The more I watch, the more I realize how precisely centered that plexiglass is. The rug, the amp bench, the Hiwatt, even the pedal shelves on the wall. All are split perfectly by the sheet of plexi right in the middle. Bravo! 👏🏻
@@ThatPedalShow i know this video is old (in internet terms) but do you recall the settings on the ac15? was it normal channel or top boost? if it was normal where was the channel volume set? if it was top boost where was the treble, bass and channel volume set?
OMG - it would bug the absolute shit out of me if it wasn't. I would be shouting at the computer screen "What was that? Sorry, I can't hear anything because I'm so distracted by your surreal, MC Escher-esque set!"
I hate it and the worst part is that now that we know more it turns out all the plexiglass restricted air flow and made things worse. Just like all the idiotic shit they mandated it didn’t work and they won’t admit it. How insane the last two years have been.
Total respect, half a million in guitars and pedals, masking tape to extend the life of your glasses. Priorities 100%, I have holes in my socks, just bought an ultra Stratocaster.
@@ThatPedalShow i bought sooooooo many pedals because of you guys, at last count i had 378 😂😂😱😱 PS: 122 are OD and Dist pedals 😂😂😂 Some might call this a problem 😂😂💪💪
Unfortunately in these lockdown times of cutting my own hair I’m tending to find myself asymmetrically hard clipped... and I’m not a fan! It does tend to give the sensation of increased headroom though I suppose. 😋
lockdown, cutting, asymmetrically, hard clipped, fan, headroom...man the most intelligent humour Ive encountered for a long time, maybe you should do lockdown standup or sitdown... : )
This has been one of the most educational guitar videos I’ve ever watched. Thank you to Mick, Dan, Simon, Frasier, and everyone who supports these two awesome gentlemen.
This episode is ace. Watching TPS and your comradery over a shared interest and intellectual endeavor has been truly nourishing. As a middle-aged man with little social interaction, it helps fill a void - I imagine that is true for a significant part of your audience. Your bravery and (Timmy-like?) transparency about mental health has also been inspirational.
Absolutely. Dan & Mick are awesome, and in my middle aged adult daydreams I get to hang out with them and play guitars and try pedals. "...as a middle aged man with little social interaction..." I'm right there with you brother.
Was I the only one screaming "Dan! Its a 1987X!" ? Guys - so grateful for your time, effort, wisdom and merch! Keep it going, been on the journey with you a mere 3 -4 years and loving it.
One of the more informative shows you’ve done. Basically a video of “a-ha” moments. The main reason I started watching you guys is I am the type of person who needs to know how things work and your old video about the different types of OD was the first one I saw. This makes so much sense and now I understand so much better why I like the combinations I do and why I use my Golden Fleece/Archer/TS/Carpe Diem (TPS edition!) in the ways that I do. Thanks so much!
Thanks guys! I have been playing electric guitar for 40 years. This video simultaneously taught me more, and left me more lost in the wilderness, than all of those 40 years of mucking about. :) Great video, really!
I'm sure many people have said this before... but thank you for the awesome work on the video description. I love watching older episodes and having that information and timestamps helps a ton! Cheers guys, glad to see more TPS again!
I feel after this I'm one step closer to attaining my phd in tone. Or atleast being able to impress the ladies with my knowledge of diode clipping. I'll let you guys know how it works out! Cheers!
I think your new-found knowledge re: diode-clipping could be a disadvantage when chatting to most of the ladies. If you do find a lady who is impressed by this, then she is definitely a keeper :)
When you clip the signal, this is the equivalent of adding a series of harmonics at varying amplitude. A square wave is the sum of all of the odd harmonics of a sine wave at the same frequency - hard-clipping is an loose approximation of a square wave. So, clipping is adding harmonics. If you add EQ that can lower some treble (aka a low pass filter), you can then subtract some of these harmonics back out again. (Analog subtractive synthesizers are based entirely on this idea). Hard-clipping into a low pass EQ will tend to sound more like a soft-clipping, and you can dial in exactly how much (or little) "harshness" you want.
Well said. As a fellow EE, thank you for posting what I have been meaning to after numerous TPS overdrive/fuzz episodes - in particular Josh Scott's visit on the topic. Based on superposition and FFT / IFFT between time and frequency domains, the roundness (sharpness) of the corner of the clipped signal has a significant impact on the higher frequency harmonic content of the output signal. As do the various symmetries (e.g., rising versus falling clipped corner symmetry, among others) for odd/even harmonics. I'd love to see/hear Dan explain the above at a high level with a few simple graphics.
The square wave out there in the world isn't actually the sum of the series of harmonics, though. It's just a p.d. varying with time, or - at the business end - a speaker flapping backwards and forwards. The harmonic series thing is a mathematical trick to build a square wave. And I think the series is 1/3 sin 3 theta + 1/5 sin 5 theta + 1/7 sin 7 theta and so on, so the higher orders are getting gradually less 'loud'. The Fourier thing is a way to analyse a real wave, and - a bit like how our eyes 'do' colour - it's where someone has built the maths off what our brains are actually doing. Your brain does a massive amount of processing, and most maths is a clever way of codifying that processing (I think!), similar to how natural language is a way of codifying stuff in the world. In effect, what Line 6, Strymon, Fractal and all those are doing is hard maths, which suddenly makes it seem a lot less r-n-f'n-r.
@@andyrichardson9039 I disagree that this is merely a mathematical trick. They are two ways of looking at the same thing - time domain or frequency domain, and you can't change things in one without changing them in the other. As a musician, you don't need to understand the maths of this, but I think its interesting to know overdrive/distortion isn't magic - it's the quantifiable addition of harmonics, and that leads to understanding the role of a EQ/tone control to help shape these further.
Aand we're back !!! 36 minutes in and I Pause and pick up a guitar for half an hour or so. Not complaining. I often need a nudge of encouragement, and that is often provided by your good selves. TPS Syndrome - an interesting phenomoenon... 🖖
I'm about 25 min in and just noticed the tape holding Dan's glasses together! LOL! Go hard or go home! Keep up the amazing work/learning/teachings guys. Greatly appreciated! Highly educational!
