matybigfro Posted July 17, 2011 Share Posted July 17, 2011 I'm looking for a low gain Bass overdrive, with no loss of lows and a really warm round sound I'm not after bossey attacky highs but a smoth warm sound Listening to clips and YouTube vids even most Bass overdrive pedals tend to be more guitar attack like rather than overdriving the bass sound like a nice tube amp would. The nearest to the sort of sound I'm after is this clip of the EBS Multidrive [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=of6uVpoPxG0"]EBS Multidrive clip[/url] The problem with videos is although they give a good indication of the sound of the pedal they don't hightlight specifics. For instance for me one of the most important things is is it possible to keep close to unity volume and not experience Bass loss when kicking in the pedal. My current overdrive pedal the Zeibek Geminidrive is really guilty of this as is my Rat even with Reutz mod and leaves me not wanting to play it, also the Geminidrive is really hard to get a decent blended sound out of without a significant volume boost So is the EBS what I'm after, are there any alternatives that I should look into I'm also considering the Way Huge Pork loin as it gets lots of praise for retaining low's and also has blend control and is a bit cheaper and easier to get hold of. All opinions appreciated Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AttitudeCastle Posted July 17, 2011 Share Posted July 17, 2011 Maybe something with a tube in it like the EBS valve drive? Would keep warmth and would be able to add small smudges of drive Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topo morto Posted July 17, 2011 Share Posted July 17, 2011 If you want a sound like a nice tube amp, why not try a tube amp sim - Tech 21 VT Bass? A nice budget OD pedal is the Bogdan Polish Love if you can find one - it's not all that different to the EBS, a bit warmer IMO. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matybigfro Posted July 17, 2011 Author Share Posted July 17, 2011 [quote name='topo morto' post='1306707' date='Jul 17 2011, 02:35 PM']If you want a sound like a nice tube amp, why not try a tube amp sim - Tech 21 VT Bass? A nice budget OD pedal is the Bogdan Polish Love if you can find one - it's not all that different to the EBS, a bit warmer IMO.[/quote] Hows the Polish Love for Low end retention, Where do I look for them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dudewheresmybass Posted July 17, 2011 Share Posted July 17, 2011 I spent ages on this very quest. I found that in my situation the ebs didn't really tick the box for me, I can't really define what it was ( helpful huh!), so I tried the pork loin, but I found that whilst playing on my own it sounded great, but wasn't quite the ticket when playing at volume with the rest of the band. In the end I settled with the hardwire tube od for my low gain grittyness, and I'm currently trying the markbass bass tube marker for higher gain stuff Hth Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dannybuoy Posted July 17, 2011 Share Posted July 17, 2011 Catalinbread SFT is top of the pile for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matybigfro Posted July 17, 2011 Author Share Posted July 17, 2011 From what I've found about the polish love it seems and sounds to be very high gain I'm really looking for low gain sounds, I've just pulled the trigger on a fender sub-lime for fuzzier more distorted sounds, i'm really lookin for the warmth from my OD I'd like to hear more about the problems you've had with the EBS and Pork Loin Dudewheresmybass, also when people talk about grittiness I'm not sure what I'm after more smooth warmth so I'm not sure if the hardwire would be for me? The SFT sounds promising but hard to come by and probably very expensive? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topo morto Posted July 17, 2011 Share Posted July 17, 2011 If you want low gain, what about the wren and cuff Phat Phuk? low gain warmth is what it does... To answer your questions about the Polish Love - it's good at bass retention compared to most drive pedals. The range is adjustable from 'quite low gain' to 'full on'. It's something that comes up in the classififeds now and again, or a wanted ad might throw one up. Actually there might be one here: [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=137080&hl=bogdan"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=...0&hl=bogdan[/url] I personally preferred it to the SFT as it's less muddy sounding. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xgsjx Posted July 17, 2011 Share Posted July 17, 2011 (edited) Not sure what your budget is, but I use a moog Bass Murf for overdriven sounds. At £2-300 it's not cheap & I'm not sure if it defo IS the sound you're after, but you can use it for all sorts of things. Mine gets used for OD, phaser, EQ & sometimes I use it for what it was originally created for, rhythmic sequences. Here's a wee sample from my review... [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?act=attach&type=post&id=18316"]Bass MuRF Fuzz[/url] & here's the review I did if you're interested... [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=36164"]Moog MF-101 & MF-105b review.[/url] Edited for typo & broken link. Edited July 17, 2011 by xgsjx Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dannybuoy Posted July 17, 2011 Share Posted July 17, 2011 (edited) There's also a Blueberry just gone up in the classifieds: [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=146169"]http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=146169[/url] If you buy used you can always flip it if you don't like it and not lose out. [quote name='topo morto' post='1306841' date='Jul 17 2011, 05:29 PM']If you want low gain, what about the wren and cuff Phat Phuk? low gain warmth is what it does...[/quote] It's pretty clean when stock, tweaking the trimpots can yield overdrive but it can be quite brittle sounding. Great for pushing a tube amp into overdrive though! Edited July 17, 2011 by dannybuoy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topo morto Posted July 17, 2011 Share Posted July 17, 2011 [quote name='dannybuoy' post='1306886' date='Jul 17 2011, 06:18 PM']It's pretty clean when stock, tweaking the trimpots can yield overdrive but it can be quite brittle sounding. Great for pushing a tube amp into overdrive though![/quote] The thing I like about it is that through most of it's range it's not overtly 'distorted' but just warm and thick. At the top end of the drive range it can be brittle (haven't tried messing with the trimpots) but I find I quite like this when i need to cut through the band for a moment, even if it's a bit nasty when noodling! