Tech 21 Tri-O.D. Overdrive Pedal

You guys will get a chuckle out of this. This is an update to a review I left years ago. I recently purchased a Mesa Boogie Mark III. I've been tinkering with front ending the amp with various overdrives to get a decent lead sound, as the Boogie doesn't have enough ooomph on it's own in that regard. Anyway, the clean channel is spectacular on the Boogie, as is the first overdrive channel. So I've been trying all of these different pedals, including a lot of Boutique pedals, but NOTHING was sounding good to me. Fulltone OCD, nope. Catalibread SCOD, nope. Ibanez TS9, nope. MI Audio Cruncbox, nope. MXR distortion plus, nope. They all just sounded either too buzzy, or didn't provide enough punch. I started wondering if it was the amp....until I plugged my Tri-OD into the Rhythm 2 channel of the Mark III. I set the bass and treble on the TRI-OD at 12 O'clock and gain at about 50%. OH MY GOD! The amp came to life and ROARED. Beatuful organic, woody sounding tones came out of the amp. No Buzz, No fizz. Just tone for days! Carlos Santana would have been jealous!

Then I tried plugging the TRI-OD into the effects loop return, and while the clean channel sounded better, both the British and California channels sounded thin, and they amp sounded like it had a blanket over it. Same with plugging it into the front of the amp and playing it through the clean channel. While it sounded OK, it was substantially thinner sounding. Setting the Rhythm channel just before it starts to break up and then running the TRI-OD through it provided GORGEOUS tones.

Been using the tri-OD for about 10 years now. very easy to get the the sound you want for each of the three amps : tweed, boogie, and marshall. even though there is one master EQ, it works well for all the amps. i like it. less is more. too many choices in this crazy world.

on the boogie setting, i can get the "Still Got The Blues For You" and bob seger "Mainstreet" sounds NAILED!!. On the marshall, i can get ZZ top sounds really well. I mostly use the Tweed for my clean sound for jazz chords, but if you drive it, you can get a clean/ with a little dirt version of "Sweet Home Alabama"

chorus does not sound good with the tri-od. i suggest using a splitter and running chorus clean, not thru the tri od.

one must remeber that the tri od is not actually a preamp. so i reccomend using a preamp pedal before the Tri. maybe like this:

preamp - compressor- Tri-OD- reverb/delay in that order

super dependable. will not break. only nibbles at batteries. does not eat them. seriously, one 9 volt lasts a LONG time in the Tri. keep it in your guitar bag at ALL TIMES. if there's a sound system where you are, you can play!

never had to repair it!

i play jazz, but a bit edgier than what most people refer to as jazz. i experiment with different sounds via delay and looper. the Tri OD allows me to switch sounds quickly.

Very simple device. Not a whole lot to figure out.

You can get the sound of Jimmy Page. The overdrive in "fender" mode (or whatever it's called, the third one) is a joke unless you want to be playing experimental radio static type stuff. But the mock marshall and the "california" glam-rock type mode are both AWESOME. I've recorded direct with it into my computer and it sounds like I've three marshalls. NO JOKE. The "california" is actually more of a fuzz mode than a glam rock thing and sounds better than the fuzz on "purple haze." it's a little finer and less noisy, but PLENTY loud.

I depended on this puppy for three years, but after a year of no use it went bad. It just wouldn't turn on, even with a new battery.

I play sort of folk-rock, and this thing is on my christmas wish list EVEN THOUGH my last one died.

It's very easy to get your sound. It's already pre-voiced and i think it's perfect for plug and play situations, You just need to tweak your eq which also boost and cuts your mid. Switching is fine for me, I used to have a Sansamp PSA-1 with a footswitch and i'm used with the switching.

This is the sound i'm looking for, very flexible. I'm using it with my Trademark 60 amp and this thing really shines with it. I guess you just need to have the right amplifier to play with it. My amp have a Celestion speaker. Fender amps are nice too. It has a little background hissing but it's normal to have it on high gain settings, I have a Noise Supressor and it helps. It sounds perfect, Fender, MESA/BOOGIE and MARSHALL tone on compact pedal. I also have a Sansamp Classic and GT2 right now, I compared it to each other and my TRI-OD wins it. I'm sending back my used Sansamp Classic to Guitar Center, lol.

Very dependable unit. If i can get a cheap price for it again i would buy it for a backup. Solid Tech 21 fan!

The best customer support i've dealt with. Lloyd is very helpful and answers my question very quickly by e-mail. I had my GT2 repaired with them and it only costed me $25.

I play lots of lead stuff like Satch, Vai, Petrucci, and this thing is really perfect for my style. It's a perfect match for my gear, I've been playing for 12yrs and i had a lot of effects that passed through my hands, this one is definitely a keeper.

This is simple to use, it's analog, no menus or any such stuff. No need for a manual really. It's made as a stompbox for in front of an amp, but I get good results recording straight with it too.

I like all Tech 21 stuff. The distortion sounds very natural to me, with no digital artifacts. There are three channels , Tweed - California - and British. The only thing I don't like is that the master EQ section really isn't sufficient for on the fly channel changes. But the sounds are in there, and they are very, very good!

Solid as a rock.

I've never had to deal with them.

I play blues, classic rock, metal, country, and experimental. This pedal is a very good match, especially in front of my one channel Fender Amp. If it was stolen, I would buy the succesor to this pedal, the Tech 21 Tri-A.C. I compared this to Ibanez, Boss, and several other pedals. This was by far my favorite. This is also great as a bass pre-amp.

3 channels : tweed, mesa and marshal with independent drive controls and eqs -- pretty simple operation, no need for extreme tweaking. only problem lies in the channel switchin dept, you have to turn the other channel off if you want to alternate between clean and dirty sounds--and then there's the off switch somewhere in between -- can get confusing sometimes

the best for it's price range and portability, better than most digital muli-fx's distortion settings, great bass pre-amp too, perfect for recording direct

Yes definitely for recording.

For gigs, you would really have to rehearse your cues and settings

from Carcass to the Cocteau Twins and everythng in between
6 Years
I wish i could get a new one if this were stolrn but sadly this product is already discontinued by tech 21

Doesn't get much easier than this... 3 modes, one footswitch, metal box. It would be nice if it had a bypass switch, but if you turn off one of the modes, you've got your bypass.

Pretty impressive, for what it does. I've had really good results using the tweed mode in front of my stock '63 Princeton and other low powered amps (go figure), but in front of my high powered music mans the tweed mode just sounds muddy. I don't own a marshall, so I don't know how the Tri-OD emulates that, but I will say it does a pretty good job immitating my Mesa V-Twin. Not spot on, but no one really notices that sort of thing at a gig anyway, and you can't beat the portability factor. Agree with the other reviewers, forget the speaker simulator or direct recording, IMO that's pretty weak. The treble and bass controls are a nice touch, but what sounds good in one mode doesn't really sound good in another.

Bought it new, still works the same as it did 15 years ago. Can't complain.

Never had to call, thankfully. That's a 10 in my book.

Good pedal, between this and a tube screamer, I have most of the high gain bases covered. If you are looking for a solid, dependable distortion pedal without any frills, this is a good match. Destined to be a classic.

The layout is simple to understand and the manual answers any questions you might still have. The biggest catch is balancing the three channel volumes with the overall master volume. There is some compromise with only one set of tone controls for all three channels.

The Tweed channel is pretty weak-very muddy and muffled. Don't expect to get crystal clear tones at all. The Marshall channel is nice for a fairly distorted tone. The California channel is OK for medium distorted tones, not going to do the Dual Rectifier stuff.
However, there are lots of unpleasant overtones at high distortion settings, and the pedal is missing the definition and transparency of the GT-2 or Classic Sans Amp.

All Tech 21 stuff is high quality

They are outstanding with answering emails and providing good answers to all your questions.

Bought as a simpler to use version of the GT-2. But it just doesn't have the exceptional tones of the GT-2. The GT-2 takes alot more time to really explore all the tones and variations, but even with the added cost it is the better way to go. The Tri-OD lacks the punch and flexibility.

All knobs, one switch, what could be simpler?

