Think I'm gonna try a Seymour Duncan 805 Overdrive

[napalmdeath]

Good man!

I hear things in this pedal that catch my ear differently that I like, I hear more clarity,more headroom, less compression, plus the 3 band EQ.

MetalheadMike can't say enough good things about it and he's been through about the same brands of OD's as well.

Here's what I dug up on the SD forum post from a SD rep. Looks like the early 805 paperwork stated it had the original 808 chip(which was the JRC4558) but they went with the MC33178 when they went into production.

07-11-2014, 02:39 PM
Re: New Product: The Seymour Duncan 805 Overdrive

There was a bit of a mix-up on the chip used in the 805 Overdrive. Between the time we prepared our original materials and shipping our engineering time had found a superior chip theMC33178. After testing it was determined this chip had superior sonic characteristics along with a lower noise figure and longer battery life.

Sorry for the confusion and thanks for the review DreX

I bought the VFE Dragon from Mike, and couldn't figure out why he'd sell it, it's a kickers pedal. The 805 is one I've never tried, and hear many great things!

 

[MetalHeadMike]

Good man!

I hear things in this pedal that catch my ear differently that I like, I hear more clarity,more headroom, less compression, plus the 3 band EQ.

MetalheadMike can't say enough good things about it and he's been through about the same brands of OD's as well.

Here's what I dug up on the SD forum post from a SD rep. Looks like the early 805 paperwork stated it had the original 808 chip(which was the JRC4558) but they went with the MC33178 when they went into production.

07-11-2014, 02:39 PM
Re: New Product: The Seymour Duncan 805 Overdrive

There was a bit of a mix-up on the chip used in the 805 Overdrive. Between the time we prepared our original materials and shipping our engineering time had found a superior chip theMC33178. After testing it was determined this chip had superior sonic characteristics along with a lower noise figure and longer battery life.

Sorry for the confusion and thanks for the review DreX

I bought the VFE Dragon from Mike, and couldn't figure out why he'd sell it, it's a kickers pedal. The 805 is one I've never tried, and hear many great things!

I liked the Dragon, but when compared against the 805 and a couple others I had at the time I preferred the others. The Dragon made my amps seem a bit too 'processed or maybe synthetic" sounding. IDK...hard to explain...Maybe it was just too modern/compressed and I like more of an organic/vintage crunch vibe

 

[napalmdeath]

Good man!

I hear things in this pedal that catch my ear differently that I like, I hear more clarity,more headroom, less compression, plus the 3 band EQ.

MetalheadMike can't say enough good things about it and he's been through about the same brands of OD's as well.

Here's what I dug up on the SD forum post from a SD rep. Looks like the early 805 paperwork stated it had the original 808 chip(which was the JRC4558) but they went with the MC33178 when they went into production.

07-11-2014, 02:39 PM
Re: New Product: The Seymour Duncan 805 Overdrive

There was a bit of a mix-up on the chip used in the 805 Overdrive. Between the time we prepared our original materials and shipping our engineering time had found a superior chip theMC33178. After testing it was determined this chip had superior sonic characteristics along with a lower noise figure and longer battery life.

Sorry for the confusion and thanks for the review DreX

I bought the VFE Dragon from Mike, and couldn't figure out why he'd sell it, it's a kickers pedal. The 805 is one I've never tried, and hear many great things!

I liked the Dragon, but when compared against the 805 and a couple others I had at the time I preferred the others. The Dragon made my amps seem a bit too 'processed or maybe synthetic" sounding. IDK...hard to explain...Maybe it was just too modern/compressed and I like more of an organic/vintage crunch vibe

I'll see what all the fuss is about.. I ordered one of the blue 805's. What the hell, it's a pretty good deal in a new one.

 

[MetalHeadMike]

I hope you guys like it! The Mesa Goldmine is another awesome OD. Have had it about a month and it's just killer.

 

[braintheory]

Good man!

I hear things in this pedal that catch my ear differently that I like, I hear more clarity,more headroom, less compression, plus the 3 band EQ.

MetalheadMike can't say enough good things about it and he's been through about the same brands of OD's as well.

Here's what I dug up on the SD forum post from a SD rep. Looks like the early 805 paperwork stated it had the original 808 chip(which was the JRC4558) but they went with the MC33178 when they went into production.

07-11-2014, 02:39 PM
Re: New Product: The Seymour Duncan 805 Overdrive

There was a bit of a mix-up on the chip used in the 805 Overdrive. Between the time we prepared our original materials and shipping our engineering time had found a superior chip theMC33178. After testing it was determined this chip had superior sonic characteristics along with a lower noise figure and longer battery life.

Sorry for the confusion and thanks for the review DreX

I bought the VFE Dragon from Mike, and couldn't figure out why he'd sell it, it's a kickers pedal. The 805 is one I've never tried, and hear many great things!

