Korg 105od Classic Overdrive

I bought this thing used and it didn't come with a manual so it took a while (and some asking around) on how to use the "program" feature. The knobs are pretty much straightforward and standard. Boost switch doesn't contribute anything substantial.

Overdrive pedal or box of snakes? The only other pedal I ever had that was this noisy was my old Electro Harmonix Big Muff. Try as I could, I couldn't get a decent sound out of this thing. Tried it with my Les Paul, SG, Flying V, Mockingbird and Explorer and ran it through a Marshall. Gafe it all the chances I could. Jeeze! The overdrive on my little Marshall MS-2 has a better overdrive on it!

Buttons work intermitently. Temperamental little bugger.

I bought this when I was searching for a different sound to add to my range. Been playing since the late 70s and been in bands ranging from 60s covers to progressive to metal to hardcore punk. Paid $19 for it and it was $19 too much. I'll either try to unload it on some unsuspecting sucker or just use it as a doorstop. Made me appreciate my old trusty DOD Overdrive.

Fairly easy to get a decent but extremely noisy overdrive sound.
It can store 2 settings, each selectable by pressing the right-hand switch, but sometimes this doesn't engage when you step on it.

It sounds like a typical vintage overdrive pedal, reminds me of Marshall Zepplin tones, and it is easily the noisiest pedal I have ever used. The salesperson at the shop I bought it at said that these Korg units in the silver boxes were getting returned all the time for the noise problems and switching problems.
I tried it with a Fender Deluxe Reverb and a Crate Blue Voodoo. I returned it the same day.

Noisy and the buttons don't engage like they should.
Apparently they weren't on the market for too long, probably for the same reasons why I returned it.

I play classic rock, blues, for a couple dozen years. All different kinds of guitars and amps. I returned the Korg because it was faulty in more than one way. It could have had a decent tone, but I couldn't really tell because I couldn't hear it underneath all the noise. I was looking forward to a pedal that could have two crunch settings without having to buy a Hughes & Kettner Tube Factory (not really worth the price either), nice looking box though. I guess I''' keep looking.

Once you familiarize yourself with the controls,getting a sound you want is not to difficult.The manual is not loaded with information but adequite.Editing patches is straightforward

Probably the smoothest overdrive I have ever heard using a Strat through a Peavey Ranger.The overdrive is very transparaent and won't color youer tone

no problems

Korg is areputable co. and I expect them to support their products

Played 35 years rock and blues.The Visual Sound Route 66 overdrive was a bit to harsh for me so I sold it.The Korg gets long sustain and has good tone,These are not made anymore so I wouldn't be able to replace it easily,but it's worth replacing.

Nice having two settings on what is basically a single stomp box. Editing is a snap as is saving settings, and having the LEDs indicate current settings make it easy to tweak the sounds.

I use with with an LP Custom and Epi Wilshire run into an assortment of amps -- Sovteks, Bandmaster, Kustom, and Trace Eliot, at various settings, though mostly clean to mildly overdriven. For me, it introduces significant hiss even with the drive at low levels, which isn't cut very much by the tone control. The overdrive sound is good and reaches well into the distortion realm, at least with humbuckers. I prefer its dry and edgy OD to that from Zoomboxes and even Boss, but see other comments below. I'd imagine this box would work less well with lighter strings and single coils unless you want a really thin biting sound. Sound is a little cleaner using a wallwart instead of batteries (which I find not to be the case for my zoom and boss pedals!) The boost function is very noticeable and I do use it for leads where it works nicely. So, you can have a good crunch for rhythm and a much harder, boosted OD for leadwork and only need one button to exchange volume, tone, and drive.

Many other reviews indicate the product is shoddy. I've use it without problem, but could see where problems might occur. I'd concur that the pots and switches are not the highest quality, but again this particular box hasn't failed.

Not much help on this product, which is discontinued. Did receive prompt mail response from an e-mail inquiry on another product that is still sold.

Lots of folk have trashed this pedal. I want to comment that I originally bought the Korg distortion model but brought it back to the store because it sounded lame, the cabinet simulator seemed worthless, and the noise gate behaved badly. I swapped it for the OD pedal which has fewer features, probably to its advantage. For the price I paid (new), it's fine. I appears that too many folk paid real money for a lightweight, but helpful pedal and that accounts for some of the lower ratings. I'd check it to see if it is fully functional first -- I've had this one over two years and have had no problems at all. I believe Korg pulled it off the market partly because of quaility control. I'd not replace it if it were lost only because I've got other OD devices. I do like its range and the dual settings.

