Blackstone Appliances Mosfet Overdrive 2Sv3

This drive is easy to use and fairly intuitive to adjust for various guitars and amps. The manual is comprehensive and easy to understand. I read the manual first and then hooked up the drive. I thought I was in for a more difficult time than I had. I am really pleased with the adjustability of this pedal and the two drive channels. I actually like the screw type knobs and find them easy to use. There is a lot of adjustability on this pedal and I am tinkering with it incessantly to find a possibly better setting. That's why I don't give it a 10.

I'm using this mostly with a 96 Epiphone Les Paul goldtop and a Fender American deluxe Telecaster. Both guitars have upgraded Lollar pickups. I use mainly a Silvertone 1472 amp and a Fender Super Reverb although I have tried it with a Vox AC30 and a 65 Pro Reverb. The red channel can produce some noise if the gain is turned way up. I really like this pedal with single coil pickups although it is good with my Les Paul as well. It is very silky smooth on both the brown and red channel with my Telecaster. I have a Klon Centaur, an early Fulldrive 2, and a Diamond J-Drive that I trade in and out. This pedal stacks very well with my Klon and I replaced both the Fulldrive and the J-Drive with this pedal. I will probably keep this one with the Klon on my pedal board for a long time. I can get everything from just barely crunchy to full on fuzzy distortion with this pedal.

It hasn't let me down yet and I don't expect it to.

I bought this straight from Jon at Blackstone and found the purchase and delivery to be hassle free and quick.

I've tried about six different overdrive pedals and rate this one higher than my Klon Centaur. I can do what the Klon does with the Brown channel but still has the Red channel left to stack on top of it. I really like the Red/Brown option and the bypass. The only thing I would be hesitant about is the noise it can produce on the red channel, but I'm using a Silvertone amp mostly and it could very well be the amp, not the pedal. I like the flush adjusters, the bypass switch, and the two gain channels and find them to be a huge plus. I would most likely replace it if it got lost or stolen; however, I'm a bright-shiny-object kind of guy and might look at something else (just being honest). It is a bit pricey but you do get what you pay for.

Its not really that hard too use, but when most other pedals have larger knobs to turn , the little screws on this can be a pain. And I seem to notice the settings change from moving equipment around from gig to gig occasionally. So I just put a piece of black tape over the screws once their set. Problem solved.

I have alot of gear and am always changing stuff on my pedalboard. This pedal has been off my board for about 6 months now, but I'm getting ready to change stuff around again and I'll probably try it out again with some different configurations. I had it going through my Peavey classic 50, and it sounded good. The red channel seems to have more bite and can be a bit harsher than the brown channel. But both serve a purpose. It faired alot better through a class A Epiphone Valve standard ( Celestion replacement speaker ). It had alot more silkyness to it. Also the red channel tended to have some hum at certain settings. But my noise gate handles that quite well.

Solid as a rock. You could probably run this thing over before a gig.

N/A

A very interesting pedal. I'm into alot of different music, and ofcourse nothing replace's a good tube amp . But this pedal compliments a tube amp very well. Its a bit pricey compared to my MI audio Crunch box (129.00), which is a killer pedal, but it does what it does very well and is different sounding than my other pedals. I'll probably keep it for a while, maybe build another board around it. You won't be unhappy with it if you buy one, but there are other less expensive options out there that sound just as good.

I didn't have any problem getting this to sound good.
I spent 20 minutes listening and adjusting and its as good
as it gets. I've tweaked a pedal or 3. Directions are clear and to the point.

I'm using Fender amps. Set it up with a Vibrolux with a 2/10 extension.
Its a quiet pedal.
I usually play a Telecaster with one stacked bridge PU and a side by side neck PU. Both Lawrence made in USA.
This this is very good by any measurement

? Don't know yet.
Unit appears to be nice and solid.
Very tidy.

The sale went smoothly. Bought direct from maker.
No worries on my end.
Very swift delivery.

I play all styles of music.
My gigs tend to be power pop and funk.
I've played professionally for 42 years.
I would get another one, actually I'll get another one and use em' both
at the same time. That would be extreme!
This thing is dope !
I own several other units that do similar tricks, but this is unusually good.
Looks retro, sounds modern, just like me..

It would take some real effort to get a bad sound out of this pedal. The sunken controls are very easy to use and are a huge design advance for pedals. The box is super compact so it works well as either your only pedal or fitting on a small patch of your board.

