birv2
May 3rd, 2009, 04:08 PM
I ordered this mod, against Monte's advice. I had never used a soldering iron and asked him if this would be too hard for a beginner. To his credit, he said it would be way too hard, since it's one of his most difficult mods. However, I enlisted the help of a friend, a former amp tech and electronics guy.
Anyway, I learned how to solder and unsolder and even did the switches, though my friend drilled the holes. I'm stoked and ready to do some more. It's a tossup between the DS1 and the CS3 for next mod.
I've only played the new pedal a few hours, but all I can say is WOW. First, it sounds great on every setting I tried. Second, it is so versatile that it will take me weeks to really learn what it can do. I love the 2 switches -- the 2X (doubles the gain and presence) is something I'll probably just leave on, and the clipping switch (goes between symmetrical and asymmetrical) helps me keep that aggressive tone the stock SD1 had but also use the smoother Ibanez clipping on this pedal as well. It works great as a boost too. I play blues, and my Jimmie Vaughan strat sounds great through this into my Pro Junior: everything from almost clean to near distortion, smooth, aggressive, great note definition... all the things he promised on his website are all there! Since I play mostly at blues jams, I need a grab and go pedal for quick setup, and this one just rocketed to the top of the list.
Just wanted to give some public props to Monte and his mod, and thanks to my friend Mike for walking me through the first one. I'm definitely looking forward to the next one.
A very satisfied new customer,
Bob
Anyway, I learned how to solder and unsolder and even did the switches, though my friend drilled the holes. I'm stoked and ready to do some more. It's a tossup between the DS1 and the CS3 for next mod.
I've only played the new pedal a few hours, but all I can say is WOW. First, it sounds great on every setting I tried. Second, it is so versatile that it will take me weeks to really learn what it can do. I love the 2 switches -- the 2X (doubles the gain and presence) is something I'll probably just leave on, and the clipping switch (goes between symmetrical and asymmetrical) helps me keep that aggressive tone the stock SD1 had but also use the smoother Ibanez clipping on this pedal as well. It works great as a boost too. I play blues, and my Jimmie Vaughan strat sounds great through this into my Pro Junior: everything from almost clean to near distortion, smooth, aggressive, great note definition... all the things he promised on his website are all there! Since I play mostly at blues jams, I need a grab and go pedal for quick setup, and this one just rocketed to the top of the list.
Just wanted to give some public props to Monte and his mod, and thanks to my friend Mike for walking me through the first one. I'm definitely looking forward to the next one.
A very satisfied new customer,
Bob