Overdrive Pedal Archives - Page 2 of 2 - Guitar GASGuitar GAS

Okay, if you can endure reading my reviews for too long you may get the hint I love Pink Floyd and David Gilmour which, I know, is a bias and may colour my reviews. So that said, I now want to look at some of the Hiwatt products.

The Hiwatt Tube Overdrive Pedal

So today I am going to look at the Hiwatt Tube Overdrive pedal, which arrived in a UK flag emblazoned box and opens to reveal a nice shiny black affair that would score highly on aesthetics alone. Hiwatt definitely have that distinct black with white logo that looks fantastic and usually are built quite well.

Hiwatt now has factories that produce some of their lower cost products (such as the T10/T20/T40 amp range and pedals) in China. Now psychologically this is a turn off for some, but as I have mentioned before, quite often it is a ‘mind’ obstacle as the pedal sound quality is as good as anything I have played.

In fact this sounds way better than the Butler Tube OD I used to own (although that OD pedal is very picky on what amp sounds good with it). Hiwatt are known for being concerned about their reputation and quality control.

So now to the pedal itself, besides being black n sexy, it is powered by an 18volt adapter which comes with the pedal so the tube inside is not too starved which can make them sound thin and wimpy.

HIWATT CUSTOM TUBE OVERDRIVE

$175.05
End Date: Saturday Dec-22-2018 19:23:01 PST
Buy It Now for only: $175.05
Buy It Now | Add to watch list

Continue reading →

In short, Small, Classic Sexy Styling and made with High Grade Components pretty much sums up my MI Audio Blues Pro Overdrive Pedal Review.

Enclosed in an MXR size steel casing, the Blues Pro is lovingly finished in a matt, deep marine colored blue and completed with vintage style white chicken head knobs and Fender style script (versions vary, this review is of V.3). Technically, the Blues Pro features the classic JRC4558D chip, which produces double the gain of a typical tube screamer, asymmetrical clipping and upgraded caps throughout, for up to 25v for large headroom, which is a nice feature in itself.

Straight out of the box, this pedal looks great, perhaps it is the cool blue color (cool in both meanings of the word), it just looks like it will produce great overdrive, and it does, but before we examine the tone, let’s have a brief look at the company and their product history.

MI Audio was started in 2002 by Michael Ibrahim, Michael has always been interested in quality musical electronics and it shows, who started making the popular ‘Tube Zone’ overdrive from his garage, that was until his products became popular. The Blues Pro pedal was introduced a few years later and has been a popular seller ever since. Even Guitar Pro Shop in the USA demos his pedals with the now famous ‘Andy’ @ PGS demoing it.

Here’s Andy’s vid….

MI AUDIO BLUES PRO

$69.95
End Date: Friday Jan-4-2019 8:21:06 PST
Buy It Now for only: $69.95
Buy It Now | Add to watch list

Okay now for the tones!! Continue reading →