# I'm drinking the Kool-aid! Danelectro Cool Cat content



## hollowbody

So I borrowed a Danelectro Cool Cat Transparent Overdrive yesterday after hearing all the hype about them. I honestly didn't know what to expect, though in the videos online, I didn't think the Timmy and the Dano sounded all that similar.

Regardless of whether the Dano is a Timmy clone or not, I'll say this much, I can get the Transparent Overdrive to sound almost exactly the same as my Fulltone FD2's un-boosted sound at mild, 12:00 and heavy drive settings. I'm talking the difference is so slight that I'm ready to run to L&M and buy one to replace my FD2. The website for L&M had them listed at something silly like $43.50 or something.

Now, here's my caveat, this is one day's worth of pretty non-scientific testing (not that my testing is ever really empirical). I plan on A/B'ing them a lot more this week while I still have the pedal on loan before I make my decision, but my initial reaction is really favourable.

I'll see if I can get some clips up.


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## ne1roc

You better run out and find one fast. Apparently they are redesigning the TOD so they won't be a copy of the Timmy. I may pick up another one since they are so cheap. They definitely sound great.

http://www.thegearpage.net/board/showthread.php?t=535869


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## hollowbody

Dang! Maybe I'll pop by this week. Thanks for the head's up!


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## GuitarsCanada

Interesting, I missed this whole thing. maybe pick one up. The price seems right.


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## k tone

Hollowbody,

I grabbed one from L&M a couple of weeks ago. He said it was the last one in stock at the Calgary location. Maybe they have more warehoused I don't know. 

I think it is a great pedal and it has found a permanent spot on my board. I have been running it at 12:00-3:00 on the gain knob, 2:00 on bass, 12:00 on treble and 10-12:00 on the volume on the neck p/up of my Strat. I like it. ALOT.


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## Chito

I got both the Cool Cat Drive and the Transparent Overdrive. I have the Drive on my board now as my low/med gain pedal. Reminds me of the OCD V1 I used to have. And I only paid a whoppin $27.95 for it at L&M. I've not played with the TO enough to give an opinion about it. For now, compared to the drive, the TO has less gain. People say it's a copy of the but I've never had a Timmy so I can't say. Works great with my Killer Ant as a boost though.


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## hollowbody

Chito said:


> I got both the Cool Cat Drive and the Transparent Overdrive. I have the Drive on my board now as my low/med gain pedal. Reminds me of the OCD V1 I used to have. And I only paid a whoppin $27.95 for it at L&M. I've not played with the TO enough to give an opinion about it. For now, compared to the drive, the TO has less gain. People say it's a copy of the but I've never had a Timmy so I can't say. Works great with my Killer Ant as a boost though.


Yeah, and apparently the Distortion is a Crunch Box clone and the Fuzz is a Frantone. I dunno, I might have to buy all 4. Although, at the prices they're asking, that might only come to $150 or so for 4 pedals kksjur


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## traynor_garnet

The OD is an OCD Clone.
The Trans OD is Timmy Clone
The Fuzz is a Frantone Peach Fuzz.

I was the guy who originally posted on TGP (and here) about how similar the Trans OD and Timmy sounded. This was before the schematic was confirmed. They DON'T sound identical, but they are close. With a graphic eq hooked up to the Dano TOD they can be made to sound identical (the TOD has a mid hump). I own both and have done a direct A/B.

The knobs are really badly placed but the tone is great. I had the Fuzz and Distortion but they didn't do it for me; they sound cool, but just not what I was looking for.

Regarding the "newly designed" TOD, it will basically have new features (features which actually sound eerily close to what Paul C had in mind for the Timmy).

I've said this before, but it comes down to if you want to support slave wages and ripping off others' designs. In particular, the Timmy is incredible fairly priced, sounds betters, and is much better built. 

Don't trust youtube videos for judging sound quality.