My only usability gripe is that the in, out, and power jack are all a little too close to each other. This is a minor issue, but might annoy some folks. Also, the bypass is on the right side, not the left side (the opposite of a fulldrive 2) so it took a few days for my brain to reprogram. :)

Other than that, this is infinitely simpler to use than say... a Fuzz Factory. Man, those things take time to learn.

I play a Reverend Flatroc or Mexican Tele into -> Blackstone Distortion, Maxon 999 Delay, Zvex Wah Probe, 1968 Fender Princeton Reverb w. 12" Weber speaker.

Sounds like it should... stunning. Kind of reminds me of a Tube Screamer or even some Rats I've heard, but infinitely sweeter and more complex, yet tight. I've used a LOT of distortions in the 15 years I've played (fulldrive, vintage big muff deluxe, zvex, boss, nobels, cranked vintage Fenders, red-knob Twin Reverb, Marshalls, Vox, etc...) this one gets the gold medal.

Of course, a distortion is just a tonal choice-- only having one is like only painting with one color. But if I have stick to one, this would be it.

I can't imagine having any issues-- it's a small, durable little box.

Jon Blackstone was really nice-- I had the opportunity to buy it from him in person. He was patient, answered a ton of my questions, and I have no doubt that if I had an issue I could reach him.

The nice thing about dealing with an independent vendor like Blackstone is that you'll never find yourself languishing in a phone tree, navigating a large corporation's bureaucracy.

I play several different styles-- from Sonic Youth to Jimi Hendrix, from old soul to punk.

Been playing 15 years, very slowly improving.

I would buy this again if I lost it, it's just so useful. I bought it about 5 months ago, so far so good.

This thing rocked as soon as i plugged it in. Very cool adjustment features....and the booklet is absolutely to the point and even makes you feel a little smarter as the terminology is easy to understand but uses alot of numbers and values. What else can you say about being able to switch out a capacitor for different tones and gains. Everything has been thought of here, including buffer switch and trim pots....all internal. I love this thing.

Well here we go again, as i said this thing rocked right out of the gates. I dialed in my tone fast but noticed how everything in between just sounded smooth as could be. Absolutely no hum, and no popping when you switch channels....something i guess he just added to the V3. My setup was a shecter C1 and a les paul, straight into a TURNED DOWN tophat club royale. when my sound got found, i was in for a ride of smooth back lit harmonics that were there, and then gone, and on there way back up again. (Again, I LIVE IN AN APARTMENT, so i couldn't even crank the tubes. ) i guess i cant explain it, but i think i know what Spitz was saying now on the MATCHLESS website about DUMBLE SWIRLIES, cause i own an independence combo and yes it was expensive and yes it sounds incredible and yes it has clean headroom that will blow your doors out, BUT, i don't think i heard THIS kinda swirlie in my indy, i mean somethin almost tangible but not even noticable, cant really explain. just get yourself one, READ THE INSTRUCTIONS, and stop calling me a loon for this review.

I could probably use this to kill someone with, but of course i would never do that hehe. Very small and very tough. Sunk in Adjustment screws so NO TURNY WITH THE FOOTY.

Ive emailed the guy 2 times, he seems very smart. I like the dude.

God Bless this pedal, it truly creates its own magic with your setup. I dare you to unplug from your rig, just go straight into this thing, crank your amp up, and watch your appreciation for music rise up once again, just like it did the first time you hit the power chord at your buddys house. Very nice pedal guys and girls, its going to sit in the cab of my TOPHAT 1x12 COMBO, small and innocent, and with a cable and a guitar im ready for shows. I LOVE MY EFFECTS, I REALLY DO, but i feel that they are best suited sometimes for the final takes on recording stuff, unless you are a master at them and can get your point across to people better with them, then im wrong. Ive spent tons and owe alot, and love what i have, but i should have kept my laney combo and bought one of these, now that times are hard. JAM ON.

I was afraid after reading the reviews here about finding "that sweet spot" with 3 different guitars, but after about an hour of adjusting and tweaking I found "that" spot and am very happy. It is easy to make the adjustments because of the location of the knobs. The manual was helpful in getting started, but after losing that fear of not being able to master this pedal it became easier.

My set up(s) consist of a Maz 38 1x12 combo and a Fuchs Lucky 7 into a 1x12 cab. The guitars are a PRS McCarty, a G&L Skyhawk (strat), and a G&L ASAT. The pedal has the option to set up for humbuckers or single coil pickups, but where I have it set all 3 sound great. The humbuckers on the McCarty just rip, but if you back off the pick attack it will clean up. I set the Maz just on the edge of breakup. My other OD pedals are a Tim, Timmy, OCD, and a Zendrive. I am finding that I will use the Timmy or Tim with the single coils but go for the Blackstone for the humbuckers. I'm finding I'm not using the OCD or the Zendrive as much, and I've already sold my KOT since recieving this pedal. The effects pedals sound great with this also but I have them in the effects loop of the Maz so there's no real conflict. I've tried stacking my other OD's with this one and they don't compliment each other.

