Clark Amplification Gainster

Easy to get a good sound out of this little unit. There isn't much editing involved, on the fly tweaking is easy, and the basic concept behind the pedal is very clear and well executed.

I'm not too interested in sounding like my favorites, but this does a very nice, clear, natural moderate gain as well as I've ever heard it done. Roughens up my Dr Z Carmen Ghia and Maz 38 very nicely and acts as a great boost pedal for the Fuller OCD, Jauernig DGTM, or Pharaoh Sweet Cheetah overdrives.

.I've never had a stompbox fail during a gig. I'm not leadfooted, so I'd be fine without a backup.

I play a broad variety of blues, rock, country, and jazz. The pedal's a great match for all, a little more organic sounding to me than the Zen Drive I own. I believe I'd buy this again if stolen. It definitely helps me sound better than I do without it. If I had to choose between this and the Zen Drive right now, this would be the keeper.

Very easy to use, level, tone, and drive external adjustments. Internal bass trimmer. Can't get any easier

This is a nice "in between" pedal in comparison to the Barber LTD and the Direct Drive models. Sounds like a crunchier version of the Barber LTD...uses the same OpAmp chip (TL072). But....

...once again another pedal has fallen to my all time champion..the Vox Big Ben pedal . I know, you can't compare solid state to tubes but this is my review based on my other equipment and pedals I've used in my past. It has that "plastic" popping noise under hard transient attack (hard picking) Its especially noticible when doing pinch harmonics.

If you go to the Barber LTD and Direct Drive review you'll see my compliants for those pedal which are the same...that plastic resonance that just kills it for me. I'm a tube snob and I can hear the difference as plain as day and I guarantee most of you will hear it once its pointed out to you and it will probably annoy you like it does me.

In fairness, when comparing it to the average catalog or music store brand..the Barbers / Clark are good pedals. My rating is based on my opinion. If you are a fan of solid state pedals...this is a good one for the money.

Barber makes excellent products. I still have the Tone Press compressor which I love.

For the money and its class range..its a good pedal. If you want the real thing..check out the Vox Big Ben its true tube overdrive (yes, it uses opamps to drive the tube stage into distortion, but its still tube clipping), operates on batteries (buy rechargables), and is under $300. Honestly, the overdrive, feel, and tone of the Vox Big Ben rivals the distortion of MANY boutique amplifiers.

Just for the record, this is NOT the handwired version, but rather the Clark/Barber version.
VERY simple! Time tested Level, Tone, and Gain knob configuration. It also features and internal Bass pot/trimmer for dialing in just the right amount of Bass. VERY cool! A lot more of the so called "3 knob pedals" should take note of this added feature. NO more bass loss!

I'm using this pedal with my Fender 57 Tweed Twin and my Heritage Classic 535 loaded with Seymour Duncan Seth Lovers. The neck and neck/middle pickup combinations of my Heritage, in conjunction with my Tweed Twin and the Gainster, yield some of the most authentic Claptonesque approved blues/light rock tones I've heard in quite some time. This pedal is a match made in heaven for a Tweed syle amp as it simply takes what you already have, and makes it sound bigger and better. The break up/gain structure is VERY natural sounding and REALLY compliments the stellar clean tones of my Tweed Twin WITHOUT having to crank the amp to ear splitting levels.
I have tried MANY pedals (TIM, CJOD, Xotic BB pre amp, OCD, G2D Cream Tone, Digitech Bad Monkey, 10th Anniversary Full-Drive2 Mosfet Edition, and the Zendrive to name a few) through my Tweed Twin, and although some of those pedals are stellar sounding in their own right, NONE can match the Gainster for the authentic Tweed tones this pedal produces. If I were to compare it to any of the above mentioned pedals, I would have to say it's "similar" to the OCD, but without the annoying harsh/brittle/fizzy high end, (the Gainster is MUCH more natural sounding) and the Gainster also has a more balanced tonality from Bass to Treble. the Gainster also seems to "cut" very well. Something that the original OCD was a little "challenged" at doing.

I've only had this pedal for a couple of weeks now, but it's built like a tank and I don't forsee any problems whatsoever.

In a word, EXCELLENT. Bob at The Perfect Note for the SPEEDY, polite, professional service, Michael Clark for the design, and Dave Barber for the build quality. When those three professionals "have your back" it doesn't get much better.