Ok, so its a push button pedal with a metal exterior and looks serious but thats it. Yeah ok simple to use and the programming is not rocket science.

What quality?, I use this with my either my 77 Fender Strat or my Steinberger GM through a Marshall Valvestate (great amp) and I can never get a controlled distortion sound. Damping the strings with your palm and getting that nice distorted "chunk!" is the only thing worth mentioning

Could I depend on it?, makes an excellent paperweight.

????

I have been playing guitar for over 20 years and I have never come across something so bad in my life, even my old 80's Boss overdrive sounds a thousand times better than this. I have a just bought a ZOOM 505 II just for home practice and the distortion on that is far superior. DON'T buy this for a live pedal I would not trust it one bit the metal box looks impressive but the interior circuits are definitely third rate!
What can I compare this too? anyone remember the DeLorean? a flashy metal box and that was it.

If anyone is interested I am selling it for 90 Euros and I will even pay the postage to get rid of it plus it comes with power supply email me at moleymusic@hotmail.com

I'm going to skip this as my sole reason for this contibution is to help all the poor souls that bought one or more of these much maligned pedals.

Keep reading....

As you already know,these pedals all have a severe problems with the switches that manifest themselves as dropouts, even total silence.The problem can be addressed, however by opening up the units via the six Phillips screws, then pulling up the right side first guiding the PCB past the two metal lugs.You might as well disconnect the battery holder ,while you're at it, because all these pedals hum like a mother
without a PSU.
Now, see that plastic clip that clamps the PCB to the footswitch?It is almost certainly putting undue pressure on the cheap nasty footswitch,causing the contacts to be misaligned.You can remove the clips by squeezing them with pair of needlenose pliers,however the circuit board then might flap around and the LEDS will fall into the body.The thing to do then is undo the footswitch collar and reseat the switches in such a manner,that thereis nop pressure on the switch itself. You do this by lowering or raising the footswitch in its hole
by rotating the nut on the inside of the chassis.You have to gauge this by sight, and you might have to do it more than once to get the footswitch to catch everytime,but it worked for all three of my pedals.Do this to both switches in the unit then give 'em a blast with DE OXIT or WD40 for good measure.In the event you still have a problem
replace the footswitches with a pair of Carling or Fulltone switches.Although this requires major surgery these boxes(except the multi effect)are worth it.I'll try and answer any questions (tykey@ix.netcom.com),but I am not a representative of Korg,so don't hassle me.This information is free and it's a pantload more than Korg ever gave us.
THIS HAS BEEN A PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT!

If Korg made cars there would have been a class action suit already.
Hello,Jacoby and Myers?

Korg sucks

When buying the unit you get; 4 knobs and 5 switches.
With the knobs you adjust Drive, Tone, Contour and Level.
The 5 switches; 1 (Effect) for turning the drive on and off, 1 (Program) for selecting witch one of the saved settings you want to use, 1 for adding boost (somewhat noisy), 1 for selecting amp or line-in, and finally one for selecting high or low output.

Programming is fairly easy; tune in the setting you want and press the Program switch for a few seconds and you have it saved to that "channel".

I mainly use this unit with my DeArmond M75T through a 40 w Solid State Marshall together with an Ibanez Digital Delay rack unit for delay and chorus.

Somewhat noisy even when not playing even though you turn the volume of your guitar down, the hiss is remarkably not affected by the amount of drive you use; even without it you can hear the noise.

If you don't mind the hiss you can get some nice tones from slight OD to pretty heavy stuff (but no distortion, sorry ;)) especially if you use the boost switch. It is probably most suited for "classic" to "modern" rock, maybe even some funky dude will like it:).

Reliability? This unit?
Well it looks pretty sturdy with the metal casing and all, but don't let it fool you, the reliability problem is located INSIDE the sturdy looking metal casing:

Sometimes when you switch from clean to drive you hear nothing! and sometimes you get stuck with one of the settings no matter how many times you step on the Program switch. Therefore I never gig without a backup because you never know when the damn thing freaks out.

Never dealt with them so...

I bought the Classic OD mainly because I needed a boost for my solos, and with the 2 drive channels I can have both a rhythm and a solo sound in just one box.

