Tech 21 XXL

Super easy for me. Put everything at 12 o'clock except the level knob, that should be at about 11 o'clock. The manual is very good and gives you many different options to start with.

This pedal kicks so much a$$! It sounds great on every bass rig i've ever played thru (using my 1978 Fender Jazz). The old bass player in my band took this pedal from me to use because it was the ONLY distortion pedal he ever played thru that retained low end and still cut the overall mix with smooth crunch.
On guitars it is equally powerful. Although it never sounded good to me on my 1973 Fender Dual Showman. Right now i'm using it exclusively on my Matchless Spitfire clone that i built. Just perfect tone. Sounds like a Vox AC15 but with so much more gusto. That's the word for this pedal: Gusto. I have also used it on a 1958 Gibson GA-30 amp. The tone of the GA-30 is already pretty dark. With the XXL it just got bigger and darker than any amp i've ever heard. A great contrast for my amp arsenal.
Guitars used: 1998 Gison SG standard. 1989 Fender Strat. A Strat I built with Hot Rails and Fender Lace pickups. 1978 Fender Jazz bass.

Built like a small tank.

I have two of these pedals and one had a circuit problem. I sent it to them and they repaired it for $40. But it was worth it. And they guaranteed the work.

The pedal sounds great with rock, punk and metal. The overdrive can get pretty thick which i don't really prefer. Too much of the WARP knob sounds like total amplifier sag. This is a good thing when used properly.
I've used this on bass, guitar and even vocals for recording and the pedal has always done what i expect. Great tone, great tube amp emulation.

If you read the manual, you're find a good examples of how to get good sounds to begin, and specially, the use of the warp. Without the manual, would be difficult. Like all products with special features (warp), takes some time to get used with it.

I'm using basically a Gibson LP Special (SD Antiquity's humbuckers) and a 62'RI Strat, with a 68'Fender SR Blackfaced. Is very quiet on lower drive, not noisy at all, but some noise start when you pass twelve o'clock. But you must consider that this pedal offers a lot of overdrive, even if it was on zero drive, you will get an AC/DC "Back in Black" sound.
To get a Marshallesque tone, I need an equalizer to mid the boost, because my SR has lots of low end and highs, but not mid enough to kick ass like marshalls. But if you're looking for Mesa Boggie sounds, this pedal had it. The Fuzz Face is good, but I don't use it so much. The warp control is good to emulate a Class A tube overdrive (think on Vox AC30), a Marshall/Mesa Boogie (class A/B amps) or a sag sound a la Neil Young.
I had an exaustively comparison between the XXL and a Bottle Rocket Mesa Boogie of a friend of mine (US$200 tube overdrive, twice the price of the XXL), and the sound was almost identical in some settings. The Mesa was a little bit warm, because of the dynamic range of tubes, instead of solid state in XXL, but the XXL was more clean when I turn down the volume of the guitar. With a help of an GE7 (Boss equalizer), I can get all the tones I want, included the "woman tone" (intro of "Sweet child o'mine"), just have to boost the mids, bass on the middle point, and turn down a little the highs. Without the equalizer, I can't get that tone because of the logarithmic (I think) behaviour of the tone control, but with the equalizer, it's no problem. When I use the strat, I turn the warp control in minimum, and with the LP, in the double arrows. Bottom line, this pedal has TONE and TUBE FEEL like no other in that price range. I always forget that there's no tube inside of the unit.

It's very strong and well built, but the DC position isn't well located, and I need to unscrew the bottom faceplate to replace the battery, so if I'm on stage, it's difficult. If you use a DC, you don't need a backup.

I know the people on Tech21 are great.

I play classical music, jazz, bossa nova, classic and hard rock, pop. For what I play, and with my gear, is a perfect match. I've playing for about 15 years, and I have a 68 Fender Super Reverb (blackfaced), a Gibson GA10 (50's tweed class A tube amp), a 57'Gibson ES125 with 2 P90's and a Bigsby talpiece (my favorite guitar), a USA 62'RI Fender Stratocaster, a Gibson Les Paul Special with Seymour Duncan humbucker Antiquity's, a Ibanez SA100 (ES335 copy), a Jim Dunlop Cry Baby, a SD1 Super Overdrive Boss, a boss CE5 (Chorus Ensemble), a GE7 equalizer, and a VP500 Yamaha volume pedal. I would buy it again if it were stolen, or would try the TRI AC, the GT2 and the Double Drive. What I love on this pedal, is the dynamic and capability to traduce the intensity of my playing, the different sounds I can get using the guitar volume, and the tube feel. I've compared to a Mesa Boogie Bottle Rocket, a Vox overdrive, a lot of Boss overdrive and distorsions, and this is by far the best at this range of price. I wish it had a equalizer included, but would be on another price. This pedal changed my way of play, now I am more focused on get overdrive when I need, to accentuated the intensity of phrasing on my solos and even rhythm, using the guitar volume or playing soft to get clean, and hard to get overdrive.

This pedal is all about tube sag...like Hendrix Live. The thing is
just old style compressed tone that is on the verge of "De-Construction. The manual is good.

