Is the Danelectro Fab Tone a hidden classic or should we leave it in the 90s? - Baritone at the end!

[@myeyesarewaiting]

Yup, I remember those things... Utterly savage. I knew a guy in a band who had one of these, a Russian Muff and a metal zone, all on his gigging board. It was like he was on a mission for the highest gain pedalboard ever.

[@thom_muller]

That guy shreds. HARD!!

[@darkgardener9577]

YEA!!! ALL THE GAIN!!!

[@johncollins5552]

I have a danelectro t bone and danelectro black metal distortion but I prefer my big muff pi ,all nineties pedals I bought in the last 5 years for 60bucks each tops. This fabtone I like, gonna look out for one!

[@thecookreporting]

Bet it sounded glorious. Utterly glorious

[@huntermediaphotography]

So I grabbed one uaed at a second-hand music shop for $15 many years ago. It's a bad ass little pedal... And on yeah, that voulume knob turn it up ! It's loud real Loud! It's a little bit of a nasty OD & distortion. Love this hidden sleeper pedal. Got clean boost, mid boost, and full on OD. Usually placed in front of the Notaklon or the Soul Food. Awesome tone for days and the signing sustain ! Damn !

[@orcgoat]

At a gig, when I turned this on the sound guy suddenly bolted upright in terror, I have never gotten a "turn it down!" faster! Fucking awesome and I love it.

[@huntermediaphotography]

That's what I'm going for... 😅 20 years ago, as a sound engineer, I would have hated it only when running the board, though 😂

[@Timkrieg6666]

The Dan-Echo from this series is still one of my all time favorite pedals

[@trickfall8752]

My first delay and a great pedal.

[@lazloryder]

I was a kid in a band in the 90s, and this was my distortion pedal. And we ROCKED!!

[@octobersunn]

Super sleeper pedal. One of the favorites used by Mogwai.

[@riverryan6216]

As best I'm aware (and I did some serious digging on this one) the Fab Tone is the Metal Zone circuit without the parametric EQ, which is of course the glory and simultaneously the downside of the MT-2. It's basically a Grunge pedal 😏

[@maxonmendel5757]

for a cheap option, we now have the EHX metal muff

[@DecibelMasher]

I was one of those teenagers that went bananas over this pedal. Thank you so much for the trip down memory lane. Definitely going to rebuy this pedal in the new year.

[@ScienceofLoud]

No mids, all the gain. The late 90s/early 00s punk riffs sounded excellent with this. I might have to get one for nostalgic purposes. There's a cocked wah quality to this and it would probably pair nicely with a dark sounding amp.

[@bipbipletucha]

But will you be haired without the mids?

[@JimETeez]

SCOOP!!!!

[@BrandonBames]

27:20 It actually IS sound some bass players want: blend that with an undistorted low tone and you’ve got some lovely modern metal chunk!

[@KelticKabukiGirl]

I just stack shit, lots of shit...and run parallel, and wet dry wet stereo! Haha Would make a decent bass tone with an octafuzz in front and eq behind

[@nosir5596]

Ryan never gets tired of the silica packet jokes and neither do I

[@BathBombTheRussians]

When I was 18 I had one of these and a tweed bassman and thought I was on top of the world haha

[@FlippinIdiots]

The Danelectro French Toast was one of the first pedals I ever got to play with and I love it to this day. Weird Lil box there though. Love to see the whole ”Foods" line from them in a series lol. Great vid sir lovin that energy.

[@aaronbasch1714]

Good pedal!

[@FlippinIdiots]

@@aaronbasch1714 I agree a solid octave fuzz nothing nuts just good.

[@slimsantilli4476]

I had the black coffee. It picked up CB radio chatter

[@Paul_Lenard_Ewing]

I have the Cool Cat Fuzz the coveted gold label one they only did a couple of hundred until they got a cease and desist from Frantone for ripping off the Peach Fuzz. They did pretty much a part for part clone. The real Peach Fuzz now goes for around $650. since Fran retired. It is my favorite Fuzz. You would love it. Fran designed NY City Big Muff still made to her spec and ran Electro Harmonix when they started up after the Russian thing.

[@ertugrulkaraduman5008]

Fran is a total badass and a legend in the industry!

