Hey KoKo Boost(ers)!

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Kapo_Polenton

Kapo_Polenton

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Does this thing have enough gain on tap for leads if using a stock JMP/800 with medium output pups? It's tickling my fancy.. lately i can't seem to dial out the grit from my MXR OD's and even the SD-1 is failing me. I might just be bored but the only one that is standing the test of time is the bad monkey. The mid boost on the koko sounds killer in the vids I have seen through the 3 positions though. Will I be able to get 80's lead tones out of this thing?
 
The Koko Boost doesn't have any "gain" as it's not an overdrive/distortion pedal
It has up to 20 dB of volume boost, so that's more than you'll ever need to push an amp's input into overdrive
 
Yeah it doesn't have its own gain circuit like a OD pedal. It's just increased signal gain with some tone altering via mid shift.

So you don't really get the compression from the pedal, just whatever added compression you get from slamming the front of your amp.

Guthrie Govan uses a Koko Boost about mid ways up in level on both boost and mid boost side, into a Suhr Badger setup to get some nice clean tones....it was plenty of gain for Guthrie to do Guthrie things. Now, whether that's enough gain for us mere mortals is another issue.

I love my Koko(s).
 
How would you guys compare the boost side with say something that can be found insanely cheaper like the MXR line boost/driver? The only thing that worries me is that i am in part paying for the name on the pedal.. my other question is whether or not it boosts the overall volume of the amp as well if it sits in front of the amp or will it be noticed more when in the loop?
 
I love the Koko. The mid boost alone is worth the cost. I've been trying to play with less and less gain lately so I'm on the Plexi mode on the XTC a lot. The Mid boost set at 10:00 gets me right where I want to be for a nice sustaining lead tone.

The guitar I've been using alot lately is a Jackson PC1 with a Dimarzio 36th Ann PAF...

BTW, The Koko has a really good buffer in it too.
 
Kapo_Polenton":3j7dthw1 said:
How would you guys compare the boost side with say something that can be found insanely cheaper like the MXR line boost/driver? The only thing that worries me is that i am in part paying for the name on the pedal.. my other question is whether or not it boosts the overall volume of the amp as well if it sits in front of the amp or will it be noticed more when in the loop?
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If the amp your using is already saturated there wont be a huge volume boost. The less gain there is on your amp the more noticable the volume boost will be when engaging the Koko...
 
Kapo_Polenton":3r6w0wv0 said:
How would you guys compare the boost side with say something that can be found insanely cheaper like the MXR line boost/driver? The only thing that worries me is that i am in part paying for the name on the pedal.. my other question is whether or not it boosts the overall volume of the amp as well if it sits in front of the amp or will it be noticed more when in the loop?
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I've only compared it to a directly to a few pedals...Bad Monkey, OCD, Timmy, and Spark Booster. The Koko won out in that it was just "cleaner" sounding. The Timmy and Spark Booster are really good pedals, but I like the Koko more as it was a little more transparent and just cleaner sounding. I'd probably have settled on the Timmy and/or Spark Booster if not for the Koko on the board for a direct comparison. So consider that.

As rcm78 said, the amount of volume boost will depend on where you have your amps gain set. I run my amp crunchy that cleans up pretty easily (plexi clone), but not close to dimed and I do get a bit of bump in volume with the pedal on. At first my OCD nature struggled with that, then I got over it don't notice anymore. If I dime it, I don't get much if any volume boost from the pedal.

Also as rcm78 said, the buffer on the pedal is quite good, another thing to consider. It also has an FX link that can be utilized in a fancy pedal switching setup.

IMO experience, it is worth the price of admission. I actually have two, one for a mild boost (with mid switch to the left), and one for a more lead boost (with mid shift to the right). Find one used if you can and if for some reason you don't like it, you won't lose too much money.
 
The SUHR name on the pedal doesn't really put cost into effect unless it doesn't do
what advertised .
I own 3 'boost pedals",All do there own thing but the KoKo stays on my board.

Hell,buy a used Fulltone OCD,set gain low,volume high. That's going to get you
a similar boost to what other "one function" pedals will do.

I understand $250.00 new/$200.00 used isn't something everyone wants to spend
but I will say this, I have 5 -100 watt high gain heads and the KoKo gels with them all.
 
Best Boost ever!!! Money well spent as far as I'm concerned!
 
Thanks guys! I play with my preamp about 7 on Plexi types or my 800's. Sounds like for me i'd notice less of a volume boost and that is what I am after. I'll start comparing the spark booster to the koko and see what tickles my fancy.
 
Just an update on the koko boost. Picked one up at a very good price from a forumite here and received it yesterday. Had a chance to put an 1hr on the pedal so here are my thoughts.

I don't see how anyone would need more gain then is on tap. Maybe i just need less gain these days? There is a shit load on both the boost and mid boost side. In fact, I don't have the boost set any higher than 1/4 for rythm and half way for leads or else i find it too thick and compressed. The mid boost is no higher than 1/4 way up and i am still torn between just using it or using my bad monkey. That's right, the koko boost is yet another fancy pedal that has not and will not kick this damn monkey off my board. So with that here are the +/-'s of this pedal:

Pros

Really widens and fattens the tone. Almost feels like it fills out the other side of the speaker if this makes any sense.

tons of gain and I am playing a dimarzio 36 anni set in this guitar and using a jcm800 or brahma module on my lynch box. More than enough for leads.

