Is the TRex Moeller based on a Bluesbreaker?

johnhe

I have always been frustrated by my TRex Moeller. I bought it thinking it was a TS type pedal with a clean boost. But it never hit the spot for me as a TS type sound - it is much brighter and more transparent than a typical tubescreamer. However, after watching the "That Pedal Show" episode which talks about King of Tone type pedals, I suddenly started to think that the Moeller sounds much more Bluesbreaker like than TS like. 

So I put the Moeller back on my board tonight and sure enough, if you approach it as a BB, it makes a lot more sense and sounds very BB like.

Does anyone know for sure if the Moeller is based on the BB circuit?

mgaw

i dont know for sure but i bought one to see if it got into KOT territory, it did but ultimately all roads for BB excellence seem to take me back to the KOT cos it is the King

johnhe

I agree that the KOT sounds great, but I've never played one in person and am trying to avoid the rather astronomical cost of a pedal I've never personally tried.

djspecialist

I haven't played a BB, nor any of its derivatives, but the Snouse Blackbox seems to receive many plaudits.  (Paging @colourofsound...)

johnhe

Yep, the demos sound great. My problem seems to be that I tried out a couple of cheaper BB clones and they were really bright and harsh sounding. Even the Moeller is quite bright. If I turn the tone totally off, it still sounds very bright, which I think is a typical BB trait.

colourofsound

I can indeed attest to the Snouse as being the best Bluesbreaker i've ever played - however! I've not played a KoT and unless someone wants to lend me one I have no desire to drop that much cash on one!

All I know is that the Snouse stuff is definitely preferable to a JHS Morning Glory; I had both and compared. The MG is thin and raspy in comparison.

It does indeed make sense that the Moller does BB rather than TS sounds, especially after watching the TPS video - but T-Rex themselves have said in their marketing that a TS was the basis for the pedal's design.

I've read that the BB and TS arent that different circuit wise anyway - both op-amp style soft clipping pedals. If you want a Tubescreamer without the mid-hump, a Bluesbreaker is the way to go.

I'm very tempted to get hold of a Moller as a spare pedal for jam sessions...that one on £FX at the moment keeps looking at me...

johnhe

I tend to use an OCD as my always on pedal. The Moeller is also pretty good in that position. It has less bass than the OCD, perhaps very little more mids and less gain in tap. But good cleanup available. If I had a more bassy amp setup, the Moeller might be preferable to the OCD.

But, to repeat a point, no matter what the Moeller is based on, it sounds absolutely nothing like a tubescreamer to me,