Fulltone Full-Drive 2

Once you hear what each knob does, it's very easy to use. The manual is basic, but that's all that's needed.

I play a Strat w/texas specials thru a Fender Deville. THe sound is sweet,and very smooth. It sounds great on any setting. From a light overdrive, to full boost it's incrdible. The clean boost can be deafening! It doesn't change the tone of your sound, it only enhances it. This is an 11!

It seems sturdy enough. Don't run over it or drop from a three story building.

I've sent e-mail ti Mike Fuller, and he's prompt, and semms to want every player to have the tone.

I (try to) play blues,rock and this is the sound I've been looking for. I found the promised land of tone. From light to heavy OD, this does it better than anything else. I've had a other ODs,including the TS9(808) and this is by far better. The TS9 changed to tone too much (particularly the drive channel)and the Fulldrive didn't change it at all. If your happy with your original sound and want to enhance it, this is it. Sure it costs a little more, but it's worth it, it really is. If you can find this used, get it, even without hearing it, you will not be disappointed. It sounded better when I got home with it. From a range of 1-10, this is an 11!

Very easy to use. A big plus are the two stompswitches, allowing you to access two tones easily from one box.

The sound quality is great. The main thing I want to convey to those interested in buying this unit is that this is really an overdrive box. Nothing wrong with that, but don't expect thick fat fuzz sounds, or even epecially crunchy chords with this pedal only. If you use this pedal with an amp (I use a PA) that has some distortion capabilty then the combination will probably be fine. This pedal seems to excel in that area between no distortion at all and medium distortion. The sound quality is execellent.

Seems tough. No problems so far.

I tried to reach the company about hot rodding this thing for more distortion, but after about 8 attempts gave up.

Expect quality sound, but don't expect this pedal to cover all distortion needs, up to and including heavy distortion/fuzz.

Easy to use knobs for tone,volume,overdrive and boost and on and off stomp switches with LED indicators which are cool to have. Manual is good but because this is so simple you dont need it. Easy to get great sounds out of it, couldn't be simpler.

I use a soldano amp with a 68 reissue strat and the sound I get is so cool like the sound of a boogie which I have always liked without as much noice this thing is silent. This is like having two pedals in one

This thing is very well built. This time around with gear I am only buying well made stuff and this thing is cream of the crop. Can't afford a backup but I have faith in this pedal will last.

I've only e-mailed Mike Fuller once and he responded in a timely manner never needed any other help so far.

Mostly play light rock but wanted distortion but I also wanted warm sustain and this pedal gives me that in spades. If it were stolen as soon as I could afford another I would buy it again. I have tried to get this sound through other pedals but didn't work. I like the match of this pedal through my Soldano amp it is a way cool.

(I own the older version) Fairly straight forward two stage OD pedal. True Bypass a plus. Mystery tone control take some finesse.

Setup - Strat Deluxe w/ Noiseless pickups or Guild Brian May Signature thru Dunlop Volume, Vox wah with Fulltone Clyde bypass (see web site) and mods, Fulldrive 2, Fender Reverb tank reissue, into the '64 Blonde Bandmaster head with Marshall 4x12 cab.
Fulldrive 2 - answers the question, where's the beef? Instead of cranking the Bandmaster to 10, the Fulldrive allows me to have that BIG MAMA sound at the stomp of a button, and the versatality when I don't need mama around. I use the uncompressed mode mostly, as it is super clean yet sweetly saturated. Low frequencies galore! Most of the OD pedals I tried sucked dry the rich body of the Bandmaster. Fulldrive 2 did it the least, adding it's own distinctive flavor.

Dependable. Box is tank-like. Buttons are fragile. Had to send unit back for stomp button failure. I've seen the newer ones and they have a new bigger style stomper. Seems better. When the battery starts to go, you know it quick.

Mike is very helpful. I had my pedal back within a week & 1/2. Posted Vox mod on his web site rules. Mike and his techs helped me out with my many questions on the procedures. Thanks guys.

Fulldrive 2 takes some time to get familiar with. You really have to adjust if you are used to that one button stomp-o-matic. My band plays all styles, and it works well.

As easy as falling off a log. If you need the manual you probably won't be able to read it. Controls are: volume, tone, overdrive and boost. The setting that comes in most useful to me is the push/pul volume pot. This almost completly cuts the compression and gives it a more Hendrixy edge, which is just what I am looking for. Two Footswitches, one for on/off and the other for the boost mode.

Best overdrive I have ever heard. The sound is sweet and tube screamer like in the one mode, and screaming distortion in the other. I run this with a really crap JCM900 Marshll but plan to buy a JMP soon. With newer amps the boost mode just increases overdrive, but on older style amps it boosts volume aswell.You can get almost any sound from this. From SRV to Trower/Hendrix. I heard that Trower uses this product, no wonder.

Built like a tank. built out of 16 gauge steel. Yes I would gig without a backup. Even though the swithces are a bit dodgy and the led's are only glued in, i 'm sure Mike would fix it if it broke.

Mike Fuller is great. I e-mailed him once and he replied within 2 hours.

I play blues & rock in the style of Hendrix/Trower. I am only 13 but have been playing for 4 years solid. The only thing I would change about htis peadls would be its boost mode(I would give it a separate volume mode) but apart from that it is the best of its kind. I have played Tube screamers (ts-8 &9) klon cenaturs, Carl Martins, Dunlops and Bosses but this beats the hell out of them all. They are in big demand, so expect to wait a few weeks for it (as I did) but it is certainly worth the wait. If it were stolen I would definatly buy another. I will soon be recieving a deja2 and a 70' pedal and have no worries about there being problems. For the ultimate overdrive, I don't think you could beat the Fulldrive2

four knobs (one is a push-pull), two switches, one helluva pedal. easily tweakable. i haven't found a bad sound yet (and i assure you it's not because i'm good).

i'm using the fd2 with a clyde (another beauty of a pedal), a reissue bassman and a 62 reissue strat w/texas specials. unbelievable sound quality. this pedal oozes buttery smoothness. the overdrive pot takes you from barely noticable OD to sweet blues tones.

built like a tank. solid.

i have emailed mike fuller numerous times and he has responded promptly each time. very nice guy.

buy it. buy it. buy it. hands down the best OD i have heard.

VERY EASY TO USE. SOUNDS GREAT IN ANY SETTING. COMES WITH SAMPLE SETTINGS BUT I NEVER LOOK AT THOSE.

I PLAY A G&L ASAT THROUGH THE FULLTONE AND A BUNCH OF Z. VEX STUFF INTO A MATCHLESS SC30. THIS UNIT IS NOT NOISY AT ALL. IT IS VERY ORGANIC SOUNDING. IT DOESN'T INTERFERE WITH THE SOUND OF YOUR AMP WHATSOEVER.

VERY RELIABLE. I'D USE WITHOUT A BACKUP. I CAN'T AFFORD A BACKUP ANYWAY.

NEVER DEALT WITH THEM BUT IV'E HEARD THEY ARE HELPFUL AND COOL.

I HAVE ALWAYS BEEN A FAN OF THE BOSS BLUESDRIVER. IV'E HAD ONE SINCE THEY CAME OUT.THIS ONE KICKS ITS' ASS. THE BLUESDRIVER IS THE BEST OVERDRIVE FOR UNDER $100 THOUGH.(MY OPINION)BEFORE GETTING THIS I BOUGHT A KLON CENTAUR. IT DIDN'T REALLY WORK OUT FOR ME. I THINK THE KLON AND THE FULLTONE ARE THE TWO BEST OVERDRIVES AVAILABLE. THEY ARE JUST DIFFERENT. THE KLON HAS A REAL PRONOUNCED MID-HONK-GROWL SOUND TO IT.IT SOUNDS LIKE THE BACK IN BLACK GUITAR SOUND IN A WAY. VERY THROATY.(WHAT PEDAL AM I REVIEWING?)THE FULLDRIVE SOUNDED SO MUCH MORE LIKE MY GUITAR AND AMP. CLEANS UP PERFECTLY WHEN YOU PICK SOFTER. I CAN'T EVEN TELL YOU HOW ORGANIC THIS SOUNDS.IT REALLY SOUNDS LIKE THE PERFECT AMP BREAKING UP. ALMOST LIKE THE MASTER VOLUME ON MY MATCHLESS BUT EVEN WARMER. THE REASON I TALK ABOUT THE KLON SO MUCH IS THAT FULLDRIVE VS.KLON HAS BEEN SUCH A BIG DEBATE. I THINK IT IS A WORTHLESS DEBATE. THEY ARE NOT ALIKE AT ALL. IF YOU WANT TO KEEP YOUR SOUND, WHILE ENHANCING IT, THE FULLTONE IS FOR YOU. IF YOU WANT THE BIGGEST, MEANEST, MOST THROWN IN YOUR FACE SOUND, THE KLON IS PRABABLY FOR YOU. I REALLY FEEL MY SEARCH IS OVER. I'M STICKING WITH THIS ONE. HAVING THE X-TRA BOOST IS A HUGE PLUS AS WELL. IT'S LIKE GETTING TWO FOR ONE. OH YEAH, I USE THE COMP. CUT TOO. IT SOUNDS TOO TUBESCREAMERISH THE OTHER WAY

All the other reviews have this part covered...pretty easy to figure out.BUT there could be some improvements made..seperate knob for boost level and more tonal control.

