# good 60's 70's distortion pedal



## famouspogs (Jun 9, 2006)

i have an RP50 that i have to use through a bass amp and i really dislike how the amp models on it sound. are there any good distortion pedals that have a 60's 70's sound someone could reccomend me? forgive me if this is the wrong place to post this and for my lack of knowledge on pedals.


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## Guest (Jul 29, 2007)

The Fulltone '69 and '70 pedals are two well regarded fuzz pedals that really try and capture a sound from a particular point in time. If it's a bass amp (assuming it's tube like a Bassman) you could go the tried-and-true guitar -> TS-808 -> bass amp route.


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## famouspogs (Jun 9, 2006)

iaresee said:


> The Fulltone '69 and '70 pedals are two well regarded fuzz pedals that really try and capture a sound from a particular point in time. If it's a bass amp (assuming it's tube like a Bassman) you could go the tried-and-true guitar -> TS-808 -> bass amp route.


its a solid state. i dont know if im really going for a fuzz tone sound, something more along the lines of pete townshends guitar tone.


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## Guest (Jul 30, 2007)

famouspogs said:


> its a solid state. i dont know if im really going for a fuzz tone sound, something more along the lines of pete townshends guitar tone.


Off hand I don't know a HiWatt-in-a-box pedal. But the Tonebone Hot British is a tube pre-amp based on Marshall Plexi. Lots of gain. Very Big Brit Rock sounding.


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## tri99er (Jun 25, 2006)

MXR distortion+, might fit the bill


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## Ripper (Jul 1, 2006)

Give the Voodoo labs Superfuzz a try. It is a great pedal for catching alot of that old sound and feel.


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## The Kicker Of Elves (Jul 20, 2006)

iaresee said:


> Off hand I don't know a HiWatt-in-a-box pedal. But the Tonebone Hot British is a tube pre-amp based on Marshall Plexi. Lots of gain. Very Big Brit Rock sounding.


Just got mine from Joey D. *Love* this pedal.


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## Budda (May 29, 2007)

check out the subdecay stupid box

also, you maay want to consider upgrading the amp or the fx pedal


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## famouspogs (Jun 9, 2006)

Budda said:


> check out the subdecay stupid box
> 
> also, you maay want to consider upgrading the amp or the fx pedal


my amps good. its clear and has fine tone, it just doesn't like distortion at all.


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## The Kicker Of Elves (Jul 20, 2006)

famouspogs said:


> my amps good. its clear and has fine tone, it just doesn't like distortion at all.


Those with far greater amp-knowledge will probably chime in with a better explanation, but the short of it is: some amps hate pedals. They might have a great clean but you just can't get anything else out of them.

I had heard my amp took pedals well, but it wasn't until I got to try it that I had to sigh with relief.

Upgrading your amp might be a step on the path to great distortion.


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## famouspogs (Jun 9, 2006)

The Kicker Of Elves said:


> Those with far greater amp-knowledge will probably chime in with a better explanation, but the short of it is: some amps hate pedals. They might have a great clean but you just can't get anything else out of them.
> 
> I had heard my amp took pedals well, but it wasn't until I got to try it that I had to sigh with relief.
> 
> Upgrading your amp might be a step on the path to great distortion.


yeah, i will admit i dont know alot about amps. i know what sounds good, ive just never had the need for using an amp besides a little practice amp, ive done alot of recording aswell so i know about toneality, but as far as knowledge about amps go, its very limited.


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## Kapo_Polenton (Jun 20, 2007)

solid state sounds a bit constrained to me BUT is great for raging metal- anything thrash, speed, death metal etc.. for what you want, I would say open it up with tubes of some type. Then you might find that pedals you thought were not that great suddenly sound better. What bands from the 60's and 70's do you want? Aeorosmith, Alice Cooper style or are we talking more Hendrix?


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## NB-SK (Jul 28, 2007)

I like my Big Muff Pi. 

I just ordered a Metal Muff (the big 6 button one). I was shopping around for a more modern sounding distortion pedal when I found out about it. That should keep me busy for a while. 

