Analog Man Boss DS-1 Pro Mod

Mine has the midrange mod as well...so 4 knobs...it is not hard to dial in a tone...

Heres my setup...ibanez as103 bm into source audio hothands wah, bk butler tube driver, ds-1 pro/midrange, tu-2, xotic rc booster, moogerf ring mod, keeley tr-2, ch-1 chorus, rv5 reverb, dd-7 digidelay into hot rod deluxe. I love this thing! the midrange mod is worth it in my opinion if you are playing gigs because instead of turning the volume up if your not cutting through, you just turn the midrange and it still retains the sound you had before, but cuts through just a bit, especially good if your using a boost pedal...I love this pedal so much, its so smooth and deep sounding, with tons of saturation. I have compared it to my keeley modded rat, absolutely analog green russian, analog mike sd-9 midrange, keeley sd-1, ts-9 silver TB, bk butler tube driver, among a hundred others...anyway, for live distortion I havent found anything I like more. This pedal is also very versitile and the sounds are pretty limitless as distortion goes. I like going from satch style lead tone to ej to scofield with the turn of a few dials. I havent tried anything that is a true "marshall tone in a box" but this thing comes pretty damn close. cant give anything a ten, but ide give this a 9.5

its a tank, unless you somehow get a dud, which sucks, then no i wouldnt have to have a backup

always great...forgot to send me my t-shirt though...I want to sport you on stage mike! send that shiz man

I play modern DnB, trance, jazz fusion, funk, heavy-type rock, electronica, acid jazz, and everything between these lines. It is hard to find good tone for the first few genres as they have not been around for awhile, but this pedal helps me get my own and I feel like i am able to successfully transition from genre to genre with minor tweaks with the knobs on this pedal.

Before I get going let me say this....WOW!!! This is the best sounding tube amp in a box I have ever heard. Straight from the box it sounds great. I came in the normal Boss package with the stock info and what not. As easy to use as any regular Boss pedal, only much better sounding.

I play mostly a 335 style semi hollow Hagstrom Viking and also play Fender Tele's and Jagstang. My amp is a Fender Hot Rod Deville and also a Fender Eighty-Five solid state amp for some harsher tones. The pedal is not noisy, at the highest gain level the notes are clear and rich, full of great overtones and harmonics. It's a great pedal if you're looking for mellow to all out sustained distortion, I can get some of my favorite artist tones from it. I was actually blown away that I was able to get a Black Keys tone from it.

I have only had it for a little while but if it's like any Boss pedal I'm sure it will stand up for a while. I do have a few other pedals that I use for overdrive/distortion but this will be my main pedal for harder tones from now on. Mike has always been helpful and I'm sure this pedal will last a long long time.

I play classic rock mixed with some of my own stuff, this pedal stacks up great with the music I play. I've been playing for a long long time and also play a bunch of other stompboxes like Love Pedal, Farndurk, Psionic Audio, Vintage FX, Arion, Boss, Lehle...etc If this pedal was stolen I would replace it in a heartbeat. I have nothing negative to say about this pedal. It doesn't matter where you set the knobs, it sounds great all the time. I was on the hunt for a long time for a higher gained overdrive/distortion and looked into and tried out lots of other stuff, I am very happy I chose this pedal and look to purchase some more gear from Analogman. There are lots of stuff on my wish list, I won't even get started. This pedal will be in every gig and recording session, I have actually started using it on some new recordings already. Last I will say, I highly suggest anyone looking for a crisp, smooth, velvety, creamy, clear, tube like, overdrive/distortion pedal you should get one of these. YOU WILL NOT BE SORRY!

It??s very easy to use.
Normal Boss boxing.

In every position it sounds good and not weak. Really true.
Not noisy.
Yesterday i compared it with a Maxon SD-9 which is a great Pedal too.
The Analogman Boss DS-1 accents the mids and the gain i like very much.
Not comparable with the stock DS-1 although it??s a good sounding pedal too.
The Analogman DS-1 is actually for me the best sounding distortion pedal.

Not as long ago i??ve bought it so i can??t say something about Reliability. Boss Pedals are well made but in this mod-case in depends on workmanship. Time will show.

I??ve emailed with Analogmike because after unpacking i saw that the sticker on the Pedal (Analogman) was not straight and inside two solder point were forgotten. I was very annoyed about this. I expected unstudiedly a TOP Pedal. Analogman Mods seems to have an established reputation.
So i made pictures from the Pedal (outside and inside) and sent him the pictures. He was sorry about that.
He emailed me that i can do the Sticker straight and resolder the resistor or i can send it back to him (at this time i paid incl. shipping and tax $165 for the pedal). This admit was for me no option.
I beg him to check the pictures if all Pro Mod components were obstructed.
He told me that apart from the enumertions faults the Pedal "looks ok".
I believe him and would furthermore buy Pedals by Analogman.
He answered all my mails.

I play mostly Marillion - like melodic Rock. I (38 years) play since 4 years ambitious. At this time i have a US Fender Strat with SD Lil Screamin Demon (B), Lace Hot Golds (M/N), Boss DD3-, RV5, Laney Tubeamp LC30, Crybaby 535q, Pedaltrain.
I compared it with the Maxon SD-9, stock Boss ds-1.
I think i would buy the Analogman DS1 again.
I know that Steve Rothery from Marillion has one ( he has told it to me individually). He uses this for older songs.
If you like the older Marillion Sounds i assure you.. with this Pedal and my nothing special equipment you you get the tones.
Overall it meets all my requirements. I can recommend the Analogman DS1 with ProMod.

Very easy to get great rock tones out of this pedal. Even better with the external midrange knob.

Compared to a stock DS-1, actually scrap that, you can't compare the two....! Analogman's mod totally transforms this pedal. You can go from full deep rich rhythm tones to a screaming lead sound very easilly. I went for the optional external mid-range pot, very usefull is going from a scooped metal sound to a classic rock sound.

I use it through Matamp gear which is voiced towards a classic Marshall sound, i can get a great Satriani sound from this setup. Played through a Fender Blues Deluxe it does a good Marshall crunch, but if you roll off the tone your into Santana territory

It's a Boss pedal so i imagine it's going to survive for many years. I did open it up to look at the workmanship inside... a top notch clean job with no mess, very tidy indeed.

I've emailed Analog Mike many times about certain pedal which i 'need', i always get a reply within a few hours.

I bought this pedal direct from him, but i have also sent him a pedal from the Uk, it took 3 weeks in total from me posting it to playing it modded. I also had updates from Mike when the pedal had arrived, when the work was completed and when it had been posted.

I've had a stock DS-1 many years ago, everyone i knew had one! i then replaced it with a Keeley ds-1 ultra, which i then sold on ebay some 2-3 weeks later, it was just over bright with not much low end... but for some situations i imagine it to be fine. I don't use too much Distortion when gigging but at home i like to pile it on, this pedal has masses of distortion delivered in a tonefull way

Easy to use, just like a normal BOSS DS 1 three switch. Tone, Distortion and level switch. NO PROB! Pretty easy to dial in the settings you want.

I used this followed by a AnalogMan TS9 and Keeley TS9 with a delay after. I use this for main rhythyms and the TS9s for a volume boost lead. The sound is MUCH improved over a stock DS1. I feel the stock didn't have much tone or change, even with the distortion all the way up or down. Mike's mod improves this sooo much. I have this one and the Keeley. I prefer Mikes. His has a lower end to it, and very even, deep tone throughout. I like the tone about a 11 oclock, distortion about 1 or 2. Its perfect for me. What I like best is you can honestly hear individual string response- it doesn't get lost in the fuzz. This pedal is more of a solid-state Marshall sound. Not alot of tube noise, but very even-ed out.
Compared to the keeley, and why I prefer mikes more (up to you)
Keeley's has more midrange to it, brighter sounding. Theirs works with an LED clipping system. It gives excellent individual string response, but is noticably a LOUD pedal. Also, its a very dynamic/responsive pedal. You play soft, not a lot of distortion, wail on it-- thick distortion.
I prefered AnalogMikes to this because once i dialed my settings, his has the same response, without dynamics. Its equally loud if i palm mute or wail power chords. Not much volume difference, and dynamics are still heard. I like that its evened out. The Keeley I still use for a brighter sound, very good for fast hard picked leads, but not my fave. If I'd pick one, its Analog Mans.

Well, BOSS are built like tanks, never had any problem. Mike is a stand-up kinda guy, and I opened the pedal to look at what he did. Its very clean work, better looking than when i mailed it in. (he states he cleans up the "stock solder" even if thats not where he replaces a part). I have used this w/o back up. No worries here.

Excellent. Mike answered ALL my questions before I bought, not even knowing i would buy. Everything I read about him is due to word of mouth, and is due to his awesome service to his customers. He does treat you like his best friend. No problems, and i know he will keep this reputation if something goes wrong. Each email I sent was responded to in 12 hours. Great guy.

i play for church worship- bluesy stuff to rock for youth groups/retreats. Gig some as acoustic-type rock with good ol'fashioned (Collective Soul sound) rock thrown in. This pedal is a NEED for my sound. MIke nailed it. Get it!

As easy as the stock Ds1 but you can get many more cool sounds out of this one.

The sound quality is much better than the stock Ds1. The pedal is in the Pedaldoc, Robert Keeley league. As good for me as a much more expensive distortion.

It is still a boss pedal so I would say it is highly dependable.

I only contacted Analog man to order the pedal.

Great distortion for only a few bucks more than the original Ds1 (which by the way sounds really dodgy).

If I lose this pedal I will probably get another one.

Very easy to use. There are only three knobs. You do have to be a little sensitive to the level and especially the tone controls, but they all work very well.

I love this thing and have bought two of them. I ust this with a 50 watt plexi Marshall clone and run it into a variety of cabs. If I set the amp fairly clean, it will do nice bluesy overdrive without the tubescreamer mid-hump. Turn the amp up to where it's just breaking up and it sounds great for Blues/Rock and old-school rock tones like Angus, Billy Gibbons, Allmans, Aerosmith, Zep etc. I don't play modern mid-scooped metal so I can't comment on that. For me it works better than any overdrive/dist I've ever used. for perspective, I've had or still have the following: 1997 Fulltone Fulldrive, Fulltone '70s Fuzz, Roger Mayer Axis fuzz, RM Classic fuzz, RM Voodoo 1, Analogman Sd-1 Silver, Analogman BD-2 Bluesdriver, Various tube screamers, EH Big Muff (original 1972 model, Way Huge Green Rhino, and possibly a few others I can't remember anymore. My only dissapointment in this box is that right after I bought my last one, they came out with a midrage control addition that I would have liked to try. Hmm... maybe i'll just have to get another. Yes, I like it that much.

It's a modded Boss pedal. I can't see how you could hurt it under even the heaviest use.