I first used this pedal with an ART SGX2000 pre-amp for a more
"natural sound", when I was recording my first album. The XXL adds
air around each insturment.
I am currently using it now and then in my live set-up of Bad Horsie 2
Electric Mistress and NS-2. The sound of this pedal is VERY Unique!

I have been using this box non-stop for seven years. No problems.
I trust it on any gig without backup.

I have never had a problem with this box. I have spoken to
the sales people at Tech 21 and they are nice and friendly.

I am playing in a great band. We produce the best metal and pop
music ever! This pedal is used only now and then to spice a solo.
The XXL is unique in it's tone flavor. It does have a big volume boost
even with the level at 7 or 8 o'clock. I think this box excels at lead
work and solo lines. When hitting chords it is muddy.

Level, Tone, Warp, Drive. Ste them all an 12 o'clock for a good starting point. Anyone who can't figure it out doesn't have a brain.

I use it with the best amp of all time, a '78 HIWAT DR 103 (and sometimes a '69 Marshall SLP 100 or a '65 VOX AC 30 TB). Guitars are a '78 Gibson LP Custom, Gibson SG with P-90, Rickenbacker 350, '67 Gretsch Double Anniversary and some Fender (Strat, Tele and Jaguar).

I use a lot of stompers (MJM London Fuzz, Klon centaur, Cornish Rangemaster, Fuldrive 2 and lots of others).

To put it short, the XXL (stupid name) is pure magic.

This highly underrated pedal has got to be one of the best distortion devices of all time. Don't be fooled by some of the reviewers here, who "tested" it with small transistor combos or the likes.

This is a high gain stomper, I use it with the Drive at zero! It has a lush, pristine high end sparkle all of it's own. Doesn't colour your basic tone (no mid hump) and let's the beauty of a good guitar and a good tube amp shine throuhg. It is very touch responsive and cleans up beautiful if you back down your guitar volume.

Another big plus is, that it doesn't cut the bass. A lot of pedals sound thin and buzzy, but not this one. It leaves all the low end intact.

Contrary to what has been said here, the warp effect isn't subte at all! It is a very pronounced effect, anyone who can't here it is either stone deaf or has equipment like shit.

The warp knob is in the neutral podition at 12 o'clock. Turn it up and it compressesand sags like an old hard driven Fender combo with a tube rectifier. Sounds a lot like Neil Young ("Cortez the Killer"). A great setting for solos, but can be a bit too much for rhythm.

Turn the warp counter clockwise and it compresses more gently, not unlike a Vox.

I leave the warp in the neutral position at 12 o'clock, because I like my guitar sound big and chunky.

The XXL has a buffered bypass, I couldn't hear any unwanted coloration when the padal is off.

The switch is a bit weak and makes a popping sound sometimes, but nothing to worry about. Rock'n Roll.

I have it since 10 years or so, never had any problem. It is of solid construction (PCB) - not like a BOSS, but ok.

Never dealt with them.

I play since 30 years. I've had so much equipment that I hardly remember all the stuff. This one is a keeper. If you're looking for a high gain hard rock sound (not the scooped metal type), look no further. If you find one used, by it - you won't regrett it.

Pretty simple, just takes time to match it up properly with your gear

I have a Fender Prosonic which already has a wicked drive channel (very Mesa like)so I use this to drive my clean channel for a tottally saturated singing, saggin compressed Neil Young sound and it nails it in spades. The warp control is the key to this sound. I find once you have a great basic sound you can push it over the top with the warp.But it does take a fair amount of fiddlin to get there.I love it for that sound and don't really use it for anything else and certainly not all the time (only when I feel urge to squeal like Neil)

1 year-no prob

don't know

Excellent for the sound mentioned above. I use different drive, dist, fuzz pedals for different sounds. One pedal doesn't do it all as far as I know. Besides its fun collecting pedals (cheaper than amps or guitars) I suggest you try it out if you can find one for under $100

How easy to use? Got a brain?

Marshall and an old Tubeworks(both tube).Its a Fuzz box= noisy(not excessive).This is the BEST fuzz box for the neck pickup that I have ever tried.Hendrix playing the blues is the tone you get out of this thing.

I hope so.I am plannig to keep it for eternity.Backup?I any't no Carlos santana.If this goes,I will have to wip out my trusty Boss dS 1.

Generally speaking,costomer support on this type of product is poor and not very forthcoming.(understandbly since they are dealing with one of the most egotistical self-centered souls on the planet.Guitar players!)

It is chocking to read some of the things us peace loving musicians will do to our fellow musicians.I will find the person who stole the box,tell him that I forgive him for his moment of weakness,and plitely ask him to return it to me.When he is bent over to pick up the box,I will jam up guitar neck right up his ass,up to the 12th fret!yeah baby!