[@purplecoloredrock]

Have it too. Absolute underrated fuzz box. Crazy enough I got it for like 25 bucks

[@beandog100]

Thanks for this, lovely job. I just pulled my old Fab Tone out intending to sell it. Not so sure now

[@burnthisghost]

Although it’s not on my board for a long time now, I have a soft spot for that thing. Back when I played Postrock this got me that Mogwai-ish high gain sound. Great for feedback with a Tele

[@FilipeReishandmade]

At 27:23 i guessed you would play "Around the World" by the Red Hot Chili Peppers so yes... this is a sound that bass players want for sure !

[@stephenhodge6441]

I was a drummer in a garage band in junior high. That was back in like 97 I think. And of course my guitarist had this. The sound makes me smile thinking about older times. I picked up one when I tried to learn guitar and it barely ever got used. Well today I found it in a box that never gets opened and has just made a million home moves with me ever since I left my childhood home. Thanks for making this video.

[@weedyguitarstudio1715]

I put "scoop those mids" on your friends channel I really like some of these Danelectro pedals!!

[@blairmichaelhogan4502]

The Dan Echo, CE-2 clone, and Daddy-O from this series are all still well worth a look! They can all go from sounding fantastic to terrible at the slight change of a knob. I’d certainly never have one on my board now but I have fond memories of this series for sure.

[@groadies]

I used one of these on bass in the 90s. The Death Metal guy at the local guitar shop had to clue me into it because I assumed it would have less gain than the Daddy O that I was demo’ing. It was an absolute crowd destroyer when going into a high wattage head and 2x15 cabinet and playing in drop C. I assumed it was broken because the tamest tones it could get were way beyond what the Musicians Friend catalog description said it could do. To the point that I assume the copy writer didn’t even try the thing. I went through a couple because the jacks and pots were so crummy but still have a (mostly) working one. This series definitely wins the award for “heaviest pedal with the crappiest connectors/pots.”

[@Nolan_and_dad]

@@groadies my first pedal, was just blown away when I first heard it and bought the Daddy-O as well. Both input jacks wore out within a decade and I've missed them since.

[@st.aliaoftheknife9486]

The Fab Tone was my main distortion from 98-05. I adored it and it certainly cut through the mix but I can't find a practical use for it anymore. I just never need THAT much gain.

[@markpetten9777]

For a guitar player and not a bass player, you play some damn cool bass. Well done Ryan!

[@bbrinser]

I LOVE this pedal. I own 3 of them and use them all the time!

[@huntermediaphotography]

That's probably pretty damn loud and crunchy! 🎸 🔥

[@middaymeds]

I would absolutely love to see yall cover some more of these vintage danelectro pedals. Some of my other favorites are the original Cool Cat Chorus (Boss CE-2 clone with more headroom), the Dan-Echo, and the Freedom of Speech Talk-box. The last one is worth it for the wild paint job alone.

[@ProCoRat]

I have the 9v Cool Cat. Super low headroom.

[@KelticKabukiGirl]

Joyo makes a really good CE2 clone, Joyo Analog Chorus, I use a LOT of expensive boutiques and larger production pedals, Chinese factory clones have their place right next to them. And at $30 I have 2, one in each stereo line in parallel with 2 different speeds!

[@borasmussen4794]

I have had the 18v cool cat chorus and the Dan echo on my pedalboard for the last 5 years or so! Love em! I added a deluxe memory man for the more spacey stuff and use the Dan echo for mainly slap back

[@KelticKabukiGirl]

@@borasmussen4794 oh, it's 18v??? Didn't know that bit....

[@borasmussen4794]

@@KelticKabukiGirl yea it’s a real sleeper chorus pedal! I can get anything from classic Rush type chorus to watery Nirvana type chorus with the turn of a knob!

[@nathanielnicholson559]

Well that was fun. Glad you popped up. At first I had high hopes that this snazzy beast wold replace my T-bone with its clarity, but a few minutes in my ears we're cringing. Great video though!! Thanks for this.

[@bldallas]

Back in the 90s, I liked the art deco look and heft of the metal Danelectro pedals. Still have a Daddy-O (over drive) and Cool Cat (chorus) pedal, like new, in the box (he has the box!). Not practical for a pedal board, though; same reason, too big and heavy.

