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!