My rig doesn't like my GE '66. Would an MKII be better?

[cubba]

I had an epiphany recently,
running my Ge 1966 into my 60's Ampeg.
I wasn't digging it so much prior, running it into my Vox AC15.
The AC15 has an EF86 in the front end, which has double the gain of a 12ax7 and the '66 was getting too saturated with the gain up, tho' not necc. too bright.
Now into the Ampeg, whoa, totally different results.
I like it even better into the Ampeg than the MKII, which is probably my favorite DAM pedal.

Now, the '66 has this beautiful, blistering, compressed, reedy tone when the gtr. volume's cranked, which is great for leads.
For the most amazing rhythm tone, turn down the gtr. volume to 80% and the clear, defined crunch tone is to die for.

I'd love to see how the Si version compares.

[theatomicjeff]

The AC15 has an EF86 in the front end, which has double the gain of a 12ax7 and the '66 was getting too saturated with the gain up, tho' not necc. too bright.

Yes, my Dr.Z also has the EF86. I'm going to experiment more tomorrow running the '66 into the Fargen.

I'd love to see how the Si version compares.

Me too!
Thanks for the feedback.

[playon]

Jeff, I have the other Ge 1966 from the recent ebay sale that is the twin of yours... these pedals can't really be compared to the other '66s because he used different transistors in these, dual SFT circuits. As the captain said -- 1 SFT353 followed by a SFT317.

Mine sounds a lot different than my pal Tommy's earlier 1966 with the Mullards in it. This one is brighter and a hair fizzier sounding, it can really cut through and it sounds excellent in both super bee and normal mode. It sounds totally great thru both my 1959 Bassman and my mid 60s Princeton Reverb, but it's not as mellow as the older '66 of Tommy's. It almost sounds like a cross between silicon and germanium. I'm really surprised that you say it's too woofy sounding, because mine is a lot tighter sounding than most GE fuzzes I've tried. I assume you are running it alone into the amp without any other pedals in line?

Personally I love the tone of this thing , only thing I don't like about it, is that when you back off the guitar volume, it cleans up instantly -- you can't get those groovy in-between tones. When you turn the guitar vol. back up to full, the gain comes up really fast -- it goes from clean to full-on fuzz in the last 10% of the volume knob (from 9 to 10 on a strat). Does your pedal do that too?

[theatomicjeff]

I assume you are running it alone into the amp without any other pedals in line?

That is correct.

... only thing I don't like about it, is that when you back off the guitar volume, it cleans up instantly -- you can't get those groovy in-between tones. When you turn the guitar vol. back up to full, the gain comes up really fast -- it goes from clean to full-on fuzz in the last 10% of the volume knob (from 9 to 10 on a strat). Does your pedal do that too?

Yes, the acceleration in gain on the last 10% is extremely dramatic on my guitar. I cannot run my pickup fullly maxed when using the pedal; if I do it's complete gainy mush. My pickups are pretty hot so I have to turn down the guitar volume knob even more than what you describe to get that fuzz ringing clarity. I wished I had a Fender amp to test with.

[playon]

Well most of these fuzz pedals do work.sound better with lower-gain pickups.

[jimi_dylan]

Best results so far: guitar vol backed off about 2/3's; fuzz gain backed off to about 3-4 o'clock.

I do about the same.

[thesjkexperience]

So what IS the difference between a 66 in super bee and a MKII??? Will the MKII have more gain and not be so bright?

Thanks.

[The Captain]

....so I'm wondering if the DAM MKII fuzz would be a better fit for my rig?

Nope, I doubt it man. The main problem be...

The pickups are fairly hot...

Good rule of thumb with old school GE fuzz boxes is to remember what gear they would have been used with when they were designed. For example, a 1966 won't sound at its best with an ESP guitar and a Randall amp. Lower output pick-ups (say around 8K tops) will give you better results and allow the fuzz to do its thing and an amplifier with good amounts clean headroom will allow the fuzz to breathe. If the 1966 its getting woolly with your set-up the MKII will be much worse. The 1966 is usually a little more forgiving of a little drive where as the MKII tends to bag out and over compress. Sounds cool on single notes but can sound a little farty on the bass strings.

[1bottlerocket]

I haven't had a chance to test my silicon '66 with anything else than my Champ with low output strat pickups. I do have a similar experience with the fuzz coming on between 9-10 on the volume knob. I want to run the silicon through my Park 2x12 combo with EL34's.

When I tried my new pedals out, the '66 seemed to be the odd one out that day but that could all change next week when I give it another go. Update coming next week.

On another note, I am looking at getting into a Zoom H4 for recording and I may be able to put some clips up.

[The Captain]

So what IS the difference between a 66 in super bee and a MKII??? Will the MKII have more gain and not be so bright?

Thanks.

The 1966 is usually a raspier fuzz tone where as the MKII is a little smoother and more heavily saturated. The 1966 in the super bee mode will still but a tad brighter. The nature of the 1966 means it will cut through way more than a MKII regardless of settings. So aye, more gain and not so bright.