Lap Steel Fuzz Tone

Michael Garnett · Post by **Michael Garnett** » 12 Nov 2005 10:21 am

I've recently started playing with a guy that's got some slide guitar on his CD. It's only a 4 piece band, so I get to cover all those parts. I was wondering what people out there were using as a stompbox or other effects unit to get some good classic crunchy sounds from their C6th and maybe even E9th necks. I don't have a lap steel right now, but I might look into one later on, if it's an 8 or 10 string version.

Anybody out there know of a good fuzz pedal that's not just over the top?

-MG

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Uva Uvam Videndo Varia Fit
Carter D-10, Matchbox 7a, Nashville 400,
Dingwall 5 string, SWR SM400 head, SWR Goliath III Jr. 2x10 cab
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John Macy · Post by **John Macy** » 12 Nov 2005 10:36 am

I've owned a lot of stuff over the years, but this one is my fave for slide stuff.

http://www.barberelectronics.com/LTD.html

Steinar Gregertsen · Post by **Steinar Gregertsen** » 12 Nov 2005 10:39 am

I'm currently using a Visual Sound "Jekyll & Hyde" pedal, it's a two-in-one where "Jekyll" is a Tube Screamer type overdrive and "Hyde" is a more modern distortion.
Both drives are very responsive to your dynamics, and it offers you a lot of variation in one box - three stages of drive/distortion at ~$140....

I used to use a Fulltone FullDrive, which is a very natural overdrive, but got a bit bored with it because no matter what I played through it it sounded like a fat and creamy Les Paul. I feel the Jekyll & Hyde preserves the tone of the instrument better...

Steinar

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www.gregertsen.com

Jon Light (deceased) · Post by **Jon Light (deceased)** » 12 Nov 2005 10:40 am

Do a forum search for 'distortion' & 'overdrive'. It's been covered pretty extensively. I don't think you want a fuzz. Too over the top and it doesn't allow the guitar's tone to come through. Something more civilized might be in order. Boss BD (Blues Driver) is nice. Boss SD is nice & cheap. Fulltone Fulldrive 2. I use and like the Voodoo Labs Sparkle Drive. There's other stuff that can put you over the top but if you are looking for some crunch, some slide guitar blues tones the above mentioned boxes are a good choices. But I repeat, do a search. Mucho info.

Michael Garnett · Post by **Michael Garnett** » 12 Nov 2005 10:44 am

Thanks, Jon. Not being a rock and roller, I don't guess I know the exact difference between fuzz, crunch, drive, and distortion.

Jon Light (deceased) · Post by **Jon Light (deceased)** » 12 Nov 2005 10:48 am

For good reason--you will get a different answer from every person who defines the terms. But one way to think about some of this is: some boxes basically give the signal a little alteration (dirt) and a bunch of boost so that you can drive your (tube) amp into natural overdrive. If your amp is solid state, forget about that. Other units simulate the sound of an amp being driven into overdrive so that you can make your SS rig sound like a hard driven tube rig. And others do other stuff. There, that last line was helpful, right?

But an important question is: what amp are you driving?

Michael Garnett · Post by **Michael Garnett** » 12 Nov 2005 12:45 pm

Jon-

Right now my rig is the Carter D-10 through a matchbox and hilton pedal (I like the tone and gain controls without turning around to mess with the amp) and a Nashville 400. So, I'm gonna need some sort of warm overdrive just to change up the tone for some of the more rock and roll style songs we do, where I'd be playing slide style licks. A rock guru of mine out here has suggested that I try out Mike Fuller's Fulldrive pedal, the Ibanez Tube Sceamer and a Butler Tube Driver. He says all three of those will give me some real crunchy, warm tones that aren't too treble heavy.

-MG

Jon Light (deceased) · Post by **Jon Light (deceased)** » 12 Nov 2005 1:02 pm

Michael--I am 99% confident that any one of those pedals will get you there. After that, it is a matter of fine tuning your ears trying to figure out just what it is you are really wanting to hear. If you get addicted to stuff like this then you can go nuts trying all sorts of boutique units. Different flavors, different subtleties.

I find that it helps to try to define a sound----like maybe Duane Allman's slide guitar on Live at the Fillmore for instance---and see if your gear can get you into a zone like that. Sometimes the sound itself can inspire your playing into bluesy realms you didn't realize your chops were aware of.
BTW--I drive that Sparkle Drive (which is essentially a Tube Screamer--as are many of the units out there--but with a very hip knob that mixes the distorted signal with clean signal and provides a nice boost to push the front end of a tube amp) with my Carter SD12. I use both tube and SS amps and the results of the Sparkle Drive vary very much depending on the amp I'm using. In other words there's nothing that can replace your ears re: what to use and how to set it.

Lee Baucum · Post by **Lee Baucum** » 12 Nov 2005 2:36 pm

John Macy - The Barber unit sounds great; however, they have a notice on their web site:

Barber Electronics will be closed from November 11th until further notice.

Lee

Jon Light (deceased) · Post by **Jon Light (deceased)** » 12 Nov 2005 3:46 pm

Barber has a whole line of stuff that gets widely great reviews. I just haven't gotten around to trying any but there are a few pedals that interest me. I was concerned about Lee's report but the next line on the web page says

(medical reasons) Business is expected to resume Nov.14th if all goes well, Andrea should be taking "sales calls" late on Monday and we are hoping to have tech calls back in about a week.