So far it has been solid as a rock and since I don't abuse my pedals anyway I do not anticipate any problems. Use without a backup? If I had to back up all my stuff I'd be single again and broke.

N/O

My style ranges from Rock, Blues, Jazz, and a bit of everything except rap and metal. I play with a worship team on Sundays and a 60's cover band whenever asked. The worship music has called for this type of OD lately so it's been fun hearing the compliments from the "brethren". I'm waiting to play a R&R gig with the other band and just use the Lucky 7 and this pedal - work off the guitar volume alone. I've been playing since the '70s and researching and buying (and selling) new gear in the last 10 years. If this pedal were to disappear in some way I would get right back to True Tone Music in Santa Monica and grab another. If all my pedals disappeared this would be the first and maybe only one to be replaced. I love the fact that the tone and volume controls are recessed on the face of the pedal so once they are set they're not changing unless you bend down with your pick or finger nail and move them. I highly recommend this pedal.

I rated it a 10 because it looks like you would need a screwdriver to change settings, but a fingernail is fine. It is just as easy to use as a Boss pedal. The fact that you can ope it up and make changes with a small screwdriver is not a minus because this type of adjustment is just not available in most other pedals. So I don't think it makes it harder to use. It is also easy to use in that once settings are made they are difficult to undo accidentally. This is a great feature. Many musicians take the "handles" off the knobs of other pedals to keep the settings where they like them. It is basically set up with one sound for single coil, one for humbuckers and a bypass. This again makes it easy to use with different guitars.

The sound quality is outstanding. I have used Ibanez Tube Screamer, Boss Blues and Distortion, English Muff'n, etc. This is the first pedal I have used that does not degrade the sound of the guitar. Always before the guitar straight into the amp had a much superior sound. The sound through a pedal always seemed thinner and less expressive.

This pedal has an pedal allows for an "organic" sound, i.e., much more like the sound of a voice or sound of an animal. Vibrato in guitar , of course, was developed to mimic the human vibrato. so sounding "natural" is good, unless you want an industrial sound. The Blackstone allows you to play cleanly and add a little "growl" or a more full-throated "growl" without changing - just by changing the attack with your pick or fingers. Combined with the fact of the natural warmth and clarity of tone, this produces a sound unlike any I have heard from with any other pedal. If you want accuracy, warmth, expressiveness and musicality, this pedal is for you. If you want harshness and an industrial sound this is probably not for you.

I use a Traynor 40W amp. My guitars are a new Baja Tele (unmodified), A Mexican Strat with Kinman blues pickups, an Epiphone Joe Perry LP with Grover Tuners and Seymour Duncan '59 Model pickups, and an Ibanez Destroyer II with a Seymour Duncan EVH 76 bridge pup and the neck pup that came with the Ibanez LP (supposedly and American Gibson pup).

Seems to have very solid construction. The battery fits tight inside. Materials seem industrial grade.

Jon Blackstone respond quickly to customer requests. I asked for a tracking number and had it the next day. Shipped by Fedex Ground from New York to Maryland. Arrived in 3 business days. Have no reason to down-rate.

This pedal looks like its carved out of a piece of black stone. It is super cool retro-looking and very small. Easily fits in a gig bag even with cords, tuner, etc.

I think the sound is phenomenal. It definitely is about music and not about noise.

If I had only one pedal I would choose this one. Although expensive like they say "Buy quality, buy once, buy cheap, buy again." If you can afford it, I recommend it. If you can't - get some gigs and make some money.

If you love to tweak your pedals the Blackstone Overdrive pedal has lots of options; however, the options are not easily accessible. This is a design decision on John Blackstone's part: you sure won't knock your settings out of position when gigging. All the options are controlled by flush mount "knobs" or internal trimmers. The external controls have a slot in the top you can spin with thumbnail/pick/screwdriver - other options are available inside the pedal so you have to take the back off and tweak with a jeweler's screwdriver. The internal trimmers and switch are really important in getting a good sound with each guitar I use so when gigging I pretty much have to decide which guitar/Blackstone setting combination I'm going to use before heading out. Strangely this has turned out to be a good thing as, once setup, the pedal is dead simple to use, sounds great, and leaves you playing music - not messing with gear.