I liked the Dragon, but when compared against the 805 and a couple others I had at the time I preferred the others. The Dragon made my amps seem a bit too 'processed or maybe synthetic" sounding. IDK...hard to explain...Maybe it was just too modern/compressed and I like more of an organic/vintage crunch vibe

I liked the Dragon quite a bit overall, but felt similar about it sounding processed and filtered, but of the roughly 130 boosts I’ve been through, the vast majority sound that way to some degree IMO. Most recent made pedals don’t have good tone imo. I kept 5 boost pedals and 3 of the 5 sound super organic to me with no semblance of that filtered pedal-like sound. The other 2 I can hear it a little bit, but still sound great. The vintage rack PQ’s I have make almost any other boost I’ve had obsolete. I’m curious about the 805 too. I think it’s literally the only boost I’ve ever heard mentioned on this forum that I’ve not yet tried except for recently released ones on my radar like the Wizard Leopard, KSR Eros and those new Mesa/Boogie ones like your gold mine

 

[MetalHeadMike]

Good man!

I hear things in this pedal that catch my ear differently that I like, I hear more clarity,more headroom, less compression, plus the 3 band EQ.

MetalheadMike can't say enough good things about it and he's been through about the same brands of OD's as well.

Here's what I dug up on the SD forum post from a SD rep. Looks like the early 805 paperwork stated it had the original 808 chip(which was the JRC4558) but they went with the MC33178 when they went into production.

07-11-2014, 02:39 PM
Re: New Product: The Seymour Duncan 805 Overdrive

There was a bit of a mix-up on the chip used in the 805 Overdrive. Between the time we prepared our original materials and shipping our engineering time had found a superior chip theMC33178. After testing it was determined this chip had superior sonic characteristics along with a lower noise figure and longer battery life.

Sorry for the confusion and thanks for the review DreX

I bought the VFE Dragon from Mike, and couldn't figure out why he'd sell it, it's a kickers pedal. The 805 is one I've never tried, and hear many great things!

I liked the Dragon, but when compared against the 805 and a couple others I had at the time I preferred the others. The Dragon made my amps seem a bit too 'processed or maybe synthetic" sounding. IDK...hard to explain...Maybe it was just too modern/compressed and I like more of an organic/vintage crunch vibe

I liked the Dragon quite a bit overall, but felt similar about it sounding processed and filtered, but of the roughly 130 boosts I’ve been through, the vast majority sound that way to some degree IMO. Most recent made pedals don’t have good tone imo. I kept 5 boost pedals and 3 of the 5 sound super organic to me with no semblance of that filtered pedal-like sound. The other 2 I can hear it a little bit, but still sound great. The vintage rack PQ’s I have make almost any other boost I’ve had obsolete. I’m curious about the 805 too. I think it’s literally the only boost I’ve ever heard mentioned on this forum that I’ve not yet tried except for recently released ones on my radar like the Wizard Leopard, KSR Eros and those new Mesa/Boogie ones like your gold mine

I hear ya...nature of the beast that pedals sound like...well...pedals I agree though that some sound more natural and I think the 805 and the Goldmine fit that bill for me...of course the amp/pedal combo is a big factor too. Both the aforementioned in front of the MCII just take it from an already raw, organic, open beast to a raw, organic, open raging ultra aggressive beast. The Dragon took the MCII to another level also, but definitely less gritty/crunchy/open and more compressed/modern/processed sounding. The Dragon made me feel like I was playing an Engl. Not necessarily a bad thing at all.

 

[napalmdeath]

Good man!

I hear things in this pedal that catch my ear differently that I like, I hear more clarity,more headroom, less compression, plus the 3 band EQ.

MetalheadMike can't say enough good things about it and he's been through about the same brands of OD's as well.

Here's what I dug up on the SD forum post from a SD rep. Looks like the early 805 paperwork stated it had the original 808 chip(which was the JRC4558) but they went with the MC33178 when they went into production.

07-11-2014, 02:39 PM
Re: New Product: The Seymour Duncan 805 Overdrive

There was a bit of a mix-up on the chip used in the 805 Overdrive. Between the time we prepared our original materials and shipping our engineering time had found a superior chip theMC33178. After testing it was determined this chip had superior sonic characteristics along with a lower noise figure and longer battery life.

Sorry for the confusion and thanks for the review DreX

I bought the VFE Dragon from Mike, and couldn't figure out why he'd sell it, it's a kickers pedal. The 805 is one I've never tried, and hear many great things!

I liked the Dragon, but when compared against the 805 and a couple others I had at the time I preferred the others. The Dragon made my amps seem a bit too 'processed or maybe synthetic" sounding. IDK...hard to explain...Maybe it was just too modern/compressed and I like more of an organic/vintage crunch vibe

I liked the Dragon quite a bit overall, but felt similar about it sounding processed and filtered, but of the roughly 130 boosts I’ve been through, the vast majority sound that way to some degree IMO. Most recent made pedals don’t have good tone imo. I kept 5 boost pedals and 3 of the 5 sound super organic to me with no semblance of that filtered pedal-like sound. The other 2 I can hear it a little bit, but still sound great. The vintage rack PQ’s I have make almost any other boost I’ve had obsolete. I’m curious about the 805 too. I think it’s literally the only boost I’ve ever heard mentioned on this forum that I’ve not yet tried except for recently released ones on my radar like the Wizard Leopard, KSR Eros and those new Mesa/Boogie ones like your gold mine

I hear ya...nature of the beast that pedals sound like...well...pedals I agree though that some sound more natural and I think the 805 and the Goldmine fit that bill for me...of course the amp/pedal combo is a big factor too. Both the aforementioned in front of the MCII just take it from an already raw, organic, open beast to a raw, organic, open raging ultra aggressive beast. The Dragon took the MCII to another level also, but definitely less gritty/crunchy/open and more compressed/modern/processed sounding. The Dragon made me feel like I was playing an Engl. Not necessarily a bad thing at all.

