FUZZ- THERMION Stone Age Fuzz ...Fuzz-Tone, Big Muff, Fuzz Face & Octave Fuzz-in-Box!

THERMIONSTONEAGE FUZZ

$225.00 USD

Yes you get a Fuzz-Tone, a Fuzz Face a Big Muff and an Octave Fuzz all in one box. Then you can turn up some 'clean' to give you definition and add to that you have both a high pass and a low pass filter to tighten it up or push the lows down into doom territory. Finally you get an EQ switch to give you two set voices.

CONCLUSION

All the choices are credible, usable and easily tweakable.

It is actually damn cheap for the amount of Fuzz types it covers.

FUZZ- SOLIDGOLD FX- 76 Octave Fuzz ... massive sound !

SOLID GOLD FX76 OCTAVE FUZZ

$175.00 USD

The company has a rep of making excellent Fuzz pedals of a high quality at reasonable prices. Some like the 76 have always gone out the door by word of mouth. Every few years there is an anniversary model or in this case Black Friday deals that got my attention. It is an Octave Fuzz. Used poorly they have annoying drop outs or create comical antique video game bleeps tinkles.  I recently got the ALL PEDAL Love Machine which starts with a Fuzz/OD voice but you can add in the octave thing. A few days ago I turned on the octave thing just for a hoot. Within an hour I had found I could easily control the octave feature to make spits and growls on command. It sounded beyond killer! I am a new convert. I think I might have bought the 76 instead but the truth is I needed to own one to know. No regrets and I still might get a 76 anyway.

CONCLUSION

I think I have said it all. Yes there others possibly as good but nothing better.

the fine print

April, 2022

I have several Fuzz pedals including the ALL Pedals Love Machine octave Fuzz. Practically speaking I could already cover all the ground with my collection. 

A damn sale popped up so I could not resist the 76.

It arrived and as cool as it is it did not bump the Love Machine off the board. Where it really earns its keep is on tunes that need a massive sound but I have sing over the damn thing. I just click the toggle to the scooped sound and my voice sits right in the scoop. The effect is like having an entire orchestra behind the vocals. Totally unreal. LOVE IT!!! ...LOVE IT!!! ...LOVE, LOVE IT!!

OVERDRIVE- ENGL Powerball EP645... it defines a genre better than any other pedal!

ENGLPOWERBALL EP645

$230.00 USD

This pedal came out in late 2019 amidst chaos with the companies distributor. It was bought out and in the end it went very well for Engl as the new company had the working capital to take their product internationally so in just a year stores like Sweetwater 'had' to carry the product because of the demand. But during 2020 there was virtually no stock of the pedal so even with a few good reviews creating a demand you could not buy one.

In short the pedal for the most part has been under the radar.

ENGL claims to have duplicated the sound of the Powerball II amp that put the company on the map. I feel they nailed it. Several key players who have been ambassadors of just that amp now use the pedal for their fly rig.

The layout is simple enough with volume, gain, treble, mid and bass. 

CONCLUSION

The thing what really, really impresses me is if you had a general idea of what to expect to hear from the average Modern Metal sound this nails that 'average' sound. This is not a criticism as I find it ideal that you can get that sound without the struggle and expense of forever buying Metal pedals that have too much or too little of something about that 

pedal that you hate. For a start many pedals sound either too harsh or too muddy 

and worst of all most have issues with buzz or fizz or some kind of added hash. 

This ENGL has none, Yes, zero issues!

the fine print

With my downsizing kick I am sure if I had one 

it will kick a couple of pedals off my board!

Soooo.... I ordered one!

HEADS UP

Engl are a 'protected range' company

Dealers are not allowed to sell outside of their 

territory. You can however buy on Reverb

from small stores in Germany. Fortunately 

the total price once you add shipping will be

the same as if you could have bought from

Sweetwater.

REVERB- JHS Series 3 Hall Reverb ...'NEW' ...high end sound ...entry level price?