You fellas have taken me to absolute school for these years since I've found your show, and I freaking love you for it every time. All the gratitude, gents.
I remember several months ago asking y'all if you could approach your vids in a more structured format. Mick, you said it would never happen. Obviously, you were kidding cause this vid is 🔥 and very nicely structured. Great job fellas! Cheers!
This was one of the top 3 videos both of you have ever created!!!! I enjoyed learning from this video more then any other because you narrowed the focus of its content and explained sonically and the technicals so well ! "man you 2 work so well together! Wonderful ! Thank you.
Thanks for this! There was a lot of information here, but not in a bad way. Like many of your videos, more will sink in with each re-watch. These are a great resource!
Dan and Mick, thank you. Watching your many OD and Distortion sessions over the past 5 years, this has to be the epitome of all the research, hard work, and many hours of talking about stacking, gain, clipping, etc. I finally got to see the famous Dan looking up and thinking ‘graphic’ and what’s going on in there. Loved it. It really help put all those discussions in a context I now finally really understand. Grateful. Thanks guys.
Hello from Hull in the People's Republic of Yorkshire! Brilliant episode, as always, and you guys are amazing. A few years ago when I began watching, all I knew was that some combinations of guitar, amp and pedals had or had not worked when I tried them. My understanding of the reasons for the success or failure of the tones I was trying to achieve, increases massively every show I watch. I hope we all live at least another 50 years or so, so I can carry on benefitting from your knowledge and experience. Huge thanks for helping me make far better and well-informed choices. Keep on being Titanic Tone Tutors, and massive thanks again. I hope purple and orange clipping LEDs give the sexiest tones!
Paul Cochrane has stated the “Tim” pedal is actually more identical to the Jan Ray than the Timmy. From Paul - "The only difference between the Timmy and Jan Ray is the trim pot. It alters the opamp gain and the freq response of the bass control. This was stock in the old Tim - it's similar to the boost control, but I had it set to engage with a footswitch instead of always being on like the Jan Ray. It changes the value of one resistor which does have a big effect on the sound. I made the Timmy because people were asking for just the main part of Tim in a small box without the boost circuit or fx loop. In hindsight I wish I would have just kept that control... " I’ve combated this difference by using the Timmy with a Pigtronix Class A Preamp/ Boost at 18v ALWAYS ON. This gives you the headroom the Jan Ray has, but you get the 3 different clipping options with the Timmy, that the Jan ray doesn't offer. The default setting of the Jan Ray, is the Timmy's clipping diode switch all the way down (The Tubescreamer clipping mode). I prefer to leave it in the center, which is the most transparent. INCREDIBLE SOUND!!
This has got to be one of my favorite guitar effects videos I have ever watched. This content is incredible and I am more and more amazed at the depth of knowledge you both have! You are doing the guitar community a great service and I thank you for it!
I'm in a classic rock cover band, and my gain section is a Bluesbreaker style, Rat, Tubescreamer, and Klon style. So versatile! Bluesbreaker for always less gain, Rat for higher gain, TS for mid bump, and Klon for solo boost.
I know this is said all the time, but I’ll say it again. Dan’s laugh makes my Friday mornings here in Texas. Starts my weekend off with a smile. Never stop what you guys do. It’s magical.
Simply a wonderful video! I’ve been playing since age 10 (now 54) and have become obsessed again with guitar and distortion pedals. This was by and far the most fascinating video. (And I just got a CS “T” and i can’t put it down). Love the show the tones, your playing styles and personalities.
I found a high headroom EQ and an OD that I liked the clipping in. I run that OD into the EQ after I find my right "clean" sound, then I placed a heavier OD after it. I can either stack or have a dedicated clean-edge of breakup-and heavier/lead tone. (Pedals used: Timmy - MXR Eq (silverbox) - Super Crunchbox - EQD Arrows)
One of the best videos of the internet. Very clear, very articulate, very methodic explantion and approach to presenting and explaining. Not too technical, not too superficial (for my taste). I would have maybe added a graphic explanation at certain points (as you did in the beginning). 10/10.
Wow guys- this is awesome! To be honest, when I saw the title for this show, I thought- wow, these guys have talked more about overdrive than probably any one else alive- what more can they add? Then I saw the opening pedal board, and thought, this can't last a whole hour- not with just a few basic pedals. But then you brought out the second board, with newer pedals like that Ages that I've been eager to hear/ learn about. And then you dove WAY DEEP into all the technical stuff and I was hooked. Watched the whole thing- loved it. I find I can buy overdrives one after the other, and they all not only sound different, but more importantly they react to my playing / rig differently. I love how this episode never descends into "buy this magic pedal" but instead really works to demystify a complex but potentially understandable subject. What I find is that all of this stuff discussed here is even further complicated by real world band situations. Last night I got the guys into my garage for our first rehearsal since the quarantine (almost 4 months!!!) We forgot half the songs, but really, it wasn't bad. In those four months I've been playing with my board, and bought a new mxr Timmy. In the band context I was disappointed that , in a way, it's too transparent- aka- it just wouldn't cut through the band mix the way a TS does. I've got a Keeley Aria with a TS style drive on it and the low gain option just cuts like a meat cleaver. It's amazing, but I keep thinking, "I want something more transparent"- but I've been through a bunch of pedals and just can't find the right one. I have a fulltone full drive 3- and the boost side is nearly perfect, but the standard drive tone is not to my taste, so I ripped it off the board hoping to replace with it the Timmy. Need to play the Timmy more, but I have that sense that the tone journey just isn't over yet. You'd think finding the right pedal would be easy- but at least for me, it just isn't. Thanks guys for a great episode!
In December here in the states... The plexiglass between them seems somewhat superfluous...
4 ปีที่แล้ว +1
I’m absolutely in love with the butterscotchish-kinda-golden-shade-of-yellow of Dan’s vintage tele... I dream about finding a lefty tele on a similar color one day. AWESOME episode, guys. Cheers!
