Aggressive Overdrives/Boosts - What's your go-to?

  • Thread starter Thread starter napalmdeath
  • Start date Start date
Oh, what about the Cusak screamer? I always felt it to "poke" more than the SD-1
 
I found the MXR GT OD to be really aggressive as a boost , so aggressive I don’t use one lol . With the gain off and the level up just around half way or a little more it was a fire breather
 
Barber Direct Drive
an amazing sounding pedal with tons of gain on tap
I also have the SLO pedal on another rig.
Also, an original Marshall Shred Master.
aside from those it's always a KOT set to high gain, but it's not that high gain.
 
Most aggressive ODs I have would prob be the Skreddy Major and Lovepedal Amp11. Both work well in front of a breathing amp
 
hammered said:
I found the MXR GT OD to be really aggressive as a boost , so aggressive I don’t use one lol . With the gain off and the level up just around half way or a little more it was a fire breather
Click to expand...
Flick the internal switch, and it's even more aggressive! LOL
 
you know that chiron is a lot of fun and gets pretty hairy...
 
Not speaking of aggressive output here, but aggressive tone. The Rimrock Lil Mo has a raw, jagged, germanium aggression to it that chugs like a jackhammer.
The Fortin TS9 is on the smooth side, but the mids grind hard and are juicy af.
 
Beyond Black said:
Not speaking of aggressive output here, but aggressive tone. The Rimrock Lil Mo has a raw, jagged, germanium aggression to it that chugs like a jackhammer.
The Fortin TS9 is on the smooth side, but the mids grind hard and are juicy af.
Click to expand...
That’s I think where some of the ambiguity lies. Some call pedals like the MXR GT-OD (as one example) aggressive because of it overdriving and pushing the amp so early in its gain sweep, but the tone itself is more on the smoother side. I wouldn’t really consider most pedals mentioned in this thread the most aggressive ones, but good at getting the amp to the place where it’s well balanced and aggressive enough to work well. For midrange aggression the Fortin TS’s have no close rivals IME other than the 1st version Furman PQ3’s
 
check out the sticky on Wayne doing his version of a Marshall Shredmaster. He will also be adding some options to it as well.
 
braintheory said:
That’s I think where some of the ambiguity lies. Some call pedals like the MXR GT-OD (as one example) aggressive because of it overdriving and pushing the amp so early in its gain sweep, but the tone itself is more on the smoother side. I wouldn’t really consider most pedals mentioned in this thread the most aggressive ones, but good at getting the amp to the place where it’s well balanced and aggressive enough to work well. For midrange aggression the Fortin TS’s have no close rivals IME other than the 1st version Furman PQ3’s
Click to expand...
Which Fortin TS has the more aggressive character, the Ibanez or Maxon? I think you mentioned this before but I forgot.
 
thegame said:
Which Fortin TS has the more aggressive character, the Ibanez or Maxon? I think you mentioned this before but I forgot.
Click to expand...
The Ibanez 808 version (most recent one) is the most aggressive, but it’s also the noisiest and with some amps can be too much and make it sound a bit overloaded, but with most of my amps it works well, especially with my Recto’s, it’s probably my favorite boost for those, but doesn’t get along as well with some of my Marshall type amps. The TS9 version is a bit safer in that way. The Maxon TS9 had better mids than the Ibanez TS9, but the Ibanez was tighter and punchier. The Ibanez 808 version is the one I kept. I’ve got 2 lol
 
Beyond Black said:
Not speaking of aggressive output here, but aggressive tone. The Rimrock Lil Mo has a raw, jagged, germanium aggression to it that chugs like a jackhammer.
The Fortin TS9 is on the smooth side, but the mids grind hard and are juicy af.
Click to expand...

I got a Fortin Ibby Ts9 that came with an amp I bought as part of the deal and really had no expectation at all. I actually like it quite a bit.
 
braintheory said:
That’s I think where some of the ambiguity lies. Some call pedals like the MXR GT-OD (as one example) aggressive because of it overdriving and pushing the amp so early in its gain sweep, but the tone itself is more on the smoother side. I wouldn’t really consider most pedals mentioned in this thread the most aggressive ones, but good at getting the amp to the place where it’s well balanced and aggressive enough to work well. For midrange aggression the Fortin TS’s have no close rivals IME other than the 1st version Furman PQ3’s
Click to expand...
Agree 100%, output does not equal aggression. I’d bet that you’ve got vintage low gain amps that are much more aggressive than many high gain modern amps.
Yes, for wicked mid range aggression the Fortins are untouchable.
 
MetalHeadMike said:
I got a Fortin Ibby Ts9 that came with an amp I bought as part of the deal and really had no expectation at all. I actually like it quite a bit.
Click to expand...
Does your MC like it? Rectos and Marshalls love that pedal. My MTL sounds best straight in imo.
 
Beyond Black said:
Agree 100%, output does not equal aggression. I’d bet that you’ve got vintage low gain amps that are much more aggressive than many high gain modern amps.
Click to expand...
Yes absolutely! To me I interpret aggression in terms of the tone itself, like how gritty/unsmooth and raw it sounds. From that perspective my ‘50’s champ is the champ of all my amps lol, but of course not for metal or what guys here mostly play. My Alessandro’s are also incredibly raw and aggressive, but in a bluesy/classic rock kinda way
 
hammered said:
I found the MXR GT OD to be really aggressive as a boost , so aggressive I don’t use one lol . With the gain off and the level up just around half way or a little more it was a fire breather
Click to expand...
I've kept one of those around for years.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top