I bought this pedal for one reason and one reason only. To get an AUTHENTIC Tweed style overdrive out of my Fender 57 Tweed Twin (for the Claptonesque Blues/Light Rock I like to play) at less than concert hall volumes. I'm happy to report this pedal delivers that in spades.

'Nuf said.

Three knobs volume ,tone and gain. plug it in your chain and away you go. Has a LED and 9 volt adaptor. True bupass. Hand wired. This is an original Gainster made by Michael Clark. He said the hand wired sounds a little bit different and better than the Barber version. I saw this on Ebay and paid the higher price. It is worth it. You can't buy this verion anymore new.

I love this pedal. I use it with a Clark Beaufort-Tweed Deluxe Clone ofr a old Fender blackface super reverb. I use a Les Paul or a old tele.
It just increases the actual sound of the amp and gain. Ive used a original TS-808 in this spot on my pedal board and it may now be replaced. No more tone loss , no more mid hump, No more loss of bass I also have Klon and Hotcake and tried many others. It combines with other pedals the best of any pedal I've ever used.

This pedal is used and it works great so it has already held up for a while and I expect reliablity to be good.

I've called Michael Clark and he always seems helpful

I've played professionally for over 30 years. I've had quite a few of the hot or in pedals- originals and modded Analogman and Keeely. I like this pedal better than most. It is on par with the best of them. If you can get one of the origal ones grab it. I don't think you will be disapointed. I only thing I don't like about this pedal is that I wish it was a bit smaller. It is a big case.

This is as easy as it gets... Level, Tone , Drive

Here is where I am going to get it of my chest...I have been playing for over 15 years. During this period I have been fortunete enough to try a wide range of Overdrive and Distortion boxes. This pedal simply is what an overdrive should be. Compared to pedals like the TS9 and Ts808 tube screamers, Boss OD and dist boxes, Line 6, Tubeworks and lately EHX English Muff'n, the gainster boasts the most perfect overdriven soung. Every nuance of your playing comes perfect. Very dynamic and best of all... virtually noiseless even with single coils.Works awesome with other effects.

Made out of metal very resistant finish.

This pedal is a master to all those pedal wannabes. It is awesome...I play rock. Just rock in the vein of Interpol, The Cure, Joy Division etc. This pedal is my main OD...so it is part of my signature sound.

I found the Gainster easy to set up, however there is a bass knob inside the unit that I have not adjusted. It would been moe convenient if it had been mounted outside, maybe on the side etc. I was able to "dial in" very quickly!

I am using the Gainster with a Fender Strat with WCR SR single coils, a Crate V30 EL84 amp, a Carr Mercury, and other pedals. It is quiet and has an amazingly natural amp like tone. Very transparent, smooth, no frequency humps,I can't dial in a bad sound! Works very well with my Xotic RC Booster, resulting in a fat, thick mild OD tone. I have also layed it over a mild distorted amp sound with equal success. I am getting great Blues tone to Classic Rock tones. As amatter of fact I was able to dial in a perfect 38 Special Hold on Loosly by accident!

Well made, so far so good!

Very helpful before the sale and shipped as they said they would. Good email correspondence....

I play Blues and Classic Rock, this pedal worked out perfectly. Very good value, good price point for the quality and tone received. No hash or fuzzyness, just tone! I have been playind on and off for 30 years. If the Gainster were stolen I would definitely replace ti with another. I have it side by side with a Xotic BB preamp. Compared to the BB, it is more natural and organic. The BB is better at higher gain and Marshally sounding tones. I highly recommend this pedal if you are looking for a low gain over a clean amp or to add to an already distorted amp!

Three knobs very tweakable.

I use this with a Reverend Hellhound 1x12 Combo set for a fender clean type sound.My guitars are Les Pauls and Telecaster.I have the old one.First of all if your looking for that rocking fender tweed rhythum tone this pedal nails it!(this is what I mainly use it for!).Stacks very well with other pedals for solos also.I've been useing it with an analogman Bi-Comp or Foxrox Octron.It works so well because it doesn't have alot of compression which allows it to coexist with other pedals!Very cool and leaves alot of differant tones to exsplore.Well worth trying out.