There's a guy on ebay that ships EH pedals free around the world, and his prices are lower than the other sellers. That's who I ordered my MM from yesterday. I got my BM Pi from him a few years ago.


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## famouspogs (Jun 9, 2006)

NB-SK said:


> I like my Big Muff Pi.
> 
> I just ordered a Metal Muff (the big 6 button one). I was shopping around for a more modern sounding distortion pedal when I found out about it. That should keep me busy for a while.
> 
> There's a guy on ebay that ships EH pedals free around the world, and his prices are lower than the other sellers. That's who I ordered my MM from yesterday. I got my BM Pi from him a few years ago.


who is this seller?


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## famouspogs (Jun 9, 2006)

Kapo_Polenton said:


> solid state sounds a bit constrained to me BUT is great for raging metal- anything thrash, speed, death metal etc.. for what you want, I would say open it up with tubes of some type. Then you might find that pedals you thought were not that great suddenly sound better. What bands from the 60's and 70's do you want? Aeorosmith, Alice Cooper style or are we talking more Hendrix?


more around hendrix.


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## Budda (May 29, 2007)

i'd just like to pipe up and say that SS sounds like crap for metal, unless you're going for DBD buzzsaw "tone".

a big muff or a dallas arbiter fuzzface clone sounds like a good idea


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## traynor_garnet (Feb 22, 2006)

Man, I think about two people read your post and the others just started saying pedals; he doesn't want fuzz or metal guys :wave:

Hendrix and Townsend didn't use a ton of distortion by todays stardards and you are never really going to nail their sound with a SS amp.

However, you can get in that ballpark and get some cool tones to boot. Hendrix played Marshalls and, depending on what era of Townsend you are into, Townsend player Hi-watts or Marshalls.

I'd do this. First start with a tube screamer type pedal. Not exactly Hendrix or Townsend but you have heard this tone a million times. Grab an inexpensive one like a Danelectro Fab Overdrive ($15), Arion Tubulator ($17) or A Digitech Bad Monkey. All of them get great reviews and are much cheaper than getting an Ibanez.

Second, try to get a pedal that emulates a Marshall Plexi. Indy guitarist has one that I've heard a few guys rave about; the sound clips sound cool too. I believe the Fulltone OCD is kind of like a Marshall JTM 45 but it is $$

Lastly, if you want to get even closer save your pennies for a bit and buy an old Traynor or Garnet tube amp. A 50 watt head will put you in similar sonic territory but they are LOUD (like stupid loud). Look into a small combo running two 6V6s or EL 84s (bassmates, guitarmates, rebels) and your guitar's volume knob will soon be the best distortion pedal you have ever heard 

TG


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## NB-SK (Jul 28, 2007)

famouspogs said:


> who is this seller?


I originally posted one seller, but I found another one.

I ordered from this guy:

http://stores.ebay.com/Great-Music-Products

But, there's also this one: 

http://stores.ebay.com/ONLINEGUITAR-DOT-COM-BUY-NOW-STORE


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## famouspogs (Jun 9, 2006)

traynor_garnet said:


> Man, I think about two people read your post and the others just started saying pedals; he doesn't want fuzz or metal guys :wave:
> 
> Hendrix and Townsend didn't use a ton of distortion by todays stardards and you are never really going to nail their sound with a SS amp.
> 
> ...


would you be able to get the name of the pedal that emulates a marshall amp please? i couldnt find it. im going to get the fab overdrive tomorrow considering i have 15 dollars i dont need and would you anyone be able to reccomend a nice cheap 50-60 watt guitar amp that would play the kind of tone im looking for? i need one because im tired of lugging around my large bass amp.


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## GuitaristZ (Jan 26, 2007)

good enough?


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## violation (Aug 20, 2006)

Budda said:


> i'd just like to pipe up and say that SS sounds like crap for metal, unless you're going for DBD buzzsaw "tone".


I'm a tube freak until there's no tomorrow but my solid state Randall has some decent high gain tones to it, definetly useable.


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## famouspogs (Jun 9, 2006)

GuitaristZ said:


> good enough?


what? your post does not make any sense.