This pedal have four controls: level, tone, warp and drive. It's easy to use but you have to take time to know the warp control. Somepeople say that this feature is not appreciate, in fact at first my opinion was the same. But when you take a time with this control you know the importance of the control. Basiclly is this: in the right position you achieve a fuzz sound and in the left position you achieve a overdrive-fuzz sound(in the middle you get another overdrive-fuzz sound)

I think that is more a fuzz-overdrive than a distortion pedal. The sound is very good, warm, with a lot of harmonics and the most important: you hear your natural guitar sound. But it depends on what amplifier do you conect this pedal. I conect it to a Egnater TOL50 combo with a strat plus deluxe guitar and the sound is wonderful. To get a idea of the sound you can think on Hendrix, David Gilmour or Robben Ford sounds. But I try to conect the pedal to a Roland Cube40 amp and it sounds pretty bad. I also conect it to a sinmarc transistors amp and the sound is pretty good. The only thing bad is than you can't reduce the drive sound although you turn the drive control control left.

I play a lot of styles and have been playing for 10 years. I also have a digitech rp-12(bad distortions if you don't use the EQ) and a engl 350 preamp(good distortion but not as classic and "vintage" sound as the XXL). I have played with some distortions (that I haven't owned) like the boss MT-2, ibanez fat cat, zoom 505,zoom 404040, etc and I didn't like this distortions very much. I think the XXl is a great pedal.

This pedal is fairly easy to use. 4 Controls - Level, Tone, Warp & Drive. Pretty self explanatory.

I switch back and forth between Les Paul Junior's and Japanese Strat reissues. All fitted with Seymour Duncan Hot Rail pickups (Yes, my Junior has a Hot Rail in it as well). Sonically, all my guitars are big sounding to begin with. Add the XXL to the mix and the possibilities are endless.The trick to this pedal is using your guitars volume to control everything.

My signal chain is as follows: an original Digitech Whammy, Clyde Wah, XXL, Boss Flanger, TC Chorus, Line Modulation Pedal, Boss Chorus pedal, Boss DD5, Line 6 Delay and a Boss Noise Gate. All pedals are powered with an Voodoo Labs Pedal Power except the Wah, the TC Chorus and the Line 6 boxes.

Is the pedal noisy ? Yes and no. While engaging the pedal you'll hear a slight "clip". It will make your amp hiss a bit as well, but what loud amp does'nt hiss. This is why I have a Noise Suppressor.

This pedal will interact with amps differently. With small practice combos, the pedal is a bit overkill. This pedal definitely needs to be fed into a clean amp. Then again I'm part of that school plays clean and uses a box for my "heavy" sound. I run two Marshall JCM 800's (Model #2203) and plug into the "low" input. This allows me to have a loud clean tone - It's the Smashing Pumpkins trick that I've been doing for years. So when I kick in the XXL, you definitely know that it's on. Just an incredible rich tone, with gigantic harmonics and massive punch.

For those of you looking for that Smashing Pumpkins "Cherub Rock" tone, this pedal will nail it. And like I said before, you can vary the tone with just a roll of the volume knob. A very solid sounding Distortion box.

I've had this pedal for about 4 years now. No problems at all. One of the better built pedals out there.

This is the only pedal I take to the gig.

Never had to deal with Tech 21. If this pedal broke, I would just go out and buy another one.

I play all different types of music. Primarily, I play Alternative
music. My influences are Steve Stevens during his time w/Billy Idol, Robert Smith from the Cure, John McGeoch's work with Siouxie and the Banshees and bands such as the Church and Echo and the Bunnymen.

For what I do, this pedal allows me to do what I need to get done. When pushed, the tone is completely volatile and aggressive, but yet still musical. I needed something that would give me night and day between my settings. When I play clean, the tone is very dreamy and watery -depending on what modulation effect is currently engaged at that moment and my dirty tone is complete anarchy. Basically, my tone will say "l love you" and then turn around at moments notice and tell you to "F**k off".

I've had about every distortion box ever made. I chose this box on a whim actually. I read a review and decided to pick one up. Compared to other boxes this one had the most gain. My thoughts on other various pedals:

The Boss DS1 - Too fizzy
The Boss Heavy Metal pedal - Not applicable in a real situation
The Fulltone Fulldrive - Not enough drive
Big Muff - Big disappointment - too wooly
The Creamy Dreamer - Not musical
Tube Screamer - What's the big fuss about this pedal ?

Hands down, the XXL is my favorite distortion box. It suits me fine. I would definitely buy this pedal over and over again. It's part of my musical DNA.

It does take a little tweaking... but there are four knobs -- not rocket science, but you have to give it a chance...
Some pedals "play it safe" by limiting the variation in sound availibility - thus they are "easier to use" for the whiners in the bunch ;) This pedal does not "play it safe"... so yes, you do have to tweak to get kewl sounds... but let's face it, if you just jumble your amp's knobs and try to play, it's going to sound like crap - does that mean your amp is hard to use? I digress...

One other complaint - the LED doesn't shine very brightly, even with a new battery... BUT, the unit I bought has a battery lid (this must be a change from original, since I see someone complaining about removing screws to change batteries in a prior review)--- this is something to lose/break... I would prefer just having to remove the four screws every few weeks... oh the pain, the pain ;)

I will base things on the Peavey Envoy (transtube) SS amp (set clean with a little fake power tube overdrive) with a Les Paul and EMG 81/85. I know it'll be 10x easier to get tone out of the Mesa Triaxis/90-90 setup.