 JHS SERIES 3 HALL REVERB 

$85.00 USD
black friday price
then back to $100

Nothing too complicated just volume, dampen which is a tone control and decay. A switch to add modulation for ambience things.

This is the second of two Reverbs in the series. The other is a quasi plate like thing that acts a sub for a the classic Spring verb in an amp. 

A Hall is just that a hall, or in short a very, very large room. JHS has cleverly allowed you to create a larger hall by tying it in with the decay. The decay and modulation pushed wide open lets you do a really convincing sci fi spacey effects. When backed it heads into a large room sound that for many is dry enough to use as a basic always on verb sound.

It has only been out for a couple of weeks and this is the first full review. Ryan does give you a good chance to hear a pedals overall tonal quality. I am afraid his' Ronald McDonald' approach is not helpful compared to many reviewers. I like to be shown the range and application of each control with a snippet of a verse which shows off how effective the pedal does that specific   task. For example is there a convincing low setting to act as an always on sound to sub as a 

spring reverb that others have built into their amp etc. 

We will know more after we are treated to a few more reviews. 

CONCLUSION 

I am damn impressed. For 99% of us it can create all the ambience you will ever need are indeed be able to fit in most Rock formats. If you are in a band how often can you use that much. Than for the bulk of your tunes you can back it down as required. Not just versatile but usefully versatile.

...the best demo is the first one. It does all 3 of the newest Series 3 pedals but at 5:34 it features an in depth review of the the verb.

the fineprint

I have been looking fora Verb to give me a big open sound for my boards clean channel where I keep my low gain pedals. I use that channel for parts of my tunes where it is all flatpicking etc. where I want a bit of a dream like etheral vibe. I often use my semi to pull off a more acoustic feel as well. I need just one very good very pro sound that is easy to use live to tweek the wet/dry and decay quickly. First this appears perfect. If do not need or want more features and choices. Neither the price that is doubled or even tripled so as to pay for them. 

Everyone has a sale on and they will all be cancelled by Dec..4.

So I will have to decide. soon.

FU

GUITAR- EKO Camaro ...60's reissue , great project guitar

'62 Camaro

In the 60's before the Japanese cheapies knocked out any entry level guitar makers getting a European guitar was not a bad choice. Like all new solid body guitar makers they looked to Fender for a 'how too'. Keep in mind the electric solid body was a new thing virtually only a decade old.

The styling of the time referred to as Post War was a mix of Art Deco and Bauhaus Modern found everywhere in consumer goods and automobiles. In fact in America the average car was kept for only 2 or 3 years as by then the look was dated.

Gadgets reigned supreme. You get as a result guitars with bells a whistles switches and knobs , lots of chrome and sparkle or vivid colors. Oddly enough EKO were a bit less excessive without total overkill. Some makers virtually covered their guitars with cellulose, 'pickguard plastic'.

EKO CAMERO

The company started in Italy in '59 and struggled to stay alive with not ideal timing since the Asian invasion spearheaded from Japan was just starting too. There was just enough of a cult to keep them going. In 2000 they moved to Czechoslovakia. Too little too late. Whoever has the rights to the name now is now basically trading on the name in Europe. By 2005 they were having the guitars made in the East as expected. They can still be found primarily in small Mom and Pop's stores in Europe as a recognizable brand name.

They took a shot at breaking into the American market about 4 years ago selling a reissue of the '62 Manta but it was short lived.

Manta

Original '62 Manta

There has been an underground vibe about the Camaro. It's Fender Jazzmaster vibe cheap price and good bones is making it a favorite with the 'modding' crowd. It comes in a model with HSS PU setup as well as one with a cheap Bigsby. The cool one is the P90 

model as it actually sounds excellent!

The neck is maple with a South American Roupala fretboard. It is actually part on the rosewood family. The body is Poplar which is sounds indistinguishable in sound from Alder. It looks like a Jazzmaster but it has as slightly smaller and lighter body that is more ergonomic and comfortable.

The tuners will keep it in tune but should be upgraded. The whammy is crap but if locked down by over tightening the springs is serviceable.

They are hard to find and many stores try and sell for double the price.

They are not setup at the factory so expect having to do a setup.

OVERDRIVE- GROFF AMPLIFICATION FireStorm

 GROFF AMPLIFICATION CORNERSTONE 

$180.00 USD

Having just got the Wilson Sparkling Blue, a beefed up Marshall Guv'nor v.1 pedal I have found stacking my Fortin Fuzz on it gives me a damn beefy Metal OD so when I checked out the Firestorm i was intrigued. The firestone starts out from the get go takin the Guv'nor too and putting a 3 way toggle to choose different clipping diodes to make a flexible Metal pedal. The LED diode gives you a basic JCM 800 vibe. A silicon diode gives you added saturation and sustain and germanium diode gives you that fat warm grit.The layout includes level, gain and tone with a second toggle to either cut or boost the bass.

CONCLUSION

What a difference a week or two makes. I can never guess what's around the corner. I have only had the Wilson in my hands for 24 hours, lol, and ...

Actually the Wilson lets me pull back for more MIAB sounds and the Fortin lets me push it into very rough territory and since the Fuzz is separate I can stack it on other pedals or use it on it's own so I am not unhappy with my choice. Yet?

DELAY- J ROCKETT Immortal Echo ....F. THE REVIEW ...JUST BUY ONE , RIGHT NOW!!!

 J ROCKETT IMMORTAL ECHO

$59.00 USD

If you asked me what Analog delay to buy next week I would tell you
without a second's thought to buy the NUX DCP-03 Analog Delay. It has absolutely nailed the classic Ibanez AD-80 @ $60.00 USD.

But today we have retails  BLACK FRIDAY SALES. 

Yes with music gear and music stores there are very few deals and even they are buried in a maze of bullsh@t 'Now Only' absolute cons. 

At full price the J Rockett had to deal with a lot of competition. Those that wanted to play it safe got the MXR and others went digital to get all the 'bells and whistles' now available by dozens of makers at all prices. It sells enough from word of mouth by Nashville session guys who it was designed for.  

It is 'only' Sweetwater that has the deal. They are a massive organization so the inventory that gets sold cheap is simply overstock blowouts.

Note: They make their own steel enclosures. This is a mini pedal although a bit wider than the usual aluminum Hammond style box.

CONCLUSION

Yes I did. If it for any reason I don't like it it will be an easy resale.

HANDS ON

First the pedal disappeared from Sweetwater half way into the Black Friday sale but reappeared 

today as a 'Blow Out' limited time offer.

It works where and how I wanted to use it. 

I really love the NUX DCP-03 for clean or transparent or bright OD sounds. Big But. I find if used on really high gain and dark dirt sounds they just swim in it. The J Rockett can be thinned with the tone control pushed up and I still get that nice analog warmth but my sound stays tight and defined. It is very much a modern pedal. Streamlined and very capable but not so organic. It is a toss up with the sale but if it goes back up in price you should have a hard look at the NUX.

BIT COUNTER- WMD Geiger Counter Distortion ...crazy cool, but is it usable ???

 WMD GEIGER COUNTER BIT CRUSHER DISTORTION 

$340.00 USD

Bit Crushers pop up here and there but for decades if a pedal could not fit into the cover tunes in your average weekend band it just did not sell. But I had a WTF moment and dug up the one for years in fact 12 years, has been probably the favourite. A lot of others are all about the Arcade sounds used on vintage video games which wear thin over time. Yes you can get them on the G.C. but they have ample seriously menacing sounds not unlike some 

Fuzz pedals.