TG


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## hollowbody

traynor_garnet said:


> The OD is an OCD Clone.
> The Trans OD is Timmy Clone
> The Fuzz is a Frantone Peach Fuzz.
> 
> I was the guy who originally posted on TGP (and here) about how similar the Trans OD and Timmy sounded. This was before the schematic was confirmed. They DON'T sound identical, but they are close. With a graphic eq hooked up to the Dano TOD they can be made to sound identical (the TOD has a mid hump). I own both and have done a direct A/B.
> 
> The knobs are really badly placed but the tone is great. I had the Fuzz and Distortion but they didn't do it for me; they sound cool, but just not what I was looking for.
> 
> Regarding the "newly designed" TOD, it will basically have new features (features which actually sound eerily close to what Paul C had in mind for the Timmy).
> 
> I've said this before, but it comes down to if you want to support slave wages and ripping off others' designs. In particular, the Timmy is incredible fairly priced, sounds betters, and is much better built.
> 
> Don't trust youtube videos for judging sound quality.
> 
> TG


Yeah, I remember your thread from a little bit ago, but honestly, it takes getting this pedal into your house to appreciate what it does at its price point. I have no qualms about the schematic copy issue, since the Fulltone I have is a TS clone, along with some Boss OD-1 style asymmetrical clipping. In the guitar world, everything is a clone of everything if you look hard enough, and as someone who doesn't have loads of cash on hand, I appreciate companies like Danelectro who put together decent products that are reliable, sound great and don't leave a huge ding in your wallet. 

Don't get me wrong, though, I also am willing to admit when paying more is worth it. My Dr. Scientist Radical Red Reverberator is an excellent example of more $$$ getting you a better product. Also, I love my EHX DMM because it does what no other pedal can do for me (although I still haven't got my hands on a Carbon Copy).

As for the knobs on the Cool Cats, yes, they're pretty much the worst design flaw in the history of guitar pedals, but fortunately, I'm a set-it-and-forget-it kind of guy when it comes to pedals, so once I'm done my initial fiddling, it should be good to go.


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## LowWatt

It was Flavor-Aid actually...


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## hollowbody

LowWatt said:


> It was Flavor-Aid actually...


Yeah, but Kool-Aid went along with the Cool Cat pedals so nicely, I decided to be historically inaccurate for the sake of artistic license. :smile:


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## LowWatt

hollowbody said:


> Yeah, but Kool-Aid went along with the Cool Cat pedals so nicely, I decided to be historically inaccurate for the sake of artistic license. :smile:


Just teasing. and :food-smiley-004:


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## Toogy

Thanks guys, I just ordered one! You are not helping my pedal addiction! lol


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## Diablo

I just bought a dano cool cat chorus today. True bypass, metal case, under $50. brand new. I dont need a ton of chorus features so its pretty hard to beat!


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## GuitarsCanada

Picked up one of these Transparent OD's today, before they are all gone. Will give it a workout later tonight. Version 2 in stores soon.


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## monty

Love the Danos.
The trem is awesome.


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## Toogy

Hmmm... I got mine in, and either I have a bad one, or don't know how to set it right, but it really doesn't seem to do anything other than create a lot of noise???

It doesn't seem to boost my volume at all, even with the volume cranked! hmm...


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## hollowbody

Toogy said:


> Hmmm... I got mine in, and either I have a bad one, or don't know how to set it right, but it really doesn't seem to do anything other than create a lot of noise???
> 
> It doesn't seem to boost my volume at all, even with the volume cranked! hmm...


That definitely sounds like a bad pedal. Mine is reasonably quiet for an OD pedal and it definitely can boost the volume pretty good.


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## GuitarsCanada

hollowbody said:


> That definitely sounds like a bad pedal. Mine is reasonably quiet for an OD pedal and it definitely can boost the volume pretty good.


Agreed, I put mine through some short paces on the weekend. Volume control certainly works. Did not put a lot of time into it to see just where it might go but intially it appears to be a pretty nice pedal for the money. Plugged it into my Marshall DSL 401 on the clean channel and pounded out some good crunch.


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## k tone

Ordered the Cool Cat Vibe yesterday


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## whammybar

^^and you are going to love your vibe. I've owned one for a while and the tone is amazingly sweet and swirly. I couldn't be happier and my quest for a great vibe sound ended with the purchase of this beauty. Hope you enjoy yours a smuch as I love mine.


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## famouspogs

k tone said:


> Hollowbody,
> 
> I grabbed one from L&M a couple of weeks ago. He said it was the last one in stock at the Calgary location. Maybe they have more warehoused I don't know.
> 
> I think it is a great pedal and it has found a permanent spot on my board. I have been running it at 12:00-3:00 on the gain knob, 2:00 on bass, 12:00 on treble and 10-12:00 on the volume on the neck p/up of my Strat. I like it. ALOT.


Damn you I was going to get that!


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## Matsal535

I've just bought a TO V.1 and let me tell you it's UNBEATABLE for the price. Go get one right away.