John Macy · Post by **John Macy** » 12 Nov 2005 8:12 pm

Lee,

Hope it goes well for them--I am ordering their Tone Press Compressor the first of the week. I demoed one and it's amazing. Kind of like the Sparkle Drive (which I also love) where you can blend the un-compressed signal in with the compressed--totally killer

.

Mark van Allen · Post by **Mark van Allen** » 12 Nov 2005 9:02 pm

I've been through about a million overdrive/distortion pedals. It really depends on your rig, and the sound in your head... for the same basic signal path you're using (in my case, Mullen into overdrive into Hilton volume into Wallace Stereo Steel amp), I've been really happy with the Bionic Expandora. there are dip switches inside, I set them to LOWEST possible output, and it really rocks.
I'm getting a cutting, grindy crunch, great for solos but still also usable on chords...

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Stop by the Steel Store at: www.markvanallen.com

Michael Garnett · Post by **Michael Garnett** » 12 Nov 2005 9:13 pm

Mark-

You've got the effects before the volume pedal?

Any particular reason? Is that the way you're supposed to do it? I'd have figured that the effects would do better closest to the amp. But that's just me thinking, and it's gotten me into plenty of trouble before.

-MG

Lee Baucum · Post by **Lee Baucum** » 12 Nov 2005 10:40 pm

Here is the page I was looking at. It doesn't say anything about reopening. I found the reopening notice on another page.

Lee

Mark van Allen · Post by **Mark van Allen** » 13 Nov 2005 10:39 pm

With just about any kind of stomp box, I'd try it both before and after the volume pedal. The Expandora, like many overdrive/distortion pedals, has a different response when driven with the full-on steel signal than with the variable volume pedal output. For some styles you might like the sound of variable distortion, which comes on stronger (and louder) as you increase volume pedal gain. I prefer the sound of the unit on full blow, and control output with the volume pedal, the tone's more even.
You find different variables with, for example, a chorus or delay pedal- before the volume pedal you control the effect volume along with your guitar volume, after the pedal the effects tails will still float after you shut down your guitar volume. There are also impedance differences between loading the guitar pickup with the stomp boxes versus the volume pedal, and all interact.
Another possiblity is splitting the signal through a buffer or mixer, for parallel effects. Lots more control, and more to haul/deal with as well.
Takes experimentation, for me!

Keith Cordell · Post by **Keith Cordell** » 14 Nov 2005 7:13 pm

I always put any non time effects before the VP, and delays and such after. The signal should be full strength going into a Fuzz or flange, to get the most out of it; sometimes I wanna be a little quieter but still have the tone of the Fuzz so it helps to be able to get all the drive and notch down the overall volume.

Bill Leff · Post by **Bill Leff** » 14 Nov 2005 11:09 pm

I have a Barber Direct Drive and like it a lot. I'm sure the LTD is great too judging by the DD. The DD has more gain, but can go pretty low gain too, just not as much granularity in adjustment at the lower gain end as the LTD I would imagine. Nice pedal, true bypass.

Jim Sliff · Post by **Jim Sliff** » 15 Nov 2005 5:52 am

I won'tt repeat all the other stuff...

...butt rolling off the tone control a bit also smooths outt the "fuzz" or "overdrive", warming up the tone.

The best sound is simply a small tube amp turned up to "1-". That's what the devices are trying to emulate, basically.

As far as a Fuzz pedal, I like the ZVex Fuzz Factory - it'll do just about anything, but there's a learning curve. oor overdrive, the Fulldrive II is good, the Nobels ODR-1, and most of the ones already noted.

Keith Cordell · Post by **Keith Cordell** » 15 Nov 2005 5:53 am

The Barber pedals are great, if you like pure OD then you might also want to check out the HAO Rust Driver. Compares favorably to a Klon at a fraction of the dough; also any of the J Everman effects are good. I am using an Everman Fuzz Driver for my stuff now and like it a lot.

Michael Garnett · Post by **Michael Garnett** » 15 Nov 2005 6:33 am

Thanks for all the advice, guys. I've found a good deal on a Carl Martin Hot N Drive II pedal, so I'm gonna try that one out first. I'll try it first in between my matchbox and the volume pedal.

-MG

Jon Light (deceased) · Post by **Jon Light (deceased)** » 15 Nov 2005 12:27 pm

re: before or after the volume pedal--I originally put any overdrive/distortion unit after the volume pedal because you can really tailor your tone and grind from the device by adjusting the input level (typically a guitarist will roll back the volume control on his guitar to clean up his signal thru an od box). It is a real nice layer of control and finesse available to you via the VP. But I came to find it distracting to have so much range of tone swing on my right foot--and frankly I probably have an over-active volume pedal foot-- so I put it before the pedal and locked in a fixed tone from the box. Less finesse, more consistency. Please report on the Martin unit after you've messed with it some.

Jim Sliff · Post by **Jim Sliff** » 15 Nov 2005 4:48 pm

Matchbox with a lapsteel?

Why?

I see (and have heard) the ned for the Matchbox with 16 or 18k pedal steel pickups, but they really foul the tone of lower impedance pickups IMO. What's the DC resistance of your lapsteel pickup?

Michael Garnett · Post by **Michael Garnett** » 15 Nov 2005 4:56 pm

Jim-

I'm using this pedal with my Carter D-10, probably mostly for the C6th tuning.

Edit: Sorry about the misleading headline. I meant to say "How can I get some good lap steel fuzz tone with my D-10?"

-MG[This message was edited by Michael Garnett on 15 November 2005 at 10:21 PM.]