I was NOT confused by this video. Being a retired EE helps a lot. This discussion was enlightening for me and relevant to making great sounds. Understanding how something works is crucial to using it. You two guys get an honorary EE degree from me. You made no errors in your explanations and I was a bit surprised how well versed you all are in electronics and waveform analysis. Clipping sine waves creates harmonics as well as some aharmonics based on how heavily clipped the top of the sine wave. This sees to contribute to that dirty sound you get. I'd love to see a spectrum analyzer included to see how harmonic content varies with options like silicon, germanium, mosfet, gain, EQ etc.
Oh my god. You guys are phenomenal! This is the best explanation and demonstration over gain, clipping, headroom, etc... that I have seen to date. I know everyone might differ on this opinion but it certainly made much more sense to me after watching this episode. I love how you didn’t try to over simplify it because often its too diluted and too basic for where I am at. I’m certainly not a know it all, but I surely know more than I ever have after today. Thanks Mick and Dan, you two are awesome! Shoutout to Simon for the phenomenal work with the graphic diagrams! We appreciate you too buddy!
Right, I'm 35 minutes in and for me this is hands down the best video you've ever done. So much info, so well explained, and it's making me want to go and play with pedals armed with this new information. Thanks very much for this video!
It's a beta version gig rig accessory, eye tracker sensor for selecting pedals and pre-sets... or it's a bit of tape as he hasn't thought of it yet... Tangent alert!
A great show lads! I’ve watched many of your shows. This is among the best. I’ve been playing for over a half century, professionally for 45 years. Apparently I still have plenty to learn. Thanks a million.
This episode makes me want to build pedals, but I have no electronics knowledge or ability! How interesting would it be to sit down with a pro and they take you through a build, trying all different components, circuits etc. And learning to draw circuits and build them.
I need to try some soft-clipping overdrives again. I've never been able to gel with them. It's not a tone thing, because they definitely sound great. I just feel strange playing with them. I've recently started running my amp hotter and using an attenuator though, and I really wanna find out how that affects the feel with soft-clippers.
Learned literally everything I know about pedals from you guys! Thank you for doing this kinda stuff. Still have a long ways to go, but I’m a lot farther along than I’d be without you guys!
If I may add a little more info, There's another case other than the soft/hard clipping diodes... It's not very frequent, but it's "no clipping diodes at all", so that the clipping is given by the signal hitting the supply rails after being amplified a lot. The result is a harsh/gritty/fizzy clipping.... That's what happens in the 2nd channel of the Gladio 🤓
The Rat is one of those. It's sound is a lot to do with the LM308 clipping. There is a version where can turn off the clipping diodes, can't remember which.
1) Long episodes are probably exhausting for you all but omg what a dream. 2) Went to a big store here in the US, properly distanced etc, and tested out the AC 15. OMG. As soon as I'm not in an apartment, I'm absolutely getting one. Get home and there's one on the show. Perfect.
This was brilliant! I want to be open minded but I just do not “get” the tubrescreamer into a clean amp thing. It just sits on top of the clean sound in an odd way, its like there is a mixer circuit set to the midpoint. Too much of the clean tone comes through. As a boost, I love it though!
I've been brushing up on my electronics while in quarantine and thought of studying pedal circuits. What a perfect time for this video. You guys are a blessing, thank you so much!
This is SUCH a great video! I would be over the moon if you did this for some common modulation pedals (don't know if the concepts translate). As a (maybe) budding pedal maker myself (i've bought a diy kit lol) i find these so incredibly well thought out and clear. Big up whoever did the graphics. I know its more complicated than this, but as a starting point for understanding the core concepts its brilliant. Keep up the lords work guys!
Love all the graphics! It's sooo much easier and clearer to explain this stuff when you can just point to the schematic and say "this part is doing this" than to describe these nebulous features
Wow fellas I might have to watch this episode a couple of times, lots of very interesting information. I modded my Boss SD-1 a couple of years ago with a kit from Monte Allums which added an Asymmetrical and Symmetrical option and also an option for increased (X2) clipping. Thanks to your video I now have more of an understanding about what is happening in the circuit. I’m going to play with it today and really think about what is going on under the hood. Thanks you very much I love your shows, keep up the great work. Cheers Marty from Melbourne 🇦🇺
Awesome job guys. You really nailed this one. I've been designing circuits for 7 years now and you guys really hit it out of the park. I did a similar clinic for some DIY pedal people, where we breadboarded up a typical op-amp & a cascading JFET overdrive circuit. I had someone play through it while I changed components to showcase the same stuff you covered in this episode. Just something as simple as changing the clipping diodes or the input cap n resistance can have a dramatic effect on the overall feel of a circuit. Again great job guys
I was watching their “thoughts on tremolo” video yesterday, and they were talking about why they like low output pickups. We need that too! Great vid guys
This is SO profoundly helpful. I'm a songwriter who is just passable on guitar, but I have been getting more into electric guitar and this style of "typology" video with the descriptions is exactly what I need to understand the "big boxes" that overdrives fall into. I have learned so much from your channel, and i really appreciate the time. If this video works for your channel something similar for modulation would be super cool too :)
This was the episode I've been waiting for! Not perfect, not gonna fan boy here... but, really got me rethinking some of the basics. As someone with some formal electrical engineering training and years as a casual guitarist I wasnt thinking I'd walk away with much from this episode. But, damn... Mick and Dan did us well. Really hope this is the first in a series of more technical analysis and reflection into various effects.
I'm really impressed by this video. I saw this and the tele/strat video as the first ones I saw from start to end, and they are both terrific. It's so nice to see a TH-cam channel that takes it's viewers seriously enough to go into details the way you guys do. I must admit I've been scared off by the length of your videos earlier, but that's just because other TH-camrs have trained me to expect a lot more (mostly) joking around in such a long format. Which is fine, but not what I'm looking for. This is great content! Thanks guys!
Gentlemen, I think you really outdid yourself with this episode. Really helpful in giving me a set of concepts I knew nothing about. And despite the complexity, I came away with clarity. Well done!
Yet it sounds so great! I use my Klon clone the same way. Now I hardly ever use the Klon clone with single coils, so maybe that's why. But I just love the sound of a Klon type pedal cranked by a full sized humbucker in the bridge position of an ES-347 throught an AC30 or AC15.
