OceanEFX Texas Deuce

OceanEFX

As the name implies, the Texas Deuce has a little more under the hood than you might expect from your garden variety TS-808 clone. Yes, you heard right…I've jumped on the train and am offering my version of the famous overdrive circuit by which (for better or worse) all other overdrive pedals are judged. If you're a fan of the “green one”, listen up! The OceanEFX Texas Deuce is your box - and then some.

On one side of the unit is your overdrive section. For the most part, its original TS-808 specs, but I've added some very significant changes. First off, a key resistor/capacitor pair in the drive section of the circuit has been tweaked to give you significantly more distortion at higher drive settings. Also, I've made the tone control more useable and much less brittle than the original. The result is a beefier tone, but one that still cuts through any mix. The biggest modification, though, comes in the “flavor” of the distortion that this pedal produces. I've gone with a silicon/germanium transistor hybrid design along with a silicon/germanium diode configuration. The result? Smooth, thick asymmetrical clipping that absolutely smokes! And of course, the entire circuit revolves around the JRC-4558D dual op-amp.

The other side of the Texas Deuce offers up to 30dB of sparkly clean boost that can be used with the drive side of the pedal or independently if desired. Because of the slight “mid hump” so characteristic to the TS family of pedals, an added boost might seem at first to cause the signal to get too muddy. With the Texas Deuce, the opposite is true. Hit the MORE switch and, as we say down in Texas, you're cookin' with gas. Plus, you can roll the MORE knob all the way down and create an almost scooped mids type sound with only a 1 dB jump from the original signal. Kick off the drive side and run through just the clean boost side to add more shimmer and presence to your clean tone.

If you've ever wanted more out of your trusty Screamer, step on this. Your ears and your rig will thank you!

Texas Deuce features include:

• Sturdy die cast metal enclosure
• Hand-wired true bypass circuitry
• Metal and carbon film resistors
• Metal film caps
• JRC-4558D dual op-amp
• Top-mounted Switchcraft jacks
• Red and yellow status LEDs
• Level, tone, drive, and “more” controls
• Operates on 9v battery (supplied) or standard 2.1mm neg. tip DC adapter
• Actual size: 5.7”W x 4.7”L