Customer Reviews

Carl Martin AC-Tone Overdrive Pedal

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is truly a VOX in a box. I have the AC15 that I love to crank, but when I need to involve other effects like delay and everything else, I need to keep the amp gain lower, and use od/dirt pedals instead so it goes before the delay/echo/reverb or modulations. Was thinking of modding my amp for an fx loop before I found this unbelievable pedal.

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The GOOD :
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Finally, I don't need to compromise anything. It switches between A and B (middle switch) rather than stacked, which I preferred .. cos this way I could set them for a slight crunch on A channel and full-blown on the other, with clear indication by looking at the knobs positions and less pedal dancing.

The boost is like a cherry on the icing top. It boosts the volume without adding anything else(clean boost), very useful when you need to kick your sound through the mix especially when you're doing solo without ruining your gain setting.

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The "Still-GOOD-but-COULD-BE-BETTER":
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If only it has separated tone & volume knobs I would give it a solid 5 stars, so for now I'm giving this pedal a 4.5 stars! But still sounded 5 stars on my ears :-)

Of course it's just my flavor and humble opinion. You should try it first and see if it's for you. Me? I LOVE IT!

Carl Martin has quickly become one of my favorite pedal makers. It started with the PlexiTone, which completely blew me away and also kept me from buying a Marshall stack for the time being. Through my Fender Deluxe Reverb, I get a VERY close version of the tone and feel of a real Marshall amp. When I found out about the AC-Tone, also being a fan of a cranked Vox AC30, I had to have it. These two pedals have allowed me to have Marshall, Vox and Fender tones (and REAL convincing ones, too, not digital tomfoolery) through one single amplifier. The amp-like feel of these pedals are as good as anything I have ever tried in nearly 30 years of playing. I had previously been using a 3-channel Mesa Boogie amp with a solo boost switch, but the built in clean boost on each of these, and the two seperate levels of drive made that amp redundant. Unlike the PlexiTone, Gain 1 and Gain 2 are both the same, but you can preset them at different levels. A fantastic setup for using with a single channel amp that has a great clean tone. The AC-Tone really does get that special chime and ring of a Vox AC30, at least as much as possible from a pedal. The Cut knob acts just like the real thing on the amp, adding a treble boost. This is the only EQ knob on the pedal, but the voicing is very good. I've only played it through my Deluxe Reverb reissue, so I can't comment on how it sound through other amps, but I have no doubt that it would be equally good. The 12V hardwired power supply really is a big part of why this pedal works so well, so having another plug to plug in at gigs is very minor, in my opinion. The Boost knob has WAY more available boost than I can imagine ever needing, but I appreciate that. I want my pedals to be versatile and flexible, while still being USABLE!!! Every Carl Martin pedal I have used is exactly this. I give this one 4 stars ONLY because I hear there is a slightly tweaked "improved" version coming out for 2012. I hear that it will have a little more gain available. A great pedal if you want 2 levels of Vox overdrive, plus a seperate clean boost.