Danelectro DJ-13 French Toast Octave Overdrive

hard to get a good sound out of it at first, because I started it out using cheap solid state practice amps, had to adjust the amps eq well enough to reach the well balanced tone for this pedal- but not a problem through a bigger/tube amps. Too bad this unit does not come with LED also

This pedal does not suck tone or maybe subtle not noticeable, it is also very quiet when bypassed and does not hum like other dano pedals when generic ac/dc adaptors are used.

Very warm and dynamic. tru-tones ring out when you find it's sweetest spot. BUT also had to compensate for the treble and take time to balance the amps and guitar tone as well.

I can say this is a tubescreamer-like tone but of the distortion zone. It's like MUFF.

Octave function is psychedelic/experimental and not too musical in my opinion

plasticky

gives me eric clapton tone in his song "cocaine" at the CROSSROADS concert way back 2004

overall im happy with it- it's worth every penny spent

easy as any other fuzz/overdrive pedal. 3 small pots
distortion/ output level and EQ for increasing and trimming high frequencies.
The octave up effect is switched in with a small toggle switch under the dials.
Easy peasy lemon....never mind!
Not a huge fan of the small push button switches danelectro pedals use but im lightfooted so no particular worries!
Could really do with a LED indicator so you know if its on or off without finding out the hard way in a live situation....

quick general set up break down.....
ibanez custom JS100 into pedal board-----vox wah - behringer dynamic compressor - Danelectro chilidog octave - Monte allums DS-1 Rectifier tri gain mod - stock Boss Ds-1 - (effects loop switch)danelectro frenchtoast oct/dist - Boss compressor - Boss Chorus - Digitech expression factory.
2 boss DD-3 Delays staggered in the effect loop of a laney GHL50 into a 4x12 crate blue voodoo Cab.

Well well i got this baby used off ebay for ??11.00 and its one of the best ??11.00 ive parted with.
Certainly its not a Fulltone octave/fuzz but im not one to shell out or do i have over a ??100 to throw at a boutique pedal. Let me say with this affordable/ and replacable if the worst happens, pedal you can instantly achieve a very close approximation to the higher end fuzz//octave boxes and other than cosmetic and true bypass features isnt that what we want. A cheap useable pedal that does what it says?
I use mine to get that fulltone ultimate octave sound that in particular Joe Satriani uses to great effect, and i get it!
The fuzz alone is very useable, nice full and warm.
I suppose it helps a lot being aware of what amps to put these pedals into.
Self contained gigs i send them all into a peavey envoy 110 and mic it up through my pa, lovely sound! and in a band set up i send them all into the clean channel on a Laney GHL50 into a 4x12 cab, again very low noise and very very useable!
You got 20 english pounds in you pocket and you want a fuzz/octave pedal......Get the FRENCH TOAST....now!

as stated i got mine used ive been using it 18months and i record, gig solo and with bands......NO TROUBLE.
My experiences problems if you are the noob who likes to take jumps onto his/her pedalboard.
As mentioned also it really could do with a on/off light.
I run it through a fxloop footswitch with a indicator so i get by!

never had to deal with them!
website is a little cakka though....

i play a whole array of popular music styles, i heavy amount of rock/blues/pop and instrumental guitar based music.
The pedal does what it says to a above average quality.
Anyone who wants this effect....the french toast for the money and certainly worth it....i thoroughly recommend it!

fairly easy to use if you tinker with it. I give it a 9 because of the octave up switch.

All of my pedals are danelectro's, including the mini amp pedal and the Milkshake chorus pedal. by itself, it has a thick high pitched sound that is not easily described. with octave off, it is a basic fuzz pedal. the sound does imitate any artists that I know of and is original. with chorus it sounds very sonic and glitsy

so far, so good, and yes I would use it without backup.

never had to deal with them but would if I had to.

I play slow paced Black metal with Blues and Classical thrown in for good measure. it brings originality to my sound very much.

Fairly easy to use, especially if you're used to fuzz and other dirt boxes. And actually, surprisingly, there aren't many bad sounds in this little thing. There is no manual, per se, but there is a one-sheet containing a single setting suggestion, which I suppose is a good start, but I quickly moved on from there.

There is all sorts of Mudhoney in here. For the money (and even disregarding the money), this is a spectacular fuzz pedal. By switching pickups and adjusting volume at the guitar, you can get a wide range of fuzz tones, from a dynamic dirty-clean to splattery crunch to endless, singing Big Muff-style rubber.

The octave up effect is pronounced and a lot of fun. You can definitely get Hendrix/SRV-type tones, or you can mess around in near ring modulator territory. This is my first octave-up pedal (which is what prompted me to buy the pedal), and I'm definitely enjoying it.