I'm only 1/3 of the way thru this episode and I'm really "wow-ed" by this technical description of what all is going on with overdrive. It now makes way more sense to me when I listen to different pedals to better understand what is going on inside and also how better to experiment with the controls besides just randomly "turning stuff and see what happens" You guys are genius and philanthropic gents :-)
When can we expect to see the first 'Steinhardt Effects' pedals Dan ? if you understand them so well you may as well have a go !! I'm sure the faithful here would support the venture.
Well done gents! I've been waiting 5 years for you to do this episode. I finally understand symetrical and hard clipping in the Klones, and 1k and 3.2 is why I love it. I use the Matthews Effects Architect v1, though I miss my BYOC Crown Jewel.
I am so happy to see you've finally included some simple sine wave diagrams to explain exactly what "clipping" means. The top of the waveform is "clipped" off.
It may well do to you. In this environment Klon sounds pretty bad to me. Mick here. But into my amp when I’m feeling it, it’s just majestic. It’s the maddening variability of guitar tone! :0)
I kinda find SD1 as let say "big mac" of Overdrives. Its nice, big thick etc, but maybe you develope different taste buds and want some let say more artisan burgers. Not to bash SD1 or Bigmac :D
@@ThatPedalShow idea for t shirt... a list of all the conditional statements that should follow every comment on tone. (I.e pedal x sounds the best or course it that's all Depending on your tastes, your guitar, your pick ups, your amp, your genre, your bands mix, acoustics, acidity of your sweat, wattage, mojo, astrological sign at birth (of Your guitar not YOU!)
![How Many Overdrive Pedals Do You Need? [Pedal Order & Gain Stacking Like A Pro] - That Pedal Show](/img/n.gif)
Closest thing to wine tasting in the guitar world. We need an episode on pedal and guitar pairings. :)
Lol
The more I watch, the more I realize how precisely centered that plexiglass is. The rug, the amp bench, the Hiwatt, even the pedal shelves on the wall. All are split perfectly by the sheet of plexi right in the middle. Bravo! 👏🏻
You are indeed welcome.
@@ThatPedalShow i know this video is old (in internet terms) but do you recall the settings on the ac15? was it normal channel or top boost? if it was normal where was the channel volume set? if it was top boost where was the treble, bass and channel volume set?
OMG - it would bug the absolute shit out of me if it wasn't. I would be shouting at the computer screen "What was that? Sorry, I can't hear anything because I'm so distracted by your surreal, MC Escher-esque set!"
It's uncanny.
I hate it and the worst part is that now that we know more it turns out all the plexiglass restricted air flow and made things worse. Just like all the idiotic shit they mandated it didn’t work and they won’t admit it. How insane the last two years have been.
The correct number of overdrives to own is n+1, where n is the number you already own. The same formula also applies to guitars.
yea in my case it also counts for chorus/flanger pedals, i think i have 9 of these right now.
Q: How many guitars is "enough guitars"? A: Just ONE more, I promise........
This also is delay/reverb pedals for me.
Alternatively, D-1, where D is the number of guitars (pedals) that will trigger divorce proceedings.
If only guitar players applied the same formula to guitar lessons!!!
Total respect, half a million in guitars and pedals, masking tape to extend the life of your glasses. Priorities 100%, I have holes in my socks, just bought an ultra Stratocaster.
Me before watching - "Ugh, another "overdrive" episode"
Me after watching - "This is one of the best TPS episodes!!"
0:05 OK first error noted... Mick says “hopefully help you choose the right ‘one’ for you”. I am sure he meant ones (plural)
See, now there is sense talking. :0)
@@ThatPedalShow i bought sooooooo many pedals because of you guys, at last count i had 378 😂😂😱😱
PS: 122 are OD and Dist pedals 😂😂😂
Some might call this a problem 😂😂💪💪
@@soulassasin10 Wow, talk about "FOMO", looks like you bought everything, you know "just in case" :O)
@@soulassasin10 Hey man, nothing wrong with keeping your small music store business supplied to keep your customers happy ;)
@@e.g.systems6146 exactly my thoughts 😂
Unfortunately in these lockdown times of cutting my own hair I’m tending to find myself asymmetrically hard clipped... and I’m not a fan! It does tend to give the sensation of increased headroom though I suppose. 😋
👏
lockdown, cutting, asymmetrically, hard clipped, fan, headroom...man the most intelligent humour Ive encountered for a long time, maybe you should do lockdown standup or sitdown... : )
I assume you gained some fuzz?
Brilliant!!!
This is a public service! Outstanding content, this will be reference material for years.
The RAT just sounds so damn good all the time.
Check out the Mesa Boogie Throttle Box if you like the rat.
This has been one of the most educational guitar videos I’ve ever watched. Thank you to Mick, Dan, Simon, Frasier, and everyone who supports these two awesome gentlemen.
This episode is ace. Watching TPS and your comradery over a shared interest and intellectual endeavor has been truly nourishing. As a middle-aged man with little social interaction, it helps fill a void - I imagine that is true for a significant part of your audience. Your bravery and (Timmy-like?) transparency about mental health has also been inspirational.
Graham Bliley I know *exactly* what you mean. Well said!
Wishing you the best brother. Keep rocking
Absolutely. Dan & Mick are awesome, and in my middle aged adult daydreams I get to hang out with them and play guitars and try pedals.
"...as a middle aged man with little social interaction..." I'm right there with you brother.
Yes, yes, yes.
Agreed!!
Was I the only one screaming "Dan! Its a 1987X!" ? Guys - so grateful for your time, effort, wisdom and merch! Keep it going, been on the journey with you a mere 3 -4 years and loving it.
One of the more informative shows you’ve done. Basically a video of “a-ha” moments. The main reason I started watching you guys is I am the type of person who needs to know how things work and your old video about the different types of OD was the first one I saw. This makes so much sense and now I understand so much better why I like the combinations I do and why I use my Golden Fleece/Archer/TS/Carpe Diem (TPS edition!) in the ways that I do. Thanks so much!
