Marshall Blues Breaker

Like most overdrive pedals out there, it only has three controls (drive, tone, output) and it's very easy to use. It's only tricky in that the closest to "bypass" tone would be with all three knobs at 1/2 o'clock. But, once you get the gain higher up, the volume increases and you can get a serious boost if you so desire. It affords either a clean, fat, volume boost, or a gain boost. A little fiddling with it and you're sure to find its sweet spots.

Somehow this pedal got mediocre reviews here, just read below mine and you will see what I mean. Keeping in mind that it is supposed to be an overdrive unit, this box is great. No, it will not get you to harmonics nirvana, but it will give a great overdriven sound when played through a Fender-type (Deluxe, Twin) amp. The setting I use is: gain all the way up, tone on 10/11 o'clock and volume on 2/3 o'clock. Backing off on the guitar's volume control will clean up the sound, as most overdrive pedals (Ibanez TS-9, Boss SD-1) do. The main difference between the Marshall Bluesbreaker and others is that the Marshall keeps the bottom end of the guitar, so that the sound is not honky. Additionally, it has pretty good headroom, so you don't end up with much of that transistor buzzy sound. In comparison to a reissue TS-9, the Bluesbreaker sounds fat and full, and not midranggy and buzzy. Of course, your ears should be the ultimate judge, but this is the best overdrive pedal I have found. For all it's worth, Guitar Player had a distortion issue a few years back and this pedal was chosen as the best for a bluesy sound. I agree, you on the other hand, of may not. Last but not least, it works well with both humbuckers and single coil pickups. I give it a 9 on sound quality considering it is a stomp box, not your favorite amp (Dumble, Boogie, Matchless, or whatever your dream amp may be). I have yet to try an affordable box that souds this musical.

Haven't had it long enough, but I got it used and it works fine. Some folks had complained about the poor reliability of the Marshall Shredmaster, but I haven't heard anything negative about the Bluesbreaker.

My favorite stomp box ever, and the only one in my pedalboard. I'm used to relying on the amp's natural distortion, but this adds yet another possibility for different textures.

It's very easy to use. Three knobs, the most important being gain, which controls distortion.

It's a very subtle effect. It's supposed to emulate tube amp distortion. If you have a good tube amp, just use the tube amp! If you have a solid state amp, it's not bad. I had to crank up the gain to get what I felt was a good distortion effect though. It's wierd. If you're into real over the-top distortion, this won't give you enough. If you're into subtle, warm, tasteful tube amp distortion, you'll just buy a tube amp. I think it would be good for someone who wants a tube amp, but can't afford it. I used to use it before I bought my bassman. It's somewhat akin to Zoom stuff. Good for price, but you quickly outgrow it.

It's pretty reliable. Knobs are rubber, case is aluminum.

Never had a problem with the pedal, so I've never talked to Marshall.

I wouldn't buy it again now that I have a tube amp. It's a fairly good approximation of subtle tube distortion. But most people who are into that are into vintage amps. When I owned it, I didn't have a tube screamer or other device. It might be good with that. I would recommend it as a nice effect for a 15-20 watt generic practice amp. It's a good piece of equipment for beginners. I used to use the blues breaker and a Zoom 9002, and they sounded great through headphones. I could pretend to be Clapton. Now that I've gotten better and more into sound, I just use a rule tube amp. For the price, they're okay. I just think that they will be outgrown. If you're a beginner, and you like blues, pick up a used one for $50-$70.

Easy to use, analog knobs...no microp menus!

I believe that this pedal works well with solid-state amps and detracts from tube amps. I used this pedal to gig with a peavy chorus amp with the muscial style of blues and classic rock. It worked well and added a nice tubey sound to the solid state, but it was completely worthless with a fender blues deluxe. It is quite useful if you have solid-state.

Tough as nails!

I would buy it to help get that over-the-edge sound on a solid-state amp! Reliable gear for a newer, on-a-budget band!

I really did not care for this pedal very much. It is not very versatile--you can get a warm blues sound out of it, but if you are looking for that Albert Collins cold-snap sound, forget it. I tested it head to head with an Ibenez TS-10 Tube Screamer, and the Screamer kicked its ass for that warm blues tube sound. Id say the box has about 1 good sound, and even that one is sub-par. For the price of this effect (in the store it was listed at $110) you'd be better off picking up a Tube Screamer on the net. Or do what I did and get the Marshall Drive Master--you can create much better tube-blues sounds with this box, and also kick up the gain for a blues sound that will cut you in half! Its the same price, so forget the Blues Breaker.

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