Mike always answers email in a prompt, informative and friendly way. No problems at all

Been playing 38 years. Blues, Blues/Rock, Rock, Jazz, some country, slide etc.. Play mostly strats, teles and a LP. The Ds-1 Pro likes them all. I have NO complaints or dislikes about this box. It does everything I want really well. I've owned my first one for a year-and-a-half so the honeymoon is definitely over and I still love it. I use it every day and unlike most other stuff, it always sounds good to me. As I said before, the only thing I'd like to try is the new midrange control feature Mike just came up with and the only reason for that is curiosity. This pedal has huge bang-for-the-buck. I'd buy another without hesitation

Easy to use

i play a wolfgang archtop into a mesa boogie nomad 55 with bunch of fx in between. i got an analogman ds-1 after getting a keeley. i was really disappointed in the analogman. i actually thought something was wrong with it. but i took it to music store and a/b with stock pedal. analogman sounded better than stock pedal but not much. the keeley blows this thing out of the water.

i am sure it will hold up for whoever buys it from me.

Mike is great about answering your questions and does it in a timely fashion.

i have been playing for 29 years and i know tone. this pedal was really a let down.

3 knobs. Very easy to use.

I loved modding pedals and I compared this to a Ds1 modded by Pedaldoc. The sound of the Analogman pedal is somehow more compressed but I find more appealing the openness of the Pedaldoc pedal. However this pedal doesn??t sound bad at all.

Boss product. No problems until the day you decide to sell it or throw it to the rubbish can.

Never had to contact Boss or Analogman.

Very nice sound. Much better that the stock pedal, no doubt. As I said above I compared it with a Pedaldoc modified pedal and liked that one more though. Better sound and definition. I will be comparing both of them with a Keeley pedal shortly.

Modded pedal. Three knobs, lots of tones. Love it.

Took a peak inside both pedals. Great workmanship. No slop. Feel certain that they'll last.

Never had to deal with Boss, Keeley or Analogman, but have read wonderful things about both Keeley and Analogman. I've also read their postings on forums, and they both seem passionate and supportive when it comes to tone.

I play anything from backwoods hillbilly acoustic stomp to pink floydish soundscapes to blues to rock to metal. I mostly record at home and sometimes gather with my family and jam. I've been playing almost 18 years now. I have lots of gear, have had PRS guitars and Boutique amps. Always looking for something different. If both pedals were stolen, I'd have a hard time deciding which one I'd want back. I'd miss em both. When I decided to get both, I wanted to compare and sell the one I liked least. I'm keeping them both, for now. I'd keep only the Keeley if it had another switch that added the mids found in the AM. I think. I sold a Vintage ProCo Rat so I could buy the Analogman. I loved the distortion on that thing, but could never get happy with the tone knob. I hated to let it go, because the distortion was everything I wanted in a pedal, but dammit, that tone knob just sucked! I've had several other dist pedals including Danelectro Fab tone (that I got rid of, just ok). I tried out the EH Metal Muff, and it's an awesome pedal if metal is your thing. I found that I could get close to the same tone with my POD 2.0 on the rectifier model, so let it go back in favor of the Keeley DS-1, which started my desire to compare the Keeley and Analogman. Overall, you can't go wrong with either pedal. Get the AM if you want to nail the Marshall tone. Get the Keeley if you want something real close, but that allows you to play outside that box. Both pedals are a good deal for the cash.

Straight forward and simple; tone, level, dist knobs. Dial your tone and enjoy the tone.

This is an amazingly musical pedal. The distorion is very full, smooth and realistic. I have an original "Made in Japan" stock DS-1, and while the distorion is similar in many ways, the PRO has a much broader frequency response (more mids, clearer highs; more presence) with more usable settings. The tone knob can be utilized from any position, unlike the stock which generally only sounds good set at 9 o'clock or lower. The distorion setting can sound good turned all the way up or all the way down, and the level seems to be just a smidgen' or so louder. This pedal easily out stomps many on amp distorions and can make a solid state amp sing. I've played it through the clean channel on a Tube Works RT-2100 and it gives the amp life I didn't think was ever possible. As far as how this pedal compares to the Keeley DS-1 Ultra, THE ANALOGMAN DS-1 PRO HANDS DOWN HAS A SMOOTHER AND MORE REALISTIC SOUNDING DISTORION. I own a Keeley Ultra and I can see it being useful in certain ways but if you are interested in full, rich, saturated distorion, it's all about the Analogman. The Keeley to my ears is just overly harsh and unlively. The PRO has much more harmonic content, available distortion, and usable settings. The Keeley is very full sounding, especially in the bottom end, but it lacks drive and doesn't emphasize the right frequencies. In my opinion the stock Made in Japan DS-1 even sounds better than the Keeley. I bought the Keeley Ultra first because of all the hype but I just was dissappointed. I bought the MIJ DS-1 around the same time, and found it completely replacing the Keeley. Now the Analogman, while not replacing the stock DS-1 (it does still have a useful and musical sound), is becoming a permanant addition to my setup along side my Analogman SD-1/TS-9.

It's a BOSS. They're built like a tank. What else is there to know?

Mike is a very respectable business man and doesn't feed you bulls**t. I had many questions for him and he answered each and everyone promptly and straight forward. Bottom line, I'm very impressed with Mr. Piera's business conduct.

I've been playing for about five years now and. I'm no slouch when it comes to playing and pride myself on being able to step into any musical situation and tastefully contribute. I have been critisized countless times for my pickiness when it comes to tone. I've played and own many an amp, pedal, and guitar and I always find myself cycling through them all to get where I want. Until I bought my Analogman DS-1 PRO, I was in an extreme tone battle with my gear. I wanted something that would thicken my leads while not compromising my rhythm work. I'm now in the process of selling a big portion of my gear, all because of this very musical pedal.

Standard Boss controls, only now, they actually work. The stock unit's tone knob goes from too bright to too muddy, now the tone knob is very responsive, with much more range and versatility. The distortion knob is also more responsive, with great sounds all the way through. Now, this pedal is easy to use. When I owned my old stock DS-1's, I always had trouble dialing in a good live sound, now, it's much easier.

I use a Gretsch Chet Atkins Tennessean, three Gibson Les Paul Standards, and vintage Twin Reverb and Deluxe Reverb amps. I seldom use the Gretsch, preferring the Les Pauls for rock and shred type music.

In my opinion, this pedal sounds fantastic. I have owned many stock DS-1 pedals in the past and always had a love hate relationship with them. They always sounded thin, and very buzzy at higher gain settings, and the tone knob was terrible. Now, the pedal sounds great all through the gain range, and the tone knob actually works, you can fine tune a variety of sounds with it.

The DS-1 Pro sounds much cleaner, it is still distorted, but without the fuzziness or white noise. When I play single notes high up on the neck, the notes have a round and smooth quality. I always found the notes with the stock unit to be thin and sharp sounding. When I play chords, the notes are very clear, and the pedal has excellent sustain. I dont find it to be too noisy, even when being boosted with my TS-9. The sound is very smooth, with just the right amount of bass, middle, and treble. There is no mid-hump, so the pedal is very transparent, and lets the different attributes of my guitars come through. I have used the pedal live, and in my bedroom, and its one of the only pedals that to me, sounds good in both places. This pedal also works very well with my Dime Custom Crybaby Wah, which got lost with the other pedals I tried.

Some of my favorite artists are Gary Moore, Slash, Eddie Van Halen, Yngwie Malmsteen, and Joe Satriani. I think that this pedal is flexible enough to approximate any of those sounds, and more importantly, help me to create my own. I have great clean sounding amps, so I wanted a pedal that would sound convincing in the distortion department, since I dont have a Marshall stack at my disposal. This pedal works great with my Fender amps, and gives them the second channel I always wish they had. In my opinion, this pedal works well for blues, rock, and 80's metal. It wont do the scooped Mesa Nu Metal thing, but thats ok, I hate that kind of music anyway. For my needs, this is about as good as it gets, and thats VERY GOOD!! Nothing is perfect, but this is close, so Im giving it a 9.

Boss. Enough Said.

Analog Mike is a busy man, but he promptly responded to each of my orders very quickly (DS-1 Pro and SD-1 Silver). I emailed him and told him how much I liked the DS-1, and he promptly emailed me back. I feel that he is a class act, and I will be going to him from now on for my pedal needs. This man has a great ear for tone, and is on top of things. What more could you ask for??

Recently, I sold all of my standard mass-produced pedals on ebay and began searching for a great overdrive/distortion pedal combo. I searched for about two months, trying everything from Fulltone and other boutique makers, to mass produced pedals. I was not happy with any of them, they all lacked something. Finally, I started researching modded pedals, and after looking at all of the pedal modders out there, I decided to order from Analog Man. Im very glad that I chose Analog Man. I have never been happier with a pedal.

I chose the Analog Man DS-1 because I felt that the other mods from other modders were too gimmicky, I dont need gimmicks, I just want tone. This pedal, in my opinion, is the best all around distortion pedal out there, and for the price, its a STEAL. This review may sound glowing, but it is honest. I feel that the pedal is THAT GOOD. If you need distortion, and are picky about your tone and techinque, this is the pedal to get. It does not cover up your playing style, so if you have good technique you will appreciate it. I really like this pedal, so I ordered the SD-1 808 Silver Mod, which I should have in about a week. The SD-1 will replace my stock TS-9, which I may sell or have modded also. I was skeptical about modded pedals, but now I'm a believer. Analog Man has found a new customer, Im very happy with my choices.

Three knobs, you turn them and stuff happens so... very easy to use.

I am using a customized 79 Fender Telecaster with a Strat neck, Seymour Duncan Hotrails in the bridge and a Duncan Hotstack in the neck, Early 80's Charvel and a mid-80s Charvel, Fender Blues Junior 1X12 amp for home recording. I also use a bunch of other Boss effects with this pedal.

The Analogman DS-1 is the sound I always wanted a stock DS-1 to make. I have played the Taiwan DS-1 and the Japan DS-1 and Analogman's DS-1 is the best sounding distortion pedal I have ever heard.
I usually have the Tone at 11-12 o'clock, the level at about 12 o'clock and the Dist at 3 o'clock. With the stock pedal I always had to really turn the level way up on the pedal and it really never seemed to put out. Analogman's pedal seems to have more of a boost with the level knob. As for the tone knob, WOW, it finally works. You can now adjust it to what you want rather than what Boss makes you have. The Distortion level is what really shines on this mod. On the original when you turn the Dist on 0 it sounds kind of muddy and flat, like the tone knob went out, and the more you crank it up the more broken-up fuzzy it gets and you loose the distinction of the strings. This especially happens if you pick out distorted chords. With the mod and the Dist on 0 it is like an old Boss OD-1 really dirty and clear, the tone doesn't change when you turn up the Dist either. When I have it on 3 o'clock this pedal really shines. The distortion is very smooth and warm and huge and picked out chords sound amazing. This is by far the best money ever spent on any pedal I have ever owned.