Thanks guys! I have been playing electric guitar for 40 years. This video simultaneously taught me more, and left me more lost in the wilderness, than all of those 40 years of mucking about. :) Great video, really!
I'm sure many people have said this before... but thank you for the awesome work on the video description. I love watching older episodes and having that information and timestamps helps a ton! Cheers guys, glad to see more TPS again!
You’re welcome 🤓👍
The mid hump discussion starting around 42:20 is one of the eye opening bits of the 100s of hours I’ve spent watching this channel
Prediction: By the end of this video, I'm going to want about three new pedals.
I feel after this I'm one step closer to attaining my phd in tone. Or atleast being able to impress the ladies with my knowledge of diode clipping. I'll let you guys know how it works out! Cheers!
I think your new-found knowledge re: diode-clipping could be a disadvantage when chatting to most of the ladies. If you do find a lady who is impressed by this, then she is definitely a keeper :)
Yes, let us know how this works....I want to take a turn after your results are in.😉
Yes! My chick loves this stuff. You should see how her eyes glaze over....lol
When you clip the signal, this is the equivalent of adding a series of harmonics at varying amplitude. A square wave is the sum of all of the odd harmonics of a sine wave at the same frequency - hard-clipping is an loose approximation of a square wave. So, clipping is adding harmonics. If you add EQ that can lower some treble (aka a low pass filter), you can then subtract some of these harmonics back out again. (Analog subtractive synthesizers are based entirely on this idea). Hard-clipping into a low pass EQ will tend to sound more like a soft-clipping, and you can dial in exactly how much (or little) "harshness" you want.
Great post where did you learn that
Hahaha this is basic EE/signal processing
Well said. As a fellow EE, thank you for posting what I have been meaning to after numerous TPS overdrive/fuzz episodes - in particular Josh Scott's visit on the topic. Based on superposition and FFT / IFFT between time and frequency domains, the roundness (sharpness) of the corner of the clipped signal has a significant impact on the higher frequency harmonic content of the output signal. As do the various symmetries (e.g., rising versus falling clipped corner symmetry, among others) for odd/even harmonics. I'd love to see/hear Dan explain the above at a high level with a few simple graphics.
The square wave out there in the world isn't actually the sum of the series of harmonics, though. It's just a p.d. varying with time, or - at the business end - a speaker flapping backwards and forwards. The harmonic series thing is a mathematical trick to build a square wave. And I think the series is 1/3 sin 3 theta + 1/5 sin 5 theta + 1/7 sin 7 theta and so on, so the higher orders are getting gradually less 'loud'. The Fourier thing is a way to analyse a real wave, and - a bit like how our eyes 'do' colour - it's where someone has built the maths off what our brains are actually doing. Your brain does a massive amount of processing, and most maths is a clever way of codifying that processing (I think!), similar to how natural language is a way of codifying stuff in the world.
In effect, what Line 6, Strymon, Fractal and all those are doing is hard maths, which suddenly makes it seem a lot less r-n-f'n-r.
@@andyrichardson9039 I disagree that this is merely a mathematical trick. They are two ways of looking at the same thing - time domain or frequency domain, and you can't change things in one without changing them in the other. As a musician, you don't need to understand the maths of this, but I think its interesting to know overdrive/distortion isn't magic - it's the quantifiable addition of harmonics, and that leads to understanding the role of a EQ/tone control to help shape these further.
I love the sheer joy you all express from hearing an overdriven guitar sound. I'm glad I'm not the only one who enjoys such simple pleasures.
Aand we're back !!!
36 minutes in and I Pause and pick up a guitar for half an hour or so.
Not complaining.
I often need a nudge of encouragement, and that is often provided by your good selves.
TPS Syndrome - an interesting phenomoenon... 🖖
I did same. Also not complaining (my hands are, but I ignore. Tone>Pain).
I'm about 25 min in and just noticed the tape holding Dan's glasses together! LOL! Go hard or go home! Keep up the amazing work/learning/teachings guys. Greatly appreciated! Highly educational!
This show is like sitting down to a banquet when u are starving. Love the detail. Magic thanks lads
Hahaha! 😂
You fellas have taken me to absolute school for these years since I've found your show, and I freaking love you for it every time. All the gratitude, gents.
I remember several months ago asking y'all if you could approach your vids in a more structured format. Mick, you said it would never happen. Obviously, you were kidding cause this vid is 🔥 and very nicely structured. Great job fellas! Cheers!
Haha!!! If an hour and half is structured, count us in! Cheers Al!
This was one of the top 3 videos both of you have ever created!!!! I enjoyed learning from this video more then any other because you narrowed the focus of its content and explained sonically and the technicals so well ! "man you 2 work so well together! Wonderful ! Thank you.
Thanks for this! There was a lot of information here, but not in a bad way. Like many of your videos, more will sink in with each re-watch. These are a great resource!
Simply outstanding. This will be reference material for years to come. You guys deserve a statue or something...
Much respect and appreciation.
I was going to teach my sis all about drive pedals (she also plays) and today you post this haha cheers, you guys are the best
Dan and Mick, thank you. Watching your many OD and Distortion sessions over the past 5 years, this has to be the epitome of all the research, hard work, and many hours of talking about stacking, gain, clipping, etc. I finally got to see the famous Dan looking up and thinking ‘graphic’ and what’s going on in there. Loved it. It really help put all those discussions in a context I now finally really understand. Grateful. Thanks guys.
This is hands down one of the most informative episodes. Hats off to you fellas!
The fact that you cats have found a way to keep doing the show during COVID; to keep teaching so we all can keep learning. It's brilliant.
Very possibly the best video you guys have done. Great balance between the technical and the musical. I’ll be rewatching this many times. 👍👍👍
Thank you!
