Wish Klon Clones - I ORDERED ONE

[secretroutines]

I’m really intrigued by these, mostly because I don’t really use Klon style pedals (did not like the Soul Food and stopped looking into them) and the reviews seem surprisingly good. Has any one here tried one of these?

https://www.wish.com/product/5d567a705 ... =mobileweb


UPDATE - I ordered one on a flash sale because I have no self-control.

[s_mcsleazy]

i got one of the kits from china a while ago and it's pretty good.

[dc]

Premier Guitar just did what is surely one of the most comprehensive Klon v. Klone shootouts ever. i don't believe the referenced unit was included, but the article was enlightening:

https://www.premierguitar.com/articles/ ... als?page=1

[OffYourFace]

it's weird to me that they mention the op-amps but no mention of the diodes...

[s_mcsleazy]

it's weird to me that they mention the op-amps but no mention of the diodes...

i dunno, i tried a few different diodes in mine and never noticed a great difference. some sounded a bit more compressed and some sounded a bit more aggressive but nothing you'd notice at medium volumes

[secretroutines]

it's weird to me that they mention the op-amps but no mention of the diodes...

i dunno, i tried a few different diodes in mine and never noticed a great difference. some sounded a bit more compressed and some sounded a bit more aggressive but nothing you'd notice at medium volumes

I’ve always heard that parts don’t matter from builders, that the circuit will define the sound but the quality of parts is more reliability.

[parry]

No. That's just not true.
Parts - especially, differing transistors and ICs - definitely matter. And quality parts can definitely affect more than just reliability. Especially, when you're talking value drift.

I have one of these KLONs and it works with my stuff, for what I do. I'm sure someone else might hate it with their stuff. I'm sure that happens with legit KLONs as well. For $40, take a chance and see if it works with your stuff. If it doesn't, you'll still be able to get your money back selling locally.

[somanytoys]

I’ve read that article before, that guy is pretty good.

I’ve never had or even seen an actual Klon. I bought a few VFE Merman pedals a few years ago, and I like how they sound, and I really like the additional controls that he integrated into the pedal, like he usually did with all of his pedals.

I’ve also never tried any of the other klones out there, but if the guy that wrote the article was getting tones that were that similar, even from the cheaper ones like the EHX Soul Food, they must all be pretty similar to the original. I would tend to think the one you’re looking at would be as well.

I do think it’s a big thing about which equipment is being used (guitar and amp), the amp settings, and what sound a person is looking for. It seems at its best feeding a slightly driven amp, more than just feeding an amp with a clean tone. Its clean tone is nice, too, but not really where the mojo is. It’s probably not going to knock your socks off right away like some pedals might, but especially with volume & some nice tube amp gain, you start to notice its character.

As was said above, for $40, you can see if this is a pedal that you like, or if it’s just not for you or your setup.

[secretroutines]

No. That's just not true.
Parts - especially, differing transistors and ICs - definitely matter. And quality parts can definitely affect more than just reliability. Especially, when you're talking value drift.

I think I might need to clarify. A component specification like a JRC4558 vs another op amp, isn’t going to impact the sound as much as the circuit’s design. The same would hold true with switching out diodes, if you’re changing the diode type it will change the sound more than replacing the diode with the same type of a higher quality (or popularity).

[øøøøøøø]

I’ve always heard that parts don’t matter from builders, that the circuit will define the sound but the quality of parts is more reliability.

This depends entirely on the circuit you’re discussing.

On a single-ended triode tube amplifier, even something like a different brand of capacitor can make a very noticeable difference.

On something like a Hypex Ncore class D amp, such a thing would have zero impact.

And there’s an entire spectrum in between

PG article notwithstanding, on a Klon I feel it does matter some (just based on experience).

I have both an original silver Klon and a newer KTR. Despite the same type of diode, most other parts are different (KTR makes use of lots of SMT components) and they sound differently.

One of my studio partners has a BYOC Klon Copy. It sounds more-different still.

On the other hand, my tiny, mostly-SMT Malekko Omicron fuzz sounds almost indistinguishable to me from my vintage Univox Superfuzz.

Both the KTR and the Malekko fuzz are “all SMT with the exception of the germanium clipping diodes,” so it’s an interesting comparison.

On the three flavors of Centaur I described above, I could use any of them. I do like the silver one the best, but the value surely creates a cognitive bias that would push perception in that direction.

[marqueemoon]

Interested to hear how this works out.

I’ve been using an Archer Ikon and really like it. Definitely regret not buying the real deal new back in the day. I balked at the price. LOL.

I like the Klone sound a lot more than I thought I would. It just melds really well with the natural sound of the guitar and amp and sits in a mix well.

[andy]

I just fixed the footswitch on one of those the other day. It was a good sounding pedal. I am not picky with overdrives, though. Hard to beat that price!

[secretroutines]

So I wanted to post a few days ago to update, but I was in the middle of moving so that wasn’t going to happen. So I’ve been able to play on it for a few days and it definitely does the Klon thing very, VERY well. I haven’t used an original, but I have used a KTR and it is just about dead on. The sweep of the pots are a little bit different so you can’t set everything exactly the same and get the same thing but the setting positions are really close.
As far as other Klones, I’m not much of a Klon user so I can’t comment beyond the EHX Soul Food (which I thought was hot garbage). I opened it up and it does follow the Martin Chittum schematic and does have germanium diodes, but the build is a little bit sloppy.

All in all, I’d say if you want that sound on the cheap, the Wish Klones will get you there, and I’d bet swapping the pots out with ones that have a bit smoother of a sweep would make this thing even better.