Kia ora Kris, thanks for the demo. I'm glad they put the red LEDs as an option. I think these are often WAY underrated as a clipping option. I added them as a switchable option on a Bluesbreaker I built (no originals were harmed ... etc.) and it quickly became my go to setting. It certainly boosted the pedal volume but it also opened up the sound considerably (I guess you are hearing more of the signal waveform before it clips) and gave it a lovely transparency when you are driving it hard. I also tried blue LEDs (higher forward voltage and less clipping) but they just made it too clean to my ears.
Thank you for demoing the diff diodes at LESS THAN full gain! I never use my various Klones with that much gain. Do i still want one, though? Yes. Even though I have an Archer, Archer iKon, and Rockaway Archer? Yeah. Ha. Love the Klon circuit. And love the Archer.
What have we learned. That maybe Bill Finnegan was probably clever person, who carred and went long way to select the right components for his circuit (even as not Klon fan myself).
99% of all classic pedals were made by amateurs. Guys that loved making pedals and once they had enough skills they improved on them with trial and error. Many Fuzz pedals only used 7 parts in the circuit so it isn't rocket science. A famous artist knew intuitively what looks great on his painting An artist that expresses himself through sound and makes pedals knows what sounds great. Ol' Bill was an artist not a tech. It was countless hours even days and days of trial and error for each part.
I had so many daft comments regarding the title but the. I thought nah let’s just watch Yeah I forgot all those and enjoyed the video Thanks Kris Please be sensible and don’t catch Covid ( like me , again!!) , it really eats into your playing time
Great test! Concerning differences between 1N34 diodes - some could be Si Schottky instead of Ge. Their characteristics are similar, but Schottky sound litle bit sharper. The secret of Klon is - that part of distortion is from OP AMP self. I guess this is the case of LED selection because LED clipping is on very high level comparing all other diodes.
It is a gouge at $330. You can buy an all you need Klon with the original NOS diodes the Harby Pedals Centauri for $150.00 USD What I hear from the extras are 2nd rate sounds you are better getting from another pedal. The basic topography of a Klon for the dirt is an OpAmp hardclipper. In otherwards get a Harby and a Boss SD-1 or a Tube Screamer with the same budget.you then have two distinct quality sounds. The big deal with a Klon is the boost part is only the diodes used for the boost circuit of the pedal. At about 9 O'clock it is on it's own then the dirt diodes come in and by 12 o'clock the boost drops out. Cloning the dirt part is easy. It is NOS boost diodes that matters.
This has made me take mine off reverb. I mean, I have 5 other clones lol. I'm going to give it a shot again. Resale on these suck. 330 new and I was selling mine for as low as 180 with the box and free shipping. Not even one offer. Insanity. Damn good pedal but I don't think people know how to really use it. I wish more people would check this one out ...Les Paul', strat, tele. Pretty thorough.
Love the gain structures in there, the line out is intriguing, especially for use WDW players who can always use another output to route to creative places.
Thank you for the review, Kris! I hear differences with the Les Paul better than with the Strat, which makes sense as it pushes the pedal even harder. In general, it sounds good on any diodes and I would expect that from a good pedal. What I would like to see in this world of Klon's clones is separate control knobs for gain and mix. I believe it will make those pedals much more versatile. Essentially, I would love to see T-Rex Møller with a Klon-style clipping stage. J. Rockett could do it for sure, just name it Archer Split ( :
Hi Kris, you make those vids really enjoyable. The different diodes sound quite similar with very subtle differencies. Funny enough, I was more attracted by the 1N34A to find out that it was the original Klon's germanium...! I really liked your Tele on the LED's. I've got a boost circuit on my VOX pathfinder with a couple of LED's: it's really a question of finding the right setting, as it can sound horrible or great depending how you set up volume and gain. Your part at the end with the Les Paul at high gain sounded great, on all clippings. I have my faithful CmatMods Supersigna that I use as a goto OD/Boost and the dozens of OD's I have purchased, even the expensive ones, an re-sold did not compare favourably to it. It's got a 3 band EQ, a separate boost and a 3 way toggle switch that allows LED, Open or silicone clipping, ending in a vintage or modern style, depending on the gain and volume setting. So, personally, this is my holy grail, desert island pedal allowing me to find the tone I have in my head with just a few tweaks. The Archer Select is certainly, as you demonstrated, a very good sounding and versatile pedal but if I'd have to choose, I would rather choose the "normal" Archer, rather than one with all the bells & whistles. For me, the question does not even appear, as I have found my OD tone pedal and I've quit the never-ending search... Cheers Kris: keep on those great vids coming !
A possible reason why the 1N34A diode is considered to be the "magic" diode on this pedal is not because of the diode itself, but because of the circuit that was adapted to work with it - resistors, capacitors, and especially the components that are in the loop of the op amp, etc. I don't know the circuit of the Archer Select, but if the rotary knob of the diodes does not change the capacitors and resistors, and if they designed the pedal circuit according to the original circuit, then it is clear why the 1N34A will sound the best and the most "Klony" on this pedal.
RED LEDs for me, thank you good bye :D But the D9B was also good. Otherwise, interesting studio tool. Funnily, Ive tried many Klon variants (not original, neither KTR), only to find out, I like Timmy better for that job.
Sounds fantastic bro...but I'm sticking with the girls i brought to the dance..my tumnus deluxe and my warm audio centavo are all the klonny kloniness you could ever klon for. Klon. Klonny klon..😅😂❤
@@PooNinja luv ya dudes! Thanks a lot. I’m not craving for millions though. I much prefer having likeminded people around instead of a huge group of whateverwhat. 😆
Klons do not pass any signal through the diodes in the first ca. third of the gain knob. It‘s just a clean boost. Naturally you won‘t hear any difference in tone.
Kris a tech question if I may I have a guitar that’s very nasal ( like a cocked wah) It does however play like a dream and feel good So I changed the pickups .. no big change My question is ( it’s HSS coil split 5 way) Am I looking at changing the tone capacitor or tone pot or both? Any suggestions would be gratefully received Thanks Kris 🙏👍👍
That’s a very good question actually. Much more after market parts will fit on a MIM Fender so I‘d recommend that for easier modding. On a squier most pickguards, bridges, tuners etc. won‘t fit unless you are not afraid of some serious wood working. 👍
@@KrisBarocsi wow id never thought you would reply :O thanks alot dude! I really appreciate the effort you put out there, inspired to mod my harley benton with some emgs but ive always been jealous of your strat so I really wanna give it a serious try myself :D Keep rockin!
what I have learned from watching reviews on this pedal... is that guitar players are not very smart.... no sh*% you won't hear a difference in the clipping options if you do not turn the gain up... smh... if you don't have the gain up past noon... there is no signal there to clip.... society has failed...