Looks very well made.

I've never had to deal with them.

I use this for blues and classic rock sounds and it fits the styles perfect.I've been playing for twenty years and owned just about every pedal out there.I've really fallen in love with this one and had to post about it.I would diffenantly have to get another if stolen.Thank you Mr Clark!

The Gainster is configured about like any run-of-the-mill overdrive pedal: gain, tone, level. That means that a new owner will have an immediate familiarity with it's operation. Basically, plug in and set the controls for the desired sound...very easy to use. It is NOT run-of-the-mill when it comes to how this unit sounds, however!

I own a Klon Centaur, that I in fact bought from Mike Clark (maker of the Gainster) years ago when the Klon first came out. The Gainster just simply sounds much less colored, which is a funny thing to point out as the Klon was famed in it's early years for being so "uncolored." But side-by-side with the Gainster, the Klon sounds very compressed. I also own several AnalogMan modded pedals, which I very much like and use, and an AnalogMan King Of Tone, which is outstanding. The Gainster sounds much better than the mods, much clearer and uncolored. The King Of Tone is equally uncolored and makes for a perfect mate with the Gainster, using the KOT as a boost and the Gainster for more overdrive. I use this combination 75% of the time and seldom go to my other pedals since buying the Gainster. I am playing Fender style guitars through a Clark Beaufort or a '64 Fender Deluxe Reverb and the Gainster sounds just outstanding through either amp, as well as '71 Vibrolux and '65 Tremolux. Not sure how it sounds through a Marshall or Boogie, etc., but I suspect it will perform well.

I do not expect to have any problems. It is built like a tank. Mike Clark's workmanship on all of his products and repairs is top notch.

First rate! Mike's a super guy and, IMHO, a genius. Could not ask for better support!

I highly recommend this overdrive for anyone wanting to take a step up from factory mass-produced overdrive/distortion units. It is not cheap, but is no more expensive than it's competition (Klon, Maxxon, Menatone, Fulltone, etc.) and I think performs better. It is a hand-built piece of equipment and the sound is excellent and useable. I play live and play frequently...have been for 28 years. This is as fine a piece of gear as I have owned in all of that time. Be sure to check out Clark amplifiers, as well. Outstanding!!

I bought this pedal in Sept. 2003, I use it with a Victoria 45-410 (Tweed Bassman). It has a level, gain and tone control. The pedal is simple but requires some time to get your setup where you want it, what I mean is that this is not a typical overdrive pedal where you kick it in for a distorted sound. This pedal raises the overall gain of the amp and makes it touch sensitive to your playing and allows a person to "ride" the volume control to get the different sounds that you want. I only have tweed amps but for what it does it is excellent.

I use an american std strat into the gainster - Barber direct Drive - Voo Doo Trem - Korg DT 10 tuner - Victoria 410 amp. I run the gainster on all the time and get my sound with my volume control on 7 or 8 then I can turn up the vol to get a great blues sound and if needed I can kick in the Didrect Drive for a full blown distorted sound. This set up gives me a simple to operate system and the clean and blues sounds are the best I've ever gotten. I'm still working with my Les Paul, but the pedal doesn't seem to like humbuckers as much as single coils. Ffor a tweed style amp this pedal is a must!

Hand wired and made one at a time with a 10 year warranty.

So far Mike has answered all my calls and e-mails and has a very good reputation amoung musicians.

This pedal is a must have for me, but you need to understand that this is not a Boss Super overdrive type of pedal! It is designed to augment your guitar and amp and give you the sound of your amp pushed to the next level without blasting your eardrums. I feel this pedal is a keeper.

Its easy to use just like any ordinary overdrive- there are three knobs that control the volume, tone and gain.

I use a Gibson Les Paul Standard into the new 15 watt Class A Crate tube amp. This Gainster pedal provides a sufficient volume boost and some additional gain. The Gainster does not sound as transparent as my Maxon OD-820 Overdrive Pro, and its not as loud as my Banzai Cold Fusion.

Seems solid but the case is too large.

One guy makes em and one guy fixes em.

I play rock and blues. Been playing for 25 years and counting. I think this Gainster pedal is good but is too expensive for what it does and is not worth the price I paid. My other overdrive pedals offer better value in my opinion.