Best OD pedal I've tried but maybe not the best around.I'm using with LP & Strat into Plexi RI & Marshall 4x12 w/greenbacks and it does sound great!The uncompressed boost setting is killer but could use a bit more dirt,but the problem may be that this pedal is supposed to sound best with amp right on the edge on break up, something a little tough with a 100 watt Marshall & still retain your hearing.True bypass its at least close enuf as far as I can tell. Now onto "REG" mode: seems to retain the sound of your guitar/amp as stated but for me at least a bit more EQ'ing (mid-boost)would be useful mostly for my Strat.If your 100% happy with your sound and just need more dirt/vol.you should be happy!But to my tastes a mild mid boost seems to 'bring out' the tone for lead work a bit IMO.I have an 'old'TS-9 an this does kick it's butt in some ways but I'll use both thank you! OD does sound quite natural,more so than the TS-9 but could use a touch more gain..also I really would like to be able to control boost vol better. If OD gain is cranked up 1/2 way or more the boost vol. can't give you that little extra for soloing.But nothing I've found can do it all and for what this pedal does it does it very well!

Looks sturdy inside...others seem trust Fulltone ...so they must know something ! I don't ever gig W/O back-up !!!! Give it a 9 unless it breaks.

I e-mailed fulltone once on a friday nite an Mike Fuller e-mailed a reply at 1 am ....hey dude get some rest!

I use this pedal for soul/motown to classic rock at it works well. Would like to have been able to try the Carl Martin 'Hot Drive & Boost and Visual Sounds "jeckyl & hyde" as I've read great things on both of these plus there both cheaper $135 & $109 resp.Plus both of these have the features I miss on FD2. namley EQ & seperate lead boost.If I ever get to try these two I'll do a report.But for now I'm quite happy with having my FD-2...Try it! beats all the Boss,DOD...and so on crap !

Easy to use instructions provided. Manual is good to go!

I am using strats, fender amps. No noise. The effect is pretty strong. I can't get the sounds of any artist, just the artist who uses fulldrives like Robin Trower etc. I like the tone with the gain mid or past mid same with the second channel. I wish it was designed like the jeckyll and Hyde where you had best of both worlds. One side ts808 and the other Marshall distortion. The second channel doesn't sound dramatically different. But the tone is original and it sound like a much mid was added to this pedal and thats what gives its own sound. The sustain isn't too great to me. Or maybe I can't get the sustain from this particular pedal. I have no problems with my 808 or Jeckyll but maybe its just me, I don't know. Overall the sound is better than a Boss pedal and not good as a TS808. IT does have a great clean boost channel and if I was to keep it I would use that portion only. When I compare or rate a pedal I do the ask the following, Does it go clean when I take all the gain off, When I lower the gain really low is it still smooth(like an 808) this one didn't do that for me, sustain is it there?, guitar tone is it there?, noise, switch noise, test out all power sources and take the best one for tone, battery life, who cares!( I would put new batteries in ever show.), Maybe I forgot some others but those are the main questions I ask my self. There hasn't been a pedal yet that I tried that can beat my 808 so I happy with that. Hell, it was around for 20 years and man its still going like the energizer bunny!

Well built. I love what Mike has done with the effect chassis. It the best looking and most durable and most usable pedal box I ever seen. Thumbs up for all of his pedal bodies.

His support is better than most and he is very helpful about anything that relates to his effects.

I play my originals and blues for a personal hobby. Definitely a good tone for blues. If it was stolen I wouldn't buy one again because its not my sound. Yes I compared this to my TS808, TS9 original, TS9 modd analog mike, Jeckyll and Hyde, OD-808 etc, etc but its not my cup of tea. I don't follow hypes or trends. I go with my ears period.

Easy as it gets.It's a stompbox after all.

My problem previously has been that I love the basic sound of my guitar/amp rig but EVERY pedal I've have tried colors the tone toward the pedals own orientation.Even my beloved TS9 colored the tone too much.Blues Drivers and many others were much worse than the TS9.One gets what one pays for I guess.
My rig is a Strat/Bassman Re-Issue with some modifications. The Strat used to be a Lone Star( and still has the SD humbucker) but the neck and mids are now Lindy Fralin Vintage Strat replacements.This gave me more clarity,took out the annoying mids that the Texas Specials had, and more definition. The Bassman has been retubed a number of times with much experimenting with tubes.The preamp and rectifier changes have given me more sag and again, better definition.With a little help from a Boss RV-3 reverb and a Boss GE-7 EQ my rig, with no pedals, and at volume 6/7 on the amp is the beautiful blues tone I strive for. The problem is that the venues I play at are usually lower volume than a continual 6/7.And I do like the availability of extra OD over and above the amp tone. Enter the pedals..they all change the tone at every volume. BUT the Fulldrive2 doesn't.
On its first channel the Overdrive maintains the tone of the guitar/amp almost perfectly.Its the pedal version of the Fralin pickups with great clarity and definition.Also most pedals don't clean up well as you turn down the guitar volume. Even the TS9 didn't clean up well.The Fulltone EVEN ON THE BOOST CHANNEL still keeps the guitar/amp tone (yes even with more overdrive) AND still cleans up nicely when the guitar volume is turned down. This thing is amazingly flexible.
Now is this for everybody. No. I'm a blues player in the tonal range of Otis Rush and Buddy Guy.Its perfect for me. BUT, the critical thing is that I like the basic tone of my guitar/amp. It needed volume enhancement not tonal enhancement.If you're a Les Paul/Marshall rock player and you like your rig by itself you'll love this pedal too. Or Gretsch and AC30 or your Danelectro and Park (if you REALLY like that). But you get the idea. If want your guitar amp to sound radically like something else get a Blues Driver, a Death Metal or something. The Fulldrive won't help you.

Don't know yet.

Also don't know yet.I will say one thing. Because its expensive and in demand they're a pain in the ass to locate and buy without waiting weeks.But I also must say, its worth it.

Again ,if you like your rig this is the only pedal to buy. And even if you don't blues, roots, classic rock players will like it too.But your Fender on Fender won't do you justice with the Fulldrive2, if you're in an Aerosmith cover band. Me, I love this pedal!

This unit is the best thing I've ever purchased for my setup. I like simple things and this couldn't be any easier to get a great tone out of. I replaced a my V-Twin with it and with all due respect to the boys at Mesa..this thing kicks their butt.

I use it with my Tom Anderson Cobra and Flextone 60W combo and even though it's a modeling amp the Fulldrive does it's magic with it as well. I'm going to try it with a tube amp as well. The others explained the controls in detail I can only say that with the push/pull volume adds a whole new dimension to this unit. It really brigtens up your sound. I've been after Ian Moore's tone for a long time and this has it.

I had it for a day, seems pretty sturdy. I would probably get a backup in case something happens to Mike (Let's hope not)

Haven't dealt with them but if they are anything like their web site then I got nothing to worry about.

I play mostly modern blues, a little progressive stuff. I've been playing for 18 years and this is the best tone I had in a long time. I usually have one amp at a time, I don't like to jump back and forth between amps ( that's why I got the Flextone which is the best thing for me) I mostly play for pleasure. The Fulldrive has a very musical feel to it and it really adds a new dimension to my playing. Having that long and controllable sustain and drive at my disposal really makes me want to play more. I could hardly put it down, just played for hours. Lastly I'd like to thank Tommy at Guitarville in Seattle. He was very helpful on the phone and shipped it to me to Atlanta overnight for a very reasonable price. Take my word for it: This is the best $200.00 you will ever spend if you like TONE. (STAY CLEAR METALHEADS!!!)