What it does, it does well. If you want the distortion sound of a fender, a marshall and a boogie, you get that. Very solid, very smooth. This is a very refined distortion, nothing more. There's no noise, no hiss, no digital pixellation and the sounds are very consistent. But there's ONE EQ for all of these. And it's BASS and TREBLE. The speaker simulator sucks. I'll say it. The sansamp classic is way better as a direct recording tool. If you want to use this to run straight into your deck LOOK ELSEWHERE.

This thing is SUPER solid. Near indestructible.

never dealt whith them, no reason to.

As a live tool, this is a nice touch. None of the tones are totally out of the box, but then, they're much more fleshed out versions of three classic distortions than most modelers offer. It's not pixel crispy, and has a nice fullness.

BUT

The one speaker sim it has SUCKS. The distortions are fairly stock and without a different eq for each one, it's like playing a vintage amp in a crowded music store. It sounds really nice, but it might not be quite what you were after. As tantalizingly close as you are, you can't tweak it.

This is very easy to use.. Treble, bass, on off, etc.. Just use your head..

I've owned tube amps of all kinds, and every type of distortion box on earth it seems, and this is the best! The Best.. This thing just sings.. I love it.. I played it thru a marshall head / post amp valvestate and into a 4x12" marshall cab.. Just rocks, and I've played it right into the PC.. Rocks! This thing is like the energizer bunny!

So far, so good.> This thing is made of what most things that are mechanical should be made of.. METAL!

So far I've asked several questions, and Lloyd has been great..

I play everything from Little Wing to Paul Gilbert to Saliva, and it rocks.. This thing is hard to beat.. Now I just need a great wah wah and reverb and delay pedal and I'm finished! Go buy one.. Tech 21 stuff is just great.. I can't wait to buy about 15 of the 60 watt engines to stack everywhere. I'm going to breed them! Then when the kid down the block comes by with the BOOM, BOOM, I'm a rapper with all chains and no brains, I'm going to blow his nuts thru his windows!

The unit itself is pretty simple and self-explanatory. There is a huge problem though, especially when used in a live situation: for 4 different modes there is only one switch. So if you want to switch from channel 3 to channel 2, you have to press the switch 3 times. Not very user-friendly on stage, when every bit of a second counts.

I it with a lot of different guitars, mostly with my 1980 Ibanez S540. It works really well with both humbuckers and single coils, blends with the distortion channel of the amp pretty good. The sound is tremendous, actually you can get a huge variety of great sounds since the three channels have very different tonal characteristics. What also works really well is cranking the gain of the channels itself and using your guitar's volume control to control the gain.
Whether you use it in front of an amp (I play it mostly through a peavey classic 30 with a marshall 4x12 box) or directly through the board, it sounds great. Direct recording with this thing is also pure joy.

You could kill a member of the crowd with it. Solid metal. Not one of the effects that break soon.

I play mostly something between rock and metal, with a lot of prog influences. I've been playing for 14 years, a lot of gigging and recording sessions. The tri.o.d has become an important part of my sound, whether live or recording. I use it in combination with a 90s proco rat, and have not needed another distortion pedal ever since.Go out and buy.

I just wanted to say this pedal is so small and you can get so many sounds if you ride all the channels' gain knobs high then control the actual gain using your guitar volume knob with maybe a volume pedal for volume control. Lots of succesful applications using the wide master volume knob control range to match the signal path you want to use (as preamp to board or to power amp or to guitar amp or whatever). It also successfully "tube color"s the rest of the signal path if I set all the channels' gain low and then pass to other effects, which lets me use guitar volume knob for volume instead of gain. Makes the sound through even cheap effects later in the signal path (like Zoom 505) sound really better.

9 just cause 10's 11. (Don't ask!) Though in a fantasy I sometimes think I'll send it to Tech21 for service just to make sure the last little bit of background noise is out of it for when I record with it or.... it's really quiet, don't get me wrong, but when I sometimes go from stage through the house sound I get a little noise. Could be board is sometimes set wrong by sound guy.

Fine.

Don't know.

Get one. So small!

This is a simple, self-explanatory, non-programmable pre-amp/O.D. box. I bought it new, but I've owned it so long I don't remember what happened to the manual, but I've never needed it. The single switch is the weak link in functionality, since, though you can turn off unused channels, you have to "scroll through" active channels. But for my practice/"noodling" purposes it's not really a problem.

The sound quality is excellent, for what it is. It is the quietest O.D. pedal I own, but I use it differently. I also have a AM modded TS9DX, Indyguitarist DS-1, and a couple of stock tube driver type boxes. These "push" the tubes and are used in front of amps with the gain already up. The Tri-O.D. is more of an Amp-simulator and I use it straight into my computer(recording) or a clean amp for low volume practice.
I work at a 24/7 facility and one night a week I work the midnight shift in a monitoring capacity. I keep a Pignose (original model) in my locker and and take in my (hotrodded) Steinberger Spirit, my Tri-OD and a Boss RV-3 reverb box, to mess around with. I get a lot of compliments on that "great sounding little amp". You'd be amazed how good this set-up sounds, even at barely audible levels (can't get very loud at work...)
I hate batteries and use PSA120's for all my stomp boxes (with daisy chains for low draw units).

I've owned it for at least 15 yrs and have never had a problem. If a Boss pedal really pissed me off I'd beat it to death with this. It would make a good hammer. I don't gig at all anymore, but when I jam with others with I carry it in my gig bag as a "back up", mostly for when I can't get my sound dialed in (like in someone's garage). It's super nice if you're using someone else's amp.

Never dealt with 'em, don't expect to.

I'm a Blues/Rock/Jazz player, mostly the bues/rock thing. I love bending and shaking strings through a driven tube amp, cranked to where I can feel it. I am, however, working on Jazz chord melody and comp playing, but am pretty bad so far.
I've been playing since 1965 with the occasional 5 yr break. Chords in 60's, licks in 70's, tricks in 80's, scales in 90's, Jazz now. I currently use a 86 US Strat Plus(laces), a 79 Les Paul deluxe, a 91 ES165 and the Korean Steiney (with Duncan 59 & JB and a Lace gold with switching galore.)I have a 63 Fender Bandmaster (purchased in 67!), an 86(?) Fender Champ12 and a Traynor YCV-80 2-12. I've owned lots of guitars and have owned a Mesa Dual Recto half stack, Ampeg V-4 (100W 4-12 Half Stack), and Peavy Classic 30. All tube amps except the Pignose. I've owned several multi-effects/pre-amps and hated them all. I'm down to 7 essential stompboxes now. (GIVE ME KNOBS!!!)
When I bought the TRI-OD it was a fancy new whiz bang gizmo. I loved it then and I love it now. I don't use it with my Tube amps much, but I use it for practice and direct a lot!!
If I lost it, I'd be on eBay looking for a replacement in minutes.

It is relatively simple to operate. For live applications the single foot switch can be a little bit of a draw back. For practice and jamming it is fine though.

Used into the "effects return" jack of my little 1X12 30 watt Electar combo it makes it sound like a new amp. A much more expensive amp I might add. IMHO Sansamp comes as close to tubes as you can get without having tubes, and if you have volume or DI issues it may be the better way to go. The amp simulations don't sound exactly like these amps, but they are scarily close.

These boxes are built well. Heavy guage metal and sturdy switches.

Have not needed it but they have an exellent web site.

I like classic rock. I can get all the sounds I like from this pedal. I have been playing for 27 years and have owned Marshal JCM900's and currently am using Crate solid state combos and heads. I have guitars ranging from Squires to Gibson Les Pauls. What I like the most about this pedal is that it gives me big amp tone from a small amp if I wish. I don't use it with my bigger amps as they have 3 chanel operation and sound fine in their own right. I don't record with it because I have a Sansamp G2 that I use for that.

This unit is fairly easy to use...you can get real cool distortions in the blink of a eye...it gets sometimes, tough, until u get used with the different channels and options u have..! but nothing that 1 or 2 days cant solve...i dont give it a 10 for three main reasons: first, it only have one foot switch, and having 2 more wouldnt make it much more expensive (at least i think) - but it's forgiveable...second - and worst - is the irritating (to say the least) feature that sets up a bypass mode if u turn one of the channels off...its really annoying...i hate to step on the pedal twice to activate the channel i want and turning off one of them makes no difference, u only turn the pedal off on the second click. iknow that the bypass option can be useful for some, but they could have put a "bypass on off" switch or at least an internal jumper...the third - that is forgiveable 2, and possibly to make this unit cheaper - is that it doesnt have independend tone switches for each channel nor presence or middle controls but its ok...this pedal is great anyway...

