searching for the perfect blown out guitar tone

[Codyeatruck]

yo yo yo

i'm looking to get a semi lo-fi(ish), blown out tone. similar to early neutral milk hotel demos or on avery island, but with an electric guit. it seems like i cant get what i want without sacrificing the high end.

Anyone with any suggestions on how to do so?

[Tristan]

I understand the problem as I've experienced it myself as well, that said did you try a (treble) boost after your favourite "blown out" drive pedal?
Something like an RC Booster with high and low eq controls could work pretty well.
Or maybe try a SS/BS Mini or Fuck Overdrive, those can do blown out and stay articulate pretty well, then there's also the Mid Fi Electronics Demo Tape Fuzz and the new Catalinbread Karma Suture, all worth a shot I guess.
I like the Fuzzhugger Suneater for blown out type of sounds as well though it might not be bright enough for you, I don't know.

[rustywire]

I'd say most of the demo's guitar sound (that I've heard) is due to the lofi recording medium's EQ curve/gain staging, which was almost certainly done to cassette (likely with dirty, worn heads). Very enjoyable brand of lofi IMO, especially when the songs are good.

Try to find a lower end Tascam cassette Portastudio or its Fostex, Yamaha etc equivalent from the 80s/90s. Play around with overdriving its Gain pot as you're recording a guitar track.

Also EQing your signal like an exaggerated AM radio will help (rolling off lows & highs) and/or something like this pedal that's been on my want list for 2 years:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WsnkVZEmoko[/youtube]


Good luck.

[skullservant]

I second the Fuck

[friendship]

I'm not a Neutral Milk Hotel expert, but from what I've heard that's mostly overdriven tape. If the mid-fi Tape Fuzz does what it claims to do, that would be perfect. Run that shit straight to board if you want to be real about it.

[12XU2A3X3]

yo fella,

there was an old tape op piece where he talks about every is tone. said it was for feeding back channels on a reel to reel. will try to find it. said i would scan it a while ago for the elephant six fourm. forgot. some dude called me an asshole for forgetting. fuck them.

[PetZounds]

LOVE that On Avery Island guitar sound.
I think, as others mentioned, you might want to check out the Demo Tape or Fuck.
Maybe you'll want to get both?
I want to get both.

yo fella,

there was an old tape op piece where he talks about every is tone. said it was for feeding back channels on a reel to reel. will try to find it. said i would scan it a while ago for the elephant six fourm. forgot. some dude called me an asshole for forgetting. fuck them.

This sounds pretty sweet.
Also, that guy is an asshole for assuming he's entitled to anything.
Fuck them indeed.

[watchyourscrew]

What everyone else mentioned. Friend uses his tape recorder for guitar overdubs, makes a killer octave-up.

This takes more work (installing new speakers if lacking) but you might want to try goosing a low-efficiency cabinet with pedals or a big head.

[Codyeatruck]

much appreciated advice on the endless tone journey! im going to have to look into all this info, thanks dudes!

[Plastic_Telos]

How about voltage starving an overdrive?

[tjlong]

coincidentally, i was also looking for a dirt pedal that would do the guitar sound on King of Carrot Flowers Pt 3... a blown up amp sound, just harsh and loud but without the gain-y crunch and sustain of a fuzz or distortion. like playing clean but so loud its killing your amp. chose a SS/BS Fuck and never looked back. i leave the crackle always on.

[Ghost Hip]

Mini Overdrive, Fuck, or a Devi Ever LP.

[adapt]

Metasonix f1

[IEatCats]

Buy an old fender practice amp. One of those ones you can buy at a thrift shop for like $15. Run a TON of overdrive into it, and CRANK THE VOLUME AND BUILT IN GAIN.

Now stab the speaker a few times with a razor blade. (This is actually a somewhat legitimate way to get a distorted tone. I've heard that before distortion pedals were around, it was a cheap way to get a fake-hi gain tone. I've never tried it myself, though.)

[sylnau]

Mid-Fi Demo Tape Fuzz
Mountainking Ruckus II