In Praise of the PCB Mod Board

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In Praise of the PCB Mod Board

Postby sternobob » Tue Jun 22, 2010 5:32 pm

I've always had a love/hate relationship with my older Direct Drive. It's a cool sounding OD, but always sounded too mushy and compressed for my tastes. I picked up a newer version of the Direct Drive with a mod board and now I absolutely LOVE the pedal. I turn the note shape almost completely counter-clockwise and set it to Asymmetry 2, the lowest compression mode. I play with the gain below 9:00, the volume at about 2:00 for a lead boost. It crunches, it sustains and it screams, while fitting perfectly into the space my bands leave for me.

I also have a LTD-SR with a mod board that I use again with the gain very low and a volume boost. I've got the mod board set to Asymmetry 1, the higher compression mode. It's great for a little more clean-ish volume with more sustain. It's also really great before the Direct Drive and DDLG as an extra boost and to push those pedals into infinite sustain and controlled feedback. Both of those pedals are great, but the extra tweaks in the mod boards make it so that I can't imagine better sounding OD pedals.

I play into amps that are on the edge of overdriving with a 2db boost from a B-Buff amp cooker or a Launch Pad.
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Re: In Praise of the PCB Mod Board

Postby plan-x » Wed Jun 23, 2010 12:13 am

Hear hear! I love to turn my DD's note shape up a bit for some chunk and phat notes, asemmtry for a little comp, gain flipped on for some killer power amp soaked sounding, soaring lead stuff. Just sounds like an amp on "11".

As for my LTDSR....lowest comp mode, note shape up a bit to fatten up the mids. Really gets it close to the clean ch on my amp with some hair on it. Oh, btw, flipping the gain up fattens the pedal a skosh. Which allows for some full gain-knob twist just for kicks that delivers honest medium gain that is possibly unrivaled. Sweet, true to the amps tone OD.

Stacking? No sweat! Just stand back and get ready for sustain for days. I agree with OP! How can any other pedal compete with these mod boards! :D
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Gain-Changer Tone Press (w/B-Buff) I Have had most Barbers
Timmy, Zendrive (Chorus, delay & wah....the usual stuff)
Mesa Boogie Lonestar Classic 2x12 combo / Traynor YCV-40 head conv / Cabs 1x12's, Detuned 2x12's (Stereo rig)

Parker Fly deluxe S2 (HSS), Nitefly P (HH)
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Re: In Praise of the PCB Mod Board

Postby sternobob » Wed Jun 23, 2010 8:20 am

I had forgotten that I used to use the higher gain mode on the LTD and loved it that way too. The DDLG has taken that spot in the OD spectrum for me. I've come full circle with the LTD, now using it as my just-a-little-more pedal. The LTDSR has an stunning range, especially with the mod board.
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