Ease of use is a weird one to rate as the pedal is a challenge to set up but super simple to use once tweaked. The architecture of the pedal is idiosyncratic to say the least. For example, the gain control on the higher gain channel (Red) is at its lowest setting at 12 o'clock. As others have noted counterclockwise increases gain but also brings a bass cut while clockwise adds gain and a mid-boost. You have to balance the internal gain trimmer against the external gain control to get the eq and gain combination that works for you. Combine that with external tone control which goes from flat at 3 o'clock to a mid-scoop at 9 o'clock, an internal treble trimmer and interchangeable capacitors for presence tailoring and you have so many options it might as well be a Mesa Boogie.

Bottom line is that it is tweakable and as you'll see in "Sound Quality" tweaking results in very satisfying results.

My main rig is a Deluxe Reverb Re-issue with Yellowjackets and a Weber Mini-Mass attentuator. Most of my gigging is with a drummer-less band: lead (me), rhythm guitar/vocals, and bass/vocals. We don't play loud hence the power choking measures. The bare amp in this setup can sound squeaky clean or heavily saturated like a Vox maxed out (and still keeps good bass definition). It's a great sound on its own! I was looking to add a kind of hi-fi lead sound like the cranked amp when recorded and processed with a nice compressor and a little eq. The Blackstone does exactly that! It sounds like a cranked amp that has been cleaned up with a bit of post-mic compression and eq. And quiet: no need for a gate or noise suppressor (unless you get crazy with the gain).

So, what amp does it sound like? It's a little like a cross between a saturated Marshall and a Dumble. It has nice definition in the treble without being harsh. That is quite an accomplishment when mated with a Deluxe Reverb. It does the Robben Ford / Larry Carlton Dumble sound with ease. To my ear it sounds best when the basic amp is slightly saturated as well. That happens around 4 in the higher gain input on the Reverb channel of the DRRI.

Where things get really interesting is the interaction between the guitar's volume control and the Blackstone. Everyone wants a set up where rolling off the volume takes the raunch out without losing loudness - the classic "roll up the volume" for leads. I've never found this with a pedal until the Blackstone. It's uncanny how rolling back from 10 to 8 is like turning off the pedal. I played a whole set without touching the pedal. Left it on the Red channel and just moved in and out of the mix with the volume control. As I mentioned above, it lets you play music instead of pedals.

There is a caveat to the volume control interaction: it only works with the pedal in its unbuffered setting (there's a switch inside that lets you chose buffered or non-). It also has to be first in your chain. You'd think ok, I'll just do that. Great until you use a guitar with a preamp. The guitar's preamp buffers the signal so the Blackstone no longer thinks it's first. The pedal gets thinner and harsher sounding when faced with active pickups unless you switch it to buffered. It gets its sound back but you lose the volume control interactivity. I guess nothing's free.

Just a note on guitars: I use a Gibson CS336 and it sounds great and does the volume control thing. When faced with my other gigging guitar, a Godin xtSA, the pedal sounds harsh until switched to buffered mode. So there's no switching guitars mid-set as you have to unscrew the back and flip the buffering switch with a screwdriver. Oh well.

I bought the Blackstone to replace a Visual Sound Rt 66 and Fulltone Distortion Pro. When run in series (Tubescreamer at low gain into Distortion at low gain) I was getting the sound I wanted but just wanted to gig with a simpler setup. The Blackstone has achieved that and more.

I haven't had it long enough to comment on reliability but the build and component quality is excellent so I expect no problems.

Before buying I sent a long email describing what sound I hoped to achieve. No reply. Fair enough - I'm just an amateur player with an obviously nerdy / techy bent. I'm sure Jon Blackstone gets zillions of similar goofy emails. Anyway, I decided to take the plunge and ordered the pedal without actually playing it. With a money back guarantee I figured I was safe. Well - I've never received anything faster when ordered across the Canada / US border. When it counted the customer support was exceptional. Two thumbs up.

To put my opinion in context here's my overdrive/distortion experience (owned or borrowed and played extensively): Fulltone Fulldrive and Distortion Pro, Ibanez (re-issue) Tubescreamer, Visual Sound Rt 66, Boss DS-1, Super Overdrive, and GT-3, Yamaha DG 60, Mesa Boogie Mark IV and .50 Caliber , Marshall JCM 600, Budda Twinmaster and Phatman, THD Univalve, Matchless Chieftain, and a top-secret NASA space shuttle overdrive. Anyway, by no means a connoisseur I know what I like and I like the Blackstone pedal. Six months down the road I hope it's as pleasing.

