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The Edge (U2) aurait utilisé cette pédale sur des sessions de l'album
October, en 1981.
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Apparement il s'agit du même modèle que la VOX 1901 Distortion (1981)
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http://filters.muziq.be/model/(...)5795d
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Price Paid: US $80 used
Ease of Use: 10
Two dials: Level and Distrortion. hardly rocketscience.
Sound Quality: 7
It's a distortion - a rather mild distortion when compared to modern-day hellraisers. With my Les Paul the dirtortion was quite heavy but still sounding more extreme overdrive than distortion. Soundwise this is nothing spectacular. Nothing you couldn't do with another distortion unit when using your ears and clever EQing. Saying that, I love its sound - it retains the playing nuances brilliantly and its appeal lies in the way the pedal reacts to the input signal. Lowering the volume on the pickup the distortion remains but the sound goes from angry-wasps to a more Pete Townsend-ish/The Who style. It's heavy yet somehow silky and very detailed.
Also interesting that there's almost no change in sound on the distortion poti for the first half - but then suddenly the volume knob gets very powerful.
Results are great with any amp but the real magic happens when placed in front of an AC30. It's the sound I'd call 'Rebel Rock' - bands like U2, The Alarm, Simple Minds, The Sound, Chameleons, Echo & The Bunnymen, The Clash, The Church, etc .... you'd get the idea. Listen to U2's 'Under A Blood Red Sky' live album/video; Cry/Electric Co or the solo in Sunday Bloody Sunday - the Guyatone in full effect.
Also the distortion on tracks off the 1981 album 'October'. Songs like 'Rejoice' or 'Whith A Shout (Jerusalem)' have that Guyatone sound.
Only 7/10 for it's very limited sound spectrum - but what it does it does better than any other pedal.
Reliability: 10
This pedal is about 25 years old and long out of production ... and still working strong.
This has the standing power of Boss and Ibanex pedals. 100% reliable.
Customer Support: N/A
Never needed to contact Guyatone.
Overall Rating: 10
First things first: It's a Guyatone pedal NOT a Zoom. This series by Guyatone was called "Zoom .... Box" - to my knowledge they produced Flangers, Chorus, Wah Filters, Compressors, etc - and this Distortion. So we're talking Guyatone.
It's a bit of a rare find and no-one would probably bother looking for this pedal if a certain Dave Evans (aka U2's The Edge) wouldn't have used it for the short period between 1981's 'October' album/tour until the end of the 1983 'War' tour.
If you can get it cheap it's well worth it if you are into the sound of the aforementioned bands. If not - don't bother. This box is very one-dimensional, the polar opposite of a versatile pedal. What it does, it delivers perfectly though.
The only thing I don't like is that the LED is constantly "ON" - hence being a battery life indicator rather than the much more useful "on/off" indicator. But a simple solderjob can change this.
Alternatives are the Vox 'Distortion 1901' (technically 100% identical!). Then there's an extremely limited edition boutique pedal called Z2 by Psionic - a direct clone, with a dedicated U2 styled enclosure. But try a Boss SD1, DS1 or DF2.
Use your ears and the Tone poti. It takes patience but it's possible.
Submitted by punX at 05/07/2006 16:18
