If you are new to robert modved electronics sound, try this pedal. The keeley mod fixes those issues, and it also gives you some additional tone controls to help further shape the tone. The sonic dna from the original katana boost is clear and strong with the katana blues drive. Get a new drive pedal with the keeley super phat mod overdrive from andertons music. The keeley bd2 was the first mod that had a switch. The basic idea of a true bypass box is to leave the original stompbox untouched and to add true bypass as a kind of add on function.
I recently got into the boss bd2 sound and months ago tried keeley super phat although these are more distortion clipping and im an overdrive person theres a lot of overlap and some great sounds. This is an incredibly small truebypass looper box from keeley electronics. I like certain things in this pedal this is for the blues drive from donner. Sweet spot johnny hiland super drive overdrive batch 2.
All of the changes are subtle but when packaged together offer a nice improvement. Its not true bypass, but the boss buffers are pretty good, and depending on what you run on your board, a wellplaced buffer can be a benefit, aiding your loaded signal on its merry way to your preamp. Review boss blues driver pedal and keeley mod justinguitar. It is meant to give an idea of where the tone can be improved or changed. Instead, guitarists get an overdrive function that is powerful enough to. My bd2 has the original keeley mods no phat switch and i like it with the gain up around 12 oclock for a nice nasty marshall like tone with my 335.
Boss bd2 with the original robert keeley mod and phat switch. Figure 1 shows a picture of what a true bypass circuit looks like compared to a pedal without true bypass shown in figure 2. That wider use also colluded with a growing pedal mod movement, as the bd2 was a prime candidate for tweaking due to its affordable price and solid tone. The bd2 blues driver is one of the earliest keeley modified pedals. The keeley mod upgrades all the components for a warmer, more dynamic tone.
The option of switching between true bypass and buffered is also very useful as it. Keeley truebypass looper and switcher guitar effects pedal. Donner blues drive classical electronic vintage overdrive. Connect any effect to the truebypass looper and switcher guitar effects pedal that is old school and not truebypass. Mar 31, 2016 the blues drive is allegedly donners take on a keeleymodified boss bd2 blues driver. Brad paisleys former guitar tech, chad weaver, attests to the rapidity of keeleys success. Keeley super phat mod full range transparent overdrive pedal. Nov 26, 2011 the keeley mod fixes those issues, and it also gives you some additional tone controls to help further shape the tone. Mar 21, 2014 the keeley compressor effect has nothing but tone tested components and has true bypass switching.
September 2017 marks keeley s 16th year designing pedals. D3 change this 1ss3 to a different 1n4002 diode for asymmetrical clipping. Other exclusive keeley modifications include the boss blues driver bd2 tube mod, the phat switch bd2 mod, rat mods, boss ds1 seeing eye mod, boss sd1, and boss chorus ce2. Fuzzrocious green stache, keeley blues driver, xo clone. Keeley super phat mod overdrive andertons music co. The ce1 is not a true stereo pedal like our analog man chorus, but it can sound cool. Boss bd2 blues driver overdrive w keeley mod reverb. Its a very violin like quality when turned up to full gain. To minimize this, leave the effect you want to make truebypass on, then switch the looper footswitch 45 times to discharge any dc voltages. The boss bd2 blues driver is one of the most popular classic overdrive designs of all time, arguably just after the famous ibanez tube screamer series. This is the true bypass wiring in its most basic form. True bypass switch lets your instruments signal pass through a nonelectronic bypass line when the effect is disengaged, feeding your amp with direct, unaltered signal from your instrument. What pedal will give me the boss blues driver tone, but.
The build quality cant be faulted on any level and remains toptier, right down to the polished metal knobs. Realtime build of a pedalpcb cobalt drive using keeley phat mod alterations and retrofitted in a original boss bd2 enclosure. The blues driver not only quickly captured its targeted audience, but its versatility and character helped it to transcend genres equally as hastily. A mini toggle switch allow you to switch places of the two sides. Gets all the great thick blues sounds of the bd2 and then some phat mode. The skinny on the phat history the keeley bd2 was the first mod that had a switch. Keeley super phat mod dynamic overdrive pedal guitar. What pedal will give me the boss blues driver tone, but more gain and true bypass. Our famous mod to your pedal with the added benefit of a 3pdt true bypass footswitch. Super phat mod keeley engineering keeley electronics. Keeley super phat mod overdrive pedal bstock the guitar store. I only had a keeley katana and i my wallet hurt from that investment at the time.
