Klon vs Klone: 5 Affordable Stomps Go Head to Head with an Original Centaur
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- Опубліковано 17 кві 2020
- Hear how close the EHX Soul Food, J. Rockett Archer, Nux Horseman, Wampler Tumnus, and Way Huge Conspiracy Theory come to nailing the tone of a legend.
Read the review: bit.ly/KlonvsKlones
Don't Miss a Rundown: bit.ly/RIgRundownENL
Subscribe to PG's Channel: bit.ly/SubscribePGUA-cam
#klon #klone #premierguitar
Read the review: bit.ly/KlonvsKlones
Don't Miss a Rundown: bit.ly/RIgRundownENL
Subscribe to PG's Channel: bit.ly/SubscribePGUA-cam
Premier Guitar I think pg should look into using another guitarist to demo, this one looks like he’s 5 minutes away from death lol
@@lopes12 Your words are death. Speak life.
Kinda pointless to compare without a switcher since the original isn’t true bypass and always effects the tone in some way, even while switched off.
Good demo in my opinion. I found the Way Huge pedal the closest but the Klon was the best hands down.
I REALLY like this "no talking" format for pedal demos.
His face is speaking to my soul and its freaking me out.
Hopefully the rest of these guys doing demos learn what people like. We wouldn't be musicians if we didn't know what our ears liked enough to get into music in the first place.
Me to
Yes man!
This was a *brilliant* idea. The written commentary was just enough, the no-talking format, and keeping the phrases in time while you're switching pedals helped me listen and compare, the re-amping, and EQ comparisons were great. More!
Thanks! If you’re interested, I’ve done 100+ demo and performance videos with captions rather than speech for my own UA-cam channel: ua-cam.com/users/thetonefiend
@@joegore407 Totally agree, it's super professional IMHO
You'll like this, Joe, if I haven't bored you with it already.
In late 2007, I get a cold call from Bill. He's had some requests from some unnamed clients (bigshots, I assume) to see if the Klon can be coaxed to achieve a little more X. Bill had designed the original with a consulting engineer, who sadly died in a single-engine prop plane accident. From my various posts, he felt he could trust me, and hoped I could fill that gap for that client request. I told him I felt like I was being asked to re-edit "Gone With the Wind" to sex it up a bit, but I'd give it a whirl.
Bill sent me a schematic and two ungooped boards, one of which had every single component, passive and active, socketed, so that I could play with values, without having to unsolder or solder anything. I whipped up an accommodating chassis so that I could A/B the modified and original board with a single stompswitch. The constraints were that I could only play with part-values, and could not alter the basic design or do anything that would necessitate a new board layout. The build quality on the boards was exquisite, and just the very thing that a "name" touring musician would expect of gear that could withstand the rigors of the road, drunk roadies, and callous airport baggage handlers. Worth every retail penny they paid him. In the end, I couldn't accomplish the mission, and returned the boards and schematic.
While yes it does use a charge pump, the increased supply voltage is only used for part of the circuit, not the whole thing. The Gain control does about 4 or 5 things at once. I won't elaborate because my oath of secrecy is still in place 13 years later. While the Treble control is, in fact, a boost/cut, Bill told me that he felt it's real purpose was primarily to provide cut.
The biggest misconception about the pedal is that people think it is an overdrive. That is, a pedal that produces a particular sort of distorted sound that would be easily recognizable, regardless of what you plugged it into. While, yes, it does utilize some distortion, it is intended to elicit overdrive *from the amplifier* and preconditions the guitar signal to do that. Used as a standalone overdrive pedal, it is not especially impressive. I think the best customer comment Bill ever got, that he used in one of the few ads he posted, was a guy who said the Klon sounded like his amplifier, only "bigger".
If you contacted Bill to buy one, he would inquire about your rig, and would discourage purchase if he felt the pedal wasn't going to do anything useful for you. It, and Bill, are legends for all the right reasons.
