by Strat-o-lux » Fri Jan 15, 2010 4:26 pm
Finally had a chance to try out the Boss pedals and wah. So far, with Strat into a clean amp, and then with amp set for a bit of dirt.
The DS-1 and SD-1 are two pedals I've never liked, and to be honest haven't played in years- so my recollection of the stock pedals' tonal qualities is pretty vague. Given that, all I can say is, while I'm sure Bjorn's mods have improved them significantly, I still don't like them. I think I'll leave it at that. Bobby seems to like them a good bit. Chalk it up to personal taste.
The wah! Now this is interesting. The Rocketride has a very distinctive character - I would describe it as "aggressive". It definitely colors your tone, but in a way I liked - plenty of quack but also a nice sort of throaty quality. It has a wider sweep than I'd expected, somewhat along the lines of an RMC wah as far as range, but different in the taper of the sweep. This, for me, falls more in the Colorsound realm of wahs that I use as tone filters than in the 'waka-waka' Crybaby realm. Also, with the amp set on the edge of break-up, and the DS-1 on a medium gain setting after the wah, I found some cool fixed-wah distortion tones with interestingly emphasized harmonics.
I A/Bed it with the RMC1 (old version - I don't like the new ones) that is my current gig wah, and also with an original 70s Colorsound. I'm guessing Bjorn still hears his old Colorsound wah in his head, as there is some tonal kinship evident when comparing Rocketride and Colorsound. The RMC is more transparent - less overall coloration of my guitar tone.
I'd say the Rocketride is an excellent Rock wah. For classic Funk sounds I'd prefer a vintage Crybaby. But that's why I own a whole bunch of wahs - each has its particular merits.
Hey, once again, love the Tourbox concept. Thanks to all involved in making it happen.