The Dragon can sound compressed, for sure.

My V3 Savage Drive sounds REALLY good with the Engl Artist. It's a great pedal!

Oddly enough, I plugged in my old Zakk Wylde OD with the Engl today, and damned if it didn't sound brutal! I've had that pedal a good 15 years. It gets downright nasty with Marshall voiced amps.

 

[braintheory]

Good man!

I hear things in this pedal that catch my ear differently that I like, I hear more clarity,more headroom, less compression, plus the 3 band EQ.

MetalheadMike can't say enough good things about it and he's been through about the same brands of OD's as well.

Here's what I dug up on the SD forum post from a SD rep. Looks like the early 805 paperwork stated it had the original 808 chip(which was the JRC4558) but they went with the MC33178 when they went into production.

07-11-2014, 02:39 PM
Re: New Product: The Seymour Duncan 805 Overdrive

There was a bit of a mix-up on the chip used in the 805 Overdrive. Between the time we prepared our original materials and shipping our engineering time had found a superior chip theMC33178. After testing it was determined this chip had superior sonic characteristics along with a lower noise figure and longer battery life.

Sorry for the confusion and thanks for the review DreX

I bought the VFE Dragon from Mike, and couldn't figure out why he'd sell it, it's a kickers pedal. The 805 is one I've never tried, and hear many great things!

I liked the Dragon, but when compared against the 805 and a couple others I had at the time I preferred the others. The Dragon made my amps seem a bit too 'processed or maybe synthetic" sounding. IDK...hard to explain...Maybe it was just too modern/compressed and I like more of an organic/vintage crunch vibe

I liked the Dragon quite a bit overall, but felt similar about it sounding processed and filtered, but of the roughly 130 boosts I’ve been through, the vast majority sound that way to some degree IMO. Most recent made pedals don’t have good tone imo. I kept 5 boost pedals and 3 of the 5 sound super organic to me with no semblance of that filtered pedal-like sound. The other 2 I can hear it a little bit, but still sound great. The vintage rack PQ’s I have make almost any other boost I’ve had obsolete. I’m curious about the 805 too. I think it’s literally the only boost I’ve ever heard mentioned on this forum that I’ve not yet tried except for recently released ones on my radar like the Wizard Leopard, KSR Eros and those new Mesa/Boogie ones like your gold mine

I hear ya...nature of the beast that pedals sound like...well...pedals I agree though that some sound more natural and I think the 805 and the Goldmine fit that bill for me...of course the amp/pedal combo is a big factor too. Both the aforementioned in front of the MCII just take it from an already raw, organic, open beast to a raw, organic, open raging ultra aggressive beast. The Dragon took the MCII to another level also, but definitely less gritty/crunchy/open and more compressed/modern/processed sounding. The Dragon made me feel like I was playing an Engl. Not necessarily a bad thing at all.

Yes the Dragon and Standout can be like that. I agree about the Engl analogy. The 3 pedals I have that sound natural and not pedal-like to me are my Thorpy Heavy Water, Silver Klon Centaur and Coppersound Broadway. The rack PQ’s sound in some ways even more natural and like an extension of the amp. My Furman PQ-3 and TC Electronic 1140 made most pedals I compared to sound like toys in comparison

Like with amps, the vintage pedals also sound more organic and warm. I actually sometimes find this difference to be even more the case with pedals than with amps, especially with fuzz pedals. Most fuzz pedals today sound awful compared to the good vintage ones

 

[napalmdeath]

Did you get yours yet? Mine showed up, and it's the seafood green, not blue, (even though I ordered the blue direct on Reverb.

Sounds killer! Bumped the Savage Drive out of rotation.

 

[Racerxrated]

Good man!

I hear things in this pedal that catch my ear differently that I like, I hear more clarity,more headroom, less compression, plus the 3 band EQ.

MetalheadMike can't say enough good things about it and he's been through about the same brands of OD's as well.

Here's what I dug up on the SD forum post from a SD rep. Looks like the early 805 paperwork stated it had the original 808 chip(which was the JRC4558) but they went with the MC33178 when they went into production.

07-11-2014, 02:39 PM
Re: New Product: The Seymour Duncan 805 Overdrive

There was a bit of a mix-up on the chip used in the 805 Overdrive. Between the time we prepared our original materials and shipping our engineering time had found a superior chip theMC33178. After testing it was determined this chip had superior sonic characteristics along with a lower noise figure and longer battery life.