First, as I said above, this pedal does not "play it safe" by only offering limited tweakability to one particular sound (yes, even the venerable TS808 is of this variety - you can't make it sound bad generally, but it has limited uses imho)... that said, you can get some terrible, farty-blatty tinny crap sounds out of the XXL if you don't tweak... I first plugged it in, left the Warp in the "safe zone" and got a pretty bland, tinny, farty sound...

I started playing with the Tone and Warp knobs (leaving the Drive at about 3 o'clock), and got some complex, very dynamic and musical distortions --- I own tons of pedals - the better ones, in my book, can really sound terrible if you are lazy and don't dial for awhile.
It's obvious that Tech 21 discontinued this pedal because the average user did not have the patience/prowess to find the tone in this very special little box.

After about 5 minutes, with Tone at 5 o'clock, Warp around noon-one and Drive at about 3 o'clock, I was jammin away with some nice, Noisy (yes, it's noisy---- but so is a cranked Marshall, Boogie, Soldano, Rivera, etc... folks! Be real!) Complex Compressed yet dynamic sweet harmonic sustaining distortion --- (very much like a pushed tube preamp)... Another pedal I own, Fulltone DP2, has similar qualities (the Fulltone is a lot more versatile... but at a price)- The Fulltone also has some complainers -- for the same reasons - it can sound bad due to it's tweakability and ability to go over the edge in all directions...

Bottom line - I love it and will probably try to grab another while they're still not too rare - it's unique and a keeper... can get some very Vai/Satriani/et al punchy, noisy, harmonic fun out of this puppy

Hmmmm.... not built like a Fulltone, has plastic in/out jack housings... but the box is the standard "Hammond 1590B" size box... It'll last with a little care - the knobs are not offset, so you don't want to throw it in a bag with guitar/mic stands, etc... and you don't want to jump up and down on it (well, other than the switch)... it seems to use an electronic "flip/flop" switch ciruit -- that is, the switch is single throw (momentary, like on Boss/Ibanez stuff)... so it should last longer than the mechanical double throw switces that go "click" every time you stomp... (ok, I prefer the fell of the mechanical double throw switch - you can tell when you hit it)

The LED doesn't shine too brightly....

I'd never rely on one pedal with no backup... you just never know... lightning strikes...

N/A

At $41, this was a steal... I can get sounds very comparable to some of the nastier, noisy, tube-ular shred tones that I get from the Fulltone Distortion Pro... I don't know what the list was, but even $100 would be a good value for me.... From a sonic perspective, I'd hand over my TS808 (if it weren't so damn collectible)before I'd give up this pedal... TS808 tone is all over these days... the XXL is more unique, more on-the-edge (or _over_ the edge) and way way way more amp/tube like imho....

I'd buy another one... ;)

No problem if you read the manual and understand what the "Tone" and "Warp" knobs do. Otherwise you might be a bit puzzled, because the "Tone" knob works a bit strangely and the "Warp" knob is subtle unless you know what to listen for.

Guitar: cheap Korean Strat copy with humbucker retrofitted at bridge.

This box does one sound beautifully, and it's "My hot-rodded Marshall stack is overheating and about to explode." Turn the Warp all the way CCW, tone about 1 o'clock, and set gain according to how hot your pickups are (I use about 2 o'clock). Big bassy hi-gain chugga-crunch and singing "woman tone" sustain. Wonderful!

Unfortunately it doesn't do anything else...trying to get just a little distortion makes it go crackle-crackle at the transition. Use something else, like a Butler "Real Tube".

It's not noisy considering the amount of gain involved.

Haven't had any problems but I haven't abused it either. No data.

Haven't had to ask.

It's a great pedal if you want the sound it delivers, which I think is killer. But it's not versatile. I'm giving it a 9 for the tone it has, but subtracting 2 for all the BS hype Tech 21 put out about how versatile it was.

It's a distortion pedal. Crank the gain and ROCK. It's especially cool for getting various feedback tones with the electric guitar and a big amplifier. Oh- changing the battery is a hassle with 4 screws.

The sound is not for everyone. This was a good fit for certain music I played- it has a full bodied distortion with a very harsh edge in the treble. Distortion boxes are like spices, it's good to have several different units around. Amplifiers are like the meat. No amount of spices will make rotten meat sound good. How's that for a carnivore analogy??

I gigged for years with this without any problems.

don't know.

This is good for certain metal and noise sounds. I wouldn't rely on it for all distortion needs.

the different of warp controll is't most notorious with the humbucking
to bridge. (sound more fuzz).THE WARP IS'T A GREAT ADDITAMENT.

GREAT PEDAL! I played for 13 years, I used BOSS distortion pedal, XXL better BETTER than dist. BOSS (DS-1, DS-2, SD-1, MT-2(puaj!))
fine tone "like amp dist. tone" very dynamic.
little problem of noise, extrange problem with low volumen setting of my guit. the high frecuency`s up`s in these situation.

no problema

BArta is't a good guy.

FINE pedal!!!

