MXR Timmy Overdrive Guitar Effects Pedal (CSP027), Blue

Product Information

So what I’ve been doing is using the MXR Timmy to give me a light overdrive sound, straight into the Origin 20H. By modern tastes, it probably still counts as a clean tone, but I think it’s really sweet. How Does It Compare To The Original Timmy v2? While the TC Electronic Mojomojo might sit at the more budget end, it’s still absolutely one of the best overdrive pedals out there. It’s been used by none other than virtuoso Paul Gilbert, and offers a dynamic, smooth overdrive with lots of headroom. It won’t give you massive amounts of gain on tap, but, if you’re running it through a clean amp, it does give you a very nice cranked tube amp sound.

Examples of some transparent overdrive pedals on our list are the MXR Timmy, the Boss Blues Driver, and the MXR Duke of Tone. What's the difference between overdrive, distortion, and fuzz pedals? Actually, my current board set-up (and I have had MANY) initially consists of a tuner going into the Freidman Sir-Compre/ into an ARCHER/ into the TIMMY/ into a JHS AT/ into the Freidman BE (and then to the special effects, out to amp). MusicRadar verdict: Smaller, more affordable, more available and just as musical as Paul Cochrane's originals, Timmy remains one of the first names that come to mind when you think of transparent overdrive. The web says They aren’t afraid to look outside for fresh perspectives every once in a while and refresh their creative energy by collaborating with other forward-thinking designers. In recent years, this outlook has resulted in the Raijin ™ Drive Pedal and the Shin-Juku ™ Drive Pedal with Shin Suzuki, the Il Torino ™ Overdrive and the Il Diavolo ™ Overdrive with Carlo Sorasio, and the Bass Distortion with Ryan Ratajski. In 2020, we’re super excited to bring you MXR’s latest collaboration—the MXR ® Timmy ® Overdrive with Nashville pedal builder Paul Cochrane.After some experimenting, I decided that the Timmy was a great choice for boosting the True Grit to get closer to my other Telecasters (so that I can switch guitars without having to adjust settings every time). Look out for details about that in a future blog post.

In terms of sounds, the Klon is often described as 'transparent', but we've always found it to be distinctly colored, chewy in its drive tone at lower gain settings, and crunchy and dry with the gain up – these qualities are also true of the Tumnus.The pedal’s right-side booster derives from the Dane’s clean boost circuit, employing a ‘lows’ knob for thinning or fattening up signals as needed. This all functions the same on the left side booster, with the only exception being that the left boost equips germanium diodes for added grit.

If you’re looking to drive a tube amp without colouring your sound, then this could be one of the best overdrive pedals for you. The EQ has been designed in a clever way too - the bass and treble are cut-only, so you’re not adding in frequencies but keeping your tone ‘truer’, plus the controls are wired pre- and post-overdrive to help maintain your low end, and smooth out the top. It isn’t the kind of overdrive that you run into a clean amp. I’m sure there’s someone famous out there who does do exactly that. There’s always an exception to these rules. There can also be EQ controls, allowing you to change the character of your overdrive tone without messing with your clean tones. Some pedals, like the MXR Timmy, feature flatter EQ profiles that are going to allow you to boost your tone without changing your core tone EQs. Type This pedal features volume, body, and drive controls as well as a gain toggle switch that allows you to push your tube amp anywhere from light saturation to full-on crunch. It's a great always-on pedal that really shines in tandem with your other effects as well. Its ability to bring the best out of your amp, while retaining the voice of your guitar is the envy of many a stomp box. I would say the Tim/Timmy IS the most "transparent" drive available.Overdrive pedals come in all shapes and sizes (okay, mostly just rectangular), and as such, can feature any number of different controls and settings. Any overdrive is likely to feature at least an adjustable gain and tone knob, but there are a number of other features to look out for as well. Different overdrive pedals also offer various tone shaping facilities. Some pedals might just have a generic tone knob, whereas others might have a more in depth EQ section. Think about how much you’ll want to adjust the different frequencies within the pedal, or if you’re happy just plugging in and playing, and sorting your EQ elsewhere. Depending on which pedal you buy, you can also use your overdrive pedal in tandem with other distortion pedals as a boost, or combine with other pedals for various effects and endless fun. Verdict That being said, I’m a Marshall guy who loves an AC/DC rhythm tone and an Eric Johnson lead tone. You could say that’s the inspiration for the sounds that I try to create. What was your biggest personal/professional thrill involving a Tim or Timmy Overdrive?

You can trust Guitar World Our expert reviewers spend hours testing and comparing guitar products so you can choose the best for you. Find out more about how we test.One nice feature is that the MXR controls and nice and stiff to turn, and are not likely to get 'randomized' while traveling around gig to gig. I had put rubber washers under the original controls because they turned if you looked at them hard. :) The MXR LED is also brighter and easier to see. That’s what it was designed to do, and arguably it’s still one of the best pedals for this – especially for Marshall-style amps. What Are You Doing With It? Is the tone lost in translation through an approximation of a pedal approximating an amp? In all honesty, it’s impossible to tell. What we can go by is the common thread in the tones we’re aiming for: fat, smooth sounding overdrive that the players mentioned above deliver in spades.