Extremely dependable, it's a Boss.

I would never play without this pedal.

I have called Boss for other things like replacement rubber bushings where the screw for the battery is and they have always been outstanding.

I have been performing and recording music for over 22 years. I play rock along the lines of the Foo Fighters, Rival Schools, Husker Du, Sugar, Third Eye Blind, etc.

If this were stolen I would replace it immediately.

I love that it sounds the way Boss says there stock pedal should sound. Boss says "The DS-1 provides a harder distortion effect for guitar sounds. Instead of toneless, fuzzy distortion, the DS-1 faithfully reproduces all the subtle nuances of your playing dynamics, from whisper-quiet to screaming loud. The onboard Tone control allows you to tailor the overall sound to your liking."
The stock Boss pedal does not do this but Analogman's DOES!

Three control knobs for tone, level and distortion. All are totally useable to tailor the sound you want.

I have a 1985 MIJ Fender 57 RI Strat (stock), a 1983 MIJ Fender Tele with Lindy Fralin Vintage Hot pups, and a 1979 MIJ Samick 335 copy with Mighty Mite PAF Vintage pups. I play through a Blues Jr. (with a Jensen C12N). I run through a Digitech RP-50 for a touch of delay and reverb, an AnalogMan modded Maxon OD-9 Tubescreamer (808 mod), the AnalogMan DS-1 (Pro Mod) and a DynaComp (CMATMODS). I normally use both the Tubescreamer and the DS-1 as clean overdrives. The Tubescreamer by itself takes the Blues Jr. just into the earliest stage of tube overdrive. The DS-1 by itself takes the amp into full crunch overdrive. Both together turn my Blues Jr. into a double-stack Marshall. The Pro Mod cleans up the buzz saw distortion and produces sweet tube distortion. The tone controls can be used at all settings without squealing as can the output level. The distortion goes from crunch overdrive to full tube amp distortion within half of the settings. From there you are on your own. You can get just about any natural tube sound you want. You can also determine the amount of distortion you want by rolling down the volume on the guitar. It cleans up incredibly.

Built like any Boss product, solid as a rock. Never need to worry about a backup.

I bought directly from AnalogMan rather than sending him one as it is less expensive to do so. He goes out of his way to answer emails and I am confident that he would take care of any problems if any develop. I haven't had any problems yet with either pedal.

I play blues and heavy rock from the 70's. This pedal really cranks. The clean setting gives ballsy crunch and I can get the wall of sound by turning up the distortion. I've been playing on and off for over 30 years and this pedal sounds great through my Blues Jr., my Frontman 25R and my Marshall VS65R. This pedal gives me the sound that I damaged my hearing for during the 70's (and still never really got it right!). I'd replace it in a second. This is not a pedal for everyone. This is about full blown tube distortion, as in natural distortion. Make sure you know what you want. I chose AnalogMan to mod this pedal over Keeley and others due to the info on his website and the work he did on my OD-1. His work is the highest quality. The pedal is more than worth the price.

Easy to use, turn the knobs and at all settings the thing just completely disappoints me.

Fender Deluxe Strat with Fralins into: Loooper A/B/T/Boss TU2 tuner-> Channel 1 (reverb, actually channel 2): Maxon OD9-Analogman Stereo Chorus-Maxon AD900, Channel 2 (clean, actually channel 1): Analogman SunFace (soon to be removed)-Analogman DS1-vintage Ibanez FL9-vintage Ibanez AD9. Amp is a 65 Reissue Fender Twin Reverb.

The DS1 sounds horrible alone or in conjunction with any of these other pedals.

Eric Johnson IS the man. Steve Morse is his twin brother.

Wouldn't bring it to the gig...actually it is about to go into junk cabinet. Probably would withstand a nuclear reaction just to continue haunting me senselessly.

Analog Mike is wonderful. You ask him a question, he'll answer it with a good response. You ask him a stupid question and he'll still answer it. I just didn't land on the right box here folks.

I am replacing the DS-1 and the Sunface with a Maxon SD-9. The OD-9 just sounds like heaven. When you think of the Eric Johnson title "Bloom", this is what I think of the sound that comes out of my Strat-OD9-Analogman Chorus-AD900-Twin...it blooms. It makes my knees melt, which is why I am going to stick with Maxon and go to the edgier side with the SD-9.

I bought this thing trying to get somewhat close to a Marshall sound. Not. This thing sounds like a retarded frog farting through 3 compressors.

Again, this isn't Analog Mike's fault...he is trying to meet the needs of a wide range of different players and styles.

I bought the mod version directly from AnalogMan. It came in the original Boss box, with manuals. Also nice stuff from AnalogMan. When I first plug cables in/out it didn't make any sound, so I disconnect and re-connect the battery, and problem gone (I believe it was a cable failure, never happened again).

Three knobs, volume, gain, tone. No need more, except undertsanding relationship between gain and tone.

I had to add an aditional eq to get the real sound I wanted. That's probably a result of my gear, but dissapointed my a little at the first time.

I'm actually using an Ibanez RG270 (original pickups), into the DS1/PRO, then to an GE7 Boss eq. And a Zoom 3030 is providing mod effects, delays and reverbs. All to the clean channel of an Peavey Studio Pro 60.

My inicial tweeking session wasn't very succcesful, because I had my amp's volume nearly at 1. As result, tone settings beyond 9 o'clock were too buzzy for my taste (I was using only the guitar, the DS1 and the amp). On the next session I made, things came out so natural. I plugged the EQ basicly raising some mid freqs, and set the amp eq bass 10:00, mid and treble at 12:00. Man! I have never heard my guitar sound so clear, strong and defined. Actually I've never heard any distortion pedal with an tube overdriven sound like this one, specially on an clean transistor channel.

And you can actually control gain with the volume control of the guitar, getting the most of every combination of gain/tone in the pedal without getting palid or weak. Almost every combination it's useful, it deppends on what you want to hear. From classic rock, to blues, jazz, funk to metal... every thing it's in here. All you have to do it's the correct tweeking (including pedal eq's and amps eq's).

Altough I'm not reaching Satch's sound (I know I'm pretending too much with my gear!!) , I think this is an real start to reach the tone I've always wanted and never getted from any "multieffects" unit. Never before my sound were "out" of the amp and all over the mix. I'm really happy now, believe me! I give a 10 for all the change that one little box can do!

Like everybody understands, it's a Boss. I believe my initial problem had to do with some cable. I opened the unit to see if there wasn't anything wrong, and believe me, this is first class artwork what Mike do on the inside. I trully rely on this unit, and of course it's an elemental part of my gear.

Mike is a customer service oriented person. He understands every single doubt you can possibly have, and have an opportune answer for all of them. In my case, it was my first on-line buying (I live in Costa Rica)so I had a couple of "procedural" doubts regarding to payment. He wasn't not only interested in selling his pedal, he oriented me all the way, trough all the process, what else could I say, if this is not customer support, then I don't know what else could be... I'm still in contact with him, and he's been all suport...

I used to play hard rock, some alternative and classic rock years ago with a band. After that, I've always been practicing in my house and about a year ago I joined a rock band again. I replaced my Zoom 3030 multieffects distortion with the PRO, because it was good for home practice, but when the real need came, it could never get out of the amp. I did a small research on the internet and wasn't difficult to reach AnalogMan as a source of good tone. It opened my ears to the real tone shaping bussines, you cannot emulate real good tone with digital stuff, specially not with the cheapy ones! That's for shure.
All of my research lead to make a small change by adding this pedal to my gear, and use the Zoom just for mod effects, delays or reverbs.
Enough to give my sound an 180? turn. If stolen or damage, I wouldn't doubt to buy another, maybe two for replacement!
Of course now I'm on my way to buy other modded pedals from AnalogMan. Believe it really makes the difference. If you're not depending on a digital unit to shape your tone, you MUST have this pedal.

The DS1\Pro Mod is simple to use and very easy to get good sounds out of it. If you know how to use a Standard DS 1 then this is no problem.

American Series Strat & Tele w\ Noiseless Pickups > Maxon CP101 Compressor > MXR 10 Band EQ > Boss DS 1 Pro Mod > Ibanez TS 808 (Factory Reissue) > Ibanez CS 9 Chorus (Reissue) > Ibanez AD 9 (Reissue) > Fender Deluxe Reverb Amp (Again a Reissue!)

When I got this pedal I put it right in my effects chain and into my Vibrato Channel (as I had been playing this way) and kept getting a raspy, scratchy kind of sound. I put it through Channel One (Volume\Bass\Treble) and it sounded Killer! I have never heard a more "Musical Sounding Distortion Pedal"!!! I kept switching back to the channel with Reverb (because I feel the need for a bit of reverb) and it sounded bad.

I emailed Analogman and explained the problem. He was very understanding and offered a few suggestions and along with the help of a Fender Amp Tech at my local Dealer, we determined that it was just the way the Vibrato Channel was 'voiced' and not the pedal itself.

Bottom Line. I didn't want to alter my amp in any way and I didn't want to have to manually switch channels when I desired distortion so I sent it back. BUT THE SOUND STAYED IN MY MIND! IT WAS THE RIGHT SOUND ON CHANNEL ONE!!! I had a credit to my account (minus shipping) within a couple of hours.

Mike's pedals and work are ABSOLUTELY QUALITY KILLER STUFF! I wish it could have worked out! But thankfully there are people in the world who understand and Analogman does!

N\A

Top Notch! A+++ You couldn't ask for better people to work with than Analogman and his team (whoever they are)! They are great!

This pedal would be absolute THE PEDAL TO OWN to cover everything from a moderate Overdrive Sound to Full Distortion. It ain't a metal pedal, but that's not what I got it for. This is the most musical sounding Distortion Pedal I've ever played (7 years)! Get it!

*See my Review under Radial Tonebone Trimode to see what I wound up doing.

Sound: Piece of cake.
Editing: not applicable.
Manual: The standard Boss "Our pedals are the best ever", shlock.

