Williams Audio UK - All Tonebenders Compared - Vintage Tone MKI, MKII OC81D Mullards, MK1.5, MKIII

An impossible task to be honest. Each one of these pedals has its own character, strengths and magical quirks, they are all beautifully made and worthy of your attention. I tried to do the fairest possible comparison setting each pedal to where I think they excel, but of course you might disagree. Nevertheless, enjoy!
www.williamsau...

[@brain21]

Guitar Volume 100%
MkI: 0:18
MkII: 0:39
Mk 1.5: 1:01
MkIII: 1:22
Guitar Volume 75%
MkI: 1:43
MkII: 2:07
Mk 1.5: 2:32
MkIII: 2:56
Guitar Volume 50%
MkI: 3:17 (starting to starve)
MkII: 3:35
Mk 1.5: 3:52 (already sparkly clean)
MkIII: 4:10
Guitar Volume 20%
MkI: 4:25 (really starved)
MkII: 4:46
Mk 1.5: 5:11
MkIII: 5:37
HTH

[@bobilly]

Cheers for this! One of the best Tone Bender comparison videos out there

[@atlasmarr5230]

I have a MK1 and love it to bits but man, in this video the MK2 just gives me chills. I need one in my life :D

[@chriskilian2325]

the MK2 is my favorite, the MK1 is super cool too.

[@jrdoughty13]

Great demo, I love the full power mk I, but the mk III I feel like had the best tonal range. The dirty clean at the end was beastly.
Fun fact, the mk 1.5 cleans up so well because it's more similar to the fuzz face and actually may have inspired the fuzz face.

[@chriskilian2325]

your assessment is spot on, somehow I do prefer the MK2 overall, but I agree most people might be happiest with the MK3.

[@djpgreek]

Love the MKIII

[@chriskilian2325]

It definitely seems like the most versatile and controllable. My favorite is the mk2, there is something very special in the way it cleans up and the in between tones. Also that’s the Jimmy page one😂

[@jakestewartmusic]

IMO: mk1 if you want more spitty and sputtery, mk1.5 if you need excellent clean-up, mk2 if you want a great all-arounder, mk3 if you want more of the fuzzstortion vibe or need a tone control.
mk2 is my personal preference, it had the most balanced overall tone and reasonable cleanup.

[@chriskilian2325]

MK2 is my favorite too

[@67Stu]

Is it possible to demo the Supa Fuzz and MK II Tone Bender with OC75s?

[@chriskilian2325]

sorry, dont own either one of those

[@edsavage6214]

Aweome demo, I see a lot of people in the comments prefer the Mk2, it was my least favourite XD Too dark compared to the others, but great tone nevertheless, all great pedals!

[@chriskilian2325]

My favorite is the MK2 but I think a lot of people prefer the MK3. Right now I only have the MK1 and got a sola sound MK2 OC82D. Sold all the others. I really regret selling this MK2 though. It really is a special pedal.

[@edsavage6214]

@@chriskilian2325 Is the Sola Mk2 also darker than the other ones?
I have an MK1 I made myself, absolutely love the unrulyness of it :D

[@chriskilian2325]

@@edsavage6214 the MK2 is the darkest of them all. But imo it has the sweetest range from volume 90% to 20% on your guitar. The best clean tones in my opinion, not as clean as the 1.5 but with more character and body. It also helps that this is the model used by Jimmy Page in early zeppelin recordings. I really like my MK1 but it really has no clean up sound and that to me is the magic in these pedals.

[@edsavage6214]

Yeah , the cleanup on the 2 sounds pretty nice, not too far from the 3 though...
The Mk1 it isn't fair to say it doesn't clean up, it looses gradually sustain until it starts gating and farting and making gurgly noises on the decays...in a way it turns a bit into a Maestro FZ1 as you go down with both the attack and the guitar volume... (try low guit volume, low attack, neck pickup, closed off tone)
@@chriskilian2325

[@jasonfarraday8427]

Did you use a switcher? The reason I ask is that tone benders (& treble booster & fuzz faces) have well known issues with input impedance. They all want to be literally the first thing in the signal chain, if you didn’t use a good switcher the only one getting a fair shake is the MKI

[@chriskilian2325]

No I did not use a switcher, you do have a point though, but ive played all these pedals first in my chain many times and I did not notice any difference whatsoever while doing this test. I guess the cable run isn't long enough to degrade the tone of the last pedal to a degree that discernible. Also, there is a buffer after the last Tone bender.

[@marioagostini8726]

​@@chriskilian2325 I think he just wanted to show off some smartness.. those pedals are obviously true bypass so no need for a switcher.

[@stevenburvenich168]

MK1.5 is a volume roll off champion, instantly cleanish at 75%. To be expected given the circuit close to a fuzz face.
Iv'e heard MK1's doing the cleanish thing. And MK3's having starvation. Depends on transistor leakage I guess.

[@edsavage6214]

MK1s are really easy to starve and is very common cause 2 out of 3 stages self bias with transistor's leakage, is the most "unstable" circuit of the bunch.

[@apmaphile6857]

nice vid but please turn the attack to one o'clock on the mk 11

[@chriskilian2325]

Sold it and regret it. The best of all

[@UserUser-qt7mb]

I wonder how the mki sounds with the pedal volume all the way up and guitar volume at 25%.

[@the92project]

It won't do much different, the most important thing is that the MK1 really starves with low guitar volume, the most degraded sound out of the 4

[@dasbear10]

Which would be the best for bass?🤔

[@redheadedtuna]

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

[@luizhmax]

What are the transistors in the MK1.5?

[@the92project]

"A pair of NOS germanium transistors carefully matched and tested and selected for low leakage and low noise."