What do you think of the Klon?

fcs101

fcs101

Axe-Master
It's been a few months now since the Klon was incorporated in the FM3 and I've tried it a few times, but have been unimpressed. I'm not saying it's bad by any means, it's just not my favorite.

I had often wondered at why it took so long for FAS to get around to modeling it and now I think maybe Cliff was making a statement in his own way. I could be wrong, but who knows?

Conversation almost immediately died down after it was included and that got me wondering what you folks think. It's just an open ended invitation to post your thoughts.

I'll go first: I think it's certainly great, but I can find other drives I prefer, namely Tone of Kings.
 
Agree. Nothing really special about it.

I get more mileage and tones from my favorites: Timothy Mid, BB Pre, Esoteric AC, FAS Boost, and FET Boost.

To my ears the Klon sounds best with the gain low and the treble around noon.
 
I ve been very impressed by the klon.. So much that i ve ordered one to be constructed. ( a very good clone). I used it as boost of my Marshall jvm410hjs and i m very happy. With almost no drive push the amp enriching the whole sound. I also use a bb preamp, which i own, but for certains things because to me at the same klon settings add more compression.. I also use the ts808 mod which i find more aggressive at the same settings.
 
I was always quite satisfied with the "Klon" settings on the FET Boost ala Leon Todd, so I haven't really bothered to check out the Klon very much. I still use my favorite patch on my old AX8 quite often, which is a tube screamer into the FET boost into the US Clean model.
 
I use it a lot. I drop the GEQ 2db on every band and place it pre instead of post so it’s like an input trim. My Klonish pedal, the Tumnus Deluxe seemed to have a lower drive at 0 than the Klone. Most likely just the Tumnus design. In my pedal tube amp rig I stacked the Tumnus into a Fulltone OCD. Being on the FM3 I don’t run 2 drives. My only beef with the Klone is it uses a lot of cpu. I use other drives too but the Klone is my #1. Mostly use as a boost and rarely above 1-2 on the drive.
 
fcs101 said:
Conversation almost immediately died down after it was included and that got me wondering what you folks think. It's just an open ended invitation to post your thoughts.
Click to expand...

Haven't tried it yet, ZenMaster and Tone of Kings FTW IMHO. Looking forward to trying it though! Thank you @FractalAudio Cliff-meister for getting it in there after a long, bumpy, and complicated journey to get here from the horse-face days.
 
I believe Bill's major purpose of the real Klon in the first place was to drive tube pre-amp input stages. So you can't just talk about the Klon in isolation. The magic is in how input stages (and even those cascaded stages beyond that to some degree) react to what the Klon presents on input. Of course this is also true about any drive box for that matter. There are many different (if even slightly) tube input stages out there in the world and they will all react differently to being driven in different ways depending upon their own adjustable parameters. So to mention what the Klon or any drive does for you without specifying what you are driving and how that is set up is almost completely useless information. This also includes cases of drive models driving modeled input stages. Obviously, the entire chain from the guitar all the way to the speaker(s) also factors into what you ultimately hear. The Klon (or any other single box) can't be any more or less impressive by itself without all of these other parameters figured in to your very specific use chain.
 
tealtonerick said:
So to mention what the Klon or any drive does for you without specifying what you are driving and how that is set up is almost completely useless information.
Click to expand...
Thanks for your input Maestro, but you obviously are over thinking it.

It's a simple question about how people are finding it. Differences in rigs are assumed.
 
fcs101 said:
Thanks for your input Maestro, but you obviously are over thinking it.

It's a simple question about how people are finding it. Differences in rigs are assumed.
Click to expand...
I'm just saying that the Klon isn't any more or less significant that the drives that were already there. It's just another one.
 
tealtonerick said:
I'm just saying that the Klon isn't any more or less significant that the drives that were already there. It's just another one.
Click to expand...
This is not about posing arguments for anyone's favorite drive. It's simply to give your impression of the Klon.

Since getting my FM3 and coming into the FAS family I constantly heard people clammering for the Klon. It sort of built up my expectations, but ultimately I find it anti-climactic.

That's just me though and am wondering what others think. There is no right or wrong answer so let's not make this about something it's not.

Thanks to everyone who has chimed in.
 
I really like it as a boost. Gain at .25 or less, treble at 5. Adds just a little more grit than the Timmy Mid which I also use and love. KOT shaves a little too much high end off for me with some amps. That’s usually where I find I like the Klon instead. I’m playing mostly teles into amps on the edge of breakup (AC20, Band Commander, FAS Buttery).
 
It's the drive I use in my main presets for solos or extra gain. I don't remember my settings. I like it. I'm not going to go and say it's the best thing ever, but I thought it improved the sound of my presets.

It's nice to have so many great options in the Fractal units as there isn't a one-size-fits-all when it comes to anything in the guitar world. That's why cult following of any piece of gear should be taken with a grain of salt (Fractal Gear excluded, of course ;)). Look at how the price of the Bad Monkey pedal skyrocketed overnight because someone made a video of it sounding like a Klon, lmao.
 
fcs101 said:
It sort of built up my expectations, but ultimately I find it anti-climactic.
Click to expand...
Expectations and humans are an interesting subject.

As far as the Klon, It has its uses and I like the Fractal version. I’m a big BB Preamp fan. Was my real drive/boost for a long time. But as others, I love having more choices than I ever had before. I can definitely see how the Klon could have been a let down given all the hype that surrounds it.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom