OVERDRIVE- TRUETONE VS-XO Premium Dual OD ...Bluesy Classic with a following

 TRUETONE VS-XO PREMIUM DUAL OD 

$200.00 USD

Classic Hard Rock OD. The sound of middle American Rock pouring out of ever club thru the 70's & 80's. Bruce Springsteen and dozen's of like bands from small towns everywhere.
Two channels each with volume, tone, and drive. 3 choices of clipping and bass boost.
You can even mix in some clean for definition.
This pedal has been around almost as long as the era it depicts. Some may remember when the company was called Visual Sound
and so was this pedal.

CONCLUSION
So old it's new. The sound is of a classic old combo amp.
Great if you are looking for something different or maybe it simply sounds like an old friend.

It has been around for a long time so I have seen used ones going cheap.

OVERDRIVE- HORIZON DEVICES Nano Attack ..modified ts with rotary switch to tighten your sound.

$149.00 USD

 HORIZON DEVIVES NANO ATTACK 
Well this pedal has a story. Djent Misha Mansoor guitarist plays as most of you know faster then a metronome turned all the way up. lol He also uses 
a very, very, very high gain Metal sound. He started at the beginning using  the standard Tube Screamer that hundreds of Metal guys use for both extra drive and the fullness and punch in the upper mids. The ts is weak in the low end but at mega gain that helps tighten the low end. One day he and Pro Tone got together to make a pedal that would solve all the problems.
Pro tone started with the ts then gave it extra gain, level and even some cut and brightness in the highs to give you clarity chugging and kill any mud.
The big deal came when they designed into it band pass filters that slice off the lowest lows then allowed you to switch thru several settings until you were even slicing off some lower mids. The idea is brilliant because it just plain works.
After a few years Misha bailed out and started making his own pedal.
It is not a hell of a lot different then Pro Tone.
If you think 'rip off'! Yes so do I. lol

The 'Nano' is virtually the same as the full size pedal except some missing knobs are inside the pedal. It can work great if you set it up to work with your gear. BUT! If for example use even a second guitar then you are f__ked!
I have the Pro Tone Attack Drive. 
You can use it to control and boost Fuzz pedals and Overdrives not just amps set on crunch. 
Extremely useful even if you do not play Metal. 

It adds some serious punch yet & tightens your sound.

CONCLUSION
Even the name is from Pro Tone. Tacky!!!
They are all good units. 
The full sized version is about $50 more 
but it has a very useful gate.
I got the Pro Tone as a second with tiny
mark on it for a great price. I have a gate
and a gate and since I stack this on other 
dirt pedals I do not need one in the unit itself.

OVERDRIVE-BEETRONICS Fat Bee Overdrive ...the premier Fuzz makers make an OD?

 BEETRONICS FATBEE OVERDRIVE 

$190.00 USD

So Beetronics have made one Fuzz after another and Fuzz.
Aficionado's have ALL of them. So making an OD caught them with a surprise.
It has the gorgeous box and art work they are famous for but is in a much smaller box. This the Babee series is the first in a new line of more affordable pedals. Fatbee's pedals are up to $350.00 USD. They have a rep of being some of the more expensive Fuzz boxes you can buy!!!
The first video will please their fans. Even though they are using JFET transistors it sound like a Fuzz. 
The second is so stupid that you may forget to listen to the OD. But listen! The guy has it set for a good OD tone. If I had not heard the second video I would not be here telling you that this pedal has some merit for a guy looking for a shredder with a fresh sound! The third pedal gives you little background and shows you a couple of sounds.

Just added the RJ Ronquillo demo ...Killer playing!!!!

CONCLUSION
The RJ solo sold me!!!

OVERDRIVE- OVALTONE 34-Xtreme ...another obscure maker from Japan

$300.00 USD

OVALTONE 34- XTREME OVERDRIVE
From Japan come another under the radar
companies that sells internationally but often you have to wait to have your pedal made.

They claim the pedal is inspired by a hot rodded Plexi. The best Plexi's usually use FET transistors but this one has a harsher edge so suspect it uses one of the ever popular 4558 op-amps that started life in the Tube Screamer.

It has a 90's Marshall sound.

CONCLUSION
I think I was expecting more. It is not a bad dirt pedal but it reminds 
me more of a Boogie Dual Rectifier then a classic Plexi.
It definitely has balz to spare!

If what you want is the Ultimate Plexi check out the post Tech N Tone Turbo Nonna OD
it is totally killer. The tone is exceptional so many rich harmonics and the sustain is the best I've heard from any OD even at very,very low volumes.