It's really awesome...its been 9 years since the first review was submited in this forum and the reviews are still positive...and there's a clear reason: this unit will blast ur head off! the distortion is awesome and have so much gain that i never use more than "5" on the drive control....i have a 1997 R9 Fernandes (made in Japan) with a 500T gibson humbucker as my bridge pickup, the amp is a 50W Marshall Valvestate...i play mainly newschool punkrock and i bought it expecting to use the mesa channel to sound like millencolin and new found glory...but the marshall (brit) channel really made me crazy...its fuckin'awesome...its got so much crunch that almost barks!!! the calif (mesa) channel is great 2, but its basically for a bassy metal sound (specially nu metal like slipknot and system of down)...the tweed (fender) channel doesnt matches my guitar 2 much (the clean 500t sound sucks), but its cool on single coil guitars, specially with a little or no drive (i tested on an american standard fender start and its superb). I basically use it for live perfomances plunging directly into power amp or simply "inputing" it on the amp..i never used for recording but i will do soon...!

in a few words: great - a really good thing to spend ur money on

it seems to be pretty tough...! not as a metal zone (that u can let a truck pass over it)..but ok!

well here in brazil i dont know if theres even a tech 21 office...in case of tech issues, ill have to find a different way of getting support!

Its great...the drawbacks i mentioned before are no obstacle to this little beauty! run and get yours! its out of line and will became a treasure soon!

This is a follow up review. I had this pedal about two years ago and sold it. Went through a bunch of new overdrive pedals and amps, and ended up buying this pedal again, after relaizing that there is nothing, and I mean NOTHING out there that sounds better. Concerning ease of use, the pedal is brain dead simple. However, for this to be the perfect pedal, there needs to be small eq knobs for each chanel and three foot switches. Yes, I know the TRI-AC has these features, but the TRI-AC doesn't have the small footprint and beefy feel this little wonder has. Also, technically you still have to "program" the TRI-AC. Nothing beats real eq knobs on a OD pedal for the gigging musician. Tech 21, are you listening? Two points off for lack of seperate EQ knobs and single footswitch.

The reviewer below me is correct. The Tri-AC sounds nothing like a Mesa or Marshall. It sounds better. Better you say? Yup, here's why. To get a tube amp to sound good you have to run it wide open. Looking back over the past 5-10 years I can only think of one gig where I was able to run my amp near wide open. So what's the sense of owning a tube amp when the only time you can get it to sound great is at rehearsal?

I make a good living. In the past 5 years alone I've owned a Mesa dual recto, a Mark III, a Marshal TSL 100, and a DSl 401, not to mention numerous solid state amps. I would like to think that by now I know good tube amps, and good tone. To sound good, a tube amp should be run wide open (or close to it). The problem with using a tube amp is that the human ear does not perceive sound correctly at the pressure levels generated by the volume of a wide open tube amp. I'm sure most of you have experienced this a time or two during a loud rehearsal. This is what makes the playback of a tube amp (at normal volumes) sound much better than the same tube amp at high volume levels. Now, what if someone created a pedal that could capture the characteristics of a wide open tube amp at normal listening levels? Enter Tech 21. The Tri-OD as well as the other Sans Amp products allow you to emulate the characteristics of a wide open tube amp at reasonable volume levels. So while your "tube snob" buddy sounds like crap because he can't crank his $2,000 Mesa stack at his next gig, you can smile, knowing that your Tri-OD powered rig will undoubtedly sound much better.

I currently run the following rig:

Ernie Ball Music Man (main axe) and Washburn WCE USA Custom shop (backup axe) into Tri-OD, then either into an assortment of Boss pedals, or straight into an amp. Current amps: Roland Jazz chorus 120 and Gallien Kruger MLE (either by itself or pushing a 4X12 cab). Yup, I dumped all of my tube amps and I've never been happier. No more $200 tube jobs, no more worrying about bumps and road wear, no more mysterious problems. The Tri -OD (pushing the above-mentioned amps) is FAR less noisy than any of my tube amps were.

Built like a tank. The TRI-OD is so small (and inexpensive) that I carry a spare in my gig bag......but I doubt I'll ever need it.

I've spoken with several sales people and the VP of sales when I was trying to get my hands on an early version of the Trademark 300 head (just after they were released and before they were readily available in the normal supply channel). All nice guys. The Tech 21 technical support guys are probably about as bored as the proverbial lonely Maytag repairman.

Been playing about 20 years. All styles. Lately some of my "bedroom demos" have found their way into several modules of the popular on-line PC game "Never Winter Nights'. You can check them out on my website www.songofthewoods.com. Recently I have been gigging quite actively with a local Top 40 band (I must be getting old). The TRI-AC allows me to nail pretty much any sound I need from "clean to scream". Being a hopeless gear junky, I've had the ability to compare it to many other pedals I've owned including the Hughes and Kettner Tubeman (another very nice pedal, but still unable to compete with the SansAmp sound), POD 2.0, POD pro, Zoom Tri Metal, Zoom Power Lead, Zoom GFX-8, Boss HM2, Boss Metal Zone, Boss VF-1, Digitech 2101, Alesis Quadraverb GT, SR&D Rockman, SR&D Sustainor, Marshall ShredMaster, as well as the built in distortion of many different amps (both solid state and tube). The fact that the only distortion/OD pedal I currently own is the TRI-OD probably speaks louder than anything more I could say about the TRI-OD.

Just a few knobs. Very easy to use. Needs three foot switches. A single button switching between three channels is absolutely friggin useless.

I use this primarily straight into the recording board. I have a Marshall DSL 100 and Blue Voodoo head that I use for live applications. Had a Mesa Boogie head, but hated it and sold it. This sounds nothing and I mean NOTHING like a Mesa or a Marshall. Still the distortion tones are very good overall. Just don't think your going to sound like a Mesa or Marshall with this.......it ain't gonna happen. The clean sounds are EXCELLENT. You can get that slightly compressed tube sound on the clean channel, with a touch of sparkle. Excellent clean tones!!

Like a tank!!

Haven't used em.

Very nice sounds. A little dry on harmonics. Doesn't have that "singing" quality you get in a good tube amp, but the distorion textures and clean sound are excellent. ASIDE FROM WHAT THE BONEHEAD REVIEWERS STATE BELOW THIS DOES NOT PERFECTLY EMULATE A TUBE AMP. Been playing about 20 years. Have probably owned just about everything out there in that period of time. Don't get me wrong....it's a great little pedal, just doesn't "perfectly nail" the Mesa or Marshall sound, and the Tech 21 Marketing Department should be ashamed of itself to say that it does.

If u have fiddled with around with stomp boxes then this one is no different. I bought it without a manual and I was able to figure it out in seconds. Though I dont really fancy the battery compartment the look and design of this thing looks pretty cool.

This is one of THE best dustortion/overdrive pedals ever! The sound is superb! U can get anything with this baby. Crunchy chords, screaming leads, bluesy riffs.. u name it, it can sound it. Just one minor setback of this unit is the lack EQ controls, eg. MIDS/PRESENCE.. But its nothing an external EQ unit cant fix but for the price well I can at least expect for something more. But Hell.. It still kicks ass anyway!

Its made of metal and u can knock someone out cold. Sturdy knobs and I'm using batteries to operate it and works just as fine.

Never dealt with them before...

I've been playing for ard 7 yrs now and I must say this thing really impresses me. The first Tech21 product that I ever heard being played was actually the GT2 but this baby has the ability to gimme 3 channels so its really useful during gigs/jams. I play mostly metal and I'm super satisfied with it. I HIGHLY recommend it to anybody. Stop using those MT2, Tri-Metal or watever and GET this one!

Easy, very easy, bought used without manual.
I had one question about the speaker emulator, emailed the rep at tech 21 and they sent me a electronic manual within a half hour!! Oh, buy the way you guys that complain the battery is hard to get to because you have to take out 4 screws? PLEASE!

Supurb box for the money, great preamp. It doesn't quite sound like tubes at just barely breaking up, but full on distortion (overdrive)is nice.

