Pedal(s) to capture that Iced Earth sound.

[Clydefrog]

Hey all,

I was wondering if anyone knew what distortion pedal, as well as any other pedals, could best capture that Iced Earth, brutal metal sound.

Thanks!

[guitarkatana]

A metal zone would probably do the best but you aren't gonna come any closer than a high-gain tube amp.

[nuno]

i agree, since you aint looking for a tube warmth. the Metal Zone sounds crap in comparison, but it'll give you a (cold) wall of sound.

[Clydefrog]

Well, in terms of amps then, which should I take a look at?

[Michael Jackson]

JCM 800 modded a JCM 900 a rectum frier could do it. I do it quite well with my Zinky Mofo actually. I cna get ti with the Mark IV too.

[toshiro]

Modded Marshall-ish high gain amps will do the trick.. Might be possible on a recto, but I'd have to hear it to believe it.. A Mark IV would be much closer to that sound than a DR, IMO..

Basically, a JCM800 with a OD in front, JCM900 SLX(no clean, but sounds 1000x better than the other 900s), or the 30th anny.. DSL or TSL should be able to get that tone as well, or at least close enough..

High-end you could go Soldano or maybe Bogner... Or have a JCM800 modded out. But most people(like me) don't have that much $$ floating around to blow on an amp..

Cheaper alteratives.. Laney GH50L/GH100L, I'm buying a GH50L in a week or so, and these sound sweet for that upper-mid thrash tone.. No clean, so not much on versitility..

Peavey 5150 might do it, but I've never played one.. Same with the Carvin MTS3200, might be good, but I don't know...

The thing about IE's tone is it's centered more in the the upper mids, so you have to look for something geared for that.. If you were still looking for a pedal, might wanna try out a Marshall Jackhammer, or something in that vibe.. The Metalzone, to me, is too thin and buzzy for it's own good..

The rest is in the hands.. I think John Schaffer sleeps with a pick in his hand at night, and it twitches in that chug---chug-chug-chug pattern all night.. I dunno how the hell he plays that part in the 1st song on the demons&wizads record at that speed.. Most people can't even play lead that fast..

[Clydefrog]

Toshiro:

Thanks for all the suggestions. Will definately start saving up and trying out my options for the best results. It's too bad Jon Shaffer uses a darn custom amp, and getting one built takes upwards of a couple years..

On the subject of his picking style, I never found it difficult to perform, until recently. Nearly everything of his I've heard I've been able to easily replicate, until last week, when my hand just refused to perform the rapid sweeps he does. I can force my hand to do it, but it tires very quickly; I've never had to exert force before to do it. Strange, and a huge hit in my playing.

Anyway, a friend of mine suggested, for a good thrashy tone, to try out the Metal Driver pedal, though I don't know how it might compare to Shaffer's tone, as he has never heard Iced Earth (sacriligious whackjob).

[toshiro]

Heh, I had to relearn the whole gallop thing, as I was used to the more death-metal like 'reverse' version, with the accented note after the standard 3-note gallop..

I've got it down now, and stuff like Travel in Stygian or The Coming Curse is easy, but that Demons&Wizards thing just throws me for a loop.. Sounds almost like accented trem-picking, even though I know it's not... Almost too fast.

But anyway... Try out a lot of gear if you can, everyone's tastes are slightly different.. I used to drool over the recto tone, till I played one and realized I just didn't like it all that much.. lol

A lot of ppl go on and on about how a Carvin Legacy doesn't have enough gain for metal.. I agree to a point, I wouldn't use it for death-metal(which is why I won't get a Legacy), but for Thrash it sounds pretty sweet.. This is through V30's though, that might have something to do with it..

If you do go looking at amp heads, plug it in to a few different cabs.. This makes more of a difference than you'd think..