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## violation (Aug 20, 2006)

famouspogs said:


> what? your post does not make any sense.


He posted it here too: http://guitarscanada.com/Board/showthread.php?p=58605#post58605

Just looking for attention... you'll learn to ignore it, lol.


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## traynor_garnet (Feb 22, 2006)

famouspogs said:


> would you be able to get the name of the pedal that emulates a marshall amp please? i couldnt find it.


It's called the plexi drive: http://www.indyguitarist.com/plexidrive.htm




> im going to get the fab overdrive tomorrow considering i have 15 dollars i dont need


Cool. I just bought the Fab Distortion. Cannot really lose for $15!



> would you anyone be able to reccomend a nice cheap 50-60 watt guitar amp that would play the kind of tone im looking for? i need one because im tired of lugging around my large bass amp.


If you want tube tone get a tube amp. BUT, 50 watts is freakin LOUD for a tube guitar amp. I would recommend a used Traynor Guitar or Bass Mate. These are all tube, nonmaster volume amps that sound great (especially if you change the speaker). You can still get decent deals on the 1970s versions but they are not "cheap" ($300-$400). If you have a PA system around, you could even get a small Fender Champ or Garnet Gnome and mic it; both are all tube and sound great. The Gnome has an external speaker out if you want to run it into a bigger cab. Only 5 watts each but I actually used one to jam all the time.

TG


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## Robert1950 (Jan 21, 2006)

If you could find an original Maestro Fuzz Tone, that would definitely give you the sixties sound. I remember hearing three of them. Two were great. One sucked. Mine was the one that sucked. But now that I think about it, I may have not used it right or it didn't get along with my equipment at the time. I was just a dumb teenager at the time.


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## NB-SK (Jul 28, 2007)

famouspogs said:


> would you be able to get the name of the pedal that emulates a marshall amp please? i couldnt find it. im going to get the fab overdrive tomorrow considering i have 15 dollars i dont need and would you anyone be able to reccomend a nice cheap 50-60 watt guitar amp that would play the kind of tone im looking for? i need one because im tired of lugging around my large bass amp.


If you're any good with a soldering iron, you might want to check out this one if you can save your cash and splurge on this one:

http://www.olcircuits.com/olc_thor.html

Here are some sound clips:

http://www.runoffgroove.com/salvo.html#thor


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## Wild Bill (May 3, 2006)

*You can't make a racing car out of a pogo stick!"*

Been reading this thread and Traynor Garnet was the only one to really tell the truth. He just didn't say it strong enough: YOU CAN"T DO IT WITH A GIRLY MAN SOLID STATE AMP NO MATTER WHAT PEDAL YOU BUY!

The short answer is that you WON'T get that vintage tone with some kind of pedal! Don't waste your time! Anybody who tells you different has never heard Frank Marino live with Mahogany Rush back in the early 70's. Or Rush when they played your local high school. Like a virgin lecturing about sex...

Nobody used much in pedals back then. They hadn't been invented! In the very early 70's we started seeing fuzz pedals and treble boosters but that was about it. By the mid 70's there was an explosion in different pedals but you specified 60's and 70's, not 70's to 80's.

The sound of guys like Jimmy Page and Pete Townsend came from running a tube amp loud enough to get the power tubes distorting. This is a totally different type of distortion than you get from a preamp with a gain/master volume setup or a pedal, which overdrives the preamp and not the power tube section.

Power amp distortion is warm and thick, balls to the wall and feel it in your gut time! Listen to an old Mountain album. Or Hendrix from a live concert. Back then master volumes hadn't been invented! No one used preamp distortion. When you dial back a master volume and up the input gain you are getting all your distortion from the preamp stages. This sounds more "fizzy" and "crunchy". The power tubes are running practically hifi, with no distortion added by them at all.

Power transistors are incapable of delivering the sound of power tube distortion. It's just physics - tubes and transistors work very differently.

Nowadays we usually can't open up a 50 watt tube amp to the point of power tube distortion. Clubs are smaller and neighbourhoods more crowded and grumpier!:smile: That doesn't change the fact that a tube amp sounds best when it has no master volume and is run on at least "7" or more. If the amp is too loud then you are much better off using a smaller amp! A 20 watt amp on 8 will give far better tone than a 50 watt amp on 3.