The donner blues drive is not a clone of the bd2 it gets about 40% to 50% of the gain of the bd. Place the booster after the drive and use it as a very subtle eq. Keeley super phat mod full range overdrive, overdrive effekt pedal. It is a wonderfully complex circuit that has many layers of tube amp simulation. I bought the donner blues drive because i loved the donner yellow fall delay that i. Modified classic overdrivedistortion units reborn from. Keeley super phat mod dynamic overdrive pedal guitar effect. Waza pedals are true bypass and have top components, vs keeley modded ones. With the super phat mod, you now have all of our refinementsthe very best of toneshaping electronics and modern features like truebypass. But these pop a bit, especially with a higher gain pedal.
A great basic boss pedal and it suped up cousin, modified by robert keeley, the effects wizard. Imagine his surprise when he excitedly tore open the package to find an ibanez tube screamer inside. So i have this bd2 keeley pedal that i wanted to install the clickless true bypass kit on. Boss bd2 blues driver modded by keeley audiofanzine. I quickly realized i should get some dirt too and i knew john mayer used a keeley modded bd2 on the trio album which i loved that tone so i. This pedal should really be used as a clean style boost, in my opinion. The original isnt true bypass and the mod that robert gives makes it a true bypass pedal.
The original pedal was a great design that features tubelike amp stages, tube amp tone stacks, and a variety of tone shaping circuits that bring out the best in any guitars pickups. For detailed specs, user comments, dealer information, sound clips, and ordering information, please visit. The keeley compressor effect has nothing but tone tested components and has true bypass switching effect switching incorporates a triple poledouble throw switch. Robert keeley fuzz head overdrive guitar effect pedal for. And for years, robert keeley and his team at keeley electronics modified the actual boss bd2 blues driver for additional warmth, tone, and versatility. The switch is a standard clicky true bypass, but its in a pedalboardfriendly mxrsized enclosure.
The keeley sd1 has a great tone to start with, but now every component added is of the highest quality. It was done to give players two modes of bass response, with the slight boost it was called the phat mode. Build yourself a good sounding true bypass box or strip to convert your stompboxes into true bypass devices. For those that think robert keeley is old hat or surpassed by the legions of newer pedal. An optional secondary phat mod adds a switch for introducing more bass into the tone. Mar 16, 20 boss bd2 blues driver mods robert keeley this is not allinclusive in what can be done to the blues driver. It switches between stock switch down and modded switch up modes. With true byass, there is no change in function when on, but when off the input is connected directly to both output jacks for true bypass on both jacks. Back in 2009 or so, i started my guitar tone quest. Armed with the knowledge you just learned, we can see that the signal enters and leaves the switch on the poles middle lugs. Blues driver keeley mod vs waza craft vs katana blues drive. Boss blues driver bd2 with keeley phat mod i cant confirm whether this was actually modded by robert keeley or not as i bought it used and theres no keeley stickers or anything, but the mod switch below the gain control is extremely solid and fantastically implimented. Robert keeleys modded ibanez ad9 analog delay with true bypass takes the amazing ad9s tones and adds true bypass and other functionality to make it even more flexible. The problem with doing one in the past has been to try and find the perfect fet to capture the magic.
Apr 28, 2020 the switch is a standard clicky true bypass, but its in a pedalboardfriendly mxrsized enclosure. We use a 4pdt switch and a special switching jack to allow it to work just like stock but with true bypass. This is an incredibly small true bypass looper box from keeley electronics. Keeley super phat mod full range overdrive effects database. In particular vintage wahs, echoes, phasers, fuzz face type pedals, etc. Germanium super phat mod handbuilt edition starts shipping monday, february 12, 2018. True bypass, low noise floor could be lower, but is pretty good.
Tube screamer, blues driver, king of tone duration. Driving it home the 15 best overdrive pedals 2020 pmt online. Set the gain high and let your guitars volume control or your pick attack do the work. Having the boost run into the drive, adds a nice mids boost to your saturated distortion and evens out some of the bright overtones and adds quite a bit of sustain. Diy keeley phat mod pedal retrofitted in a boss bd2 enclosure. The blues driver is very warm and touch responsive and very fenderish to my ears. The blues driver responds well to picking dynamics, too. Blues driver in a tuxedo this is keeley s take on the boss bd2 pedal. Curious as to whether hed like the sound of truebypass, weaver ordered a keeley blues driver mod a modified boss bd2 blues driver overdrive. Strat players often get on well with the blues driver, because the pedal tends to gently balance out the strats toppy sound.
Instead, guitarists get an overdrive function that is powerful enough to provide a true powerhouse performance. Designed to function exactly like the fuzz head that many artists use as a solo boost, the robert keeley fuzz head overdrive guitar effect pedal avoids muddy sounds that can lack sustain and other ugly tones. With the super phat mod, you now have all of our refinementsthe very best of toneshaping electronics and modern features like true bypass. With the super phat mod you now have all of keeleys refinements, the very best of toneshaping electronics, and modern features like truebypass. From country, to blues and rock the phat mod is the choice for those not. Germanium super phat mod hand built edition robert keeley. We do have some of the popular clickless true bypass modules in stock, and we can use them with the stock momentary switch to true bypass a boss or ibanez pedal. Keeley phat mod ein upgrade zum bereits existierenden boss bd2 keeley mod. The true bypass looper works with or without power you can use it as a multiple effects switcher and add several effects in a chain and then switch them all on at once you can also use it as a tuner mute switch.
