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Tone Enhancing Pedal

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kswilson89kswilson89 Frets: 222
edited September 2017 in FX
What pedal does everyone use to enhance their clean tone? I'm not really sure what I should be veering towards here.... I want to beef up the clean tone of my tele through my Fender Princeton Reverb. Should I be aiming for a compressor? Or maybe a boost? Or maybe something that emulates another amp, like the Wampler Euphoria? Whatever pedal I choose to beef up my clean tone, it'll then be going into a tubescreamer and a delay pedal and that's about it. Thanks!
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Comments

  • I'd go for a compressor for cleans, possibly with an EQ pedal if you're really lacking at certain frequencies.

    Maybe even consider changing your pickups?
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  • BeexterBeexter Frets: 597
    Compressors work well for this but I've also had great results with clean boosts. There are 2 in particular that do something magical to the tone and I find hard to turn off - Xotic EP Boost and Diamond Boost EQ.
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  • An always-on Xotic EP Booster. It adds a little bit of magic pixie dust, even if you don't use it to boost the signal.
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  • John_AJohn_A Frets: 3775
    edited September 2017
    I love an Xotic EP booster with a telecaster, not to boost the signal, just set at unity gain it really sweetens it up and makes it fatter.  

    The cheap Mosky copies sound great

    http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Mosky-XP-Booster-Electric-Guitar-Effect-Pedal-with-Clean-Boost-True-Bypass-/322509037730?hash=item4b170960a2:g:~HQAAOSwPh5ZD~VE
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  • WhitecatWhitecat Frets: 5378
    Depends on the guitar but there are 3 that are taking turns being first in the chain - Xotic EP, Xotic RC, and the Z-Vex Super Hard-On.
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  • SassafrasSassafras Frets: 30273
    Set at unity gain an Effectrode Firebottle or a ZVex SHO both add clarity and sparkle.
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  • GassageGassage Frets: 30824
    A buffer at the start of your chain.

    *An Official Foo-Approved guitarist since Sept 2023.

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  • Fishboy7Fishboy7 Frets: 2178
    I like to use a klon derivative for this - I currently have the RYRA klone, always on, gain all the way down.  
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  • kjdowdkjdowd Frets: 852
    +1 for a buffer. Also try the ClinchFX EP-PRE. A great always on tone enhancer. 
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  • JezWyndJezWynd Frets: 6021
    For enhancing cleans a good comp (Origin, Maxon and Boss CS-2 work for me) and/or a good EQ (Empress ParaEQ or Maxon PQ-9 are excellent). Slightly left field, but the Bearfoot mini-vibe with the vibe turned right down gives the most luscious clean sound.
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  • kjdowdkjdowd Frets: 852
    The cleans on the effectrode blackbird are also sensational  
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  • TrotterTrotter Frets: 516
    Durham sex drive is my go to "leave on all the time" pedal. Hard to describe but the base clean sound is just warmer, more lush sounding and harmonic, regardless of the amp i'm using it with. the only other pedal that has had this kind of effect before for me was an original Klon. 
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  • one or more of:
    Cali76 CD deluxe
    Joyo 6 band EQ
    Klone with very low drive
    Sweet honey overdrive with very low drive

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  • An always-on Xotic EP Booster. It adds a little bit of magic pixie dust, even if you don't use it to boost the signal.
    +1 for the Xotic EP Booster. Definitely adds a little bit of magic pixie dust! Sounds great with my Tele or Strat and i couldnt do without one. It gives a lovely warmth to single coil guitars
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  • BBE Sonic Stomp, if you want your cleans to stay clean but just sound better.
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  • GassageGassage Frets: 30824
    kjdowd said:
    The cleans on the effectrode blackbird are also sensational  
    ^ This. It is my favourite single OD pedal of all time.

    *An Official Foo-Approved guitarist since Sept 2023.

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  • OctafishOctafish Frets: 1937
    edited September 2017
    Clean boost for me - in particular a DIY build Xotic EP boost. Works particularly well with single coils, have it on all the time. It also brings something extra out of overdrives as well, pretty much makjes all overdrives sound better to me.

    Personally I wouldn't bother with a compressor to beef up your tone. I use one live for clean Strat sounds, particularly when picking arpegios, but it's more the balance out the peak dynamics than beef up/change the tone.
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  • If you don't like the clean tone of a Tele into a Princeton, well I don't know - ears syringed probably. :grimace: 

    If you've only got two pedals they probably aren't crapping out your tone but if you plug straight in is it any better or different? If that improves it then you might want something with a buffer in the chain or look at true bypass loopers. 

    I think sometimes a small combo with a TS type pedal can be a bad mix ( cutting bass, boosting middle + small speaker = nasal), if you are setting the amp to sound good with that then it might be that you could get the right clean tone with some knob twiddling and think about a different OD. 

    Jim Campilongo ( my reference here for Tele + Princeton) uses a Toneconcepts The Distillery for low level boost, basically if he's having to use the amp too low or if borrowing a backline amp. Expensive and hard to find but basically a clean boost with some eq control. Clean boosts with no eq run the risk of sounding harsh. You could look at the Fulltone 2b which was designed for this kind of situation - acts as clean boost, buffer, eq'd not to be harsh and has a tiny bit of compression. 

    Tipton is a small fishing village in the borough of Sandwell. 
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  • JalapenoJalapeno Frets: 6378
    MrMusic said:
    An always-on Xotic EP Booster. It adds a little bit of magic pixie dust, even if you don't use it to boost the signal.
    +1 for the Xotic EP Booster. Definitely adds a little bit of magic pixie dust! Sounds great with my Tele or Strat and i couldnt do without one. It gives a lovely warmth to single coil guitars
    +2  - first pedal on any board I have. (not necessarily first in line, but always have one).
    Imagine something sharp and witty here ......

    Feedback
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  • Jim Campilongo ( my reference here for Tele + Princeton) uses a Toneconcepts The Distillery for low level boost, basically if he's having to use the amp too low or if borrowing a backline amp. Expensive and hard to find but basically a clean boost with some eq control. Clean boosts with no eq run the risk of sounding harsh. You could look at the Fulltone 2b which was designed for this kind of situation - acts as clean boost, buffer, eq'd not to be harsh and has a tiny bit of compression. 

    For years I used an RC Booster for exactly this - Tele into silverface Princeton at low levels. It beefs up the tone beautifully without a big volume increase.

    Mind you I have now abandoned boosts and chosen simply to turn the Princeton up and face the consequences from the neighbours

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