Page recorded much of early Zep using a 5 watt Supro amp, run flat out!

Some folks would rather spend the money on just one amp to do everything but my experience has been that this never really works as well as the sales guy at the music store claims it will. Every carpenter has different sized hammers and saws in his kit. Every guitarist should have more than one amp and guitar if he wants to deliver a wide range of tones. 

The right tool for the right job! I don't mind solid state for a clean, snappy bass tone (although I still prefer the sound of a Precision into a tube bass amp) or for hardcore where you just process the crap outta the tone until the type of amp doesn't matter anyway. For guitar it's still tubes, at least for me.

Pick up a guitar mag from the store and count all the adds for new amps. 80% will be tube and the other 20% will claim they sound like tubes, even if all they did was stuff one 12AX7 into the preamp and BS you that that's all you need to sound like a Plexi. That's like claiming my minivan will win at NASCAR 'cuz it has the same ball at the top of the shifter! BS and advertising crap!

An old Traynor amp is good advice! A Guitar Mate cranked up won't be too loud (especially with the stock Marsland speaker) and will sound GREAT! It will likely cost you far less than buying some of these modelling pedals with outlandish claims.

Manufacturers don't make amps like they did in the old days 'cuz they can build 'em cheaper with transistors and machines to stuff the parts onto a printed circuit board instead of people wiring them by hand. The problem is that this makes them sound different. If you happen to like this sound then there's no problem but if you want a classic vintage sound then they sell you Line6's and Pods until you have so many knobs to tweak you've forgotten what you wanted it to sound like in the first place!

If you want that 60's/early 70's sound then get a Traynor and plug a Les Paul into it with no pedals, just straight in. Crank the up up past 8 and wail!

I warn you, you'll get spoiled!

:rockon2:


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## PaulS (Feb 27, 2006)

Back in the 60's and 70's they didn't run the whole show through the PA. Guitar amps weren't mic'd . Thus the quest for volume and the entrance of the JCM800. These things were played at 11 and like Bill says beautiful fat full tone. No pedal will really do it. In a club today if you just turn on a JCM800 it is too loud. I have been playing thru a Gidson Skylark from the early 60's lately. About 8-10 watts run the volume at 9 or 10 and the sound is awesome, got that Mountain, Zep sound. Alot of pro's used these, supro's and old Epi's in the studio to get the sound.


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## Kapo_Polenton (Jun 20, 2007)

How does that fabtone sound? I have heard some good soundclips but the one of the dan electro site is horrible.. makes the pedal sound like a fuzz..

As for the SS vs. tubes... some SS do the tube sound better than tubes so it really depends on the amp. My marshall valvestate does a pretty mean And Justice for All/ Metallica sound and its great for stuff like Slayer. So it really depends.. it sucks at that raw 70'-80's crunch and fullness though. And recorded... well 95% of the population won't be able to tell what you are playing.. half the time i think we got into tubes because of fads. A lot of the high gain tube amps sound just as fizzy as SS does. The classic tube amps bring it though..

One more thing, you may not want the vintage tone to come from a pedal..but once you run your non master volume or even a master volume amp (just dime the volume and leave the preamp back so you get power tube breakup- use an atenuator if its loud like my 50 watt NMV) , BUT you can use pedals to boost or colour your sound like Yngwie, Lynch, Rhoads and the others did. That was bad ass tone back then! Plexi to JCM800 era stuff just full out with a bit of boost and some light dirt or fuzz etc... rest is in your hands


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## Ripper (Jul 1, 2006)

Wild Bill said:


> The short answer is that you WON'T get that vintage tone with some kind of pedal! Don't waste your time! Anybody who tells you different has never heard Frank Marino live with Mahogany Rush back in the early 70's. Or Rush when they played your local high school. Like a virgin lecturing about sex...


OH Yeah Frank Marino and Mahogany Rush, now there was tone tone tone tone!