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matybigfro Posted July 17, 2011 Author Share Posted July 17, 2011 I'm interested in the polish love at low gain will it still retain lows will it get into the sort of sound that i posted above without a tone control to control the highs If so I might might have to dive on it in the forum My concern with the Phat Phuk is that i use a solid state D class amp and I don't want to boost the signal too much just slightly warm it up Although the SFT, Mad professor, EBS and sound great i'm most likely gonna have to wait for a 2nd hand one to come up in my price arrange. The Way Huge is available new for similar price and obviously the polish love is much cheaper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chrismuzz Posted July 17, 2011 Share Posted July 17, 2011 I'd look at the Tech 21 offerings, they go from a very nice mild warm tubey overdrive, all the way up to dirty angry distortion! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Fudge Posted July 17, 2011 Share Posted July 17, 2011 [quote name='chrismuzz' post='1307169' date='Jul 17 2011, 10:26 PM']I'd look at the Tech 21 offerings, they go from a very nice mild warm tubey overdrive, all the way up to dirty angry distortion![/quote] Yes to this, I love mine ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
topo morto Posted July 17, 2011 Share Posted July 17, 2011 [quote name='matybigfro' post='1307166' date='Jul 17 2011, 10:23 PM']will it get into the sort of sound that i posted above without a tone control to control the highs[/quote] To be honest, probably not - it's always got a bit more HF going on, and more so as you increase the gain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dudewheresmybass Posted July 18, 2011 Share Posted July 18, 2011 (edited) [quote name='matybigfro' post='1306813' date='Jul 17 2011, 05:03 PM']I'd like to hear more about the problems you've had with the EBS and Pork Loin Dudewheresmybass, also when people talk about grittiness I'm not sure what I'm after more smooth warmth so I'm not sure if the hardwire would be for me?[/quote] The ebs and way huge seemed to always get lost in the mix no matter what settings I used. I couldn't get the 'point ' to push through a big EMG/Marshall dominated mix. Coupled with this, i use a sound that is very bass heavy ( no hifi clarity here ta!), and through my stage rig, it seemed to make the sound lose the thump it had without the pedal. I'm not accusing these pedals of bass loss, that is most definitely not the case here, but simply that they didn't work for me 'in situ' The other thing to mention at this point is that i play in differing situations, some using a full 8x10 rig, and others using DI only. Where the ebs/ way huge didn't work for me with the amp rig, they sound great going di only. As far as the hardwire goes it has a two band eq, so i really would suggest at least trying one (assuming you have a local shop/ dealer), and playing with those two knobs. I picked mine up s/h for £40 on ebay - if it sounds good for you it could be a bargain! again, HTH EDIT: i meant to say that when i say grittiness, i mean the sound of just slightly pushed valves and he edginess (Word?) that brings Edited July 18, 2011 by dudewheresmybass Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cairobill Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 (edited) I use a tubeworks blue tube pedal. Very warm real tube overdrive. There's a rack version out there as well. N Edited July 19, 2011 by Cairobill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sibob Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 How would you compare the Hardwire Overdrive to the Boss ODB-3? Si Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheddatom Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 Just on the ODB-3 - on low gain settings with the hi EQ down it's allright. I don't think it'd be a tubey sound though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sk8 Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 I use a Tubescreamer which i like. TS808 type specs admitedly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheddatom Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 any tube screamer type pedal with the tone turned down would do this sort of sound wouldn't it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sk8 Posted July 19, 2011 Share Posted July 19, 2011 [quote name='cheddatom' post='1309170' date='Jul 19 2011, 02:13 PM']any tube screamer type pedal with the tone turned down would do this sort of sound wouldn't it?[/quote]aye! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Musky Posted July 30, 2011 Share Posted July 30, 2011 [quote name='Cairobill' post='1308833' date='Jul 19 2011, 09:42 AM']I use a tubeworks blue tube pedal. Very warm real tube overdrive. There's a rack version out there as well. N[/quote] I've got the rack version of these, and it does the tones the OP is describing to a T. I've not tried the pedal version but I know it's missing what I consider the killer feature of the rack one - the bias control. This changes the actual character of the distortion, rather than just the amount or tone of it. It's such a useful feature I'm surprised other manufacturers haven't tried the same thing, though I did ask Dave Hall about it a while back and he said that it was difficult to successfully implement. A real shame that the pedal doesn't have the bias control, as racks are such a pain in the ar*e to cart about! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest bassman7755 Posted July 30, 2011 Share Posted July 30, 2011 [quote name='chrismuzz' post='1307169' date='Jul 17 2011, 10:26 PM']I'd look at the Tech 21 offerings, they go from a very nice mild warm tubey overdrive, all the way up to dirty angry distortion![/quote] +1 I have a Tech 21 BDDI [url="http://www.tech21nyc.com/products/sansamp/bassdriverdi.html"]http://www.tech21nyc.com/products/sansamp/bassdriverdi.html[/url] The basic tone quality is on a par with my SVT all tube preamp (which is regarded as the reference rock bass tone). Id defy anyone to tell it apart from real valves in a blind test. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phil.i.stein Posted July 30, 2011 Share Posted July 30, 2011 the slightly more expensive option (though similar in price to a tubescreamer..) is the Darkglass b3k. very versatile, blendable, and three distinct settings, two of which would qualify as 'warm' - just dial in how much drive you want. this is one pedal i will never sell. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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