Very versatile pedal. Many sounds possible. But honestly, it takes lots of tweeking to get it just right. I believe that is a good thing. Two separate channels with drive and volume, one EQ shared by both channels. Inside the unit, one switch for reactive or buffered response, two adjustments for gain structure, two changable capacitors.
My advice... don't give up on this pedal. It could take some time and effort to get it right, but it is worth it.

Amazing sound. Seriously, it's incredible. I've had mine for about six weeks and now I wouldn't want to play without it. I play a Gibson Les Paul into an Emery Sound Microbaby tube amp. This overdrive pedal doesn't change the sound of my amp (great amp, read my review), but instead becomes part of it. I like what it does. It adds some compression, adds thick harmonic overtones, works with other pedals beautifully, and never muddies the tone. I leave both channels on very low gain. Nothing bad to say. Great pedal.

It is obviously well made. Very sturdy. Good switches. (true bypass)

Some more points... It needs to be first in line after the guitar to work best, yet my Bud Wah (true bypass)is before it and it works beautifully. I leave this pedal on always, except for a super clean sound, which I rarely use. The fullness this pedal produces is stunning. Setting both channels to very low gain settings gives me lots of versatility, and I use one other OD pedal after this one (Keeley modded SD-1)to produce more overdrive/distortion. This Blackstone OD is now a crucial part of my sound. I'm very pleased.

It's pretty easy to get good sounds out of this pedal. Any pickup, any amp, any guitar; I've managed to get great sounds in minutes. Just adjust the level and gain, maybe throw in a little post-distortion mid-cut, and voila! All analog, so no patches to edit. The manual is pretty short, but comprehensively covers all of the user changeable settings. And that's all you need. This is the 3rd released revision (hence, the "v3" in the name) of the Blackstone Mosfet Overdrive 2S. I have to dock a point because a few of the changes require opening the case and changing capacitors or adjusting a trim pot with a jeweler's screwdriver. Not exactly convenient, but easily do-able.

Oh man, who cares if this thing can cop anyone else's sound? It sounds so great on its own!!! The overdrive/distortion you can get out of this thing is fantastic. If I had to criticize it, I'd say that it's too perfect, since it doesn't exactly model the real thing (i.e. an overdriven tube amp), it surpasses it. I use it with a Wendler Electrocoustic and a Hamer USA Artist through a Polytone Mini-Brute II 1x12 and a Mesa/Boogie F-50 1x12. I don't find it noisy, even with the gain maxed. Maybe you'll get hiss if you max the internal gain, but I can't say.

It's meticulously hand-built by Jon Blackstone from top-quality US components. But you can fry just about any piece of electronics with a spilled sugary beverage. Seriously, making it liquid-resistent is really the only thing I can think of to make it more reliable. But, relative to other pedals, it's a 10.

Jon was very quick to respond to my order and he quickly responded to my request for a tracking number. I'm sure he'd be as quick to respond to any problems.

I play a little bit of a lot of stuff: funk, jazz, rock, pop, folk, blues. This pedal works anywhere you'd use an overdrive, but it can produce everything from a clean boost to singing leads, so it's very versitile. Not sure if it can do really aggressive metal, but it's not really meant for that. I've been playing guitar for about 8 years. I own the aforementioned gear, as well as a Digitech GNX3000, which has some of the best distortions of the digital modelers I've tried, but the Blackstone just smokes it. It's really in another league. It also trumps every other analog distortion I've tried. To me, most sound good at first, but quickly grow old or cause ear fatigue. This pedal is great, and is just as inspiring as a great guitar or a great amp. It's really that good.

This is as close to plug `n play as you can get in an effects stompbox. I popped in a battery and was ready to go. The Blackstone responds exceptionally well to playing dynamics and guitar settings, so you don't have to spend a lot of time hunched over the pedal.

There are some set-and-forget "thumbnail" controls on the face of the unit. I set these to match my playing style (very quick and easy) and forgot about them. I eventually got around to playing with the internal controls (despite a warning etched on the back of the circuit board: "STOP OBSESSING & PLAY YR GUITAR"); I made one minor adjustment to the treble control and promptly forgot about it. Out of sight, out of mind...

I use the Blackstone with my main rig, which is a Koll Custom DL Thinline into a Vibro-King.