I've been through a lot of fuzzes (currently own a Skreddy Mayo, Tone Factor Ultra-Lord, Everman Fuzz-Drive and Sovtek Green Big Muff Pi), and the French Toast stands up to my lineup. Does it *replace* any of the other pedals? Probably not. But I could see buying the same pedal in a boutique package and still being thrilled with the sounds.

The French Toast is not particularly noisy for a fuzz. There is noise of course, but nothing you wouldn't expect. The octave effect actually seems to make the pedal *less* noisy in my setup, which was a surprise.

I'm using medium-hot humbuckers (Gibson L6-S) into a very-slightly dirty tube amp (Ampeg VL-502).

It's a lot more solid than I was expecting, especially the footswitch. I think the pedal in general is probably going to be fairly reliable. The knobs are definitely the weak point. They feel weak and flexible when you adjust the. I'm running the French Toast through a true-bypass box, so I don't have to worry about stomping on it too hard or anything. Once I find a "set it and forget it" setting, I'm not worried about it breaking unless something falls on it, etc.

I would definitely use it at a gig without a backup, for the reasons mentioned above. Plus, I have a bunch of other fuzz pedals, so unless the octave effect was *crucial*, having it not work for some reason wouldn't really be that big of a deal.

Haven't needed them yet.

I play noisy rock. This is a perfect match for what I like to do.
I've been playing for many years now. Most of the gear I use daily is listed above.

If the French Toast were stolen or lost, I'd probably get another one. It was only $30, and I really enjoy how it sounds. It's much more flexible and useful than I was expecting.

I do wish it had an on/off status LED, but my bypass box has one for it, so no problem for me specifically. It would still be a good idea in general.

The French Toast definitely helps me make music. The first couple of hours I had it I came up with 3 riffs that were worth recording for later use. That alone was worth the $30.

I like this thick, booming sound from the bass, but the pickups needed adjusted to get much sound from the highs. The highs are terrible.

I use a roland amp with my guitar, And the bass is great.

I've had mine for a few months and it's working fine.

I play alot of different styles, but usually the heavy metal. It looks awesome. If it was stolen, I would definately get another BC Rich. I think I'd go for the Tribal. I chose this guitar the minute I saw it- I love how it looks. I hate the trebles, and I love the bass and that it has the extra frets. I really, really wish this had a whammy bar, that would definately make it perfect.

I can't get a good sound with this pedal. I use a Roland amp, and a BC Rich guitar most often. The strings on the guitar depend a lot, I noticed, for more feedback and squeals I use Guitar Boomers. I really liked this pedal at first, but I crave a different one now.

Just recently it wouldn't work right, then all the sudden it worked again, I had good batteries too.

Easy enough: a stompbox with Level, Distortion, EQ and Octave On/Off toggle switch. Points deducted because there's no LED to tell you whether the octave is on or off (you'll hear it, though).

Wild 70's fuzz. Instant sonic deconstruction, in fact. The French Toast is erratic, noisy and brilliant fun; don't look for smooth or subtle fuzz tones here, as there are better pedals available. This green meanie will cheerfully wreck any combination of high brow amps and guitars; what it does it to turn every set up into a plywood guitar and a cheapo amp in meltdown. This - as everyone should remember - is what rock'n'roll is about.

With the octave function off, the French Toast delivers ludicrous quantities of fuzz. The EQ knob is vital here - you can dial in beeswarm treble if you wish, or roll it back for a more useable tone. There are no subtle settings - even at low distortion levels this pedal is aggressive and mean.

Toggling the Octave to "on" takes you into guitar funland. The French Toast's octave tracking is erratic, doesn't like chords or double stops, and can be made to make the most bizarre ring-modulated type noise. This is not unusual for octave-fuzzes (even Roger Meyer's Octavia does this), but whether you enjoy this lunacy depends on your sense of fun. If you want to get serious and Hendrix-y, you'll need to use the neck pickup with the distortion and tone rolled back, and stick to cleanly picked single note lines. Otherwise there's enormous fun to be had in exploring the noises that can be extracted from various diads and triads, all of which have their particular fuzz-blasted intermodulations. In this respect the French Toast punches way above its weight - it makes the kind of free-form noise that people associate with Ampeg Scramblers and Fender Blenders, pedals that cost hundreds of pounds more.

This is not a pedal that you'd want to use as a main tone - but for those moments where something off the wall is needed, the French Toast is the real deal.

Danelectro provide cute little plastic shields to stop the control knobs being kicked off, but otherwise this is a plastic pedal and should be treated as such. It will break if you jump up and down on it, so don't.

Great fun. Boutique makers will charge three to four times the RRP price for effects that are neither as convincing or as much fun as the French Toast. This pedal is a grin-inducing monster, and entirely in keeping with Danelectro's cheap-and-cheerful ethos. A good job all round.

Dead simple - like the rest of the 'mini-dano' range. Guitar in one end, amp in the other, fire it up and play with the controls until it sounds right.

I'm really only using this as an octave-upper. My setup is a Telecaster into a Crybaby - French Toast, Tuna Melt, Arion DDS-1 - Peavey Classic 30. There's enough drive to make a difference to the sound of the amp - and also to stand alone as a fuzz / overdirve unit. Metallica / Sepultura it is not, but it doesn't pretend to be.
What it is, is a Fuzz / Octave pedal that sounds great with everything (except drive) set to about 1 o'clock with the octave switched on.
Other people have spoken of background noise - I don't have any I'm pleased to say.

I will definately gig with this unit.
I've owned (and gigged) a mini-dano Tuna Melt (tremolo) for about 7 years now and it's never failed (really!).
Maybe the better you look after your Gear, the longer it lasts.
Dunno - other people complain about the cases being plastic - yes, they are - so don't jump on them! If the plastic case is an issue, re-fit it in a cast box - the sounds are certainly worth it.
Like I've said, I've already had 7 years of hassle-free performance from other Pedals in this range.

Hmm - thankfully I've never had to call them.
There's not much information on the Dano Website, so I would imagine they're fairly difficult to get hold of (also not much contact info supplied with the pedals...)

Soo, for the style of music my band plays (RHCP / Rock / ambient originals) this is perfect. I'm really looking forward to the next rehearsal (or Gig!) to use this pedal at a loud volume.
All this for less than ?20 - I'm a fan of these pedals (can you tell?) - and while it's certainly true that you *do* get what you pay for, these little pedals stand out as being a great way to play with new sounds without bankrupting yourself.

Very easy to understand, since there are only 3 knobs. However, some tweaking is required to really appreciate this pedal. Never just crank the distortion and the tone and expect a pedal to sound awesome. I know some players tend to do this.

I noticed also that the lowest distortion settings (9 o'clock and less) are a little useless. The effect seems to dissappear here.

My settings are pretty much around 12 o'clock for all 3 knobs. This works well with my set-up.

I like this pedal paired with single coil equipped guitars, especially my MIM Strat. Like others have noted, it sounds best with the neck pickup, with the tone rolled back slightly.

Try it first WITHOUT THE OCTAVE SWITCH ENGAGED.

If you don't like the first impression of this pedal, just play with the controls and tweak them very slightly in every way. I promise...you will find a sound that you really like. I was blown away from the start when I played through this thing. It is like the fuzz that I always wanted, but didn't know existed...at least not for 30 bucks.

This pedal has a sweet, heavy, scooped sound that I love. On chords it sounds thick and full. On single notes it sounds grindy and "chewy".

Now that you love the regular fuzz sounds, engage the octave. This to me is just an added bonus that can be used for really adding cool emphasis to a solo. Throw another fuzz pedal in front of the French Toast with the octave on, and you really get a great effect.

I've never used a Foxx Tone Machine, but I find it VERY hard to believe that this isn't a darn good clone. In other words, I don't think the Foxx can be much better than this, just way more expensive.

Good so far. Seems solid for being plastic.

Obviously, if you slam down on plastic, it will break.

One day I might buy another French Toast and re-house it in something metal. Just for fun.

N/A

I love 90's Grunge-era stuff, as well as jazz and reggae. I can use this pedal for all of it.

The first sound I noticed with this pedal was very similar to Iommi's "Paranoid" tone. From there it was easy to find a Smashing Pumpkins sound and even a Hendrix tone.

Paired with the Big Muff, I can get different fuzzes with different characteristics. If I tweak them just right, they can achieve the same signal boosts and clarity. The Big Muff does a better job at sounding big and loud, but the French Toast has a better overall sound in my opinion.

Very easy to get a good sound out of the French Toast. Mine came out of the box almost perfectly set-up already. No Manual, I guess none is needed.

This is a Fuzz most certainly, with a choice of octave via the toggle switch. I play Fender, Danelectro and Gibson guitars with fender twin reverb. This sounds great fuzz of the mid to late 60's, sounds almost like the Mosrite Fuzzrite in a way. You can play mid sixties Garage rock with the French toast. I figured out today if you match the Frech Toast with the FAB Overdrive you can get quite a warm sounding fuzz, by itself the French Toast is Treble/Nasal Fuzz killer for those bottom end scales like it should be. People say it's modeled after the Foxx Tone Machine, I wouldn't no what one sounds like, but this is awesome.

Dependable, Yes. This is a pedal not a stompbox, so it should hold up if you press on it and not stomp.

Don't Know

I Play Rock, Punk, 60's/Garage, Surf, Rockabilly etc...
Like I said earlier this is great for 60's Garage stuff and some punk. I would replace it, but would not be heart broken, cause I got such a good deal. I like the color sea foam green, real 40's or 50's style. I'm into the switch that lets you decide from fuzz to fuzz w/octave.