FrankenFretter
September 8th, 2009, 07:24 AM
I just picked up a BBE AM64 pedal at Guitar Center for $29.99. I was at the counter, ready to pay for my $5 strap, and it caught my eye. Although I knew nothing about the pedal itself, I love my BBE Boosta Grande, and for 30 bucks it seemed like a fairly cheap risk to take.
The pedal sounds quite good. The AM in the title apparently stands for American Metal, according to a reviewer on HC. Makes sense to me. The three controls, Gain, Tone and Level are all very reponsive, the Level being the least responsive of the three. The tone is especially sensitive, and anything past about 12 O' Clock sounds far too thin to me. According to the manual, the tone is midrange boost/cut. I prefer it at about 9 O' Clock, or maybe 10 if I want a little more edge. The Gain is typical, no real surprises. I tend to keep somewhere between 12 O' Clock and max.
I used my Tube Screamer as an A\B comparison tool, and the AM64 is definitely what it claims to be, a distortion pedal, not an overdrive. I had been using a Digitech Hot Rod distortion, but I much prefer the AM64. I'm not sure how "metal" it really is, but it's a sturdy metal case, true bypass, and it sounds great. Well worth what I paid and more.
-Sean
The pedal sounds quite good. The AM in the title apparently stands for American Metal, according to a reviewer on HC. Makes sense to me. The three controls, Gain, Tone and Level are all very reponsive, the Level being the least responsive of the three. The tone is especially sensitive, and anything past about 12 O' Clock sounds far too thin to me. According to the manual, the tone is midrange boost/cut. I prefer it at about 9 O' Clock, or maybe 10 if I want a little more edge. The Gain is typical, no real surprises. I tend to keep somewhere between 12 O' Clock and max.
I used my Tube Screamer as an A\B comparison tool, and the AM64 is definitely what it claims to be, a distortion pedal, not an overdrive. I had been using a Digitech Hot Rod distortion, but I much prefer the AM64. I'm not sure how "metal" it really is, but it's a sturdy metal case, true bypass, and it sounds great. Well worth what I paid and more.
-Sean