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## whammybar

I'm curious. Since I trust the guys at my local L&M as far as I can throw them, does anyone know how can we all tell the difference between the transparent OD v.1 and v.2?

The ones I've seen say Made in China 2008. So would they be the older v.1 or the new v.2?


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## Matsal535

First of all the sticker on the V.2 is Black and it is gold on the V.1. And there should be (I haven't seen one myself vut that's what they say on the Dano site) a DIP switch inside the pedal to change the clipping section.


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## whammybar

Hey thanks for that info. I also found this over on TGP along with some interesting comments from the guys at Danelectro: With all due respect to *bluescube* over at TGP

We have finished our redesign of the Cool Cat Transparent Overdrive.
The new circuit is unlike any other circuit we are aware of. And we
really like it. It has these features:

-Approx 12dB of clean boost (when LEVEL control is maximum and the
GAIN control is set at minimum)

-As the GAIN control is advanced, you get a unique and tasty
overdriven sound. And “under the hood” (accessible inside the battery
compartment) is a 4 position DIP switch that allows the user to add a
diode clamp at the end of the circuit. The switch positions allow:

-no diode clamp
-a blue LED diode pair clamp
-a red LED diode pair clamp
-a JFET clamp

Because of the different voltage thresholds of these different
devices, depending on which pair you select, you can get a soft,
medium, or hard clipping.

The result is a box which is quite different than any overdrive box
that we are aware of and one that offers many tonal “flavors”.

The new pedal (CTO-2) will have a black nameplate which will make it
easy to differentiate from the earlier CTO-1.

The factory is designing the PCB now and after we approve initial
samples, we will produce a pilot production run and from that provide
some beta test samples. Once we are satisfied with the pilot units,
we will discontinue production of the CTO-1 and thereafter produce
only the CTO-2 version.

We are now at work on the redesign of the CO-1 Drive pedal.

Respectfully submitted,

Steve
Danelectro=


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## whammybar

Toogy said:


> Hmmm... I got mine in, and either I have a bad one, or don't know how to set it right, but it really doesn't seem to do anything other than create a lot of noise???
> 
> It doesn't seem to boost my volume at all, even with the volume cranked! hmm...


I gotta say I picked one up and have to agree with Toogy. Very noisy. Think a TS808 x 2 and you'll get the starting volume level when you turn it on. I realize OD's are by nature a little noisy, but at 30 watts with my strat this would be way too much background noise to be usable. Too bad. The price was great.


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## whammybar

kqoct So then before dumping my Cool Cat Transparent OD into the trash can because of excessive noise I tried it with an adaptor. Amazing tone, incredibly low noise and the sweetest clear overdrive I have ever heard and I've had my share of overdrives. Trust me when I say the YouTube videos do *not* do it justice. You have to hear one of these live to believe it. My most sincere apologies to anyone who didn't buy the pedal because of my last post.

But this is what I object to when reading about gear in various threads or listening to sound samples. There just isn't enough detail on the setup or the gear to properly evaluate it. Perhaps others who have posted here and loved the pedal will talk a little more of their setup and what battery they used or what adaptor through which guitar and for *Toogy* who, like myself, was overcome with the overall noise of the pedal I can only ask, did you try it with an adaptor?

So in the end I would say *run* to buy V.1 of this pedal. V.2 may be fantastic as well, but you will never be sorry you bought a V.1.


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## hollowbody

whammybar said:


> kqoct So then before dumping my Cool Cat Transparent OD into the trash can because of excessive noise I tried it with an adaptor. Amazing tone, incredibly low noise and the sweetest clear overdrive I have ever heard and I've had my share of overdrives. Trust me when I say the YouTube videos do *not* do it justice. You have to hear one of these live to believe it. My most sincere apologies to anyone who didn't buy the pedal because of my last post.
> 
> But this is what I object to when reading about gear in various threads or listening to sound samples. There just isn't enough detail on the setup or the gear to properly evaluate it. Perhaps others who have posted here and loved the pedal will talk a little more of their setup and what battery they used or what adaptor through which guitar and for *Toogy* who, like myself, was overcome with the overall noise of the pedal I can only ask, did you try it with an adaptor?
> 
> So in the end I would say *run* to buy V.1 of this pedal. V.2 may be fantastic as well, but you will never be sorry you bought a V.1.


You might have a good point there. I _did_ try it with a battery and with an adapter and didn't find a difference at all, _but_ I tried it with humbucking guitars and my Strat which has noiseless pickups in it, so it's possible I didn't actually get a chance to hear any real noise because I wasn't using traditional single coils or p-90s.

