John Mayer's "Second Overdrive" - Keeley BD-2/Bluesbreaker/Klon/Storm Comparison! 

Bluesbreaker + TS for me. Unreal.

This is one of THE BEST demos on RU-vid.

Thank you so much! After 15 years of chasing the WTLI Tone, you're the first to really nail it and show how it's done!

Thank you for this! I’ve been round and round on forums and FB/IG posts about these exact drives with a (new to me) D-Style amp we’ve seen in JM’s lineup. I have variations of these pedals of course but was so curious and you played through a very similar amp as I have and nailed the tones to help make my decision easier so thanks again! And also your playing is stellar! Dont sell yourself short, was perfect!

Thanks so much - Great comparison / no BS. I am in the camp of the blues breaker + TS 10. For my ear that is hitting the target. Thanks for not adding the comedy act that so many guitar players feel the need to add! Straight to the point with captions! Love it

Great Video! Best summary on John Mayer Overdrive tones on youtube! Congrats! Basically you have BD-2 for the trio era, BluesBreaker for the WTLI concert, Klon 2009+ and SD I believe 2019 or something! I personally like having tube screamer with both klon and bluesbreaker!

Hey man, great video. Extremely helpful. Thanks for your work!

Great demo! Keep up the good work. I used to use a snouse blackbox and a ts808… but then once I’d tried a tumnus I got a taste for the klon>ts style, which absolutely nails them ‘where the light is’ intros and solos (even though I’m sure there was no klon at that time) so yesterday I took delivery of a nordvang gravity, (which I also loved your demo of) and I’m looking forward to getting aquatinted with that!

I just got a JHS Morning Glory recently and stacked it with my TS9. Loved it!!

what a demo, really great quality, keep it up man!

Great tones! Soulful playing!!! Cool video!!

Blues breaker and TS 10 is the shit. Not just for Mayer. You could use that anywhere. It was a such a great sound.

closest JM tone in all of RU-vid! well done on the playing also. just perfect

Thank you for this objective comparison! My favorite is the Blues Breaker, the tone ist more glassy than the others.

I have been playing and seeking the glory for over thirty years. Have a small fortune in pedals but always keep a Keeley BD-2 at the front of my chain. Great pedals, great demo.

Great demo. Definitely the Bluesbreaker to my ears. Thank you

Not sure if i'm right about this, but when you start stacking TS10 with other pedals at 4:40, there's some kind of harmonic distortion, which happens to be common on any combination, so I wonder if it comes from the amp. That particular detail is, in my opinion, what makes JM guitar sound to be incredibly unique, and you are probably the only person I've heard nailing it so far. Good job.

great demo congratulations!!

I have a Centura, Snouse Blackbox, TS-mini, and regular Blues Driver and I agree that the Klon + TS combo is the best. I also actually quite like the Klon + BB tone.

awesome video!

this is what i needed to see the difference in style and tone of these pedals, in this demo, the BB is farsuperior, stacked with ts or alone

(In my opinion) Stand alone, the BB is lovely sounding. The Klon wins with the TS10 by far!!! Your playing is great tbh, I'd like to hear your A game if you weren't happy with this :p Also, I have purchased (and sold) 2 Keeley Bd2s, but I still kinda want one again. I seem to like the idea of it more than the pedal itself

When you got to the Belief part... Damn! The TS alone was awesome. But with the BB.. Tasty!

Interesting, the klon is darker than I expected.. Nice tones though! I'm loving the clean tone as well!

In my experience, Bluesbreaker style pedals tend to bloom around your note, where I feel the Klon makes you chew on the note. I like both of them. Great demo and spot on playing. You got the tone in your fingers and on the board!

AWESOME video man! Thanks for sharing. The BB1 is "THE" Gravity pedal imo (and I think it is the pedal the he used for recording Gravity in the Continuum album). It is my favourite of the bunch, for sure (also in combination with the TS). I do not share your harsh opinion on the BD-2 ;-) .I think it is a good pedal (not my favourite though), and that it nails the album version of WDYTIW (it was the pedal used by JM in that song). I have found the Solo Dallas Storm interesting. Finally, as you have proven, key issue is to back down the guitar volume to around 8.

Wow that old BluesBreaker really shows up some of the new stuff. Think the Klon combined with the TS10 is just midrange overkill! Really enjoyed this thanks 😊

Great video 👏. Thank you.

Incredible tones mate ! What are the pups on the strat ? I assume they are a great contributor to the tone too :) ?