Pretty easy to get good sounds out of this (although I am still trying to find a setting that will let me turn my guitar volume and clean up the distortion). 4 knobs and a footswitch, not to difficult and thankfully most of the controls are labled for what they are (except WARP) unlike DOD's new boxes with stupid shit names!

It made a an old Ampeg VH 140 c solid state amp sound pretty crunchy to the point where some tube head buddys of mine thought the ampeg was a tube amp. Now-a-days the XXL is running through my Peavy Classic 50 tube amp.

It survived 4 years of punishing stomping in dives and outdoor gigs by a guitarist who would occasionaly get into it too much (thanks to beer chuging contests between me and the drummer) and is no worse for the wear. Hell it still looks pretty new.

NA

This little tank was good for the heavier stuff (CREED, queensryche, collective soul and originals) but was too much for the Stevie Ray and Chris Duarte tunes. Although I found a neat trick for that. I set my Tube amps dirty channel to a slight break-up tone (black Crow like) and then for leads I would kick in the XXL. It gave me that unpredictable drive and overtones that makes guitar players slobber for!

This thing is pretty straight foward and easy to get good sounds out of. Tech 21 website still has instructions on how to use it

Fender California fat strat-XXL-Music Man RD210 130. The MM is stone quiet with and without this thing inline. Of course when you crank it you get a little noise. Anyway, with the MM set super clean (totally countryfryed)I kick this thing in with warp full on and gain at 3/4 and I'm in heaven. Great harmonics and tube saturated distortion. Great response to player dynamics. I match the amp and XXL levels so I can use the volume to roll of the top. I also tried this with my Roland JC120 and well....you need tubes for tube distortion. Duh

I guess so and no I would not

N/A

I mostly play 50's to current rock. I also dabble in Jazz & Country.
All in my basement studio with a couple of friends and just for fun. I've tried the DOD 250, Big Muff, French Toast, Akai Shred-o-matic (which I really like) and Fab Tone. This box is the best of this bunch as far as my setup and style go.

I thought it was fairly easy to get a good sound. I've had it for years but only recently integrated it into my setup. I've used it in the past for at home, personal practice. I finally started messing withe tone and Warp knobs and realized how versatile this pedal is. I'd say if your just starting out with this thing set the tone at 12 o' clock and the Warp all the way counter clockwise.

I have 2 Marshall heads(tube) and a Randall head(SS). Bolt-on guitars with humbuckers. It does get pretty noisy with the Drive past 12 o' clock. This is a high gain pedal. I love distortion and this thing delivers. This comes close to the best distortion pedal I've ever heard which is a Tonebone Hot-British. I didn't keep that one because I thought this came pretty close & couldn't justify the $.

I play rock with lots of distortion going on all the time. I've got a Marshall Shredmaster, TS9DX/808, Rat, MXR Dist+, Boss Heavy Metal, Westbury W-20 - none have the touch sensitivity this one has. Though I used the RAT for a long time, it's distortion isn't as refined as the XXL. The RAT is grittier, nastier. I wasn't digging the midrange bite of the RAT anymore. I saw 2 used XXL's for $40 or $50 at a store I should have nabbed them for spares because they don't make these anymore.

Bought it used, didn't get a manual, just turn the knobs till I get a tone I like, it's fun. After some knob tweeking can get a good tone out of it. For real techies take some time to experiment to get the sound you want, not everything is in here.

Can get some LOUD cranky overdrive or just plain volume boost. I am a Bass player not a guitarist, bought this just to have some fun on a short Bass solo and maybe piss my guitarist off. I use it with a Gallen-Kruger 1001RB Bass head (540 watts) and Carvin & Hartke cabinets, Fender P-Bass, or Yamaha TRB -5 string bass. Kicks some ass.

Seems tough. Full metal jacket. Good strong knobs. Takes 9 volt battery. What's to break? Just stomp on it.

No contact with Tech 21. Bought it out of a used bin real cheap, don't expect any warrenty, don't think I'll ever need any.

Always looking the "THE" sound this seemed like a good idea. Used it on a gig, blew my guitarists mind, was already well worth the price. There is nothing better than getting to my short Bass solo (one per night) and making people WAKE UP and take notice. Like most strong effects try not to over use or it sounds cheezy. I have to give it a 9 overall because I paid so little and it sounds so good.

I't's not rocket science, but it won't get you to the moon. The manual is slim and apologetic (appropriately after all the HYPE on the Tech 21 website).

An average distortion pedal. I own several boss distortions as well as a lovely old roland BeeBaa and it barely compares to any of them. I tried it through my wasp head and eden speaker cab, as well as a fender super amp and a peavey bandit practice amp. It sounded worst through the peavey (a screeching microphonic feedback at high distortion), but it's a shitty amp anyway.

It seems solid enough, not solid like a boss pedal, I wouldn't kick it or stomp too hard on one of these. I returned it within a week, so I can't really say.

Don't know, never dealt with Tech 21. I was considering getting a Sans Amp PSA 1 for direct guitar recording, and I saw the XXL and bought it. I was disappointed - I will definitely play the PSA 1 first, if my guitar store can get one. I think the sound samples on the Tech 21 website for the warp on this unit could do with some explanation....

