Phil O'Keefe Posted August 10, 2005 Share Posted August 10, 2005 Anyone tried a Red Snapper? Or a Top Boost In A Box? Thoughts / impressions? http://www.menatone.com/new_menatone/pedals.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Seth Carmody Posted August 10, 2005 Members Share Posted August 10, 2005 The snapper is a Tubescreamer clone/type pedal, and a relatively good one from most accounts.The Top Boost is supposed to replicate the function/effect of the top boost on Voxes. It's been through several versions (a phenomenon that has led me to steer clear of Menatone). From memory the latest version (5 knob; 6 knob?) is the most desirable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members BR4D Posted August 10, 2005 Members Share Posted August 10, 2005 I've tried several. Very nice pedals in general, great build quality. I like the Red Snapper a lot. It's one of the better ones IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Seth Carmody Posted August 10, 2005 Members Share Posted August 10, 2005 I just noticed that you are a mod. We have a mod now? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil O'Keefe Posted August 10, 2005 Author Share Posted August 10, 2005 No sir... would you LIKE a mod? I'm a H-C nOOb, one of the Musicplayer transplants... I mod one of the recording forums. Feel free to come check it out if you have any recording questions. I was thinking a "introduce myself" thread might be in order, since I am "new" to the effects forum, but then I thought... how ghey is that... an introduction from a mod. But since you asked... Hi. My name is Phil O'Keefe. I'm a soon to be 43 year old professional producer / engineer / studio owner / musician. I've worked with a lot of unknown bands, and a few "names". I do some writing for EQ and GP magazines. I play several different instruments, but only on a so-so level - but that hasn't stopped me from playing on a lot of recordings. I've done a lot of alt CCM albums, some metal, a bit of jazz (check out http://www.julieday.org for some of my latest work there) and classical, some punk, rock and alternative... but my personal love is old fashoned powerpop. I've got about a dozen guitars and basses... some faves: '91 Ric 610, '94 Taylor 510, '89 Ibanez SR1100, '01 Epi Casino, '62 Strat, modded '95 Tele Special, Dan-O DC12... I've got three amps - a pair of Rivera era Fenders - a Princeton II that I "blueprinted" (all parts hand tested to a tolerance of +/-1%, GT NOS tubes, modded with a negative feedback kill switch and a DC heater mod for the tubes, re-covered in Blonde tolex / oxblood grille), and a monster modded Super Champ - EL34's in back and a moded AC15 front end. I also dig my THD UniValve - a great recording amp! As far as effects, I've got a few things... nothing special really. A TS-5 modded to 808 specs, a Soundtank compressor, a MM4 (modeling, but I like it), a LPB-1, an old RP6 (yuck!), a Dan-O Reel Echo (Terry Corso of Alien Ant Farm turned me on to those, and I really like it), a Dan-O Daddy-O, a Morley ABY switch and volume pedal, and just yesterday I bought a MXR Super Comp. I've got a few modeling hardware units - a Pod XT, Bass Pod (original series) and a J-Station... plus a ton of amp sim plug ins and effects in the computer. I'm primarily a PT user, although I also own Logic, Cubase SX, Vegas and Sonar Producer. I also have some outboard studio rack effects. I'm considering a few boutique pedals... I've dug what I've heard (demo sound clips) of the Mentatone Red Snapper and Howie and the Fulltone OCD... the Menatone "Top Boost In A Can" appeals to me on a conceptual level, but I have not heard it yet. Has anyone tried one? Anyway, there's the introduction. I hope you folks don't mind if I hang out here from time to time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ginnboonmiller Posted August 10, 2005 Members Share Posted August 10, 2005 Welcome. There's a few folks around here that worship Menatone beyond my ability to believe them. But I've never tried one of their pedals. Last time I was OD shopping, they were $15 over my self-imposed budget. But yeah, by all reports, everything Menatone puts out is pure gold. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil O'Keefe Posted August 10, 2005 Author Share Posted August 10, 2005 Thanks gin! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Leftside Posted August 10, 2005 Members Share Posted August 10, 2005 The red snapper isn't a TS clone at all, IMO. It has the ability to be set for clean boost or dirt, and it seems to enhance the natural breakup from your amp as opposed to giving you an artificial sounding overdrive... I have some clips but I don't know where to host them... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil O'Keefe Posted August 10, 2005 Author Share Posted August 10, 2005 Thanks Left... The red snapper isn't a TS clone at all, IMO. It has the ability to be set for clean boost or dirt, and it seems to enhance the natural breakup from your amp as opposed to giving you an artificial sounding overdrive... That's my understaing too. I already have a TS that I like, so I don't really need another TS type pedal. And since I like the natural tone of my amps, something like that, or maybe the OCD, would be good for me I think... but then again, for variety's sake, a Howie or TBIAC might be worthwhile investments too. I'm just considering options. Something that *I'll* dig is important, but some flexibility for various styles is also important - I record a lot of different things, and it would be nice to have some options available for the guys who come in with nothing but Arion OD pedals or whatever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Eddie Posted August 10, 2005 Members Share Posted August 10, 2005 Originally posted by Phil O'Keefe Anyone tried a Red Snapper? Or a Top Boost In A Box? Thoughts / impressions?http://www.menatone.com/new_menatone/pedals.html Hi Phil,I have not tried either of those. I had the Howie and Working Man's Blue a couple of years ago.In terms of tone, I think both were excellent pedals. I found them just a bit noisy. It was nothing major, and I don't think most people would be bothered with this. From what I understand, there have been some improvements in their pedal line. The bottom line is that in terms of tone Menatone pedals certainly deliver. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil O'Keefe Posted August 10, 2005 Author Share Posted August 10, 2005 Thanks Eddie - I appreciate the input! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members telepaul Posted August 10, 2005 Members Share Posted August 10, 2005 Honestly do a search at the Musictoyz forum for useful info on those pedals. There are several informative threads over there that'll be helpful. www.musictoyz.com Go into the forums and then into the "guitars, amps and forums" thread. Personally I really love the Workingman Blues and Red Snapper. The snapper has been the heart of my board for a few years; I recently converted to a Fish Factory (half of it is a Red Snapper half is a Blue Collar) since it gives you some more diversity...The Workingman's Blues is really like no other pedal I've ever heard. Very amp like. I like the new TBIAC more then the older model. For the right set up it can be perfect. It's a real "take it or leave it, love it or hate it" type of pedal. As is the Howie. Definitly not for everyone! I think the TBIAC-and most Menatones-work best through a cleanish Fender type of deal. I've waded through them all in my obsession and the Workingman Blues and Fish Factory are always on my board; I pop the new version of the TBIAC on there from time to time. But seriously. Search the Toyz forum because you'll get more useful info there.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil O'Keefe Posted August 10, 2005 Author Share Posted August 10, 2005 I'll check that site out - thanks for the suggestion. Since two of my amps are Fenders (I also have a Univalve), the TBIAC might work for me. I'm looking for max "Vox Vibe" - think "Paperback Writer", Byrds, Tom Petty, etc. If it can give me that, it would be a lot cheaper than getting an AC30... I liked the Howie clips on the Menatone site - very Steely Dan / Carlton in character, which is another sound I like sometimes. I'll have to consider the Fish Factory too... if it's not much more moolah, the extra flexibility of that (over a standard Red Snapper) might be useful. Thanks again for your suggestions! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil O'Keefe Posted August 10, 2005 Author Share Posted August 10, 2005 Burp... uh, excuse me. I mean, BUMP. Anyone own a TBIAC? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Chriss Posted August 10, 2005 Members Share Posted August 10, 2005 When I went shopping for another dirt pedal a few months back, I got a Fuzz Head, but my second choice was the Fish Factory. Excellent OD pedal! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Max Factor Posted August 10, 2005 Members Share Posted August 10, 2005 The TBIAC and the King of the Britains have been the core of my crunch for at least 3 years now. GREAT pedals. (and I hear the new ones might be even better.) since you mentioned it, the TBIAC is very tweakable, but I use it mostly when I need to sound like either: a) the rolling stones or b) u2/coldplay the best amp-in-a-box pedals I've ever tried. they work as advertised. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil O'Keefe Posted August 10, 2005 Author Share Posted August 10, 2005 Thanks Max... do you think I could get a "Paperback Writer" type tone with a TBIAC and a Univalve? Using my Casino of course. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil O'Keefe Posted August 11, 2005 Author Share Posted August 11, 2005 Bump... boy, things sure move fast on this forum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Fast Frets Posted August 11, 2005 Members Share Posted August 11, 2005 Welcome . . . I have no experience with the Menatones but I noticed your reference to the Fulltone OCB.. I must say that I love this pedal and I can never foresee a time that it would be off my board.. It is incredible with a little compression and can be improved when goosed by an overdrive such as the Fulltone FD2. Not that I am Mike Fuller sycophant, it sounds pretty good with a Keeley BD-2 as well. I just love this pedal's voicing and ability to drive the snot out of BF Fenders (especially the Vibro Champ, Deluxe reverb, and Pro Reverb). Once again , welcome to HCFX . . . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lowroadrevival Posted August 11, 2005 Members Share Posted August 11, 2005 Originally posted by Phil O'Keefe No sir... would you LIKE a mod? I'm a H-C nOOb, one of the Musicplayer transplants... I mod one of the recording forums. Feel free to come check it out if you have any recording questions. I was thinking a "introduce myself" thread might be in order, since I am "new" to the effects forum, but then I thought... how ghey is that... an introduction from a mod. But since you asked... Hi. My name is Phil O'Keefe. I'm a soon to be 43 year old professional producer / engineer / studio owner / musician. I've worked with a lot of unknown bands, and a few "names". I do some writing for EQ and GP magazines. I play several different instruments, but only on a so-so level - but that hasn't stopped me from playing on a lot of recordings. I've done a lot of alt CCM albums, some metal, a bit of jazz (check out http://www.julieday.org for some of my latest work there) and classical, some punk, rock and alternative... but my personal love is old fashoned powerpop. I've got about a dozen guitars and basses... some faves: '91 Ric 610, '94 Taylor 510, '89 Ibanez SR1100, '01 Epi Casino, '62 Strat, modded '95 Tele Special, Dan-O DC12... I've got three amps - a pair of Rivera era Fenders - a Princeton II that I "blueprinted" (all parts hand tested to a tolerance of +/-1%, GT NOS tubes, modded with a negative feedback kill switch and a DC heater mod for the tubes, re-covered in Blonde tolex / oxblood grille), and a monster modded Super Champ - EL34's in back and a moded AC15 front end. I also dig my THD UniValve - a great recording amp! As far as effects, I've got a few things... nothing special really. A TS-5 modded to 808 specs, a Soundtank compressor, a MM4 (modeling, but I like it), a LPB-1, an old RP6 (yuck!), a Dan-O Reel Echo (Terry Corso of Alien Ant Farm turned me on to those, and I really like it), a Dan-O Daddy-O, a Morley ABY switch and volume pedal, and just yesterday I bought a MXR Super Comp. I've got a few modeling hardware units - a Pod XT, Bass Pod (original series) and a J-Station... plus a ton of amp sim plug ins and effects in the computer. I'm primarily a PT user, although I also own Logic, Cubase SX, Vegas and Sonar Producer. I also have some outboard studio rack effects. I'm considering a few boutique pedals... I've dug what I've heard (demo sound clips) of the Mentatone Red Snapper and Howie and the Fulltone OCD... the Menatone "Top Boost In A Can" appeals to me on a conceptual level, but I have not heard it yet. Has anyone tried one? Anyway, there's the introduction. I hope you folks don't mind if I hang out here from time to time. Why would we mind? Man...lemme tell you... RUN! You start sniffing around in the world of boutique effects and your wallet will be empty, your girl will leave you, and your dog will die. Hell you can write/produce a country song about that while your at it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members threm Posted August 11, 2005 Members Share Posted August 11, 2005 Originally posted by lowroadrevival Why would we mind?Man...lemme tell you... RUN!You start sniffing around in the world of boutique effects and your wallet will be empty, your girl will leave you, and your dog will die. Hell you can write/produce a country song about that while your at it. I believe Phil is a vet when it comes to dealing with GAS attacks.In my experience all kinds of recording gear, DAW stuff, rooms etc etc. can be just as bad as anything.But I agree, pedal gas is very addictive. We`re just talking about another $150 or so, and then another and then.... Btw Welcome Phil. The Vox Valvetone has a very british flavour with some great vibey and dry mid. Can be a