Hey Bill....if you were lecturing the virgins about sex, you might have been doing something wrong


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## Wild Bill (May 3, 2006)

Kapo_Polenton;58874. said:


> .. half the time i think we got into tubes because of fads. A lot of the high gain tube amps sound just as fizzy as SS does. The classic tube amps bring it though..


Considering transistors weren't even invented until 40 years or more after tubes I'm curious as to how choosing tubes was a "fad".

What else did we have to use? Giant wooden megaphones?



Kapo_Polenton;58874. said:


> BUT you can use pedals to boost or colour your sound like Yngwie, Lynch, Rhoads and the others did. That was bad ass tone back then! Plexi to JCM800 era stuff just full out with a bit of boost and some light dirt or fuzz etc... rest is in your hands


Yngwie? Lynch? Rhoads? Fine players all, but kinda "johnny come lately" guys, aren't they?:smile:

I suspect you're a young hardcore/shredder fan. If so, glad to hear it! There's some great playing going on there.

Just don't forget that there was a lot of rock before Dime Bag came on the scene. The "Geezer rock" days were happening for longer than a few weekends before Yngwie bought his first guitar.

And I would submit that hardcore is perhaps the ONLY area where guitarists are happy with a solid state amp! Barring a few exceptions to prove the rule, of course. Like jazz cats who like it ultra clean. As I had said, with the amount of pedal/processing hardcore uses the tone of the amp is lost.

This thread was about how to get that classic late 60's early 70's tone. I stated my case. Is there anyone who can make a claim about pedals and/or a solid state amp that will give that tone?

I'd LOVE to see such a premise put to the acid test! (If you'll all pardon the psychedic pun...)

:food-smiley-004:


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## violation (Aug 20, 2006)

Yngwie got his first guitar when he was 7, which was 1970. Hah, coincidentally as far as I'm concerned that's about the same time when good music started happenin' (Led Zep was around '68 I think?), :tongue:


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## Robert1950 (Jan 21, 2006)

violation said:


> Yngwie got his first guitar when he was 7, which was 1970. Hah, coincidentally as far as I'm concerned that's about the same time when good music started happenin' (Led Zep was around '68 I think?), :tongue:


Paul Butterfield Blues Band 1965 - Mike Bloomfield.


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## PaulS (Feb 27, 2006)

The Hendrix London recording sessions were in 66 and 67. Lotta good there...


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## dwagar (Mar 6, 2006)

let's not forget the Yardbirds and Paul Butterfield Blues Band. Beano sessions were, what? 1965?


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## NB-SK (Jul 28, 2007)

dwagar said:


> let's not forget the Yardbirds and Paul Butterfield Blues Band. Beano sessions were, what? 1965?


Cream ( :bow: ) and Pink Floyd ( :bow: ) both started in the 60's.


In any case, Wild Bill, Pete Townshend has tinnitus, so maybe that might not be the best choice when arguing that driving a tube amp to higher volumes is the way to go to get that great tone. :wink:

In any case, you're preaching to the quire when it comes to tubes.


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## Kapo_Polenton (Jun 20, 2007)

Well if 31 is a young wipper snapper then hell yeah I am a young ex thrash and hard core guy but still love my 70's Deep Purple all the way into 80's and late 80's hair bands! :rockon2:

And by "fad", I am suggesting that there are plenty of tube amps that sound like crap and that the fad is not in the tubes themselves, but in the people who say "you must have them". Yngwie still sounds like Yngwie through a SS practice amp. ( though he is a slob now and has lost all musicality)

So really I guess I was arguing two points: 1. that SS and tubes can both sound horrible and that SS is still great for death metal and thrash where the tone is essentially "heavy" and tight.

Point 2. is that I think pedals have their place and were as much a part of those classic sounds as were tube amps on their own.. Hendrix-- Fuzz for example.. Blackmore- treble boost and whatever else he supposedly used to push his amps.


