Single channel amp and one drive pedal - do you/could you do it?

Dontgiveupyourdayjob

TimmyO said:

My dabble on this yesterday was :

TMDR Turned up to 7-8 (and with wattage knocked back to a more reasonable volume for home as a result - but not RIGHT down) then a combination of guitar volume down for clean-ish and a drive pedal for more sustain-y boosted sound (the Lightspeed was working well, ditto the Klone)

As someone said above, if I wanted a properly-clean clean sound it was more of a compromise with either the sustain-y lead sound or the low gain in-between bits harder to get on the volume control. 

I remember the days when I used a 18-watter clone (then later a Maz 18NR) and a single drive pedal to play in a blues/funk covers band and didn't think twice about it. I should do that more. 

That's basically what I'm doing for gigging at the minute, except with a TM Princeton Reverb instead of the Deluxe. Volume at 6.5-7 ish, use guitar volume to tweak accordingly, then a NUX Horseman Klone in front of I want a bit more grunt.

HAL9000

I’m fairly minimalist in my gear so normally get by with a single-channel amp (currently an Award-Session 5E3 Extra) and one drive pedal (Catalinbread Formula 55). Lately though I’ve taken to using an EQ pedal instead to boost the signal and sculpt the sound to taste. 

ICBM

I could, and have in the past, but I prefer a two-channel amp because I like truly clean cleans - full dynamic range and no clipping whatever - and also a crunch rhythm. It’s very hard to get both from a single channel - either the amp is properly clean and so all the overdrive is from the pedal only, or it just can’t clean up fully without drastic loss of volume.

The great thing is that the right pedal then works with both channels - into the clean you get the pedal-only distortion which is good for more abrasive, deliberately non-amp sounds, and into the dirty channel it gives a high-gain lead sound.

ArchtopDave

I just go via a ThorpyFx The Dane into a Rift Tweed 15.

Sporky

My pedal board had three dirt pedals, but I didn't change them. 

TimmyO

Grumpyrocker said:

If the amp has reverb and I can use my EHX 5150 OD then, yes I could. But I'd miss having delay.

Aye I didn't mean no other effects - it was just the drive that as on my kind. I'd also like a wobble and a delay too. 

fretmeister

Easy.

JCM800 and a Tubescreamer or SD-1.

Lestratcaster

I usually like 2-channel amps so I have a dedicated clean sound and use the overdrive channel on the amp. Might boost with a tubescreamer but haven't used a pedal as the main distortion in ages. If I was I'd probably get a JCM800 or some sort on the edge of breakup, then roll down the volume for clean and add a ts-9 for more rocky sounds.

guitargeek62

I’ve been doing this for years, even with multi-channel amps! I like finding one ‘base’ crunchy tone on an amp that I control through vol. pots, then have a drive (or five*) to kick it into gear. 

Lately I’ve settled onto my Orange Fur Coat (fOxx Tone Machine) in fuzz mode, into the drive channel of my Brent Hinds Rocker 15 with the gain at 10:00. I can cover a lot of ground with those two! On top of that I only usually add a smattering of ‘verb, and occasional tremolo, but I could live without either.

*varied flavours, basically


*edit* I even take the same approach with my Helix LT rig too - a Timmy or Octavia, into a Fawn AC30. An absolute waste of its potential, but it’s all I want or need 95% of the time.

munckee

I don’t really gig but at home I use a Princeton with an attenuator, haven’t used a pedal in a while. 

slacker

As we've diversified into no pedals, even though I probably have more stock than a small shop I do like a nmv amp working hard. However if you need a mixture of cleans and dirt you have to compromise. Also the pedal type changes. Some drives are better than others with a clean amp. 

My stock set up for years has been a vox type amp on the edge and a k type overdrive with the gain at 10 0 clock. The two are working together but the clean isn't totally clean and the gain is classic rock.

Home the amp is clean and I don't like klons in this set up.

So it comes down to the music. What do you need?

TimmyO

slacker said:

Home the amp is clean and I don't like klons in this set up.

yes same, I've realised that (for me) Klon and SD-1 sound pretty pants when they are the only source of the drive, but bloody lovely when they are adding to it 

Roland

I could, and used to until about 2001. Nowadays FX are part of many of the covers I play. Imagine Bowie’s Let’s Dance without chorus and delay.

chromatuna

Cornell Romany + Fuzzdog kit Blues Breaker tweaked a bit

TimmyO

Roland said:

I could, and used to until about 2001. Nowadays FX are part of many of the covers I play. Imagine Bowie’s Let’s Dance without chorus and delay.

I didn't mean to imply no other effects than drive, but wasn't very clear

jellybelly

Have done this during two periods - one with a Timmy and something vaguely JTMish, and one with a Rat and Fender. 

Could totally live with a Rat alone!

Neilybob

I currently have 2 OD pedals, 2 boosts and a fuzz on my board but I could get by with just my Keeley D&M drive into my JCM800 clone on the edge of breakup or into my 5E3 clone. 

guitarmangler

Roland said:

I could, and used to until about 2001. Nowadays FX are part of many of the covers I play. Imagine Bowie’s Let’s Dance without chorus and delay.

I play let’s dance without chorus or delay, live. I just ‘play’ the dynamic echo’s on the funky bit. This is because I’m lazy can’t be bothered to tap tempo the delay! 

Keefy

guitarmangler said:

Roland said:

I could, and used to until about 2001. Nowadays FX are part of many of the covers I play. Imagine Bowie’s Let’s Dance without chorus and delay.

I play let’s dance without chorus or delay, live. I just ‘play’ the dynamic echo’s on the funky bit. This is because I’m lazy can’t be bothered to tap tempo the delay! 

And I play it with the delay but without chorus - except there is modulation on the delay.

Th4fonz

Currently running a Cornell Romany 12 tweed amp with a les paul and I could use either my lazy j cruiser deuce or a klon and that’s all I need.