This pedal responds to my playing dynamics and guitar settings just like a cranked tube amp. It's my "secret weapon" for getting that cranked amp sound out of my Vibro-King when I have to reduce the volume to the point where the amp isn't pushed hard enough to get me that gritty overdrive when I dig in on the strings.

I've seen a few people claim that the Blackstone is so good that you could run it into a DI if your amp goes down. Frankly, I think they're overstating the case. I tried running the Blackstone through some full-range amplified speakers and was not at all impressed; some serious EQ would be necessary to smooth out the reponse. But that's really not the intended use of the Blackstone.

There are two channels: red and brown. I use mostly the brown channel and control the Blackstone from my guitar. The red channel provides a bit more distortion - perhaps a bit shy of Mesa/Boogie or metal levels, but certainly much more than the vintage response of the brown channel. Even with the higher compression of the red channel, the sound cleans up nicely in response to playing dynamics.

There doesn't appear to be much that could go wrong with the Blackstone. It appears to be built solidly and there are no exposed knobs. This is one stompbox that looks like it was actually *designed* with the understanding that it's going to get stepped on a lot.

I thought I handn't received a printed copy of the manual (I had, I just didn't notice the cardboard-colored cover as it sat in the bottom of the cardboard box) and wrote to Jon who reponded promptly and courteously.

Also, I ordered directly from the company and was impressed by how quickly they delivered.

I play a variety of music that borrows from rock, folk, classical and jazz. I play mostly fingerstyle and pay a lot of attention to dynamics, voice leading and chord voicing.

I've been playing for almost fourty years - seriously for the past seven.

My main rig is a Koll Custom DL Thinline into a Vibro-King. For effects, I'm particulary hot on the Toadworks Redux and the Blackstone MOSFET Overdrive. I have a few other effects that get hooked up on an as-needed basis.

This is pretty darned pricey for a distortion stompbox, IMO. I'd know about it for years and had heard the clips on the Blackstone web site, but was unwilling to take the risk. In early April I finally got a chance to try one for myself and was very impressed. I ordered one for myself the next day. If I lost it, I'd definitely replace it.

I really love the simplicity of the Blackstone and the way it responds to my playing and to guitar settings.

I give this a six because the pedal has a wide array of sounds, not all of them great. It takes some tinkering but I'll get into that.

There are two overdrive channels. One brown, one red (for heavier riffs or solos).

Each drive channel has a level control, and a drive control. The red channel's is a bit unorthodox: at 12 o'clock the gain is at minumum. Move counter clockwise for increased gain using humbuckers, move clockwise for increased gain using single coil. The last 10% in each direction boosts gain dramatically and will get you into the fuzz realm.

There's an overall EQ, again unorthodox. All the way clockwise is a flat eq. Fully counterclockwise cuts mids and boosts highs/lows.

There are two internal trimpots, one for overall treble control, and one for overall gain control (it says "Gain 2" but this doesn't mean the Red channel only, as is commonly mistaken but the second gain stage in a four gain stage setup. I don't fully understand this, but suffice to say it DOES affect both overdrive channels.)

There are two socketed caps that you can remove and change out for different bass response and presence control. I haven't changed these.

There is a buffer switch, in case you have to run the pedal after some other effects. It's actually noted on the pedal that it should be the first in line after the guitar.

LP 78 Custom - Blackstone - Effects - Tweed Blues Deluxe


Okay, I must say after reading so much about the Blackstone I was ready to be blown away completely after plugging this thing in...I wasn't. Actually, I was shocked. It sounded terrible! I couldn't find a useful setting in the box. After the first day, I was ready to put it back up for sale and forget about it. I got a lot of, for lack of a better word, "farty" tones out of it. Just too buzzy and useless for what I'm looking for (which is a cross between some Tool-like heavy parts and Pink Floydian cleans)
Day two, I found a small jeweler's screwdriver (as this is what you need to adjust the internal trimpots.) Again, no luck, I was ready to sell the pedal.
Day three, FINALLY, the more I tinker with this thing, the more I realize how useful all the controls are and how wide of an array of sounds you can get.......again, not all are useful, so PLEASE give this pedal some time before you ditch it. My settings with my current rig are:

Buffer: OFF (I'm running it first in line after my guitar)
Interal Treble: About 60%
Internal Gain: About 70%
Brown Level: 2 o'clock
Brown Gain: 11 o'clock
Red Level: 12 o'clock
Red Gain: 2 o'clock **NOTE** Yes, I'm using the single coil gain with my Les Paul, but I've found this to be a much tighter and defined heavy overdrive/distortion and more suitable to my tastes. Personal taste is key here, but do experiment.

