Ah… it’s getting to the “Best of 2011” time of year. I’m always interested what items stood out for the year that is about to end. Always seems to create some good discussions, etc. I came across the Guitar World staff pick (by Paul Riario) Top 10 Effect Pedals of 2011. You can read the full article here.
Basically, he broke it down to the following:
1. Dunlop Cantrell JC95 Cry Baby
2. MXR Custom Badass ’78 Distortion
3. Electro-Harmonix Ravish Sitar
4. Eventide Space
5. Strymon Lex Rotary
6. Keeley Luna Overdrive
7. Caroline Guitar Company Wave Cannon
8. Wampler Hot Wired Brent Mason Overdrive/Distortion
9. Visual Sound Dual Tap Delay
10. Way Huge Green Rhino
The Cantrell wah has been brought up multiple times as being a great wah. I’ve seen it on a few Pedal Line Friday boards and I thought that was a solid pick.
It was also great to see Caroline Guitar Company’s Wave Cannon in there. We had the privilege to demo the Wave Cannon (and gave it away) a while back. Definitely a great pedal for sure.
I was slightly surprised to see the MXR Custom Badass ’78 Distortion. I’ve never played that pedal, but I often see mix reviews here. Some people love it while others.. not so much. Let me know your opinion of the ’78 distortion if you have it by commenting below.
I think Strymon is going to be showing up a lot on these lists to come. I have the Strymon BlueSky, and basically everything they put out is golden. I’ve never seen a complaint about Strymon.
A couple of pedals that I want to look into is the Keeley Luna Overdrive and the Wampler Hot Wired. Both of those pedals I’m not too familiar with.
The Electro-Harmonix Ravish Sitar is another one that people are interested, but I don’t see many people actually owning this pedal. I know it’s new, but may have limited applications for the masses. Again, let me know what you think.
The Visual Sound Dual Tap Delay is a pedal I want to check out re-al bad. All the demos of this are great. A very simple delay with complex ability.
Please let me know your thoughts about that list…. good, bad and the ugly
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13 years ago
I owned the Custom Badass Distortion for awhile…it was okay, but ultimately wasn’t better sounding (in my opinion) than a Keeley DS-1 I own. The new Badass Overdrive looks cool though. Also, I noticed theres a new Voodoo Lab Sparkle Drive Mod pedal that slipped in under the radar. Not seen much on that anywhere.
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13 years ago
I’ve had the ’78 Distortion for several months now and have yet to see it given a proper overview in any review or advert. The best way to describe the pedal is that it replicates the sounds of modded 70’s Marshall’s and Hiwatt’s. It evokes everything from Joe Walsh’s James Gang sound, to early ZZ Top, to Alex Lifeson’s sounds from about ‘Fly By Night’ through ‘Farewell To Kings’. Hell, if you push the treble range of the tone knob,(which is anywhere above 50%) it even gets the sounds heard on KISS albums throughout the 70’s.
It’s a tough pedal to really pigeonhole because it does a fairly wide range but it does hold true to a 70’s tone, as advertised. As one of several OD/Distortion pedals on my board, I will say that it is used the least but it is a nice option to have. No telling how long it will last but I have no plans on ditching it anytime soon. Certainly a well-made and good-sounding pedal, and a nice option for folks wanting something a bit different without spending boutique bucks.
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