My new Direct Drive - Stacking?

[Ephes6]

Hi folks....my first post on this forum.

I have a new DD which is quite nice and I enjoy several settings from low to high gain.

I play a pretty bright Strat (maple top and fingerboard) through the DD and my other OD pedal, a Monte Allums Mod SD-1, Xotic EP Booster and Line 6 M9 for Mod/delay/verb effects.

As I like both pedals for high and low gain, I cannot decide which to use in which position and how to sequence them.

I'm pretty sure I like the EP Booster after both drives.

I am looking for a versatile set up that takes me from low gain blues to classic rock gain - no heavy distortion required.

I am a 35 year acoustic playing that hasn't played electric for about 15 years and starting to get back into electric again.

Can anyone offer some OD pedal sequencing and setting suggestions that I can experiment with. I am more of a "set it and forget it guy" - well with minor tweaking once I am satisfied with my baseline set up.

Thank you,
Mike

[hamerman]

I'd first try the DD alone and use the volume on the guitar to switch between higher and lower gain. The DD is pretty responsive that way. You can also use the SD-1 as a volume boost into the DD. I would put the SD-1 in front of the DD, so you can use the SD-1 to kick the DD. I'd set the SD-1 for cleanish boost, and the DD for a nice crunchy sound. Then adjust the two so that the combination will give you the highest gain you want.

[Ephes6]

Hi Hamerman,

That is essentially how I've settled on it in the past couple of days. However, your post reminded me about the effectiveness of the volume knob - something this acoustic gut is not always mindful of.

Also, I will try cleaning up the SD more and use it as more of a boost.

Appreciate you taking the time to write.

Best,
Mike

[admin]

Hi Hamerman,

That is essentially how I've settled on it in the past couple of days. However, your post reminded me about the effectiveness of the volume knob - something this acoustic gut is not always mindful of.

Also, I will try cleaning up the SD more and use it as more of a boost.

Appreciate you taking the time to write.

Best,
Mike

Hi Ephes6,

Please update your sig to comply with how our forum works, it will help you get more useful info and probably save you $$$ on inaccurate gear advise.

viewtopic.php?f=3&t=54

[Ephes6]

Hamerman:

Just wanted to thank you for your feedback and close the loop on this topic. I took your advice and with a little bit of patience, I was able to tweak the DD and SD-1 to a point where I can effectively use the volume control of my guitar and kick on the SD-1 for that added mid boost and tone thickening.

This old acoustic player is having great fun with electric guitar!

Thanks again,
Mike

[hamerman]

Glad to help out. It took me a long time to learn how to use the volume on the guitar, as you have to have the right pots in the guitar, and know how to set the pedals and the amp. It is a pretty tough balancing act at times. I do like the stacking configurations. The Barber LTD SR is particularly great in this regard. If you are looking for a wonderful pedal to add to the DD, this would be it. It is a lot like the EP-Booster (which I also have). It adds a very musical aspect to the signal chain. I'd look hard at that as a next pedal. I'll probably be getting another with the mod board, but the basic unit is essential to my rig. I also find the Barber pedals are just plain more musical than any, and I have a bunch. There is an inherent clarity in all of them (the RIAA recovery circuit?). You might also look into chip swapping. The DD will take a number of dual op amps, and they have nice effects on the basic pedal sound.
I'm glad my suggestions were helpful. The forum has been a big help to me.
Take care
Hamerman

[Ephes6]

Yeah Hamerman....

My friend has an LTD and I love it. If I didn't have the Allums SD-1, I would go for the LTD now, but I believe it is in the future.

Tomorrow I am ordering a pedal board and power supply. Tell me, what effect will using the 18V have on my DD and EP Booster?

Thanks again,
Mike

[hamerman]

Generally, the higher the voltage, the less compression and more headroom. It is also going to depend on what sort of signal is hitting the pedal. A Strat probably isn't hitting the pedal too hard, as opposed to a Les Paul. The effect would be more noticeable with higher gain pickups. I use the Pedal Power 2, which can switch some of the outputs to the 12 V ACA level. Oddly enough, I like the DD and the LTD better with 12V than 18V, and I don't like giving up two power jacks up to get 18 V. But that is probably because I use humbuckers mostly, so the extra headroom cleans the pedal up just a tad.

In another discussion thread, Dave discussed the design philosophy of their pedals, and that is 9 V is what the pedal was expected to see to get a given sound. You can use higher voltages, just as you can use other chips. Using higher voltages will change the sound of the pedal from what it was designed to sound like, but you have that option.

One description of higher voltages I've heard is that it is like the difference between a 50 Watt and a 100 Watt Marshall. Both good, but the latter has more clarity. Me, I like the 50 Watt Marshall sound.

The EP-Booster is about the same, but you get more boost too. I tried it with both 9 and 18 V, and like the 9 V better. It seems "browner" to me.

Hope this helps

Wyatt

[Ephes6]

It does help Wyatt - thanks a lot.

Mike