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Question: Help, need a volume booster pedal fast!!?
Ok, so I am a lead guitarist and I put this band together!. We are good!!!! But, I am using a solid state amp, which I LOVE! But I need a boost for solos! Should I get a Tube screamer, a DS-1, or what!? I need to get something fast! I have never used a volume pedal, is that what I need!? I love the tone I get from just my amp, chorus pedal and my guitar!. I just need a boost for solos!. Any help or advise would be greatly appreciated! Thank you in advance!Www@QuestionHome@Com


Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:
For a solo boost, you want something that raises the level of your signal without adding too much gain, since adding gain will change your tone!.!.!. sometimes this is a good thing, but often, especially if you already like your tone, you just want a level boosting vs full blown distortion!.

One option is to do something like what Kurt Cobain did!.!.!. use a DS-1 or DS-2 or whatnot, put the level all the way up, put the gain at 1/3 or 1/2, and roll with that!. The DS-1 is a pretty decent pedal, it can function as both a standalone rhythm distortion pedal and in the way I just described for solo boosts!. Any distortion pedal that doesn't have too much gain can be used in this way!.!.!.!. of course, not all will sound good, nor necessarily match the style of your music!. So a pedal like the Metal Zone or Big Muff, not so much, but the Tubescreamer or Proco Rat or DS-1, absolutely!. The Voodoo Sparkle Overdrive is a great sounding pedal also, if a little more expensive than the others!.

Another option is to use an EQ pedal!. Yup, the EQ pedal!. Raise the level, and perhaps make a judicious cut or boost here and there, and you've got a serviceable solo boost pedal!. Very uncolored, which can be a very good thing, perhaps not!. Some people prefer the Tubescreamer because it doesn't add a lot of "color"!.!.!. bullwah!. It adds plenty of "color", it's just the type of color those people find desirable!. It's a distortion pedal - it's going to change the character of the tone! EQ pedals, on the other hand, are very flat!. Where distortion and overdrive pedals may warm up the sound or provide a bit of extra grit or sustain, EQ pedals will not!.

Here's a cheap way to do it!.!.!. set up your rig so that when your guitar volume is at *halfway* you have your normal tone!. Now, when you raise you volume knob you give the perception of adding more volume, more gain, and hence a more "solo" sound!. This can be surprisingly effective, it really depends on how your rig is setup!.

Finally!.!.!.!. get a wah pedal!. I'm using the Dunlop 535Q, and I'm just loving it to death!. Lots of options to tweak the range, width of the Q, etc, and also has both a volume knob for how loud it is compared to the dry signal, and a 20 db solo boost button as well!. Lots of tone in that pedal, and can target a wide variety of styles!. Very versatile, worth every penny!


SaulWww@QuestionHome@Com