OVERDRIVE- JETTER Gold 45/100 ...a clean Plexi on 10??? Yes!

$275.00 USD

 JETTER GOLD 45/100 
A Marshall Plexi? 
Yes the trouble is most makers design a Plexi based on how you hear it on old recordings. Besides the obvious post production the guy playing it is using a Rangemaster treble Booster and an early Fuzz pedal.
So when you buy most Plexi pedals the sound you hear is the amp plus the pedals going thru it.
I have a Plexi and when you dime it it still sounds clean but it has a lot of compression because the transformer has no headroom so it acts as compressor giving you a lot of sustain. 
Think of Hendrix doing the Wind Cries Mary. It is a 100 watt Plexi cranked but without pedals.
The Plexi has 2 channels that can be patched together to the right is bright channel and to the left is the dark channel. So you have a knob to blend them. The tone is otherwise fixed. 

So the the 45/100 is Jetter's take on a stock Plexi. It will give you the tone but you have control over the level. So even guys with a Plexi like it so they can turn down their amp and get the sound of it cranked. 
It will also give a Fender amp a Marshall clean sound.

CONCLUSION
Since I have a Plexi I can tell you that they have done a damn good job.
You could easily leave it as an always on pedal to turn a Fender etc. into a Plexi.
You will have to supply your own dirt pedal to overdrive it.  :-)

OVERDRIVE- PRO TONE PEDALS Attack Ovedrive ...METAL ...innovative!!!...great sound ...fairly priced

 PRO TONE ATTACK OVERDRIVE 

$200.00 USD

A pedal designed specifically for Modern Metal.
Like most Metal pedals it uses a 4558 dual amplifier which is an op-amp. This is actually a bit raunchy but a real tube is not ...so the blend gives you warmth but bite and definition. SRV used a ts10 with the same op-amp and his tone was hardly harsh.
I find it ironic that the chip is used in low gain OD's and Metal OD where as the things in between favor FET transisters. lol  Most of my pedals use FET's

The layout is simple enough with Volume, Tone and Gain.
It's special feature is a six way switch which cuts the lows to get a tight bass sound. In its lowest setting it is in reality turned off and you get a full bass response. 
This is done using a low pass filter ...as the name implies it is how much of the lower part of the bass frequency's are allowed to get past the filter and become part of your sound and how many are blocked from coming thru. 
Confused? 
Well think of this way ...there is extra low bass, medium low bass and then some bass that borders on mids. The filter starts by cutting the extra low ...then cuts the medium low etc. as you go thru the switch positions. 
The designers have kept the upper mid range thick and full so that the tone is 
still full but focused even when slicing off a lot of lows.
.
If you are still a Tube Screamer guy it is worth moving up to this pedal for that switch alone.
It aims at giving you a modern metal tone and it does just that. It is not harmonically rich with a bit of a classic Marshall sound coming thru like a Revv pedal. It has a glistening shiny smooth synthetic metallic tone.
One treat is it is free from any hash or fizz!

CONCLUSION

Keep in mind this is NOT an Overdrive in the traditional sense that it is not meant to be a stand alone amp-in-box but a pedal to overload a crunch or distorted tone and beef it up, extend the sustain and unlike other OD's give you control and shaping of your sound.

If you are going to push it thru a clean amp you are into things like the REVV G series.

I ordered one to stack on unruly dirt pedals ...I will give you a HANDS ON when I get it.

I have the LPD Eighty7 a JCM 800 in a box and the TC Electronics Fangs. 

I just got DMS Drive Maker with the biggest fattest Low end Metal sound on the planet.

I also have picked up a Gervana Ji Si distortion which does the MESA Dual Rectifier thing.

...they all sound twice as good with the Attack OD               stacked on them.They make playing any heavy                 distortion pedals heaven!

OVERDRIVE- VEROCITY EFFECTS PEDALS Super Lead Xtra JCM 900 clone ...dead on accurate!!!

$335.00 USD

 VEROCITY EFFECTS PEDALS 
VeroCity are a Japanese company that does clones of Gourmet
amps. So far they have done 39 amps. Yes no sh@t!!!! 39 amps!
All pedals are point to point hand wired. In short NO circuit boards. F.ing mind blowing!!!
They seem to have no interest in expanding past Japan. There is however one single store in Taiwan that has them. lol
However you can order them from some Japanese stores.
But they are a pain because you have to click on the 'interpreter'
They appear to hold up the Japanese tradition of excellence.
The layout is the same on all their pedals with volume, presence, gain treble mids and bass. If an amp has 2 channels then they make 2 pedals.
So check out the crazy vids and see what you think.

