MXR Badass Modified OD

APRIL 2017 TOTAL GUITAR
Do you have the blues about which overdrive pedal to buy?
Let us help with four affordable contenders
105
O
ne of a range of 13 aff ordable pedals
that TC unleashed en masse late last
year, the Cinders is designed to deliver
transparent valve amp-style overdrive.
Juxtaposition of the volume and drive knobs
lets you dial in a wide range of sounds from
a clean boost up to pretty high levels of drive
of the sort that might be expected from a
distortion pedal. The tone knob handles the
top-end, but you’ll need to tweak it at the
same time as the other knobs as it’s very
interactive. With plenty to suit blues players
looking for bite and dirt on a budget,
Cinders could get your tone smouldering.
T
he word is that Mooer’s Blues Crab mini
pedal owes more than something of
a debt to Marshall’s much-loved 90s
Blues Breaker pedal, itself designed to inject a
bit of a mid-60s Marshall amp vibe into your
sound. This is a low-level overdrive, one that
excels at all those just-beyond-clean tones,
adding an edge with an adjustable extra
shading of grit, delivered via a sensible tone
control. Nicely sensitive, this is a pedal where
the sound can get dirtier in response to your
playing: just dig in for grittiness. Sitting in
front of a good amp, this is an inexpensive yet
classy complement to take it up a notch.
TC Electronic
Cinders Overdrive
YOU SHALL GO TO THE BRAWL…
Mooer
Blues Crab
CLAW EXTRA TONE FROM YOUR AMP
TYPE Overdrive pedals
BYPASS True bypass
POWER 9V power adapter (not
supplied); TC Electronic and
MXR will also take a 9V battery
CONTACT
MXR
Westside Distribution
0844 326 2000
westsidedistribution.com
Xvive
JHS
01132 865 381
www.jhs.co.uk
TC Electronic
0800 917 8926
www.tcelectronic.com
Mooer
Strings & Things
01273 440 442
www.mooeraudio.co.uk
AT A GLANCE
£49
£58
PEDAL ROUND-UP
FEATURES
SOUND QUALITY
VALUE FOR MONEY
BUILD QUALITY
USABILITY
OVERALL RATING
SUMMARY
FEATURES
SOUND QUALITY
VALUE FOR MONEY
BUILD QUALITY
USABILITY
OVERALL RATING
SUMMARY
TGR291.gear_pedals.indd 105 2/22/17 7:02 PM