Don't drive a tank over it, you will bend the knobs over, or possibly break them off. Very dependable.

First rate company! Incredibly kind and helpful.

I own or have owned a lot of stuff, let me just say this is a better choice for real amp flavors. Records better direct than my POD or Gt3. Works good into a small clean amp for quiet practice. I use my 5150 combo with few effects played loud the rest of the time. For my money find one used and buy it. If you want to switch between amp types live, buy the tri-a.c. This was a fantastic value.

well... turn on any one of the three (hence "tri - od") OD's offered... step on the switch to select between the three sonic choices... not too difficult... may be a little tricky to time in on stage in a live setting though...

the Brit. setting rips your head off in a good sort of way - brighter hi-gain... the cali setting is a little smoother warmer - fat hi-gain... the tweed setting is sweet as butter. Beware!!! this likes a clean power amp or a great clean chanel! It hated going through my overdriven chanel... thought the amp would cave in and die. But let me tell ya son, it sure sounds good through my clean chanel.

just got it. can't say if it is or not... the guy i bought it from never had problems with it... so it would have to be his opinion not mine.

don't know... never dealt with the guys at Tech 21

For what you get and at this price what can I say... It is a keeper!

The pedal is very easy to use in th studio (which is what it was made for). However, playing live it is quite a hassle to dial in more than one sound.
I use it mainly just on the 3rd setting, overdiven - as a distortion box. The problem is that there is a lag in the switching from clean to distorted so I had to get a bypass box to route it though. That is why I am giving it an 8 for ease of use.
Again - this is a studio amp emulator box so the rating is geared towards using it in a live playing situation.
The switching problem I believe is being alleviated in the new TRI-AC.

The sound is killer!
The best eq, the best distortion, and the best sound versatility in all units this and twice the price. What I especially love is the live "beefy" feel of this box, it plays like it was a much bigger unit.

100% reliable, rock solid. The only bad thing is that the batteries (if you need to use them) require you to take out 4 screw before you get to the battery casing.

Never had to deal with their custommer support so I can't rate it.

Excellent for metal, blues, rock, jazz, whatever you want -you can dial on it.
It doesn't do esoteric overdriven amp sounds like other unit when being overdirven way too much, but for what it is it is THE BEST.
I am hooked to Tech21 for life!

this unit is very easy to operate.no manual recqired.though the
manual suggests using it in the effects loop.it did not work well.it is fabulous sounding thru the front of amp.

the fender tweed,boogie ,marshall emulations are some of the best
around.I have an old 1976 marshall rewired to bassman specs and
I am very pleased.I would like to try thePSA ,which is their version
of the triaxis

metal case,no trouble so far

have not had to

I play rock and blues.great versatility in tones. beats carrying
three amps.great preamp for the price.I have played for
20 yrs and if you cant get a good sound from this.give up

Even though the use itself is quite simple, (3 programs, you step them through one after the other), this fact makes it quite tricky to use two or all three sounds in a live situation, so i'll rate it only a 8.

I used it with a lot of different amp types. Until now it was quite impossible to make ALL of them go and provide a sound i can work with by using a single unit. Tried VTwin, Fulldrive I and II, the 808, Expandoras, RATs and other little animals, you name it. This unit makes it happen.

Soldano Atomic 16, THD Plexi Top, Trace Elliot Velocette, a small Laney 15, a Fender Blues De Ville,... Works with each one of them. At least good 'nough to make me feel good.

Guitars: Strats. Only Strats. No humbuckers. A '65, a Vintage '62, a '79 and two real great early Relics (57 and 60 Reiss.). With each one of them i can control the tone perfectly just by using tone and vol controls. From a real nasty crankin'tone to a rich full boost, from soft Boogie lead notes to full Marshal blast, if i can do it, it can do it too.

It's quiet. Pure and simple. If there's noise, i check my other stuff.

Effect is always there. All three sounds are the way they describe them. And the way i expect and know 'em.

Can't say nothing here, only had it for a week, but i already took it out to a session and it was fine. Seems well-built.

No experience yet.

Jazz, Fusion, Blues, well, you like the sound of it, you use it. Don't know if it's "a good match", guess it depends on your own view. For me, it is.

I am playing for over 20 years now , i had all kinds of stuff, the amps i own are described above (except the 63 Bassman, i'll check that match later, but i guess it'll work as well).

Would i buy it again? I'm trying right now to get another one on eBay. I plan to use two, 'cause the only real flaw is that it's in fact (as some other people pointed out) somewhat tricky to make every single sound really shine without messing up the others. Well, i had a Boogie Mark II and i'm used to this. Try to make the lead sound fly without messing the clean sound. I never got that...

Anyway. I love it. And i'm not affiliated to the company in any way (i wish i was). I will start checking out their other stuff soon.

This category only rated a 6 because, although it is very easy to use, it is also difficult to use live. This is because if you eq a good clean sound, it will sound very weak on the OD channels, and visa-versa. This is remedied in the new TRI AC. For home pratice or recording, no problem.

Sound quality is absolutly amazing. A saleman showed me one of these 10 years ago and I laughed at him without trying it (I was young and dumb!). He claimed that this thing sounded better than most of the amps on the market. Ten years later, in my opinion, it still does. Sure, you can buy each amp and spend $3000 in the process and sound better, but this pedal will come close. You have to spend some time with one of these, with a good power and and speakers to really appreciate the beauty of this device. You will be amazed. This pedal is so juicy and alive, it is incredible. It feels real because it is real, not like some of the amp-modelers of today that don't respond like a real amp. It sounds better than my main rig, but I don't use it live due to the eq problem stated earlier, so I will probably switch over to the new version soon.

I am not sure what could go wrong unless you destroyed it intentionally.

I never dealt with them. I have e-mailed a few questions to them that were answered very promptly.

This was the best money I have ever spent on a musical product. I did buy this used, but it far exceeded my expectations. I have become familiar with Tech 21 products in my studio session work. You would be amazed at how often they are used in the studio. These products react and sound like the real thing, not only the real thing, but a top-notch real thing! Please, if you are truly interested in TONE, check out Tech 21 (Just use them correctly, in a loop or into a power amp), you will not be disappointed.

Multifunction stomp box with three amp simulations, speaker emulation and bypass. Each amp simulation - Tweed, California, British - has a volume (with on/off) and a gain control, and there's a shared master section with active bass and treble controls (limiting factor #1) and Master Volume. One input, one output, 9V DC power supply socket (or unscrew the backplate to install a battery if you prefer), plenty of LEDs to tell you where you are, with the whole lot mounted in/on a very sturdy metal case. Solid. Just one footswitch to control a multitude of functions, and this is limiting factor #2 in an otherwise very versatile unit. If all three amp simulations are on, the footswitch cycles through the three modes, so it takes you two stomps to go from Tweed (= Fender) to British (= Marshall) or from California (= Boogie) to Tweed etc. If two of the simulations are on, the footswitch again cycles through three sounds: the two "on" amp simulations and bypass. If only one of the simulations is on, the footswitch simply switches between that and bypass. And if all three amp simulations are off, the footswitch switches between bypass and the speaker emulation. This shaves off the high end a bit, so pretty useful for getting stuff direct to tape, apparently. Haven't used it myself. I've given a 7 for ease of use because although you can fairly easily get some great tones out of this unit, it isn't easy to get access to all those tones as quickly and as simply as you need in a live situation.