CONCLUSION
Damn impressive! Only a few companies in the West make Amp emulations and we are impressed by most of the results. You just have to look at VEROCITY's 30 pedals and say. W.T.F. It even makes me wonder if the ones we know about are in any way clones of the Veroctiy products.

GUITAR- JONHSTON JG-TR3 ...a great candidate for slide guitar and anything funky.

JOHNSTON JG-TR3 TRAILBLAZER

It is technically a travel guitar made by Johnston who have been around since 1981. Happy to sell to mostly the southwest U.S. to players into all styles of Americana.
The scale is 24 1/2" not a dumbed down little travel guitar scale but the standard Gibson scale. It has a mahogany neck and rosewood fingerboard with medium Jumbo frets. The body is white wood mostly used for organs. It has a Spruce top. The tuners are serviceable. At the price there is nothing fancy but Johnston have a good rep for their build quality. They have a 5 Star rating with buyers.
My idea is to put a magnetic sound hole PU in it and throw on a set of electric guitar strings. I would treat it a more like it was a semi. The small body should help keep any feedback in check.
I love the funky look ...It reminds me of a few overly thin parlor guitars Blues players used in the 1920's. At a gig I know my audience will love it.

$150.00 USD

OVERDRIVE-FRIDAY CLUB el Cardinale ...the return of classic sound that was all but forgotten!!!

$199.00 USD

 FRIDAY CLUB EL CARDINALE 
From Portland Oregon comes a new boy. They have the usual assortment of pedals. On offer is the Cardinale. It is in the low to medium gain category but instead of doing the expected Tube Screamer clone they seem to have pattern this off of a defunct New Zealand pedal the Hotcake.
When the designer passed away it fell into a company's hands that did not grow the company but just sold the pedals they had.
Without new product no one was directed to their site by the reviewers to also discover the Hotcake and it was eventually "good-bye" for the company.

They have a simple set up of Volume,Tone and Gain. At low settings it is totally transparent and gains a nice even increase of dirt as you move up the gain. When you dime it the sound it really breaks up into a very cool gentle spluttering tone. The pedal is very reminiscent of the brown faced Fenders.

CONCLUSION
I forgot how cool the old Hotcake is. Kudos to the Friday Club for bringing it back!!!
Better still the Hotcake goes used for about $350.00 USD so you get a big savings!!!

OVERDRIVE- VEMURAM Shanks ODS-1 ...a session players dream pedal!

$395.00 USD

 VEMURAM SHANKS ODS-1 
It was made in conjunction with John Shanks a player but better known as a producer. It has been designed to get the perfect pedal for recording. It is very successful. It has a post production kind of sound.
The pedal like all their dirt pedals IS NOT about getting a 
real tube amp sound but all about clarity and a tight clean tone. 
This is not a disappointment if you are a Vemuram fan.
It is a variable gain pedal that successfully goes from a light gain up to a high medium gain.
I can not fault it. Session players will love it!

CONCLUSION
Ouch! the price!!!! You can buy the Origin Effects Revival Drive for this money!!!
Well it is a job specific pedal. And hits the target dead center.

Me ...I love an Amp-in-a-Box and would not buy this for $200.
If I was going to spend this I would indeed buy the Origin.
Besides that if you want an exceptional low to mid gain pedal
check out the Tech N Tone Mamma it sounds so much like
a real vintage amp you can taste it!

OVERDRIVE-TECH N TONE Mamma Drive ...in low gain #1 ...unreal!!!

$165.00 USD

 TECH N TONE MAMA DRIVE 
Look I am so excited about this pedal I will tell you straight up  that this is the best low to medium gain Amp-In- a Box out there.
The layout seems simple enough with Drive,Volume, Boost and Tone.
What isn't simple is inside the pedal. Every knob on it responds just like a real Fender brown face amp. Even the volume control.
It works so damn well that a lot of players that bought one report back that they use the pedal as on always on pedal.
Hey no one does this lightly! It makes the pedal de facto your damn amp!!!
The pedal has so much harmonic detail in the tone ...video's just can not do it justice. You have to have one to hear it!
Blues play will think they died and went to heaven.

CONCLUSION

Everyone throws around that they now have an amp-in-a-box pedal that sounds like real tubes etc. etc. etc.   

BUT it is quite frankly 99% of the time B.S,

So when I heard this I just about sh@t myself!!! lol

It is like selling you a Fender brown face amp for $165 ...you can't beat that !!!

