Marshall BB-2 Bluesbreaker II

Difficult/impossible under stage lighting to see settings on the chrome knobs. So this seriously effects it's tweakability/useability onstage.

Controls work predictably/simply enough, though I've found it impossible to get a satisfing sound from this unit.

Blues setting is harsh and trebly, far too much gain, with a nasty fizzy top end like an overdriven tranny amp.Gives you a headache. not nice. Certainly light years away from what I would expect from a blues-based unit i.e. a subtle, three-dimensional warm crunch, (available effortlessly from my Session Award JD-10 stomp box.yum yum.)
Boost setting is dissapointing, as it's not clean: it adds a nasty fizzle on the top end of the signal, even at moderate settings on your guitar.
I've played this through various amps using my Pacifica 112 with Swineshead pickups, all with the same underwhelming, un-musical results. Would never gig with it, let alone record. I've also used it on the 'boost' setting for harmonicas live onstage for about a dozen gigs, but it adds distortion.

I don't trust Marshall pedals. Had a chrous and it bust after nine months gigging (sounded like it had squirrels inside!)

The bad sound quality of this pedal makes me instintively mis-trust its reliability, despite it's flashy appearance.

No experience of them.

This pedal has been a huge dissapointment. No roundness or fullness or musicality to be had: It's all fizzy and harsh.

I've struggled to find a use for it's harsh tranny-ness but I admit defeat and it's got relegated to using in schools workshops, to show kids the rudiments of using a stomp-box (and I mean rudiments: any kid who got beyong basics I'd show 'em an Award-Session JD-10. Now THAT's tone!)
Maybe I'll have to start a 80's hair-metal band so I can use it......

well , boost/blues switch, on/off volume, gain & tone doesn'y make it too complicated ;]

I'm using Marshall Valvestate 65R & Epihpone LP 100 / custome made "Presto Lang" guitar - fender style guitar .
On both sound great ! boost mode is clean but has this "blues sound" you're propabely lookin' for . On fender guitar it sound very similiar to SRV "sound". Blues mode is distorted blues sound .

Not have a single problem & this one, thought had some & Guv'nor - I had to take out on/off switch and connect it with rest of a circuits with wires - but it solve the bypass problem & not working at all problem ... ;/

Never have dealt with them.

I play SRV music, love texas blues .
From time to time like to play some Gary Moore as well - simple thing i just turn on that baby on my overdriven channel with overdrive to max and it ... just explodes .. ;];] (then it's noisy - but you're not suppose to do that, right ?:))

Easy to use - basic overdrive distortion pedal - 3 knobs. Knobs could have been better designed however - tiny dots indicate settings which are hard to see from above, and they block the on/of led light at certain angles.

As a front end 1st stage overdrive pedal, it does the job of providing really good sounding overdrive crunch of the Marshall variety which is a bit on the brittle side. There is a good range of tones and distortion available and one can dial in nice bluesy tones as well as over-the-top early metal tones. I use it in front of a vintage Vox Cambridge Reverb, and a 1960 Ampeg Reverberocket. If your amp doesn't have o.d. or channel switching it provides that. I do not use the "boost" setting, but some might find it useful. The distortion is smooth and has nice overtones, and backing off guitar volume gives excellent old-tube-amp-cranked tone.

Have been using it regularly without a backup. Metal case is heavy duty. Never had any problems.

Never dealt with Marshall directly. They do have an ear for good tone in my opinion based on what I've used in the past.

This is of course a great pedal for Rock & Blues, but it is also good for adding some crunch to country licks too. I've been playing for around 40 yrs and have owned a myriad of equipment. The O.D. tones from this pedal are as good as any channel-switching amp i have ever owned. If this pedal were around in the late '70's it would have saved a lot of vintage amps from being hot-rodded. If it were lost or stolen, I'd try other pedals just because there are so many out there, but i highly recommend this pedal and would not exclude it from consideration. It does the job it was designed to do for a good price.

Four controls, switchable boost/blues (overdrive) knob, drive, tone (anti-clockwise bass, clockwise treble) and volume (level). Manual has some useful examples of settings and is easy to understand. Nice and easy to dial in your own useable sounds though. Only problem is the black on silver markings on the control knobs which can be a little difficult to see.