@@joe_gore You're too kind, Joe. Working with Bill was one of the high points in my life. Right up there with getting a personal tour of the Bigsby factory from Ted McCarty himself (I have his business card framed in my workshop). If I could play like you, I'd have it all. :-)
"Bill told me that he felt it's real purpose was primarily to provide cut."
See, on the rhythm 2 channel of my Mesa Mark IV, I boost the treble on my JRAD silver a bit, around 1-2 depending. That channel has an awful spongey quality to it that doesn't sound like anything you'd expect it to, and it's also very lacking in high end but has tons of mids, but with the klone and a treble boost it's actually usable.
Kind of wish I would have kept mine now knowing that stacking pedals was the key w the Klon Could have stacked it w my TX Ranger like W Haynes does Good stuff 👍 and stories guys
It's funny that you say Bill would dissuade you if he felt the pedal wouldn't be useful to you. I've been trying to gel with a Tumnus but I always feel like I'm missing something, like there's a piece of information that would help me "unlock its full potential", so to speak. What you just wrote makes sense. It just might not be the key to my rig to begin with.
Who is this Mark Hammer guy saying he knows the Klon circuit? hahahaha Hi Mark!
Absolutely love the methods you used for comparison, (re-amping and frequency analysis curves). Minimizes the variables and makes the comparisons very straight forward. Bravo!
+1 regarding the demo format (no talking, just long enough examples, reamping), perfect to stay focused instead of getting lost after (too much comments + abusive A/B + excessive playing). Frequency analysis fantastic too. You look easy going but I guess there's a lot of work behind this. I watch a lot of pedal demos and you're nailing it, I didn't get only info but also great interest. Thank you Sir.
Best pedal demo / comparison vid I’ve ever seen. Not just saying that... The test with the wave files really cements the reality of each pedals capabilities. There’s no denying it when you see it on the screen! For me it’s a toss up between The Archer and Way Huge Conspiracy. Thanks for posting man!!
This is the best comparison video I have ever seen. No talking, just important points. Awesome!
To be fair, that Kux Horseman, once you click it once, you then have to click & hold it for that second light at the top to light up! (bet you were wondering what it was for), because once it lights up you then would find it very hard to differentiate it from the Klon on high gain; cross my fingers and hope to die, swear this is true. That pedal's got two modes and I didn't see you click it then click it a second time and hold, just so you know.
Give it a try, you'll see what I mean. My money would go to either the Archer or the Wampler, but I wish the Kux Horseman was used in the proper mode. With that in consideration, it's still leaves questions.
I had a gold Klon in the mid 2000s but eventually sold it to get some other pedals. I liked what it did, though, and some years later after much taste testing settled on an Archer Ikon for lower gain (or even clean boost) sounds and a Soul Food for higher gain. I like the Soul Food’s more compressed character when it’s dirty while the Archer handles the high, sparkly headroom sounds Klons excel at. I have ‘em both in my pedal chain, the Soul Food driving the Archer for maximum *oomph* when I want that.
Possibly best pedal demo. Nice varied demo of playing styles. Great work!!!
Am I the only one who liked the Conspiracy Theory?
I’m with you 100%. In fact I fully plan to get one now after watching this. I’ve been debating these klon clones for a while and the archer always comes up but it is not true bypass and many people complain about that.
@@allstopblue5717 Well actually the original Klon is not true bypass, it's buffered, so them making it buffered is not wrong. That being said, to me the Conspiracy Theory sounded the closest to the real thing as compared to the other ones
I liked it. If I didn't have a tumnus I'd reach for that one even though the archer sounded pretty much identical, the way huge sounded good and interesting. It sounded like something I want to play with.
@@allstopblue5717 The original is an always on buffer, which actually works out perfect in my set up. It's a good buffer and it keeps the top end in sound. It plays nice with germanium fuzz in front of it. I'm using the tumnus v1. Now there is a v2 deluxe tumnus with switchable buffer - so that could be an option.
