sh@t!!!  Well maybe not in just those words ...LOL
His pedals pay for themselves!

OVERDRIVE- SKREDDY PEDALS Major OD...bite ...attack ...tight and more bite!!!

$170.00 USD

 SKREDDY PEDALS MAJOR OD 

Skreddy have a rep of doing things their own way. They make a
reliable quality product for a fair price.
Lately I have been putting band practice into super charge after
getting settled in new digs that include a small but adequate
practice space that is conveniently available 24/7.
Even with spending big money over and over on OD's only to dump them a short time later ...one finds a big part of a great sound it is all about application.
In short. What works with your tunes in the bands context.
In the past I would have found the Major does not check all the boxes. I still would not recommend it as your only pedal.
BUT ...It does a tight aggressive sound maybe better then anyone.
It is definitely worth a listen. Could it make magic in your band???

THE BEST PAF ON THE PLANET !!! ...and the proof to say so.

 THE WHOLE STORY 

In the late 60' Bill Gibbons of ZZ Top fame bought a 59 Les Paul from a rancher for $250.00.
Years later he was offered 3 million for it by a collector from Japan.
Of course he kept it. LOL

He nic named it 'Pearly Gates' and has always felt it is 'the' perfect guitar tone.
In 2009 he teamed up with Gibson to make a clone of it. They made in all 250 guitars...but only 50
were painfully detailed to the very smallest scratch.

So much for history of the guitar. The thing that blew my mind was what the guys at the Gibson Custom Shop discovered.

They are the masters of wood!!! They have cloned 
many '59 and '60's LP's. Everyone came out
frighteningly accurate to the original.

BUT !!!
The big problem is since every PU in every guitar made back in the 50's was hand wound no two are exactly the same. 
It is obvious then that each 'cloned guitar' would have to have a prototype reproduced
from the original PU  from scratch that matched the original dead on.

They got very good at cloning many old Gibson PAF's.  BUT all prototype PU's had to be accepted when they got either very close or if they got lucky it was very, very close. NONE WERE DEAD ON!!!

They tried getting the Pearly right and became frustrated and decided to stick in a stock Seymour Duncan Pearly Gates to see what  Duncan was passing off as a Pearly.

Bingo!!!! it was dead on. They tried another one Bingo !!! dead on.  They were forced to confess that a stock Duncan Pearly is the 'ONLY' perfect clone of at least one 59 LP.

CONCLUSION
In my opinion the best PAF on the planet is a Seymour Duncan Pearly Gates because it is quite literally the only known dead accurate repro!!!
ALL others can only claim to be a great sounding Gibson style humbucking PU.

I have zero problem if someone claims to have the worlds best hummie!!! In fact maybe they do???
BUT it is NOT a PAF ...it is a facsimile

QUESTION
So if 10 PAF's were taken out of 10 great sounding LP's
and one manufacture had a PU that was stellar AVERAGE of all 10
Would you choose that PU or take one of the 10 ????
If you chose one of the 10 and it turned out to be the original Pearly and given the choice would put it back and take the new AVERAGE one or keep the Pearly???

Too bad this choice is not just hypothetical.
But the off the shelf new Duncan Pearly is not!

Half of all my 10 guitars have a Seymour Duncan 'Pearly Gates' at the bridge.
everyone of those guitars were not just improved on but quite literally transformed!!!!


SEYMOUR DUNCAN 'PEARLY GATES' bridge SH-PG1B

$105.00 USD

FINAL THOUGHTS
So I have tried a few PAF style PU's and most are more or less similar to each other. The Pearly is different. It has 'slightly' less highs. The bass is average to most other PAF's. 
The BIG difference is that it has comparatively massive mids. This makes the damn thing very fat sounding. The overall tone is very sumptuous and rich in harmonics.
The price is reasonable. No gourmet gouging with this sweetheart!

So is it the bullet proof no brainer classic PU ???
Well I am one guy who think's so!!!

OVERDRIVE- MP AUDIO Blue Brit OD ...at least it's cheap lol

 MP AUDIO BLUE BRIT OD 

$125.00 USD

An Australian company with just 2 pedals hits the pedal market with a Brit pedal. Nothing new here. But in this case it is a low gain pedal transparent OD. Well they say it is. lol
Odd??
Still more odd is it is much more like a Fender type blues style OD.
It is also more of a medium gain pedal. It is raw and raunchy.
Not the least bit transparent. It does clean up a bit if you pull your
guitar volume back.

CONCLUSION
The damn thing is total raunch!!!
If ya like that ..OK
But I think it sucks!

OVERDRIVE-PROVIDENCE Heat Blaster HBL-4...a classic style high gain OD that is both fat and tight!

