I’ll compare it to the HB (from memory cuz i had to sell mine), the BBOD and the KOT if You dont mind. Tomorrow i’ll have an actual HB available to AB.
So here goes, Suhr Strat with FL singlecoils, Pete Cornish cables into my custom shop Prosonic , rectifier set at 20watts class A. a sound well in the fender area, but a bit darker with some voxish flavor.
WOW! After making up my mind NOT to buy anymore dirtboxes this year....dammit. irresistable TONE. Couldnt put my guitar down.
First off, I would consider the pedal rather a relative of the HB than the BBOD. Would be interesting to compare to the EGDM at low gain too...hmmmm, but i don’t have mine anymore....the new pedal is definitely not in the Tube Screamer area. I find some similarites to Analog Man’s KOT maybe.
Yes, the new prototype HAS all the dynamics of a Honey Bee, all the beloved characteristics are there. IMO the gain knob is more useful in it’s range, i remember with the HB you can more or less go from light od to a little more OD, whereas the prototype’s gain control changes the amount of gain gradually from clean to nice overdrive.
Pedal is wonderfully transparent....open chords, double stops, close intervals...it just shines. the balance between „string“ (i.e. clarity and definition) versus „wood“ (body and warmth) is excellent.
At max setting You’ll have more gain available than in a honey bee, but not a LOT more.....for comparison, its a little less than the „red“ channel on an Analog Man KOT.
Ahh, since i started to talk about the KOT: that pedal is said to be very „uncompressed“. Well i gained much more clarity and less compression from the prototype when i A/Bd both pedals (more STRING), also the prototype retains bass better than KOT.
I might be wrong here, and tomorrow i’ll have the chance to A/B them but i think with tone set to 12 o’clock, the prototype has definitely more „sizzle“ and bite than the HB (defenitely more than BBOD) wich i personally like! this puppy here will CUT thru the mix....same goes for nasty lead lines! On solos it really makes pos. 2 and 4 on my strat shine, more so than my KOT or Baby Blue or LGW. John Mayer, move over
for rhythm, think of the offbeat-guitar on „Oh Darling“ from Abbey Road....this pedal NAILS it. As well as „start me up“-Keef-type sound. It cuts! Reminiscent of an OCD on a mild gain setting (but then: more BODY than OCD)but dont get me wrong, you can roll off highs for a really sweet sound too. the middle(tone) knob seems to work more like Your traditional tone control, another thing thats different from the HB and more like the BBOD .
the range of the gain control, combined with the nice bite make it much more suitable for use as a boost too.
Then again the „sizzle“ i talk about could prove difficult with bright amps like fender twins of course. For those amps, the HB can change them into fine boutique gear, hehe, thats one of the greatest things about that pedal. But i will try a Fender Twin tomorrow.
Hate to say it cuz HBOD RULEZ!!!! but this puppy might take the place of my HB. Got a little wider range and fits my main amp, the Prosonic, very well. perfect stacking platform (run KOT and BBOD into it today, oh my!!!) or use on it’s own.
Tomorrow the local guitarists will show up and we’ll put it thru a Twin, bassman and a Carr Vincent. Too bad, my ‚65 deluxe broke down...wish i could have tried it thru that one. Also a friend with a HB will come, because my A/Bing was only based on the memory of my beloved HB, which i played on ALL MY GIGS for 2 years, but had to sell ½ yr ago. It was kinda replaced by a LGW but that might change soon (
I will post some clips definitely.before the week is over.
Sorry if i got carried away and wrote too much, i’m just so happy that i get the chance to check this one out, and that guitar players will be blessed with this wonderful tone tool soon!
cheers, Lars