[@KelticKabukiGirl]

I have a Wasabi drive a friend gave me, it would be cool for bass especially but its huge and weighs like 6 lbs!

[@jpizzleforizzle]

He has the box! (I sang that in my head)

[@goodtimefolkrock]

They're on my pedal board whaddya talking about? I have daddo o and cool cat since new and also had the fab tone ......found the fab tone basically useless for my style and sold it long ago .....the daddy o overdrive and the cool cat on the other hand are amazing sounding and extremely usable and have lived on my pedalboard for decades

[@devinftf]

Daddy-O was the first pedal I ever owned. I loved that thing.

[@gringogreen4719]

I have a Gator Extra Large pedal board. I have four of these pedals on there. Two. Dan Echos (different settings) a Daddy O and a Cool Cat chorus. They are great but they definitely add to the weight. The Cool Cat is an 18 volt and the other three are modded by Alchemy Audio. These are great pedals, good to have and worth taking care of.

[@davidmrgn443]

And thank you Ryan for sending me there, I dig 'em.

[@C_Moore]

I had one of those in the late 90s and it sounded great at the high gain pop punk to metal tones of the day!

[@jasonrhames6182]

I have had this pedal since the 90s and I love it. It will out thrash any pedal I have ever heard. I still have mine in good condition. I don't know why these modern Death metal bands don't use it. It's truly heavy in more than one way.

[@mikeanderson1370]

Tone...it isn't about how heavy or not heavy you can get. Different tone is what they seek. Personally, I don't care ho heavy it is. I just want a good tone. Fab did both, of course. lol

[@thrashgnarly]

Modern heavy bands don’t have mojo

[@paulmatulevich3623]

Danelectro makes some of the most surprisingly good sleeper gear. To this day the Tuna Melt is one of my favorite trems, and the original Back Talk is still my favorite reverse delay of all time. Cheaper to get the reissue though now. But then you don't get the cool case/art. Plus the French Toast gave people Fox Tone Machines before they came back in vogue

[@joellebrodeur1015]

I have to get a Back Talk. It's the perfect Revolver era reverse delay, hence why I need one.

[@paulmatulevich3623]

@@joellebrodeur1015 when I plug mine up it's just hours gone

[@ptrisonic]

@@paulmatulevich3623 Tuna Melt and Chicken Salad fanboy here.... I'll have to dig them out of the pile...

[@brajkraft]

I picked this up today to use on bass, its was bloody great for that purpose

[@williammecham7038]

I bought the fab tone and cool cat at the same time in about 94 . still have them and use them for kicks and giggles . try that fab tone with a Laney AOR if you want some completely uncalled for grind . fun stuff and I'm in my mid sixties . you kids are fun .😆

[@ChrisBailey-gg2qb]

I love the fab tone and daddy -o together. Danelectros are some of my favorite pedals. I've got the reverse talk back delay, free speech talk box, psycho flange, sitar swami, Dan echo, and cool cat chorus.

[@flickeringgreenflame8493]

Love the review: have added to my"To Get" list. Request: love your "wine tasting"-like approach to pedal reviews. How about going through all the DOD, Boss, Ibanez, etc pedals from the '90s -- one per episode. Also the Danelectro "food" series. :) Suggest the DOD Classic Tube (my first pedal!) to start with. :)

[@mattwilliams7460]

you played every riff I knew in 1996

[@DaveyMulholland]

My first pedal! I think I gave it away. Wish I hadn't now. Would be interesting to hear it blended with another pedal or as a vocal effect.

[@hoytdotblohm]

First pedal I ever used, the year was 1997, I hated it then lol, sounds great now. Awesome review, thank you for your content.

[@tgarder]

hey I found one of these danelectro pedals in a box from my youth, the Daddy-O, I remember not loving it then but I really like it now as an adult and people say it's supposed to be a Guv'nor clone? You guys ever tried that one?

[@ThDirtyCurfDrummer]

The Fab Tone is a fabulous pedal. Not gonna lie, when you struck that first chord I yelled "Kick it!" Lol! It seriously made me think of the Beastie Boys' '(You Gotta Fight) For Your Right (To Party!)' Danelectro needs to bring this pedal back! 🤘❤‍🔥😎

[@markbrown7421]

It is fantastic. It is so gnarled and gross and that is everything I love about it. I have had one for over 20 years and it is greatest thing. Now I have two. I agree with your "when he struck that first chord" all I heard in my head was HELL YES :)

[@alexcrouse]

Like most dano pedals, it sounds like plastic, the knobs are on and off, and it's still freaking great. Now you need a Black Licorice. Makes this thing sound soft.

