Half-Gainer, Direct Drive, or something else?

[justinfox]

Hey everybody,

I am currently the proud owner of the only overdrive that ever pleased me, a Barber LTD SR. The problem with this, however, is that I would really like to have a pedal that I can get just a hair more gain out of than the LTD. After trying an MI Audio Crunch Box (too harsh), a Fulltone OCD (mids are too scooped), and a Maxon OD-808 as a booster (just...not my taste), I've decided that I'm going to solve the problem with another Barber pedal.

My question is this: does the "green" channel on the Half-Gainer have any more overdrive than my LTD? If not, what Barber pedal will have a tone that is in the same vein as the LTD SR, just with a little more gain on tap?

Thanks!

[DreamTheaterRules]

perhaps a Launch Pad in front of the LTD to push it harder... Or behind it to cook your pre tubes a bit.

[plan-x]

Get a DD for more gain in the Barber vein.

[Jules-RM]

My favorite pedal after the LTD SR is the Super Sport. For my purposes it takes over for the LTD SR when it comes to Mid gain stuff. The way I've set the trim pots the SS sounds very similar to the LTD SR but has a lot more beef to it. I can't recommend it enough.

I've had a Half Gainer on order direct from Barber for about 4 weeks, might have longer shipping times than listed on the site. I'm sure it's more popular than they thought it would be.

[David Barber]

My favorite pedal after the LTD SR is the Super Sport. For my purposes it takes over for the LTD SR when it comes to Mid gain stuff. The way I've set the trim pots the SS sounds very similar to the LTD SR but has a lot more beef to it. I can't recommend it enough.

I've had a Half Gainer on order direct from Barber for about 4 weeks, might have longer shipping times than listed on the site. I'm sure it's more popular than they thought it would be.

Your order arrived on the 12th and went out last weeks, that puts it at three weeks. UPS says you will have it by the 11th.

[Jules-RM]

My favorite pedal after the LTD SR is the Super Sport. For my purposes it takes over for the LTD SR when it comes to Mid gain stuff. The way I've set the trim pots the SS sounds very similar to the LTD SR but has a lot more beef to it. I can't recommend it enough.

I've had a Half Gainer on order direct from Barber for about 4 weeks, might have longer shipping times than listed on the site. I'm sure it's more popular than they thought it would be.

Your order arrived on the 12th and went out last weeks, that puts it at three weeks. UPS says you will have it by the 11th.

Awesome, will report back when I get it, though I'm pretty sure the gain range might be the same as the regular LTD.

BTW LTD SRs stack GREAT. When recording I go with two LTD SRs stacked for mid gain about half the time, the Super Sport the other. I don't do that live, but it's really handy on tape. I'll try stacking the Half Gainer with my stock LTD SR (no trims were moved) and see how that sounds, I doubt that'll get it to Crunchbox territory, but it should be pretty good.

[justinfox]

Please post your findings with the Half-Gainer stacked with the SR on this thread! I bought a used Direct Drive (v1; pre-trim pots, 2002), and although I see the appeal and like it more A LOT more than the Crunch Box and OCD, it just isn't as transparent as I would like. I'm thinking about trying to sell it and move to another LTD SR, but the Half-Gainer really interests me because I could mess with the mids more to make it like a regular LTD if I wanted.

If anyone would be willing to trade a Half-Gainer for this original DD (and cash, if necessary), let me know. justinrobertfox@gmail.com

(If sale ads like that are prohibited, let me know and I will promptly remove it.)

[Jules-RM]

Please post your findings with the Half-Gainer stacked with the SR on this thread! I bought a used Direct Drive (v1; pre-trim pots, 2002), and although I see the appeal and like it more A LOT more than the Crunch Box and OCD, it just isn't as transparent as I would like. I'm thinking about trying to sell it and move to another LTD SR, but the Half-Gainer really interests me because I could mess with the mids more to make it like a regular LTD if I wanted.

If anyone would be willing to trade a Half-Gainer for this original DD (and cash, if necessary), let me know. justinrobertfox@gmail.com

(If sale ads like that are prohibited, let me know and I will promptly remove it.)

Will do, I might not be able to get to it til Monday - I'm still recovering from surgery to remove a bit of cancerous colon and shouldn't pick anything as heavy as a guitar up until two weeks from the surgery.

[Jules-RM]

Didn't get to it today, but I'll have more time tomorrow. How similar would the sound be between the circuits of a LTD SR and Half Gainer? Should I bother matching the trimpots for bass and presence or should I just use my ears? I know the M knob on the HG should be counter clockwise.

I'll update tomorrow.

[Jules-RM]

I've had about a hour to play with my new Half Gainer. It does stack well at lower gain (say 11-2 o'clock) levels but tends to fizz out at high gain level - this is pretty much in line with almost all OD pedals in my experience. There seems to be slightly more gain on tap with the Half Gainer, it might just be the added Mids knob - when you crank it up it does seem to add to the gain. Personally I like the Mids knob all the way down. It doesn't sound exactly like a LTD SR but I can come pretty close. I just LOVE the sound of the stock LTD SR, it's really hard for me to take it off the board, but without doing a side by side comparison it's hard to tell the difference between the two. There doesn't seem to be any difference in the gain levels between the two channels on the HG.

If I were you I'd keep the LTD SR for low gain and give the Super Sport a try for higher gain stuff. They really do compliment each other nicely.