Tech 21 XXL

It takes a while to make sense of the "Warp" knob. I don't hear so much of an effect on the sustain tone but it has a big effect on attack, from a quick gun-shot to a many-level death star explosion. (Yeah, I read guitar mags.)

I use it on everything, in a home studio. It is awesome on drum sounds; it turns kicks and snares into industrial-type explosions. On guitar it's a good hard rock fuzz with lots of character (Fripp, Mould, whatever.) It has tons of high harmonics, more the "bite" frequencies than the "rubbing styrofoam" frequencies. (Which I like, don't get me wrong-love that MXR Distortion+.) Like someone wrote already, it's too raw if you go direct into a mixer. It's not a static fuzz tone, there's a lot of life and motion in it.

I've got two; both going strong after 5-6 years.

Some of the early models had some leakage in bypass. I took it to their office in NYC and they swapped out the board while I waited.

It's got its own sound, and a good one.

Fairly simple setup of 4 knobs: Volume, Tone, Gain, and "Warp". The warp took me a little while to figure out, but it is one of the best tone shapers I've ever used... It alters harmonic tone within the overdrive and totally bends your sound. Other than that everything was standard.

I take everything simple... 1979 Gretsch BST-1000 into an Acoustic (that's the name... Not a big name, but it sounded huge and a lot better than most of the other halfstacks I tried) 4x12 halfstack with another 2x18 peavey Black Widow cabinet. It's pretty quiet unless you have your pickups right next to the box... Never had a problem with it on stage or in the studio. The effects aren't as crunchy as I'd like for rhythm parts, so I use a DOD Tech 8 behind it. When it comes to lead or soloing, however, or when I wanna tear up some blues, I kick my multi and just use this. It's got great overdrive tone with amazing clarity. If it weren't for this pedal my set list would have no lead guitar.

It seems pretty reliable, although I have babied this thing since I got it just to be safe. I've never had a problem with it, it's always kept its tone, and made my first studio tracks sound perfect. If I had to I'd gig it without a backup, but to be safe that's a risk I'll never take... You can never be too prepared... it's the nature of electric instruments.

Never had a problem I needed to deal with... However I've heard they give good advice on tone and setup, even aside of the problem.

I actually play punk, ska, rock, metal, and whatever hybrid comes to mind when I'm writing. It doesn't fit any in the rhythm area, but for lead it's a miracle worker. In the past I've had a DOD Grunge, which sounded so trendy I had to sell it, A DOD Tech 8, which most people give me looks about, but I love, and an Ibanez Tube Screamer TS/9. This is totally comparable to the TS, although the tones are like night and day. All it lacks is the reputation of Ibanez. This does, however, have the Warp control, which I think is the raddest thing in the history of distortion. It alters the odd and even harmonic tones to perfectly shape your tone to however you can dream it. This is a killer pedal. If you play lead, blues, or just want an overdrive, look into this. It's a great investment.

it's kind of complicated. the knob's setting is different. you might want to look up a manual before you try. after that, it is still little bit complex to use at a gig. the level control makes big difference on actual volume. so, i use my toe to turn it around since i am lacking with volume pedal. other than that is alright.

my setup is cort classic (a les paul copy) to XXL to boss ch-1 chorus to pearl analog delay to the amp Peavey envoy 110 or marshall vs65r.
i also use dunlop wah gcb-95 and psk metalzone which is exact same replica of the one from boss. The XXL alone sound way too brutal and raw. it does have a very decent distorted sound between fuzz and ordinary high-gain overdrive but too much of noise and feedback. But, when i tried it with a chorus, it worked out fine. XXL offers a serious dynamic and beautiful tone and it's perfect for backing and lead. well, i think it's not for any metal, though.

very depndable. it's got a hugh microchip inside and 4 knobs.. well, very simple structure. and, it's also very consistant.

i haven't met with them yet.

very exciting od box i ever tried. it's got dynamic and decent and distinctive tone and works with other analog effects well. it seems working best with a hmbucker. I play blues and classic rock mostly and little bit of jazzy chord work sometimes. when i got it, i acutally regreted and told myself that i should have gotten that TS-9 or a rat or something like original od-1. but, more i spend time with this, the more I like. try it before you buy it, please. and after you got it, spend a lot of time with it before you decide anything like selling it back. well, since they are not making this any more, its resale value tends to remain high..