I use a variety of guitars with the Bluesbreaker II, including a Vox Teardrop copy, an Epiphone Firebird, an early 70's Flying v copy. The guitars with humbuckers I think sound better with this pedal, giving a more creamy sound. The pedal is supposed to emulate that breaking-up tube sound of Clapton's from the "Beano" album, which I think it does a fair imitation of. Sounds better with a tube amp, but sounds passable with solid state amps too. I use it with a KMD Proamp (tube), and a new Hi-watt solid state amp, it sounds good with both, but the Proamp wins out really. The boost mode is good for pushing slighty distorted tube amp into a nice overdrive.

Really solid steel case, I would quite happily gig it without a back up. Looks like it would take a good kicking.

Never dealt with the maker.

I play mostly late 60's, early 70's style rock, Zeppelin, Yardbirds, Stooges, Hendrix etc, plus some new garage type stuff (White Sripes etc.). This is quite a good pedal for getting those kinds of sounds. It isn't an over the top gain pedal, so it isn't going to suit all you Korn fans out there. I own a few other noise pedals, Fulltone Soul Bender, Russian Big Muff, Graphic Fuzz, and this compares favourably in it's own little way. I wish the tone control had a bit more range on the top end, and maybe just a touch more gain. Also when the drive is turned down, you have to turn up the volume to compensate, which is bit of a shame.

This is a follow-up to a post I did about 3.5 years ago (search for Carvel.) I owned this pedal then and later sold it when I needed the money. I just recently sat down with this pedal against a TS-9 reissue and the following comments are based on this new comparison. What I was looking for was somthing that could give me a very subtle breakup that was almost not noticeable. Like spinkling a hint of breakup on my tone without losing the original signal.

This isn't a TS-9 copy although the circuits I suspect are similar. It clearly has more of the british voicing than the TS-9 but they are very close. I would have bought this pedal again for two reasons (it sounds good and I didn't want to be a just another TS-9 player) but I went with the TS-9 because of one issue: when you roll the gain off on the BB-2, it eliminates the signal altogether. On the TS-9, you can roll the gain all the way back and you still have your signal with very subtle breakup. Overall, I would say the TS-9 is smoother too.

Great pedal. If you are looking for a good blues pedal with a britsh voicing, I think this thing is worth every penny (also look at the GV-2, much more like a marshall amp and more in your face.) If you want something smooth with minimal breakup at the lowest setting, I think the TS-9 or a good copy is worth looking into.

Simple.

Wow. I was looking for that British Marshall sound, and it's got it. I can get lots of Clapton's early tones, as well as modern blues tones. I hardly never use the gain channel on my amp, a big Fender 130w Ultimate Chorus DSP. Instead I just use the BB-2 on the clean channel. I tried other pedals including a Bad Monkey, and a Boss OD3 and BD-2. The BD-2 was very good, but I actually think the Marshall kicked it's butt. I returned the other pedals.

A rock.

N/a

An incredible value, beautiful tone, cheap price too!

Marshall Bluesbreaker II BB-2
Controlls:
- Boost/Blues = Switches between a volume boost or an overdrive
- Drive = Controls the level of distortion
- Tone = Sets the equalizer from more bass than treble to more treble than bass
- Volume = Sets the overall output level of the pedal

Used primarily as a volume boost the pedal is extremely simple, one knob to worry about and a footswitch on/off. When engaged to the blues mode, there is still a simple, but effective amount of controls to provide a good variation of usable tones.
The manual gives some presets for playing different styles, but after all, every sound depends on the amp and guitar, so the manuals settings are to me, useless, and its not likely the manual will be needed given the simplicity of usage.

