# Technical death metal guitar tone pedals



## KingOfRoll (Jan 18, 2011)

Hey guys, new to this forum. May as well start off with a question: What pedals would you recommend for a good tech death tone? The particular kind I'm looking for is that hyper-clean (you know, kinda), bright lead tone such as that on The Faceless' Planetary Duality or Obscura's Cosmogenesis. 

Currently playing an Ibanez RG320DX with Dimarzio pickups, through a B-52 AT212 combo amp. Actually, I'm looking for a new amp as well, probably a half-stack so if anyone has any pointers there I'd really appreciate it. 

Thanks, all.


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## Larrikin666 (Jan 18, 2011)

Obscura uses all ENGL gear (e580, e840, e850, e570) according to the two times I've seen them. If that stuff is out of your price range, then maybe look into a Randall V2 to hit those really tight Faceless tones.


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## KingOfRoll (Jan 18, 2011)

Hmm, the ENGL stuff might be a little outside my price range...I was looking at the Fireball or Powerball heads, though - any thoughts on those?


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## shadowsea (Jan 18, 2011)

http://cachepe.samedaymusic.com/med...athMetal-5d8d9bb829c83a40043526864f7bd335.jpg

HURRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

Seriously though, don't invest in pedals. They're a waste of money and you'll end up selling them anyway when you upgrade. get a pod, familiarize yourself with amp modeling and getting good tones. Then binge for an axe fx. nothing will serve you better in the studio than digital modeling, and its wayyy more flexible. for live applications you can run your axe fx through a cab and instantly get that superior sound right from the get go. its pricey but well worth it. I dont own an axe-fx but i'm saving now. from my research it really looks like the best option.


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## xCaptainx (Jan 18, 2011)

The Faceless use Line 6 Vetta, so a pod XT/X3/HD would do the trick.


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## Soubi7string (Jan 18, 2011)

Pod hd ::agree::


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## Wookieslayer (Jan 18, 2011)

Pod of some sort and/or Randall V2


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## Stealthdjentstic (Jan 18, 2011)

Fuck a pod unless you're running it through a pa or poweramp
and cab. Look into a 5150/6505.


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## xCaptainx (Jan 18, 2011)

HD500 + Rocktron Velocity 300 poweramp would be cheaper than a new 5150/6505 (well it is over here at least) 

5150's are great (I've had four) but I'm enjoying the versatility/ease of setup with the pod/poweramp setup. Good reccomendation though!


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## ryugkun (Jan 18, 2011)

I used a Hardwire TL-2 for the longest time until I started using tube amps, It had a huge mid range (basis of my tone is all in the mids). I used to have Metal Zone but ended up selling it for the TL-2.

The TL-2 is basically a very analog sounding Metal Zone with a 3 band EQ and a Frequency knob. Well all in my opinion. I could get a Chuck Schuldiner type tone preety easily.

If you want Obscura(like) tone I'd say shoot for the TL-2, it's extremely versitle it you wanna spend the time to get used to the pedal. 

I'm sure theres other pedals but I haven't used many.


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## KingOfRoll (Jan 18, 2011)

I'm kind of prejudiced towards digital modeling, not quite sure why. The sound just tends to sound sort of lifeless to me; I've preferred tubes for a while now. I'll definitely have to check out a 5150/6505 when I find one. I was surprised at how relatively inexpensive they are. Therefore, follow-up question; Marshall cabinets yes or no?


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## xCaptainx (Jan 18, 2011)

marshall cab with v30s are great, I'm currently using one. Soon to be buying a blackstar cab however.


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## beneharris (Jan 19, 2011)

KingOfRoll said:


> I'm kind of prejudiced towards digital modeling, not quite sure why. The sound just tends to sound sort of lifeless to me; I've preferred tubes for a while now. I'll definitely have to check out a 5150/6505 when I find one. I was surprised at how relatively inexpensive they are. Therefore, follow-up question; Marshall cabinets yes or no?


you wont have trouble finding one at all.

there is a 5150II (may or may not be your cup of tea) on the first page of the classifieds right now. for as much as people like them, it amazes me how many change hands


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## Kali Yuga (Jan 19, 2011)

I own a POD HD500, and while it's a handy tool, I haven't been able to get a good clear sound for technical death metal from it. I'm not going for that tech-style tone though, but something more akin to Defeated Sanity with more clarity.


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## petereanima (Jan 19, 2011)

xCaptainx said:


> The Faceless use Line 6 Vetta, so a pod XT/X3/HD would do the trick.