Very easy. I feel that this pedal has been so documented in this area I can not add any thing of great value exept to say that mine is one of the newer #FM pedals and has the Fulltone 3PDT swiches. I find none of the bugs concerning the volume and tone that were said to haunt the previouse versions. I find the one very useful as it does not coulor the sound but just highlights it (or not).

Every thing has been said. This pedal is all about control. You get the sustain and all the control you ever wanted at your finger tips (literaly, all you have to deal with is the guitar its like telepathy). I used to use a boss blues driver(oh my I dont know what I was thinking!)I wish some one had told me about htis long ago. I have been playing like crazy kcant put the guitar down, this pedal finaly gave me the sound I was looking for (THAT TONE and the SUSTAINnnnnn...)It also realy improved the sound of all the other effects I had before it in the effects chain (wah and Fulltone Octafuzz) especialy the octafuzz it realy screams but smooth now like the hendrixy kind of guitar in pain scream.The wah also became more vocal and smooth and I can get all the tone I need now at muchlower volume (I dont have to wait intil the neighbors are all on vacation).

Fulltone need we say more?

Mike Fuller! Onece again, need we say more?

I have never given a full out 10 on everythin to any piece of equipment , until now. This is an incredible pedal I have told my dearest and closest freiends about it, and feel like I'm protecting some kind of great tone hord(dont ever tell the competition about this one!). I would never recomend buying any piece of equipment without hearing it first, but this pedal is hard to get a hold of, much less try out before buying. Almost every one buys it over the phone or net(thiey sell like hot kakes and are always out of stock most places have waiting list).I can truly say BUY IT you wont be dissapointed. If I could only have one pedal this would be it.

Plug up and dial in! If you're even remotley familiar with getting good tones from a TubeScreamer, then you will be able to set the knobs in roughly the same positions here, and get similiar but MUCH BETTER sounds! Minus one point for the pull-botton feature on the volume, which turns off the compression and allows for a cleaner gain-boost. Since I will rarely ever use this feature (maybe some chicken-pickin'), it doesn't bother me, but if you wanted to go back-and-forth between this feature, it would be very difficult to match volumes.

As far as I'm concerned, this is the finest overdrive / smooth distortion pedal in history! It does everything the TS-808-advocates claim the TS will do, but far better. The overdrive is more organic, and the boost channel gets a higher-gain, yet natural classic-sounding distortion. For my use, the overdrive is perfect for twangy, blues tones, and the boost provides an excellent lead and/or rhythm sound for anything besides high gain distortion (as in Van Halen or King's X). Another obvious advantage to this pedal over the TubeScreamers is its True Bypass. My old TS was the first or second pedal in my chain, so my signal was significantly weakened by the time it hit my amp. Now, I'm one step closer to having my entire chain true bypassed(need to rig my Crybaby still). If you're a fan of the "idea" of the classic TS, but you've always wanted a little bit more, this rather pricey pedal is well worth your immediate purchase!

Mine's brand new, but I will say that it's made very durably and Fulltone already has a reputation for reliability.

My only direct contact with Fulltone was when I found a diagram for converting old wah pedals to true bypass. I had begun following the directions, when I noticed my model wasn't exactly like the one in the diagram. I called the number on the web page, and Mike (the owner) answered it himself. He was very helpful, and I was quite impressed that he took the call. This company is small enough and has enough integrity to be what I wished every company could be - HELPFUL!

I play a Fender Strat with Lace Sensors into a '63 Bassman amp. I play large doses of Texas-style blues and classic rock, as well as some heavier rock (NOT GRUNGE!), and I also play guitar for my church (more of a chorused clean sound most of the time). This pedal is a perfect fit! It allows the tone of my Fender equipment to stay true, with the accent of smooth, warm overdrive and distortion. If you like Grunge, or you're into the Metal Zone sound, then please stay away from this pedal. But if you've always wanted your guitar to sing with warm sustain, belt out the blues with attitude, and crunch without being thin, THIS IS YOUR THANG!!

This is an overdrive pedal about the size of two Boss pedals side by side. It has four knobs - from left to right: Volume (this can be pulled for a non compression mode), tone, drive and boost, and it has two foot switches. The left has a green led and turns the pedal on, the right has a red led and the pedal is in boost mode with the led lit or normal mode with it off. A nice feature of the pedal is that the boost led stays lit when the pedal is by-passed so you know what you're getting when you switch it on. It came with a manual which had some suggested settings and explains everything for the ones who can't figure it out for themselves. This is an easy pedal to use and ALL settings are usable.

This is a nice pedal. It is an overdrive pedal and generally won't give you metal crunch and gain, but if you're wanting nice sustain and full singing lead tones, this is the pedal for you. I'm playing a Japanese Fender Tele through a Boss CS3 sustain into the Fulldrive into a Fender Blues deVille. In the loop I'm running a Boss DD3.
I basically use this setup in two ways. I either run my amp clean and use the Fulldrive and the sustain for my distortion, or I use the overdrive channel on the amp, turn the Fulldrive volume all the way up and pulled out, which is the non compression mode and gives a lot more gain. The first of these set ups is quite versatile - I've got clean with everything off; slightly dirty with the Fulldrive on; more dirty, more sustain and more volume with the sustain and the Fulldrive; even more dirt, more sustain and more volume with just the boost mode on the Fulldrive; and then kick in the sustain with the Fulldrive in boost mode and there's even more of everything, nice singing lead tones. The second of these set ups is not so versatile and I really just use it to put my amp into maximum overdrive, lots of crunch and gain - pretty ugly really.
No matter how I use the pedal, it is very quiet. There is a little bit of hum but my guitar is fitted with all single coils and most of the hum is just a slight amplification of that.
It would be nice if it had seperate tone and volume controls but it would end up being pretty cramped for space. As it is at the moment, the knobs are nice and big, and easy to turn with a foot.

This thing is built nice and solid. I would have more faith in it than my Boss pedals as far as construction goes. I have only had it for a couple of weeks, but I don't see there being any problems with it. I would and do gig with out a backup.

My only contact with Mike Fuller has been via email prior to getting the pedal. He was always helpful and his replies would come back over night.

Overall this is a great pedal. I actually like playing Pink Floyd stuff and some originals. This isn't so good for the Pink Floyd stuff as David Gilmour's sound is much more distorted. But, I really like it for solo's in my own songs and I think it will be very useful when I get a higher gain distortion pedal, for adding some smooth, rich, cream to my sound.
Yes I would buy it again if this one went missing.

This is a followup to my previous review primarily intended to pass on some subjective impressions of the newer "Flat Mids" Full Drive 2 (identifiable by the "FM" serial number) with the older model.
I received a newer (1 month old) Flat Mids FD2 in a trade and decided to do a head-to-head shootout with my older FD2. Note that my older pedal was bought in 2/98 and does not use the latest FET nor does it have the re-designed PCB (aka, Flat Mids mod).
Executive Summary: I like the older version better.
Test Info: G&L ASAT-3 into my pedal board into Top Hat Club Royale set at "recording/bedroom practice" level.
Initial Pedal Settings: Volume=11:00, Tone=12:00, OD=11:00, Boost=12:00
Pros:
1) FM pedal did have more transparent qualities. I liked the compressed/non-boosted setting better on the FM pedal. Definitely more tube-like (but not much more, the older pedal sounded very good as well).
2) FM pedal Tone control did seem to be more musical as the filter res freq was clearly changed to a higher freq. It behaves much more like a TS-808 Tone control - very musical until about 85% of range where it gets very bright and (IMHO) a tad thin. Older FD2 had (IMHO) much less usable range - could get kind of boinky. I was able to set the FM Tone control to about 2:00, whereas I tended to leave the older Tone control set at 12:00.
3) FM pedal seemed to have less gain overall in all settings. In compressed/boost mode, I had to dime the newer pedal Boost control to get approx the same gain as the old pedal set at 12:00 (mid point).
4) Fast run note articulation was noticably better with the FM pedal. I had to do somewhat more damping and muting and with the older pedal to keep runs from muddying up. However, fast shred stuff is a miniscule part of my overall style ('cause I basically suck at it). My fast stuff tends to be more "country oriented" with less distortion (clean or semi-clean). My distortion work tends to be the more "singing" Mike Campbell-esque stuff.
Cons:
1) The compressed/boost setting is much better on the older pedal. I am seriously into musical singing feedback. I could get the older pedal to sustain indefinitely on notes from open E to G (5th fret/4th string). The FM pedal seemed to run out of gas on any notes above E (2nd fret/4th string).
Midrange content is a well known ingredient of this singing feedback type of sound (Zappa was known to mod his guitars to provide more midrange for this exact reason).
For me, I feel that the older FD2 is a better mix of tones. Sure, the compressed/non-boosted tone has a tad more midrange, but that's not always a bad thing in a mix. I've found that I always need a tad more midrange in a band mix than I think I do. That nice scooped Hi-Fi sound in my practice environment sounds thin with a whole band.
I don't find the enhanced midrange of the older FD2 to be "unmusical" at all. Although, I can definitely see why the majority of players might prefer the newer version.
Bottom line, I think this just underscores the difficulty of making one pedal that will please all players. I still think that either of these pedals is fantastic. Personally, I just wouldn't rush to have this mod done if, like myself, you feel that the older pedal was perfect just the way it was, especially if musical feedback is a substantial part of your sound. The amount of change is perhaps 10% - 15% of the overall sound, but (IMHO) it can be an important 10% - 15%.