Simply put this pedal is awesome. In the boost mode, yes there is a little colouration to the tone, but its subtle and if anything a pleasure. This mode gives just a little extra warmth to your tone, just slightly rounding the treble. The level of volume boost isn?t horrific here, but it?s a very usable range for soloing, or for added compression. A/B?d with an Ibanez TS9 Tube Screamer, there was absolutely no difference, to my ears, between any setting on the TS9 and a replicated sound on the BB2, this pedal makes a TS9 obsolete. According to Marshall?s intention this, boost, mode was designed to boost an already crunchy valve amp into a thicker saturation. I have not used this with a valve amp, but it works perfectly well for that purpose before the Line6 POD2.0, or a distortion pedal in an effects chain. Used before the Marshall JH1 Jackhammer, it allows an amazing amount of compression to be obtained, and a seriously thick gain. Used after the distortion it is a phenomenal force for getting above the band, and delivering pain to a drummer.
In the blues mode we see a beautiful array of warm to crunchy tones, this is where all of the distortion comes in. With drive set around 3?O-clock, and tone set to about 10, we are in almost Eric Johnson territory. Eric Johnson?s tone is one thing this pedal comes close to. The BB2 does lack the certain honkyness that you may get from a Fulltone Soul Blender or ?69, but it?s a smooth rich sound. There is plenty of compression for sustaining and legato runs, and is able to be brought under control using the guitars volume control. Dialling the drive back some, and the tone up, we can get a SRV kind of buzzing drive. Around these settings, more of a crunchy tone is available than the smoother tone earlier, but has the same characteristics of being able to be cleaned up with the guitar volume. There is not merely only two tones from two Strat players here, there are many other tones in between, and coupled with the right equipment, ie a good Valve amp, a whole load more tones can be achieved.
Equipment used:
Fender Customshop Classic Player Strat, or Mexican 50?s with Texas Specials, Hohner L-59 Les Paul, Ibanez JS1200, into Line 6 POD2.0 or Ibanez TB100H 100watt Solid state amp, into 4x12 Ibanez cab.

For such a horribly sterile amp (not mine, but local studio?s, the BB2 warmed the Ibanez head up a great deal. A great match together.

A note for recording. If the Volume is set near maximum, and used in boost mode, the pedal can act as a rough DI box, just ramping the guitar signal up to a higher output. Used in blues mode, old early 60?s style fizzy overdrives can be easily replicated with great fun.

The pedal has been with me for 3 years, and has been used rather heavily. It is a well constructed little box. The steel casing is a good depth thick, knobs are still firm after a great deal of turning, and the switch is pretty strong and lasts well.
This pedal has been treated well and has been carried in its own box, inside a pedal bag. It has withstood hot and cold temperatures, and a change of moisture in the air from the time of entering the studio to leaving at night, over a few hours playing time.
This is a pedal that will take gigging in its stride.

Never needed them.

I tend to play a vast array of styles, and this pedal is a great asset. Anything from really, jazzy to blues, to a good thick rock, this pedal delivers. It also has the advantage, due to the boost function, or being able to liven up nearly any other drive state, either pedal or amp. That is such a useful function. As I had mentioned earlier, I have compared this pedal to a TS9 tube screamer, and there really is no difference between the two, for what the TS9 can do, but the BB2 allows more sounds to be created and is far more useful for that alone.
A simple straight forward pedal, with two modes that both are useful. A whole bunch of useable features and tones all housed in a solid well built box...and for the price they?re selling for now under 40 pounds, it?s a steal!

The pedal has four knobs to control Mode (Blues - All knobs in use, Boost - only the volume knob in use), drive, Tone (more base on lowest more treble on highest) and level. The manual was quite useful but seeing as how i only use it as a volume booster the tone drive don't do anything, so it is quite self explanitory.

I have found it better to use the pedal in my effects loop because it gives a greater volume boost this way for some reason.

Guitars: Jackson DKMGT Dinky, Jackson JS30DK Dinky, Squier Telecaster with Fender noiseless Pups and new Fender Japaneese neck.

Amps: MG100HDFX through a Marshall 1936 cab and a Fender Champion 30 as a practice amp.

I have tried this pedal out with all of my guitars through the Marshall and it is not very noisy for the punk/rock style of music my band plays. I have the gain set about 6-7 for my rhythem sound on the Marshalls OD2 setting. The only time i got it to sqeal was with the gain booster on the DKMGT.

One flaw i found is that the booster lacks treble for a lead sound if you don't already have a trebly rhythem sound. If I could suggest any improvements one would be to keep the tone control in use on the boost mode.

To be honest I can't comment properly on the blues mode because i don't use it for this.

I have said no opinion because i've only had it a month and although i have done one gig with it i don't think this is enough to rate it on.

Haven't needed them hope i won't.

