The Maxon OD808 difference (with samples)

[GuitarHack]

Well, before I bought the OD808 I was sceptical about what kind of difference it would make. After using it for a couple of weeks with various settings, it DOES make QUITE a difference. I had read that kind of comment before and thought "is this guy just trying to justify his purchase to himself?". So I thought that maybe I could help out anyone else here that may be contemplating buying one of these by making some samples.

Gear:

EMG81 (in Alder Body BC Rich Platinum Pro with Floyd) E-Flat tuning
Maxon OD808
Krank Revolution
Mesa Traditional Rectifier 4X12
1 X SM57 just off centre 10mm away from cloth
M-Audio Firewire Solo (Still waiting for my Firepod to be delivered )

I put all the details of the guitar (not because I think it is brilliant) because there was another topic about EMG's in Alder guitars, so it might be relevant to anyone wondering what EMG/Alder combo sounds like.

There are 2 zip files, each containing 4 samples each with the only difference being the Amp Gain is on 4 for one zip and 5 for the other zip. I have no reamp gear, so I played each sample trying to be consistant as possible .

Amp settings were (out of 10):

Pres: 6
Sweep: 3
Bass: 5
Mid: 4
Treb: 6
Master: 2.5
Gain: 4 for one set 5 for the other.

Maxon settings were (O'Clock):

Overdrive: 10
Tone: 12
Balance: 12

The zips contain the following files:

Krank Rev 808 Gain 4 RAW TRACKS Double 100 Pans.mp3
Krank Rev 808 Gain 4 RAW TRACKS Quad.mp3
Krank Rev NO 808 Gain 4 RAW TRACKS Double 100 Pans.mp3
Krank Rev NO 808 Gain 4 RAW TRACKS Quad.mp3

Krank Rev 808 Gain 5 RAW TRACKS Double 100 Pans.mp3
Krank Rev 808 Gain 5 RAW TRACKS Quad.mp3
Krank Rev NO 808 Gain 5 RAW TRACKS Double 100 Pans.mp3
Krank Rev NO 808 Gain 5 RAW TRACKS Quad.mp3

PLEASE NOTE: These are RAW, AS RECORDED Tracks, only thing done was raising the level by the same amount on all of them. Therefore Quad tracks are louder than the Double tracks.

I think that covers the formalities, so here are the samples:

http://www.keepmyfile.com/download/30b9be1392376

http://www.keepmyfile.com/download/584f341392377


I hope they can help someone out.

Feedback appreciated.

 

[NickL]

told you! good buy, eh?

 

[GuitarHack]

Yes you did Broodwich. And you were right. Thanks for the advice.

 

[NickL]

Yes you did Broodwich. And you were right. Thanks for the advice.

i love this thing. every time someone other than me touches my Maxon I feel violated

 

[Nebulous]

Did you not turn the gain on the amp down with the 808 running?

 

[GuitarHack]

Did you not turn the gain on the amp down with the 808 running?

I may be a bit thick , but are you asking if I tried it with no gain on the Krank channel? Or did I try it on the clean channel?

Sorry dude, I am easily confused .

 

[Soundlurker]

Definitely sounds better (though it sounds great without it as well). Great clips!

 

[Dmantis]

good tone man. I also own a Rev 1 but I have the combo. I use a BBE green crusher in front. I set my amp like this

Bass-6
trebble-6
Mids-4
Sweep-4
Presence-6
gain-5.5

Green Screamer
Volume-8
Gain-7
tone-middle

This setup is for the krank channel and it sounds almost exaclty like yours. Mine has a bit more bass to it but I tend to dial some of it out as it gets muddy and blowdy when it's to high. If I had a krank 1/2 stack I believe there cabnet maybe able to handle to extreme bass pressure. My 2 x 12 combo starts to give out at volume 4 so I have to dial it out a bit. Low volumes it soundss crazy. It sounds like I'm playing into a bass cab.

Dan

 

[Nebulous]

I may be a bit thick , but are you asking if I tried it with no gain on the Krank channel? Or did I try it on the clean channel?

Sorry dude, I am easily confused .

Ah sorry. When I use an OD for a clean boost, I start wthout it. I set the channel gain to where i like it, then engage the boost. I then lower the channel gain so that it sounds like teh same amount of gain as I had before. Eg: On my JSX, without the OD, I'd run my gain at like 5 or 6. With the OD, I turn it down to 3-4, because the level on the OD is maxed.
It doesn't really make sense untill you try it. The difference is more subtle, but I love it. It adds tightness and an awsome mid grind. In your clips you can deffinately hear the OD working, but IMO it's taking away from your tone a bit. The tightness is there, but the added gain seems to have taken some lowend away and sounds a bit unreffined.