Just bought one online. Can not wait to get it in my hands and on my board. This comparison video just justified my buy :)
Excellent comparison! I love the idea of reamping! It changes videos where the person does not play the same thing twice and where it is impossible to get an idea. I have the impression that the Way Huge is really very close. Thank you very much for this great video!
I am only halfway through - but this video is EXACTLY how it should be done. Really wonderful work
The NUX Horseman will do.. for now!
This was the most helpful pedal shootout I have seen. Thank you.
This is the most complete rundown on Klon tones I have ever seen. I especially appreciate the decision to give us reamped examples. Thanks for the video. Great job!
ReAmping doesn’t lie. It is so easy to THINK you hear variations over the course of a listening sessions, only to review the playback and realize it’s your imagination. Also, you hearing perception literally changes over the course of a listening session, no matter how sharp your ear is. ReAmps keep it real.
@@joegore407 I agree. 10/10 I would rather just record a take like I want it, with the tone I want, with the effects I want, and print it. For stuff like this though, it's great. I think people way overthink things. You can get good tones with most pedals. This video shows the negligible differences between most of the clones out there. Basically, if you don't buy the cheapest crap out there (nux, moor, china garbage tiny box of the month), you can get some great sounds.
Joe Gore I know there are countless pedals that must be left out but I’m disappointed the Chellee Ponyboy was overlooked. Meticulously handmade in Florida, versatile, interesting and affordable. The Ponyboy and the Odie are classics.
I have a question which is better, the green rhino or the conspiracy theory? For me they both sound very good, could you help me decide on one?
@@thearrowsmusic5725 I think the Conspiracy Theory is a klon derived pedal, but the Green Rhino is a tubescreamer. They would be pretty different. My suggestion is play both in a store with your amp and guitar.
Even though I read this in PG, I've just now (finally) watched and listened to this video.
Great job, Joe! This is EXACTLY what I needed! Thanks!
One of the best videos you guys have done in a while
That was awesome. First all of the pedals, the NUX too, sound great. The wampler to my ears is the closest even if it is a bit brighter. This was a great demo and would sell me on any if the pedals. Great job.
Indeed, the Arche was "closest" to the tone, but fwiw, I just received the Nux today and i LOVE it!! It has a lot of positive reviews everywhere. Again, for what its worth
I have one. Maybe even better. Why does every Klon clone need to sound the same or inferior?
WOW thank you so much, a very enjoyable review snd comparison. Hard to tell differences, they are all very close. Thank you!!
This is an amazing shootout style with the reamping, just with you showed the frequency analyzer comparison for each pedal.
Thank you for making this demo! So informative
Excellent video. I love the comparison of waveforms, brilliant approach. I have the Tumnus, I love it. People comment on my tone all the time, it works well with every pedal arrangement I try.
Excellent demo!! I have the Wampler Tumnus and have been very pleased. All the other pedals sounded good too.
This format for pedal comparisons is one of the best that I have seen.
I always wondered why people would collect Klon’s and use the Archer. It’s damn near indistinguishable.
I'd prefer the archer which sounds so dang similar and is less expensive anyways. Not all expensive things are good deals to me.
Not me. I am not dumb enough to buy archer.
@@smoochie3331 yup, you got the big brain.
@@smoochie3331 someone had a traumatic experience with an archer..
@@DirtyDirkDigglerHe took an arrow to the knee.
I opted for the Archer a couple of years ago and love it, and after hearing this, pretty sure I made the right choice. As he says in the written review, "I wouldn't be able to tell the difference in a blind listening test."
You got some great hands, and your choice of lines is fantastic. Great format, lots of info.
More cork sniffing. Perfect for the lockdown. Nice comparison.
Great video! If the OG Klon didn't made it's way into my head I would go for the EHX in a heart beat.
very well done comparison, detailed, great analysis with the ReAmp program
Damn this was a great video comparison! No babbling and just flat out killer playing and tones! More of this please.
The Archer nails the original and the Tumnus is also pretty much there.
