Just tried a DS1 for the very first time

impmann

Jonathangus said:

LastMantra said:

Sound good into a lightly distorting valve amp. Not great into a clean amp imo. 

I beg to differ...

Rothery is an exception. He is one of my fave guitar players of all time. However I still can’t work out how he gets such a great sound using a DS1 and with Kahler tone robber on his Strat - and a Roland JC120!!! 

Ive tried using a DS1 many times -  clean amps, dirty amps and all points in between. Just doesn’t work for me. Good luck to those that can make it work...

viz

ICBM said:

ICBM said:

I'm actually tempted to modify mine so that the range from about 9 o'clock to 11 o'clock is expanded to the full turn. It should be easy - the stock pot is a 20K linear, so if you used a 4K7 pot with a 12K resistor in series at the treble end and a 3K3 at the bass end it should do exactly that.

Actually, an even better idea... you could use three resistors and the original pot - the same two at the bass and treble ands, and a 6K2 across the pot itself (which gives 4K7 in parallel with 20K) - then you could fit a DPDT switch and have the option of stock or expanded tone sweep.

The only thing that's stopping me now is that my DS-1 is a special edition 40th Anniversary one... looks like I need another one .

And it would have a smoother sweep than your first suggestion I guess?

Would you mod other forumites’ pedals for them and how much would ya charge? Just out of interest (I’ve only got keeley ones but if I ever had a stock one it does sound like a bloody good idea)

thermionic

Remember that newer ones have surface mount components which could make them tricky to modify. Doesn’t affect the pots obvs.

ICBM

viz said:

And it would have a smoother sweep than your first suggestion I guess?

Would you mod other forumites’ pedals for them and how much would ya charge? Just out of interest (I’ve only got keeley ones but if I ever had a stock one it does sound like a bloody good idea)

It should have the same sweep if you use a linear pot.

No idea how much, I haven’t even tried one yet! I’m assuming it’s feasible because I think the DS-1 still has separate chassis-mounted pots up to the 40th model - but not the current model, that’s definitely surface-mount PCB and not easily modified.

jdgm

Ddigger said:

^ @jdgm I have one of them, but I think Pedalmods UK are no longer in business 

Do you know any details about the mod?

Just found your query from 2018 -

https://www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/144254/pedal-mods-uk

The loud mid-position bypasses the clipping diodes (whatever that means, ICBM will know)

Seems to me that the other 2 positions are normal, and normal with added tone (mid?) and response.

Sorry I'm very un-electronically minded.  AFAIK the mods are similar to Keeley?

Ddigger

^^Thanks jdgm.

I haven't been able to find out much about it, but I think one position is the SEM (Seeing Eye, Steve Vai mod), but the case hasn't been drilled to mount the diode.

The diodes are supposed to work, but thinking about it, I suppose I could try with the pedal open and see what they do as the switch position is changed. 

Ddigger

Also, I did wonder about the change in volume, but it sounds like it is not a defect. 

ICBM

jdgm said:

Just found your query from 2018 -

https://www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/144254/pedal-mods-uk

The loud mid-position bypasses the clipping diodes (whatever that means, ICBM will know)

Seems to me that the other 2 positions are normal, and normal with added tone (mid?) and response.

Sorry I'm very un-electronically minded.  AFAIK the mods are similar to Keeley?

Ddigger said:

Also, I did wonder about the change in volume, but it sounds like it is not a defect. 

Not if the middle position disconnects the clipping diodes - they limit the output volume quite heavily. Without them, the pedal will be a clean boost right up to the maximum output of the IC, which could be a *lot* louder.

I would guess the 'normal with added tone' is the diodes plus something like a cap to take off some of the buzz and make the tone control range more useful for most players - there can't be many who would use it above halfway a lot.

JezWynd

ICBM said:

LastMantra said:

Sound good into a lightly distorting valve amp. Not great into a clean amp in my opinion. 

I like it for both. It's much better into a clean amp than a SD-1 is, for me.

DS-1 into an SD-1 is a cool sound.

ICBM

JezWynd said:

DS-1 into an SD-1 is a cool sound.

SD-1 into DS-1 is an amazing sound!

Cirrus

SD-1 in parallel with DS-1 is a klon!

ICBM

Cirrus said:

SD-1 in parallel with DS-1 is a klon!

No, it’s an OS-2... much better than a Klon .

Bork

I have one with the Keeley Seeing Eye mod, it was my first distortion pedal.  Mint condition and it's about 15 years old.  I want to like it but it's a very idiosyncratic pedal.  Fizzy as hell with strats on it's own.  I've used it as a boost into other OD pedals and I just prefer the sound of a TS style pedal instead.   I still want to find a way to like it.  I'll probably dig it out today and trial the 9 oclock setting.

Redlester

This thread has got me interested in the DS1 again. 

I had one but all the reservations people have expressed in this thread, I had too. 

But the Mooer ultra drive which is the DS1 with a three way toggle seems worth checking out. 

ICBM

Bork said:

I have one with the Keeley Seeing Eye mod, it was my first distortion pedal.  Mint condition and it's about 15 years old.  I want to like it but it's a very idiosyncratic pedal.  Fizzy as hell with strats on it's own.  I've used it as a boost into other OD pedals and I just prefer the sound of a TS style pedal instead.   I still want to find a way to like it.  I'll probably dig it out today and trial the 9 oclock setting.

Try the TS-type pedal into the DS-1, not the other way round - you should get a really great high-gain Van Halen type sound with tons of harmonics and touch sensitivity.

NelsonP

DS1 and MT2 both get a bad rep, which IMHO is totally undeserved. Simon Neil swears by an MT2 and he makes it sound awesome.

Wanders off to ebay to check MT2 prices....

Of course we all know that the best metal pedal is the Arion Metal Master, which gives me the perfect excuse to post my favourite pedal review...

Bork

ICBM said:

Bork said:

I have one with the Keeley Seeing Eye mod, it was my first distortion pedal.  Mint condition and it's about 15 years old.  I want to like it but it's a very idiosyncratic pedal.  Fizzy as hell with strats on it's own.  I've used it as a boost into other OD pedals and I just prefer the sound of a TS style pedal instead.   I still want to find a way to like it.  I'll probably dig it out today and trial the 9 oclock setting.

Try the TS-type pedal into the DS-1, not the other way round - you should get a really great high-gain Van Halen type sound with tons of harmonics and touch sensitivity.

I meant I use the TS...well, more Klon style as a boost into other pedals. But I'll try your suggestion out as well.

ICBM

Ah, OK - I don’t like Klons or use overdrive pedals as boosts, so we may be expecting different things .

Vibetronic

It’s the only stompbox I’ve ever actually used live. Years ago I played at Download with my old band; the backline was all provided, so all I took was a guitar and a DS-1 for a bit of boost in solos and it worked a treat. For smaller gigs I just had a Blackstar ht5 and did the same thing. Only cost me £5 from a guy at my old work too.

Bork

ICBM said:

Ah, OK - I don’t like Klons or use overdrive pedals as boosts, so we may be expecting different things .

Maybe, but I'm going to try it any way.  What you don't like might work for me.