I have seen people use OD's as a clean boost in some varied ways. I found out about the method I use on this forum a while ago, when i first heard about using an OD. I obviously prefer the method over others, as I use it.

 

[Radd]

Interesting. With the 808 on, I hear no difference between gain 4 and gain 5.
With it off, I hear a slight difference and I can really hear the bass frequencies resonating from the cab. (I guess it's from the cab ) It almost sounds like an upright acoustic bass playing along that is low in the mix. They all sound cool but the quad tracked w/808 on sounds best to me.
Thanks for sharing this experiment with us.

 

[GuitarHack]

Shadow_walker:

Thanks for the reply. The mutes can sound a bit sharper without it (less fizz I mean) but with a bit of low-end flab. Good and bad with it on and off.


Dmantis:

Thanks for the reply. Is the combo closed-back? I haven't seen one. With the Mesa I can have the Bass at around 7-8 with the Master on 5-6 (my mate is a loud drummer) and it handles it fine for a "live" sound (still sounds tight and not wanting to self-destruct). For recording it is much too bassy and I have to spend time cutting it back. With these samples I aimed for a tone that could fit in a mix with a Bass guitar, so that's why the bass is low. The Mesa Cab sounds close to the Krank Rev cab as far as bass response, but the Mesa seemed to have more mid punch when I tried them against each other.


Nebulous:

Thanks for the reply. I understand what you are saying now. I have tried it as more of a clean boost with lower OD and a higher Balance (Level), so I get what you are saying. It is definitely more subtle that way. Your tone remains the same with the bonus of a tighter low-end. The settings I used are definitely not transparent, but I like the sizzle . The OD can create such a varied range of sounds. I love it.


Radd:

Thanks for the reply. I had the same initial reaction with the gain on 4 and 5 with the OD on. I actually went back to the recorded tracks and made sure I had exported the correct ones. There is slightly more sizzle if you listen hard, slightly (I think ). With the OD off, the difference between gain 4 and 5 is quite noticeable. Without it, it does sound like there is a bass low in the mix, flubbing away. Glad you found it interesting.



Thanks for the replies dudes.

 

[GuitarHack]

Here is an update. I have added 2 samples recorded with the Firepod this time. The first sample uses the same OD settings, Amp settings and mic position as the original samples with the Firewire Solo. The second sample uses the 808 as a Clean Boost (Overdrive MIN, Tone 12 o'clock and Balance MAX) and same Amp settings and Mic position as the other samples.

Again, these samples are "as recorded" Raw Tracks, no post anything except raising the level.



http://www.keepmyfile.com/download/efb6bf1420898

EDIT: OOPS. Just noticed that mic position was not the same, . The Firepod samples mic position was dead-centre of dustcap against the cloth. Firewire Solo samples was just off centre and 10mm away.

Oh, well, cant use this as a comparison, just a sample of the tone I get with the Firepod now.

 

[Radd]

Both sound great but to me the first one sounds tighter so I think I would pick that one if I had to choose.

What's a clean boost again? I forget. Is that where the amp is on the clean channel and the distortion comes from the pedal only?

 

[GuitarHack]

Thanks for the reply. Clean boost is where you set the 808 to MIN (cleanest) on the Overdrive and just boost the signal with the Balance (Level control) set to MAX into the Dirty Channel of the amp. So there is minimal Overdrive added from the 808, just a louder signal into the front of the amp.

 

[Radd]

AH, Ok. Don't quite understand why one would want to do this though unless they feel the need for the amps volume to go over 10 or because it does change the tone just enough for their needs.
Or I'm not getting it...

 

[Nebulous]

The difference is one similar to switching from a single coil to a high output humbucker. When the signal goes into the amp, it drives the tubes harder, and creates more of a "saturated" tone. It sounds (IMO based on my gear) tighter, fuller, but with a (slightly) more controlled lowend. It also creates a nice attack and deffinition that turning the gain on the amp up just wouldn't do. Meanwhile, when using an OD for a clean boost, you do have to bring the amps gain down a bit.

 

[GuitarHack]

.... Meanwhile, when using an OD for a clean boost, you do have to bring the amps gain down a bit.

I know, I get it , I just didn't do it. Was just meant to be a quick test of the Firepod. Gain was on 5 (out of 10, not o'clock which would be 10 out of 10 ).

 

[Radd]

Thanks Nebulous. I get it now.

 

[Nebulous]

I know, I get it , I just didn't do it. Was just meant to be a quick test of the Firepod. Gain was on 5 (out of 10, not o'clock which would be 10 out of 10 ).

Haha, na man. I wasn't having a crack at you
Just explaining that general way it's done. No rules remember.....

 

[Mood Bender]

nice comparison