Retains the tone and character of your amp

Cons

Even though boosts shouldn't do much volume boosting on a distorted amp, I def. hear a boost in volume. It is slight but it is there. Might be good but might not also be what i want if i have changing volumes when using the koko vs. my bad monkey.

A little too much compression and thickness as the dials go up. Not sure how guys are using these with higher gain amps as you'd barely need the knobs open to feel the effect.

I like the mid boost for rythm playing but not entirely sure i like it better than the bad monkey giving me my mid cut.

All in all, a good pedal. I think it won't be kicking my Bad Monkey out of bed anytime soon but it can def share the mattress. I'll need to figure out a way to be able to turn the monkey off and koko on for leads but that is easy enough with channel switching boxes and such.
 
Kapo_Polenton":2qfmlp4a said:
Even though boosts shouldn't do much volume boosting on a distorted amp, I def. hear a boost in volume. It is slight but it is there. Might be good but might not also be what i want if i have changing volumes when using the koko vs. my bad monkey.
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I thought you were looking for a volume boost?

That was one of the things about the Koko that at first I didn't like. I wanted the boosted tone at the same volume. After some time it didn't bother me anymore.

Also, remember, there is no compression from the pedal. That compression is coming from your amp with a larger voltage swing hitting the grids.

I'm kind of surprised by the "cut" comment. I also felt the Koko added more cut than the BM, as the BM tended to roll off some highs. I am with you on the BM though. I had it for a long time and it's a great pedal for the money.
 
Kapo_Polenton":y0qgkn8i said:
Just an update on the koko boost. Picked one up at a very good price from a forumite here and received it yesterday. Had a chance to put an 1hr on the pedal so here are my thoughts.

I don't see how anyone would need more gain then is on tap. Maybe i just need less gain these days? There is a shit load on both the boost and mid boost side. In fact, I don't have the boost set any higher than 1/4 for rythm and half way for leads or else i find it too thick and compressed. The mid boost is no higher than 1/4 way up and i am still torn between just using it or using my bad monkey. That's right, the koko boost is yet another fancy pedal that has not and will not kick this damn monkey off my board. So with that here are the +/-'s of this pedal:

Pros

Really widens and fattens the tone. Almost feels like it fills out the other side of the speaker if this makes any sense.

tons of gain and I am playing a dimarzio 36 anni set in this guitar and using a jcm800 or brahma module on my lynch box. More than enough for leads.

Retains the tone and character of your amp

Cons

Even though boosts shouldn't do much volume boosting on a distorted amp, I def. hear a boost in volume. It is slight but it is there. Might be good but might not also be what i want if i have changing volumes when using the koko vs. my bad monkey.

A little too much compression and thickness as the dials go up. Not sure how guys are using these with higher gain amps as you'd barely need the knobs open to feel the effect.

I like the mid boost for rythm playing but not entirely sure i like it better than the bad monkey giving me my mid cut.

All in all, a good pedal. I think it won't be kicking my Bad Monkey out of bed anytime soon but it can def share the mattress. I'll need to figure out a way to be able to turn the monkey off and koko on for leads but that is easy enough with channel switching boxes and such.
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//

out of interest did you try an EQ pedal in front of the amp for boosting?

with my jcm800 2204 it's what worked the best out of all the OD/boosts i tried , tailor in what kind of frequencies are missing/too present etc.. works well with various guitars
 
Kapo_Polenton":ovw824jf said:
How would you guys compare the boost side with say something that can be found insanely cheaper like the MXR line boost/driver? The only thing that worries me is that i am in part paying for the name on the pedal.. my other question is whether or not it boosts the overall volume of the amp as well if it sits in front of the amp or will it be noticed more when in the loop?
Click to expand...
Yo man, I just went through comparing a bunch of boosts including the mxr/cae line booster, the Koko's clean boost side and a creation labs mk 4.23. I was using them all to only boost the signal to the poweramp of two amps: first year blackface recto and a 76 Marshall JMP.
Had a friend over who has great ears and we came to the same conclusion.
The best boost was the koko. It wasnt leaps and bounds better than the CAE for this application but there was definitely a little extra magic with that pedal. I actually just sold the Koko on the board a few days ago because I only used the clean boost side. Wasnt a huge fan of the mid side.
The mxr is great for the money.
I just ordered the Suhr Iso boost tho. Im hoping its the exact same boost as the Koko's
 
Long time KoKo'r. I've used one in the loop of my Einstein for almost 2 years, recently starting using it up front. And it smokes. In the loop it was an excellent volume boost and I really liked what the mid side did to the power amp.

So I'll be getting another. One out front and one in the loop. That's how much I like it. I'm sure it works great in front of a lot of pedals but it was kind a magical in front of the Bogner Blue pedal for me. And yes it adds plenty gain when using it to push the front end. :rock:
 
Sounds bigger and cleaner to me at 18 v.....more detailed.....i like the clean boost side more than the mid boost side,i turn the knob around 40%-50% and its perfect
 
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