Mike,
So, as a guy who has owned and/or played just about evey distortion pedal ever made: Pro Co., MXR, Ibanez, Boss, DOD, Digitech, Nobels to name a few. I recently purcahsed your mod DS-1 Boss Dist. and put it to the test. I went out and purchased a brand new DS-1, just don't tell the guys at Guitar Center that it was for comparison purposes only as I returned it the next day citing connectivity problems. I did the side by side sound comparisons. Man, I tell you, it is scary the difference in sound between the two. The Boss (original) sounds like what I paid for it, app. $48.00. Your DS-1 mod is just plain "AWESOME"! Tone, sound quality, volume. Let us remember that my rig consits of a Les Paul w/ EMG 81/83's, Marshall JCM 2000 and it is all volume and tone bleeding through a pair of Eminence Wizard speakers w/ a pair of stock Celestion 75's in a Marshall 1960 4x12 cab. I keep the drive and level at 12 and push the tone to about 1or 2 o'clock and it is just incredible how much tone and character this little $112 dollar gem pumps out. My primary style of music is punk/hardcore/metal and simply put, this thing kicks my tube screamer (yes, a real tube screamer) in the ass! Just wanted to thank you again for an exceptional mod.
Peace,
RAZOR RAY RODRIGUEZ / THIS MEANS WAR
pokerfacerecords.com
break-throughrecords.com

As far as stomp boxes go this pedal is built to last.
Backup? What my Ibanez Tube Screamer or MXR Dist+?
Nah, I'd sooner buy another mod DS-1.

It's amazing how quickly Mike responds to e-mails.
Must have a bunch of elves doing all the dirty work for him. Ha ha...

Musical Style: HARDCORE/PUNK.
Match: Perfect.
Years: 22.
Gear: Marshall Amps, Epiphone Guitars, Dunlop Wah.
Replacement: Never buy another from anyone but AnalogMike.
Love: Tone, sound, mod!!! No negatives. Tone!!!
Comparisons: None!
I wish it came with a siamese twin in the same box for the same price.
Makes my music sound that much better.
Need I say more???

Easy as a boss dirt pedal gets. Not hard to get a good sound.

I play a Les Paul w '57s and a PRS HollowbodyII through '72 Deluxe Reverb with a Hotplate. I am a classic rock and blues kind of guy and never liked the fuzz or distortion pedals I encountered. I had tried the factory DS-1 and promptly unloaded it, way too fizzy and fake sounding. Kind of settled on a stock SD-1 for my dirty sound, just turn up the volume and attenuate more too. I decided to give the Analogman modded version a go and MAN, WHAT A DIFFERENCE! I can imitate the Marshall sound (Guns&Roses, Foreigner....) quite well while the Deluxe is still clean, and it turns down to a decent overdrive range also. Cleans up with the guitar volume also. Give it a turn if you havent, this is a gem and wont break the bank.

Its still a Boss!

Never have, but I know they answer the phone from previous questions and dealings

Hey, dont pass it up if you wont the Marshall sound from a Fender. $100 buck new or convert your old beat up DS-1 that sounds bad. I think its a keeper for me.

Hi, Harmony Central review person. I just looked through the review of the Analogman Boss DS-1 mod and noticed that part of the "Sound Quality" section of the review by a fellow calling himself "Littlehat" is missing--it just cuts off in mid sentence.

I happen to have copied that review a few months ago and if you'd like to restore the missing part (to add it back?) I've included the entire section below under Sound Quality.

It is a bit long, but this guy's review was key to my trying both the Analogman and the Keeley mods on this pedal, and for the most part I agree with his review, although I'd have to also rate the Keeley a "9".

I also notice that Littlehat intended to give the Analogman pedal "9" rating but inadvertently entered a "7". You might want to change that, too.

Thanks! and have a nice day!

Mark Beach

Guitars:
Hagstrom Swede (old PAF in neck, Duncan 59 bridge), Hamer USA Custom Shop (w/ Duncan Hot P90 neck, Custom P90 bridge), Homemade Franken Strat (original Hotrails), and an SG. I have more guitars, but these get used for rockster sounds with the DS1 pedals.
Amps:
68 Fender Dual Showman Reverb (modded to Blackface specs), 68 Fender Princeton Reverb (modded to Blackface specs), DBL Amplifiers JDR Custom 35 (35 watt all-tube Marshallesque head), DBL Amplifiers JDR Custom 60 (60 watt all-tube Hiwattesque head), Fender Tonemaster 2X12 Cab w/ Celestion Lead 80's (I love this thing! It beat out all other external cabs for years before i finally just sold all my others)
Analogman DS1 Pro vs. Keeley DS1 Ultra:
This is a head to head comparison of the Keeley DS1 Ultra Mod and the Analogman DS1 Pro Mod. I'm in several performing and recording bands, and I've always liked the timbre of the stock DS1 in that it's nasty, and it has a certain JCM 900/Soldano/early Mesa high end mushiness that's so satisfying when you want high gain sounds. But the stock pedal has many drawbacks... It's noisy, as hell. It's output volume is lower than your clean guitar when you turn it off, even with the output maxed (where most of us leave it). The tone knob takes your sound from muted, fuzzy, fusion right to trashy squeak with almost no transition. And it tends to sound like crap (flat and small with not enough low end or mids) next to a good dirty amp or a tube pre. Turning down your guitar's volume knob to clean up the sound is a bad move since it results in grainy, tinny crapped out sound. Most diehard users dial their amps to suit this pedal if they really can't live without it's particular sound.
Workmanship:
Looking inside each pedal is the first big clue. In short, although both seem to function properly, the Keeley looks like crap inside and the Analogman looks totally pro. Every new solder point in the Analogman pedal is a little BETTER than factory. The Analogman mod replaces tons of components AND THE ACTUAL OPAMP CHIP (strange that it sounds closer to the stock pedal in the ways you liked in the first place?), while the Keeley looks like a highschool tech worked on it as an experiment on his buddy's pedal. Some components are replaced, but the chip is not, and the LEDs that are added (and do look cool from the outside) are attached in a real pile of poorly done soldering.
Sounds:
Though the Keeley mod is less tidy, the pedal looks and sounds very good, though less like a DS1 pedal in most ways. I took this one out on tour (the Analogman hadn't arrived yet) and i got a ton of feedback from other guitar players around the country. They seriously came up to me after EVERY show to ask about it. The low end your DS1 lacked before is all there. The tone knob DOES SOMETHING NOW! But I found it much SLOWER than what I'm used to from a DS1. I guess the LEDs add some weight and sponginess, but also on fast stuff they tend to almost muddy the sound. They Keely is much more classic rock sounding than I had expected. This is all just about the Pro Mode (switch up) though, since I found the Ultra Circuit (switch down, another LED in play) way too fat in the ass and tubby for me. Also the Ultra Mode has a LOT LESS GAIN combined with FAR MORE OUTPUT LEVEL. Even closer, in my mind, to a classic rock sound.
Although it's NOT WHAT I HAD IN MIND, the Keeley Ultra pedal does sound very good. Just not that much like the Boss DS1. And it gets used, but not when i want to use a DS1.
The Analogman DS1 Pro pedal is a horse of a different color... ORANGE! It sounds better than you think a mod on a $20 (used) pedal could possibly sound. It sounds like a DS1, but much more muscular, musical, and PUNCHY. Both pedals really make the tone knob work much better (I can't say either tone knob is better in functionality, but the Keeley looks cooler) In my first band practice with it, the other guitarist stopped in the INTRO of the first tune to ask me what I'd changed! This is switching from the Keeley I was using the week before. It sounds so big and dynamic compared to before the mod and far tighter and more fluid than the Keeley. Also in the volume knob-cleanup competition, the Analogman is the clear winner. I like to run my neck pickup volume lower than my bridge for an in between clean/dirty sound live, and the Keeley Ultra was better than a stock DS1 in this area (what isn't?) but the Analogman DS1 Pro does this VERY WELL. In fact it sounds damn good with any pickup at any volume on your guitar knob. The one thing I could stand to improve in the Analogman DS1 pro is that it's output level is about the same as stock. It might be a little louder, but not by enough, if at all. I do believe in giving 10s in reviews.
Both mods are good in different ways I think. BUT if you like the tone and feel of your DS1 and just want it to sound way better, the Analogman Mod is for you.
Analogman's DS1 Pro Mod being a 9, I give the Keeley a 7.

Tone, Level and Distortion knobs, can't get any easier than that. With the Analogman Pro Mod there is significantly more range of useful distortion available than stock.

My primary setup: US Strats, Tele, LP into Vox CM Wah, Fulldrive 2, A/M Mod DS-1, FT Fat Boost into Fender DRRI amp.

Mike's mod turns a typical inexpensive fizzy production distortion pedal into one with a very authentic overdriven tube amp-like crunch. Great bottom end added, killer crunch, very balanced and VERY toneful! Super responsive to pick attack and volume roll-off. Best $70 spent especially compared to boutique pedal prices!

I expect it will be reliable a long time. Sturdy Boss pedal and quality work inside.

Got my pedal back from AnalogMan 4 days after sending it! Mike has been very responsive to questions too. Judging by his reputation I don't expect any problems.

I play blues, classic rock, etc. Been playing 20+ yrs. No gigging anymore just play for pleasure. Many guitars, amps & effects over the years. If this were lost I'd definitely get another...may anyway. Can't beat the price compared to other boutique distortions and it does exactly what I want.

Three knobs - they each turn. Doesn't get much easier than that. However, before the modification, each knob really just changed the noise this pedal made. Since the modification, each knob now actually affects the sound - it's now musical.

To echo other reviews, the stock pedal was VERY buzzy. After the mod, this pedal is very natural and organic. Where before the knobs just changed the level of static, now the knobs actually affect tone. You can go from a lower gain sound with the gain all the way down to all out chaos with it dimed. This pedal can get quite thin. You need to be aware of the relationship between the tone and gain settings. Higher gain, lower tone, and visa versa. This is "seasoned to taste" to each individual's ear, and nothing created by the modification, but something to be aware of all the same.

The big thing here is that this modification takes a pedal that I personally thought to be unusable and makes it vital part of a high gain sound. It is good as both a stand alone distortion stomp box and to drive a gain channel. I have it right before a modified Boss SD-1 (see other post) and with them both on the tone is tight, crisp and very musical!

I give this a 9 - not as a one off knock to AnalogMan (because this mod is a miracle) but because I don't think this pedal is the end all in search of gain tone. However, it's a great pedal!!!

It's built like a tank.

Mike is AWESOME to work with!

I sent my DS-1 to AnalogMan with $70 in the battery compartment. What I got back was a box full of tone! This pedal can do quite a bit in terms of covering sound. Turn the gain all the way down and you get a nice rhythm sound - roll it up and you have all the gain you could want. It took me a bit to get comfortable with this and find the settings I wanted, but once I found them I'd be very sad without it!!!

Drive, Tone, and level. Couldn't be simpler.

Too many guitars to mention. My main guitars are a Texas Special Fat Strat, MIJ '66 Strat w/ vintage noiseless, PRS Custom 22 and a Les Paul. I use a Fender Hot Rod Deville 4x10 through a Marshall 1960AV 4x12 with Vintage 30s. I use the green (drive) channel with the gain at 4 for a fairly clean sound. The DS1/Pro works great with this setup. I bought a stock DS1 not long ago and it was so bad I gave it away. It was just nasally and thin. The Pro mod is incredibly full sounding. A lot of bottom end and the mid peak seems to have been moved to a lower frequency to remove some of that nastiness. You still have to be careful with the tone and keep it under 12 o clock to avoid a buzzsaw sound, unless thats your thing.