When i saw them they were running Randall (V2 or T2, cant remember - but one of those) with a POD Pro. I guess for Clean and Effects.


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## AeonSolus (Jan 19, 2011)

isn't your amp the Rectifier B-52? run it on the silicone mode and boost the shiznit out of it With an OD or a Distortion pedal if you're looking for a more Brootz tone, also, get a noisegate, it'll sound mounstrous and sharp edge


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## Larrikin666 (Jan 19, 2011)

The 5150/6505 heads are fundamentally the opposite of the progressive stuff that The Faceless/Obscura put out lately. That doesn't mean you won't get tones you like out of them....but they're definitely different.


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## Inazone (Jan 19, 2011)

Larrikin666 said:


> The 5150/6505 heads are fundamentally the opposite of the progressive stuff that The Faceless/Obscura put out lately. That doesn't mean you won't get tones you like out of them....but they're definitely different.



Yeah, definitely true. I've played just about every Peavey amp under the sun, and that's not really the type of tone they're known for. Honestly, if you were going to get a Peavey, I'd suggest an XXL before any of their tube amps for the tightest possible tone. There are three channels with three voicings each, and three speaker dampening modes including Tight. I bought one because I couldn't really justify putting lots of hours on my tube amps (considering the cost of tubes these days) at band practice, but liked it so much I started gigging with it. I go for a bigger, "looser" type of sound (closer to 5150/6505) than something like The Faceless, but I've played my sevens through the XXL with a much tighter tone dialed in, and it really does a good job.

On the other hand, if you are looking at pedals, I guess it depends on how much you want to spend and what you need it to do. The Line 6 HD and newer Digitech RP pedals can really cover a lot of ground. I don't get on well with most digital distorted tones, so I bought an MXR Fullbore for a backup and will be getting an AMT P1 or E1 soon, but then again, I'm really only looking for a couple of different tones and minimal effects.


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## MikeMonacoBrah (Jan 19, 2011)

Yeah, I'd go with a V2. Kind of regret not looking into those before I ordered my 6505+


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## ryugkun (Jan 19, 2011)

KingOfRoll said:


> I'm kind of prejudiced towards digital modeling, not quite sure why. The sound just tends to sound sort of lifeless to me; I've preferred tubes for a while now. I'll definitely have to check out a 5150/6505 when I find one. I was surprised at how relatively inexpensive they are. Therefore, follow-up question; Marshall cabinets yes or no?



I'm the exact same way, before I started using tube amps I hated my guitar tone, it sounded like it was lacking a richness to it, tubes just seem to solve hat problem perfectly.


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## KingOfRoll (Jan 19, 2011)

I guess I am going for that tighter, progressive death tone. Maybe something along the lines of Augury? Either way, it looks like a distortion pedal is a must; any particular brand recommendations?


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## Wookieslayer (Jan 19, 2011)

I hear good things about Blackstar's line of distortion and boost pedals. HT series I think 


Also maybe just try boosting your current amp with any known tubescreamer like Aeon said:



AeonSolus said:


> isn't your amp the Rectifier B-52? run it on the silicone mode and boost the shiznit out of it With an OD or a Distortion pedal if you're looking for a more Brootz tone, also, get a noisegate, it'll sound mounstrous and sharp edge


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## -Oracle- (Jan 20, 2011)

If you're looking for pedals, surely try an OD in front of your amp, the best ones imho are Maxon 808, Maxon 820 (my all time fav), MXR GT-OD.


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## iron blast (Jan 20, 2011)

Larrikin666 said:


> The 5150/6505 heads are fundamentally the opposite of the progressive stuff that The Faceless/Obscura put out lately. That doesn't mean you won't get tones you like out of them....but they're definitely different.



The 6505 can be quite good in this genre born of osiris has used it in the both albums I remember when Lee got that amp he was imediatly in love he played thru a behringer cab back then and it still sounded brutal.


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## col (Jan 20, 2011)

KingOfRoll said:


> I guess I am going for that tighter, progressive death tone. Maybe something along the lines of Augury? Either way, it looks like a distortion pedal is a must; any particular brand recommendations?



Look into AMT Electronics Legend Amps series. They're not distortion pedals though, they're analog preamps in pedal form:

netmusicians.org - the guitar gear mp3 database


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## jllozano (Jan 20, 2011)

col said:


> Look into AMT Electronics Legend Amps series. They're not distortion pedals though, they're analog preamps in pedal form:
> 
> netmusicians.org - the guitar gear mp3 database



yeah try either the P1 or E1...should do the trick.....use em trough the effects loop of your b52 and it should sound killer


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