You’re very welcome
I’m rewatching again! Haha
Hello from Hull in the People's Republic of Yorkshire! Brilliant episode, as always, and you guys are amazing. A few years ago when I began watching, all I knew was that some combinations of guitar, amp and pedals had or had not worked when I tried them. My understanding of the reasons for the success or failure of the tones I was trying to achieve, increases massively every show I watch. I hope we all live at least another 50 years or so, so I can carry on benefitting from your knowledge and experience. Huge thanks for helping me make far better and well-informed choices. Keep on being Titanic Tone Tutors, and massive thanks again. I hope purple and orange clipping LEDs give the sexiest tones!
Paul Cochrane has stated the “Tim” pedal is actually more identical to the Jan Ray than the Timmy. From Paul - "The only difference between the Timmy and Jan Ray is the trim pot. It alters the opamp gain and the freq response of the bass control. This was stock in the old Tim - it's similar to the boost control, but I had it set to engage with a footswitch instead of always being on like the Jan Ray. It changes the value of one resistor which does have a big effect on the sound. I made the Timmy because people were asking for just the main part of Tim in a small box without the boost circuit or fx loop. In hindsight I wish I would have just kept that control...
"
I’ve combated this difference by using the Timmy with a Pigtronix Class A Preamp/ Boost at 18v ALWAYS ON. This gives you the headroom the Jan Ray has, but you get the 3 different clipping options with the Timmy, that the Jan ray doesn't offer. The default setting of the Jan Ray, is the Timmy's clipping diode switch all the way down (The Tubescreamer clipping mode). I prefer to leave it in the center, which is the most transparent. INCREDIBLE SOUND!!
This has got to be one of my favorite guitar effects videos I have ever watched. This content is incredible and I am more and more amazed at the depth of knowledge you both have! You are doing the guitar community a great service and I thank you for it!
Thank you for the kind words Caleb! We’re stoked the info is of use to you - thanks for watching!
I'm in a classic rock cover band, and my gain section is a Bluesbreaker style, Rat, Tubescreamer, and Klon style. So versatile! Bluesbreaker for always less gain, Rat for higher gain, TS for mid bump, and Klon for solo boost.
That will do it! Nice one Luke!
This was the best episode of this ever. All the reasons i watch this was summed up in this episode
I know this is said all the time, but I’ll say it again. Dan’s laugh makes my Friday mornings here in Texas. Starts my weekend off with a smile. Never stop what you guys do. It’s magical.
Simply a wonderful video! I’ve been playing since age 10 (now 54) and have become obsessed again with guitar and distortion pedals. This was by and far the most fascinating video. (And I just got a CS “T” and i can’t put it down). Love the show the tones, your playing styles and personalities.
That strat sound! holy cow! 5:09
I Agree
Mick's strats sounds superb, Dan's Tele sound's stiff and flubby. IMHO Peace!!
I found a high headroom EQ and an OD that I liked the clipping in. I run that OD into the EQ after I find my right "clean" sound, then I placed a heavier OD after it. I can either stack or have a dedicated clean-edge of breakup-and heavier/lead tone. (Pedals used: Timmy - MXR Eq (silverbox) - Super Crunchbox - EQD Arrows)
Yay, you are using the ac15. It is great listening to all the incredible amps you have, but it is nice to hear the plain old vox every once in a while
One of the best videos of the internet. Very clear, very articulate, very methodic explantion and approach to presenting and explaining. Not too technical, not too superficial (for my taste). I would have maybe added a graphic explanation at certain points (as you did in the beginning). 10/10.
Liking this just because of the SD-1 making an appearance.
and sound really good in it 😄
Best video about drive pedals ever. Summarizes all one needs to know and explained very understandable way. Great job.
Cheers N 🤓👍
The way the divider lines up with the rug design freaks me out. It's like the rug was a prophecy of the pandemic!
This has got to be Mick setting up the rug. :) :). Attention to detail is what makes this such a great and informative channel.
Looking at the whole layout - the symmetry is spot-on. It's only the shelves on the back wall which are different (sorry Mick :) )
Wow guys- this is awesome! To be honest, when I saw the title for this show, I thought- wow, these guys have talked more about overdrive than probably any one else alive- what more can they add? Then I saw the opening pedal board, and thought, this can't last a whole hour- not with just a few basic pedals. But then you brought out the second board, with newer pedals like that Ages that I've been eager to hear/ learn about. And then you dove WAY DEEP into all the technical stuff and I was hooked. Watched the whole thing- loved it. I find I can buy overdrives one after the other, and they all not only sound different, but more importantly they react to my playing / rig differently. I love how this episode never descends into "buy this magic pedal" but instead really works to demystify a complex but potentially understandable subject. What I find is that all of this stuff discussed here is even further complicated by real world band situations. Last night I got the guys into my garage for our first rehearsal since the quarantine (almost 4 months!!!) We forgot half the songs, but really, it wasn't bad. In those four months I've been playing with my board, and bought a new mxr Timmy. In the band context I was disappointed that , in a way, it's too transparent- aka- it just wouldn't cut through the band mix the way a TS does. I've got a Keeley Aria with a TS style drive on it and the low gain option just cuts like a meat cleaver. It's amazing, but I keep thinking, "I want something more transparent"- but I've been through a bunch of pedals and just can't find the right one. I have a fulltone full drive 3- and the boost side is nearly perfect, but the standard drive tone is not to my taste, so I ripped it off the board hoping to replace with it the Timmy. Need to play the Timmy more, but I have that sense that the tone journey just isn't over yet. You'd think finding the right pedal would be easy- but at least for me, it just isn't. Thanks guys for a great episode!
In December here in the states... The plexiglass between them seems somewhat superfluous...
I’m absolutely in love with the butterscotchish-kinda-golden-shade-of-yellow of Dan’s vintage tele... I dream about finding a lefty tele on a similar color one day. AWESOME episode, guys. Cheers!
I was noticing that plus the rosewood. In this episode it really had a reddish hue more down towards the nut. It was gorgeous!
I'm only 1 minute in and just need to say that that tele sounds phenomenal!
Anybody know what pickups Dan uses, and what mods, if any, he’s done to the electronics?
