Overdrive and Distortion - Uriah Duffy Demonstrates Darkglass Electronics B3K Bass Distortion Pedal

Darkglass Electronics B3K Bass Distortion Pedal

Here we have a combination of two very impressive things: Uriah Duffy (bassist from White Snake) and the Darkglass Electronics B3K Bass Distortion Pedal.  Perhaps the only thing cooler than that B3K is the Darkglass Electronics B7K Bass Preamp / DI Pedal.  But it's little brother might actually take the cake in my opinion -- the B3K provides really awesome harmonics and enhanced feel while staying super, super clean.


Anyone who has ever used a distortion or overdrive pedal knows it's a double edged sword.  Sure, you get awesome tone while you play, but as soon as you stop there's all kinds of noise.  Not the case with the B3K.  Take a look at the video below of Uriah doing the AB comparison (switching the pedal on and off).

What you will notice is that there is no extra noise, nor any other common drawbacks such as tone suck, loss of low bass frequencies, etc.  It enhances the entire frequency spectrum, allows for longer sustain of each note, and increases playing sensitivity.  This is ideal for hard rock and metal bass players, but also can be used to a lesser extent during cleaner parts by using the Blend knob.

The blend knob does a great job of blending your original, pre-B3K tone with the exact amount of B3K love that you're after.  Pedals without a blend knob don't have as much versatility, because there's a difference between turning the effect down and turning the blend down.  For example, you could crank the distortion uber high but knock it down to a 25% blend for a subtle effect that adds some bite and good sustain (with the B3K).  On the other hand, maybe you go to halfway on the distortion and halfway on the blend, leaving a little more of the initial distorted attack in there while still preserving clean tone and avoiding transient enhancement.

I've noticed blend controls are becoming more and more prominent, and as a guitar player myself I certainly appreciate them -- both on my pedal rig and within my DAW.  Workflow and efficiency will always benefit from a good blend knob, just so long as there are no phase issues associated with the resulting tone.  In the case of the B3K, there are no audible phase issues that I'm aware of at the moment.  And I would know, because I play with a bassist who uses the B3K in most of the songs we play together!  Yes!

Here is some more information on the B3K from www.effectsboutique.com.

The newest Darkglass Microtubes B3K revision features great upgrades! Same tone, more reliability, Relay true bypass and will be 100% handmade in the USA.

The Darkglass Microtube B3K delivers an immense amount of sounds, from warm, clear, and punchy tube-like Overdrives, to devastating Raging Bass Distortions, all without losing a gram of low end or definition! Doesn’t matter if you play pop, rock or metal. This is the Bass Distortion you’ve been always waiting for.

“This is an elegantly designed and pleasingly small pedal with a big overdrive sound, interesting parameters, and the essential blend knob. Highly recommended.”

- Justin Meldal-Johnsen, Nine Inch Nails/Beck

“I’m completely blown away with the B3K. For such a small pedal with 3 knobs, it produces a ridiculously massive sound! It has been a great tool for me to have in the studio, there is such a variety of tones you can achieve with it. Even when you drive it hard, the low end is still amazingly clear, which is exactly what I need!”

- Romesh Dodangoda, Producer for Motorhead, Funeral For A Friend, Lostprophets, Kids In Glass Houses, The Blackout, among many others!

Doesn’t matter if you play pop, rock or metal - this is the bass distortion you’ve been always waiting for.

The Darkglass Microtube B3K delivers an immense amount of sounds ranging from warm, clear and punchy tube-like overdrive to devastating bass distortion - all without losing an ounce of low end or definition!

"So far I love the b3k! And the rest of the band does too, they've all been making comments about how much better my sound is. I can't wait to do a full tour with it!"

-Alex Webster, Cannibal Corpse/Blotted Science and Darkglass Electronics artist.

Features:

Original Design featuring Hybrid JFET and CMOS gain stages for a natural dynamic response.

Level: Controls the drive level.

Blend: Mixes the amount of clean signal with the drive.

Drive: Sets the amount of gain for this pedal.

Grunt Switch: Choose between 3 different bass boost levels before the gain stages - this interacts with the Drive knob, so you can choose how much bass you want to saturate.

Attack Switch: This 3-way switch features the same “Ultra Hi” option found in most tube bass amps. The first position allows you to choose how much treble content you want to saturate. The second position controls the boost setting, giving you more clarity, presence and definition. With the switch in the third (off) position, your sound is a bit warmer and not as sharp.

For environmental reasons, Darkglass products do not include battery snaps! The B3K can be powered either using a regulated 9V power supply (center negative) or a 12V power supply for extra headroom.

True Bypass

Useful Tip:

If you want to get fuzz tones out of the B3K, you can do so by rolling down the tone control of your bass (or the treble if it has an active preamp), and set the "Grunt" switch to "Fat" mode, this will provide some mean woolly tones!