[@vinshade]

I love the fab tone. Never leaves my pedalboard and I pick up everyone I find for $25 or less. The sustain and distortion is crazy. Can get out of control. Really need to learn the sound. I can’t find another pedal like the fab tone.

[@Defleshuary]

I used to have this, zero clue whatever happened to it. It grew legs I guess. I used to love it when I was younger and would love to retry it on my current rig. That 90's scooped tone was a favorite. I'd run it through my shitty practice amp and I thought I had the sickest sound haha.

[@jesscliff1]

Please help. My brain is going crazy trying to figure out the name of the song played at 6:40.

[@danielrupert2317]

It sounds similar to Cherub Rock by Smashing Pumpkins.

[@jesscliff1]

@@danielrupert2317 I think you are right! You rock! My mind was melting. Thank you.

[@bumblefritz]

Very much like the Black Coffee. My buddy had that pedal when we were both just learning. His tone always sounded like fizzy ass.

[@Timkrieg6666]

You bought this pedal on my son's birthday and he actually has this pedal lol

[@x5187]

I've had one for a long time and I still love the sound. I pair it with my dan-o-wah, which I also love except for its too muddy fuzz. Both, however, are acquired tastes.

[@jaybirdk7414]

The Fab Tone is like a pickaxe to break through the ice! Man, who’d ‘ve thought a junky-looking maroon “owl” of a pedal would be so deliciously NASTY!? I say that in all seriousness; my Fab is joined by my Daddy O (sharing relevance with a Tube Screamer and a Soul Food) and an 18 volt Cool Cat, which I’d put up against a Jazz Chorus or a Small Clone any day. I don’t ever really use echo, but I do love the Dan-Echo pedal. It inspires me to step out a bit, and try some stuff outside my usual comfort zone that I usually don’t play out of sheer design. A bit of slapback echo can thicken a mix, or sweeten a slow bend just EVER so much. All of the “owl” pedals were awesome, and many of the food-themed ones were surprisingly useful as well. Bad thing is, though, that using one on a pedalboard is a bit of a…commitment, really. It’s more of an aging Gen X thing for me these days, but I still play them often.

[@huntermediaphotography]

Also, the Daddy-O pedal. Awesome !

[@PaulTheSkeptic]

Was not expecting that.

[@andyt5833]

Oh man I just gave one of those away. I really should have kept it for the bass. Ryan I dig you using the baritone and bass along with the guitar in the demo!

[@LarsonGuitarPlayer]

That bass sounds great clean! The first settings with the bass on the Fab was also nice!

[@nizodizo9549]

You can plug headphones into the output and use it as a practice amp.

[@quantenmoi]

I loved the noisy but thick shoegaze tone I used to get by stacking a Daddy-O in front of a Fab Tone. I keep trying to replicate it in my Axe-FX III but it's never quite right. It does reach the same level of chaos! Guess I'm going to just have to dig the pedals out of storage.

[@johntaylor9381]

I had one of these as a teenager. It was recommended to me by a salesman at Guitar Center. I remember thinking it was the baddest pedal ever. It was so heavy and fuzzy and LOUD. And of course being a teen I had zero clue about tone so loud was all I needed.

[@DMSProduktions]

HE HAS THE BOX!!!

[@travisbartley58]

I missed these back in the day I had a DOD flanger, and a grunge pedal

[@h0chimane]

Could this have been a DOD Grunge copy? It sounds pretty similar to me idk.

[@notplaying2379]

I think I saw Josh Scott from JHS say that this was inspired by the Digitech Grunge

[@PearlJamaholic]

I've heard this was a DOD Grunge or Metal Zone clone. I think all the pedals in this line up were clones, the Cool Cat was a CE-2, and the Daddy-O was a Gov'nor v1. Haven't been able to pin down the Dan-echo really.