Excluding cost - it's the high end response that differentiates them. I have the wampler version and it's a magic button between my guitars and my tube amps. It takes out some bass flab and adds some top end sparkle. It's like a more complex treble boost pedal. It sounds like crap into a solid state amp, but send it into a hot tube amp and it just works great with dynamics.
I'd probably buy the way huge if I didn't have the tumnus. Way huge makes some great sounding toys and this klone seems a bit thicker in the right spots.
I like the format of this video and I enjoyed this guys noodling. It was more interesting than the usual demo playing of blues and the like.
Great job really demonstrating the pedals equally. I love technology for that.
Having owned several of these, the difference to me is really feel. The Soul Food has a good tone, but the feel is sort of sandpaper-y (Did I make up a word) as you dial up the gain. The Wampler sounds killer, but it has a lot more low end than the others. The J Rockett is my favorite, I have had the Archer and the Archer Ikon, and kept the silver Archer out of all of them. Would still love to try a Klon at some point.
One of the best pedal comparison videos🙌👏
Best straight up demo of these pedals, left me to form an opinion based on what I was hearing instead of being swayed by the commentary
For what I would use a Klon for which would be for the higher gain ringing driven sound I think the Way Huge Conspiracy Theory is almost identical to a Klon. To my ear the slightly higher frequency treble thing is still there! Interesting it's the driven sounds that you can really tell the silicon from the germanium. Awesome demo - I will also now be GAS'ing after those mini humbuckers! Sheesh they sound amazing!
Great video, all the detail you want, no filler and didn’t go overboard with minutia.
I know I’m way late to this, but I just wanted to say this is one of the best comparison videos out there. Also if he grind between those clone Klons,that amp and that player is magnificent. Oh, also, I like the Soul Food because it is a bit warmer in the high gain mode plus it’s really inexpensive for what you get.
Great video man!
Great & Fair comparison. I like em all. J. Rockett for me, by slight margin. I just purchased a Barber Gain Changer S.R. = Phenomenal. It's a Do-all, versatile overdrive. Stay Safe everyone.
So thankful for this !!
Absolutely tremendous video!
Great comparison. I sold a silver Klon years ago for double what I paid for it and was kicking myself until I got an Archer. To my ears it's just about as close as you can get. And it takes up a whole lot less space.
Great shootout and nicely done. They were all very close, I would say the Tumnus was the closest but they all were very close.
Very very well done!
Very interesting, Joe, thanks. Cheers from the Micronesia Blues Society, locked down on the island of Guam.
The Archer was just about an exact match, tone for tone.
The simple fact is that ALL these pedals sound good, and do what we want them to do. If we weren't hearing them side by side under almost laboratory conditions, most of us (even the experienced guitarists) couldn't tell much difference. In a gigging situation, with all of the extraneous sounds and noise going on, the only person who REALLY knows which pedal is being used is the guy using it. I recently bought a Mosky Silver Horse......which is a super cheap Klon clone.....and, while I haven't used it on a gig yet (because there ARE no gigs yet) it does the "Klon"-thing amazingly well, and for only thirty-or-so dollars. If you're in the market, check out the Mosky Golden Horse or Silver Horse.
Great video. Thanks so much!
Great comparison. I have the Soul Food and like using that for a lead boost. I also have the Tumnus Deluxe and just like having the options it provides with the extra knobs and switch. I mostly use it for low gain stuff.
Terrific demo. The ReAmp idea was excellent. On my computer, I don't hear much of a tonal difference at all, so I'm just going to go with the cheapest one.
GREAT video! IMO The sliver Archer is the king! ...sounds AMAZING in the mix (which is where the tru test lies)! I hear no discernable difference between my Archer and my Klon (I have a Gold Horsey Klon). The Archer has been on my board since the day I bought it...five years I think. Nothing has knocked it off.