I still that either of these pedals is the best overdrive pedal I've personally ever played. I now have one of each and don't plan to sell either one - ever (that's sayng something for me).

This is extremely easy to use. You have to be braindead if you can't figure this out

I have to tell you that I have been trying to find MY sound for years. Now, I have MY sound. I was also very sceptical about "another overdrive" This is the ultimate, I've owned many, (Tube Drivers, Tubesters, Daddy O's, numerous Boss, etc.) The only complaint I had, was there wasn't quite enough distortion, but I give this a 10 anyway, because it sounds great no matter how much distortion you use, and is extremely versatile. Definately not for metalheads. I'm running with numerous strats (mostly Lonestars, or Am. Stand. with Tex. Spec.) through numerous Fender amps. All I can say is UNBELIEVABLE!!!!! I love it so much, I'm getting another for more tonal possibilities.

I would (and have) gigged without a backup. It seems extremely sturdy, and Mike Fuller stands by all his products proudly.

I've dealt with Mr. Fuller on a few occassions. He is prompt in returning emails, and is extremely helpful with any questions.

I play rock/blues similar to Ian Moore on his first cd. Ian is a big time user of Fulltone products, I've seen his setup, and he's showed me himself. This is the sweetest sounding overdrive for this kind of music. Possibilities are endless. I have used numerous overdrives before, and still do on occassion, but must say that the Fulldrive2 is the key to my sound. I was hesitant to buy anoter overdrive, but if you are sketchy, or thinking about buying this pedal, do yourself a favor and get it. If you have any questions about this pedal, email me and I will help you as best as I can. This rules!!!!!

This pedal is idiot proof, if you can't figure it out in five minutes, don't quit your day job! There are two channels; A for moderate overdrive, B (boost) for more saturated, compressed overdrive. Controls are: volume, tone (presence), overdrive, and boost. It's simple to set up two useable sounds and then switch between them. With your amp set clean you get three sounds at the flick of a switch, clean chimey from the amp, light break up from the first channel on the Fulldrive (think blackface Fender) then, more saturated with the boost from the Fulldrive's second channel(think early Boogie, Marshall). I've used it now for two months on weekend gigs, people come up to me on breaks asking how I'm getting THAT tone. I previously used a Rat, Real Tube, SansAmp GT2, Boss Dual Overdrive, TS9, TS808 etc. They're all retired at this time, I wish I'd bought the Fulldrive a long time ago and saved my money. This pedal lets your notes "breathe", uncluttering the soungd of your guitar. When you bend notes, the Fulldrive holds it letting you control the sustain of the note. With this pedal you hear the original note; it's lightly cicled by the Fulldrive's musical overdrive. A good way to try dist./overdrive pedals is to set your amp up so you're facing the center of the speaker, listen for shrillness, odd-ordered harmonics. When I did this with the Fulldrive2 all I heard were sweet tones, that fattened up the sound. Save your bucks and buy this pedal, especially if your into Larry Carlton, Robben Ford, Eric Johnson, early Clapton, SRV, or Jimmy Vaughan. This a tone miester's pedal.

I use this pedal with a Fender Big Apple Strat and a G&L Asat Special through a Mesa Boogie Maverick 112 combo amp. Noise is practically non-existent with this pedal. I find the quality of both channels inthis pedal to be excellent alon with the option of usin the "de-comp" feature built in to the volume knob (via a pull pot) you can use the Fulldrive as a volume boost with the compression taken out. This is great for slamming the input of your amp for "power amp" type distortion/overdrive.

No problems thus far, seems to be built very sturdy. I use it without a backup

Mike Fuller has been outstanding when it comes to ccustomer support, he answered my emails within 5 to 10 minutes. I have not needed service on this pedal at this time

I play in an all purpose band and this pedal allows me to go from Blues to Rock N'Roll to Jazz with ease. I'v ebeen playing for 34 years in bands and as a soloist (classical guitar, steel string instrumentalist) and use a variety of equipment for these purposes. The Fulldrive2 is in my pedalbord which goes as follows: Boss CS3 (compressor), Fulltone Deja Vibe, Fulltone Fulldrive2, Danelectro Echo, Boss CE5 Chorus, Boss DD5 digital delay.

I traded this even-up for a TS-9 that I modded to 808 specs.
I'm sure u are all familiar with it by now. If not, 2-button - bypass and boost, 4 adjustments - volume, tone, drive, boost, 2 indicators - bypass, boost.
As far as easy to use....well... i haven't quite figured out the first switch and it's associated LED yet. The Bypass LED is on when it's NOT bypassed, and off when it IS bypassed!!!! I thought an indicator was used to denote when something is on??? This Boost is that way!
If u changed the words printed on the case to "Distortion" instead of "Bypass" it would all make sense.
Tone control... Flat response (no boost / no cut) is at the 4:00 position when it should be at 12:00. Very little room and very little boost for treble. Basically no boost at all for bass...just treb cut, and small treb boost.
Volume control... Unity gain is at 8-9 o'clock position when it should be at 12:00. Wayyyy too much gain here. If this is used with some solid-state amps, or used as a direct into recording gear, without input protection diodes, this may be too much input voltage and may smoke the inputs...especially if non-compressed - boost mode is selected.
Drive control - Pretty good range. This is not intended for metal/thrash/hi-distortion stuff. Ranges from slight edge to say "5" on a 5150 or a marshall stack... maybe not even that much. For my tastes, it is a perfect amount.
Boost control - allows u to go from drive setting, to an even higher level of distortion....although if u dime the drive, the boost doesn't really do anything for u. BEWARE... in the non-compressed mode... this can be EXTREMELY (and dangerously) loud. There needs to be some sort of protection against this high of a voltage output!

I can't say enough about the tone of this pedal. I've used and modded them all, over the years. This has the best tone of any distortion/overdrive i've used.
Try Vol @ 9:00, Tone @ 5:00, Drive @ 10:00, and Boost off, with a hum in the neck position thru the clean channel of a Twin or a class A amp....EXCEPTIONAL! I've found myself getting lost for hours with this tone...VERY nice tone!
Singles out of phase with drive @ 8:00 makes an excellent country/blues even chicken-pickin kind of tone with great sustain.
Hums with Drive dimed are totally Carlos.
I found that the pedal was very very quiet. Very impressive.

Having designed pedals and things for 20 years myself, I looked into Mikes work. Very well done. The powder painted chassis looked good and was very solid. Construction techniques were excellent.
I can't comment on the quality of components used, as the entire circuit board was coated with epoxy to protect Mikes circuit design from being copied. (Mike, that's what patents are for!)
From what i could see, the pots were dual-arm bifurcated wipers which will ensure noise-free adjustments for a very long time. The switches feel cheesy and weak, but I checked them out and they are solidly constructed. You should remove the black buttons on the tops of the switches as they won't last very long anyway.
The LEDS are hot-melt glued to the chassis which i thought was kind of cheesy. If u step on them with hard soled shoes...they could be pushed right thru the chassis. I replaced them with metal housing versions that shroud the LED in a metal bezel. Works good - last long time!
It's lucky that you can simply turn the rubber feet to unscrew the screws that hold the chassis together, when u need to change the battery. If I had to dig for an an allen wrench to open that thing on stage....I'd have sent it back! As it goes, it is fairly easy to open it up. Batterly life seems to be very good too! (TS-9's I've modded to 808, don't seem to last more than 2 nights of work on one new battery!)
I have gigged with this quite a few times since i bought it, and i'm not worried about taking a spare.