Waveforms have been used for years for modulation in Uni-Vibes phasers, flangers, chorus, tremolo and rotary pedals. These have been primarily sine wave and triangle shapes but there are dozens of other choices.

CONCLUSION

Except for an attention getting solo most guys 

will only end up with a fun toy.

Nothing wrong with having fun.

 WMD GEIGER COUNTER CIVILIAN ISSUE 

$220.00 USD

Just when you thought it was safe. Yes guys we get the dumbed down version ...BUT for the smart guys price. I like to think or it as the 'Best Of'.

OVERDRIVE- MLC Brown Sugar OD ...a MIAB? ...Yes and No

MLC BROWN SUGAR OD

$225.00 USD

The usual volume, tone and gain with a 4 position switch for a choice of voicings. The switch is a good sin as it suests 4 sweet spots. If thy aren't the maker is very suspect.

CONCLUSION

It is unusual in that is old school crunch.

The 60's and early 70's Plexi's did not put out a lot of dirt. The problem is we all have listen to bands at the time pushing them with a Fuzz and later an early OpAmp Overdrive. 

A big part of the sound was also the resonance from a 4x12 cab and the shear volume feeding back into the PU's. Most of today's MIAB are designed to simulate that entire experience. This one is not. If you

are using a Fender amp this could be ideal

to give you a low gain to medium low gain Brit sound.

FUZZ- ISLE OF TONE Haze 67 Fuzz ... is this the best Fuzz on the planet?

 ISLE OF TONE 67 HAZE FUZZ 

$1400.00 USD
WTF !!!

The Macaris Tonebender Fuzz is often mentioned by Fuzz connoisseurs as the best on the planet. You too can have one from the original makers meticulously reproduced 

from all the original parts for $800.00 USD.

So when I got a heads up on this pedal and it's concept of new and improved I thought, 

OK let's hear it. I was expecting something like Pedro Garcia's Ananashead pedals using high 

end parts but creating the tone with vintage germanium transistors from 50 & 60's Russia. His Tonebender sells for under $125.00 USD! With its Retro enclosure add another $100.00. But ...WTF

CONCLUSION

It is based from the Tonebender v1.5. the one Boss did as a Ltd. Ed. but it sounds much different. The gain is lower and with a near transparent vibe. I quite like it. But not 

more than the PettyJohn Haze MKII LED/Germanium OD and I won't buy it at $300.00 USD. 

OVERDRIVE- JOYO JF-21 Splinter Distortion ...oh no! ..not another Rat!!!

 JOYO JF-21 SPLINTER DISTORTION 

Yes folks yet another Rat. 

The layout is as 

$50.00 USD

expected with a volume, gain and filter/tone control. It does have two toggles. On lets you switch to Mosfet clipping for a tube like vibe. 

The other switch lets you switch to give you the Turbo Rat sound with its heavy mid boost.

All Rat pedals use an OpAmp with clipping diodes and the differences are far less than the similarities. This is typical of the many gourmet brands.They back off from the near Fuzz qualities towards a OD like the Boss SD-1. I own both a ProCo Rat II and a Boss DS-1 so I love them both.

CONCLUSION

To me this is not a Rat but it is a great sounding hard clipper OD. If I wasn't downsizing my board than it could easily be on my order list :-)

PICKUPS- ____ MJ's ...40 YEARS OF HANDWOUND PU's FOR THE STARS

 MARICELA JUAREZ 

At Seymour Duncan if a Star plays a PU "MJ" makes it! In fact she designs it. She has done so for 40 years. Even when you can buy the PU off the shelf she hand winds the ones that those Stars gets. 

I have one myself that I cannot divulge the details :-( 

The Most I can say is Mr. ZZ was involved :-)

OVERDRIVE- PETTYJOHN Chime MKII ..it may be the best transparent drive ever ?? ...or ?

PETTYJOHN CHIME MKII OD

$300.00 USD
  (0uch!)

This is all about really usable low to medium gain OD's. 

