Do you hear only pedal tone when boosting? Or, just a better version of the amp boosted?

[Racerxrated]

Since we have one RTer who can only hear his pedal when he boosts, I'm curious if others feel the same way.
What do you hear when boosting your amp?

 

[VonBonfire]

I hear my amp, only with more gain. I don't know if that makes it better, just makes more sustain. I generally go for OD's that don't heavily color the tone.

 

[griff10672]

Since we have one RTer who can only hear his pedal when he boosts, I'm curious if others feel the same way.
What do you hear when boosting your amp?

How do you only hear the pedal ??? unless it's bypassing the pre-amp ???

 

[Techdeth]

I get what your saying . That’s why I find the boost that still gives me the amps sound more than the color of the pedal . So I match until . Now if it’s a shit or just ok I don’t get and use more of the color of the pedal to get what I need .
It’s amp to amp basis to a pedal that gives you what you need .

 

[griff10672]

for what it's worth ............. for a long time I was a strictly a " straight in " kind of guy ....

and I got away with it with the amps I was using at the time ..... then I finally got a 2203 right around the time I started building pedals ...

that was a HUGE game changer ..... I quickly realized the drives are all salt , pepper and garlic for lack of a better term

and certain spices do certain things ...... now I boost my Mark series amps .... not all the time ... but enough

 

[RaceU4her]

for what it's worth ............. for a long time I was a strictly a " straight in " kind of guy ....

and I got away with it with the amps I was using at the time ..... then I finally got a 2203 right around the time I started building pedals ...

that was a HUGE game changer ..... I quickly realized the drives are all salt , pepper and garlic for lack of a better term

and certain spices do certain things ...... now I boost my Mark series amps .... not all the time ... but enough

Pizza toppings and boosts are basically the same thing to me, different flavors for different moods, with some working better than others depending on the place or amp you are putting them on.

 

[Anje]

Exactly, any device (or combination of) in front of a good tube amp can be used to fine-tune / tailor the sound and feel of the amp rig to what you like.
This is part of finding "your" own unique tone IMHO; endless combinations to explore / happy accidents to discover.

 

[griff10672]

Pizza toppings and boosts are basically the same thing to me, different flavors for different moods, with some working better than others depending on the place or amp you are putting them on.

yup .......totally agree

 

[MetalHeadMike]

Best version of the amp when boosted regardless of amp. Boost dependent however.

 

[Racerxrated]

When I hear of 'I only hear the pedal' I think of guys that simply run a distortion pedal into a mixer of some type. Or, with some SS amps, a pedal or two run into them.
Criss Oliva was known to use 2 SD1s, one into the other, then into a large rack SS amp of some type. One SD1 tone maxed, other SD1 tone off. His tone was pretty cool/heavy for the time (mid 80s).

But running one in front of a tube amp, I cannot imagine not hearing the color of the amp itself.

 

[MadAsAHatter]

Neither seem to dominate the sound. I hear a blend of the pedal and amp.

 

[WizardAmpIphoneClip]

Makes a difference . Pedal definitely colors things imo. Most people use one or two specific boosts for Peavey or Mesa amps. Marshalls you can throw anything at and the pedal influences it more.

 

[dstroud]

Really depends on the amp and how it’s set. If you have a mild breakup or more, boosts enhance the amps tone. But it’s more a blend of amp/pedal - that’s why all the boosts have slightly different tone. That’s why you can have a basic Marshall style amp and tones ranging from Eric Johnson to AC/DC

 

[S̷͖͑m̵͎͂á̵̺s̸͚̈́h̴̬̑]

I have been not boosting amps for 6 months or so. I like the way it sounds without it...if the amp can track without it. A mesa dual rec? Always fucking boosted

 

[VonBonfire]

I have been not boosting amps for 6 months or so. I like the way it sounds without it...if the amp can track without it. A mesa dual rec? Always fucking boosted

Let's be real my dear brother, you got some sweet amps that don't really need a boost to operate in the tone zone.

 

[japetus]

Let's be real my dear brother, you got some sweet amps that don't really need a boost to operate in the tone zone.

 

[S̷͖͑m̵͎͂á̵̺s̸͚̈́h̴̬̑]

Let's be real my dear brother, you got some sweet amps that don't really need a boost to operate in the tone zone.

Some amps sound better at volume without a boost. Some need one. I don't mind having a boosted amps. I just use my ears to decide which sounds best

 

[Texsunburst59]

I think Everyone in this thread is wrong.

Isn’t TGP the internet authority on all things that have to do with pedals?

According to TGP , all you need is a Timmy style pedal to boost your amp because it’s totally “TRANSPARENT “, and doesn’t color your sound.

All you hear is your amp but louder.

TGP is NEVER wrong on such matters.

 

[MadAsAHatter]

According to TGP , all you need is a Timmy style pedal

 

[Rackman]

I hear my amp, only with more gain. I don't know if that makes it better, just makes more sustain. I generally go for OD's that don't heavily color the tone.

You also don't, last I checked, use high gain amps. Racerxrated is sensitive and starting threads about it because I laugh at people who go buy a high gain amp only to mod it or put a cheap diode boost in front of it.