My first pedal mod -- Allums SD-1 GT Mod

[birv2]

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

[duhvoodooman***]

I've done two Allums kits and both were very well done kits (esp. the instructions) and had a very positive effect.

[mrmudcat]

I also have monte moddded pedals !! I know him and or have got some of his modded pedals ......we met at of all places the crossroads church.....long ago 10+ years!!!

His stuff is top notch and so is he!!:

[birv2]

Has anyone done either the CS3 or the DS1 mod? I'm trying to decide which one to do next.

Yes, Monte's a great person to deal with. And the mod sounds great. Hard to beat that!

[duhvoodooman***]

Has anyone done either the CS3 or the DS1 mod? I'm trying to decide which one to do next.

Yes, Monte's a great person to deal with. And the mod sounds great. Hard to beat that!

I did the DS-1 mod, and sold the pedal to Mudcat. So I'll let him comment on how it sounds.

I bought a used DS-1 on eBay expressly for the purpose of doing the Allums Rectifier Tri-Gain Plus mod, so that I could check out one of the Allums kits. As mentioned above, it's a first-rate kit with great instructons. I can tell you I found out right away that I'm no DS-1 fan. The stock pedal sounded harsh and fizzy to me--didn't care for it at all. From what I've read, DS-1's seem to be one of those pedals that you either love or hate. Put me down for "hate". That said, the Allums mod improved its tone greatly. Still not my favorite distortion pedal, but certainly useful with some nice tones on tap. The mod got rid of most of the harsh top end and improved the clarity and note articulation noticeably. But I decided I didn't really need it along with my Rabid Rodent modified Rat clone and my Marshall Guv'nor Plus, so I sold it....

[mrmudcat]

I like the pedal alot more than my new stock one which I gave to childbride(not bad stock for strats/teles) I love strats/teles run through it the most ! I leave out all the usual adj. descriptions Ill say it is nice though and a major improvement

[birv2]

I like the pedal alot more than my new stock one which I gave to childbride(not bad stock for strats/teles) I love strats/teles run through it the most ! I leave out all the usual adj. descriptions Ill say it is nice though and a major improvement

What are the usual adjectives/descriptions? I play a Strat and would like something with more than overdrive, which is why I bought the stock pedal.

[mrmudcat]

Well first it is alot SMOOTHER .It is not as HARSH OR BRASH as stock.The mod adds alot more options.It does improve CLARITY and seems to ARTICULATE the notes better.I think you will like the tonal choices with this kit over a stock ds1.,:

[alarmaroja]

Anyone has something recorded with this MOD??

[alarmaroja]

I forgot to tell... I play with 2 Ibanez St-50 one made in 1979 and other St-50 made 1980 both Japanese Original and with their original V2 humbuckers (pre-super distortion, and legal issues between diMarzio and Ibanez), I also play with a Gibson SG Special Ferrari Red from 2000, a squier Telecaster Standard egg yellow- maple and the last one is a Ibanez Gio with a Paf pro on the neck and a SuperDistortion in the bridge. My amps are a Marshall AVT 50 with tubes in the pre amp section and this new VHT .Special 6 Ultra. Also I hace a few pedals and of course more to come. Music styles blues, hard rock, metal (old things from van halen and black sabbath, Metallica and so on. At this time playing a lot bluesy stuff and thats why This MOD becames something like a Must have.

Have Fun tweaking things around

[bcdon***]

Welcome aboard, Alarmaroja.