I haven't had it long enough to tell how reliable it is but Boss pedals have a good reputation. I fon't believe I'd need a backup.

I sent Mike an email complimenting him on the pedal and got a quick response. I haven't needed their customer support yet but thay have a great reputation for quick response.

I've benn playing for 20 years. My band plays mostly classic and contemporary rock and blues. I first run into a 535Q Cry Baby then I use several overdrives in my board. Maxxon OD808, Ibanez TS9 reissue (going to be paying Mike a vist soon), Boss SD-1 ( which is going to be taken out for now with the addition of the DS1), and a Russian Big Muff. I have a Boss MT2 as well but its got the same problem as the stock DS1. I need a heavier sound for some of the newer stuff we're doing so I'll be sending that one to Mike as well. I then run into a Line 6 MM4 Modulation modeler and a Danelectro Dan Echo. I know nothing is perfect but I can't find anything to complain about with the DS1/PRo.

It's a great distortion pedal, and if you enter in a great tube amp setted at high volume (like my Fender Deluxe Reverb Amp with Celestion V30, setted with volume at half), you can certantly get great sounds.
The DRIVE control can really be used at any level, also at minimum or maximum, and everytime you can get very expressive and organic type of saturations.
The TONE control gets perfect tones from minimum to 1 o' clock (from 1 o' clock to maximum is too treble for my taste).
The VOLUME control, has a normal range from minimum to half, than you can go far over the level you have with the pedal off.

The sound of the pedal varies depending on the amp you use and on how much the amp's tubes are working:

*with my Deluxe Reverb setted at half volume (or more) the pedal give the very best, the sound is really bloody, screaming, full and responds in an incredible manner to your touch (of fingers and plectrum on guitar, and of foot on wah), mantains really the sound of the pickups you setted on your guitar, very transparent also at high drive, and follows very well the different setting you do with volume and tone controls of your guitar. The pedal has a particular enfasis on bottom frequencies (bass and treble), it transforms my Fender amp in a sort of Marshall, but without that tipical british dryness, and with more "body fluids" (more vintage, like '70/'80 distortion sounds), can also match very well with a middle voice overdrive like a tube screamer (I have a Maxon OD9/silver, and I put the DS1/pro before, so when I switch on both the two pedals, I get a divine sound, a sort of super psychedelic tube screamer with more saturation and tone spaciousness, but when I want a real distortion, not an overdrive, I use the DS1/pro alone), another note about the sound is that the pedal, when on, is very less noisy that many other distortion pedals I've tried.

*But if you enter with the pedal in a solid state amp, or in my Deluxe Reverb at very low home volume level, is a little buzzy, but this is normal with ditortion pedals, and in this case all the distortion pedals I've tried were far more buzzy that the DS1/pro.

With my strato, my DS1/pro, my OD9/silver and my Deluxe Reverb, I can play what I want, and where I want, because I've got a unique omogeneous professional sound with a lot of expression shades.

Mike is a real friend of every guitarist of the world, write him a mail and he will answer you in one or two days solving all your matters. I live in Italy and recieved the pedal in a week, with a creazy cinnamon candy in the box (a red hot "Screamers"!).

I play any style, from rock to afro, passing through jazz, latin, and funk, and this pedal give me more freedom, because it's as live as my tube amp, so now it's like if I had another amp, or, that's better, one amp with more expression chances: it's a great thing for a lover of Fender amps' breathing sound, and hater of buzzing distortion pedals sound, like me.
If I really have to find a difect in this pedal it could be the tone and volume range (the tone at maximum is too treble, and the volume at maximum is too high) but we all know that it's not a real difect (noone forces you to set them at maximum), so, the conclusion is that: ...now, I can't stay without it!!

easy

sounds pretty good.

If we are measuring this category as an improvement over the ds-1, it's obviously an improvement. HOwever, i think that if u want a distortion pedal, and if you are willling to spend a hundred plus bucks on it..., get something like the tonebone classic or the fulltone OCD or maybe the lovepedal COT50. They are higher quality than this, and true bypass, and stuff.

THe sound has lots of harmonics and everything..., i wish there was more tone control with the tone knob, it'd be nice if it had a different sweep which could give u scooped or boosted mids for different rhythm work... I think it'd be very useful to have a little EQ pedal (Danelectro Fish and Chips would do just fine) to really fine tune it better, but then u have two potential tonesuckers in your chain.

as it is, it sounds really good if u just need distortion for leads, or if you already have a ds-1 and are happy enough with it but want to turn it into a comparitive superman.

yeah, it's great

they're pretty cool

Like i said, it's fine and it's a cheap upgrade, but you can defenitely do better than this. THere is a defenite difference between these modded pedals and boutique ones, i think there is just design flaws in the originals that cannot be bypassed.

UH, it's a distortion box...pretty self explanatory.

As usual, the analog-dude took a completely worthless buzz-saw, ice pick in ear distortion pedal and made it musical and useful. This pedal is much smoother and quieter than the stock pedal. It has a little less gain/distortion than stock but definitely enough to get the point accross. The pedal retains note definition even when distortion is maxed and adds a warm sustain yet not really 'compressed' sustain (I run the 'tone' knob at around 10 o'clock, 'level' is a little louder than unity and 'distortion' is cranked). With the change to a JRC chip the AnalogMan DS-1 is a little smoother than the Keeley seeing-eye mod DS-1 (that I also used to own) I went with the AnalogMan Pro Mod DS-1 pedal this time and it is 'as advertised' great pedal!

I have about a dozen AnalogMan pedals and all are working perfect....does clean work, no worries.

Great guy, answers any emails quickly (within a few days..).

If you are looking to dirty up a clean amp or really push a crunch/gain amp this pedal is smooth and musical, pretty cheap price-wise, and reliable! great bang for the buck.

This is really simple to use. Three knobs - distortion, tone and level...you plug it in, and turn it on and off. Idiot proof.

I submitted a prior review tfor the TS9DX turbo silver mod. That was my first experience with Analogman modifying a pedal. I was so pleased with the result of the TS9DX/Silver, that I sent him the DS1 for the Pro mod.
Let me say this, I've always hated the sound of the stock DS1. I always thought the Japanese version from years back was buzzy and annoying, and well...the Taiwan version is far worse. In fact, I think the stock DS1 pedal is useless junk. On a recent road trip, I found a ridiculously good deal on a new DS1, and having read the description of the pro mod on Mike's site (and user reviews), decided to buy it expressly for the purpose of having him modify it.
A bit of a risk knowing that I really didn't like the thing to begin with!
The results a majorly impressive. The sound is nothing like the buzzy sound of the original. The distortion is really smooth, and a nice contrast to the TS9DX silver. I really didn't think that this modification would sound this dramatic. If you like the characteristics of the original....and why anyone would, is beyond me...you may want to think twice about this. If youare into improving your sound with a toneful distortion device, then just do it! The pro mod removes the chewed up top end buzz sound of the stock unit. The tone control really smooths out the sound a great deal. The pedal now sounds terrific on both high gain and the lower gain settings. Nice round and full.
Calling the modified pedal a 'DS1' now really does a great disservice to Analogman's pro mod. This is a totally different unit. I'm really enjoying it!

Boss pedals seem to last for years and I've heard nothing but good things about Mike's work.
I'd definitely rely on it without a backup.

Mike has always been conscientious about replying to my email questions. Email are answered with 3-5 hours. He really seems to care about his work and customer satisfaction.
The best part about Analogman aside from the tone improvements is the fantastic turnaround.
I mailed this pedal last Monday. On Saturday, I received the DS1 modified pedal. I stuck it on my pedalboard, and used it over the weekend in rehearsal for a theatre gig that will last through the next four weeks. This kind of customer support is just great.

I've been play over 40 years. Many different styles and a variety of gear to cover these applications...archtops to solidbody Fenders, class A amps. I'd replace it if it were lost or stolen.
This is a tremendous...ridiculusly good improvement over the original. If you own a DS1, just send it Analogman for the transformation the pro mod will render. You will not be disappointed!

Same as unmodded, only now it sounds far better.

Guitars:
Hagstrom Swede (old PAF in neck, Duncan 59 bridge), Hamer USA Custom Shop (w/ Duncan Hot P90 neck, Custom P90 bridge), Homemade Franken Strat (original Hotrails), and an SG. I have more guitars, but these get used for rockster sounds with the DS1 pedals.

Amps:
68 Fender Dual Showman Reverb (modded to Blackface specs), 68 Fender Princeton Reverb (modded to Blackface specs), DBL Amplifiers JDR Custom 35 (35 watt all-tube Marshallesque head), DBL Amplifiers JDR Custom 60 (60 watt all-tube Hiwattesque head), Fender Tonemaster 2X12 Cab w/ Celestion Lead 80's (I love this thing! It beat out all other external cabs for years before i finally just sold all my others)

Analogman DS1 Pro vs. Keeley DS1 Ultra:

This is a head to head comparison of the Keeley DS1 Ultra Mod and the Analogman DS1 Pro Mod. I'm in several performing and recording bands, and I've always liked the timbre of the stock DS1 in that it's nasty, and it has a certain JCM 900/Soldano/early Mesa high end mushiness that's so satisfying when you want high gain sounds. Also Kurt Cobain used one... a lot. But the stock pedal has many drawbacks... It's noisy, as hell. It's output volume is lower than your clean guitar when you turn it off, even with the output maxed (where most of us leave it). The tone knob takes your sound from muted, fuzzy, fusion right to trashy squeak with almost no transition. And it tends to sound like crap (flat and small with not enough low end or mids) next to a good dirty amp or a tube pre. Turning down your guitar's volume knob to clean up the sound is a bad move since it results in grainy, tinny crapped out sound. Most diehard users dial their amps to suit this pedal if they really can't live without it's particular sound.

Workmanship:
Looking inside each pedal is the first big clue. In short, although both seem to function properly, the Keeley looks like crap inside and the Analogman looks totally pro. Every new solder point in the Analogman pedal is a little BETTER than factory. The Analogman mod replaces tons of components AND THE ACTUAL OPAMP CHIP (strange that it sounds closer to the stock pedal in the ways you liked in the first place?), while the Keeley looks like a highschool tech worked on it as an experiment on his buddy's pedal. Some components are replaced, but the chip is not, and the LEDs that are added (and do look cool from the outside) are attached in a real pile of poorly done soldering.