Sorry for the confusion and thanks for the review DreX

I bought the VFE Dragon from Mike, and couldn't figure out why he'd sell it, it's a kickers pedal. The 805 is one I've never tried, and hear many great things!

I liked the Dragon, but when compared against the 805 and a couple others I had at the time I preferred the others. The Dragon made my amps seem a bit too 'processed or maybe synthetic" sounding. IDK...hard to explain...Maybe it was just too modern/compressed and I like more of an organic/vintage crunch vibe

I liked the Dragon quite a bit overall, but felt similar about it sounding processed and filtered, but of the roughly 130 boosts I’ve been through, the vast majority sound that way to some degree IMO. Most recent made pedals don’t have good tone imo. I kept 5 boost pedals and 3 of the 5 sound super organic to me with no semblance of that filtered pedal-like sound. The other 2 I can hear it a little bit, but still sound great. The vintage rack PQ’s I have make almost any other boost I’ve had obsolete. I’m curious about the 805 too. I think it’s literally the only boost I’ve ever heard mentioned on this forum that I’ve not yet tried except for recently released ones on my radar like the Wizard Leopard, KSR Eros and those new Mesa/Boogie ones like your gold mine

I hear ya...nature of the beast that pedals sound like...well...pedals I agree though that some sound more natural and I think the 805 and the Goldmine fit that bill for me...of course the amp/pedal combo is a big factor too. Both the aforementioned in front of the MCII just take it from an already raw, organic, open beast to a raw, organic, open raging ultra aggressive beast. The Dragon took the MCII to another level also, but definitely less gritty/crunchy/open and more compressed/modern/processed sounding. The Dragon made me feel like I was playing an Engl. Not necessarily a bad thing at all.

Yes the Dragon and Standout can be like that. I agree about the Engl analogy. The 3 pedals I have that sound natural and not pedal-like to me are my Thorpy Heavy Water, Silver Klon Centaur and Coppersound Broadway. The rack PQ’s sound in some ways even more natural and like an extension of the amp. My Furman PQ-3 and TC Electronic 1140 made most pedals I compared to sound like toys in comparison

Like with amps, the vintage pedals also sound more organic and warm. I actually sometimes find this difference to be even more the case with pedals than with amps, especially with fuzz pedals. Most fuzz pedals today sound awful compared to the good vintage ones

I think you either have to like what the pedals do, or you'd rather have the boost be as transparent as possible. The TC 1140 is the most transparent of all the pedals I've tried; the Cusack Screamer is also very transparent.
But, I really like the 'color' some pedals give the tone..the Boss pedals for one (MiJ SD1, OD1X) have a flavor that just works really well with my Marshalls. I think most guys are either one way or the other with pedals. Some HATE the fact that diodes are in their signal path, and only buy amps with enough tube gain for their needs.
I do feel though, that the 'processed' or colored aspect some pedals give will virtually disappear when you can push some serious air..at least that's my feeling with my amps when I boost and push the volume up.

 

[braintheory]

Good man!

I hear things in this pedal that catch my ear differently that I like, I hear more clarity,more headroom, less compression, plus the 3 band EQ.

MetalheadMike can't say enough good things about it and he's been through about the same brands of OD's as well.

Here's what I dug up on the SD forum post from a SD rep. Looks like the early 805 paperwork stated it had the original 808 chip(which was the JRC4558) but they went with the MC33178 when they went into production.

07-11-2014, 02:39 PM
Re: New Product: The Seymour Duncan 805 Overdrive

There was a bit of a mix-up on the chip used in the 805 Overdrive. Between the time we prepared our original materials and shipping our engineering time had found a superior chip theMC33178. After testing it was determined this chip had superior sonic characteristics along with a lower noise figure and longer battery life.

Sorry for the confusion and thanks for the review DreX

I bought the VFE Dragon from Mike, and couldn't figure out why he'd sell it, it's a kickers pedal. The 805 is one I've never tried, and hear many great things!

I liked the Dragon, but when compared against the 805 and a couple others I had at the time I preferred the others. The Dragon made my amps seem a bit too 'processed or maybe synthetic" sounding. IDK...hard to explain...Maybe it was just too modern/compressed and I like more of an organic/vintage crunch vibe

I liked the Dragon quite a bit overall, but felt similar about it sounding processed and filtered, but of the roughly 130 boosts I’ve been through, the vast majority sound that way to some degree IMO. Most recent made pedals don’t have good tone imo. I kept 5 boost pedals and 3 of the 5 sound super organic to me with no semblance of that filtered pedal-like sound. The other 2 I can hear it a little bit, but still sound great. The vintage rack PQ’s I have make almost any other boost I’ve had obsolete. I’m curious about the 805 too. I think it’s literally the only boost I’ve ever heard mentioned on this forum that I’ve not yet tried except for recently released ones on my radar like the Wizard Leopard, KSR Eros and those new Mesa/Boogie ones like your gold mine

I hear ya...nature of the beast that pedals sound like...well...pedals I agree though that some sound more natural and I think the 805 and the Goldmine fit that bill for me...of course the amp/pedal combo is a big factor too. Both the aforementioned in front of the MCII just take it from an already raw, organic, open beast to a raw, organic, open raging ultra aggressive beast. The Dragon took the MCII to another level also, but definitely less gritty/crunchy/open and more compressed/modern/processed sounding. The Dragon made me feel like I was playing an Engl. Not necessarily a bad thing at all.