I e-mailed Fulltone and asked about the Tone problem and the volume problem. They e-mailed me back right away saying that i had an early version and that there was an "upgrade" that solved that problem....
Oh,.. and it would only cost me $50 to get it!!!
Does this sound like software you've regrettably bought in the past!!! The cost to buy it was cheap....and the upgrades kill you! Ahhhhh marketting people....don't ya love em! (I put them right up there with lawyers and chiropractors)
Anyway, I found them to be very prompt at getting back to me and helpful (albeit trying to sell me something more!) I asked if I could do the upgrade myself, and they flatly said no... (unlike Peavey, or Crate, or Marshall even helping u thru an upgrade.)

I've been playing since 1964 and have been in bands since 1970. I play mostly blues, R+B, and R+R. I'm also a BSEE and BSME and have designed analog/linear electronics for 20 years.
Mike did an excellent job on this box.... period. Mikes background is in music, not Engineering, whichs makes for a great sounding product, not a high-tech wonder machine. And for what i'm looking for...it is a superb fx unit.
The sound isn't sterile, as many are. It is reminiscent to a NE570 compression circuit, with a J-FET or Bi-FET front-end, and very good filtering without coloring. From a tube standpoint, it's quite like an old VOX AC or a Fender Deluxe on 10, with a master volume on 2. Very smooth and believable!
I generally use the Fulldrive in front of either a Carvin MTS 3212, a Crate VC Class A or a '67 Twin SF for bigger clubs, and a Peavey Classic 30 or Deluxe for smaller places. I've used the Fulldrive thru all of them and thru a Roland Blues Cube 60, a JC55 and even an old Ampeg B-15N....
On the clean channel of each amp....it sounds excellent!!!
If they would have offered me a free upgrade or even allowed me to upgrade it myself, i would have given 10's to every category in this review. As it sits, it looks like the little guy with a great idea, got sucked up in the world of big bucks and greed....and that's not a slam.... happens all the time.
I'd buy this pedal (with the upgrade...lol) again in a second. I know a good thing when i hear one....this IS one!

This pedal is pretty easy to use. It takes a couple minutes to figure out all the options, but it is easy otherwise.

This is the best sounding overdrive pedal I have ever played. It doesn't have any noise and it doesn't load your signal down when not used(true bypass). I have a Strat through a '68 Twin Reverb and it sounds awesome. I tried it next to a Tube Screamer and it is 10x better sounding.

I'm sure I can depend on it but I am still very careful with it. The knobs are sturdy and the casing is even sturdier. I would use it at a gig without a backup, in fact I have.

I have e-mailed Fulltone and I received a prompt response. Very helpful people.

I play blues/rock and some jazz. It sounds great. There are so many different types of overdrive you can get with the normal compressed channel, the uncompressed channel, and the boost channel in both compressed and uncompressed modes. I love this pedal.

No problems here. Real easy to make you smile.

Great overdrive can take you as far as you want to go without ruining your tone. I used a strat with a 2X12 Fender DeVille Amp and I can dial up a multitude of overdrive. I like the dirty clean sound the best. Makes your guitar sound crystaline when you back off on the volume.

Great pedal ready for battle. Heavy gauge box. Very durable and rugged.

Mike Fuller is great. I've never spoken to him by phone but he replies to my emails everytime. He is a true artisan of guitar effects and an extremly kind person who takes the time to respond to your email. Awesome customer service.

I love this pedal. A little pricey but this isn't a mass produced product hunk of plastic made overseas. Each one of these pedals are made with care, checked, and signed personally. Great job there is no overdrive in comparison to this. I would rather fight than sell this pedal and I am a peaceful man. I play blues/rock/other and it is perfect for my sound. I would define this purchase a great success and wouldn't bat an eyelid at getting another Fulltone effect.

This Product has four knobs, Volume, Tone, Overdrive, and Boost. for most people it will be very easy to get a nice overdriven tone out of this box, and the boost is a nice touch for a more hard edge, I use it mainly for a hot lead channel.

The sound rating is a little low because I have tried it through some amplifiers and it doesn't sound as good. I like it alot with my PRS custom 22, I usually never use the boost with humbuckers, but it really works wonders with my custom shop strat. I can get almost any type of blues, classic rock tone that I need out of this box.
I have tried it through a couple of solid state fender amplifiers(red knob chorus style) and found the tone not quite as pleasing, a little harsh. But it works extremely well with tube amplifiers. I have played it with a '65 BF Super Reverb and it almost always sounded great to every one I play with. But recently I purchased a Mesa/Boogie Blue angel amp, and this box works great with this amp and eiter of the two above metioned guitars. I can get a great Chicago or Texas style blues out of this combo almost effertlessly.
There is one thing about the tone contol, about four o'clock on the dail their seems to be a jump to accent the higher frequencies, it's not huge but it seems that all the way up until then you get a nice warm tone, and then it seems to get bright to fast. Maybe I'm just hearing things. You might want to check it out?

I have used this box for almost a year and a half, and have had no problems with it except for the occasional forgetting to change the battery.

I have e-mailed the guys at Fulltone about upgrading my box to the new style with the push/pull circuit, and I received a response within a half an hour.
And according to what I was told he has great turn around times.

Overall this pedal is my personnal favorite distortion type pedal I have ever used. If it were stollen I would purchase one again in a heartbeat!
This pedal does blow away my Tube-Screamer reissue, but my pedal is stock as compared to some people who have the TS-808 mod.
I've had the other guitar players I play with try this box, with a Laney amplifier( I can't recall model), and also his '66 BF Super Reverb, with and Ibanez AS-80, and an Older model Gibson SG and say how nice this pedal is.
If you are in the market for a good distortion box put this one on your list and give it a try.

this is very easy to use, as there are no bad sounds in it

strat hollow body guild electrics ampeg jet vibrolux reverb it doesn't matter, brings out the best in all of the above i immediately began playing stuff that i've never played before, it;'s inspirational

i have no cause to doubt it's reliability

mr. fuller responded to my email within 5 minutes i have heard of others recieving excellent treatment from fulltone

blues jazz rock electric folk spacejazz-traded my boogie v-twin for this now the boogie is a fine thing, but this is devine, and its alot lighter and easier to truck around anybody wanna buy a tube screamer?

Very easy to use, the owner's manual gives good starting points. Four knobs make it simple (but does take a little tweaking to find right tones).

I'm using this with a Fender Lonestar, a Rivera BM60-212, and a reissue '59 Bassman, and I have to say not a lot of noise, unless you have the distortion all the way up. After playing this unit for 6 months, I've put away my TS-9, this is exactly the sounds (blues, Stevie Ray) I was looking for. The clean boost is so transparent, but the bell like tones from the Texas Specials ring beautifully (great for Lenny Breu harmonics. The overdrive / volume boost can be LOUD (the manual comes with a warning)but extremely smooth.

This thing is built like a tank, once I have the funds I'm getting a second (not so much for backup, but to run together - oooohhh I can just hear my amps crying "uncle" nw).

I've never had to deal with Fultone, but from the feedback on the newsgroups, all the comments have been very positive.

For playing blues through a Bassman this pedal rules! Through the Rivera on the "M" channel with the Slavemaster engaged I've got Eric Johnson's lead tone down. This pedal is exactly what I was looking for, wihtout having to radically alter the tone of my guitar and amp combanations. It's enogh to push it over the top, with out destrying or mudding the signal. I would highly recommend this pedal to any one looking for a boost in their tone and sound.

Like most stompboxes, the Fulldrive is very easy to use. It has four knobs (output, tone, overdrive & boost) and two footswitches (on/off & boost). The boost knob works with the boost switch and provides a second footswitchable distortion sound with more gain and sustain. Also, the output knob can be pulled to engage a "no-compression" mode. Some people have said that they would like the no-comp mode to be footswitchable, but I can't imagine why -- you really need to adjust the knobs when going to that mode because the output will invariably be *much* higher than the normal mode. I have the latest version with the sky blue casing. I'm giving it an "8" in the ease of use category since it does have a couple more functions you have to learn how to use (compared to most overdrive pedals) and it takes a bit of experimentation to find the really optimal knob settings for each mode.