With the brown overdrive settings I have kind of a VOX'ish clean, on the first of breakup to medium overdrive depending on how hard I play. This pedal has a great grip on your dynamic playing and this was one of the key ingredients I was looking for. I don't ever switch the brown channel off because it works both as my clean AND as my overdrive! What's more, I like to play chords where I suspend bass notes and move melodies around on the upper strings.....the coolest thing: The bass notes are overdriven, the higher ones sound clean! Everyone might not like it, but for me it was perfect!

The red channel has a very useable heavy sound (although I'm not completely happy with it yet, I know with the options on this pedal all I need is a few more days of tinkering and I'll find it).

I've only had the chance to play with it at home, but it's really ruggedly constructed....metal with a tough powder coat. The external pots are recessed so you need a small flathead to adjust them, but once they are....you don't have to worry about your settings being changed.

Never had the need.

I've been playing for 11 years. This is the best pedal I've tried so far, although I'm still going to buy a Lovepedal Eternity just because I've heard so much about them. I'm sort of a gear slut. I'm sure both these pedals will live happily ever after on my pedalboard.

Very easy to use, but internal adjustments need a small jeweler's screw driver. Once those are set to your taste though, you won't have to bother with them again anyhow.

OK....here's how I check overdrive quality. I plug into an original '57
Tweed Deluxe of mine (with an old Strat or Les Paul) and get a great crunch tone. Then I plug into my original '59 Bassman. Set at the same
volume as the Deluxe, it doesn't overdrive....so I kick on the pedal and
compare the tone to natural overdrive on the Deluxe. The Blackstone does
an INCREDIBLE JOB on this test! Now, in order for me to get this result
I had to back down the internal treble adjustment all the way.
As that treble is increased it will tend to get closer to the heavy metal zone, if you know what I mean.

So far so good. I've only had it for a short time.

Haven't had to contact Jon as of yet. Others have said he's a great guy.

Definitely check this thing out. The adjustments are critical to attaining your preferred tone. The DO make a difference in the overall
flavor of the pedal...expecially that internal treble adjustment.
The difference between the "brown" overdrive & the "red" really add to
the tonal flexibility. Since there's no knobs sticking up, your adjustments stay put after you set them.

Fairly easy to use, 4 knobs and a couple internal pots.

Well...This pedal was a huge disappointment for me. I really loved my original v2 Blackstone, so I thought I'd like this newer one better because of the added controls. Unfortunately, I sold my V2 to cover the cost of the new V3. The V2 had an amazing classic hard rock tone. The V3 has an amazing 80's heavy metal tone. If you like metal, this is probably the best pedal out there. I hate all heavy metal, so that's why this pedal was such a disappointment for me. I hated the tone. It has a scooped mid sound which I found unusable. I wish I hadn't sold my V2, because they are getting almost impossible to find.

Built like a tank!

I emailed blackstone about getting some different caps and resistors for my V2 and they offered no support. They actually told me to go to Radio shack to purchase them. It didn't seem right to put cheapo Radio Shack components into a $225 pedal.

I hated this pedal, but if you're into metal, you'll probably love it.

Extemely easy to use...The controls are intuitive and very responsive

This unit is first in line before my tuner and many other pedals including a Cornish SS-2 & G2,2 germanium fuzz units.Really fantastic sound here.Other posters have discussed this pedal alone for rehearsal;I think for some that is not only reasonable,but in itself a great reason for to own this pedal.I cannot stress enough how great this pedal sounds alone.The attack and pick articulation are very sweet and the range of growl with volume knobs is fantastic....

I am extremely confident about Jon's pedal.I had the pleasure of meeting Jon Blackstone and know there is nothing to worry about there..

Again,I've spent a little time with Jon,briefly talking guitars,amps gear.Another great artist creating amazing tools for guitar players.

My Blackstone Mosfet Overdrive 2Sv3 was a very careful,specific,informed decision.Through my pedalboard thru preamp/splitter to a multi amp/multi speaker output the Mosfet Overdrive 2Sv3 does all I could ask perfectly..It will be insured immediately and replaced if it were to taken somehow.

Alot of people say this pedal requires alot of knob-tweeking. I agree, but once you understand the dials. I find it very easy to find tune this to your taste.