Wouldn't buy it again .....wary of buying Tech 21 gear.

Easy if you read the manual (apparently a foreign concept for a lot of people). Not all tone knobs work like the treble on your stereo receiver.

I play the XXL through a small Mesa Subway Blues combo using both strat style and humbucker guitars. You can get some nice sounds with this pedal, but I surmize it would be a bit harsh with a solid state and/or cheapo amp. As others have said, there's lots of gain available -- even at the lowest setting. The tone is definitely on the bright side; The Tone knob max setting is flat -- going down from there adds lows, and going past the midpoint cuts highs. However, the treble cut is very noticeable, especially past the midpoint. The WARP control, while an enigma to some, is way cool. Frankly, anyone who says they can't hear what the WARP does is tone deaf. The description on the Tech21 site is pretty good and you can definitely hear what they're talking about. For a high gain pedal this thing is pretty musical once you learn how to use it, and you can get it to clean up a bit if you turn down your guitar volume.

Looks and feels pretty solid. I don't really gig, but it looks reliable enough.

No dealings with them.

I'm an amateur who plays for fun. I like rock, jazz, blues, bluegrass, and a little bit of metal. This pedal can cover rock and metal (probably, but I'm not a metalhead so I don't really know) and blues if you want a higher gain tone. I had this pedal years ago and returned it -- so I was happy to find one now that they've stopped making it. Overall, I think this is a cool pedal. It's not too expensive, and you can get different sounds if you like tweaking knobs. I like pedals that have their own identity, and this one fits in that category.

Sorry for my english but i'm french...So...what an amazing effect...it's very simple to use it. 4 knobs and it rules...
You have a volume,tone,gain and the amazing warp control that put you in a vintage class a distortion or heavy fuzz...
You can find settings in the manual(well done)

I use a fender jazzmaster reissue and an old epiphone ET 270 (made in the seventies) with a fender blues deluxe tweed amp.
I use about 15 effect pedal(i love them) like pro co turbo rat, colorsound tone bender, guvnor,big muff etc...but the xxl is one of my favorite...the warp control can make your guitar sounds with a sweet class a overdrive, a real fat distortion or a amazing fucking fuzz...just great...
there is no buzz except extreme settings and i can say that this is definitly my favorite distortion.(and i 've got a lot of them...)

you want to use only one distortion? use this no problem!

sorry never had problem with it!!!

You can control your sound with the warp control...
you can control the sound with the volume control of the guitar
I'm not paid to say that but it's the most incredible distortion unit in the world!!!(try the killer fuzz settings....)

This thing is tough. Four knobs should be easy, but the damn warp knob makes the sound mushy or super mushy depending on where you put it. NOt that hard to use.

First of all, this thing buzzes so much my noise suppressor can't handle it. I play through a combo, and this thing is just mushy. I played it through a friends solid state half stack, and it sounded ok though. overall, that warp knob is useless, just fucks up the clarity. I don't really know of anything this pedal could be good for, maybe some Jimi if the sound would clear up.

The pedal looks strong. Unfortunalely, when I step on it now, it crackles a lot, and over time, the sound just went down hill until now it sounds like I'm playing abad version of mario brothers theme song, in terms of tone anyway. not very reliable, eats up batteries, and I would never take this thing to a gig.

I emailed them twice or three times. No response at all. That really sucks.

This thing is a piece of shit. Don't let anybody tell you that you want this. It's better than no distortion, but I would rather buy one of those mini danelectro pedals named after a food item than this thing again.

Easy to use. The Warp control seems to give others some trouble, but I think it's great. I'm guessing that the trouble some users had is what caused the company to discontinue this great pedal. It didn't come with a manual (used), but the website has a lot of info about the pedal. The controls are very responsive, and allow you to really shape the tone.

I've been playing for over 20 years and have owned just about every piece of gear over the years (even an original hyped TS-808 that I bought for about 50 bucks when I was 17). I plugged my reissue 62 strat into the XXL and then into a Marshall Jubilee combo (which has great tone all by itself). The tone and warp controls are dependent on each other, and with a bit of tweaking, it really gave me some impressive tones. You'll need to back off the drive a little because this box is loaded with gain. It really seems to breathe, and is responsive to pick attack and playing style. This thing has great tone. I like it a lot.

Seems very solid. Kinda like my TC electronic pedals. I'm a little concerned with the pots being part of the circuit board instead of wired. This may cause problems if I need to replace a pot, but it should be ok. The battery life seems to be pretty good.

I don't know. I've never called them. I do like that it says NYC on it. I love living in Manhattan, and it's my only pedal that says NYC, and my shirt/jacket size on it.