This thing is simply awesome. Its distortion sound is very smooth and musical -- not at all harsh or grainy. In terms of the amount of gain, the overdrive mode is basically in the Tube Screamer range, while the boost mode goes beyond that a ways (Fulltone claims 3X more gain, but its *sounds* like less than that). I find the Fulldrive to be more transparent than a Tube Screamer -- not forcing its own sonic agenda on your guitar sound. The boost mode does provide more gain and sustain than the overdrive mode, but make no mistake, this isn't "high-gain" in the 90s sense of the words -- its not hard rock/heavy metal kind of distortion. If you dime the boost knob, its just a bit less gain than, say, Eric Johnson's lead sound.
The no-compression mode? Just think Fender blackface. More dynamic than the normal mode, reacting to picking dynamics and guitar volume changes much more dramatically. I've found that if I just put it in the boost/no-compression mode with fairly high output settings and run that into a clean tube amp, I can get all the distortion variations I need for blues and classic rock by just using the volume control on my guitar. Very cool.
At high gain settings, it is a bit noisy -- not as bad as some overdrives, but worse than others. Its not unreasonably noisy though -- its definately in the liveable range.

I've had it for less than 6 months so I feel its premature to assign a rating, but I can say this: Its built very ruggedly and the components are top quality. The circuit is hand-wired and incredibly simple. I gig without back up for it all the time.

Mike Fuller is very opinionated. But when it comes to backing up his products he's reputed to be completely on the ball. I haven't had to have my Fulldrive serviced, but if I do, I'm comfortable that it will be handled professionally.

I bought the Fulldrive to go with a couple Fender and Marshall amps for blues and classic rock. Its been a real winner with every guitar and amp I've tried. In fact, I've used it on several gigs with a Fender HR Deluxe that I bought for transportability reasons and the combination of that amp with the Fulldrive II just sounds better than it has any right to given the really reasonable amount of money invested. It honestly sounds darn near as good as a blackface Fender that I have -- and its alot easier to live with since it doesn't have to be turned up so darn loud and its much easier to lug around.
When I bought the Fulldrive II, I auditioned it against a Carl Martin Hot Drive 'n Boost II. Truthfully, the Martin pedal is more versatile since it has more gain on tap -- you can go deep into fuzz territory with it. But the Fulldrive does the low- to mid-gain thing better IMO, and its easier to get serviced since its not from Europe and has better distribution. And the Martin *requires* A/C power.

I have been looking for an overdrive that would do justice with a Fender Dual Professional, THIS PUPPY IS IT! Most of the other pedals that I have tried lacked the warmth that I've been looking for.

Have no way to tell. The pedal is brand new. Seems to be well built.

This pedal nearly brought a tear to my eye when I first heard it. You see the Fender Professional will not distort even if you beg. All of the other pedals that I tried were just way too harsh for my liking. This pedal has just the bluesy kind of drive that I've been looking for.

Like most stompboxes, this one is easy to use. Dialing in the right tone only takes a little tweaking. The manual discusses the controls sufficiently. My only beef is that it uses a pull-pot to access uncompressed overdrive, I would prefer a switch.

I should preface this by saying that I am happy with the tone of my current gear (Fender Roadhouse Strat & Groove Tubes Soul-o 75) without any additions. The reason I mention this is because the FDII seems to be a transparent addition to my setup. When the pedal is bypassed is doesn't color my tone at all.
But the fun is when I engage the pedal and it sounds like my tone but WAY BIGGER. I love the range of tones the FDII produces, from "clean with some grit" to "mid-scooped TS-808 distortion" to "near-fuzz". When I add the variable Boost I get just the right amount of added volume, gain, and sustain (so sweet!). I haven't even mentioned the uncompressed mode that ranges in tone from "just a little bit punchier" to "molten tube overdrive".
All of the tones this pedal produces are very musical.

I could easily take out the chickenhead knobs. But the rest would withstand all of the abuse I can dish out.

I have had nothing but good dealings with Michael Fuller with regards to my direct communications with him. I may have disagreed with him on a Usenet newsgroup or Harmony Central Forum but it has been a real pleasure to do business with him. He understands what it means to be a guitar player looking for a dependable pedal that faithfully produces "The Tone".

Yes, it is a premium priced pedal. Yes, it is painted Corvette Orange. "Yes honey, it is a necessity." Yes, I would purchase it again. Yes, I would recommend it to a friend. YES ... YES ... OH BABY, YES!!!

It's hard to get a bad sound out of it; most of the range of all the knobs is usable. The fact that it can footswitch between two drive settings makes it even easier to use, for switching between, say, rhythm and lead, or (using the guitar's volume control and/or pickup selector) two volume and lead settings. There's some overlap between the two channels' ranges, so you're not locked into using two radically different sounds. The two channels share volume and tone knobs. LEDs show the bypass status and channel (even when bypassed).

Using a Boss AC adaptor, there's a slight hum when it's on; not objectionably loud (though you might notice it if recording; try a battery), and gone when bypassed. This pedal can get a wide range of distortion sounds, especially "classic" era sounds (late 60s-mid 70s). The overdrive channel is better than other overdrives I've tried because it doesn't attenuate the high and low frequencies. In other words, it preserves the character and settings of the guitar and amp. The boost channel is good for thick, sustaining leads, and all the way up, it approaches fuzz intensity. In the uncompressed mode, it cleans up nicely when you turn down the volume on the guitar, and it's good for adding a bit of grit to thicken country leads (the Eagles would love it). It has true bypass.

No problems in 3 months of light use; it feels well built.

I mainly use it with Fender tube amps, playing rock/blues/country. I don't really need to have any other overdrive or distortion pedals, because this one does it all excellently. For metal, it's probably not quite tight and scooped enough (but I don't play that style).

as simple as it gets, three knobs-volume, gain, and tone. every sound that comes out of it is good.

this is my favorite overdrive, and was the main lead solo tone on a great deal of my last CD "LVX NOVA"...it is much like a ts-808 era tube screamer, but MUCH bigger and fuller sounding (no pun intended, mike!). it is the best overdrive i have ever used, the only other one that is as good is the Klon Centaur, but that was TOO clean for me...the Fulldrive will get nice and dirty, if you know what i mean :-)

i bought Fulldrive I, #34, back when they came out, and currently have #101...it is over 2 years old, and i have never had a problem with either of the Fulldrives i have owned. it has been on countless gigs and sessions. i used to worry about the switches, but mike was right, they ARE sturdy!

mike is great to work with. never had a problem with him. he's VERY confident of his products, so much so that many take it the wrong way...but i happen to think his pedals are the best custom effects that one can buy, bar none....my experiences with him and his effects have been 10 all the way. that's why he gets 10's all across the board for my review. my favorite effects, period!

this is the one for overdrive, sweet, warm, round, and dynamic. it's the BIG tone...sounds GREAT into a Fender combo amp...this is no high-gain RATT tone pedal....think Ts-808...but this thing KILLED my TS-808, i have a/b'd my Fulldrives with all sorts of overdrive pedals, and the Fulldrive has always been THE BEST for me....just my opinion. but you owe it to yourself to check one out. i haven't even heard a Fulldrive II yet, i still have the old Fulldrive I!

This pedal is idiotproof. If you need a manual for it, you should quit guitar playing right now! You really can't get a bad sound out of it. It is very warm sounding for a solid state unit. I have the one with the pull drive knob, which really fattens the sound. There is a tone knob, which I set to 2'o clock with my LP Standard, a volume knob (I max this one out) and boost knob. The boost knob controls the boost channel' This pedal in general is not too bright sounding, which suits me fine. I use it with a 1987X Plexi Marshall hooked up to a Power Brake. It is not a metal sound, but it is very toneful, and I get people asking and complimenting me about my sound.

I use to punch the front end of my Marshall. I set the drive at 10'o clock and pull the knob. I don't use the boost channel as it mushes the sound too much. I plug into the BOTTOM left input in my Marshall and set the high treble volume to 2'o clock. I control my stage volume with the Power Brake. The problem with the power brake is that it cuts high frequencies too much at high attenuation. Anyway, it's an awesome sounding set-up. It is not a metal set-up, but the combination of the fulldrive tone and the Marshall power section adding its own compression makes it a very "creamy" sustaining sound, specially when playing lead. It has a very forgiving feel. Kinda like a good Mesa/Boogie, but with a Marshall-like tone. The fulldrive tone doesn't mess with the Marshall character, which is why I like it. When I use the fulldrive's boost channel as the only source of gain, ie: with the Marshall clean, I don't like the sound as much. It sounds just like an TS-9, good sound but no hard-on! That's why I gave it a 9. As far as solid state pedals, I think it is the best one, along with the TS-9. I think this pedal is at its best when you use to complement the sound of your existing amp, assuming you have a good one!