The trouble I find with all I've tried is they sound like your clean sound blended with the dirt. The lower the gain the more 'fake' they sound. Others have a problem with lower gain sounds that are not smooth. The dirt sounds broken up so much that it sounds like it is controlled like a modulation pedal creating a distracting rhythm.

If a real amp has kind of a zzzzzz to the dirt sound, the current low gain drives sounds like 

z z z z. Or worse still Z Z Z Z. OK for a Fuzz ...but crap for a simulated amp mild crunch tone.

The Chime is definitely a contender.

You get a level and gain with a germanium diode side for warmth and an LED diode for a higher smoother gain. A knob lets you blend the two. Another knob is a high pass filter to tighten bass and low gain frequencies that can bury detail in the mid to high end harmonics The biggest victim is the chime in a Strat.

Hendrix's famous near clean sound was a Germanium Fuzz with his Strat volume backed off. The Marshall's at the time only pushed out a light Crunch. The increase in resonance was from the shear volume being pushed 

back through the pickups. 

The germanium blended with a LED and the very high head room of the pedal 

is on paper an obvious approach to letting you just click on the pedal and 'poof' 

there you are with the same Hendrix thing.

Well maybe? My first impression is you get at the very least a powerful substitute.

CONCLUSION

I'm intrigued. I am looking for something between Hendrix and Mark Knopfler. I seem to be hearing videos when a Strat is demoed performing  low gain or cranked, but not that blend. 

Pedals I have tried, and there have been countless both cheap and beyond stupid have not impressed me once on my board. This pedal just may be the closest. I am impressed by the academics to the approach that no one else has seemed to addressed before for a low gain OD.

The price has jumped $50 since just a short time ago. They claim the price of parts has jumped because of shortages and increased shipping charges. I find with all but the 'CHIME' there are credible other choices to PettyJohn.

  

GUITAR- BOAZ One ...plastic guitar?...they laughed at Ned Steinberger so assume nothing

 BOAZ ONE   MODULAR GUITAR

Not a new concept but perhaps better executed. 

The idea to make a guitar with a choice of necks, interchangeable PU's, and even body styles changed by clipping on different parts to a center frame.

Once it is setup nothing warps. It NEVER needs a set up. If you need a different sound you order a different PU module and clip it in ...in seconds.

There have been a dozen prototypes over the last few years but a production model should be ready by February. I say production but these guitars are virtually made by one guy in his shop in Israel. Master builder Luthier Boaz Elkayam. Yes Luthier, this guy can even make a serious handmade acoustic. 

This is a real guitar not some guy at Lego with an idea for another toy.

The video is long but I highly recommend it. The middle is bit slow but don't miss the last third. It is live from the Boaz Shop. You will get a very good no bullsh@t overview on both the guitar and better still the guy that makes it.

$450.00 USD
It was predicted in 2019 to be $250.00 USD
over the last year shortages of everything from raw materials to
finished parts have as much as tripled. Cost of shipping
has tripled ...twice!

CONCLUSION

Everyone will have a list of what they do not like. I for one find the body to be far too busy looking. It looks like a plastic model toy of a Spaceship from an upcoming Star Wars film. 

The built in stand is unnecessary and on many homemade stages at small clubs unsafe and unusable.The module for the PU's and controls could be designed to fit modules that clip in PU's separately. Simple plates to screw in HB, P90, Strat, Tele etc. with wiring inside with clips so no soldering would be needed. Then the buyer would have the choice of PU types and hundreds of brands. 

GUITAR- BURNS ...back, again? YES... second rate crap? ...not this time

BURNS GUITARS

So Simon Gilson and Terry Hope sold their business PMT which is the biggest music store chain in the UK. Now they are on a totally new venture. They are resurrecting Burns guitars. But this time it is the real deal, not just Burns shaped bodies with off the shelf dirt cheap Fender style hardware. Yes they are going to authentic replica's of the originals and plan to even have a Custom Stop in the near future.