I was NOT confused by this video. Being a retired EE helps a lot. This discussion was enlightening for me and relevant to making great sounds. Understanding how something works is crucial to using it. You two guys get an honorary EE degree from me. You made no errors in your explanations and I was a bit surprised how well versed you all are in electronics and waveform analysis. Clipping sine waves creates harmonics as well as some aharmonics based on how heavily clipped the top of the sine wave. This sees to contribute to that dirty sound you get. I'd love to see a spectrum analyzer included to see how harmonic content varies with options like silicon, germanium, mosfet, gain, EQ etc.
Dan started playing the bd-2w before the screen said what it was. I said man, now that’s my kind of sound. Sure enough, that’s the one I own.
Oh my god. You guys are phenomenal! This is the best explanation and demonstration over gain, clipping, headroom, etc... that I have seen to date. I know everyone might differ on this opinion but it certainly made much more sense to me after watching this episode. I love how you didn’t try to over simplify it because often its too diluted and too basic for where I am at. I’m certainly not a know it all, but I surely know more than I ever have after today. Thanks Mick and Dan, you two are awesome! Shoutout to Simon for the phenomenal work with the graphic diagrams! We appreciate you too buddy!
Ooo a feature length episode. Well that's tonight's viewing sorted!
I'm sure my other half will love it..... ;-)
Seriously this is the most incredible, comprehensive discussion of gain I've ever seen. Bravo!
Even though I have other pedal options, that SD-1 has been on my board over 20 years now. Can't beat the classics sometimes.
Right, I'm 35 minutes in and for me this is hands down the best video you've ever done. So much info, so well explained, and it's making me want to go and play with pedals armed with this new information. Thanks very much for this video!
- Intro playing: @ 0:00
- What are we doing today? @ 2:00
- Today’s amps: @ 3:40
- Boss SD-1w: @ 4:40
- Ibanez TS808 Tube Screamer: @ 5:50
- Klon Centaur: @ 6:32
- ProCo Rat 2: @ 8:25
- Boss BD-2w: @ 9:40
- BD-2, Rat, TS808, SD1, Klon compared: @ 10:35
- What happens in a normal OD pedal?: @ 11:55
- What is gain?: @ 15:50
- How is overdrive created?: @ 19:15
- Hard and soft clipping: @ 21:45
- MI Effects Super Blues Pro: @ 23:40
- Symmetrical/asymmetrical clipping: @ 24:30
- Different types of clipping: @ 28:45
- Summary so far, on to EQ: @ 38:15
- 1KHz mid boost: @ 42:00
- The Tube Screamer mid hump: @ 48:25
- EQ - thump, nose, bite, air: @ 54:10
- Hamstead Odyssey and EQ placement: @ 55:00
- Walrus Ages: @ 1:04:12
- What is headroom: @ 1:12:45
- Slew rate and dynamics: @ 1:14:45
- Voltage & headroom: @ 1:20:30
yup,whats not to like about the depth you guys at T,P,S plumb
to bring us so much invaluable insight,,in sound ! awesome show .👍
I like Dan's orange patch on his glasses. Somebody should make a Dan S. signature model and you guys could sell it in the TPS store
Requirement has to be the orange is just on one side :)
Take my money.
It's a beta version gig rig accessory, eye tracker sensor for selecting pedals and pre-sets... or it's a bit of tape as he hasn't thought of it yet...
Tangent alert!
A great show lads! I’ve watched many of your shows. This is among the best. I’ve been playing for over a half century, professionally for 45 years. Apparently I still have plenty to learn. Thanks a million.
This episode makes me want to build pedals, but I have no electronics knowledge or ability! How interesting would it be to sit down with a pro and they take you through a build, trying all different components, circuits etc. And learning to draw circuits and build them.
Thanks for making me fall in love again with all of these guitar things. Beyond "feelings" but actual facts and sound!
Master class today. Great show.
A familiar path I’ll happily walk with you again, and see something new each time. Thanks gentlemen 👍🎸🇬🇧
I need to try some soft-clipping overdrives again. I've never been able to gel with them. It's not a tone thing, because they definitely sound great. I just feel strange playing with them. I've recently started running my amp hotter and using an attenuator though, and I really wanna find out how that affects the feel with soft-clippers.
Learned literally everything I know about pedals from you guys! Thank you for doing this kinda stuff. Still have a long ways to go, but I’m a lot farther along than I’d be without you guys!
If I may add a little more info, There's another case other than the soft/hard clipping diodes... It's not very frequent, but it's "no clipping diodes at all", so that the clipping is given by the signal hitting the supply rails after being amplified a lot. The result is a harsh/gritty/fizzy clipping....
That's what happens in the 2nd channel of the Gladio 🤓
Aha! Thanks Emilio. I really like that sound. Mick here. :0)
The Rat is one of those. It's sound is a lot to do with the LM308 clipping. There is a version where can turn off the clipping diodes, can't remember which.
The Tapestry Fab Suisse has that option. There's a Keeley pedal as well...can't remember which one.
1) Long episodes are probably exhausting for you all but omg what a dream.
2) Went to a big store here in the US, properly distanced etc, and tested out the AC 15. OMG. As soon as I'm not in an apartment, I'm absolutely getting one. Get home and there's one on the show. Perfect.
This was brilliant! I want to be open minded but I just do not “get” the tubrescreamer into a clean amp thing. It just sits on top of the clean sound in an odd way, its like there is a mixer circuit set to the midpoint. Too much of the clean tone comes through. As a boost, I love it though!
I've been brushing up on my electronics while in quarantine and thought of studying pedal circuits. What a perfect time for this video. You guys are a blessing, thank you so much!
Come for the knowledge, stay for the playing! Thank you for the great vids. How about a video on tweed style od’s? Like the DanDrive Tweedy
We’re on it!
Les Lius?
Anyone else feel the need to watch this every couple months as a refresher?
Dan, that Tele sounds incredible, and Mick Blue has never sounded better.
This is SUCH a great video! I would be over the moon if you did this for some common modulation pedals (don't know if the concepts translate). As a (maybe) budding pedal maker myself (i've bought a diy kit lol) i find these so incredibly well thought out and clear. Big up whoever did the graphics. I know its more complicated than this, but as a starting point for understanding the core concepts its brilliant.