Thanks for the video! Any chance you could say a few words about the strat that you're using? Pickups? Tone is spot on!

0:58 clean 1:36 Boss Blues Driver BD-2 1:51 Marshall Bluesbreaker 2:05 Klon Centaur 2:20 SoloDallas Storm

Great video. Did you only used the fourth position on the strat?

Very good video

where can i find that video of john asking someone to change the volume on the blues breaker ? thank you for doing such a detailed, well organized comaprison! your work is pure quality!

The Blues Driver was tested with gain at noon. Maybe for this application should be more like 9oclock. It works for me, also with TS at almost no gain. This demo shows why the BB is spot on for that sound.

A toss up between Bluesbreaker and Klon. At first I liked the Bluesbreaker, but as you progressed I was leaning toward the Klon. It probably would depend on the song being played. So I guess I would say I would have to have both on my board, which unfortunately I don't right now.

Bluesbreaker is just ON POINT!! By the way are all the ODs in front of the TS10 boosting it?

Thoughts on stacking order? How does it sound with TS10 first then the other pedals? Curious your signal chain opinion. Great video!

Sorry a question....in your tests the overdrives you try are set before or after the TS in the signal chain?

Love this! Curious, where did the footage at 2:56 come from? I’ve never seen that particular clip before

Great playing , for me it's the Klon , you are a great guitar player - I'd just enjoy listening you play through that . Thanks for sharing ! J...

What’s pickups in the strat and curious as to how you set your amp

What was that clip from where he asked for the BB volume up?

With the clip of John Mayer asking someone to turn the bluesbreaker up a bit, how do we know he wasn’t referring to the Marshall Bluesbreaker combo… which is a nickname for the old JCM45 (or whatever it was JTM/JCM 45 or 50)?

What are the settings on the Solodallas Storm pedal? Thanks

What speaker is on the that cab? Because the gain staging and filtering come from the pedals and head but the cab is definitely 80% responsible, if not more, for that sound

Plumes and Emerson Paramount for me. Love a transistor based drive!

Nice comparison. Most videos about John Mayer's tone just throw some pedals which he used on stage and affirm the tone is there. You, on the other hand, show the tone happening. The 50% volume part is also great. I have a Waza Craft Blues Driver and really don't know what to do with that pedal. Recently I discovered Mooer Blues Crab which is a decent copy in some aspects, but not the real thing, it lacks some dynamics perhaps. Dumble-style pedals are also interesting for getting JM's tone. I have a pedal called "Dumbler", which replicates some Dumble preamp features and shares similarities with Blues Breaker tone-wise. Is Blues Breaker the first Dumble-style pedal, although the manufacturer intended to make a Marshall Bluesbreaker emulation?

hello i have a question, what do i plug first into the amp, the bb or the ts

Great, informative video! Thanks I have the complete opposite take. I had the klon, bb, keeley bd2, and kot all at once to compare. Kept only the bd2. BB had really one useable sound, not a lot of volume. Klon was over hyped clean boost with a slight mid bump. Bd2 has volume to spare. Yes, it can be fizzy but you can easily dial it IMO

Great comparison, thanks! What were the amp settings here?

Love the bluesbreaker. I noticed you have the tone set at 9 o’clock on the bd-2. The klon and bluesbreaker tone are set past noon. Did the bd-2 not tolerate a higher tone setting for more clarity?

The blues breaker surprised me, sounds amazing

I'm a little confused, so please correct me if I'm wrong. But didn't John use the BD-2 as a TS9 alternative/replacement, rather than a pairing. So that you wouldn't be stacking the BD-2 on the TS9(hot trash), but rather stacking the Blues Breaker or Klon onto the BD-2 (like you did the TS9 in the video)? I guess I would say the BD-2 and TS9 were used as the dominant drive pedals, while the BB and Klon were accessory OD's?

Clean - BB, Klon, BD, SD TS10 solo - BB, Klon, SD, BD TS10 rhythm - BB, Klon, BD I think the Klon would beat BB with a band behind because of the mid hump.

If I could like this again I would!

what delay pedal did you use in this demo? :-)

Great vid! No talking or faux (wamp or joshy) comedy attempts. Thank you, thank you, THANKS !!!!

Which amp (and amo settings) and reverb are you using?

Blues Driver, tone below halfway, drive bang at noon (or ever so slightly below or above) put a good Compressor in front and use the guitar volume. Not necessarily Mayer sound, but for most other expressive applications is one of the best. It is a Boss pedal, but we are not tone snobs, are we?