FINAL THOUGHTS

I ordered their Turbo Nonna and the P.O. lost the damn thing.

I know how trace and track anything but I ended up in a dead end. 

It was all so damn stressful !

I wrote to TnT and asked them to help. They got back to me in less then an hour.

and had the whole thing sorted. They then stayed in touch until my pedal was in my hands

That to me is just not great service but it is Ethics. Nothing is more rare in these times than Ethics!!!

With TnT you get it all ..a great pedal that quite literally inspires you to play more every day, great service ...and something you can not buy. Guys that give a sh@t! Guys with high ethical standards with not only what they offer but with a fair and reasonable price and empathy.

They see you as a person ...not just another faceless customer.

DELAY-AZOR AP-309 Delay ...a pro sounding delay for $25

 AZOR DELAY 

$25.00 USD

Azor are made by Biyang which in China is considered by
Chinese players as homegrown pro.
Great sounding with a sturdy casing and Byang's rep for reliability.
If you buy on AliExpress you can get them for $25.00 USD.

How do they do it?
Well there is a vintage Panasonic chip that was long out of product that Panasonic brought back because of demand from the pedal industry. It is just a couple of bucks soooo...
If not this then the Mighty Sound M5. Designed in the States
and equally good for the same money.

CONCLUSION
I have had the M5 for about 3 years and will never part with it.
I have used it more then my Empress EchoSystem a $450.00 USD
delay with State of the Art chips. The M5 sounds that good!

OVERDRIVE- JAM PEDALS Rattler OD ...Not a Rat but a Snake?

$200.00 USD

JAM PEDALS RATTLER LTD.
A ProCo Rat wannabe. It gets the JAM treatment. Jam is very good at sprinkling fairy dust on all  their pedals that started life as a classic.
I myself have a LM Pedals Rat that is meticulous recreation of the original .
I love it and do not need to change. The Rattler has taken the RAT and transformed it into their own that other then the aggression of the original is great in it's own right.
In short you can own one of each and find a use for both.

CONCLUSION

Well it sounds damn good they have smoothed off the edges and gone for a singing tone.
BIG BUT!  The whole point of the Original Rat was a untamed monster ready to tear your face off!!!
The TL PEDALS  Rat ...doesn't have the soul ripped out of it.

It is dead accurate clone that is built from the motto..."If it ain't broke don't fix it."

Hell I agree ...what's more it's only $130.00 USD!!!!

OVERDRIVE- MYTHOS PEDALS NAMM 2020 ....the 'LARK' cool & unique Amp-in-Box

MYTHOS PEDALS 

o

THE LARK ...a great idea make an Amp-in a Box of an obscure amp to get a truly original sound!!!    Brilliant! 

1964 Gibson GA-5T Skylark

MODELER- BEST GUITAR EFFECTS winner at the NAMM 2020 Show.

 NEURAL QUAD CORTEX 
Look out Helix and Headrush!
There is a new boy in town!!!
This sweetheart is the latest multi effects modeler and has won a Best in Show at NAMM 2020

$1600.00 USD

CONCLUSION

I have to admit it. The very best sounding digitally modeled amps are totally convincing.

and this is the beat of the very best with 50 amps, 70 effects  and 1000 ir's

It claims to respond to your touch and reacts like a real tube amps with tiny changes in tone and dynamics

Early reports from my sources say it is better than all others but not near that of a tube amp.

Yes you can model your own amps it even has a high quality mic pre with phantom power.

with quarter inch jacks and balanced XLR.

Yes it is better than a Fractal Audio Axe-FX III or a Kemper!

FINAL WORD

Good for maybe 2 or 3 years than another company will give you more for less.

Keep in mind it is just a computer that sits on the floor.

Soon hooking up to a laptop will do much more. Yes the software will cost you 

a few bucks! In 10 years the only hardware will be a laptop and a metal box of switches

that sits on the floor.

But at there best they give you a pleasant electronic masturbation. For real sex you need a tube amp

turned up loud!!! . LOL

.

CHORUS- BOO INSTRUMENTS CE-2 Chorus ...a great clone of a Boss classic

 BOO INSTRUMENTS CE-2 CHORUS 

$195.00 USD

What's not to like. One of the first and still the best chorus pedals ever.
It is bright but mellow at the same time. It's best charms is it does not create that annoying 'motor boating' modulation like many very prized new chorus's have. God I feel like they should be used as a drum machine or a metronome.