Takes a man without a nervous hand - and also with eyes to read the manual !

Gibson LP DC-Copy. It's NOT noisy if you know to play straight and "clean". I'd say it's lively-yes it is ! Not every position of the warp effect can be used but it has indeed a variety of sounds it can offer. I'm using a Marshall VS 65 in the clean channel with the tone-button pushed down. It needs a bit of mids a lot of bass and less highs. I didn't get the Metallica sound - Sorry ! But I got something that might be better - for me. I'm satisfied with the sick fuzz and satisfied with the hard'n'heavy sound- it forces me to play better !

If I had a Mesa/Boogie Rect. or a Marshall TSL 100 I wouldn't need this box. I prefer to keep the equipment easy.

Not dealt with them yet.

Don't laugh now: I'm playing Black Metal and everything from Punk over Hardcore to Grunge (what's the main difference anyway?)

Took me a while to tweek it to my tastes, but nothing difficult, just a little trial and error.
Manual is decent with some good baseline settings to simulate various type of amp overdrives.

I have two amps:

A Carvin 50 watt tube (3 12 AX7's and 2 EL 34's for power) combo pushing a 5150 4x12 cab. I use this for gigging with friends and sometimes home practice. My other is a small 15 watt solid state Marshall, that I use only for home practice. I use Monster cable Jazz cables everywhere.

My main guitar is an Ibanez RG which I rewired with a Dimarzio tone zone and an air Norton.

I have found the XXL to be very noisy with the vol level maxed, but this thing has a TON-TON-TON of vol boost within this one control and so I never turn it up close to that high. I set the vol boost level at about 30-40%, and it is actually on par with the quietest OD stompers I have tried.

I can get a lot of full dist tones out of it... from metallica to ACDC, this is its strength. Palm muting makes sone serious chunk. This pedal seems to work best with a warm sounding guitar and a bass heavy amp/speaker cab. At full gain settings I have to turn my Carvin presence control down to about 20%. The carvin amp works well with the XXL. Its presence control is centered at around 5000-8000 Hz, and is at just the right point to dim some of the solid state fuzziness in the XXL.

Some of the mild low gain ROCK tones like Rush, Hendrix, QUEEN sound too fuzzy. Even with a bass heavy amp/cab/guitar, I still CANT get a classic rock sound I like. just too fuzzy above 4-5 Khz at lower gain settings. i guess have been spoiled by a good tube amp.

Lead guitar lines and solos come alive through this box. Unlike just about all other solid state OD stomp boxes, this one really projects pick attack dynamics. Very much like a good tube amp. This is the first solid state device I have found that does this. It has that great in-your-face musical quality I like about my carvin tube amp. This is its biggest strength and what sets it apart from other distortion stomp boxes.

Built like a tank... reminds me of my MXR pedals. Solid metal case, with a nice polished stainless faceplate.

it's pretty conservative on battery power too. But I still use an AC power supply anyways.

Not needed yet.

I've been playing metal and classic rock since 87'. I also play blues and some clean Jazz at times just for kicks.
For metal and hard rock the XXL is the best solid state OD I have played.

For classic rock I'd pick a real set of tubes over it any day. .. its just too fuzzy for my tastes. I haven't tried it as a level boost for my tube pre-amp yet... like in a TS-9 role.

I love its full OD chunk, palm muting is massive. With the presence control on my carvin amp turned down, the full gain setting on the XXL comes very close to a tube OD. This is its strength. Plus I love the way it projects pick attack. I have found it to be very quiet and transparent in my rig, even at full gain settings. minimal hiss and buzz.

I hate its solid state fuzziness at the lower gain settings. It's nowhere near a TS-9 / 5, or a good tube circuit.

The only other thing I compared it to is a Boss MT-2. I chose the XXL over the MT2 because the Mt-2 just floods everything in a jumble of overdriven distortion mess. The XXL is very musical in how it projects pick attack and musical detail... kind of a less-is-more atttitude. Amazing pick attack dynamics for a solid state box!!!