I play a lot of different styles, but am most heavily influenced by Steve Morse, Eric Johnson, Scott Henderson Rock/Jazz. I may look for another one of these while they're still cheap. The only other overdrive I still have is a TC Booster/Line Driver (which is amazing with my Jubilee amps), and they're not made anymore either (and they're very expensive now). I wanted a distortion box, tried a lot of the current offerings (the Marshall Jackhammer wasn't bad, but it was kinda flat), and I'm really glad I tried this XXL. It's an excellent pedal with a lot of character. It's a musical instrument.

i bought it used off ebay with no manual and the gain knob was busted off so i got it really cheap! but that's what i love, i don't give a crap if it looks good or what. i can still adjust the gain with a little screwdiver which will be a pain to adjust live, but that's what the price reflects. i love this pedal. if you can't hear the warp, stick it in the middle, play a slide on the low E, then turn it all the way up and slide again--pretty cool hendrixy sorta deal. i think at least. so i don't think the warp does nothing. all the other knobs work, and the on/off switch is really nice and smooth! i like that. not clicky like my distortion+. but that's a matter of preference

this pedal is NOT perfect. in fact, i don't think any pedals in this price range are, and perhaps none in any price range are. i think something like a soldano or vht or something like that would really be 'perfect' but whatever. anyway...
i'm running it into a labseries L5 (which kicks arse! check out my couple of reviews) through the effects loop. really satisfying sound! i really can't complain!
tone knob--it's subtle, yes, but also noticeable! i don't know if the people who couldn't hear any difference have been playing so much longer than i that they've completely lost that area in their hearing. but it works and works well, at that.
warp knob--it's cool, but i think more gimmicky that cool. but remember that i bought it on ebay after reading the 6 and below reviews here (didn't waste my time to see what the peolpe who liked it had to say about it)...so i obviously didn't buy it for the warp feature. but it too, is subtle, and depending on how creative you are, it can be either a waste of space on the face, or a new area of tone to hash out.
gain--there's someone i agree with, but i don't think he posted on this pedal. he said that he wished that all gains were 'NO GAIN' when they were set to 'zero.' i wish this pedal was like that. but at the same time, i really like having control of my tone all the way through. rolling back on the volume is not a problem to me, it actually gives me another parameter to control, and i like that. (rolling back on the volume can get rid of the gain at zero). i used to play w/ guitar at 10 all the time, but now i'm trying to hone my volume know skills--learning what your volume knob can do for your tone is an eye-opening (or ear, as the case may be) experience.
i dont' experience a whole lot of noise from this pedal. when on single coil settings, i just keep my hands on the strings and it shuts up. zero noise. i don't know enough about electricity to know WHY this works, something to do with being grounded, i guess. you can fix that problem also by just taking a paper clip or some kind of wire, clamping it to the pedal under the backplate, and sending it to a ground. don't try this w/o proper supervision from a professional electritian or some expert in electricity!!!
remember that i only paid like 30 some bucks for this thing since the gain knob was busted off, so my opinion is biased to that. had i paid regular price, it may have lost only a point, though.

i plan on gigging with this pedal. i think it sounds great. good for nasty chunky metal, then get some eq pedal to switch on for nice sing-songy smooth distorted solos. good stuff. the pedal is built ford tough, and i believe is true bypass like all sansamp stuff (if i remember correctly).

i'll let you know if i ever decide to let them repair my gain knob. they guy who sold it to me said they'd charge like $25 bucks or something. that's enough to make me use a screwdriver!

i don't know what style of music i play! i'm into it all! i don't listen to country, but i wish i could play like a couple of those dorks! my favorite artists are king's x, joe pass, geggy tah, jane's addiction, indigenous, outkast (ha ha), reeves gabrels, BILLY MCLAUGHLIN, dave kline, and i'm just now developing my affinity for tommy bolin! i'm primarily a classical guitarist, but i love all styles. i just love playing guitar. this pedal gives me the smooth distortion i was looking for that the mxr distortion+ (which i love in a different way) can't give. i will in the future check out more sansamp stuff and recommend it.

4 knobs (Volume, Tone, Warp, Gain). Turn everything to 12 as a starting point. You've got to get used to the Tone and the Warp controls.

I don't like distortion/overdrive effects or pre amp distortion very much. I prefer british amps flat out (Marshall, Hiwatt) and use them with a power brake. For smaller venues I sometimes use a VOX AC 30, a Deluxe Reverb or a Bassman Reissue. To be more versatile at different volume levels I put a Reussenzehn Tube Booster (a high class clean boost), Fulldrive 2 and the XXL in front. The XXL starts where the FD2 stops. Even with its gain at zero you get that high gain Boogie/Soldano type of sound. I use it only for solo, cause with rhythm it isnt't tight enough for my taste. My settings are Volume 11-12, Tone 9-11. Warp 11. Gain zero. If you don't put the Volume or Gain above 12 its not noisy.The Warp acts like a compressor, turn it up and the sound sags (think of Neil Young), turn it down and the same thing happens, but a bit more gentle (Brian May perhaps). You get the least compression in the middle position, which fits better if you want to play rhythm also. Its not a very versatile pedal, the nuances are very subtle, everything sounds quiet similar, but that's the best distortion I've heard so far. Very musical, natural and organic, not tight and harsh at all. It reacts great to your guitar, playing stile, and guitar volume setting. I give it a 8 because it's too mushy for fast rhythm playing, the highs are somewhat artificial and sound overprocessed (similar to those psyco-acoustic exciters) and it's got no hardware-bypass. But it's a good bypass(there seems to be a buffer inside), doesn't strangle the tone (like these unusable japanese Boss and Ibanez are doing).

