Rig Rundown #1

I get a lot of questions both about what I use for my bass vi rig as well as what I have available for folks to use during recording sessions. So I figured I would do a series highlighting some pedals and gear. If there is interest, maybe I’ll do some videos down the road.

The Analog Man modded Boss DS-1. The ds-1 has been around for over 40 years for various reasons. It’s been used on countless records and I don’t think I know anyone who hasn’t owned one at some point. Most ppl tend to look at it as a beginner or cheap sounding distortion. It’s inexpensive, yes, but these things, like all boss pedals, are built like tanks. A factory ds-1 has a particular sound to it, though it can be dialed in to work in a variety of genres and playing styles. I feel like most ppl who trash on it, either are not dialing it in right, or are trying to get it to do things it’s not designed to do. If you are looking for any kind of classic aggressive guitar tone, it's not a bad place to start and plays very well with other pedals. I would use it for recording here and there but my ds-1 hasn’t been on my board in years. Not because it isn’t a useful pedal but because I simply needed other plates to work with. I was looking for a distortion to push my Klon v2 and I liked how they worked in tandem. However, the color wasn’t what I was looking for. So I sent my 20 year old ds-1 to the “Analog Man” workshop for the “Super Mod”, newer models have a “Pro” mod option as well which sounds great. The Super Mod was like taking the governor off the ds-1. The noise floor was lowered, the dynamics are more nuanced, the tone has a more plexi vibe while not sounding like its modeling. The sustain and saturation are where it really shines. I love using it for big chords and whole notes. The pedal definity still has a particular sound to it, which isn’t going to be right for everyone, on every song and that's ok. But when working with clients to find tones, this is always one I suggest.