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My second GuitarPCB pedal, Metal Godz, is complete!! This was a full kit from SmallBear Electronics. No major mistakes on my part this time, just a few quirks… the holes for the input/output jacks were too low, and a Schottky diode was missing, so I just ordered one (well, 100) from Amazon. Anyone need one?? lol…
I played with it for a little bit, and it sound pretty freaking amazing! But I still have to learn what all the controls can do.
I’m not sure if I’ll do another pedal, only due to the fact that I don’t need another right now (that’s what they all say…).
Excellent job! Thanks for sharing.
Be sure to let Small Bear know about the jack holes placement.
As far as the controls, the ones on the left are pretty self-explanatory since that is the Marshall amplifier preamp. Find a Gain setting that works for you both on its own and in tandem with the Rangemaster.
The Rangemaster isn’t just a boost, although it certainly can be used that way. Using it in tandem with the amp, the way so many NWOBHM players did, is where the magic happens. They used the Rangemaster to get more out of their “always-on” tone because they couldn’t turn their amps up loud enough to get that great tone in smaller venues.
As for the Rangemaster side, it’s a little more robust than a standard Rangemaster:
Boost: This is your Level control.
Heat: I personally run this full up, but dial it in to your liking. This controls the saturation.
Range: This controls how much of the frequency range you allow through. A stock Rangemaster was very bright. With this version, you can rotate the control to add more bottom end.
At one extreme, you have the standard bright Rangemaster sound. In the middle, you’re in the territory of a Tony Iommi-modded Rangemaster. At the other extreme, you’re allowing the full frequency range through.
Personally, I like the Iommi-to-stock range because it really cuts through the mix.
Play them however you like, but if you’re going for that NWOBHM sound, run them in tandem and start with the ORDER switch flipped to point to the Rangemaster side. That places the Rangemaster first just like they were used by the Metal Godz.
Great explanation! Thanks!!!! I did notice it had a Marshall-ly tone to it, and the Boost really opened it up. I have 3 guitars to test… one with super hot Guitar Madness pickups, a Slash clone with an actual Seymour Duncan Slash set, and a Les Paul copy with a T-Top from Brandonwound.
The order switch is very important.
When you flip the switch toward the Rangemaster side that allows the Rangemaster to push the Marshall preamp.
If you flip the switch toward the Marshall side that places the Rangemaster after the Marshall so it can function more as a Volume Boost than a Saturator.
That is why you get a lot of Bang for your Buck with Dual Combos.
Also there are many “Singles” I can immediately think of to fill out your tone in a natural, analog way.
Nice work! The best part of this hobby for me is plugging in a new build and playing with the pedal. I have to try every combination I can think of with other pedals. The same with settings, it’s true most pedals don’t sound great all dimed out, but there is some magic in gain stacking. I’m always looking for another formula, please add in by letting us know what guitar and amp you think worked best to get your sound.
I did a total upgrade to my gear over the summer, even though my gigging days are WAY past me now. But I jam with my son, so it’s all worth it. I’ll attach a picture of my amp/cabinet, and my existing pedal board (I may need a bigger one… lol….)
That is a nice setup. I love my DSL40. I also have a Peavey lunchbox that is fantastic, and I often use the clean channel or the effects loop return when hooking up preamps for making demos, since that bypasses the Peavey preamp so I’m not running two different preamps in series. The Strobostomp is also the best. And the EQ is a vastly underrated item. I love the Echoplex delay as well.
You may need a slightly larger pedal board, agreed. If I wanted to try to make everything fit, though, my suggestion would be to move the Wah off the pedal board. Since it is always first in the chain, you can leave it off the board and save that space for standard-size pedals. I just keep a 16″ patch cable connected from my Strobostomp to the Wah sitting off the board.
I would also be interested in trying the Noise Killer in the DSL1’s effects loop. That could free up even more space on the board.
Just doing those couple of things, along with a little maneuvering of your newly freed-up space, you may have enough room on your current board for both new additions.
Just some thoughts at a glance.
Agree with all of that. I was trying to keep the wah on the board, but it would be better to move it. I don’t really think I need the Crunch Red anymore either, since the Zoso and Godz pretty much do what that does.
I don’t mind moving the Noise Killer to the loop. The way I set up the board is the top row goes to the loop, and the bottom goes into the front of the amp. Where do you think would be a good place for the Killer in the loop?
I have never used a Noise Suppression device on a permanent basis, but I would try putting the Noise Killer first in that row, right after the FX Send and before the EQ. That way the gate is getting the signal coming out of the amp’s preamp, where a lot of the hiss/noise from your amp and pedal gain setup can originate. Then you can run the EQ, Echoplex, Reverb, and Chorus after the gate and return the last pedal to the amp’s FX Return. That also keeps the reverb, delay, and chorus tails from being abruptly chopped off by the gate.
As for the Guitar-through-amp input row, my thought would be to start with the Wah, Compressor, then the Metal Godz. That way you will be able to use the Rangemaster in tandem with everything downstream from it. So not only is the Rangemaster good for the Metal Godz pedal, it will also be good for the Zoso Tone and whatever else before going straight into the DSL1.
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