text: Controlling gain with volume knob | The Gear Page
  Controlling gain with volume knob
  Discussion in 'Effects, Pedals, Strings & Things' started by Shawn S., Jul 15, 2008.
  You know, like you can do with fuzzes, and not lose a lot of overall volume or sparkle.
  I like fuzzes, just not all the time. I wish I could have this sort of control without the major volume loss with my overdrive/distortion/boost pedals.
  I noticed, if I don't put a buffer before these drive pedals, I get a bit more of what I'm looking for, but still nothing quite like what one gets with a fuzz.
  Can you only do it with a fuzz? Is it in the circuitry?
  Drives I'm using most of the time are RC/AC/BB.
  Shawn S., Jul 15, 2008
  a cranked amp will also get you there. Fulltone OCD is also pretty good at it.
  Why not just get a nice tube amp that can do this? Most ok amps can already do that really well, as long as you have medium output pickups.
  As for ODs, I noticed that drives that use LEDs for clipping are way more responsive dynamically than "normal" diode clippers.
  Hope that's a start. I was just never a big fun of overdrives. =]
  eleanor296, Jul 15, 2008
  I was just never a big fun of overdrives. =]
  That's funny, I was never a big fan of fuzz!
  It's been a while since I've last had a fuzz, am I still correct in saying they almost maintain the same amount of volume, but just add drive, when used correctly?
  most fuzzes, yes. True observation. To take this a little further, some silicon fuzzes, with the volume backed off, can give you some insanely huge sounding clean tones.
  If you're on the market for a new amp, you might want to luck into a Trainwreck clone for the ultimate in picking dynamics... pretty nice cleans to VH lead distortion with the flick of a volume knob. Always been a big fan of those. They make OD pedals laughable.
  Thanks for the amp suggestions, guys. Appreciate it.
  I really like what I'm doing now, I'm just a really nice love-my-cleans kinda guy. Usually a BF Deluxe sometimes paired with a Tweed Pro, for a bit more grit.
  Although it might not be possible, the Strat clips on the Komet site are amazing, I would just like to do something like that, but don't see a Komet in the future anytime soon.
  check out Ceriatone.com
  also, brownnote.net will be coming out with an 18W version of the Trainwreck, which means you can actually crank it without your ears bleeding.
  eleanor296, Jul 16, 2008
  There are overdrives that do this almost as well as a fuzz face. Here are a few off the top of my head.
  Skreddy screwdriver (this is actually a fuzz derivative)
  fr8_trane, Jul 16, 2008
  A treble booster will enable you to this very effectively. I use a Java Boost on the mid boost setting and I control everything from the volume knob.
  screwdriver's a big muff if I remember correctly. Skreddy didn't change much except using better components. Nice sounding pedals.
  The Box Of Rock is -in theory- cascaded SHOs, so ,if your amp doesn't have too much headroom ,they can, in addition to "overdriving" each other, also overdrive your preamp, and make it clean up again well by backing up the volume.
  I still prefer amp overdrive for the best in dynamics. ODs always color the tone.
  Boosters in front of an overdriven amp sound also nice, as I already said.
  There's many options, really. Just don't get blinded by all the hey-let's-name-some-boutique-pedals posts (not trying to offend anyone, but they do happen).
  Would it be wise to say that, the more overdriven and pushed an amp is naturally, the more likely it will clean up well while still retaining a bit of that sparkle/not muffled sound.
  Shawn S., Jul 16, 2008
  exactly. We're not talking high gain amps here though. High-gain amps get really fizzy and... well... unpleasing clean sounds. But up to medium-high gain, that's right.
  screwdriver's a big muff if I remember correctly. Skreddy didn't change much except using better components.
  Screw Driver is not based on the Big Muff.
  "This unique Skreddy Pedals design features a mosfet treble-boost input stage followed by a highly modified, tightly-controlled, hybrid fuzz circuit."
  Sikor, Jul 17, 2008
  Telenordia TA-100..
  Germanium overdrive with Fuzz feel...
  Grant Ferstat, Jul 17, 2008
  The volume knob is affected by the fuzz loading. At max. the fuzz loads down the high end. As soon as you turn down, the pickups recover, but the volume control is loaded down and cuts the level a lot faster as the knob goes. So the actual guitar output is different when you click on most fuzz. Also treble boosters.
  OTOH there is actual dynamic response. Muffs load down the signal a good bit but never really make it to clean. Other pedals might exaggerate the dynamics. If the dynamics have a "swell" effect, that will include that it gets louder when you turn down.
  spentron, Jul 17, 2008
  Interesting, do you have an example of something that does this?
  Also, is an amp's input similar to the load of the fuzz when on? Sorry, I don't know much about impedance or the like.
  Shawn S., Jul 17, 2008
  "skreddy --the Screw Driver and Lunar Module are derivations/enhancements of the FuzzFace circuit. That's how they're the same. From there, they go in two different directions. The Screw Driver has a mosfet input stage, which emphasizes the cleaner side of things and makes it get along with whatever you put in front of it."
  My bad... a fuzz face derivative. And a really good sounding one too. That one could make you pretty happy, if you go with what skreddy said in the post abve.
  eleanor296, Jul 17, 2008
  No. A good amp is 1M (1 Mega-Ohm, or 1,000,000 ohms), "resisting" the flow of current, not acting like much attached to the pickups at all. Good pedals are often 500K (500,000), 1M or higher. Big Muff is about 40K and Fuzz Face isn't so much a resistor as a transistor loading it down.