I have heard a CE-2 many times but was not impressed until I started using a chorus and kept moving up to the newest wonderbox.
The great thing about the CE-2 is it is like spice.
It adds to the 'meal' of sound you are making but it doesn't take over.

CONCLUSION
I have put this on my short list.
I was saving for the Jam Pedal's Waterfall at $270.00 USD,
but I am having second thoughts. If the Jam is a bumped up version of the CE-2.

The BOSS Waza Craft CE-2w at $300.00 USD is nothing to scoff at and it to is $300.00 USD it is a hot seller.
I find that in application what more it offers is inconsequential.

In short ...the BOO is definitely in the same league!!!
A classic killer sound! Every day someone still records with the original Boss.
so ...Go ahead compare to an old original.

Well I listen to it a dozen times. There may be nano difference. Or not!

OVERDRIVE-BBE 427 Distortion ...return from the dead ...damn impressive!!!

$120.00 USD

 BBE 427 DISTORTION 
It's back!!! This is a late 70's style OD. Like the Tube Screamer it uses an op amp ...but it ain't no Tube Screamer. lol
An op amp is as it suggests creates a clean boost that by adding clipping diodes you get some dirt. There are many types of clipping diodes and usually more then one is added. If you want some 'nasty's in the sound an led diode does the trick. Use all led diodes and you get a supper gnarly sound like the BBE.
It has a simple layout of level tone and gain.There isn't anything sweet and creamy about this sound. It is a look out world here I come!!! It actually sounds like a real hot rodded Marshall JCM 800 from the 80's

though that can often mean a bit of annoying fizz.

CONCLUSION

Everything old is new again. This pedal been around for 7 or 8 years but and the BBE pedal line has been temporarily out of service for a few years. But surprise!!!  They're back.

I wouldn't recommend it with Fender single coils or Fender amp. It simple doesn't have a full mid range.

An LP through a Marshall with some Marshall crunch is half the sound in the video.

OVERDRIVE- VOX VALVENERGY PEDALS ...Yes! Vox is back with another shot with some pedals.

 VOX VALVENERGY PEDAL 

A few year ago Vox developed technology which is as small  electro-mechanical device called a NuTube that works like a tube but does not wear out like standard glass vacuum tubes.
This year they have a new line of 6 pedals that use it to get much more realistic sounds out ofthe pedals especially the 4 Overdrives.

They consist of boost, a Klon a high gain and a Metal pedal.The pedals are expected to sell for just under $200.00 USD

CONCLUSION
I got a good first impression. We will know more when we get some reviews on individual models.

What's NEW for GIBSON NAMM 2020

GIBSON NAMM 2020

GUITAR- What's New for EPIPHONE NAMM 2020

 WHATS NEW FOR EPIPHONE NAMM 2020  never better   

ORIGINAL SERIES
       EPIPHONE   
     UPTOWN CAT  

      back & sides in Gold        
            hardware gold            
           Joe Bonamassa           
               Firebird PU's           
             a 'Real Epi'                
   not a Gibson 'wanna be'      

LTD.ED. Epiphone 59 Les Paul 
with Burstbucker PU's
It looks the part but the really scary thing is it is!!!
The proof is in the sound

WHAT'S NEW MXR/DUNLOP

 WHAT'S NEW FROM NAMM 2020 DUNLOP/MXR 

CHORUS- MR.BLACK MINI CHORUS ...to get better you would have to double your budget!

$100.00 USD

 MR. BLACK MINI VINTAGE CHORUS 
Well it is an excellent classic chorus sound.
The layout is as expected simple with a Mix, Width and Rate.
It all then gets down to the sound. It really delivers!!!
Like all of the Mr.Black pedals it is quality inside and out.

At the price it bumps most of the completion. It only gets better by more then doubling your budget.

CONCLUSION

If I was not saving for the Jam Pedals Waterfall for a chilling 

$270.00 USD I would be seriously thinking of this.

GUITAR- FENDER HEAVY METAL STRAT's

 FENDER HM STRAT 

GUITAR- What's NEW WITH GRETSCH NAMM 2020

 GRETSCH NAMM 2020 

GUITAR- NEW IBANEZ NAMM 2020

 NEW GUITARS FROM IBANEZ NAMM 

GUITARS- WHATS NEW WITH JACKSON ?

 WHATS NEW WITH JACKSON NAMM 2020 

GUITAR- WHAT'S NEW FROM CHARVEL

 WHAT'S NEW FROM CHARVEL NAMM 2020 

GUITARS- EVH NAMM 2020

EVH NAMM 2020