[@maxonmendel5757]

​@@PearlJamaholic its a pt2399 delay, so it probably just follows the chips datasheet

[@Defleshuary]

Thank you for playing Top Gun Anthem! Every single band I've ever been in the rest of the dudes would end up hating that lead part as I'd almost always warm up with it.

[@alexpaskalis4248]

A few months ago, I got a Daddy O because I remember how cool these pedals were and supposedly it’s a “semi-clone” of the Marshall Governor. After watching this video, I honestly think the Fab Tone is more usable.lol The gain doesn’t really change on either of them and they both have the nasal uppers, but the bass response is better on the Fab. Besides plastic jacks, I really love the enclosures but they are one trick ponies..

[@keithfriend2118]

Hi Alex, The other guitarist in my band back in late 90's had an original Marshall Governor. I used the Fab Tone when I really needed highly contrasting tone to his on a few solos. I agree there are some similarities in the tone and texture of these two. However, the other guy left is Govn'r on most of the time and got a great tone. I could never dial in a good basic rock tone with my Fab, I just used it to pop out of the mix occasionally.

[@fabiomorcego]

There ia a Brasilian Band called "Autoramas", in The early days, The girl on The Bass used to use this FAB Tone on a rickinbacker. If you want to listen this search from "Autoramas - Guitarrada II" And wait for it.

[@stickylizardbabyangel]

Amazing seeing someone here talking about this very much underground br act here. Good reference.

[@aluminati9918]

Thanks. Checked them out, they’re cool.

[@tupacsnotdead]

Man, killer vid as always. Keep on truckin' homie!

[@peterhicks6328]

try both pedals together. also the danelectro gives you that green day 90s sound. very cool

[@BlueTheChannel]

I was thinking the same!

[@brianbrowning9124]

I did a Monte Allums fuzz mod on one of these…it’s my go to fuzz now.

[@anonymouslime2644]

found you on reddit, then found your channel, great work

[@MisterDeets]

This pedal is a lot of fun to mod. Definitely a bargain find and it has a lot of potential.

[@ryangilby]

Damn it Burke, so much low end you made my BOSE bluetooth speaker crackle! 🤙

[@xTrengo]

that sounded EXACTLY like the cranberries! bewildering!

[@Guitarnivore]

I had one in the late 90's early 2000's I remember really digging it and I have no idea what I ever did with it. Back then I played through crappy amps so I used to just crank it all up.

[@jimcamp2423]

The cool pedal design itself is worth it.

[@caro_lam]

i love my Fab Tone, works great as a post-reverb distortion, just compresses everything into a big wash of white noise. and the amount of gain (and treble) available is insane, borderline unusable, i had a few experiences playing one at stage volume where it just became a feedback machine. love it.

[@JasonWW2000]

Does your Fab knob work like Ryan's? His seems to do very little, almost like something is wrong with it. Shouldn't it allow you to control how much distortion its creating? As is, Ryan's pedal pretty much always sounds the same, except for the tone controls.

[@caro_lam]

@@JasonWW2000 mine works the same as Ryan's, it's basically maximum distortion all the time, you're not getting any transparent cleans out of this thing that's for sure, it's awesome.

[@twarlex]

Post reverb is actually a good idea for that kind of distortion. Need to try that out.

[@curtissgulash1692]

Got this one randomly from a relative that knew I played guitar, but hated how it sounded. So they gave it to me. It's a sleeper. Plenty of usable sounds.

[@jezmez68]

So what you're saying is that it might not be a good clean boost?

[@wolfoframa]

It always confused me that they had a metal chasis but plastic input jacks

[@mykhedelic6471]

Word. I got one of the cheap Fab (all plastic) series fuzzes and it was a great time. One day I bought a cheap envelope filter, and before I went to add it to my chain I fired up my set up as is with Fab Fuzz up front. It had never sounded so good, like unbelievably punching above it's weight. It screamed in chewy, pure Gilmour transcendence and I was shocked. But, it must've been its swan song, because that damn jack... I added the envelope filter in front of it and it went dead. Light would come on but no signal. Took it apart, tinkered, but it never came back. Sad to this day...

[@BH-fi1sb]

mine is missing one of the knobs but the thing is built like a tank

[@travisbartley58]

A friend of mine had a Ibanez Power Lead the sound tank pedals are different and still very cheap on the used market.