Hasn't let me down yet in 6 months. I am getting a backup, though.

Never dealt with them.

It is a good overdrive pedal. Probably the best solid state one. A little bit pricey, but definitely worth it. i'd like to compare it to the Matchless tube overdrive or the Boogie V-twin. Different price ranges, though.

It's easy to get a great sound. Versatile controls.

This is a very good overdrive pedal and it's ability to bypass much of the compression is very cool. What this pedal will not do though some have claimed it will is do the tube screamer 808 thing. It will get in the ballpark, but it sounds much more like a TS5 soundtank pedal. The edge it produces is harder and more edgy than an 808. The 808 has a beautiful sweetness that the Fulldrive 2 could not duplicate in an AB test. Conversely, the Fulldrive 2 had more different sounds and a wider gain range than the 808.

Looks well made. I wouldn't worry about a backup.

No knowledge

I didn't buy it. I took it home to test it out through a Matchless Chieftain with a PRS McCarty and a Fender Strat with Fralins. It is a great sound, but the lack of sweetness that the 808 has kept me from buying it. If I wanted a little more rocking sound though, I'd definitely give it a listen. I loved the uncompressed sound and the boost control did a great job of sending the sound over the top. It's just a little too hard edged for my blues-based sound....

Pretty simple, 2 footswitches(1 for bypass/overdrive, 1 for boost) 4 knobs(volume, tone, overdrive and boost)one knob has pull feature. Set your volume, then your two distortion levels and your set for 3 footswitchable sounds:Bypass, overdrive, and boost.

Very transparent, doesn't change the fundamental tone you already have. Adds a warm, very musical overdrive or a heavier distorted tone, doesn't obscure the high or low end. With the pull pot activated it removes most of the compression from the pedal, giving less drive, and even more transparency.

Built in a heavy steel enclosure, would use without a backup.

Mike was nice on the phone and took time to answer questions.

I would buy it again, I love the way it does not change your fundamental sound I'm playing through an expensive, excellent sounding rig already and didn't want to lose the sound I already had. Compared it to a Matchless Hotbox Both sound good, but at half the price this is hard to beat. All testing done through a Vibroking and a 54 Custom Shop Strat, it sounds better with the strat than with my PRS. Definitely try this pedal out if you're in the market for a new ditortion box.

Pretty darn easy to use. As stated before four knobs: Volume, Tone Gain, Boost. The Volume has a pull feature for a less compressed overdrive.

Well enough can't be said of this pedal. It is definately the Holy Grain of overdrive pedals. I use this pedal to drive the front end of a 65 Twin Reverb RI and it sounds excellent (guitar = Strat Plus Delux). The tone knob for me is usually set at about 3:00. With my setup I find this to be more middle of the road than 12:00 (ie in my hands the unit is dark and bassy). The standard (compressed) overdrive is everything from smooth to balls out AC/DC type drive (especially with boost mode). The pull volume mode (less compressed) is absolutely essential for blues work. This puts any tubescreamer to shame. Another nice bonus of the FD-2 is that it makes your amp sound good at low volumes too. But in front of a loud Twin Reverb its heaven. The boost channel can effectively be used as a boost for solos in both modes (compressed and less compressed drive). The true bypass is transparent.

The unit is housed in thick (16-18ga?) steel and is very durable. I wouldn't hesitate to use it without backup. But I'll give it only a 9 as I have only had it for 2 weeks and haven't gigged with it yet.

I've spoke to Mike Fuller a few times (via e-mail) and he's always been responsive. I can't imagine not getting good customer support from Fulltone

If for some reason this was lost or stolen I would have to run out and buy another one. I cannot live without this pedal. The versatility is well in excess of its price.

*****ATTENTION****** THERE'S A NEW UPGRADE FOR THE F-D2 THAT WILL GIVE YOUY TRHE CLEAN BOOST! IT CONSISTS OF CHANGING THE VOL. POT TO A PULL POT THAT GOES FROM DIRTY TO REALLY CLEAN WITH A 30% BOOST CAPIABLE. THERE IS A NOMINAL FEE THAT MIKE CHARGES BUT WELL WORTH EVERY PENNY OF IT.YOU NOW HAVE THE OPTION OF GOING FROM REAL NASTY DISTORTION TO VERY CLEAN AND EVERYWHERE IN BETWEEN.

SEE MY PREVIOUS REVIEW

Using this pedal is a piece of cake. Start out by setting the Overdrive control at zero and the Volume and Tone at 12 o'clock, then experiment from there! I also own an original Fulldrive, and I loved it so much I bought a 2.

This pedal sounds very close to an AC-30 cranked. I have owned Rats, Tube Drivers, XXL's: nothing comes close to the sound this baby gives. I use an original Fulldrive for my rhythm sounds (love the way it sweetly and slightly fattens up single-coils)and an early 2 model for my leads. The amount of bottom this pedal is unbelievable! If you are sick of your overdrive box brightening up your sound too much (as I was) this box is it.

Built like a tank. Components all of the highest quality, true bypass, I have experienced absolutely no problems with either of my units. Battery life seems excellent as well.

I have spoken with Mike Fuller on the telephone several times, and each time he has been extremely cordial and helpful. He is always willing to provide suggestions and discuss what ever changes are in the works. He has never once rushed me off the phone, or acted as if he was too busy to talk (all of our conversations have lasted at least 30 min. Mike has always listened to my opinions and treated me with as much respect as I imagine he does the "big boys". I really can't rate him high enough in this dept.

As mentioned previously, I own two Fulldrive pedals. At the time of my first purchase I bought a Tech 21 XXL. The Fulldrive blew it away, so much so that I returned the XXL and spent my refund immediately on another Fulldrive (by now a model 2). Recently a luthier friend of mine repaired a Gibson J-45 which I had come across. He probably did about $500 worth of work (it was a '46 or '47 that had resided in a home only heated by a wood burner). When the work was done on my guitar, I inquired to my friend what I had owed him. " I really would like one of those Fulldrive 2 pedals. Can you get me one of those." I did, and when it arrived it was one of the first Corvette-Orange models. I did several blind folded comparisons: his sounded every bit as good as mine. More than anything else, these pedals have helped me achieve that elusive sound in my head we all search for. As I told Mike, if I had spent two grand on a boutique amp and gotten the same sounds I would have been thrilled. Buying a Fulldrive 2 is a much more practical alternative!

As long as your IQ is above 80... vol, tone, gain, boost controls, on/off, boost footswitches.

See below

Heavy duty construction.

Mike Fuller is competent but not allways friendly. As a matter of fact he is pretty much a full of himself ass.

I got a good deal on this used one so I bought it. I had played the Fulldrive1 before and didn't care too much about it. I am not impressed with the fulldrive2 either. Channel 1 (lower gain) is good for a tube screamer type of sound (ala Vaughan). For that type of sound this pedal does a very good job. It seems to me that with the tone all the way up, the eq is flat, and treble is cut as you roll it to the left antil it becomes very dark sounding. The good thing is that it does preserve the low end pretty well (unlike most distortions). At low gain, the distortion is sweet, and the guitar tone is pretty much preserved but the pedal cannot boost a clean signal without distorting it even with the gain in the minimum (major disapointment); in this respect, the Centaur (Klon) does a much better job. The boost mode was very disapointing. It just increases distortion, but it sounds nothing (to my ears) like a crancked tube amp at all. If you use it with an already overdriven tube amp, it will give some sustain, but that's about it. The boost control does not have much impact on the volume. I think it sounds best at around 9-10 o'clock to add just a bit more distortion when you need. For nice saturated tube sounds, I think the Tech 21 XXL or the Ibanez Tube King are much better. For saturated tube distortion, get an XXL or Tube King, for lower gain, get a tube screamer, or even better a centaur or a Expandora.

The FullDrive 2 is nothing short of GREAT! And my quest for ultimate tone, I've about tried them all. Tired of programming? Just plug this thing in and you can chuck all that digital gear into the nearest bargain bin. Four knobs, four functions. All fairly self explanatory... except maybe the "Boost" feature. I didn't get a manual with the pedal since I bought it from a friend, but a quick e-mail note to Mike and he dropped one in the mail to me.