 PROVIDENCE HEAT BLASTER HBL-4 DISTORTION 

$200.00 USD

This is a high gain pedal with a difference. It is in the tradition of
the old Boss pedals more then a modern Plexi amp replica.
It is fat, harmonically rich and with a great pick attack and very tight.

It gives you the kind of sound of a Pexi but one that has been recorded and had some stellar post production done. It shines on chord work.
It has a very moderate amount of sustain. It has not got that 'flying by the seat of your pants' sound of a shredder.

To use it for what it does so well is certainly justifiable to own one.

If you are not into soloing or riffing it is perfect!!!
If you have one or more OD's it could be a very, very welcome addition too.

CONCLUSION

It is what it is. 

If you want a great sounding dirt pedal with plenty of power to accompany the vocals it could be heaven. If you are still early to the game of OD's this will be much easier to control any open ringing strings. The Heat Blaster will not need very careful hand muting to keep under control.

BOOSTER- NRG EFFECTS Poker NC-107 ...60's style frequency booster ...a musical machete ...total horror show !!!

 NRG EFFECTS POKER-BC107 

$170.00 USD

An idea borrowed from the '60's with a modern spin. Do not dirty the sound just boost the sh@t out of the overtones and harmonics. More then just a treble booster.
It give the sound a metallic like quality the slashes thru like a machete.

A switch takes the edge off the highs or you can warm up the whole tone. A second switch fattens the mids or boosts the lows. Finally ...of course there is the familiar knob for level.

On its own it gives muscle to rhythmic chord playing or definition and cut when stacked on an OD.

All beautifully handmade with premium parts.

It would be the perfect pedal to stack on an OD or Fuzz to tighten the sound by giving it clarity by cleaning up any mud. Added sparingly to your clean sound it removes anything lame or wimpy from it.
I can not help but think it would be awesome on a Strat or Tele!!!

Keep in mind that it does not have a level control. The only pot you have increases the gain.
Unity gain is at 1 o'clock. Fortunately that is where all the really great tone is.

CONCLUSION
Will I buy one? Many of you know I am looking for the perfect transparent OD for my Strat sound.
I have a Providence Red Rock on the way to do just that.  Should I wait??? 

I think  this could boost it or even replace it. It will certainly be great to stack on any OD.

LOOPER- GAME CHANGER AUDIO Plus Pedal ...a simple idea that is astonishing because it works

 GAME CHANGER AUDIO PEDAL PLUS 

$330.00 USD

A funny looking even gimmicky looper.
It only holds a few seconds of signal.
It looks totally goofy.
And it ain't cheap!!
ARE THEY CRAZY ???

Well maybe not. Because it works exceptionally well. In short it is musically usable over and over. Not just a once or twice WOW sound! Too many pedals
are like that now. They become sound effects ...great to use once on a sci-fi sound effect then retire the pedal.

OVERDRIVE- PROVIDENCE Red Rock OD ...Overdrive heaven for a Strat!!!

$200.00 USD

 PROVIDENCE RED ROCK OD 

Straight off let me tell you that half all Providence pedals are modified Tube Screamers. Nearly every pedal company makes at least one ts wannabe. One big reason in this age of pedal boards is
that the ts is no longer always used as both an OD and a boost. At one time everyone increased the output volume/level high enough to clip the preamp of their amplifier. so These days the best ts style pedals give you a great sound right in the pedal and you can leave the level at unity gain.

The Red Rock is an OD that does an excellent job of keeping a Strat sounding like a Strat. Yes it works great for hummies but it is definitely aimed at single coils of any kind so it loves a Tele or P90.

The guy that designed this pedal used his own vintage Strat to voice this pedal.

Personally I find a Tele or P90 does not suffer with your average OD but if an OD eats away the Strat 'chime' it kills even owning a Strat!!!

This little beauty is great. With the gain barely on it sounds almost dead clean but fattens the sound and pushes enough sustain to fill in until you hit your next note or chord. With other OD's when the gain is set low they choke. You stand there still doing a nice string vibrato but there isn't any sound coming out.
The little volume knob is an input boost for your guitar for single coils. It is great for bringing up the input to match higher gain PU's like most hummies or any hot PU's.

 A BIT OF DIGRESSION
After the 64/65  Strat PU's ...all future Strat PU's are wound hot enough to start killing the chime.
Leo designed the '64 himself before he left Fender.
Hendrix used a 64 Strat any time he felt that it was important to preserve his cleaner tones. It is noticeable especially on the first 2 LP's

My point is any classic single coil PU with such a boost allows you to choose tone over high output.
I feel it is a critical addition to get 'that' tone that a Plexi will give you just before it hits 'crunch'.
The Fat switch boosts the lows and a few lower mids ...just enough to beef up the sound without destroying it.
The tone even pushed up quite high never ever pushes into that shrill range. It has plenty of gain too.