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## Kapo_Polenton (Jun 20, 2007)

But 60's and 70's in a pedal won't happen anymore then 80's and 90's or any other form of modelling happens in a pedal alone so I see your point.:wave: 

Maybe we should just make the answer short and say BOR? Its pretty good for that JTM sound!(but should still be played through a clean tube amp)


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## NB-SK (Jul 28, 2007)

Kapo_Polenton said:


> Well if 31 is a young wipper snapper then hell yeah I am a young ex thrash and hard core guy but still love my 70's Deep Purple all the way into 80's and late 80's hair bands! :rockon2:
> 
> And by "fad", I am suggesting that there are plenty of tube amps that sound like crap and that the fad is not in the tubes themselves, but in the people who say "you must have them". Yngwie still sounds like Yngwie through a SS practice amp. ( though he is a slob now and has lost all musicality)
> 
> ...


Yes, also true. A quality solid state amp can sound quite nice.


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## 4STYX (Mar 25, 2007)

I believe that the guy was asking about pedals for that 60-70's sound.
A Tonebender Mark II clone is the one that will do those late 60's early 70's tones,and they like solid state amps or vis-versa.


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## famouspogs (Jun 9, 2006)

thank you everyone for your reccomendations, ive decided i have to get a new amp so can anyone reccomend a good amp for this type of music under 400 dollars?


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## Guest (Aug 17, 2007)

famouspogs said:


> thank you everyone for your reccomendations, ive decided i have to get a new amp so can anyone reccomend a good amp for this type of music under 400 dollars?


There's been a lot of talk on a thread Kapo_Polenton started about old Traynor's being excellent bang for the buck and great rock machines. Check it out here: http://www.guitarscanada.com/Board/showthread.php?t=7504


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## 4STYX (Mar 25, 2007)

If you've decided to buy a new amp.The Peavy Classic 30 is probably the best sounding tube amp in that price range $300-400 used.Your still going to need a pedal though if you want to play Hendrix.The Lovepedal Dragon series is a 3 in one Tone bender,Treble booster and Fuzz Face and they sound amazing.Tone bender=Beck and Page,Treble booster=Rick Deringer,Brian May,Richie Blackmore and Fuzz Face=Hendrix,Clapton and Townsend.The Dragons are GE and Si hybrids and the BBB07 is all GE(old school).You can also get beautiful clean sounds just by turning down your volume on the guitar.


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## famouspogs (Jun 9, 2006)

4STYX said:


> If you've decided to buy a new amp.The Peavy Classic 30 is probably the best sounding tube amp in that price range $300-400 used.Your still going to need a pedal though if you want to play Hendrix.The Lovepedal Dragon series is a 3 in one Tone bender,Treble booster and Fuzz Face and they sound amazing.Tone bender=Beck and Page,Treble booster=Rick Deringer,Brian May,Richie Blackmore and Fuzz Face=Hendrix,Clapton and Townsend.The Dragons are GE and Si hybrids and the BBB07 is all GE(old school).You can also get beautiful clean sounds just by turning down your volume on the guitar.


alright thanks i'll look for the amp and pedal.


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## famouspogs (Jun 9, 2006)

4STYX said:


> If you've decided to buy a new amp.The Peavy Classic 30 is probably the best sounding tube amp in that price range $300-400 used.Your still going to need a pedal though if you want to play Hendrix.The Lovepedal Dragon series is a 3 in one Tone bender,Treble booster and Fuzz Face and they sound amazing.Tone bender=Beck and Page,Treble booster=Rick Deringer,Brian May,Richie Blackmore and Fuzz Face=Hendrix,Clapton and Townsend.The Dragons are GE and Si hybrids and the BBB07 is all GE(old school).You can also get beautiful clean sounds just by turning down your volume on the guitar.


what was the exact name of the pedal?


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## 4STYX (Mar 25, 2007)

famouspogs said:


> what was the exact name of the pedal?


Made by Lovepedal.He changes the name and colour to confuse us I think.
The EIzekiel or the White Dragon(same, but has the ability to use an Adapter as well as a battery)and the new version BBB07(Black Beauty Balance 07).There's like a 2 month wait for these(there's a reason for that).If you google those names you should be able to find a used one(about $100 cheaper and no wait).Oh and don't run your guitar volume knob at 10 or you'll get MUD. I hope this helps.


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