Your best and worst pedal hot takes? 🔥

[Erik S]

I built a Tommy/ Timmy and I hate it.

I like Belton Brick reverbs.

I don't care where unity is on the dial as long as it's there somewhere.

I don't know if distortions should have no tone controls, but I think it's cool when the controls on a drive pedal have a limited range. I don't think tone controls need to extend to unusable in both directions.

You’re the designer, I’m paying for YOUR take. Take some initiative and just use the diodes YOU think sound best

This.
I also won't go to a restaurant and get that fajita spread where they throw a pile of ingredients at you and you need to make your own dinner.

 

[Harry Klippton]

@Robert can we get the clown react back?

 

[benny_profane]

The "doom" amp-in-a-box is silly. "Doom" amps are basically old, dark jazz amps that get tremendously loud without breaking up. None of that is recreated in a pedal.

 

[Aentons]

I agree with you about the diodes. It’s the bare minimum you can do to alter a pedal and rarely are there multiple options where I think to myself “wow I’m glad I have germanium clipping but I’m feeling a little LED-ish today”. You’re the designer, I’m paying for YOUR take. Take some initiative and just use the diodes YOU think sound best

Hey, I take my clipping options seriously....

If we could just have a variable amount of fv and slope with a regular pot, we wouldn't need the big clunky switches and multi position rotary pots.

I like options and mods. Just go buy the regular pedal if you want someone else's take on it

 

[jesuscrisp]

I think the implementation of most clean blends for bass absolutely suck.

Clean blends for guitar are an absolute godsend if you are gain stacking. Best way to do the HM-2 thing imo is to blend it before a more focused distortion/overdrive. I don’t care what entombed/at the gates did, it sounds better this way

Here I'd say again it depends on implementation and specifics, both on guitar and bass.
I'm sort of split on the topic because most clean blends in the DIY and small boutique worlds are implemented in an amateurish way, namely the buff/split'n'blend style ones and even some that use a proper mixing amplifier stages (e.g. Gladio SC, Moonshine, Sparkle Drive) often manage to do it in the most inefficient and stupid ways possible.
On up to medium gain drive pedals that go basically clean anyway, there's no reason to have more clean signal coming through than drive, just get a clean boost. That's why I like the one on the Gladio for example (although I did make a thread about simplifying it for the sake of not wasting 2 whole dual ICs), because it ADDS clean tone to your drive instead of panning.
With the HM-2 I get that blending it in a bit can be cool, but then I'd argue you might as well try an EQ blend with a less noisy and flubby gain stage instead.
And generally I prefer if the clean path gets some amplification, so it actually can keep up with the dirty path while also being able to actually push whatever is coming after it.

 

[sticky1138]

Overdrive from a good pedal is in many cases better than overdrive from a tube amp

 

[BuddytheReow]

More knobs doesn't mean better

 

[finebyfine]

Ugly pedals sound bad

 

[BuddytheReow]

More knobs doesn't mean better

but all one knobbers need more knobs

 

[Aentons]

More knobs doesn't mean better

But it does mean it has more potential to be better

 

[Harry Klippton]

Ugly pedals sound bad

Is it a hot take if it's a universal truth?

 

[jesuscrisp]

But it does mean it has more potential to be better

Or more potential to dual it in to sound shit

 

[Harry Klippton]

Pedals are only good or cool if I make them.

 

[chris.knudson]

More knobs doesn't mean better

Maybe not, but they look cool!

 

[Aentons]

Ugly pedals sound bad

Is it a hot take if it's a universal truth?

There are no ugly pedals

 

[spi]

too many knobs, switches or trim pots turn me off. Pedal designer should voice the pedal, not make the user do it.

 

[jwin615]

Distortion pedals should not have tone controls. That's what eq pedals are for.

+1 Having 7 tone controls in your signal path just means you have royal screwed the phased of your signal up. I wish more dirt pedal would just put a HPF/LPF combo pot. Center=no change, left sweep lower LPF knee frequency, right sweep raises HPF frequency. If you want to get fancy, pull up to a private a 2 pole filter or resonance.

• Clipping switches are mostly overrated when it comes to "versatility".

If clipping switches are implemented, add resistance to the lower Vf options so that all clipping options are level matched. You can't properly design gain stages for 3 different clipping levels, especially Ge to LED. All else won't be equal when swapping between those 2 without level compensation.

My take- digital pedals should have a mandatory clipping indicator

 

[Erik S]

There are no ugly pedals

You dodged that bullet...

 

[Harry Klippton]

You dodged that bullet...

View attachment 67434

Perfect implementation of this feature

 

[Paradox916]

So is this like IAIGF without the comedic creativity of memes, and we directly criticize each other’s opinions?…. Am I reading the room right? For the record I’m totally fine with that I just need to know how much popcorn I need to make before people start getting butt hurt at each other… and the thread gets nuked