I really liked this pedal in the store (played through the Tech21 60W combo), but once I got it home I wasn't so impressed and it took me quite a while to get to grips with it again and to figure out the settings to get the sounds I like. The more I've experimented with it the more I've grown to like it. I've used this pedal with a variety of guitars, principally a 1982 Ibanez Artist (with JB and '59 Duncan humbuckers), a 1990-ish Fender USA Standard Strat and a 1997 Gibson Les Paul Special DC (twin P-90s), with the pedal plugged straight into the regular input of my Trace Elliot Speed Twin C30, a class A 30W 1x12".
At low gains the Fender simulation has a lovely chiming high end and a very full low end to give that slightly hollow tone, and switching between that and my amp's clean sound (very Voxy, much darker) gives two totally different clean tones. When you crank the gain the Fender tone is less impressive, even at moderate gain levels where it can sound a bit buzzy/crackly on the bass notes as the volume decays, not quite as smooth as real valves. On cleaner settings the Fender tone is fine with single coils, P90s or humbuckers, but with higher gains the humbuckers are less impressive than the single coils and P90s which cut through the mild fuzz much better.
The Boogie simulation gives a thick, smooth and creamy Santana-esque lead tone with the bass and treble flat, while boosting those two gives you that scooped modern Metallicized metal tone. Which is nice, if you like that sort of thing. Kind of reminds me of a dentist's drill, but there you go, tonal taste's a funny thing. Humbuckers are definitely the way to go on this channel.
The Marshall sound, on the other hand, is a killer. Really fierce mid-range and treble, great for AC/DC riffs if you hold back on the gain, and pretty mental as you crank things up. At really high gains it gets all wheezy and compressed, the sound of over-worked valves. Great!
So overall pretty impressive, particularly at the medium to high gain end of things. The lower gain crunchy sounds are also pretty good, though the Fender simulation isn't quite up to par. Overall this little box does a pretty fair job of emulating a truckload of classic tube amps. Of course it's not the real thing, but then it doesn?t weigh a few hundred pounds either.

No problems or complaints, and the solid build suggests a long and useful life. Tech21 products seem to have a pretty good reputation for durability and roadworthiness.

I've never had need to contact them, but they have a good website, good literature and instruction manuals, and some cool products.

I like Tech21 stuff. The CompTortion is excellent, and I?ve been pretty happy with this unit too - loads of useful and high quality tones. For home use (and probably for recording) it's ideal, with the individual sounds varying from good to excellent. BUT?. the shared master EQ and the single footswitch mean that all that tonal flexibility is not so easily accessible when playing live. The Fender and Marshall tones are tonally fairly compatible, but the bass response of the Fender is pretty strong, and when you turn that down a bit the Marshall can end up a tad too fierce. But the Boogie tone is much thicker and needs a load of extra treble compared to the other two simulations. I've not yet found a really satisfactory balance between the guitar's, the unit's and my amp's tone controls which allows me to use all three Tri-O.D. channels in a live situation. And the single footswitch?? this footswitch business seems to be a common problem; I also have a Boogie V-Twin valve preamp, and that too has less than optimal switching due to not having enough footswitches. I don't want to be bending down and fiddling with controls and buttons mid-song! Maybe I'm wrong, but I would have thought a footswitch would be a pretty cheap item, and making the case big enough to incorporate however many you need shouldn't be too difficult or costly. I know all the manufacturers aim for compactness and simplicity, which is fine for a single function stomp box, but more complex multi-channel units like this Tri-O.D. and the V-Twin would actually be simplified by having more footswitches.
STOP PRESS: Just seen the new Tri-A.C. pedal., which promises to resolve the problems inherent in the shared EQ and single footswitch by combining digital programability and switching with analogue sounds. Looks like I?ll be selling the Tri-O.D. and investing in the new pedal!

Bought it at 6pm, gigged with it at 9pm....5 minutes tweaking before the gig and voila, very usable sounds.

I play in Singapore where the vast majority of clubs and pubs own all of the equipment so I just take a pedalboard and plug into whatever combo is on the stage. I had been going through hell trying to get a consistent sound and have a bag of pedals and multi effects that i will never use again now that I have the Tri OD. I use a Musicman Luke and Peavey Wolfgang (both excellent sounding guitars in their own right) The Marshall setting with the EVH's bridge pickup is perfect for what our band plays (mostly rock) and the california setting with the neck pickup is devine. With the luke, its a very clean sound and distorted chords are very nicely evenly voiced. I had no problem rolling back the volume knob to clean up the sound although i do have to roll it back further than on a normal tube amp.

havent been using it long enough to judge...

Nope...but I will say that the local distributor is ALWAYS out of stock of most of the sans amp models if tech 21 is reading this....

It's a very simple product that does exactly what it says it will do...I wonder why some of the reviewers actually purchased the thing expecting it to sound like a wall of rectifiers (which is completely impracticle in a small venue anyway)... I went looking for the Tech 21 stuff after I heard the demos on thier web site which blew away all of the competing companies demos (Line 6 etc) This model was the only one in stock and I took it on the proviso that I could return it if it didn't do the job...It aint going back...so much sound in such a portable box....try going to a gig on the bus, train or even a cab with a recto stack or large combo...no thanks. Oh and not one person came up to me and told me the guitar didn't sound any good....but then again yr average person in the crowd only cares about the songs, the atmosphere and the price of the booze...right??!!...go and buy one of these things right now!

The unit is very easy to use. The EQ is two band only (bass and treble) but it is an active eq, and extremly useful. Note that the eq is a master eq and affects all three channels. A slight drawback in my opinion. The manual is clear and short. With a few minutes of tweaking you can get just about any sound out of this thing from U2's Edge, to Eddie Van Halen. My biggest gripe is that the unit should have three switches on it to switch from one channel to the next. As it is, there is only one foot switch, and you have to tap it twice to go from channel 1 to channel 3. Again, not a big deal, but worth mentioning.

This is where this unit really shines. I use a Yamaha Pacifica 311MS (stacked single coil/hummer in bridge, hummer in neck) into the Tri-OD into a Roland JC-77. Need just a little bit of edge? No problem!!! Over the top paint blistering distortion? Yup! Now a few gripes. I'd rather have the California channel (channel 2) have less gain than it does. It's not that the distortion isn't great on that channel, you just can't clean it up enough. I'd prefer 1 to be clean-semi clean, channel two for semi dirty rythms and channel three blistering distortion for lead work. Channel two has very high gain like channel three (with justt a slightly different voicing). Even with the gain turned all of the way down it's still too dirty for my taste. But the real important point to note here is that all three channels are very useable in both live and recording settings. Really makes my amp sing. Great Harmonics, great sustain. Hey, I have owned almost everything out there because I'm a gearhead, and I used to own a guitar shop. If I had known how great this little box sounds I would have picked one up years ago.

This thing is housed in an all metal box. Metal switches. No problem so far. Built like a tank, and in my humble opinion ever better than a Boss pedal.

Haven't dealt with them yet.

OK......I play classic rock to metal. Been doing it since about 1982. My main gripe is clearly the single foot switch issue, and that the box should have an auxillary emulator out jack, so I can drive both my amp and the sound board when on stage. BUT.....This box has incredible tone....period. Better than the Hughes and Kettner tubeman, better than the Mesa V-Twin, better than any other pedal (boutique or otherwise) out there. Better than a tube amp you ask? Maybe not a good one......But close.....damn close.

Good sounds are available, provided the user wishes to spend a little time tweaking with their particular set-up. I can't get over how many reviewers use it in front of an amp when THE MANUAL PLAINLY SAYS USE IT INTO THE EFFECTS RETURN AND BYPASS YOUR AMPS PRE-AMP!!! I little awkward to switch as there is one switch for the three channels and it operates sequentially - i.e. you have to stomp twice to get from channel 3 to channel 2.

I use the Tri-OD into the effects loop of a Boss GT-5, which is routed to the effects return of a couple of Carvin X100B heads and then to a stereo cabinet. There is some noise as you crank the gain but anyone who would complain must have never heard a full-on Marshall with an overdrive in front of it. I find the emulations of the TriOD to be far more vibrant and present than the modeling of the GT-5, so I use the only the effects of the GT-5. The best sounds I can get are a really close approximation of a Dual Recto for rhythm and a very present gnarly Marshall lead tone. Of course in conjunction with the effects of the GT-5 the options are unlimited. As other reviewers have stated, it is difficult to get optimum tones for all three channels simultaneously because of a global EQ; I have the luxury of creating individual patches on the GT-5 for the different channels of the TriOD. I have to say that no modeling device sounds as vibrant and 3D to me as the TriOD through my tube power amps.

Tech21 pedals seem to be little tanks. As you have to take the entire bottom off the pedal to replace the battery, use it with an AC adapter.

No comment as I've never had a problem.

I play rock/blues/jazz and have been a pro player off and on for 15 years. You name it, I've owned it. I do enjoy the quality of the tones offered by the TriOD through my setup. If it had separate eq's and a solo boost switch, I don't think Tech21 could manufacture them fast enough.

