What do we want in an Overdrive pedal ?

What do we want in an Overdrive pedal ? - You could actually put this argument or discussion to any guitar pedal in which we find ourselves searching for. What is it we want and what are the factors in determining the one for us, you, the player, the person making the tone ! We could get to the gain, and the clarity, and the tone sculpting, but let's get even deeper. What are we trying to do with it ? Are we trying to sound like one of our hero's if so that's easy to do some research and find what they used and evolved to throughout their careers. You can look on the old internet and find what Jimmy Page used almost to the pedal through the years, or maybe it's Gary Clark that wah wah sound, or Joe Bonamassa that fuzz when you saw him at the Casino last year. Just do some research, you would be shocked what you can learn and not learn. Also DO NOT GO by the John Doe model 9 out of 10 times that's not what your favorite guitar player use on stage OR not on the album 10 years ago  you love. 

Next you can go to the genre of the music you play or what to play or want to master. If your a Metalica fan you want a high gain distortion pedal, if you like Robin Ford your not gonna want this pedal. Your gonna want a low gain boost transparent type pedal to get tone. After that maybe which I LOVE maybe you have a sound in your head, or want to be inspired this will take more work, and maybe some unfruitful purchases of guitar pedals. But man will this pay off in spades, you are on a journey to be YOU to be ORIGINAL ! So many times we are sent to buy product because we read it on some forum that everyone was buying Pedal 123, it's the best, I sound like Guru X now. 

You know what I love is the guy who doesn't want to be Guru X, doesn't want to follow the mass's, he hears something or read something and wants the smokey, mid-rangey, saggy, slightly heavy gain pedal. Boom  your down to 5 to 10...and now look at features, builders, price and your ready to Guru Y.

Always in Search of Tone, Play Music - Don't Talk Play !