The 90sera marshall bluesbreaker has become a highly sought after overdrive thanks in large part to its appearance on john mayers pedalboard. The blues driver not only quickly captured its targeted audience, but its versatility and character helped it to transcend genres equally as hastily. Help me choose a pedal to complement my boss blues driver discussion in. The boss bd2 blues driver pedal gives you the classic, bluesy sound of an overdriven vintage tube amp in a compact pedal. I have buying and selling these types of pedals for years. That wider use also colluded with a growing pedal mod movement, as the bd2 was a prime candidate for tweaking due to its affordable price and solid tone. First to get some common misconceptions out of the way the somewhat misleadingly named xotic bb preamp actually ha nothing to do with the bluesbreaker, the bb here stands for big britishsound and it is basically a baxandall tonecircuitcontrolled tube screamer type pedal intended to boost marshall style amps and make them sound big. The original marshall bluesbreaker is a low gain overdrive which simulates a slightly pushed clean amp. This popular pedal provides instant access to the kind of warm overdrive and emotive distortion usually.
When i tried it however i couldnt believe how terrible it is. Unlike tubescreamer and super overdrive type pedals, the blues driver doesnt add a mid hump, but instead adds more wide range bass and treble frequencies. The blues driver has long been a favorite pedal for josh, and he credits it for leading him into designing his own pedals and starting his own company. The result is an extraordinary new pedal that combines the overdrive circuits of the boss blues driver and the favored jhs pedals angry charlie, making it one incredibly versatile dualmode pedal. The idea to develop the jb2 pedal was born of the friendship between boss president yoshi ikegami and jhs pedals founder josh scott, and their shared passion for innovative pedal design. But as one of the first pedals on the market that sought to replicate the sound of an overdriven tube amp a task that it performs well the blues driver has now become somewhat dated as newer pedals have been developed, which are even better at tube amp tone.
The top 10 bluesapproved overdrivedistortion pedals. The boss bd2 blues driver is a relatively inexpensive overdrive pedal featuring high quality boss construction. This popular pedal provides instant access to the kind of warm overdrive and emotive distortion usually reserved for 30yearold tube amps. Top amps for blues posted on september 4, 2014 by jay hale every so often seymour duncan likes to take the pulse of their readership to see how their tastes in gear run specific to certain genres. The best marshall tone comes without pedals and a cranked master. Hey big j i think a tube screamer type or sd1, in my case the mxr classic overdrive into a blues driver is a potent combo for all kinds of music. Its overflowing with options for shaping your sound from eqd cleans to mild and heavier overdrive to allout marshall inspired roar.
The byoc british blues overdrive kit is based on the marshall blues breaker which is quickly becoming a favorite of diyers and boutique builders as a more transparent sounding alternative to the typical tubescreamer clones. My current setup is jaguareno myomorphapolarazoom ms50gtwo solid state amps with one overdriven and one clean. Boss bd2 blues driver overdrive pedal thursday gear video youtube a beginners guide to guitar effects pedals. My stock marshall bluesbreaker pedal chip is a jrc072bd. Does anyone run a fuzz into an overdrive then into a clean. Id venture to say its nearly as popular as the beloved tube screamer. Help me choose a pedal to complement my boss blues driver.
The pedal sounds excellent stacked with an amps gain and retains the dynamic response to your playing. And we all know that the super overdrive is a slightly altered tube screamer circuit. I still think this would be a great pedal, depending on which amp it was being used with. So, in what might seem an unprecedented move, boss partnered with the boutique pedal company, jhs pedals, to create the boss jb2 angry driver. I just sold my blues driver after playing and purchasing the boss os2 overdrivedistortion. It is much tamer than its orange cousin the ds1, but it can put out a fair amount of distortion with the gain knob cranked up. While many players like the sound of the stock pedal just fine, many other guitarists like the basic tone but just want it bettermore organic, responsive and dynamic.