All pretty straight forward - Overall Level and EQ, and then a seperate Drive and Level for each channel.

Well, I have to say I've really tried but I just can't get a decent sound out of this thing. I've tried it direct to tape, through a PA and in front of amps (Boogies)and everything seems to have this hi-fi, scooped out sheen to it. I would imagine it would be great for metal and stuff where you want that sound, but I was hoping for slightly more rounded and mellow tones to be available.

Funnnily enough, a friend lent me their SansAmp GT-2 and I fell in love with that straight away.

I really think the Tri-OD suffers from the compromises required for putting 3 channels in one box. It uses the same technology as the GT-2, but each channel only seems to feature a narrow section of the total amp simulation available in the GT-2, without the Mic position options too. Unfortunately, they're not the sections I like the sound of!

Also, would it really have been too much trouble to add a easier battery access?

No worries in that department. Quality build.

Never called them. Decent web-site, though.

Fine for the scooped-mid rock brigade. Didn't work for me.

Easy-Peasy Lemon-Squeezy

Standard Ibanez/Fender guitars. Sounds great with a little reverb. Used mainly for direct recording. Make sure you use single coils for the Tweed setting. It's a bit noisy switching if you're using it live.

built like a tank.

N/A

Great piece of gear although getting old now (2001). Not noisy like Line6 Pod. Add's life too tired amps (if they have a decent clean setting).

I tried this pedal out in the shop through the Tech 21 Trademark 60. I found it relatively easy to get great sounding tones. It has three different overdrive modes, each with its own level and gain controls, and can be turned off individually. It has a speaker simulation that is perpetually on so that the pedal can be plugged straight into a mixing desk. However, as the two master tone controls are interactive, more time is needed to dial in the desired tone. Don't really need the manual.

My set-up: Various guitars -> Jim Dunlop 535 Wah -> Ibanez TS9 -> Tri-OD -> Boss EQ -> Volume pedal -> Boss Octave -> Zoom RFX 300 (for simple modulation, delay or reverb) -> power amp stage of a Fender Princeton. Sound-wise, this is a nice OD pedal to include in a portable rig. It supposedly emulates the tube amp sounds of a Fender (Tweed), a Marshall (British) and a Mesa (California). This pedal provides three different tones, while not falling into the "modelling" category, which seems to be the rage these past few years. Haven't tried this pedal with single coils, but with PAFs, this pedal produces very warm sustaining sounds in all three modes. Raising both tone controls while using the California channel gives a powerful thumping scooped death metal tone. Using the Marshall channel, I can get a Van Halen sound (5150 album) quite easily. The Fender channel is a simple clean channel, it does not quite have the crispness of a real Fender tube amp. Maybe with single coils it might.

Noise-wise, this pedal is relatively quiet unless you are playing through the Mesa channel near a CRT, which may be a problem if you are recording using a personal computer.

Haven't had any problems with it todate. Looks rugged enough.

Haven't had to deal with them yet.

Other than the TriOD, I also sometimes get my overdrive tones for blues and rock from my Boss GX700 rackmount, a cheap Zoom GM200 guitar amp modeller (which I must say sounds better than the amp simulation in the Boss rackmount), a Digitech RP200 or an array of various stomp boxes (Marshall Guv'nor, Danelectro Daddy-O, Boss DS1 and SD2, etc)

While this is a nice affordable alternative to lugging three amps around, personally I would have liked the following features:
- When one channel is turned off, the pedal switches between the remaining two channels plus a bypass. For example, if the Fender channel is turned off, stepping on the footswitch toggles the pedal from Mesa -> Marshall -> Bypass -> Mesa, etc. I would have preferred it to just toggle between the two remaining channels without going into bypass.
- I would have preferred the Marshall to be between the Fender and the Mesa. This would allow me to go from clean to crunch to hi-gain.
- An additional Mid tone control would have helped to expand the sonic range.
These are minor gripes though.

If it were stolen, I'll probably get another one, or the Sansamp GT2, which has a larger variation of sounds, although lacking the foot-friendly channel switching capability.

Well, the manual does go much deeper about using this pedal, but its very simple and easy to get start. Just be read about the Speaker simulator and how to use it in by pass mode.

Im using a Tagima Telecaster, and a Fender 25w, man, i must say, it really KICK the lamers ass, i mean, man with thr right settings, you cant get a really good sound. I play blues almost, and i can get a sound that, well, i dont have words :P

Simple, ajust the parameters with calm, and explore all the combinations you can do. And to get a really good sound, get a good amp to give bright to this unit sound.

Well, i dont know if i would use it in a gig without backup, i bought this unit used, and until now its working ALMOST perfectly. But sometimes when i press the pedal button, to change patches, it simple dont change. So i have to press it again.

I send a e-mail with some question abou direct recording to Tech 21, the first e-mail they answer in about 4 hours, and the second, well, lets just say im waiting for their answer for 3 days...

Well, for blues and classic rock, i can get all the sound i need. Its a really good pedal, im my opinion, the best overdrive pedal out there. If you wanna play blues, and get that Srv, Buddy guy sound, thats the pedal.

Well... what could you want more? 3 Independent channels with respective Gain and Level controls, so you can adjust a relative volume between channels. An independent Master Section with a Master Volume, Bass and Treble control. The EQ (active) is EXTREMELY efective altough you might not notice that in the first months. I own this unit since the past 4,5 years and I started messing around with the EQ only a couple months ago. I didn't 10-rate the TRI-O.D. simply because it has lots of nuances you'll only be able to get once you know this unit REAL WELL, and of course, experiment a LOT. Two things I would like to see in this unit: a Mid control would be quite usefull (but an external graph-eq would do just fine); the other one would be a balanced out! Like the one you see in the Sansamp BassDriver. That would be cool in a live situation where you could split your signal direct to the PA, and also to a stage amp, for those guitarrists who don't appreciate a live performance without an amp ragging out loud.

Hummm... I think the TRI-O.D. is very sensitive, and it's quality will vary according with the guitar you're using. I have two guitars... a PRS Standard 24, and a Washburn MG821. The way TRI-O.D. interacts with both guitars is amazingly different. I'm able to get much more dinamics and textures with the PRS guitar. And I can't say the Tweed channel is bad, or awful 'cause I don't have a single coil guitar. With humbuckers, it's just a clean sound... you can tweak a little bit but I don't think you'll be surprised. On the other and, Calif and British RULE!!!!! I can tell you that Tech21 is interested in some of my demo-mp3 featuring the pedal, and it's possible they put it on-line in their site to showcase the pedal. In one of the mp3's I recorded in my house, I tried to emulate John Petrucci's crunch, by emulating his sound of the latest album's single "Home". Believe me, it's VERY convicting. I have friends who bet their ass as the "amp" used is a Mesa Boogie. The British channel is maybe my favorite... and one curious thing I've found, is that the British channel is supposed to emulate Marshall's trademark sound, and I don't like Marshall amps at all (in fact, I hate them! LOL).

Do you believe that I performed to a 30.000 audience using:
- A guitar;
- Two cables;
- Tri-O.D.
...Yeeah, it's true! No one complained about the guitar sound ;)

The only time I dealt with them, was when I suggested them to use my mp3-samples to feature the TRI-O.D.
They're fine :)

Well... I play lots of music styles. The TRI-O.D. fits 'em all!
The TRI-O.D. happens to be the best solution for those who can't afford a GOOD AMP (and good amps are always expensive) or don't want to carry them on their backs! And the price? You can't miss this babe.

One note: I found it works at it's best for direct recording.

No bypass mode unless you turn off a channel. Drive and
volume controls per channel. Straightforward.

Sounds like a constipated duck on Prozac. Dull and gutless.
Not enough drive. That's the Tweed channel. The other two sound
the same to me. If you want distorted, unindividualistic scream,
then the British and Calif. channels are for you. I keep this unit
in the back of my closet, not in my gig bag.

Well built.

They have emailed me in response to questions.

This device may good for others, but not me. I prefer TS 9 Tube
Screamers and real Tube Overdrive. This does not sound like a tube
anything. I can hear the chips singing!

Just plug and play! Once you ajust every channel's level and get a uniform volume from one to another, you're on your way. Really easy, but needs a little tweakin'.

