Tim Lerch - Ethos Overdrive / Zen Drive Comparison

[massimo52185]

I think the sound is based on sound zendrive mesaboogie.this then obviously as a basic sound with a tone sounds, perhaps with some of those mean, but you can also play a boogie sound robben ford sound with the hollowbody gibson 335, is similar

[spicecrop]

thanks

[ts808heaven]

Zendrive, due to being a raw pedal without the need of an eq,switches,etc. The zen pedal compliments the amp not the amp complimenting the pedal. In my humble opinion.

[matimaui]

ethos wins

[mw2nerdturd]

My uncle owns zendrive... Love u tio

[frontingbravery]

great demo.  Curious if you've ever compared either to a Kingsley Juggler.

[wjhaye2]

I don't think ive ever heard two pedals sound more similar....i vote both, obviously your playing has a certain tone to it. good job

[kapdrums]

i vote for the ethos.....i thought you were jeff bridges...:)))

great playing!

[fend14]

you look like a genuine great guy

[artniteflym]

Hello Tim,

Which brand of power supply that you use for ethos when it's belong in your board? 12vdc, 500 ma., center negative right?

Thank you

[sustayne]

Note for note, I'd have to say the Ethos seems to have a little bit more fire going on. Also, It sounds like maybe there is buffer circuitry in the Ethos as well? As you dialed back your volume through the Ethos, your higher freqs hung on very nicely. Great video. Thanks for making the time.

[wajang1000]

The Zendrive seems to have slightly bigger balls. The Ethos sounds thinner but rounder.

[iloveyoumomdad]

The Zen Drive seems to respond better to the dynamics of the picking.

[nznaturopath]

Ethos Overdrive is better by a mile. You can hear and also actually see you like the ethos more aswell, it showed ever so clear on your face. But mainly the tone was more full, pro level sounding, when the zendrive, even though it is a really nice pedal, actually sounded like a stomp box trying to be like the ethos in a sense. IM happy i have my ethos coming up on the waiting list in FEB 2011. 6 weeks away, wow what a long wait it was. Should be nice plugged into my Mark Five mesa boogie.

[keithgurev]

I bought a ZD just based on this video, kudos to Tim's playing. Through my Fender Super, the ZD sounds best with humbuckers (ES335/LP) and a Marshall Blues Breaker OD for single coils, for screaming leads I sometimes use both pedals in series. Again hat off to Tim, all other OD demos sound awful on youtube.

[tehorix789]

Tim, does your Nocaster have the vintage fret wire or the taller Dunlop 6105 fret wire (the regular Nocasters come with the vintage fret wire)? How do you find it? My '56 Strat Relic has the vintage fret wire, and I'm finding it's a bit more difficult to bend, requiring more finger pressure onto the string. It's as if you can't get underneath the string as well.

[telebasher]

@tehorix789

I use Stew Mac mediums.

[vl0076]

Hi TIm,

What are those changes you are playing? Very cool vibe.

Thanks

[vl0076]

Hi TIm,

What are those changes you are playing? Very cool vibe.

[guitarelaxed]

Hello Tim,

Great comparison!

I own both pedals and some other D-style pedals and I think that the Ethos TLE is a lot more dynamic than the Zendrive but I like it only as a preamp. In front of an amp the Zendrive is much easier to dial in. The only thing I really hate about the Ethos is that the knobs move way too easily. As an OD pedal I prefer the Barber small fry. I only wish the internal trim pots would be normal knobs on the outside.

[protocosm]

I have the Zendrive and love it. The Ethos is not available in a standard european version. Too bad. Thanks for the clear comparison.

[BadBoysBlues]

Hey Tim,

What are the settings on the Zendrive ?

I'm gonna try one out wednsday ,I also have a deluxe reverb I think it wil sound really good.

can't wait to try it out.

[telebasher]

@BadBoysBlues Try setting all the nobs at 12:00 and the go from there as your ears tell you what you need.

[old97music]

Tim -- Great demo, sold me on the Zendrive (mine's on order). About your Lollar '52's . . . they sound wonderful. Anyway you can compare them to the Fender Texas Specials? I think maybe they're less "Mid-range" friendly, but you get additional body with more well-defined highs.

[bluebrowne13]

I like the Ethos better - a little smoother

[Equestional]

i thot u were Mel Gibson for a second

[telebasher]

Naw, you know I'm more of a Fender guy.

[daveleslie64]

thanks for posting, Tim.

always good, honest playing and tone...oh, and sublime phrasing!

