Attempting to Build a 1959T in a box

[jeremy2223]

Hi,

Well first off I will introduce myself, my name is Jeremy and I live in New Zealand and have been playing guitar for a few years now. I enjoy playing anything from Eric Clapton to Slash to Buckethead but I am most facinated with the tone of slash - as I am aware many others are too. I currently play a Epiphone Les Paul Standard (modified by me with) which has all the poly sanded down and has new tuners, 50's style wiring and Alnico II pups. It sounds much better than stock and if I can say so myself plays better than many Gibsons made these days (which I guess isn't too hard anymore).

I play through an Orange Tiny Terror and I also own a Slash Wah, Ge-7, DD-20 and a SD-1. I am thinking of building a overdrive pedal to run through this setup because I want to sell me SD-1 as I don't like the tone. I have read a fair few threads around here and some suggest a ROG Thor would be closest to the 1959t Modded #39 amp slash used on AFD. Others say the Maximus pedal that a member here modded would sound good also (he posted a Sweet child clip that was fairly impressive).

I have intermediate skills in electronics and was wondering if it would be possible to create a pedal based on the 1959t 100w and add the extra gain stage like Tim Caswell did to make a sound close to the AFD tone. I know that through a tiny terror there are many variables to get this tone so I am not completley satisfied that it would be worth the effort creating a schematic for this and mabey it would be easier doing the Thor and adding a Tone Stack to it of some sort.

What are your opinions on this?

Thanks,

Jeremy

[aron]

I would pick a circuit that sounds closest to the kind of overdrive that you want - try different generic pedals and find one that is close, then either build one or mod the pedal to your liking.

[Renegadrian]

Hello Jeremy and welcome! 
Gn'R has been my first fav. band, that introduced me to the hard rock work...back in 89, my friend...
Anyway, I read that Slash used a Rat too those days...Maybe you want to try that?!

[MikeH]

I would pick a circuit that sounds closest to the kind of overdrive that you want - try different generic pedals and find one that is close, then either build one or mod the pedal to your liking.

Arons advice is the best way to go.  There's nothing out there that will make your tiny terror sound like a 1959T, but there are many pedals that will make it sound SWEET.  You should sample some different flavors and build whatever makes you amp sound the way you like it.  Especially with the low wattage of the tiny terror, because it won't take as much gain to make it break up into distortion.  Something like a Dr. Boogey, BSIAB, or Thor might give you that sound on a 100W amp, but on a 5 watter it might produce too much distortion.  This of course depends on how cranked you usually run the tiny terror.  I know I like my 5 watter dimed.