[@stilllifeproductions5017]

I still have mine that I only used in the studio (never been stepped on). I ran Tele & LP into my 1970 Marshall 100w JMP, through a 412 blackback cab. It got the smooth & heavy tone I sought, and it wasn't metal either. Xlnt pedal!

[@celticwolff5429]

Does anyone know how the Fab Tone compares to the Cash Cow?

[@WilDBeestMF]

Y'know what. The first couple of settings with the bass sounded pretty sick ngl..

[@twarlex]

The fab tone always cut through the mix back then ;). These days I recommend putting an eq in front of it. I like Danelectro pedals, they generally have a very unique sound nowhere else to be found. Shame the CEO hasn't found his way out of the 1800s

[@pleinclosens8304]

Yeah it cuts through the mix really well. I had my bandmate use it and he had a better tone that I did live lol. I was using a Shredmaster, although with the mids scooped.

[@timsealey6540]

What’s the make and model of the the tobacco sunburst hollow body hanging behind you in the video?

[@iamroberty]

I really wanted this pedal in the 90s because it looks awesome.

[@noahr4951]

I had one of these. It was awesome.

[@sweettoof9002]

I still use my Dano Tuna Melt tremolo pedal. It works just like a trem should. Paid $20.00

[@dcthegreatest24]

For Guitar it was pretty spot on 90s in that first pumpkins type tone you dialed in, but does have a weird filtery artifact going. I thought it was great on Bari and Bass.

[@scottclark7592]

dan-echo is likely one of the best delays ever- and the daddy o is a great pedal as well-they can be problematic regarding the jacks.

[@starbuckita]

coolness!!! another cool guitar channel thanks! that pedal sounds funtastic! :)

[@Craig_Fussell]

I have the French Toast octave fuzz and it’s pretty fun!✌🏻

[@MARK5-FX]

I had one of these for a day or two back in the '90s...too much, over-the-top fizz! I was thinking of acquiring another and modifying it.

[@Bliggick]

I have the Chorus (18 volt) and the Delay in this series. They are great.

[@Lorneplumber]

Used to love it when I was younger. Sold it last year

[@andresilva8444]

Got one back then and still love it. If you brighten it up then turn down the tone on your guitar makes a smooth fuzz kind of thing. Draws 200mAmp though.

[@keithfriend2118]

Catching this video a little late. You did a good review. I agree with your observations. Yep, I have one of these. Somebody I can't remember gave me this pedal during my punk/metal days in the late 90s. I never used it as my main tone since I got my overdrive sound from the front end of a Laney AOR amp head. For variety on a couple of songs in our set, I stomped on the Fab Tone and switched to my amp's clean channel for a real fluid "singing tone" lead. This pedal sounds like garbage through a clean, bright practice amp; but, through a half stack on an cranked amp with lots of mids and compression, it sounded amazing. I always used minimum gain on the pedal and tweaked the eq to sound thick through my rig (hard to do because of the twitchy eq knobs). Just like some cooking, the Fab Tone is a spice best used sparingly.

[@gringogreen4719]

Bought one of these and swapped another guy a Daddy O pedal. Try that one. Mike Campbell used them onstage for many concerts. Much happier with the Daddy O.

[@davidkresge4200]

Used this buzzsaw on guitar and bass in the late 90s to mid 00s, need to break it out again and try it on some heavy drone, ambient.

[@danielrupert2317]

I enjoyed the bass playing in this video.

[@markyd02]

Great video. We need more factory-suggested preset assessments.

[@KelticKabukiGirl]

They were always so bad, especially from people who are just marketing and have no idea how Kim Thayl or Kurt Cobain got their tones.. also, in the 90s, you could never hear the guitars. Everyone wanted Dimebag's tone, but had no idea that doesn't work with 2 guitars in a full band. Gotta have mids.....!

[@DallasGunther]

Well, I sure do!

[@patricksmith7063]

Try it throuh the FX loop?

[@DallasGunther]

A buddy of mine has a fab tone and it fuckin slays. It doesn't sound at all like the art deco aesthetics would lead you to believe.

[@jvanb231]

I would love to a Daddy-O, a Fab Tone and a Cool Cat. The examples I find are always pretty beat up though.

[@voiceofexperience]

Looks so great!