In the 50' war torn UK put heavy duties on everything to help British companies to recover. Fender and Gibson in particular felt entry in the Brit market would be a costly money losing venture. They did from time to time sell to very small Brit companies one off purchases of a few dozen guitars but that was it. 

Jim Burns teamed up with Alice Louise Farrell who had the capitol and facilities to make Jim's guitars im 1959. By 1960 Burns was the biggest seller of guitars in Brit. Hank marvin with the Shadows had several instrumental hits in a style similar to the State side Ventures playing a Burns. Players like Page, Mark Bolan etc. started out playing a Burns.

Burns whammys were licenced
out to many makers
incl. Gretsch

In '65 do to the big guitar boom thanks to the Beatles the Baldwin Organ Company felt owning a Brit guitar company would be a great money maker.

They bought the company. Jim Burns had a partnership but it did not include any ownership. Over a short time the only thing Burns on a Burns guitar was the Burns printed on the headstock. The company tanked. The name was sold several times but only to those wishing to make a buck with Burns on the headstock.

So hopefully in a couple of years we will see all the models back with original specs.

The Bison. Total Burns!

The famous Burns Tri-sonic
made famous by Brian May

The scrolled headstock used on both
the 12 string and some 6 string models

Ideas for innovation and new instruments? It is unlikely that this Burns Imperial will be made but never say never.

Maybe??? Probably not :-)

DELAY-CRAZY TUBE CIRCUITS Time ...a digital delay with a tape delay vibe at it's very best!

TUBE CIRCUITS TI:ME DELAY

$220.00 USD

Early digital tech certainly could not create the refined crystal clear detail of the current chips but it had very organic quality due in no small part to the very excellent digital to analog converters. 

In many ways it is the best of digital with the best of analog in one sound. You get the warmth of all analog minus any mud and the clarity of digital but not the unnatural glassy even metallic like and often thin sound.

It has a very old school tape delay type vibe with the popular modulation control to mimic the wow and flutter of tape. It has the standard controls including those for timing and the usual tap function. 

CONCLUSION

It is pleasant change from the endless delays with a dozen features to create yet more ambient sounds.

99% of any style of music we fill our days listening to has zero ambient delay or reverb. The odd time it is used it is done so  like salt and pepper on a meal. Very sparingly.

TUBES- DIY trouble shooting for Dummies, lol

 THE HOME MADE TUBE TESTER 

Good ol' Phil has a video showing the age old trick to find a bad tube and
replace it. If you take your amp to a shop you usually get charged the minimum one hour rate to do what is a simple DIY. It is not unusual to find a shop that has to farm out to a tube amp tech as many shops even if they are in house got their training from a school that focuses on consumer electronics which are all solid state. The point is that it often is actually cheaper to buy a whole new set of tubes which gives you the bonus of swapping out your whole set in an emergency or taking your time and swapping out one at a time. Add to that you have no down time which can be weeks.

In the video it mentions a stick. No stick? Then use the stick I have used for decades ...a damn 'pencil' it is the perfect stick. On the other hand you may have a chopstick kicking around.

POWER TUBES

BIAS OR NO?

In basic Rock player terms a tube amp is meant to have its power tubes matched. The power tubes are the large ones. The small ones are preamp tubes. A tech can meter the power tubes and adjust them. The maker supplies a schematic and in it it says what they feel they should be set at. If you have an amp with two power tubes (or more) that came in your new amp and one dies you change it and then it is recommended to have a tech match it to the others.

BIG BUT

Big names have often went bolistic because their amp has lost its sound after doing all this. They are correct!!! In short an unbiased amp may indeed sound better.

MY POINT ?

If you do not have the money just swap out the offending power tube. If it sounds OK ... then fine. You will not damage the amp.

the fine print

While sitting here writing I have the back off my Plexi 

checking tubes. I am getting crackle like you get from moving

a noisy pot at random. Some days none, some days relentless.

