There isn't a huge number of reviews of this online so here are my first impressions.
It's the best of the ht distortion range. By miles.
It's also probably one of the best, if not, the single best distortion pedal I've used.
I'm using it as a pedal, not preamp - I'll give a more in depth review with clips in the coming weeks though.
It sits before my df-2 in the chain.
Okay! First things first, it has soft switches which are nice.
Secondly, the eq is really good. It sounds like a Blackstar, but it does seem to have a great deal of clarity on tap for the two distortion sounds.
Od 1 is a classic distortion - think iron Maiden. However, it can get right up to all out filth and has a nice "krang" sound going on. I really like it, but...
I prefer the clean sound. This is accessible by a button, and I use it as a valvey sounding overdrive. It's fairly responsive to pick attack and very responsive to volume changes, cleaning up very very well.
However, this channel definitely suffers from the dark blackstar sound - and when you do get good, spanky fender brightness, it loses that valvey, warm overdrive sound. It's kinda like a fender blackface but darker - sort of the worst of both worlds, harsh overdrive and no real clarity.
However! It's lovely sounding for a warm rhythm overdrive, for strumming chords or arpeggiated stuff. It's a great one trick pony, and it's how I'll use that half. As a bonus, it works great as a boost into the df-2 and gets me the frusciante lead tone. Excellent!
I'm looking forward to testing with proper single coils, to see how versatile it is. As it is, it's pretty much the perfect low gain rock and heavy rock overdrive.
Channel two is modern metal. Tight, punchy, but with a wonderful quality to the bass. You can palm mute and, just like an amp, the initial hit is tight but is followed by a big swell in the bass end. It's excellent for kilkswitch engage heavy with the gain at 2/3rd. Wind it down to below half way and it's a great techy sound - complex chords stay clear sounding with a heap of distortion on top.
It likes being boosted, too, so a high gain rhythm can be turned into a super saturated liquid lead tone. Very cool.
The isf is a heap of shit. It doesn't go USA to UK, it goes from horribly top end mids to horribly thick low mids. The sweet spot is somewhere near half way, I went a touch over half. Put it there and never touch it again.
So, it works great as a two channel new distortion, with one as a high gain classic metal sound and channel two for lead, or channel one as a warm valvey overdrive that cleans up great and channel two as either a modern heavy distortion.
Early days, but I'm very, very impressed.
I wonder if the emulated out works as a headphone socket for silent practice?
For 100 quid, it's excellent. For the 50 I paid, it's insane.
Comments
Perhaps I should read the instructions.
I'm just about to record a few riffs with the direct out straight into pod farm with a mic preamp and into reaper. Hopefully it'll sound good.
"It has emulated output... I don't know if it's headphones safe or not. I can't find anything on it"
Totally short circuit and therefore headphone proof. It is NOT however capable of H/P currents! Yes you will get a squeak (handy for go-nogo tests) but not useful.
Re ISF, not everyone knows that it is intensively interactive with the middle control.
Dave.
To conclude, however, I've not done any recording today. I tried, and because of the time of day, my guitar just picks up a fuck ton of noise. I can reduce it by facing certain directions but it's pretty much everywhere.
Maybe Wednesday you'll hear it. I'll do a demo with both emulated only (with a bit of reverb) heavy, clean and bypassed then a bit with the non emulated output going into a pod farm cab, mic pre and eq.
As a pickup does.
Very nice
Trading feedback: Previous (+18) and Current
Nor does it have copious amounts of wah. Maybe next time.
Cheers though, lads.
Someone said in a shop one time that I sounded like zakk wylde
I took it as a compliment!
Bum notes aside, if you have any other tips for me, please pass them on. I've given up on picking two note per string pentatonics at his speed though...
I just do pentatonics/blues scale type stuff with a really wide vibrato (for the lead I mean). That seems to get me close enough. For rhythm I just do pinches a bit like you were doing in your clip.
Also I generally mean earlier ZW stuff, like with the earlier ozzy stuff he did. I've never really followed his own stuff much (even though he's one of my favourite players).
It sounds a bit dry without the mic pre models, but I'm splitting hairs. I doubt you'd hear the difference in the mix.
However, the clean sound emulated out is absolutely shite. Muddy as hell, regardless of what I do to the eq and isf. Shame. But through an amp, it's a nice warm clean. It won't be much good for most of my funk and stuff, but for rock cleans with a bit of hair it's just the ticket.
Which means my next amp just needs to be a nice, clean funk amp with an effects return for the ht metal when I fancy it.