I use a Fender Strat Floyd Rose Classic (I changed the pickups to my personnal taste : Seymour Duncans) trough my Wah-Wha, then this unit, (no more EQ) to a TC Electronic Chorus/Flanger, then my delay and volume pedal to my Fender Ultimate Reverb; but I've tested this distortion unit with a couple of other amps (Laney, Peavy, Marshall).
Keep in mind that sound perception is relative.

At first, I didn't find any use for the British channel(Marshall), but I soon realized that it delivers a different sound than the California (Mesa Boogie). The British has more mids to it and gives a crunchier tone (it barks!) if I backoff a little on the drive. At 11 o'clock I find it to be an AC/DC sound.

The Calif is darkier and more suited for heavy distortion. I put the drive around 2 o'clock to get a "Van Halen Me Wise Magic".

As for the Tweed channel, a lot of people wrote that it is too thin but I don't think so. With the drive at 12 o'clock I find it to be perfect for blues rhytm. But I would suggest a tubescreamer to nail the Steevie Ray sound.

I don't need a compressor unit with this thing, has enough sustain goin' on. I also let go of my EQ pedal, the EQ on this one is way enough for me.

Again, those comments are based on my tastes.

Very solid. Don't need to say anything more. I don't think this unit can shit in my hands.
And to make sure, I never plug an AC adapter, this unit is DC powered.
No need for a backup here boys...

Never dealt with them, can't tell you.

Need I say more???!!!?? For the price I paid, man!!!
It worths every penny of the full price.
Of course I would buy another one if it was stolen (cause I'll never loose it for sure!!!)

Very easy to use. Three footswitchable channels and bypass. One: Tweed channel (designed to emulate Fender); two: California (designed to emulate Mesa Boogie); three: British (designed to emulate Marshall). You can turn any or all the channels off. If at least one channel is off, the footswitch goes from to the channels that are on to bypass. If all channels are off, the choices are speaker simulation and bypass. How can you go wrong?

I have two guitars. A super strat type Yamaha Pacifica equipped with two humbuckers and a single coil in the middle and a custom-made semi-hollowbody guitar with two humbuckers. I run through the Tri-O.D. through a Boss chorus pedal straight into the amp. I use whatever amp the club provides.

The Tri-O.D. has never failed to give me a great sound. I play Top 40 music for a living and distortion-wise, this baby nails it all. One minute I'll be playing Carlos Santana, the next I'll be playing EVH. Lauryn Hill one minute, Smashmouth the next. Slash to Eric Johnson. Mariah Carey to...oh, you get the idea. The Tri-O.D. never lets me down.

For my personal enjoyment, I play straight-ahead jazz and jazz fusion. The Tri-OD's got Holdsworth, Henderson, and Eric Johnson tone pegged! And it never mushes out no matter how fast I play (a problem I once head with the Boss HM-2).

One thing I hate about this unit, though --- the Fender channel sucks! Way too tinny and trebly. It has a really weird high-midrange, treble resonant peak on the first string's fifteenth fret. I bought this unit in part to get a consistent clean sound no mater what amp I run through, but soon found that this baby's tweed channel clean tone is pretty much unusable for me. (This channel's pretty good for slightly dirty bluesy soloing. SRV's tone can be approximated here.) Now I just keep that channel turned off all the time.

The California and British channels are simply killer, though. I doubt I'll ever need any other distortion/overdrive generator. I'm way too happy with this one. All the distortion I'll ever need.

This baby's built like a tank. Solid die-cast metal box with a single metal footswitch. I use it without back-up every night.

Never dealt with them.

For a living, I play Top 40, R&B and dance music. For my soul, I play jazz and jazz fusion. If I need a distorted tone, no matter what kind (high gain, low, gain, medium gain, sustainy, screaming, crunchy, thrash-y, metal-ly, bluesy, just a bit of hair ... anything!!! --- and this baby's there for me.

I wish it had a nice, fat, warm round clean tone, though. The Tweed channel is all really trebly highs and boomy lows. Very sucked mids. Sounds slightly compressed, too. If only this unit had a great clean tone, it'd be perfect.

Very easy to use, just turn the knobs until you get the tones you're looking for. But adjusting the knobs to work between each channel will take some tweaking because the Treble and Bass controls are shared between all three channels. Each channel has a Level and Gain control. Adjust those to even each channel (or relative to what they should be to each other) then use the Volume control to adjust the pedal to your other equipment. The single stomp botton takes a little getting used to but not hard to use at all.

I use various guitars (with both HBs and SCs) going into a Fender HRDeville. I pan the sound (going into both inputs of the amp) between this pedal and a Fulldrive Fulldrive II.

It does have some noise when gain is high but not a noisy as other pedals I've used. Each channel sounds like what they're suppose to... the Fender has a good overdrive, duck sound... the Boogie has a great bottom heavy crunch... and the Marshall puts out lots of mids and gain. But I find that the Boogie and Marshall are good for rhythm but not so good for solos. The Fender is the other way around, good for bluesy soloing but not so great for rhythm.

It even sounds good panning. I've tried some Boss distortion pedals and not only does this unit beat them all out (thicker, deeper sounds) but none of the Boss units sounded right when panning.

I haven't had any problems with it. It seems to be built very well. It seems very dependable.

I haven't had to use their customer support yet.

It's a good pedal and if you need a variety of sounds without paying a lot, this is a good unit to have. I think the sound fairly similar to what they're suppose to. But more importantly, they're usable. The one dumb thing about the unit is no bypass (unless you turn a channel off and that channel becomes your bypass) - I set it up to use two channels and bypass. It doesn't take up too much space on the floor, it's designed well in this respect (able to fit all the knobs and button in a small unit). I use it with a battery and it seems to last a long time.

This pedal is EXTREMELY easy to use!

I use mine in my SKB pedalboard with a BOSS Acoustic Simulator, ZOOM Volume pedal, ProCo Vintage Rat, Snarling Dogs Whine-O Wah and ZOOM 1010 (for "delay" effects only). The Tri-OD is my principal distortion effect; the Rat is used only for a little "extra" gain (not volume boost). I run though a Marshall JCM800 typically with one of my Hamers (all have at least a bridge humbucker).
The Tri-OD seems to be relatively quiet.
I run my Marshall clean but, hot (if that makes sense). Although the TWEED channel is my first choice for a clean sound, I bypass the Tri-OD and use the Marshall by itself as my clean tone. Instead, I turn up the gain on TWEED and use it for that "inbetween" distorted sound.
As to the "full fledged distotion", first of all, let me say I think there is a tendancy for there to be basically two camps as far as "crunchy" amps go: Marshall and Boogie. Obviously, I stand in the Marshall camp. I like the CALIF channel on the Tri-OD but I find it redundant if using the BRITISH channel. Therefore, I turn it off and use it as a bypass.
As to the BRITISH channel, it is quite capable of the "over-the-top" hot-wired EVH sound. However, I'm playing material that calls for that type of sound all the time. Therefore, I run the BRITISH channel hot (say like a Joe Perry) but push it "over-the-top" with the Rat only if need be. Accordingly, with this application I end up with 6 rather than 3 levels of distortion.
That said, all 3 of the Tri-OD channels are VERY good sounding. I just happen to choose to use only 2.

Very reliable so far. No complaints!

I've not had need for service, but I have communicated with the Tech 21 about some other topics. I found them very pleasant, jovial folks!! I appreciated their helpfulness and enjoyed their humor.

I use my Tri-OD playing a ridiculously WIDE range of cover material from Classic Rock to Blues to Alternative to God knows what's next. (our web site at http://home.twcny.rr.com/olivertwist/ tells all about what I play). I've been playing over 20 years and a good portion of that in performance situations. Accordingly, I DO use the Tri-OD live and highly recommend it for that application and would definitely purchase it again if need be. I've tried almost every stompbox out there and I feel it is the best product of its kind currently on the market including the other Tech 21 products. I may, however, loose the Rat and buy a Tech 21 Comptortion!
My only criticisim is I would prefer the CALIF gain control to have a little wider range. If it did, I would probably use it...but I DO NOT find this a big issue. I am VERY happy with the sounds I am afforded.

it's very easy to figure out how to use it...even with 3 kinds of drive sound....it has volume, bass treble knobs to control each kind of drive....

it has 3 kinds of drive....tweed for fender type....california for mesa/boogie type....and british for marshall type.....mostly I use tweed and british....suit my playing better....but california is good also....suitable for metal sound....you should add eq pedal for better performance...cause the output is rather weak...but it's not a big deal - really....!!....I've heard that everyone said about MT-2 has the best dist sound.....you should check this baby out....!!! TRI-O.D. is far better for me....!!!

it's made of metal....really tough....!! just like any other pedal...only need 9 volt battery....!!

never deal with it...!!