Jan 16, 2011 the blues driver is very warm and touch responsive and very fenderish to my ears. Keeley super phat mod full range od thomann osterreich. The silent step can be used for other switching situations like making an ab box, alternating between two effects with one step of the switch, and can be used in true bypass strips. It takes the spirit of bosss muchloved od1 and sd1, but adds gain, edge and bite to emulate a cooking valve amplifier. I quickly realized i should get some dirt too and i knew john mayer used a keeley modded bd2. Improved tonal response and true bypass make this modded ad9 a powerful tone tool. This will fit in the tightest of pedal boards and offer you a dramatic improvement in tone. Blues driver lessons learned with clickless and true bypass mods. Donner blues drive classical electronic vintage overdrive guitar effect pedal true bypass warmhot. Although true bypass has been a standard for boutique pedal companies for the last decade, in more recent years many companies including my own, moved from using a mechanical 3pdt switch triple pole, double throw to a relay with a momentary switch to achieve true bypass.
Keeley super phat mod transparent overdrive in its most refined state. Mar 17, 2015 the keeley compressor effect has nothing but tone tested components and has true bypass switching effect switching incorporates a triple poledouble throw switch. As with all truebypass effects, switching is not perfectly silent. Sounds great as a warm overdrive or a glassy booster. Keeley modded ibanez ad9 analog delay with true bypass. Blues driver lessons learned with clickless and true bypass. May 06, 2009 boss blues driver bd2 with keeley phat mod i cant confirm whether this was actually modded by robert keeley or not as i bought it used and theres no keeley stickers or anything, but the mod switch below the gain control is extremely solid and fantastically implimented. For detailed specs, user comments, dealer information, sound clips, and ordering information, please visit the keeley electronics website. Keeley electronices katana blues drive tone report. Between the keeley bd2 and the waza, that i own, the waza has more range and openness even on the classic switch, the custom side is similar to the keeley fat switch, but the gain is smoother, and again, more range increase and just better. The hot switch is in a complete different direction a lot more volume and a little less gain. The blues drive is allegedly donners take on a keeleymodified boss bd2 blues driver. Dec 11, 2014 robert keeleys vision of the perfect boost pedal has begotten an overdrive so transparent and dynamic, one might think of this new baby blue box as an extension of the amplifier.
Keeley truebypass looper and switcher guitar effects. In praise of the humble, underrated boss blues driver. It works best when you want that transparent sounding overdrive to help push the amp just a touch but dont want that tubescreamer flavor sound. Jan 10, 2019 the pedal mod that started it all for me. The switch will then either let the signal just jump over to the output side and on to the output jack bypass, or pass through the effect circuit before being. Passionately designed by the master engineers at boss in japan, the waza craft bd2w delivers a premium stomp experience that fans of customized pedal tone will love. Its kind of like a more transparent tube screamer with a flatter eq response. One switch can also operate more than one silent step circuit board. Keeley super phat mod fullrange transparent overdrive. I bought the keeley 808 with true bypass about 2 years ago, and i have to say it is a beautiful sounding improvement over any 808 i.
I bought the donner blues drive because i loved the donner yellow fall delay that i had picked up previously. Pretty much anywhere a dpdt or 3pdt can be used, silent step can be used. The keeley compressor effect has nothing but tone tested components and has true bypass switching. The boss bd2 blues driver is an extremely popular overdrive pedal, set up as a competitor to the ts9 tubescreamer. Boss bd2 blues driver and jhs angry charlie overdrive pedals. Topquality circuitry offers truer bypass switching, and improvements in bass response, distortion, articulation, and transparency, while generating less noise. Crafted with an ear for highly refined sound, the bd2w takes the classic blues driver grit to a new level with alldiscrete analog circuitry. With the super phat mod you now have all of our refinements, the very best of toneshaping electronics, and modern features like truebypass.
May 01, 2017 keeley super phat mod full range overdrive. What distortion it does put out is extremely transparent and silky smooth. Used looper effects pedals out of stock online please call or chat to check your local store inventory for this item. Blues driver lessons learned with clickless and true. I often play strats and so the warm sounds best to me you get a low gain distortion clipping and need to push the level. Used keeley true bypass looper pedal guitar center. I must have cooked the switch, because it quit working and the effect was always on.