OCD owners: I want your reviews

Progrockabuse · Post by **Progrockabuse** » Tue Jan 04, 2011 6:38 pm

There's a few of you on here and want to get your thoughts on them.
are the worth investing in?

i've been using the cool cat drive, which is there OCD clone and really like the sound thought i've a few gripes with it. mainly these are the location of the inputs and the knobs, plus not overly sold on the look of it. sound wise it's fucking great, doesn't add a shit ton of flabby low end.
i've always liked the sound of the real deal OCD in demos and want to know users thoughts. i'd get a 2nd hand unit, Â£125+ for a new one is quite steep.

this is just thoughts, don't worry not planning to go dominoes crazy on pedal again just yet.

SGJarrod · Post by **SGJarrod** » Tue Jan 04, 2011 6:46 pm

I use the OCD with my DT and love it.... It is the only boost I have used since maybe Nov..... does everything well and cleans up superbly..... the lower gain settings are very natural and sweet, but I feel it gets alittle woofy around 3/4 gain and up... I usually do not have the gain above 1/2..... I use it as alittle dirt for my clean TT setting or more on the Fat channel

u can have them made much cheaper.... Madbean sells a pcb for it or I bet u could have someone make one for u at a much better price.... I would offer but by time I built it and shipped it across the pond it prolly would not be a great deal anymore

the LP mode is great for heavier moddern boost tones...imo

the other option and much cheaper is just rehouse the Cool Cat pedal

but u will prolly have to know how to solder to do this too as I think the pots are board mounted

Post by **Mike** » Tue Jan 04, 2011 6:51 pm

They sound great into the right amp and with the right combo of other pedals.

I love them into Fender style amps, and enjoy playing the one in the OCD/DLS I have at home into my Champ - also it loved my Bugera V55HD. However the v3 OCD original I had sounded terrible into the Clean channel of my 6100, which is strange as it's a great clean channel which loves pedals, but those two did not get on. It sounded incredibly wooly and undefined, like a neck pickup all the time. Gash. Funnily enough the v4 in my Dual pedal sounds fine.

So there is something a bit weird about setups and versions there I don't quite understand.

Some general notes:

- The price new is stupid. It's an Op-Amp, 13 resistors, 11 caps, two JFETs and a Germanium Diode.
- Buying a second hand one for aound Â£70 is a good deal and it'll hold it's resale
- The Cool Cat is much brighter than the OCD
- The pots are different tapers and are easier to play with on the real deal

Progrockabuse · Post by **Progrockabuse** » Tue Jan 04, 2011 6:54 pm

i'd like to know which OCD mode the cool cat is supposed to mimic, as there's no switch on it. on the v2 there's one under the battery lid.
might have to beg someone nicely to let me try one.

SGJarrod · Post by **SGJarrod** » Tue Jan 04, 2011 6:58 pm

mines V4 and I have no issues of mis-matching with amps....have used on TT, DT, Classic 30, and Orange Cr20L...it even sounds great thru the SS CR20L....

my home practice rig is CR20L, OCD, and a muff of some sort

I believe the CC is the HP mode

side note: for a completely clean channel the DLS is Titts McGee..... I sold mine cuz My DT is now my "base" sound

Progrockabuse · Post by **Progrockabuse** » Tue Jan 04, 2011 7:00 pm

that is true, the DLS was my main sound for ages. still got it and never gonna sell that puppy.

SGJarrod · Post by **SGJarrod** » Tue Jan 04, 2011 7:02 pm

Progrockabuse wrote:that is true, the DLS was my main sound for ages. still got it and never gonna sell that puppy.

I felt the same way..but I got the DT and never used it anymore....but I do have a pcb board from Madbean for one so I can make one anytime I please

Progrockabuse · Post by **Progrockabuse** » Tue Jan 04, 2011 7:04 pm

that's the main statement of the DT, "whatever you used before can fuck off". lol

othomas2 · Post by **othomas2** » Tue Jan 04, 2011 7:25 pm

Alright prog, I have an OCD which I bought after the cool cat drive. I don't think I will ever buy another pedal to replace I with. Having said that I really don't think its the extra ca$h over cool cat. I recently tried v2 cool cat and from memory I think I prefer it again.. It's a brighter OCD. Like you I didn't like the knob positioning or the overall look of it so the fulltone is definite keeper. I think it's used best as at mid gain and boosted there after. I still have the dano v1 so I could do an audio a / b for you if you so wished.