However, the blues breaker created some high mids that were not pleasant to my ears, so i returned it. If playback doesnt begin shortly, try restarting your device. This pedal is not talked about much but i really like it. Which of these would be best, or anything else you would suggest. The bb2 bluesbreaker pedal captures all the characteristics of the classic bluesbreaker drive pedal. This characteristic makes the pedal sound particularly beefy with humbuckers. I want it to boost an od3, i already have a bad bob boost and a klon clone that both do the job really well but my problem with these pedals might sound crazy to some. From subtle, transparent drive to screaming lead tones, youre able to shape. It has been displaced by the jb2 angry driver which gives me a little more versatility, but is lacking the fat mod of this pedal as borrowed from the keeley modded blues driver the blues mood in fact being a clone of that. I purchased the marshall bb2 blues breaker pedal because i use the marshall gv2 guv nor with my laney cub 10 amp, and its sound absolutely great. Not since the late seventies, when the ibanez tube screamer and boss od1 made their debut, has a massproduced overdrive pedal won over the great unwashed and corksniffing tone snobs alike.
In praise of the humble, underrated boss blues driver. Original marshall blues breaker pedal planet botch. The casing is solid, much more reliable than the ts9 chri my building quite a switch problem with one of them, and the other is taking that power supply suffer. The blues driver is a well made, solid, reliable pedal that sounds good. The joyo vintage overdrive and ultimate drive come to mind as well as the sweet baby. It introduces an additional boost function, allowing you to push your tone to the forefront. Marshall guitar effects pedals for sale in stock ebay. Thinking of a blues driver as clean boost telecaster. Marshall bb2 bluesbreaker guitar pedal boost and overdrive. Pedals that are fuzz, overdrive or distortion can actually do more harm then good. Is there a list of bluesbreakerbased pedals and variations.
A good example of the original bluesbreaker is vultures by john mayer. View and download marshall amplification bluesbreaker ii bb2 owners manual online. Is a blues driver in the same family as the marshall blues breaker pedals. I have one, i really like it, but they have a waiting list and all that, and it costs some bux. San diego troubadour in defense of the blues driver. From subtle, transparent drive to screaming lead tones, youre able to shape that iconic breaking up sound to your specific needs. Tube screamer into blues driver telecaster guitar forum. Boss jb2 angry driver overdrive effects pedal guitar center. You can stack either way, use each separately or use one as a clean boost to the other and you can get great results with both pedals on at low drive you can really control sustain, feedback, and distortion with these two guys together. The boss blues driver is one of those pedals that everybody has owned or at least played through once. The original blues breaker is designed as for marshall the tube screamer. The bd2 gives you all the textures you need to scream, sing, or cry. Nevertheless, it could be nice to try other ics so i put a support instead. Im not a pedal fanatic but the ibanez ts808 reissue and marshall blues breaker pedals are nice and very usable.
If theres a blues driver clone out there that may work too. Im trying to decide which pedal to get, i want to get a blues pedal, and im stuck between an ibanez tubescreamer ts9, a boss blues driver bd2, or a. I have one slot open on my pedal board and i am thinking about getting a boss blues driver bd2 to smooth out the hdr channel on my vintage modern. The bd2 blues driver delivers the creamy, yet crunchy sound associated with great blues guitar. Even though im using marshall jmps or a hiwatt for the most part now, i still keep the amp clean so i dont have to do any major changes to my pedal settings when i jump to a fender or other amp. Bluesbreaker ii bb2 music pedal pdf manual download. Can also be used for warm distortion with a higher level of responsiveness than most distortion boxes. The first blues driver i had was the diminutive mooer blues mood in fact a mooer mini clone of the keely blues driver mod which added a fat switch to boost the lowend frequencies and upgraded some of the cheaper components to give a more rounded and even tone profile. The reissued version of the original guvnor overdrive effects pedal, the marshall continue reading. Any thoughts, opinions, or experience with this pedal. The bd2 delivers the creamy, slightly crunchy sound associated with great blues guitar. Marshall replaced this original blues breaker pedal with an updated version, which is alleged to be inferior. I cant vouch for that because ive never tried the newer model, but the bluesbreaker 2 is certainly different because it has more than one mode.
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