I mostly play blues and rock...that's why I only use tweed and british style....and it's perfect...!!! only thing that annoying me is...there's a slightly delay when you change the drive type....you'll find it when you notice carefully about it....that's why I give it 9.....but....still the best drive pedal I've eve used...!!! I thnik you should check another Tech 21 (Sans Amp) product...I believe they're great too....!!

This pedal is fairly easy to use, but has the following idiosycracies: 1) The pedal has a total of 5 modes: three amp emulators (Fender, Boogie, Marshall), a speaker emulator, and bypass. A single stomp switch cycles the box through two or three of these modes, depending on how many of the amp emulators you have on. The speaker emulator is unavailable if any of the three amp emulators is on. If all three emulators are on, there is no bypass. Depending on how you want to use the box, this can be either a benefit or a disadvantage.
2) The two tone controls affect all three amp emulators. Because the three channels are voiced fairly differently, this means that you have to set the tone controls for a happy medium and use your pickup selector and guitar tone pots to get a decent sound when switching from one emulator to another. Overall ratio of bass to treble is relatively close for the Fender and Marshall channels, but the Boogie channel has substantially less high end. Therefore, if you dial in a cool tone using your bridge pickup through the Marshall channel, the Boogie channel is not usable. I've settled on having all three amp emulators on: the Fender channel for clean; the Marshall channel for crunch; and the Boogie for lead. This requires setting the Tri-OD's tone pots fairly trebly, using the neck pickup for the Marshall channel, the bridge pickup for the Boogie channel, and both neck and bridge for the Fender channel. Some fooling with the tone pots is also required when switching from one emulator to another.
3) Because you only get one stomp switch, you have to be prepared to do a double stomp when going from Fender to Marshall, Boogie to Fender, or Marshall to Boogie. Turning one of the channels off doesn't reduce the number of stomps needed, because it inserts a bypass mode into the cycle. Personally, I don't find this that bothersome, but it does take some getting used to. Fortunately, the box has LED indicators to show which emulator is on at a given time.

First, let me say that this rating is relative to the real thing: I have a vintage Boogie Mk I and a Vibroverb clone. I do not own a Marshall, but I am fairly familiar with the sound some of the best of them: the JTM 45, Plexi, and small box JMP 50. In a way, it's unfair to compare a $150 stomp box to these amps, but giving this as a point of reference, here goes:
I purchased this box because I started playing with a classic rock group that plays exclusively through its PA. The idea is to dial in everyone's (yes, electro-drummer included) sound beforehand, then adjust the overall volume up or down depending on the size of the venue and how drunk the crowd is. Essentially, I was forced to find a way to go direct into the PA.
I've tried the box with a LP with humbuckers and a Strat with 3 single coil passives. It did not take long to figure out that this box was designed around humbuckers. The Boogie and Marshall emulators are, IMHO, unusable with single coil pickups. This manual says that these two channels sound better with humbuckers, and that is an understatment. Surprisingly, I struggled to get a decent sound out of the Fender emulator with my Strat, too. I finally managed to do so, but only by following the box with some serious EQ. Even then, the only usable sound was the "in-between" two pickup out-of-phase setting on the pick up selector. I had to run a TS-808 in front of the box to get a distorted tone. Fairly major suckage.
In contrast, the box comes alive with humbuckers. All three emulators sound *much* better with humbuckers, even the Fender channel. No weird upper mid-range harshness, so no EQ necessary. Does it sound as good as the real thing? No, but it comes close enough to where the audience isn't going to notice, and for $150, impressive.

I have had no problems with the box yet, but then I've only had it a couple of weeks. It does appear to be a solid little sucker, though, and the pots and switch have a quality feel to them.

I would recommend this box to those willing to play humbuckers exclusively and are barred from using a pro quality amp. I've not tried recording with the Tri-OD yet, but I think it would be pretty good for that, particularly given the hassle it is to grab a real amp's magic on tape or disk.
And there is another reason I'd recommend this box: It's small and can serve as a back-up "amp" in a pinch. I've not yet had an amp go down on me at a gig, but it's been known to happen. Now, if it did I'd just whip out my Tri-OD, plug into the board, and keep on rockin'. Cool.

This pedal is really easy to use and the sound is very realistic. I have been using it plugged directly into a PA system with an Ernie Ball volume pedal to control my sound and it works great. I have had a couple of people come up to me and ask what I am using cause they really like my sound so it must be working good. The manual is a bit on the light side, but you don't need much to use this unit. You could almost use it without a manual. The only minor complaint I would have is that if you are using more than one sound (for example Fender and Marshall) you have to toggle through three positions to change from one to another. (Fender, marshall, bypass, Fender, marshall..etc)

The sound quality is great. I can go from Fender clean to Van Halen Marshall dirty with the push of the button or even to a bypass mode. My only complaint is that the sound could clean up just a bit more when you turn the gain knob to zero.

I have had NO problems and battery life is excellent and I do use it without backup.

Yes, I would buy this unit again or other units from the same company. I have really been impressed with this unit.

The pedal sounds great immediately. The switching is easy because I only use one channel into a clean amp head. So, it's Drive and Clean Bypass.

Very quiet unit. Almost no need for noise reduction units here. The EQ is active and is very effective for sonic sculpting, especially when used in conjunction with an amp's tone controls. The differences between the EQ power on different channels is severe, though. Having the EQ sounding great on "British" will sound like total fuzzmud on California, to me. The Tweed has a tnedency to be a bit bassy, too. The ripping midrange and treble of the British setting have to be heard to be believed. Total SLAYER thrash tone.

Never a problem for over a year. Absolutely refuses to screw up on me. Battery lasts a LOOOONG time with great sound. I'd estimate close to thirty hours before the LED's start to dim and the sound craps out. A lithium battery has lasted me six months so far with near everyday use. Though I do use the power supply for recording and such.

Never needed it.

I would buy this pedal again, yes. The Sans Amp 2 would probably work just as well for me, though, considering I set it one way then bypass it for a clean signal. I've never used the speaker simulator with another pedal but direct to a recording console it sounds great with just a touch of reverb. The sound is very tube-like, far better overall than a Tube Driver with an actual 12AX7 in it, as a matter of fact. Just one channel is enough to get a great variety of tones. Lack of a mid control is not a problem, since the EQ is active and boosts the highs and lows while scooping the mids and vice versa. I use it with a Randall 150-watt head and I like it better than a friend's Crate Blue Voodoo and the Marshall JCM-900's I've heard. Plus I don't need to crank the volume to get great feedback and sustain. I think any fan of Sabbath, Metallica, Pantera, Slayer, Judas Preist, or even death metal bands would be extremely happy with this unit. It has enough gain to pull the guitar right out of your hands with squealing feedback. The coolest thing is that it doesn't compress the signal too much until you get into the furthest limits of the gain settings. That is, you can play softly with your guitar turned down and get a clean sound. Great, great pedal.

Very straightforward.

The sound quality of all three channels is great. Nice warm fat distortion abound.

Although this is a great sounding pedal, there is one MAJOR problem with the design. There is only 1 switch for 4 modes. Therefore, you have to "surf" through the channels sequentially just like on a TV. This is a real problem when you are on channel 3 and want to get back to channel 2. You have to tap the switch 3 times! This could be a disaster onstage, especially if you've had a beer or two. Although you can turn off channel 1, there is a bypass mode that cannot be turned off, so youl would still have to tap the switch a minimum of 2 times to go from channel 3 to channel 2. They should have a dedicated switch for each channel so you can press the switch of the channel you want to go to instead of surfing sequentially through the channels. I wonder which bonehead thought of this inflexible switching scheme. This brings the rating down considerably. It's great for a direct recording tool because of the great sound quality, but as a stage pedal, it fall short of its intended target.