Trower + Vibe

[Iceman53]

Built this for a friend, who is a Robin Trower fan. Trower (Tower) OD on the right, The Depths (Abyss) on the left. First time building either pedal. I'm happy with the sound of both.

 

[Feral Feline]

Cool abstract graphic.

 

[fig]

Been a long time crossing...
Bridge of Sighs

 

[Iceman53]

Cool abstract graphic.

Thanks. Its the Bridge of Sighs album cover

 

[Feral Feline]

Thanks, Iceman53.

I clued in after Fig’s post, and realised “Doh, I vaguely recall this!”

 

[Chuck D. Bones]

NIIIIIIIIIIICE! Good combo. The Photon Vibe is a good one too.

 

[Iceman53]

NIIIIIIIIIIICE! Good combo. The Photon Vibe is a good one too.

Thanks Chuck! Gonna build the Photon Vibe next.

 

[drew_t]

Does it sound like Robin Trower? Strangely enough, in every interview/rig rundown I've seen or read, he says he uses other Fulltone drive pedals, not the "Robin Trower Overdrive" one Fulltone makes (and which the PedalPCB "Tower" is a copy of).

 

[Iceman53]

Does it sound like Robin Trower? Strangely enough, in every interview/rig rundown I've seen or read, he says he uses other Fulltone drive pedals, not the "Robin Trower Overdrive" one Fulltone makes (and which the PedalPCB "Tower" is a copy of).

It's very close, and you can get Trower-like tones from the pedal, with the right pickups. Strats with single coil pickups sound best (maybe obvoiusly). We found that some Strats work better than others to get the Trower sound - different wood, pickups, etc. Humbuckers - ain't gonna get you there, unless maybe they're tapped or split. We have not tried that. So, it's the right combination of... a bunch of things (as usual). Looking at the circuit, it's basically a Tube Screamer with a few changes in the clipping amp, and, probably not as important, the omission of the bypass switching circuit and the input buffer. Adding the Vibe will get you into the Bridge of Sighs area, but the Abyss settings are a little touchy. There's probably a better vibe pedal option, like the Photon, like Chuck mentioned, and others have stated.