I almost forgot one thing that kind of bugged me; when you switch to drive there's a split second when the sound disappears. This only happens when switching on, and not when jumping between programs or when switching off.

So if you need some cheap OD, don't plan to gig with it and don't expect it to last forever I would recommend it to you.

This unit takes a little more thought than some others, but its still very easy. The 4 knobs control 4 different setting. A toggle switch adds a boost (which keep on because its seems to "thicken" the tone). It also has 2 footswitches: left turns the effect on or off, right changes between the 2 saved settings.

I nice feature of this unit is the ability to save "different" settings (patches). Editing and saving these different patches is very easy. Simply adjust the knobs to the desired setting and push, and hold, the right footswitch until its LED indicator flashes 3 times. THAT'S IT!

It also has an "amp" or "line" level switch. I have never used this feature. I only use mine as part of my effects chain in live performance.

One complaint, as you increase the gain, it starts to get a little noisy. However, I find this to be the case with most distortion pedals. With the gain down, the noise is bearly noticeable.

This unit has a VERY transparent tone! I like it better than the hearlded Ibanez Tube Screamers. I feel it has all the tone but MUCH more flexibility!

Blues players will LOVE it!

I use it principally with my Hamer guitars with humbuckers. However, on occassion, I have used it with my Strats and Teles. It works fine with any guitar, however, my band tends to play more Modern Rock and I can obtain a wider range of tones from the Hamers then my Fenders because of coil splits, etc. For amps I use an '83 Marshall JCM800, Model 4010, rebiased to EL34's and a Fender Blues Deluxe.

A great example of the tonality of this unit is Stevie Ray Vaughan on "Pride and Joy". I flip on the middle pickup of my Hamer Steve Stevens 1 or my Fender California Strat and I'm there!

Its VERY solid with a metal casing. Mine is also mounted to my pedalboard.

I've never had a problem and I gig 3-6 times per month without a back up.

N/A

My band plays a very wide variety of rock from classic to pop to modern. I find this particular unit very condusive to the classic rock, overdriven tones of the past as well as some of the moderate overdrives used in today's music. If lost or stolen, I would definitely replace it...if I could...they are out of production!

I have been performing, teaching and recording for over 25 years, I think this unit and its "sister" product, the 104dsod (see my review of that one, too!), are a couple of the best sounding distortion boxes ever made!

Grab them while you still can!

very straightfoward design...nice positive clicks

currently used between my Les Paul and my Fender tweed Blues-Deluxe.....get an occational pop when clicking....not as rich as I want my sound but a good durable peice....so far

its not something I couldnt live without and if it died I would most likely upgrade....purchased used and got a great deal on it but its not the sweetest sound on the market

Easy?? I'd say easy AND not....easy because this pedal requires little fumbling to come at a nice tone.....but NOT because itz true uniqueness (as compared to stomp boxes in same price range) is that it can store 2 channels. Itz fairly simple but requires the manual.

I give it N/A because itz a stomp box....how much easier can it get.

My setup is VERY simple.

PRS --> Vox Wah --> 105od --> Fender Chorus M-80

Noisy?? I've heard some other ppl complain that it gets noisy when you crank it up with the level knob turned all the way....all i gotta say is "WHAT THE HELL DO YOU EXPECT"??????

I'm using this pedal with my "solid-state" fender m-80....i REALLY like the tone with this pedal...itz actually a funny story. I went into the store looking to buy a TS-9....the guy said, "hold on a min and lemme show ya this." I WAS HOOKED!! I played the two together and let me tell you.....virtually no difference at all.....i do think the TS-9 goes better for "lighter"/"cleaner" tones but again...not much difference here.

Now for all you seeking to sound like someone....here are some bands i can get outta this baby.

1. Kenny Wayne Shepherd/SRV tones (like i said...comparable to ts-9)
2. Pearl Jam
3. Rush
4. Led Zeppelin

the list goes on....basically anything that's not metal.

I LOVE IT!!! And i've had to for a while now so itz not the "new buyers" praise.

I give it a 9 because i can never be 100% happy with something...

Steel.....what else to you need to know.?

I play mainly blues rock to alternative rock....more like SRV to Pearl Jam and i'd say this pedal is a perfect fit. I've been playing for 3 years now and if it were lost? I'd likely buy another one...simply because i can't afford to buy the expense gear. I compared this puppy to the ts-9 and they are basically the same (to me).

All in all....if you're looking for some cheap distortion then look no further....get this puppy.