The sound quality is very good, and the pedal is fairly quiet even when idling in the Overdrive mode. When you find the sweet-spot, it will deliver a saturated, creamy, singing tone... sorta like an enraged Soldano. It is never brassy or harsh... even with the Tone control in the extreme. Of, couse... this may vary depending on what type of amp you're using. I use it to add crunch to low-key rhythm work and to add a nice edge to leads... it works well for both functions. I was using an old TS-9 Tube Screamer and Boss Blues Driver for these two sounds, but the FullDrive 2 booted these guys right outa the saddle. The distortion tones sound better (for my tastes) in the 50-75% range. Run you guitar volume in this range too, and you'll have plenty of headroom to kick up you leads when you need to. The pedal is very sensitive to input... both from your pick "attack" and the guitar's signal. The Boost feature is best used to fatten up you Overdrive signal. It won't add a lot of gain, especially if you're max'd out on your guitar volume. I just read a note from another user who has recently had his box upgraded (by Mike Fuller) to increase the boost and add a little more "bottom" to it. I'd be interested to see if this was a user mod, or if I need to send it off to the factrory.

The FullDrive 2 is built to withstand almost anything! With a heavy steel housing, good switchgear, and knobs big enough to nudge with your feet, even the glossy finish is tough enough to take a lot of abuse. And (if bought new) the FullDrive carries a lifetime warranty. I usually carry the old TS-9 along simply to satisfy my paranoia, but I have no doubt that this pedal will always be there when I need it.

The only time I needed any support was when I asked for an owner's manual and that was handled very promptly... like, the next day. So, I have no complaints in that area.
We'll see what happens when I hit Mike up for the upgrade!

If I lost all my gear and had to replace it...yep, I'd buy it again. I use a Matchless SC-30 and the pedal makes a perfect compliment to an already great amp. I also tried it through an old Bassman head and a 15" speaker box. .. Sounds pretty damn good like that, too. It doesn't seem to work as well with solid-state amps as it does for tube amps. I've tried a lot of different stuff to get the "perfect tone" and I've come to realize that the K.I.S.S. theory holds true here, also. Start with a good sounding amp and add ONLY what is necessary to make it better. You can bog yourself down with crap and get so involved in operating your gear, that you forget what you're there for in the first place.

RAY CHARLES COULD USE THIS WITH NO PROBLEM. 4 knobs & two switches w/led indicators for on & boost. there's a new upgrade that Mike told me about that took him about ten minutes to do. It gives you a clean boost and better low end.

I've had this since May and have been contiually impressed with how wonderful it sounds.I have a Matchless HC-30 and this pedal sounds like my amp on "10". No matter what amp I use this in it sounds like that amp. Very natural sounding. I replaced a TS-9, a Gov'nor and two Bluesbreaker pedals with just this one!!

I'd stake my carrer and my life on this pedal. I've used it on around 70 gigs and some sessions since I got it and I never had any doubts as to even wondering if it would hold up. It's built like a rock.

Mike's a great guy who always has time to answer any questions I have. He told me about the upgrade(even though I thought it sounded super before it sounds that much better now)I took it over and he did it while I waited and never complained about his schedule being interupted.I wish that there were more people in the industry like him instead of a bunch of "I know what's right" self serving assholes!

I wish I could afford to buy a bunch of these to give to all my guitar playing friends so I wouldn't have to listen to bad overdrives ever again.This pedal is very musicial and invites inspiration. This was my first FULLTONE product and now I own four of Mikes' pedals.It's really helped my quest for great tone.

This peadal is laid out very well. 4 knobs -Volume,Tone,Overdrive,Boost - All knobs are fairly self-explanatory except maybe the boost - This function tends to be more like a second setting for the overdrive than a dramatic boost. The boost channel canbe dramatic if the overdrive channel is set rather low and the boost is all the way up. There is a true bypass switch with a red light and the boost channel has a switch with a yellow light. The volume knob works well and it's easy to match the playing volume of your amp. Thetone function offers a wide range of EQ choices.(or at least as much as one tone control can)

This pedal uses a true bypass switch so it will not "color" your sound when not in use. When the overdrive is engaged there is very limited extra noise -one of the quietest overdrive pedals around. You can dialin the overdrive from just a bit to full bore with great ease.The overdrive sound is very "warm" and not "buzzy" in the least -you willswear it's using a tube but it's not. Very classic sound. If you set the overdrive channel to a low setting and the boost channel to a highsetting than there will be a very noticeable difference when you kick in the boost - If you have the overdrive channel past 12 o'clock thanthe switch to the full on boost channel is not that dramatic. Certainly this pedal could not cover all of a players needs in terms of using it for rythmn and then switching to lead but few pedals can-

The Fulldrive2 is built like a tank and has a lifetime warranty and dare I say is down right attractive!

Very good support - Mike the owner, always answered my E-mails promptly and delivered the pedal in the time period he promised.

Overall - This pedal has delivered the "goods" to my full satisfaction. It's built well and delivers a truly classic, warm overdrive with lots of control over the tone and intensity. This pedal is the most dynamic overdrive unit I have ever played through - It follows your playing volume and picking -soft when you play soft, hard when you lay into it. The clarity of complex chords picked with the overdrive on is outstanding. The pedal's true bypass switch is a god send! - If I had to suggest anything for the Fulldrive3 of the future it would be more specific EQ control and a seperate volume for the boost channel so it could always crank above the overdrive channel.This pedal is not cheap but well worth the investment. A mustfor tube-screamer types. (kicks proverbial "butt" on the screamer)-A very welcomed addition to my tone arsenal.

Fairly easy, just a few knobs and two footswitches

Very low noise (for a distortion box at least) and has a nice tone to it. The boost I didn't find too useful, I kind of wanted to go from a rhythm overdrive to a lead sound but the boost doesn't seem to get that big of a boost (at least with my amp and setup). As far as the quality of the distortion it's very nice, about what I expected from this pedal. Goes from a nice bluesy overdrive to a heavy rock crunch (not really too metally though, if you want that you should stick with a Boss HM2 I guess).

Seems to be a pretty solid metal stomp-box.

Fulltone@aol.com has appeared in the newsgroups and he seems to be a bit cocky, arrogant, and personally comes off as a bit of a prick sometimes. I can't really complain about his pedals (I also have the 70's pedal, see the other review), although sometimes I don't get my e-mail answered and the one time I called he seemed pretty "abrupt" with me (calling him a bit of a prick now probably won't help my cause! ;-)

It's a great overdrive pedal and is the only one I use. My only complaint is I wish the boost would get a bit more but maybe I can experiment with how it's used in my rig. Fulltone did mention to me it works better in the "straight" channel and not the switched/ master volume channel. It has a nice range from a soulfully bluesy overdrive to a fairly hard rock crunch sound (but not quite enough for metal probably which is just fine by me, you should be using a Marshall cranked anyway! :-)

Has Output, Tone, Overdrive & Boost controls. Two footswitches - one for the overdrive and a second kicks in the afterburner aka boost. This pedal sound really really good. The tone control is really flexible but very sensitive between about 3 to 5 o'clock. The high end comes on real fast. Set up like the manual suggests, the overdrive at about 11 o'clock and output can be just over unity gain for crunchy rythm work. Set the boost at about 1 o'clock hit the second switch and blow a Tube Screamer back to another decade.

Through a Fender Blues Deluxe clean channel I can get a '59 Bassman nailed. While it can't be called a metal pedal, it does have copious amounts of dirve in the boost mode. It's really good

Hand built like a brick __________!!

Bouhjt it direct from Mike Fuller. Had to E-Mail 3 times and call twice before he found my order. I wasn't happy with the response time but he was so nice on the phone each time I called, he convinced me it was just a series of screw ups.

YESYESYESYESYESYES!!!!!!!!!!! Not cheap, but better than tring to buy a reliable used tube classic that sounds good BEFORE you chase the neighbors away

This is not your ordinary overdrive pedal. There are 4 dials, and two foot switches. The fottswitches are on/off, and boost. The dials are volume, gain, tone, and boost. The boost depends a lot on the normal overdrive settings. But it adds fatness and a little volume (not enough to go rhythym to lead). This pedal is truly amazing. It is truer to a tube overdrive than the Tube Screamer. It gets louder and more overdiven than the Tube Screamer.

This thing has true bypass, and is extremely quiet even using AC power.

It is built by hand with care, and it shows.

This is the best thing to happen to overdrive since the original Tube Screamer. Well worth the price.