Today just a bit with long periods without. I change out one Pre

and will do one at a time if it does not stop. So far no noise

but I will have to give it about a half hour. 

an hour later

I freaked!!! I could not hear even a low hum from the speaker!!!

I plugged a cord in and messed with the jack. No it was not

blown. 

I then hooked it up and it was still dead quiet!!!

I started playing. It was noticeably louder and clearer

...and as I said dead quiet.

Thank you god :-)

a day later

The AMPTATA T5 CHECKER 

A Toy? ...I just discovered this little device a stripped down tube tester. It is for checking and doing your own BIAS on specific power tubes. There are 3 models each covering different power tubes. You get the one that has your amps power tubes. At $35.00 USD with free shipping on Ali Express it is worth the risk. I ordered one. If it only works once I will be ahead of the game. Shop time has to be a minimum of $35 no matter where you live. If all it tells me is that I have a bad tube I am still ahead even if I can't sort out any BIAS thing. I am sure that you have to adjust from inside the amp and you have to know where to and not kill yourself. But like I said just knowing which tube is toast is worth it.

2 weeks later

WTF ...my amp cut out & went dead  at rehearsal today!!!

A fuse did not blow ...but I was crapping myself.

It did not distort or get noisy so I start thinking

all about big bills and a wait well into the new

year because this or that tube or part can not be found.

Out came the screwdriver,

I must thank the gods ...it was another preamp 12ax7

I can't complain they are all about 3 years old.

OVERDRIVE AUDIO KITCHEN Fake Plastic Trees ...very, very different ...killer but OUCH!!!

 AUDIO KITCHEN    

 FAKE PLASTIC TREES 

$420.00 USD

Steve Crow started the biz to make make small practice/recording studio amps 27 watts or less that would literally be state of the art. Players like Angus Young and Reeves Gabriel have bought them, and so have countless recording studios.

Any pedals have been primarily tube preamps.

They do not base the design on traditional favorites. 

They strive for a full rich tone that is above 

all else sensitive to your touch. 

Great expression is number one.

The 'Plastic' is something new as it uses 

JFETS but it ties in a transformer and

a faux amp circuit so that the pedal truly reacts 

like in a convincing a tube amp manner.

CONCLUSION

The sound is aimed at the Blues, Country and Roots thing. it's very organic and transparent. Add a classic Fender like a Deluxe or Bassman and you have one killer rig. Impressive but pricey.

OVERDRIVE- TC ELECTRONIC MojoMojo-Paul Gilbert ...the old one got 'hate' reviews ...will this one ???

 TC ELECTRONIC MojoMojo-PAUL GILBERT 

$80.00 USD

Who's Paul Gilbert? The question should be who hasn't, lol. If nothing of all the 'Super Star Players' he plays the cleanest, tightest most precise on the planet yet throws in emotion with a shovel.The original MojoMojo has been on Paul's board since day one and is on all his recordings.

It has Brit vibe but with an even boost across the whole mid range not at around 1k like a Tube Screamer. It can hit everything from low-medium gain up to high gain but stops when it hits a Modern Metal near Fuzz thing. With the signature version the headroom and gain has been greatly increased and is noticeably better than the original pedal. 

The layout is bass, treble, gain and level with a boost switch.

CONCLUSION

It has a very fat warm sound and the bass unlike most OD's has it's resonant point  more in the 130Kh range than much lower which is the natural sweet spot thump that a Marshall 4x12 cab exaggerates. I find that the mids pushing such wide range boost gives the pedal to much honk when kicking in a lot of gain. It is great on leads and if you use it it the lower gain area it gives you a very full sound. 

Unless you use a very Fender like clean sound it could get muddy and have a lack of any good bight. With the boost off and the gain backed off there are indeed a lot of usable sounds in that classic area of mid gain bluesy sounds.