CONCLUSION
Well I like it a lot ....but I have bought and sold a completely stupid amount of OD to get that Marshall Super Lead 100 going thru a Marshall 1960a 4x12 cab with the volume set just shy of break up taking you into crunch. LOL Worse yet most were ts wannabes but the manufacture was not saying that!!!
If you want to hear a great '64 Strat sound listen to Hendrix do  The Wind Cries Mary. To me that is the perfect 'clean' sound.
Something leaning that way would be fine but I either get a very thin sound or a fuzzy sound with low gain. I find that online vids do not show this well. I am using a Love Pedal Super 6 SRV model right now. Not perfect but it squeaks by.

Listen to the first video with Pete Thorn.
Start it at 2:42. Check out a great Strat lead tone.
If you back it off a bit you would get the clean Hendrix tone.

I ordered one so be sure to be back for the 'hands on' follow up.

HANDS ON

So it arrived. The first thing you note is it has a very high quality finish. The outside hardware is the best of the best. Even the d/c jack is all steel. I have a lot of fine pedals with premium jacks but the d/c jack though really well made is always a high tech plastic.

I set the pedal up with the more conventional of Pete Thorn's settings and it did sound very good. I then did the setting that Pete was thrilled with where you kill the tone and push the level high. I was afraid it would cause a unity gain problem. 
It did!!! DAMN!
So it is still best Tube Screamer I have ever owned.

I GET A NEW STRAT WANNABE
I have unintentionally matched a guitar to a pedal instead of a pedal to a guitar. LOL
Having got a '92 Peavey Strat wannabe added to my line up things are looking up.

The Peavey has the same American alder body and Canadian hard rock maple neck as an American Strat. Luck would have it that this guitar ended up being made of a choice piece of tone wood and now with well over 20 years of drying out and aging it is in it's prime. It sounds better then my Fender Custom Shop Strat. No sh@t the sound is just killer!!!

At that time I fell onto a Danelectro Bacon & Eggs. It is years old but NOS. Since it is a dead on clone of the MXR grahic EQ ...it was not hard to bump up some more highs and upper mids to stop my bass heavy humbucker loving Marshall from eating my Strat sound.
So feeding a great sounding Strat to the Red Rock ...then the Red Rock to the Marshall that thinks it's half Fender when my pedal chain is on ...is pure magic.

Bottom line the Providence Red Rock is a modified Tube Screamer tweaked for Strat perfection. If you are a Strat guy if it is not a must have ...it certainly is a must try!
For everyone else it is a great Tube Screamer ...but there are hundreds to choose from
so listen with caution to them all. Even having said that I find all my other single coil PU 
guitars do sound damn good thru this pedal.

OVERDRIVE: NUX Core Metal Deluxe...a budget Metal pedal w/ a pro sound ? Maybe so.

$70.00 USD

 NUX CORE METAL DELUXE 

The Metal Core has been a big success for Nux it can now be bought for $35.00 USD so I think it may be a blow out in favour of only making the much improved Deluxe.
Yes it has a very Boss like sound but without the array of bells and whistles. The only frill is a toggle to let you choose between'nasty' and 'nastier' LOL. OK OK ...between a classic Brit sound and a modern American Metal sound.
A simple Gain, Level Bass and Treble is what you have to work with.

The original has been around since 2012 so what do we get with
with the revamped Deluxe. It appears a bit fatter but not a lot more.

 NUX METAL CORE 

At $35.00 it deserves a look. It has been around for about 7 years.

and has made many players happy.

CONCLUSION

Well the Deluxe has a modern classic sound. A bit sterile and the sustain is a bit weak.

The original is not as fat but actually not so different. You could get 2 of the original for the price of the Deluxe and stack them. I did that with 2 different OCD clones and it turned out amazing!!!

The original is surprisingly good and it really is a bargain.

At $35.00 USD it might be a good move while you save up for your dream pedal.

OVERDRIVE-GOOSONIQUEWORX KULT ...the only Metal pedal that has a more massive sound is only to be found in someones imagination

 GOOSONIQUEWORX CULT  

I have always wanted this pedal but no one has one. They also do not have an explanation? I have been looking since April 2017 when I first reviewed it. I have traced down the company from the help of a store in Singapore China and am waiting for an answer.
In the mean time listen to the video and see why!!!














CONCLUSION
Anything even close is going thru a high gain amp.
This pedal is doing the whole deal right inside the box since it is going through a clean amp.
I love this sound but I would use it on 10% of my tunes.
I also do not play at tinnitus levels. I use a Plexi ...yes ...but 50 watts
...not a full stack pushed by a Super Lead 100 at 145db!!!
(note: hearing loss starts at 90db and a Plexi 50 watt puts out 100db


MAY 2019
So to the best of my knowledge I believe Goosoniqueworx is out of business.
Good new though ...I found a new pedal ...ZenZero Electronics Heavy Metal Distortion
check out the Post .