I know the video would have been much longer but I would have loved to see every pedal's waveform compared to the Original Klon like the one example you did. My personal favorites to my old ears were the J. Rockett and the Wampler Tumnus. I think there was a comparison between the larger Tumnus compared to the compact one and the larger one sounder better. Great video. You should do this with other "Fairy Dust" pedals like the Analogman King of Tone & The Timmy pedal :-)
"I would have loved to see every pedal's waveform compared to the Original Klon like the one example you did"
^^^ *THIS*
Awesome comparisson and educational entertainment, thanks.
I recently built a Klon clone from BYOC, and I can tell you that personally the circuit deserves the hype. There's not a bad tone in a Klon. On a lot of pedals I feel like I zero in on one or two settings and then just tweak a bit from there. If you don't have a Klon type pedal, you should absolutely get one, and even the cheap ones sound pretty good.
I agree - I just built that BYOC pedal and it’s fantastic. The only mod I did was to put the clipping diodes on a switch so I could switch between the stock Ge, a pair of yellow led’s, and an asymmetric pair of a Ge and a Si diode. I have to say, the asymmetric clipping option gives a distinctly different flavor which is also a nice option along with the symmetric Ge diodes. The BYOC board for the Silver Pony pedal (depending on which version you have) is already set up to do this mod, but you might need to cut a trace if you have the newer version board.
Great comparison!
I love how u know those pedals so well that u instantly move the knobs to the correct positions to achieve that "same" tone.
Hey, Joe! It's good to see ya!
I wounder how many Soul Foods will be sold on Reverb After this video...Proud owner of a Tumnus Deluxe here.THANKS JOE!
What tuning us this? Love the QOTSA sounding chords on the high gain eq comparison. So full.
Great again. Love your demo's, mostly because the non bla bla and great playing. The only thing I want to add is that I know the Klon Centaur do not have a "Real Bypass"! The guitar signal is in on and off position fed through a buffer/eq stage in the Klon. That makes the sound test with the pedals in series not really good. Further I have experienced that when the pedal is made with old fasioned "through the PCB" components it will sound more natural and less plastic to me. I have build quite a few pedals myself as a copy of his brand (smd, modern surface mount mini components) brother. Allthough I am partly deaf, the difference was significant. The same for the use of Ge diodes against Si diodes. A subtile but very clear difference. Listen to the diff of the Fuzzface Ge and Si.
The no talking I think was a great idea makes it even inconspicuous also show cases the pedals she let them speak for them sleeves & wasn’t biased about it well done Mr
Thanks Joe
You’re awesome!
I just gotta say you're coming off as a cool cat man. Nice work.
The Klon was definitely the best sounding but only deserved to be about 50 bucks more expensive than the next best if we’re being honest.
i don't have anything to add to that... you are correct.
Good thing a Klon clone is only $50 bucks.
Great demo!
Pretty convincing argument that it’s absurd to pay a few thousand dollars for a Klon pedal.
Other than pure collector's value.
Joe is one of the coolest cats I know! This is so useful!
This is fantastic! You should make this a series where all kinds of vintage pedals are compared to their modern clones!
The Centaure is still being made......vintage? Are you shure?
@@MYGAS21 Incorrect. It hasn't been made in years. And it started in the '90s, which at this point qualifies as vintage.
excellent Vid!
The thing is the Klon that you can't really hear here is it shelves A LOT of bottom end, that's why i'm dead set on the Tumnus, it's the only klone iv'e played that still sounds fat with chords.
this is such a good comparison video. i think that all pedals are a great substitute for the gold brick. i just got my archer in the mall yesterday and i’m SATISFIED
in the MAIL* not mall. #flattenthecurve lol
Had to watch twice, the first time around I was distracted by Joe's cool riffs.
Every thing Joe plays is new and unexpected.
The ratio of fingerstyle players doing demos on youtube compared to the general population is extremely lopsided.
which way?
@@zdsrtgnzetmyet I see so many more finger style players on UA-cam than I ever see out at shows...especially playing rock music. It’s one thing if these were all classical players or folk music.
True.
Great video
You distort, I decide. Love it! Then I’ll distort, and probably decide again.