Yes the Dragon and Standout can be like that. I agree about the Engl analogy. The 3 pedals I have that sound natural and not pedal-like to me are my Thorpy Heavy Water, Silver Klon Centaur and Coppersound Broadway. The rack PQ’s sound in some ways even more natural and like an extension of the amp. My Furman PQ-3 and TC Electronic 1140 made most pedals I compared to sound like toys in comparison

Like with amps, the vintage pedals also sound more organic and warm. I actually sometimes find this difference to be even more the case with pedals than with amps, especially with fuzz pedals. Most fuzz pedals today sound awful compared to the good vintage ones

I think you either have to like what the pedals do, or you'd rather have the boost be as transparent as possible. The TC 1140 is the most transparent of all the pedals I've tried; the Cusack Screamer is also very transparent.
But, I really like the 'color' some pedals give the tone..the Boss pedals for one (MiJ SD1, OD1X) have a flavor that just works really well with my Marshalls. I think most guys are either one way or the other with pedals. Some HATE the fact that diodes are in their signal path, and only buy amps with enough tube gain for their needs.
I do feel though, that the 'processed' or colored aspect some pedals give will virtually disappear when you can push some serious air..at least that's my feeling with my amps when I boost and push the volume up.

The 1140 is also probably the most transparent of what I currently have. I definitely like what almost all boost pedals do (especially the 5 I kept) and use my Klon more than my rack PQ’s since I love its color and attack, but think that filtered/not as good tone I hear in most boosts I’ve had in the past is there at any volume and probably just a sign of not as good components. I’m also being a bit nit picky because really they pretty much all get the job done (if they pair well with the amp), but after countless AB comparison have 5 pedals and 3 rack PQ’s that I feel made the other ~130 pedals I had before obsolete. Also, everything we’ve said about the advantages vintage amps have over modern ones I feel maybe holds even more true with pedals than amps. Others may disagree, but the Klon and vintage tubescreamer I borrowed had a very organic tone and responsiveness that no modern pedal I’ve tried yet can match. If I didn’t have the Klon, I’d probably have kept many other pedals including some Boss’s probably. It’s very expensive (I paid $1550), but it sent packing way more than $1550 worth of pedals I went through before. That doesn’t justify it being worth that kinda coin, but it’s definitely something special imo

I have no problem at all with diodes from the pedal. If anything I’m a huge fan of the germanium ones, especially the ones in my Coppersound Broadway, Fulltone Custom Ranger and Thorpy Heavy Water. Those pedals rather than tightening or adding attack, make things bigger, spongier and more warm and growly. Amazing when going for that kinda sound and with the c+ is still plenty tight imo. The thorpy and Broadway I’m guessing must use better components than most current pedals because they don’t have that filtered/pedal-like sound as much

 

[harddriver]

Did you get yours yet? Mine showed up, and it's the seafood green, not blue, (even though I ordered the blue direct on Reverb.

Sounds killer! Bumped the Savage Drive out of rotation.

Haven't had much time with it. It is different than my maxon, less compression, I like the three band EQ though.

 

[napalmdeath]

Did you get yours yet? Mine showed up, and it's the seafood green, not blue, (even though I ordered the blue direct on Reverb.

Sounds killer! Bumped the Savage Drive out of rotation.

Haven't had much time with it. It is different than my maxon, less compression, I like the three band EQ though.

Less compression is what I like. More raw.

It does have that slight TS-9 mid hump for sure, but I haven't really messed with the mids knob, just some slight tweaks of the treble and bass. Nice and warm, great responsiveness in the EQ, yet subtle, which I also like. Closely resembles the Green Rhino, but a bit more versatile, less compressed and quieter.

 

[guidedbyechoes]

Check out the warmer from kartakou. The newest version has bass and clipping or clean boost switch, symmetrical or asymmetrical switches. The biggest selling point is it comes with 5 different chips so you can use whatever one you prefer.

https://pedals.thedelimagazine.com/kartakou-warmer-overdrive/

They might be around 130 USD new.

 

[Racerxrated]

Good man!

I hear things in this pedal that catch my ear differently that I like, I hear more clarity,more headroom, less compression, plus the 3 band EQ.

MetalheadMike can't say enough good things about it and he's been through about the same brands of OD's as well.

Here's what I dug up on the SD forum post from a SD rep. Looks like the early 805 paperwork stated it had the original 808 chip(which was the JRC4558) but they went with the MC33178 when they went into production.