SGJarrod · Post by **SGJarrod** » Tue Jan 04, 2011 7:33 pm

othomas2 wrote: I still have the dano v1 so I could do an audio a / b for you if you so wished.

or you can trust in the GearManDude

benecol · Post by **benecol** » Tue Jan 04, 2011 8:35 pm

See, I acquired one on a trade a few months ago, and I'm not that arsed about it - it's OK, but a bit meh in my opinion. But please bear in mind that, firstly, I always feel like that about overdrives and secondly, I have ears of tin and sometimes can't tell if I've got my fuzzes switched on or not. I wanted to hear if all the fuss was justified, and also J Mascis had one (switched on all the time) as part of his board a few years ago, so I wanted to give it a go. Since buying the Black Charger bass, I vowed that this one would have to go on eBay - it's minty, with all the case candy and stuff, so I'm hoping it's going to pay for the bass. I think you'd be lucky to get a secondhand one for Â£70 - have Mike build you one instead, maybe? Also, haven't you just bought a Crunchbox?

Progrockabuse · Post by **Progrockabuse** » Tue Jan 04, 2011 11:18 pm

It was a crowther hotcake that I got the other day. I gave it a good session at band practise this week and last, and through the cc drive in this week as well. You really have to spend ages tweaking the hotcake, it gets very flabby very easily and I'm sure it wasn't as Flabby in the shop, maybe it don't like me speakers lol. Whereas the OCD clone worked a lot better. I found it easier to dial in and balance between my channels so I could have 4 different gain levels (clean/light breakup/crunch/melt).

Dam shame your ebaying it, I'd be willing to broker a better deal your way.

SGJarrod · Post by **SGJarrod** » Tue Jan 04, 2011 11:32 pm

I bet you could find someone to swap straight up for that Hotcake..........

Prog I think u have the same disease I have and am currently working on..... never 100% satisfied with your tone... and I do not think I will ever be cuz there are always so many options out there and something new to try....That is why I started building pedals...way cheaper

I came to the realization that I will always want something else and most of my dissatisfaction is my playing and not the gear..... I got into pedals cuz they are the cheapest part of your kit to change.....

although.... a good set up will do wonders too....when was the last time u had ur axes set up?..do you do it often? you would be amazed at what string height(raising it on most peoples guitars), intonation and pick-up adjustments can do, can make a muddy axe clear as day...and to me it seems the lack of a good set up is always exaggerated under gain.... just a thought

James · Post by **James** » Tue Jan 04, 2011 11:33 pm

I think I have a V3. I absolutely love it. Used on it's own I always think 'that really is quite a nice pedal' and used with a boost in front (particularly the salt boost) it's 'oh hell yes!' everytime. It also loves my Matamp, but I don't know much about the amp. I don't even know what the power tubes are as they don't have any markings I could see.

One thing I would say is it never really has a sparkly or 'open' top end. That's not necessarily a bad thing but if it's something you're after you'll find it lacking at times. For me there isn't a bad setting on it, other than that unity gain with most amps tends to be between 8 and 9 o'clock which means it's very easy to have it far too loud. The pots feel quality though and it's easy to accurately turn them so even with a limited usable range on the level knob it's fine (with some amp, I can't remember which, I had to use a lot more of it for unity, and of course with lower gain settings too).

benecol · Post by **benecol** » Tue Jan 04, 2011 11:41 pm

Progrockabuse wrote:Dam shame your ebaying it, I'd be willing to broker a better deal your way.

We can talk turkey if you want, but since this was a non-shortscale non-brodeal, I was going to market it to within an inch of it's life on eBay*, so couldn't really cut you a deal.

* My wife lent me the money for the bass and she'll fucking kill me if I don't cough up soon.

Progrockabuse · Post by **Progrockabuse** » Tue Jan 04, 2011 11:45 pm

I'll pm you

Bacchus · Post by **Bacchus** » Wed Jan 05, 2011 12:02 am

Fully awesome. I have no idea what mine is, but I love it.

benecol wrote:But please bear in mind that, firstly, I always feel like that about overdrives and secondly, I have ears of tin and sometimes can't tell if I've got my fuzzes switched on or not.

This was basically me until I got the Klon, the OCD/DLS and the TOD. I barely use my original black Guv'nor anymore. Not because it's a shit pedal but because I've shit ears and the other pedals are so easy to use.