[Timbertone]

Hi Tim, thanks for the great demo. I'm a tele and strat player since decades. I play the same set Lollar 52 PUs. I don't use any stomp boxes at all, but I wished I could find s.th. useful for my puristic clean style w/o sacrificing dynamics and the pure tone of my vintage guitars .

I think the zen drive sounds better to my ears. Maybe I'm biased as I seem to recognice Brent's tone in it.

The ethos sounds more compressed with a less trebles. Kinda like over a 4 X 12" cabinet.

[keithgurev]

Tim awesome playing and tone here. How are your dialing in your Zen Drive with single coils? I just bought a Zen and am trying to find the sweet spot with my Fender Super Reverb..

[billysfender]

tim,i could listen to you plat all day ..... great player....

[keithgurev]

Tim with your Tele/Strat single coils, how do you have your Zen pedal dialed in?

I noticed on my that the gain shouldn't go above 9:00. The Zen is truly as awesome pedal. Will now only learn to play as well as you :) Cheers

[thesjkexperience]

Very nice, but do you find they sound different at higher volumes? I think the Ethos sounds much better. I had a ZD SE and really liked it, but I couldnt get the sound you have with the Ethos, so now I wait for 14 months lol.

[protocosm]

Love the demo's you do and you very good. Have a Zendrive and played it on one of my video's.

[fzappa007]

nice demo Tim, I too own both pedals and find a place for each in my rig, they both have so much to offer, i must say i like the tonal options available on the Ethos....together they make an outstanding team.....with single coils and humbuckers!!

[tehorix789]

Fantastic tone and smooth playing! What kind of mic is that? It seems to capture the tone well.

[tehorix789]

Also....I think I need to get an early 50s Tele reissue. That thing sounds great.

[Grooveitman]

Hi, nice playing!

I do own a Zendrive SE and a Zenkudo, you may guess I`m always trying to achieve the D sound, haha. I have never had the chance of trying the Ethos, would you say it`s a superior impersonation of the real thing or more or less in the same ballpark as the ZD? Besides, I also have Lollars in my tele, great pickups! Regards!

[jazzupjazz]

thank you very much.really nice demo.

[Twanger73]

Nice demo, thanks a lot!

[ilgrandemazzinga]

you're playng is fantastic with every pedal.. i love your licks and i'm stealing right now

[jamesdlow]

Any chance you can post a pic of the exact settings for the zendrive, I'm running the same amp as you.

[telebasher]

start with all the knobs on the ZD at noon and then tweak to your ears desire. Don't worry about my exact settings because there are way too many factors involved. just use your ears and tweak till you like it. there are no bad sounds on the ZD.

[fzappa007]

great demo Telebasher, I just received my ethos about a month ago and have been crusing U-tube for demos and ideas, being a tele player i found your demos to be right up my alley, only wish you explained your settings on the ethos!! otherwise 5stars

[telebasher]

There are tons of tonal nuance with the Ethos, I was in TLE mode, with the HC straight up, the Guitar amp compensation on, gain was a bit past noon, tone is subjective so you'll have to tweak till you find it. but thats the fun part. have fun.

[rixills]

they both sound terrific. im guessing your wonderful playing has as much to do with that great sounds as the pedals themselves.

[telebasher]

thanks rix.

[rixills]

you are welcome mr lerch.

in the comedy world, they say mocking is the most sincere form of flattery. im stealing some of your licks, and i hope you take that as the most sincere form of flattery in music, even if i butcher the licks at first.

[stickystringer]

really nice tones and playing!

what condenser/dynamic microphone(s) are you using to record the demos ?

[telebasher]

I'm using an MXL 990 mic as a room mic and an SM57 on the amp. both are going into an MBox and then direct to IMovie. no additional reverb or compression etc.

[BluesyPea]

Great Demo!

[lexist7]

thanks for the demo, tim!

[infernalhammer]

The Ethos may have more depth but that Zen sounded really good.

[telebasher]

Yes the Zendrive sounds great. By depth I was referring to the possibility of other sounds available in the Ethos, the sonic flexibility. But for this sound as demonstrated in the vid, the ZD is very good I agree.

[theot71]

All your videos have good audio quality, consequently. I had to ordered some Lollar pickups which includes a Charlie Christian (Humbucker size).

Were you playing the original zen drive or the newer zen drive 2 (uses a tube).

[telebasher]

This is the original zendrive (no tube)

[cwhanna]

Wow, that was a very informative and well thought out comparison demo, more folks should compare pedals like you did on this one.

And i'm buying an ethos after I finish writing this. THANKS

[anitadavideduo]

Yeah!!

Great Tim!!