07-11-2014, 02:39 PM
Re: New Product: The Seymour Duncan 805 Overdrive

There was a bit of a mix-up on the chip used in the 805 Overdrive. Between the time we prepared our original materials and shipping our engineering time had found a superior chip theMC33178. After testing it was determined this chip had superior sonic characteristics along with a lower noise figure and longer battery life.

Sorry for the confusion and thanks for the review DreX

I bought the VFE Dragon from Mike, and couldn't figure out why he'd sell it, it's a kickers pedal. The 805 is one I've never tried, and hear many great things!

I liked the Dragon, but when compared against the 805 and a couple others I had at the time I preferred the others. The Dragon made my amps seem a bit too 'processed or maybe synthetic" sounding. IDK...hard to explain...Maybe it was just too modern/compressed and I like more of an organic/vintage crunch vibe

I liked the Dragon quite a bit overall, but felt similar about it sounding processed and filtered, but of the roughly 130 boosts I’ve been through, the vast majority sound that way to some degree IMO. Most recent made pedals don’t have good tone imo. I kept 5 boost pedals and 3 of the 5 sound super organic to me with no semblance of that filtered pedal-like sound. The other 2 I can hear it a little bit, but still sound great. The vintage rack PQ’s I have make almost any other boost I’ve had obsolete. I’m curious about the 805 too. I think it’s literally the only boost I’ve ever heard mentioned on this forum that I’ve not yet tried except for recently released ones on my radar like the Wizard Leopard, KSR Eros and those new Mesa/Boogie ones like your gold mine

I hear ya...nature of the beast that pedals sound like...well...pedals I agree though that some sound more natural and I think the 805 and the Goldmine fit that bill for me...of course the amp/pedal combo is a big factor too. Both the aforementioned in front of the MCII just take it from an already raw, organic, open beast to a raw, organic, open raging ultra aggressive beast. The Dragon took the MCII to another level also, but definitely less gritty/crunchy/open and more compressed/modern/processed sounding. The Dragon made me feel like I was playing an Engl. Not necessarily a bad thing at all.

Yes the Dragon and Standout can be like that. I agree about the Engl analogy. The 3 pedals I have that sound natural and not pedal-like to me are my Thorpy Heavy Water, Silver Klon Centaur and Coppersound Broadway. The rack PQ’s sound in some ways even more natural and like an extension of the amp. My Furman PQ-3 and TC Electronic 1140 made most pedals I compared to sound like toys in comparison

Like with amps, the vintage pedals also sound more organic and warm. I actually sometimes find this difference to be even more the case with pedals than with amps, especially with fuzz pedals. Most fuzz pedals today sound awful compared to the good vintage ones

I think you either have to like what the pedals do, or you'd rather have the boost be as transparent as possible. The TC 1140 is the most transparent of all the pedals I've tried; the Cusack Screamer is also very transparent.
But, I really like the 'color' some pedals give the tone..the Boss pedals for one (MiJ SD1, OD1X) have a flavor that just works really well with my Marshalls. I think most guys are either one way or the other with pedals. Some HATE the fact that diodes are in their signal path, and only buy amps with enough tube gain for their needs.
I do feel though, that the 'processed' or colored aspect some pedals give will virtually disappear when you can push some serious air..at least that's my feeling with my amps when I boost and push the volume up.

The 1140 is also probably the most transparent of what I currently have. I definitely like what almost all boost pedals do (especially the 5 I kept) and use my Klon more than my rack PQ’s since I love its color and attack, but think that filtered/not as good tone I hear in most boosts I’ve had in the past is there at any volume and probably just a sign of not as good components. I’m also being a bit nit picky because really they pretty much all get the job done (if they pair well with the amp), but after countless AB comparison have 5 pedals and 3 rack PQ’s that I feel made the other ~130 pedals I had before obsolete. Also, everything we’ve said about the advantages vintage amps have over modern ones I feel maybe holds even more true with pedals than amps. Others may disagree, but the Klon and vintage tubescreamer I borrowed had a very organic tone and responsiveness that no modern pedal I’ve tried yet can match. If I didn’t have the Klon, I’d probably have kept many other pedals including some Boss’s probably. It’s very expensive (I paid $1550), but it sent packing way more than $1550 worth of pedals I went through before. That doesn’t justify it being worth that kinda coin, but it’s definitely something special imo

I have no problem at all with diodes from the pedal. If anything I’m a huge fan of the germanium ones, especially the ones in my Coppersound Broadway, Fulltone Custom Ranger and Thorpy Heavy Water. Those pedals rather than tightening or adding attack, make things bigger, spongier and more warm and growly. Amazing when going for that kinda sound and with the c+ is still plenty tight imo. The thorpy and Broadway I’m guessing must use better components than most current pedals because they don’t have that filtered/pedal-like sound as much

I agree with the vintage=better with everything I've tried; I feel vintage now is 20+yrs old or more. With my setup I'm using my 85 MIJ SD1 after the OD1X, so the SD colors the tone more IMO since it's last in line to the amp's input. I've had newer SD1s and there's more of an 'organic' or sweeter sound to the older MiJ versions. One of these days I'm gonna order the Thorpy Heavy Water...sounds like a cool pedal.