Keep up the lords work guys!
That Pedal Show: The Movie
Bring it on:)
Thanks! You guys rock!
Which one is best? The answer is of course: Yes.
It always is...😅
Love all the graphics! It's sooo much easier and clearer to explain this stuff when you can just point to the schematic and say "this part is doing this" than to describe these nebulous features
Wow fellas I might have to watch this episode a couple of times, lots of very interesting information. I modded my Boss SD-1 a couple of years ago with a kit from Monte Allums which added an Asymmetrical and Symmetrical option and also an option for increased (X2) clipping. Thanks to your video I now have more of an understanding about what is happening in the circuit. I’m going to play with it today and really think about what is going on under the hood. Thanks you very much I love your shows, keep up the great work. Cheers Marty from Melbourne 🇦🇺
Awesome job guys. You really nailed this one. I've been designing circuits for 7 years now and you guys really hit it out of the park. I did a similar clinic for some DIY pedal people, where we breadboarded up a typical op-amp & a cascading JFET overdrive circuit. I had someone play through it while I changed components to showcase the same stuff you covered in this episode. Just something as simple as changing the clipping diodes or the input cap n resistance can have a dramatic effect on the overall feel of a circuit. Again great job guys
I was watching their “thoughts on tremolo” video yesterday, and they were talking about why they like low output pickups. We need that too! Great vid guys
This is SO profoundly helpful. I'm a songwriter who is just passable on guitar, but I have been getting more into electric guitar and this style of "typology" video with the descriptions is exactly what I need to understand the "big boxes" that overdrives fall into. I have learned so much from your channel, and i really appreciate the time. If this video works for your channel something similar for modulation would be super cool too :)
This was the episode I've been waiting for! Not perfect, not gonna fan boy here... but, really got me rethinking some of the basics. As someone with some formal electrical engineering training and years as a casual guitarist I wasnt thinking I'd walk away with much from this episode. But, damn... Mick and Dan did us well. Really hope this is the first in a series of more technical analysis and reflection into various effects.
I'm really impressed by this video. I saw this and the tele/strat video as the first ones I saw from start to end, and they are both terrific. It's so nice to see a TH-cam channel that takes it's viewers seriously enough to go into details the way you guys do. I must admit I've been scared off by the length of your videos earlier, but that's just because other TH-camrs have trained me to expect a lot more (mostly) joking around in such a long format. Which is fine, but not what I'm looking for. This is great content! Thanks guys!
Thank you for the feedback and the kind words. Great to have you with us!
Ha! Buying one’s own birthday presents is the only way.
Today is my 50th birthday, but I don't need more pedals ... who am I kidding?
@@rhenry6903 I'm trying to work on a pedal out for every pedal in system.
@@metricdeep8856 Never say never. Have you heard the kma Logan? Or Moae Maia?
I just received a HOF 2 X4 for my birthday :) And, no, I didn't buy it for myself.
Gentlemen, I think you really outdid yourself with this episode. Really helpful in giving me a set of concepts I knew nothing about. And despite the complexity, I came away with clarity. Well done!
Hooray!
Nels Cline uses his Klon as an actual overdrive. He's one of the few, though.
Yet it sounds so great! I use my Klon clone the same way. Now I hardly ever use the Klon clone with single coils, so maybe that's why. But I just love the sound of a Klon type pedal cranked by a full sized humbucker in the bridge position of an ES-347 throught an AC30 or AC15.
I use the Tumnus (a quasi-Klone) as a straight up OD. It’s awesome.
I'm only 1/3 of the way thru this episode and I'm really "wow-ed" by this technical description of what all is going on with overdrive. It now makes way more sense to me when I listen to different pedals to better understand what is going on inside and also how better to experiment with the controls besides just randomly "turning stuff and see what happens"
You guys are genius and philanthropic gents :-)
When can we expect to see the first 'Steinhardt Effects' pedals Dan ? if you understand them so well you may as well have a go !! I'm sure the faithful here would support the venture.
Call the Steinhardt Effects overdrive pedal the Xenolith - Rock differing in origin from that around it.
SEX Drive for short.
You could base your pedal off the BYOC Crown Jewel. With the sounds of 10 pedals all in one pedal. Then teach us all how to get all the sounds.
Well done gents! I've been waiting 5 years for you to do this episode. I finally understand symetrical and hard clipping in the Klones, and 1k and 3.2 is why I love it. I use the Matthews Effects Architect v1, though I miss my BYOC Crown Jewel.
Here is what I understand about tubescreamers: They do this whole-gig-one-pedal thing and they're green.
I am so happy to see you've finally included some simple sine wave diagrams to explain exactly what "clipping" means. The top of the waveform is "clipped" off.
Top and bottom at equal intervals = symmetrical clipping
Anyone else think the cheapest (SD-1), sounded the best over all the 'boutique' modded stuff? Probably not!
It may well do to you. In this environment Klon sounds pretty bad to me. Mick here. But into my amp when I’m feeling it, it’s just majestic. It’s the maddening variability of guitar tone! :0)
I kinda find SD1 as let say "big mac" of Overdrives. Its nice, big thick etc, but maybe you develope different taste buds and want some let say more artisan burgers. Not to bash SD1 or Bigmac :D
It is an awesome pedal and always was. Always preferred it over a TubeScreamer
@@ThatPedalShow idea for t shirt... a list of all the conditional statements that should follow every comment on tone. (I.e pedal x sounds the best or course it that's all
Depending on your tastes, your guitar, your pick ups, your amp, your genre, your bands mix, acoustics, acidity of your sweat, wattage, mojo, astrological sign at birth (of
Your guitar not YOU!)
I already looked up the price for an SD-1. Might as well go in for the Waza Craft. 😂
One o f the greatest episodes ever. I’ve been struggling with OD pedals thank you for helping to simply this topic. A big fan from Tacoma WA
I could watch drive pedals being affected by EQ sliders all day
I'm 2/3rds of the way through and this is possibly the best TPS episode ever! Excellent job guys!
Does that pedal come with a Dan? welcome back guys
One of your best episode so far. Thanks for all the quality content