Sounds:
Though the Keeley mod is less tidy, the pedal looks and sounds very good, though less like a DS1 pedal in most ways. I took this one out on tour (the Analogman hadn't arrived yet) and i got a ton of feedback from other guitar players around the country. They seriously came up to me after EVERY show to ask about it. The low end your DS1 lacked before is all there. The tone knob DOES SOMETHING NOW! But I found it much SLOWER than what I'm used to from a DS1. I guess the LEDs add some weight and sponginess, but also on fast stuff they tend to almost muddy the sound. They Keely is much more classic rock sounding than I had expected. This is all just about the Pro Mode (switch up) though, since I found the Ultra Circuit (switch down, another LED in play) way too fat in the ass and tubby for me. Also the Ultra Mode has a LOT LESS GAIN combined with FAR MORE OUTPUT LEVEL. Even closer, in my mind, to a classic rock sound.

Although it's NOT WHAT I HAD IN MIND, the Keeley Ultra pedal does sound very good. Just not that much like the Boss DS1. And it gets used, but not when i want to use a DS1.

The Analogman DS1 Pro pedal is a horse of a different color... ORANGE! It sounds better than you think a mod on a $20 (used) pedal could possibly sound. It sounds like a DS1, but much more muscular, musical, and PUNCHY. Both pedals really make the tone knob work much better (I can't say either tone knob is better in functionality, but the Keeley looks cooler) In my first band practice with it, the other guitarist stopped in the INTRO of th

We'll see. I have Boss pedals with over a thousand gigs on them, no worries. And Mike is a cool guy and I'm sure he'll back his work and good reputation.

Like I said, Mike is very serious about his work. That includes keeping me (and all his customers) happy.

I've played many kinds of music for more than 10 years now. For rock, metal, grunge, indie, and industrial, this pedal is really quite amazing sounding. If it were stolen, I'd get another one. I think it's probably the best dollar value in a distortion pedal. And I like it as well as pedals costing HUNDREDS MORE.

Very easy to use, at first you would think that there would be a instruction sheet for the pedal after the mod was performed, but if you really think about it, it functions identically as it did prior to the visit to the wizard'slabortory. Simple to use, just turn knobs to your liking.

This is where the payoff begins with this pedal. This pedal before was to me just a cheap well built distortion box of marginal tone. After this mod I cannot beleive the difference. Mr. Analogman must have some unique way of bending the laws of physics to get a truckload of mojo into each pedal. This thing is going to be kicking a $300 pedal off of my pedalboard. (Added benefit of not not worrying about some low life trying to steal my expensive pedal) In numerical values I know some people are hesitant to use 10's for fear of something better coming along, but I am rating this pedal in regards to the modification that Analogman did and that sir, deserves a 10! He turned a frog into a prince on this one. This really does add a whole new dimension to playing through a Fender amp, either my Blues Deville or the Deluxe Reverb.

Seems to be very well built to start with and it may be early on to fairly evaluate this pedal's modification for reliability. So for now I will give it a N/A.

This is the most impressed I have been with any company's customer service. I sent AnalogMan this DS-1 for the Pro modification and a Ibanez TS-9 Tube Screamer for the TS808 Silver modification on 8/9 and it had to ship cross country. I received both pedals back on 8/16 and there is a weekend in there. I have never experienced a turn around this fast. A role model for all businesses. Unfortunately the grading scale only goes to 10, this company deserves a 20!

Dramatic improvement, outstanding customer service, superb sound quality, very neat workmanship, fast shipping for me equates to this being probably the most satisfying equipment experiece. This has made me very interested in the rest of Analog Man's pedals and modifications.

Tone Volume Distortion Silent FET switching It's still a BOSS

I'd give it a ten but you never know if something else better will come along but I love this pedal! It had some high-end zing at first so I plugged a cable into the pedal and into an AC adapter for 72 hours to "cook" the caps and it mellowed out the zing and is quite warm now. I expect it to sound even better the longer I use it. This pedal has a nice refined crunch and singing lead tone. It has a nice warm sound with a very sweet top end. I use it on everything from Led Zeppelin and AC/DC to Nirvana and Ozzy/Sabbath and it handles them all equally well with a very authentic sound quality. I get excellent sustain/feedback and a natural warm sound with the Pro mod. The Pro sounds authentic like the guitars on the albums I listen to!

It works when I step on it!

Mike was cool with me!

I had an old Japanese DS-1 about 10 years ago that I liked and the Pro sounds closer to it than anything else I've used since but if I recall correctly the Japan version did not have as much sustain and warmth and harmonics as the Pro and I can actually use the tone control! And I hear better note definition on chords with the Pro mod! The Analogman DS-1 is now be my number one Distortion pedal. The Pro also sounds great when OFF too. The Pro also sounds great with drop D tuning. I think the Pro sounds more authentic than other mods out there because the Pro uses a NOS diode for symmetrical clipping and other mods use an LED for asymmetrical clipping and the bands I like have the symmetrical clipping tone on their albums. Also the Pro mod that I have has a JRC4558 IC chip swapped for the stock chip which accounts for the warmth IMO. Other mods keep the stock chip I believe. I really dig the sun logo on the Pro mod too.

Three knob: Tone, Level and Dist.
As the 90% of all disortion pedals...
Really simple!!!

I use it with my Strato '79 and an hand made guitar with a Seymour Duncan Custom Custom on the bridge. I have a Fender Twin Amp (the last one)... i was searching for a 'pop' and 'modern' distortion... and i've found it!!! I own other wonderful distortion pedal (Rat vintage 2nd issue, a Fulltone Distortion Proand a MXR Distortion + Block Logo vintage) and i can say that pedal is not so far from 'em. Isn't surely as true and 'tubey' as the other pedals... but it's a good complement for a '90's' sound.
It's simply what i was looking for... so i'm really satisfied.
The modify is really well done... you'll have a unique pedal.. and that's good too :-). Original DS-1 is not a great pedal, and Mike cannot do miracles... but this is quite a miracle:-)

Nowadays u can have a distortion also with a 10$ amp... but with this pedal u'll always be ok!!!
U cannot do Zeppelin sounds... but it's pretty good for anything coming down from the late 70's - first 80's.

Mike is simply great!!! He replies to all my mails (lots.. maybe too much) and explained me everything about the shipment and all the other things.
I live in Italy, and here the DS-1 costs more that 60 euro, so i've done a grat business :-)
A great dealer... raccomended!!!

Not the best distortion pedal around; but the best price/quality relation i've ever 'heard'!!!
I was searching for a '90's' modern sound, and i've found it: that makes me satisfied and happy.
Not so 'tubey' as other high quality pedal... but Mike can't get anything into a little orange box :-)

Easy to dial in a great sound. The range of useable sounds is greatly increased with this mod. The surprise with this pedal is it works very well at low settings too.

I play a John Suhr strat through a Carr Rambler (clean fender) amp. After lots of trial and error with many mods and lots of pedal makers I have the following effects chain. AnalogMan TS/9 Silver > AnalogMan SD-1/808 Silver > AnalogMan BD-2 Super > AnalogMan DS-1 Pro > Boss CE-2 > Boss DM-2 > Boss TU-2. I use this pedal for great power chord crunch or as a distortion tone when I want to rock out. I don't have a Marshall so I can say it gives you a Marshall in a stomp box but it does have that feel. It has a great smooth tone for a distortion pedal with lots of range and punch. I really like the chip he uses in this pedal because it really smooths out the highs and gets ride of a lot of noise and artificial overtones. In its place a great lead tone and fantastic bark for chords. I usually play this pedal alone but it works great with both my chorus and delay. I don't use this pedal as much as my other overdrives but as a distortion pedal this is the best I have played. Most distortion pedals create a lot of unrealistic chaos that doesn't sound right in a band mix. This DS-1 Pro cuts through in a very convincing way and is a great fit for a clean Fender amp.

AnalogMan builds great mods that last. I am confident that it will last as long as any Boss pedal. I have several Boss pedals that are 20 years old and don't show any signs of slowing down.

I think he has set the standard. Everything I have bought from him has arrived within days and all transactions were conducted with ease. My email communication with Mike has always been very informative and very helpful.

I play a wide variety of styles - rock, blues, jazz, etc. I have been playing for about 14 years. I mainly play a John Suhr strat, and also use a Tom Anderson Cobra and a G&L ASAT Special (tele) through a Carr Rambler. I go for classic vintage tones that never go out of style. I have owned a lot of pedals, amps, etc. As far as other DS-1 mods, I sold my Keeley DS-1 SEM after doing a head to head with this pedal. In fairness to Keeley the SEM is very good and sounds very similar but it has some extra chaos and unwanted overtones that get in the way of the tone I am going after. The AnalogMan DS-1 Pro has all the crunch of the Keeley but it just sings better, is a little smoother - more refined, and seems to play better with my other pedals. I really am happy with this DS-1 mod and am no longer looking for a distortion pedal. This is a keeper.

It's easy. What can you say, really? Level, Tone, Drive.

Overdrive/Distortion pedals sound different depending on your pedal chain, amp and guitar used etc... Let me compare it for you against the stock Boss ds-1. First off, it's louder. All I mean is that if the level is set the same on both units the Pro is noticably louder which really isn't a reason to buy or not buy this pedal. The Tone, I will admit is more usable but still sharp past 12:00: Still the overall sweep of the tone pot is much more pleasant.
But most importantly, let me say a few words about the sound of this pedal. Let me say that if you enjoy the DS-1 stock (Japanese or Taiwanese)for whatever reason then you might want to think twice about this mod. You see, after the mod, certain DS-1 qualities will go missing. What the analogman has done is "clean up" the effect and in turn has considerably reduced the "fuzziness" of the pedal which to me was one of the qualities I liked about it. On the other hand it is "rounder" and less harsh which is, I suppose, a plus, with a little more sustain and more responsiveness. It still has that great bottom associated with the DS-1 and some of the character. But...I wouldn't say that it's improved, I would say it's just different. Listening to the sound samples from the Analogman web-site I REALLY prefered the SUPER/MOD as apposed to the PRO. It sounded more buttery and still retained the fuzz. That mod is no longer available. I e-mailed Mike because I originally wanted the SUPER and he told me that that Mod was no longer being done. Look, I don't exactly know what to say about these guys who are doing mods execpt to that they do pretty good business. I'm using by stock ds-1 and a boss compressor and it sounds more vintage that the Pro/mod. I'm not saying don't get the mod done...just be aware that it isn't going to be heaven to your ears.
My advice is try stuff out on your OWN rig before you buy...if you can. If you can't, be prepared to be disappointed now and again. Pedals, especially distortion/overdrives are so "taste specific" that even my own revue may be worthless to anyone who reads it.

Mike is very pleasant and will always answer your e-mails. But he's still a salesman.

Not bad. But not the grail.

After the mod all settings sound good. This is a basic pedal very easy to use.

Got the DS-1 pro and I must say it is much better than the stock
> pedal. I compared them side by side and there is a major difference,
> the analogman pedal has alot more girth and definition. It still
> retains the sound concept of the original pedal but with alot more depth
> and clarity. Just for kicks I tried it with the distortion knob on 11
> and my marshall took on a very Soldano like saturation level. Thanks
> and I will be making more purchases in the future.

should be good in this category.