I quite like the soul food! Pretty cheap too
Would love to see a Klon vs Joyo Tauren.
Very good content. Very informative. No talk seemed to have a lot of talking. Cheers!
Guitarists are truly HEAVILY over-obsessed with the most miniscule of subtle differences in tone. I promise you, anyone not a tone freak who's listening to your music (99.9%+ of the world) will hear only a mild overdrive, regardless of whether you're playing a OG Centaur or the (relatively) lowly Soul Food.
Just play and have fun.
It's a hobby (profession for the lucky) and people can be as obsessed as they want to be. Some people are tweakers...what's the problem?
You could argue that the difference between great sounding music and average sounding music are mostly the sums of very subtle differences. Most people (including guitarists) probably couldn't distinguish meaningfully between, say an averagely mixed kick drum and an expertly produced kick drum. Yet when hearing an entire mix, the sum of all those differences add up.
But when it comes to things like Klons, the price point has more to do with collectibility and history than quality or sound.
LOL true in the end it's just some Overdrive. But still, have 3 Klon Clones and they're all kinda different, my favorite is the DIY Klon buildt by some Czech guy because it drops just the right amount of bass in my rig, i don't even care if it's close to original or not.
Yeah but it’s fun to play with them at home too. Idc if audience hears difference or not.
That's the nice thing about being the only person in your own audience. You can say things like "My audience really notices the difference between Klon 1 and Klon 2, so I give them what they want."
Thank you
There's another Way Huge pedal - not a Klone as such - but imo it's the King of Stackers. The mighty Saucy Box.
a good honest comparison
I have a Movsky Golden Horse pedal, and a replica of the klon in its golden casing, reddish knobs, and centaur graphic which is a copy of the original..Ebay for 63$ while the Golden Horse pedal was about 34$ on Amazon, and they both sound very very close, but the actual clone of the Klone (Bigger casing unit) sounds a bit closer the the real thing.
Great comparison, j rocket sounded identicle imo, how does the pedal monster klone compare? That pedal such a great bang for the buck at 149
What is funny, is that to hear Josh from JHS explain it, to get the diodes clipping in this circuit the gain has to be close to 3 o’clock or higher. All the guys running this as a clean boost aren’t even hearing those “magical” diodes clip. The klon sound has really grown on me and I will definitely be getting a Klone of some sort. This was a helpful comparison. Great work!
Sure, a few sounded slightly different - but all sounded close and definitely usable.
needs a conclusion or recap at the end. otherwise, very cool video!! happy weekend :) bring back rebecca!!!
Read the review (with full recap): bit.ly/KlonvsKlones
Great demo Love those pick ups Foils or what ? Thanks I sold my Klon years ago for 1350 I use a Diaz TX Ranger now
The text read they are Lillard mini humbuckers, Gibson Firebird type
I just wanted to see all the pedals on the eq curve comparison. But I guess thats why you have to read the article.
Amazing review- that was a lot of work. thanks! Alright theory nerds- name the chord at 14:14
Just a bunch of random #11 shit. :)
Really like my soul food, want to try something of the dumble variety though
Cornerstone Gladio for the win. Love it
incredible how close they can be! Hard to decide. just the price as a good reason ?
Joe Gore is the player/reviewer here. His name should be mentioned in the video description. He has a line of interesting pedals, check out his website.
Not to mentioned he played with PJ Harvey
The soul food did great it’s £60 in UK
Sounds like all the pedals can be adjusted to sound so close the Klon regardless of the pods or at noon or not . All the pods have a little plus or minus when sad at noon from the Klon
No KTR? I've had them all, and the KTR and the Soul Food are my favorite, even more than the original Centaur. Strange that my ear prefers the tones of the contemporary clone copies over the original.
I have a question which is better, the green rhino or the conspiracy theory? For me they both sound very good, could you help me decide on one?
You can definitely hear the difference between the germanium diodes and the silicon. The silicon ones have a harsher quality than the germanium, which have a fuller, more rounded sound