EQ settings on the amp? Thanks!

The blues breaker is amazingly clear and pleasant. Agree on the blues driver. I think they sound fizzy and have a harsh edge.

Is the TS10 from Japan or Taiwan ?

super demo

The Blues Driver -> TS10 is kind of congested. The Bluesbreaker and Klon sound great into the TS10. I have a JHS Bonsai, as well as a Ceriatone Centura Klone. I might be getting a Bluesbreaker as well. Not particularly after Mayer tones (I'm more of a rock/metal guy), but the three pedals can get some pretty good drive going when stacked.

what's the title of the song intro?

I think the most important starting point is that you’re playing through the Two Rock. Without that you wouldn’t get anywhere near close.

Great!

the klon into ts is insane

Interesting; are we sure that in the clip of John asking to turn the volume up on the BB that he isn't referring to the Bluesbreaker amp that he supposedly used on the recordings? Awesome comparison!

Ts10 into others ? Or others into ts10? What was the ordee?

The solo dallas pedal definitely interests me.

This a really cool vid idea. Hate the BD2 hate. Although do hate the BD2 turned up. It’s also the best selling Boss pedal of all time. Also hate the Klon turned up and using it as a clean boost it sounds like every other boost out there, only it cost 5 grand.

What patch cables are you using?

What pickups are these?

Awesome demo as always my friend! Makes me regret selling my BluesBreaker LOL

gracias!!!!!!!👌👏👏👏👏👏

What strat that is ?

Ts10 + blues breaker is the best tone for that Belief intro from WTLI In my humble opinion

I've owned an original silver Klon Centaur, Boss Blues Driver, but not the solo Dallas or Blues Breaker. From the tones I'm hearing in THIS video, NO other combination of this group of pedals can touch the TS-10 and the Blues Breaker.

personally i have a boss bd2 stock.. But if I stack other pedals with that I go in reverse.. I stack a midrange boost like a tubescreamer/sd1 with gain set fairly low (just like your 11 oclock gain setting on the TS10) going to a stock boss blues driver with gain just shy of noon, tone just like your settings, ,, I am not sure if John Mayer in the trio work would stack the bd2 into his ibanez ts808. ,, I think he used the katana boost to boost his tubescreamer or bd2 if he wanted more gain and volume..

Really wanted to hear the BB into the klon.

Tube screamer must be used with a Fender type amp, its way too Middle heavy and i cant use it with my British amps , would you agree ?

1:50 BB Vol 10 3:12 BB Vol 7 4:53 BB Belief Intro

and the winner is ... TWO ROCK !!!

Bluesbreaker 👏👏

Get the BD-2w Waza i swear you'll love it!

Blues driver works really great with my Friedman. But I prefer more bottom end. Thicker tone. I’ll use the tube screamer to raise the mids.

dammit, now I need a blues breaker 😭

Nice Video. I hope everyone understands this is utterly hopeless when using humbuckers :D ... These pedals shine most with a Strat IMHO. Especially the TS adds mid fatness that is problematic with a humbucker guitar.

🔥👏

BB 1:51 Klon 2:05

Bluesbreaker all the way.👍🏼

Could anyone help me a bit? I have a BD-2 (Keeley), a Klon KTR and a Boss OD-1... what do you think would be the best combo? Is the BD-2 considered a "Bluesbreaker-type" pedal? I've heard BB-type pedals into Klons are straight $$$. I know ultimately it's up to me to try and figure out, but would love some opinions!

Is that a genuine Klon

what do you think of the ehx soul food as a budget replacement of the klon?

It’s weird how this video makes me like the klon the least but I know that’s not how I really feel when I play through my rig lol

Haha I wouldn't say the Blues Driver is hot trash, but I think despite its name, it's better suited as a full range overdrive(dare I say even with the risk of being crucified - *transparent* - in the right context and settings😂) for more chordal stuff rather than for these types of leads. People (including John Mayer) have been using it for that forever tho so it obviously can do it, but I agree 100% at least on your board that the Bluesbreaker suits the playing in this clip much more, and I don't think that would be an outlying result. EDIT: btw these tones are sick

If you have dark sounding guitar/amp, the klon probably isn't for you. I have a clone of it but then ditch it in less than a month. It sounds exactly like in this video. Not as transparent as it's marketed. It has mid hump and rolled of high end. I replaced it with KOT (bluesbreaker circuit). It's perfect. It will stay on my board forever.

KLON into TS followed by BB into TS