little boxy with wrong amp but a believe the mod discussed below fixes this. Analogman writes on his site;"The Vox Valvetone V810 is a great sounding pedal with true bypass, discontinued in about 2000. They were made in China or Taiwan for VOX but they sound quite good stock. When we checked one out, we found they were using some excellent quality components, and the circuit was nearly a tube screamer as people expected." Don Butlers aka Toneman mods the Vox Valvetones "for better tone and warmth. Price $45.00"http://www.tone-man.com/effects.htmTonemans mod reviewed and discussed here.http://www.harmony-central.com/Effects/Data/ToneMan/Vox_Valve_Tone_Mod-01.htmlhttp://musictoyz.infopop.cc/eve/ubb.x?a=tpc&s=6476029571&f=4066066091&m=894107196 Another modder but I don`t know more than thathttp://home.att.net/~dtstechnicalservice/pedal_mods.html There`s one on ebay. Last one stopped at $81.http://cgi.ebay.com/Vox-V810-Valve-Tone-Distortion-Pedal-Rare-Works-Great_W0QQitemZ7342246723QQcategoryZ22669QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem Besides this site and Musictoyz the pedal forum on the Gearpage is the place for boutique pedals like Menatone.http://www.thegearpage.net/board/forumdisplay.php?forumid=4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members telepaul Posted August 11, 2005 Members Share Posted August 11, 2005 Yeah man-the new tbiac definitly will do that Paperback writer thing well; especially whe its run on 18 volts. The newer model has a sweeter, more refined od section to my ears. It can really nail that tone well through a cleanish fender. People run into problems with this pedal when they expect to/try to get to much gain out of it. It works best in light od/jangle type applications for sure. The normal side is a little problematic; its actually the Foxey brown pedal without tweakability of the stand alone model.It has a more muscular, rawer sound to it which is great for leads. I wish it had an independent volume pot and some more tonal flexability....But it's still a nice addition and I definitly think the new model "brilliant" side is a nice imporvement over the 5 knob purple version in how the gain has been sweetened and refined. Gd' luck! The Howie is odd. The newer model is also refined, sweeter gain, not as "grainy" or as "wide." If you can open the amp up it sounds good but it's also a "not for everyone" type of pedal that works best in subtle applications... FWIW-The Workingman Blues and Fish Factory and TBIAC are my favorites although I keep my stand alone foxey brown around as well 'cause it's a cool pedal to. Not as compressed as the TBIAC, a little rawer and more open. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members threm Posted August 11, 2005 Members Share Posted August 11, 2005 Is there any doubt who`s the Menatone guru around here? Telepaul, you`re looking for a Boomerang? Mike Nelson (mr boomerang himself) posted on the loopersdelight forum three weeks ago regarding a special offer on some rangs with a software bug. The bug is cleary defined and shouldn`t cause problems with the actual use of the looper, as some posts later in that thread verify.http://www.loopersdelight.com/LDarchive/200507/msg00358.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members badmuddy Posted August 11, 2005 Members Share Posted August 11, 2005 hey phil, welcome aboard (tfpic)! personally, i've found the menatone stuff to be hit & miss. if you're looking for a line of "boo-teek" ped's to "upgrade" your pedalboard to, you should really check out bjf electronics' line: http://www.custom-sounds.com/epages/customsounds.storefront/42fb87a203aaa1302741d94dcd0106ac you'll have to click each category of pedal-type to find all of bjorn's stuff (for instance, he has a compressor and a 'vibe, both to DIE for! and his sbEQ is the best eq ever put in a ped, if not the only good one...). each pedal of his excels at whatever it's meant to do, most sporting a "nature" knob that is one of the most effective tone pots i've yet to encounter on an od/dist/fuzz. btw, you'll find heaps of clips for most of the ped's in the line... ml Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil O'Keefe Posted August 11, 2005 Author Share Posted August 11, 2005 I believe Phil is a vet when it comes to dealing with GAS attacks. In my experience all kinds of recording gear, DAW stuff, rooms etc etc. can be just as bad as anything. Worse actually. Compared to plopping down five grand for a pair of nearfield monitors, or for a single mic, $200 for a boutique pedal is pocket change. Thanks for the very warm welcome everyone, and for all the great suggestions and input. I greatly appreciate it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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