When people refer to "Klon" sound, etc. What pedal exactly are they referring to?

[LastMantra]

Those of us who own even a KTR let alone an original talk about the "feel" you get that Klones don't have.

That's my excuse/justification - and I may soon be able to trade it for a 4x12 thanks to the ridiculous hype mentioned on the box.

It may be that it does capture something of the way a valve amp reacts, triggering something in the subconscious mind of the guitar player.

What I usually think when people talk about "game-changer" type dirt pedals though is that, as guitar players, we usually have a bunch of dirt pedals, and it's not usually that one is far better than the rest, they're just all a bit different and we personally might prefer one for one thing and another for another.

 

[Eagle]

It’s not that a klon ( real one ) is better than other dirt pedals it is that it does exactly what a lot of pros wanted . It was as much about feel as tone and reviews mostly miss this . It was about making you amp responsive like it was up full with perfect power and everything singing together. The pedal didn’t need hype or BS because pro players tried it and just quietly put one on their board. It was Jeff Beck that made me try one . People started to notice and by the time it was getting praise it was already out of production. This is what caused the start of the upwards spiral in price. The KTR when it came out is very similar in sound but something lacking in feel. The klones are mostly ok at getting the tone but again also lack the dynamic that made the pedal so desirable in the first place. IMO ( and I have tried most clones) and I have an original and can borrow my friends first run KTR . Only pedals with the same layout on the board and same brand full size components actually copy the dynamic. I think the original is a combination of a good design and a lucky accident. Proximity and physical size of components on audio circuits matters when the last 5% is the most important part . I would go as far to say that if one of the clones had been the original pedal it would have gone and nobody would be interested.
Notable clone and IME the only one that is as close to an original as two originals are to each other is The first run Centura. The only difference is the pots are alpha instead of CTS.

 

[Eagle]

it was this board that Jeff used in rehearsal

Although he was using a Lexicon Alex as a delay with it ( no Aqua Puss ).

 

[2112]

Klon(e)'s are one of those "give me more of what I already like about my amp" boosts. The buffer on it's own is really nice on larger boards too.

 

[LastMantra]

It’s not that a klon ( real one ) is better than other dirt pedals it is that it does exactly what a lot of pros wanted . It was as much about feel as tone and reviews mostly miss this . It was about making you amp responsive like it was up full with perfect power and everything singing together. The pedal didn’t need hype or BS because pro players tried it and just quietly put one on their board. It was Jeff Beck that made me try one . People started to notice and by the time it was getting praise it was already out of production. This is what caused the start of the upwards spiral in price. The KTR when it came out is very similar in sound but something lacking in feel. The klones are mostly ok at getting the tone but again also lack the dynamic that made the pedal so desirable in the first place. IMO ( and I have tried most clones) and I have an original and can borrow my friends first run KTR . Only pedals with the same layout on the board and same brand full size components actually copy the dynamic. I think the original is a combination of a good design and a lucky accident. Proximity and physical size of components on audio circuits matters when the last 5% is the most important part . I would go as far to say that if one of the clones had been the original pedal it would have gone and nobody would be interested.
Notable clone and IME the only one that is as close to an original as two originals are to each other is The first run Centura. The only difference is the pots are alpha instead of CTS.

There's no doubt it's a well thought out pedal, well built with decent components, does what it does very well, so it's not really surprising they are popular.
Just what they can go for now is a bit crazy!
You could build, or have built, whatever you want for far less.

 

[László]

The original Klons are a thing of merriment and joy with the right amps and guitars; so is the KTR; so are several of the klones on the market.

At some point in the '90s a vintage gear dealer offered me a new Klon he'd just bought and didn't like, for $200. I really loved it with single coils and a vintage Fender amp, but I was a humbucker and Mesa player at the time, and didn't think it worked as well with them, so I bought a Fulldrive.

Stupid me, though I will say that projects done with the Fulltone sounded pretty sweet.

However, two of my friends still have the original Klons, and I've been able to use them at their places. That led to me buying my son (a Fender player) a KTR for his birthday just before they went out of production. He uses it with a Mesa Lone Star - an amp I also have here - and it sounds great. It's always on his pedalboard for studio and tours.

Recently I bought an Anderson Telecaster, for a kind of ongoing project. It's the first single coil guitar I've had in a very long time. After I got it, I figured I'd find myself a nice Klon-style pedal, and I glommed onto this:

RARE | Pettyjohn Elec

Introducing CORE Limited Streamlined Sonic Bliss New run! 15 units to ship Late April12 left! SHIPPING: All pedals are made-to-order by our small team of two partners. Current run will ship mid to late April. The RARECore Series Limited Edition Overdrive I just checked and a Silver klon is going...

www.pettyjohnelectronics.com

It uses NOS parts, as the above link details, including some originally used on the Klons. I opted for the Emerson caps to open up the high end. I really like the pedal. It isn't (and isn't really supposed to be) a Klon clone.

However, it does similar things that I find useful, and it sounds very detailed, probably more so than a Klon; it's much like the studio-influenced piece of gear it was designed to be. That's typical of Pettyjohn's gear. Every so often he comes out with something that's kind of a 'must-have' for me.

I use it a a boost with a touch of grit, on 'edge of breakup', just to push an amp a tick or two farther over the top.

 

[LastMantra]

Something I think is quite interesting about the original is how the bass control is connected to the gain control. So - if I've got it right? - the bass is increasingly cut as you turn up the gain.
You can see a logic there, but it would seem more natural, as a pedal builder of sorts, to have separate controls. Generally cutting bass stops gain getting too muddy in a mix, but why not give the user the ability to choose how much?
Must have been a reason I suppose? Might explain some of the belief that it sounds so good, especially if someone didn't know it did that and just thought "you can turn up the gain and it still sounds clear!"?
Just guessing here but I'd imagine the correct dual pot might actually be more expensive than two separate normal pots? They're never as reliable, and I don't think it would be too difficult or problematic to squeeze another in/rearrange the layout slightly?