 

[braintheory]

Good man!

I hear things in this pedal that catch my ear differently that I like, I hear more clarity,more headroom, less compression, plus the 3 band EQ.

MetalheadMike can't say enough good things about it and he's been through about the same brands of OD's as well.

Here's what I dug up on the SD forum post from a SD rep. Looks like the early 805 paperwork stated it had the original 808 chip(which was the JRC4558) but they went with the MC33178 when they went into production.

07-11-2014, 02:39 PM
Re: New Product: The Seymour Duncan 805 Overdrive

There was a bit of a mix-up on the chip used in the 805 Overdrive. Between the time we prepared our original materials and shipping our engineering time had found a superior chip theMC33178. After testing it was determined this chip had superior sonic characteristics along with a lower noise figure and longer battery life.

Sorry for the confusion and thanks for the review DreX

I bought the VFE Dragon from Mike, and couldn't figure out why he'd sell it, it's a kickers pedal. The 805 is one I've never tried, and hear many great things!

I liked the Dragon, but when compared against the 805 and a couple others I had at the time I preferred the others. The Dragon made my amps seem a bit too 'processed or maybe synthetic" sounding. IDK...hard to explain...Maybe it was just too modern/compressed and I like more of an organic/vintage crunch vibe

I liked the Dragon quite a bit overall, but felt similar about it sounding processed and filtered, but of the roughly 130 boosts I’ve been through, the vast majority sound that way to some degree IMO. Most recent made pedals don’t have good tone imo. I kept 5 boost pedals and 3 of the 5 sound super organic to me with no semblance of that filtered pedal-like sound. The other 2 I can hear it a little bit, but still sound great. The vintage rack PQ’s I have make almost any other boost I’ve had obsolete. I’m curious about the 805 too. I think it’s literally the only boost I’ve ever heard mentioned on this forum that I’ve not yet tried except for recently released ones on my radar like the Wizard Leopard, KSR Eros and those new Mesa/Boogie ones like your gold mine

I hear ya...nature of the beast that pedals sound like...well...pedals I agree though that some sound more natural and I think the 805 and the Goldmine fit that bill for me...of course the amp/pedal combo is a big factor too. Both the aforementioned in front of the MCII just take it from an already raw, organic, open beast to a raw, organic, open raging ultra aggressive beast. The Dragon took the MCII to another level also, but definitely less gritty/crunchy/open and more compressed/modern/processed sounding. The Dragon made me feel like I was playing an Engl. Not necessarily a bad thing at all.

Yes the Dragon and Standout can be like that. I agree about the Engl analogy. The 3 pedals I have that sound natural and not pedal-like to me are my Thorpy Heavy Water, Silver Klon Centaur and Coppersound Broadway. The rack PQ’s sound in some ways even more natural and like an extension of the amp. My Furman PQ-3 and TC Electronic 1140 made most pedals I compared to sound like toys in comparison

Like with amps, the vintage pedals also sound more organic and warm. I actually sometimes find this difference to be even more the case with pedals than with amps, especially with fuzz pedals. Most fuzz pedals today sound awful compared to the good vintage ones

I think you either have to like what the pedals do, or you'd rather have the boost be as transparent as possible. The TC 1140 is the most transparent of all the pedals I've tried; the Cusack Screamer is also very transparent.
But, I really like the 'color' some pedals give the tone..the Boss pedals for one (MiJ SD1, OD1X) have a flavor that just works really well with my Marshalls. I think most guys are either one way or the other with pedals. Some HATE the fact that diodes are in their signal path, and only buy amps with enough tube gain for their needs.
I do feel though, that the 'processed' or colored aspect some pedals give will virtually disappear when you can push some serious air..at least that's my feeling with my amps when I boost and push the volume up.

The 1140 is also probably the most transparent of what I currently have. I definitely like what almost all boost pedals do (especially the 5 I kept) and use my Klon more than my rack PQ’s since I love its color and attack, but think that filtered/not as good tone I hear in most boosts I’ve had in the past is there at any volume and probably just a sign of not as good components. I’m also being a bit nit picky because really they pretty much all get the job done (if they pair well with the amp), but after countless AB comparison have 5 pedals and 3 rack PQ’s that I feel made the other ~130 pedals I had before obsolete. Also, everything we’ve said about the advantages vintage amps have over modern ones I feel maybe holds even more true with pedals than amps. Others may disagree, but the Klon and vintage tubescreamer I borrowed had a very organic tone and responsiveness that no modern pedal I’ve tried yet can match. If I didn’t have the Klon, I’d probably have kept many other pedals including some Boss’s probably. It’s very expensive (I paid $1550), but it sent packing way more than $1550 worth of pedals I went through before. That doesn’t justify it being worth that kinda coin, but it’s definitely something special imo

I have no problem at all with diodes from the pedal. If anything I’m a huge fan of the germanium ones, especially the ones in my Coppersound Broadway, Fulltone Custom Ranger and Thorpy Heavy Water. Those pedals rather than tightening or adding attack, make things bigger, spongier and more warm and growly. Amazing when going for that kinda sound and with the c+ is still plenty tight imo. The thorpy and Broadway I’m guessing must use better components than most current pedals because they don’t have that filtered/pedal-like sound as much

I agree with the vintage=better with everything I've tried; I feel vintage now is 20+yrs old or more. With my setup I'm using my 85 MIJ SD1 after the OD1X, so the SD colors the tone more IMO since it's last in line to the amp's input. I've had newer SD1s and there's more of an 'organic' or sweeter sound to the older MiJ versions. One of these days I'm gonna order the Thorpy Heavy Water...sounds like a cool pedal.