Mike is the best to deal with, always answers emails! Very friendly and informative.

I own various guitars and amps. Tried the pedal through my old Marshall 4 input head....sounded great.

After the mod the tone is much better, so it is much easier to dial in excellent sounds. With the mod almost any setting sounds great!

Without the mod I give this pedal a 5. But with this mod I give it a 9 only becuase it is hard for a distortion pedal to be a perfect 10. I use a tele and a strat through silverface fender amps. This pedal is not noisy. The tone overall is much broader with the mod. When you hit chords with the distortion dimed you still can hear each note. More definition in the heavier strings. At lower gain settings the tone is much improved. I don't put the tone much past 10 o'clock as it can start to sound pretty brite with my single coil pickups. At 9 o'clock it is a beautiful warm sound. The gain control sounds awesome in any position. I use it at low and extreme settings. So cool to have that ability because before the mod I never would have done that.

Boss stuff lasts forever and Mike's work is the best in the buisness.

Mike is one of nicest guys out there in pedal land. He always answers your questions and he ships your pedal(s) back to you within a few days!

This pedal has earned a spot on my pedalboard hands down. With the ability to dail in various distortion sounds how could I not? If it were lost or stolen I would replace it ASAP. I love the fact that the mod has made this pedal so much more versatile and usable. Compared to a stock DS-1 this pedal blows it out of the water. Well worth the money you will pay. If you have a DS-1, send to Analogman you won't regret it. If you are looking for a good distortion pedal, buy one directly from Analogman as he has DS-1's that already have the mod and they are brand new!!

Boss pedals are pretty simple to use, Tone, Level, and Distortion knobs. Dial it where you like it and play, don't think.

I use Gibsons and pretty much always use the bridge pickup. I do use one Junior with a P-90 pickup also. I play Fender amps because I love the way they sound clean and loud. However, I need effects to drive them. That's where Analogman comes in. The DS-1 pro packs a huge punch. This is not thin distortion. This mod allows all the bass to come through, while the distortion is still very organic, crisp, and natural. The first thing I noticed is the harmonics that I never knew I was playing before this pedal. I agree that the pedal does become very fuzzy when the distortion is cranked on 10. However, any other setting sounds great. This pedal is not noisy. It's a stock DS-1 before the mods and Boss pedals have excellent switches. I don't like to use a lot of effects live, but I am using a Boss EQ after this pedal for solo boosts. The DS-1 Pro does not appear to rob me of high end tone when off either, if it does, it is VERY minimal and I couldn't tell. I plugged in a stock Boss distortion pedal after using the DS-1 Pro for a while and was surprised at how dull and thin it sounded (not necessarily bad, just thin compared to the DS-1). No pedal gets a 10, but the DS-1 Pro gets a huge 9 for sound.

It's a Boss pedal, folks. They're as sturdy as they come. I don't really believe in backups (well, my wallet doesn't anyway). I've never had a reliability issue with a Boss pedal anyway.

Mike is fantastic to deal with. He answers questions promptly by email. The pedal arrived two days after I ordered it. Mike is definitely a class act.

I'm currently playing original rock music. The kind of rock that Page and Ronson played. This pedal is perfect for that real organic, yet heavy distortion. I've owned a lot of pedals over the 16 or so years I have been playing. This is the best distortion I've owned yet (other than a 6 watt Silvertone tube amp on 10). In fact, I'm going to send my SD-1 to Mike for an 808 mod. I'd be pissed if it were stolen, would definitely replace. The best thing about this pedal is how natural the sound is as it lets the bass come through, it does not get muddy. I've been reading the other reviews, and I must agree, I don't think a Fender amp will ever sound like a Marshall, but this pedal is about as close as you can get. It's the best of both worlds, clean Fender amp, loud crunchy distortion pedal.

Easy to use.

The distortion is very usable from 1-9. It has a good overdrive distortion all the way to the singing sustain of a high gain amp. Only thing is at 10, it's a little too fuzzy. I roll it back a touch, and it's fine.

I use the tone no more past 9/10 o'clock. I think the highend gets harsh after that.

As DS-1/Pro compared to a stock DS-1, it's a 10. But it is a pedal, and it's not perfect. So I'll give a 8. I still have not found a 10 is distortion pedals for my taste yet.

Sounds great with tube amps, not all that great with solid state stuff.

no problems.

I am very happy with the sound of this pedal. It's as close to what I've been looking for in a distortion pedal that i've found. This pro mod take an unusable brand new ds-1, and makes it sounds awesome.

As soon as I unpacked my Analog Mike-modded DS-1, I plugged it in and was blown away. All the bass that was sucked out of the unmodified DS-1 pedal was right where it should be--tight, round, and enormous. Almost any tone, drive, and volume setting works extremely well for something. For my personal fave tone, it took about five minutes of twisting knobs, and I was there. Simple.

If you've owned a Japanese (better) or a Taiwanese DS-1 (oh boy...), you know that the pedal is shrill, buzzy, and way too thin to be of any use in a live situation. Sure, for home use at a very low level, maybe... But now, this pedal holds its own with my cadre of od/dist effects, and its full body outshines/competes with many of my "holy grails:" Chandler Tube Driver, Boss OD-1, Real Tube, MXR Distortion II, RAT, TS-9, etc. With a variety of Strats, super-Strats, Teles, and archtops, and a tweed Bassman and vintage Champ set to clean, I could produce any dirty tone I wanted: from swampy sizzle to overblown ferocity. I prefer the tone, even with the mod, at no more than 9 o'clock with the level set to transparent, and the drive dimed--big, perfect distortion that is as "brown" as any I've played and heard. Even at low levels, I can coax lovely harmonic feedback anywhere on the neck, without the signal breaking up into harshness. It's also very quiet, even when running in a series of many other pedals. My only wish is that it would clean up better with the guitar's volume knob, but that's not what distortion is about (and that's really digging for negativity and coming up drastically short).

I don't need the Boss warrantee; I have Analog Mike now. Send him and email or give him a call. You'll see.

I sent two pedals to Mike on Good Friday--I got them back the following Thursday! Plus, I've sent dozens of inquiring emails to Mike, even before buying anything, and he's responded fully anywhere from five minutes to two hours later. Phone? Same amount of dedication. He's the rarest of breeds in a world of crappy guitar "super-stores."

I've been playing for about thirty years. Plugging in for the first time was one of the greatest thrills I've ever experienced--tone-wise--and I don't expect that thrill to wear off anytime soon. I know what I like; I know what sounds good. I'm still just as thrilled about my original TS-9 as the day I got it. I've played just about everything I've ever wanted to, except for the ToneBone Classic, and the Mike-modded DS-1 will live in my pedalboard until it dies, which, by then, I'll have several backups.

Don't believe the naysayers out there--they don't have ears, or hearts, or souls. I live for tone--can't play without it. Mike is a top-notch guy who makes ordinary pedals sound extraordinary. Go get one now! Or, if you have an unmodified DS-1 of your own, get it modded. Trust me, it's the best chunk of change you'll spend.

super easy

While to the untrained ear this is no different sounding than an un-modded Ds-1, the subtle difference makes it truly more usable in a professional setting. People, all overdrive,distortion,fuzz,etc pedals sound like shit when the tone control is way up past 12:00.You just can't crank the tone on these types of pedals. This one kicks ass all around the tone dial! I own about 30 distortion pedals and this one made it onto every track on my new album.

Boss................solie

Excellent,ansewere all of my annoying questions

I play blues rock in the band Halfway to Gone. I've been playing almost 30 years. I have every other cool distortion pedal known to man. This pedal and my Maxon sd-9 are the best distortion pedals I've owned for driving my Marshall Plexi into a hard rock,punk,metal,skynard,sabbath realm. It sounds harmonically rich and beautifull on ring chords.While not as transparent as the maxon pedal, it sounds better with more of a rich tone.

The DS-1/PRO operates the same as the regular DS-1, but obviously has a much different tonal characteristic.

So far I have used the DS-1/PRO in every possible combination with my other equipment and have noticed the consistancy of tone over the other distortion units. The DS-1/PRO goes into territory that my other units cannot reach, meaning that there is a effortless clarity when the gain is turned all the way up and is also surprisingly quiet. I could'nt tell you how this unit would sound with a single coil guitar since I don't own one, but I have used it on a Yamaha with a Carvin and a Duncan, an ESP with EMG's, a Dean with EMG's, and a Jackson with two Duncan's running into either a Soldano/Genz Benz, a Marshall half stack, or an Ampeg solid state combo.

Seeing as how this is a modded Boss, I don't have any doubt that it will live up to my expectations regarding reliabilty.

Every question had been answered thoroughly and promptly before I even ordered the unit. I am completely satified in all regards.

I received my DS-1/PRO the other day and I must admit that this pedal has better tone than any of the other distortion pedals I have tried (Boss, Electro Harmonix, Zoom, Wild Dog's, Dan Electro, and Ibanez).
It has just enough gain to satisfy my heavy rock playing, without sacrificing the tone. Actually, this pedal has taken my sound to a higher level. It almost sounds as good as when I plug straight into my
Soldano, but lacks some of the low end that is characteristic with a unit that utilizes a single tone control knob. I feel this is an acceptable exchange, since I needed a pedal this good to put on my board before the Flangers and Phazers. I used to run my board on the effects loop sacrificing signal to the tube buffered circuit trying to get distortion from the amp head itself. Now I can get the distortion I was looking for without using the effects loop. I knew
about your DS-1/PRO modification for some time now, and I am kicking myself in the ass for not buying one sooner!

It's easy...

Schecter Strat or Tele w. Kinmans - Vox Wah w. true bypass - Analogman Bicomp - Analogman TS9/808 - Analogman DS1 - Visual Sound H2O - Tube Amp (Fender, Marshall, ATT (handmade German EL84 Amp)
I was dissappointed the first time at home and wasn't satisfied after the first rehearsal where I used it as a "solo" effect. I'm absolutely blown away now, after four months! I set it up like an overdriven amp (with my Fenders and ATT) and control it with the volume pot of my guitar. That works very well. Very warm and transparent distortion, very "Marshall" and useful when you play with a band.

Analogman and Boss - very reliable!

See my Bicomp review. Mike is a guy you can trust!

I like Analogman effects. They're made for guitarplayers who play in bands, not for bedroomplayers. I will order again, maybe the Sunface or, if he will build one, a Tremolo. Good effects, good value for the money!

Difficult to use because I cant get a good & non-buzzed sound out of it!

I am really shocked at these reviews. No offense but are they just listeners of hype~~? "Makes a Fender sound like a Marshall"?????? Please people - and Mike - The only Marshall this sounds like is one of those little battery operated plastic boxed ones you can buy for $30. This does not TOUCH a Marshall sound!