It's bottom end chunk is amazing, and will rival that of the best tube pre-amps, with the XXL tone control turned down just a little below 12:00. but you NEED A BOTTOM HEAVY CAB AND AMP TO ACCESS THIS FEATURE OF THE XXL. (seriously can't emphacize this enough)

The only thing I wish it had would be a presence control and a treble control... maybe one at 3Khz and the other at 5-6 Khz. This would help to tone down the solid state fuzziness at lower gain settings. A 4 band EQ would be nice but would probably put it up in the $150 range.

Aside from the strangely functioning Tone knob, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to get a nice creamy overdrive out of this box. Definitely read the manual.

I use a Gibson DC LP and an old Strat through a 1983 Marshall JCM 800 head and cabinet. I have a Boss DS-1 and a MT-2 and a ton of other effects like a Q-Tron and a Vox wah among others. The only thing I use my metal zone pedal for is chunky riffs and rhythms. I use my DS-1 for leads, but I'm thinking about using the XXL primarily for leads and ringing distorted chords. You get a really smooth sustaining overdrive that sounds awesome at different picking dynamics. Loose strumming sounds different from palm muted riffs. The only crappy thing is that this pedal amplifies guitar noise when it's turned on. I found that I got crackling noises out of an oxygen free cable that's brand new. The Warp control is just a compression type unit. It's not a wonder knob and I wouldn't buy this pedal based on the hype about this effect. It's a great feature, but it shouldn't be your reason for buying it. I strongly suggest trying it before you buy it, as this pedal isn't for everyone.

I haven't had it long enough to depend on it, but I think I could get through a show with just this pedal (I used to use only a DS-1).

I play rock that calls for a dose of heavy riffing as well as smooth jazz/funky clean sounds. My styles go from Tool to Hendrix to the Grateful Dead to Bela Fleck. This pedal should be test driven to say the least. I totally agree that each one of these pedals sound different from the rest, so try before you buy. Overall I love the creamy sustain and overdrive, but you aren't going to get James Hetfield's sound out of this. It's versatile in the alterna-rock category and the Warp feature is a neat little addition to get some weird buzzing/flame thrower type sustaining sounds. If you want a Limp Bizkit or Korn type of sound, buy one of those dime a dozen shit boxes and get a seven string guitar. If you appreciate a pedal that let's you slam fuzzy open chords and still hear each note, then give this a try. Don't go by the web site, try this *before* you get it, pleeeeeease.

Very easy - Hit the clean channel of your amp (tubeamp, for god's sake!), set the tone, set the desired gain, then alter the sound by using the the last knob. Five minutes.

I only use this for leads: Valley Arts Custom Pro (EMG-85 pick-ups), TC Electronics SCF+, XXL, Boss DD-5, Marshall TSL-100. I've turned the knobs on the XXL to approx. 2.30 pm (except the level). The SCF adds a little depth and the DD-5 provides a subtle delay (don't ever let the delay control your solos, unless you want to hide your lack of skill). I've I always wanted the hi-gain distortion sound (I hate the overdrive-sound - it's lame) and the solo-sounds I like is of artists such as Lukather, Sambora, and David Gilmour (the solo on Comfortably Numb is the best ever). The connection to Lukather should be obvious in my choice of gear. This pedal offers me the Distortion I've always sought but never really found before now, so it's a ten for the sound quality.

I've recently bought so I can't really say anthing in this department

Never used it.

It's a one-use-only pedal. Why the hell don't they produce a great sounding distortionpedal with multiple-choice level settings and/or distortion settings? This is very annoying. Anyway - there's only one problem to this pedal: I think the knobs are a little to easy to turn, which means that you have to check the settings before playing, because anything can put them out of place. But when that is said, then this pedal offers the perfect distortion and that is its only intended purpose.

It took a while but I finally got a good sound out of it and it is my main distortion pedal know. The warp is great but it takes a while to get a sound you want out of it.