As for the rest of my rig, I was comparing the Dano to my Fulldrive 2, and those were the only pedals in the chain. I fed them both into my Traynor YGL3, set for clean, no reverb as well as into my Blues Jr., set for a little dirt, no reverb.

At the end of the day, I thought the Dano pedal performed wonderfully, especially given the price, but I thought the Fulldrive sounded more full, or sound I say "Fuller"?? kqoct


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## breakfast

I have the Cool Cat Drive (the older one before the recent updates and not the Transparent Drive) and I love it. Definitely worth the $40 CDN.


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## soldierscry

I jsut pick up the new V2 transparent overdrive @ L&M for $43.50 it sounds amazing and is better then the V1, I thin kI might rehouse it though


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## keto

I've had the Drive V2 for a week. Bought it on a whim thinking $40 isn't bad to begin with and could flip it for half if need be. Worth it to me to spend $20 on the experiment.

Sounds very good thru my Hiwatt when the amp is cranked up a bit. Sounded like ass as a low volume solution, so don't buy it thinking you're going to get a bedroom volume solution here - very fizzy tail and not very convincing drive to the overdrive at low volume. Anyways, it has a place on my board, is my 'mid gain' solution. I don't love it, but it's good enough.

Oh, haven't played with the internal bias adjustment, but the dipswitch does make a substantial and usable difference. Hi-fi is a) more output b) brighter c) crunchier. I'm using it on lo-fi but both settings are good. 

Haven't got it to play nice stacking with other pedals (nothing bad, just nothing good), may throw the dipswitch to hi and try again.


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## Drazden

The other guitarist I'm working with right now is running a TOD into his Traynor YGM-3 reissue, and it sounds phenomenal. I like the drive tone at least as much as my mk 1 Diamond J-Drive... if it had a second footswitchable boost, I'd be all over it like white on rice.

And I've got one of the Tremolo pedals... It's good, almost great, but really... it's a color effect. It's either good enough, or it's not. I haven't played many tremolo effects, amp or pedal, and gone, "I need this on ALL THE TIME."


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## AlcolmX

I need another pedal like I need another hole in the head, but I saw this thread (and then youtube videos) and couldn't resist heading out to L&M to grab a V1. Very nice, but yesterday my Lovepedal Les Lius showed up and I'm loving it so much that the TOD is gonna have to wait before it's put through it's paces.


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## hollowbody

AlcolmX said:


> I need another pedal like I need another hole in the head, but I saw this thread (and then youtube videos) and couldn't resist heading out to L&M to grab a V1. Very nice, but yesterday my Lovepedal Les Lius showed up and I'm loving it so much that the TOD is gonna have to wait before it's put through it's paces.


largetonguelargetongue 

AlcolmX, if you EVER decide to sell that Les Lius, please remember to give me a shout!


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## AlcolmX

I don't see that happening any time soon, but I'll keep you in mind.


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## Steve Adams

its good to read these are decent products. I am probably going to pick up the whole set on ebay including the wah. patch them inline with the epiphone valve junior when I get it....

DAMN, this is going to get "expensive"!


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## valen

I am running a TOD V1 as a solo boost (to get the solo volume up) and it works great for me. 

Anyone know if they are doing a Vibe V2 ? That would be next on my list.


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## hollowbody

Steve Adams said:


> its good to read these are decent products. I am probably going to pick up the whole set on ebay including the wah. patch them inline with the epiphone valve junior when I get it....
> 
> DAMN, this is going to get "expensive"!


You'll be glad to know that Danelectro makes a cool retro-styled pedalboard for the Cool Cat pedals! :smile:


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## Steve Adams

Yea....I have been looking....also at the nifty 50, as well as a 50s reissue DE guitar.


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## GuitarsCanada

I picked up one of the V1 transparent OD pedals before they changed the circuit. Probably some V1's still out there in the marketplace. But I had thrown it on the shelf and recently plugged it in. I must say that it is a pretty damn nice pedal for the price.


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## mrmatt1972

I love, love, love my recently acquired TOD V1. It sounds magical with all my amps. I'm currently using it with my blackheart to make a realatively clean sound into the voice of GOD at semi-reasonable volumes. I was listening to a clip of Goodsell Black Dog amp and I'm nailing that tone with my cheap gear.

[video=youtube;w4g7XJfuSf4]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w4g7XJfuSf4&feature=player_embedded[/video]


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