UNBELIEVABLE. My god, this pedal makes ALL other overdrives look sad. I
play a Strat through Fenders or Marhsall and play tons of Hendrix, Pink Floyd and psychedelic blues. And NO-ONE is more of a tone-snob than me. I have wasted tons and tons of hard-earned cash and fought with my women trying to locate the "Holy-Grail" of overdrives and have NEVER been satisfied. I've owned (2)Fulldrive 2's, (2)Vintage TS 808's, a Klon Centaur, Marshall Blues-Breaker, Maxon OD808, you name it. This pedal is more than all of these combined. I sold my TS808 because something was missing in the tone and because it would not work in conjunction with my Foxrox Captain Coconut 2 (the ULTIMATE Hendrix machine, see my review). This pedal works beautifully on either side of the Foxrox and does not color the sound in ANY way, only enhances it in magical ways. Both channels sound fabulous to my ears. Highly flexible. I use the brown channel for blues and rythym and the red for screaming lead. I changed both internal capacitors to a 220pF and now I can max out the red channel without any loss of high end and also use the // channel for great cleaner SRV-type Strat sounds. This pedal cleans-up beautifully with your guitar's volume knob. And the harder you play, the more it screams. The tone is phenomenal and really let's your guitar and amp's natural sound shine.
I can honestly say a long, long nightmare has ended in search of this overdrive. This is a revolutionary work of art. Waste your money if you want to and buy a Fulltone or an Ibanez TS808, but if you have an ear for tone, you will find yourself with the Blackstone in the end. This tiny pedal is monster like you would not believe.

Too early to tell, but I've owned enough pedals to know when one is built to last. Not only is it a beautiful design. It's smart, compact, ingenious and looks like it will survive Armageddon.

Jon Blackstone's customer service is unmatched. My first Blackstone was making an unusual noise. He sent me another one out IMMEDIATELY so that I could have it in time for my gig, trusting that I would return the first one. Put THAT in your pipe and smoke it! His ALWAYS answers my emails and annoying questions promptly. Superior customer service and product.

I think the sound quality alone is enough. Like I said, save you money and your marriage and you can cheat on your wife with this beauty! The best overdrive on the planet, period.

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This is a follow up to the previous review.

I finally got fed up with the switch playing up. I returned it to Guitar Experience who replaced the switch and turned it around within a week. Score is for vendor.

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This is the latest version bought new in Feb 2005. I have not tried any other version so cannot comment on differences in features or sound.

The Blackstone Overdrive has a lot of features, some of them unusual. It's quite a complicated pedal to set up and so I'll break down this section into smaller sections.

External controls

This is a twin channel overdrive and there are two footswitches and five knobs. The enclosure is the same size as the ZVex pedals. The 'knobs' are in fact metal trim pots and need a screwdriver (or fingernail, plectrum/pick) to adjust them. The channels are voiced and named differently, the brown channel is lower gain. Each channel has a volume and gain pot. The tone control is shared and instead of a treble rolloff, cuts mids. At extreme attenuation treble and bass is increased. The gain knobs are unusual, in that the min gain point is 12 oclock. Adjusting the control either way increases gain. However the counterclockwise gain has been voiced for humbuckers and clockwise, for single coils. The single side has more gain and more mids.

Internal controls

There are two internal trimmers. These need a tiny cross head screwdriver to adjust them. One is for overall treble and the other for overall gain. So if the Red channel isnt enough for you, there's more, if the brwon channel at min is too much, there's less. The factory position is in the centre of the travel and look like this

+ +

There are two caps mounted on sockets. These control overall presence and (wait for it) the bass response on the red channel counterclockwise gain. Alternative caps have not been provided but the manual gives values and how they affect the sound. Finally there is a tiny buffer switch. This puts the pedal into buffer mode (it's still true bypass). This pedal has been designed to turn down the gain from the guitar without loss of 'tone'. However the pedal has to be first in the signal chain. If you cannot do this (ie using a fuzz or wah) you can switch to buffer mode and place it where you like. There is a loss of turn-down-ability.

Summary

This is a very easy pedal to use , as the knobs stay where set and there is a lot of tone shaping available. It can be set for two guitars or for rhythm and lead or two different overdrive sounds. It will do light overdrive to metal. The trade off is that you can spend weeks tweaking.

I'm using various guitars and amps. However this pedal was bought specifically to work with my Les Paul and a clean amp. Compared to the overdrive from my cranked Nano it is very very close.

One of the footswitches sometimes doesn't work. I'll have to get it seen to before Feb next year.

Dealt with Guitar Experience always had good service.

I play various styles and I needed what I define as 'classic Les Paul overdrive' when using a 100w valve head that just will not break up. This is an excellent substitute for amp overdrive in those cases where you need cleans and dirt from the same amp.