I'm REALLY suspect of some of these reviews - why would someone with a Les Paul and a Marshall actually waste their time (and tone!) and use one of these?

All negatives aside, its an o.k. sounding box but DON'T believe that stuff about "makes a Fender sound like a Marshall". That's just shameful marketing.

So what does it sound like~~~sounds like a cross between a Rat type effect with a bit more fuzz in the mix~~~ LOTS of highs - this thing will take your ears off if you're not careful so watch those tone controls boys and girls!!

It works best in smaller practice rigs. I tried it through a loud Fender Twin ('64 pre-CBS blackface) and let's just say I'm not into this sound at ALL. I bought this from a friend (some friend!) and quickly sold it afterward.

I'm sure we're good there.

No experience here. I hear good and bad things so I'll leave it with "no opinion" here...

I play rock, blues, and some classical. I feel I have a good ear as I've been playing live for over 15 years and have used a good deal of equipment. This is a good pedal to noodle with at home but so is a stock DS-1. Neither of them cut it when you turn up the volume - unless bright buzzy sounds are what your after then maybe it'll work for you. I give it a 6 overall. At least it has SOME use.

It's your basic distortion pedal, super easy to use.

I'm using this pedal with a 69 50 watt Marshall into a basketeave cab with 25 watters. Les paul, PRS and Strat guitars. This pedal just sounds GREAT. I like it much better than my Fulldrive 2. It is capable of a wider variety of sounds and has a nice warm tone. This is perfect for classic rock sounds or even some of the heavier metal. It's just so versatile. Noise is NOT a problem just what you would expect.It is very easy to get a sweet sound out of this pedal which is uncommon for lot of distortion pedals.

It's a Boss, never had a problem with them.

Very helpful and quick, just great service. The pedal does what they say it will do.

I have played for 20 years and have owned all kinds of pedals. From cheap to botique. I play every other weekend in clubs and have spent many hours in studios, this pedal just sounds great for so many things,from classic rock to metallica and everything in between. For the money NO WAY can you beat it. For all the folks out there who know tone, this is the real deal!!! I am shocked you can mod a pedal and improve it that much!!

Tone, Level (output), and Dist (for amount of distortion) controls -- pretty basic. Great range on the tone and level controls. Good manual from Boss and Mike's instructions are straightforward. Doesn't take long to dial in the sweetness.

90's American Strat w/Kinman Avn-56's and a Avn-59 in the bridge, into the Analogman-modded DS-1, into a '69 Super Reverb (with a fixed-bias circuit, as opposed to cathode- or self-bias circuit) w/what appear to be 4x10" CTS alnico speakers. Compared to other distortion/overdrive pedals (particularly the tube-based products) this pedal is very quiet --- some hi-end noise when cranked, but still within very tolerable levels. I bought it from Mike already modded, so my only A/B is with the Distortion channel on my Roland GP-8, a Maxon OD808, a Keeley-modded TS-9 (not "baked", just the standard southern-fried mod), and a Budda Phatman. It has more gain/distortion than the Keeley TS-9 and the Maxon OD808, but is slightly noisier at hi (3 o'clock+) distortion/drive settings, but nowhere near as noisy as the Phatman. Doesn't quite produce the "stack-like" bloom of the Phatman, but definitely has a nice throb to the overdrive/distortion -- much more musical than the GP-8 Distortion module and the Maxon OD808. Does a fairly nice overdrive and clean boost, but doesn't play as well with my Keeley compressor (an awesome piece!) as the Keeley TS-9 does, so I keep the Keeley TS-9 (a fantastic pedal for overdrive tones) in my chain as well. The Analogman DS-1 Pro Mod shines in two areas for me --- the arena rock tone (just add a little reverb and delay to taste) is definitely in there and is certainly professional sounding; but where I really love it is for slide guitar. With the tone rolled off a little towards the bass end of the dial, level slightly higher than my straight clean tone, and Dist set at 2-3 o'clock, hint of reverb (output thru the amp's normal channel w/tone controls set to taste), and neck pick-up with a glass slide I was getting jaw-dropping blues-rock slide tone! I'd give it 10 just for that, and a 9 for the arena-rock sound. Overall a 9+.

I've only had it 3 months, but it's a BOSS --- my past and current experience with BOSS product in this regard is nothing but positive.

Very easy to deal with -- cordial, professional, responsive, fair - about all you can expect from a premium e-tailer.

I love this thing for slide guitar -- when my band first heard it, they went into awesome admiration mode. I've been playing seriously for about 20 years --- many different styles over the years, although I wouldn't (nor would anyone else for that matter) consider me an expert in any of them. I'm not a big gear acquisition guy, but I definitely believe in having the right tools for the job. This pedal is a very professional sounding, fairly versatile piece of equipment. The only thing I wished it did better was produce the sweet tones at lower volume levels -- for slide, it was fine; but, for the other types of music it sounded better the louder you played.

the knobs are much different that before, much more usable, not as britle or metallic sounding tone knob. BIG IMPROVEMENT!

sounds pretty freakin bomb! I use a Hot Rod Deville 4X10 and it really gives it a strong punch. Its almost like having another amp with high gain, I guess you can say it lends my Fender a bit of Marshall. I am very happy. The pedal is much nicer sounding now, before i couldn't even put it on my board but now it goes right after my Fulltone FDII. Its pretty sweet, i have three gain channels now. Sounds much better with my fat strat than with single pups

I play an american strats, one fat.

yup Boss stuff does last, and with the magic touch of Analog Mike its probably a sure thing

Seriously, you will not find a better guy to deal with. This guy answers my e-mails in the same day. One time I had to call down there (just to talk to them about a product) and i got to speak with Mike. This guy is the real deal, very genuine.

a 9.5 really

Extremely easy, the thing is either on or off, I can only get one sound that I like out of it, but it's a great sound.

I play an old Silvertone into a Fender 69 Twin Reissue. Before the modification, the DS-1 was extremely harsh so I had to have both the tone and distortion rolled way back to avoid it sounding like an icepick in the ear. The problem was, with everything rolled back, it wasn't harsh anymore but it was wimpy because the distortion was too low.

The mod fixed the problem beautifully, now I still roll the tone back as it's still a very bright pedal; however, I can crank the distortion up without the harshness I had before. It's just a lot warmer. It won't quite make your fender into a Marshall, but it will improve quite a bit on your crappy Taiwanese DS-1.

Just got it back so not quite sure. However, Boss pedals tend to be reliable.

Mike is very responsive to emails

I use it for Rock. If it were lost, I'd buy another.

AS ststed earlier, 3 knobs- couldn't be easier.

I'm a Fender vintage strat and vintage amp player. The pedal is surprisingly quiet- even on the highest gain setting, which I prefer. This pedal really does transform a classic Fender tone into a quality high gain mode, with even a similar attack to an older Marshall. For best results, I use the bridge pickup, and for an additional chill, I'll sometimes boost it a little with a Klon Centaur set clean. Just a great addition to my TS-9/808's, Octavia, and Vox Wah.

I have no reason to believe it is anything but dependable- it has been very consistent. If this pedal becomes a staple in my playing style, I'll purchase a spare, which I do for all my favorite gear.

All of my dealings with Mike have been excellent, and I have referred him to many friends.

I play blues/ rock/ alternative. Been playing for 37 years and am a gearhead to the bone. I would replace the pedal if it were lost or stolen. It seems this pedal is most compatible for single coil players using the bridge pickup ,and playing through a clean Fender sounding amp. Other gear combinations I tried, seemed less usable.

Couldn't get any easier

This is absolutely the best distortion pedal I have ever used. Over the years I have owned multuple effects ranging from high end rack mounts to The "Big Muff" LOL. This pedal gave my HR De Ville a new voice. It very much sounds like a Marshall when this pedal is kicked in. It even has that punchy crunch that you can only get with a cranked tube amp. Imagine having the clean warm tone of a fender/and the crunch of a Marshall in the same amp. Boss DS-1 pedal has been a standard found on pedal boards for years. This mod takes it from good to great.

Its a Boss. These things are mini tanks

Analog.man IS very quick to respond to any question or concern. I have written multiple Emails with questions that have been answered the next day. I have three pedals that I have bought from them now. I received each one within 5 days of ordering it. Does Musiciansfriend do that?

If your a Fender (Tube Amp) Player looking for that Illusive OD/dist
of a Marshall (and don't want to buy one)... This pedal is one to try. I would give it a 10+ !!!!!!

Extremely easy, just like a distortion pedal should be.

AWESOME. Mike claims that it will make your Fender sound like a Marshall. Just like the previous person stated, Mike wasn't kidding. I was really considering selling my Fender and getting a Marshall again, now I don't have to. I bought it to use as an alternative to my TS 808 and my Fulltone Fulldrive 2. It's sounds so good on the low gain settings that I'm using the Fulldrive much less. You can get great high gain sounds as well as some great crunch tones. It really responds well to your pick attack and cleans up nicely when you roll your guitars volume back. I usually don't like what happens to most distortion pedals when you roll the volume back, but Mikes DS-1 keeps its clarity and sounds great.

Boss pedals are very reliable anyway, I have all the faith in the world in Mikes mods. I have a bunch of his pedals and they've held up great.

Mike is one of the best people that I've ever dealt with. He's honest and he cares about his customers and stands behind his products. I've even received email from him on Sundays!

I've been playing guitar for 23 years and I spend alot of money on equipment to get my sound. For $95.00 you're not gonna find a distortion pedal anywhere that will compare to this. I have an Electro Harmonix Hot Tubes and a Fulltone Distortion Pro, as well as a TS808 and a Fulldrive 2. Mikes DS-1 slaughters the Hot Tubes, is as good or better than the Distortion Pro and handles milder overdrive sounds almost as good as the 808 and Fulldrive. Remember though, the DS-1 is a distortion pedal, not an overdrive. If you want an overdrive, get Mikes 808 mod. There is definitely room on my pedalboard for both. Especially now that the Hot Tubes is up for sale.

ultra- easy, there is nothing to it. Volume, tone and level controls.

Incredible- Mike said "it will make your Fender sound like a Marshall" and he wasn't kidding....this is the DS-1 mod PLUS a special chip on the inside, it is ultra smooth distortion, very high end sounding...I can't believe that this is a solid state pedal!

BOSS modded by AnalogMan, this should get an 11 if at all possible!

I have e-mailed Mike maybe 60 times in the past two years yet only bought 2 pedals off him...if that isn't a display of sincere interest and customer service then I don't know what is...prompt, reliable service on delivery. Top of the pile.

Great stuff. If you have ever wanted to get great distorted tones but didn't dig the crap sound of a Marshall clean channel now you can buy a great Fender or a Class A amp and then step on this pedal for the roar!