Ajoep « "Les" Is More »
Published on 07/23/17 at 11:12
Value For Money :
Excellent
Audience:
Advanced Users
An overdrive pedal that imitates the sounds of Fender’s 1950s tweed amps.
Two knobs : the left one is a master volume control, and the other one controls the overdrive level.
A three-way switch:
To the left: the legendary 5E3 circuitry (Tweed Fender Deluxe)
Middle position: High Power Twin sound (50′s Fender Twin )
To the left: Master Volume Tchula (a mix between the 5E3 and High Power Twin).
Each of the three positions offer three very distinct sound flavours:
The 5E3 provides less volume but more crunch.
The High Power Twin offers mort volume and headroom.
The Tchula is an elaborate mix of both, like a good 15W amp on the verge of crunching...
While this pedal perfectly emulates the signature sounds of Neil Young or The Rolling Stones, it’s far from being a one-trick pony. After 3 years tweaking it, the Les Liu is IMHO a great, very versatile overdrive that can provide you with unexpected and exceptional sounds.
Of all the OD pedals that I’ve owned (inclusing boutique models, Boss and so on), this is the one that sounds the slosest to a real amp, both soundwise and in term of behaviour.
It’s very dynamic, and reacts greatly to every playing nuance (whether you have a strong string attack or go softly) as well as the guitar’s volume...
It gets along well with each of my axes (an SSS strat with Alnico 3s, a ’75 Les Paul Deluxe with P90s, a PAF-equipped Epipgone LP…) and the sound is always impressive. I use it with my Fender Blues Deluxe Reissue and i discover a totally new amp... just SUBLIME !
As it’s not a conventional overdrive pedal with the traditional “volume-tone-gain” trinity, the Les Lius might disappoint you if you were to treat it as a mere overdrive pedal: please understand that it does not offer two interdependent channels, but rather a global master setting and a gain stage for even more juice – and when I say juice I don’t mean boost but overdrive.
Treat it like a real amp, and it’ll serve you well!
Two knobs : the left one is a master volume control, and the other one controls the overdrive level.
A three-way switch:
To the left: the legendary 5E3 circuitry (Tweed Fender Deluxe)
Middle position: High Power Twin sound (50′s Fender Twin )
To the left: Master Volume Tchula (a mix between the 5E3 and High Power Twin).
Each of the three positions offer three very distinct sound flavours:
The 5E3 provides less volume but more crunch.
The High Power Twin offers mort volume and headroom.
The Tchula is an elaborate mix of both, like a good 15W amp on the verge of crunching...
While this pedal perfectly emulates the signature sounds of Neil Young or The Rolling Stones, it’s far from being a one-trick pony. After 3 years tweaking it, the Les Liu is IMHO a great, very versatile overdrive that can provide you with unexpected and exceptional sounds.
Of all the OD pedals that I’ve owned (inclusing boutique models, Boss and so on), this is the one that sounds the slosest to a real amp, both soundwise and in term of behaviour.
It’s very dynamic, and reacts greatly to every playing nuance (whether you have a strong string attack or go softly) as well as the guitar’s volume...
It gets along well with each of my axes (an SSS strat with Alnico 3s, a ’75 Les Paul Deluxe with P90s, a PAF-equipped Epipgone LP…) and the sound is always impressive. I use it with my Fender Blues Deluxe Reissue and i discover a totally new amp... just SUBLIME !
As it’s not a conventional overdrive pedal with the traditional “volume-tone-gain” trinity, the Les Lius might disappoint you if you were to treat it as a mere overdrive pedal: please understand that it does not offer two interdependent channels, but rather a global master setting and a gain stage for even more juice – and when I say juice I don’t mean boost but overdrive.
Treat it like a real amp, and it’ll serve you well!