I think this is a good pedal for what i'm using it for, thats what i've given it the eight for. I've been paying 4 years and have been needing a third channel for my amp for a while, this pedal mean i can have clean, overdrive then boost. The only flaw is the tone control i already mentioned in my opinion.

a fairly simple pedal to use, the usual on/off stomp switch w led, input/output jacks and power via a 9v battery or boss style adapter - battery access is via a screw on the bottom, but is easily opened with a pick or coin

the pedal has two modes, blues and boost chosen by the leftmost 'knob' (actually a rotary switch)
in blues mode it acts like a normal distortion pedal, with volume/gain/tone control
boost mode takes the gain and tone controls out of the circuit, so the only control knob is the volume control (which could confuse the people who dont look at the manual and wander why the controls have no effect..)

one small complaint, the knobs are fairly small, and settings are shown by a black marking on a shiney silver top, so not the best for viewing on a lit stage

played using a humbucker equipped guitar (either a tele or bc rich) into a Marshall JCM2000 DSL401, no other pedals at the same time

the blues mode is good, but there is something lacking in the sound, to me it always seems to sound a bit muffled, and nowhere near as cutting and present as my amp does
it is more a bluesy distortion, so not untra high gain, but perfect for rock and blues playing

the boost mode is excellent though, it sounds pretty transparent to me, and has quite a big volume boost, sticking it onfront of my amp i can usae it into a higher gain (on amp) setting to add a load more gain and balls to the sound (similar to the od2 channel - basically the od1 with a 20dB boost), or at lower gain settings it will add volume and drive the amp more.
i use it for a lead boost or for boosting the distortion into more gain and for these purposes it does excellently

it is built into a pretty weighty solid metal enclosure, so no worries about it taking much damage, the pedal is shaped to hide the knobs from feet so no worries about changing settings accidentally

i have never had any problems while i have owned it, and would happily gig with it

i have never had any dealings with marshall themselves and have had no problems with the pedal to contact them about

overall i think this pedal is well worth the pretty low prices they go for, even if you only use it for the boost mode, a great sounding pedal for little cash

A Dual purpose stomp box, press the footswitch to turn it on press it again to turn it off, simple as that. Being able to switch from boost to blues by a pedal would be a nice touch though.
Simple manual with a couple of good settings.

Epiphone Les Paul Studio standard pick ups.
Squier Strat standard picks ups.
Set up varies but all goes into a 1981 vintage Marshall 2204 50 Watt JMP valve combo with 2 x 12 Celestion GM12 speakers.

Setup either: Guitar > Cry Baby wah> BB2> amp for straight blues gigs
or: Guitar > Behringer V-amp 2 or Zoom GFX 4 > BB2 > EH Little Big Muff PI (1970's vintage) for more complex sounds.

It says Marshall on the front...nuff said.

It's built like a tank.

I'd gig without a back up but my sound would suffer.

Never had to call them.

Used with the Epiphone it sounds fabulous through the JMP on the boost setting. Rounds out and thickens the sound of the amp when it is just on the point of clipping and compressing. On the pre-amp Volume setting 10 and 2 on MV gives a wonderful rich ambrosia creamy sort of sound. Think Parisienne Walkways/Carlos Santana.
Turn it up and it becomes a monster-bags of sustain, controlled feedback, rich harmonics, Slash Sweet Child of Mine/Gary Moore Oh Pretty Woman sort of sound.
On the Blues setting even more wild-Add some treble to get Rhandy Rhoads or some Wah for Michael Schencker.

With the Strat I find it's better as a clean boost to drive the amp harder into SRV/Hendrix type tones, it's a bit noisy if you use the blues settings due to the single coils.

I've tried it on more high gain amps like the TSL at which point the distortion is a bit harsh and fuzzy and indistinct. I think it works best with an old style valve amp not a dual rectifier or high gain one.

I can guarantee a fantastic warm valvey, compressed sound with just the Les Paul the Marshall, the BB2 and the Cry Baby. I guess thats why its been such a popular set up for ppl like Jimmy Page, Scott Gorham, Brian Robertson, Paul Kossoff et al.

Used as a line driver with the digi effects you need careful control of the settings not to get too mushy but it works well at low level volumes.

The passive bypass is excellent too.