I had an MIJ SD1. Never tried the other versions. I liked it. The Thorpy Heavy Water is great, but I wouldn’t really recommend it you want more attack or tightness, but I love the color it adds. It’ll give some nice growl, warmth and texture and can give thick, cello like leads. I could dial in the 1140 to be close-ish, but not quite the same feel and not quite the same texture probably since the Heavy Water has those germanium diodes. That’s the one thing missing in the rack PQ’s. I heard they’d overheat if they were to have them in there

The only advantage I see with modern gear is if you’re looking for the absolute tightest sound possible or need a more homogenous, consistent sound. That’s where things like the Fishman Fluence pickups or Cameron CCV really excel. Here and there though you have some modern stuff that sounds great, unique and almost vintage in character like the Wizard’s, Gjika, the pedals I mentioned, Celestion Alnico Gold’s, Tone Specific Pickups, a few guitars here and there

 

[hammered]

I hope you guys like it! The Mesa Goldmine is another awesome OD. Have had it about a month and it's just killer.

That Goldmine had my interest . How is it a stand alone OD/Distortion pedal into a clean amp ? Is it better as a boost tone shaper ?

 

[MetalHeadMike]

I hope you guys like it! The Mesa Goldmine is another awesome OD. Have had it about a month and it's just killer.

That Goldmine had my interest . How is it a stand alone OD/Distortion pedal into a clean amp ? Is it better as a boost tone shaper ?

Not sure how it fairs into a clean amp stand alone, but as a boost it's killer. Not quite the attack as the 805 but very full and plenty tight.

 

[harddriver]

I finally got some quality time with the 805 running into my 1972 slightly modded 72 Marshall SL into my W/D/W today. Well.... I feel this pedal definitely sounds and feels more transparent with more clarity than my Maxon OD808 but there are times I like everything the Maxon does.

With the SD805 set as a traditional clean boost there is alot less compression on the notes and the lows are tighter, I can get it to pretty much sound and respond like when I use my GE7 to boost the amp but less hiss which is what I wanted. I didn't really think my Maxon OD808 gave that much compression to the tone but side by side with the 805 I definitely hear more compression or chewiness in the Maxon, it's not a a bad trait to have, just different.

I find I have the level just up over halfway, drive set to 0, bass straight up, mids straight up and the treble set about 1 oclock to mimic my GE7 and Vintage MXR 6band set to a flatter mid EQ boost(No Nasally mids), this provides a very transparent boost and has a nice crunchy natural attack to it.

The VFE merman(klon pedal) I had this lush compression to it that I liked but I didn't like it for alot of things, I felt it softened the feel too much, it was a really good boost pedal just not what I was looking for. While I still like my Maxon and Modded OD808/SD-1, I like what I heard from the SD805 today. I also think it edged out what I can remember of my Airis Savage Drive. So...........I'm not disappointed I got it.

 

[MetalHeadMike]

I finally got some quality time with the 805 running into my 1972 slightly modded 72 Marshall SL into my W/D/W today. Well.... I feel this pedal definitely sounds and feels more transparent with more clarity than my Maxon OD808 but there are times I like everything the Maxon does.

With the SD805 set as a traditional clean boost there is alot less compression on the notes and the lows are tighter, I can get it to pretty much sound and respond like when I use my GE7 to boost the amp but less hiss which is what I wanted. I didn't really think my Maxon OD808 gave that much compression to the tone but side by side with the 805 I definitely hear more compression or chewiness in the Maxon, it's not a a bad trait to have, just different.

I find I have the level just up over halfway, drive set to 0, bass straight up, mids straight up and the treble set about 1 oclock to mimic my GE7 and Vintage MXR 6band set to a flatter mid EQ boost(No Nasally mids), this provides a very transparent boost and has a nice crunchy natural attack to it.

The VFE merman(klon pedal) I had this lush compression to it that I liked but I didn't like it for alot of things, I felt it softened the feel too much, it was a really good boost pedal just not what I was looking for. While I still like my Maxon and Modded OD808/SD-1, I like what I heard from the SD805 today. I also think it edged out what I can remember of my Airis Savage Drive. So...........I'm not disappointed I got it.

Nice!

I set drive and level at noon, mids at 1-2 o'clock, bass at 3 o'clock, treble 1-2 o'clock and it turns the lead channel of my MCII into and absolute raging beast.

Open and crunchy are two words I find describe the 805 well.