The sound of this is awesome. I use a Godin SD guitar with an effects loop in this order: Crybaby535Q, DS-1, XXL, HM-3, Ibanez chorus/flanger from the 80's, and a reissue Boss PH-1; all into a Crate amp. It sounds like heaven. The XXL is my favorite I always end up using it. I can get many sounds I like. The distortion is very smooth I can get a smooth sound out of it like John Fruciante and Hillel Slovak from the Chili Peppers but it has a smoother tone ,as I mentioned before, than the DS-1 which they use.

Bought it used and have had it for a year still works great.NO COMPLAINTS!!!!

Don't know.

I play funk and grunge a kind of alt-mix if you will and it works perfectly with my Crybaby has that killer tone. If I lost it I would probably kill myself because I probably couldn't find one because I heard it was discontinued. I compared it with my DS-1 and I like it better I still use my DS-1 when I want a harsh sharp tone but the XXL has the best sound, tone, and is as smooth as hell.

No ratings in this review as I'm still looking to test all the many depths of this box. If you look on Tech21's website (www.tech21nyc.com) you'll notice that this pedal is NOT IN PRODUCTION! anymore. I got mine about 4 months ago, but started really using it about a month ago.

I know, most people don't read manuals. But with Tech21 products you really are better off reading them. It doesn't mean their products are not "easy to use" it just means they're not like everything else - see below.

I love some of the smooth lead sounds I can get from it with my Trademark 60 (Tech21 combo amp) and my modified Yamaha Pacifica and Epi Les Paul Custom. I can get really "singing" Brian May type of sound, with lotsa harmonics and "good", controllable feedback. I can get better rhytm/crunch sounds with my SansAmpGT2, XXL is more of a solo pedal to me.

Some people said it was too bright, I thought so too, when I used it initially, that's why I haven't used it for a while. If you read the manual, you'll notice that TONE control is flat on max. When you roll it back to 12 o'clock it boosts lows and past that it cuts highs, or the other way around, look in the manual. That means, that it's a completely different type of control, more interactive, so experiment some more. I like it now, usually setting the Tone on 12 o'clock. It can be somewhat noisy, when you crank the drive, but isn't that the case with most fuzzes? It's probably just amplified guitar noise, anyway. It's still very useable with Drive at 3 o'clock or less.

It was used. Solid metal. Still works. Never had a problem with any of Tech21 products.

I've dealt with Tech21 on many occasions about hookups, accessories, settings etc., as I own quite a few of their products - Trademark 60 amp, SansAmp GT2(nice!), SansAmp Bass Driver DI(try it to record upright with piezo) and have SansAmp Acoustic DI on order - and they are very friendly, helpful and knowlegdeable, they respond to e-mails.

This is yet to follow, I will definitely review this pedal (with ratings) when I explore it some more. I already see, that it can definitely help one make music. Being discontinued (that's what NOT IN PRODUCTION! means, right?) it will probably grow in price, just like Tech21 said - "future vintage". But maybe not, cuz there aren't so many great artists around these days to make this vintage and also digital takes over everything. Time will tell.

Very easy to use, it's a distortion box. Plug it in and play. Has a LEVEL knob, TONE, knob, WARP knob and Distortion knob. The "WARP" knob is hard to explain, so just try one out. It's cool!

The sound is GREAT! This pedal has very smooth and rich distorion. When I first got the XXL, I had to mess around to find my "sound." But after a little tweaking of the knobs, I found it. I find that the "WARP" knob really does allow one to have a versitile tone. It can go from a warped fuzz to a just old distortion, BUT BETTER!
My current setup is: Ibanez RG/Peavey Predator, Cry baby 535Q, DS-1, Tech 21 XXL, Rocktron Rampage, Dano Fab Tone, Pro Co Turbo RAT,Boss BF-2, Dano Cool Cat, Ibanez DE-7, BOSS TU-2. Sounds awesome!

The pedal is very sturdy and I would gig without a back-up. The battery life is good and I find that when the battery is about half used, it sounds the best. Weird.

Haven't talked with 'em.

Overall, this pedal is great! Awesome! Just is a good pedal to have. I play Creed, Simon Says, Godsmack, Limp Bizkit, and my own stuff(which is like Creed, Simon Says and GoDsmack rolled together). If you are looking for a distortion pedal, definitely check out this one. You won't be wastin' your time!