I've used it for several years an never had any problems with it. The footswith seems to be a bit wimpy. The AC jack placement is very unpractical.
I don't think you need a backup.

I've never dealt with them.

I play since 20 years and have tried it all. You name it, I had it. To me, this is one of the best pedals I've ever heard. It has a special loose, dynamic tube-like quality all of its own. The only real drawback is that it's not capable of producing any crunch sounds (way too much gain). On the other hand, you can backoff the guitar volume for that purpose or use another pedal, maybe the FD2. But for solo guitar (this Santana, Gary Moore, Neil Young sort of) the XXL is very convincing. Best results should be achieved with vintage (low output) PU's and straight forward tube amps, that are more on the clean side.

Typically, distortions are easy units to use. Want more crunch? Turn up the gain. Want more volume? More Bass? Same thing. Will, this is NOT your typical distortion box. The volume and gain knobs work like you would expect, but the Tone and Warp knobs are different beasts entirely. It takes a while to get used to them, and how they work. But it's well worth it once you the hang of it. One thing though...this box is a tone monster! TONE TONE TONE TONE TONE. And very very touch sensitive. The nuances of your playing have a nice effect on the sound of this box.

TONE TONE TONE TONE. Awesome tone. It's like a Boogie Mark IV lead channel in a stomp box. As I said, the volume and gain function as you would expect. Beware the volume knob - you can get quite a boost from it. I typically keep mine set at about 8:00 - barely up. And that gives me a nice boost for distortion. With the drive knob all the way up, your signal will completely break up. I usually keep it to about 3:00, and I play hardcore/emo/indi rock, and like a lot of gain. That however is the easy part. The hard part is figuring our what to do with the tone and warp knob. The tone is fairly straight forward. All the way up is flat. As you turn it down you get a bass boost, mid you start to get below the mid point, the treble is cut. Not a passive high roll off like on a tube screamer or something. The warp knob is strange. It's a little hard to describe, but it has a huge effect on the tone. I've seen some reviews where people said the warp didn't do anything. I don't know how anyone could not h
ear the effect the warp knob has. Maybe it's the amp your going through but I can get dozens of sounds, just by adjusting the warp knob and varying my picking. According to Tech 21, the warp drive controls the amount and mix of odd and even harmonics generated by the circuit. Odd harmonics tend to give your sound edge and bite. Evens tend to make your sound smooth and creamy. When you have the warp knob in the 11:00 position (where to the two arrows are) that is the middle. There it isn't having much effect. When you have the warp all the way up, you get a strange kind of overloading breakup, that sort of has a natural compression. On the Tech-21 web site they describe it as a "sag"...it sort of does that...compressed attack with a sort of expanding super saturated sustain. Reminds me of this old no-name tube amp my brother used to have...crank the gain and the high, mid and bass knob and the thing would overload and compress like hell. With the warp knob all the way down, the gain is smooth, thick a
nd creamy. Back of your guitars volume and it gets almost squishy. Very nice. The in between setting are mixes and variations of that...blending the smoother even harmonics with the edgier odd harmonics. And I'll tell you...you almost forget that your dealing with a solid state unit. If I didn't know any better I'd think there was tube in there. The thing is with this box is that they all have their own character. I've used 3 over the years, and they all act slightly differently. I don't know why. That all have tons of useable tones in them, and I can get the sounds I want from any of them...but you have to know how to use the controls.

Mine has worked without a hitch for years. I have a friend who has one he's been using for about 6 years non-stop without a problem. I don't expect to have any problems, but since they are out of production I bought another one as a back up. I really don't want to have to look for another distortion box.

Never tried. Web site was helpful for learing how to use the tone and warp knob though.

http://www.tech21nyc.com/

My playing style cuts across many things - harcore, punk, classic rock, blues, ska, name it. I just mash it all together. I love this box. As far as gain goes, it does everything I want. I don't want to have to live without it...so I got another one in advance of something happening like it gets stolen or lost. How many reviews on here are from people who didn't just replace a lost item, but got it early "just in case"? I of course wouldn't have done that if they still made them, but I had the opportunity to get a 2nd so I did. The rest of my rig consists of a Mesa Boogie Mark IV, a Home Made Swamp Ash, Maple/Maple neck Tele with a Seymour Duncan Little '59, a Home made Swamp Ash Maple/Rosewood neck Strat with Fend 50's reissue pickups, and a Vaccaro Astrolite with 3 Duncan P-90's. My other pedals are a wah, Boss DD-3 digital delay, a Danelectro "pepperoni" Phaser and a vibrator. Yes, the sex-toy thing. It creates WICKED electromagnetic interference, makes a bad-ass noisy slide, a strange string vibrating/sustaining thing...and generally speaking freaks people out. Sorry, I can't help it. If you can find one...BUY THIS PEDAL! Or if you have one and don't want it anymore...email me, I'll buy yours!

Adding to my review below--Try maxing all the knobs on the XXL and plugging it directly into the power section (tube!) of your amp, through the FX return. Awesome sustain, like "American Woman"!