CyanideJunkie
New member
Hi all, got this little gem on my last trip to Osaka.
It's a collaboration between ESP and Boot-Leg Effectors(a Japanese handmade boutique effects company), made for Anchang of Sex Machineguns. So I expect you guys to imagine this to be some br00talz drive unit.
It's not. (Kwa-Kwa-Kwaaahhhhhh)
If I could draw a comparison, I would list this to being similar in nature to MXR's ZW-44 Zakk Wylde Overdrive, although I feel the Andora's Box eats the ZW-44 for lunch and asks if you're joking when presented with the bill. By it's own with the Drive maxed, it's a pretty chunky overdrive unit, roll it back and you can easily get that on-the-verge-of-breakup tone. The Tone knob is very responsive as well, going from dark(not mushy!) to chimey(not ice-picky!) easily. But where it REALLY shines, is when it's used to boost an already distorted amp.
In this application(Level cranked, Gain=0), the Andora's Box is everything the Tubescreamer wishes it could be. I used it to boost my Jet City JCA2112RC with the preamp on 6, and it was as ballsy as hell! You can also add some compression like I do if you want to further tighten things up by inching the Drive knob up to taste(handy when you can't crank your power tubes for that natural compression). It's a nice gradual effect, unlike the Gain knob on my Xotic AC Booster, which is quite twitch-sensitive by comparison. Another cool thing I noticed about this pedal is that whenever it's used as a booster, somehow the tone knob is taken out of the circuit, providing a somewhat "clean" boost, so there's no need to move the Tone knob out of its sweet spot when switching applications. Now why I say "clean" is because like a Tubescreamer, I noticed a slight upper-mid-hump, just enough to fatten up single coils and make humbuckers sizzle. When used as a stand-alone OD unit though, no such effect is present. Very interesting. The guts of this baby is also a sight to be witnessed. I would post a pic of it, but that would be like spoiling Christmas for you guys.
So, why am I selling it if I seem so impressed by it? It's all due to a little personal philosophy of mine where I don't use signature gear, silly I know, but I have my reasons. Thus, this chunky box(it's pretty tall actually) is going up on the selling block.
Rakuten and Digimart are selling it for S$450+/- minus shipping, I'm selling it for $350, or a trade with a Fulltone OCD V4 plus top-up. Price is firm as I believe it's fair. This unit was also sold to me in the wrong box, therefore the manuals and warranty card do not match the product. The paperwork happens to be in Japanese as well, plus warranty is only valid in Japan(although I really don't think I would ever use it; this thing is built like a tank), so in the end it doesn't really matter, but I'm taking it into consideration for pricing regardless.
So once again $350 FIRM or trade with a Fulltone OCD V4 with top-up. Meetups between east side and town preferred. Interested parties may contact me at 9070 9160. If it doesn't sell after a while, I just might flout my rule about using signature gear! Cheers and thanks for reading!
It's a collaboration between ESP and Boot-Leg Effectors(a Japanese handmade boutique effects company), made for Anchang of Sex Machineguns. So I expect you guys to imagine this to be some br00talz drive unit.
It's not. (Kwa-Kwa-Kwaaahhhhhh)
If I could draw a comparison, I would list this to being similar in nature to MXR's ZW-44 Zakk Wylde Overdrive, although I feel the Andora's Box eats the ZW-44 for lunch and asks if you're joking when presented with the bill. By it's own with the Drive maxed, it's a pretty chunky overdrive unit, roll it back and you can easily get that on-the-verge-of-breakup tone. The Tone knob is very responsive as well, going from dark(not mushy!) to chimey(not ice-picky!) easily. But where it REALLY shines, is when it's used to boost an already distorted amp.
In this application(Level cranked, Gain=0), the Andora's Box is everything the Tubescreamer wishes it could be. I used it to boost my Jet City JCA2112RC with the preamp on 6, and it was as ballsy as hell! You can also add some compression like I do if you want to further tighten things up by inching the Drive knob up to taste(handy when you can't crank your power tubes for that natural compression). It's a nice gradual effect, unlike the Gain knob on my Xotic AC Booster, which is quite twitch-sensitive by comparison. Another cool thing I noticed about this pedal is that whenever it's used as a booster, somehow the tone knob is taken out of the circuit, providing a somewhat "clean" boost, so there's no need to move the Tone knob out of its sweet spot when switching applications. Now why I say "clean" is because like a Tubescreamer, I noticed a slight upper-mid-hump, just enough to fatten up single coils and make humbuckers sizzle. When used as a stand-alone OD unit though, no such effect is present. Very interesting. The guts of this baby is also a sight to be witnessed. I would post a pic of it, but that would be like spoiling Christmas for you guys.
So, why am I selling it if I seem so impressed by it? It's all due to a little personal philosophy of mine where I don't use signature gear, silly I know, but I have my reasons. Thus, this chunky box(it's pretty tall actually) is going up on the selling block.
Rakuten and Digimart are selling it for S$450+/- minus shipping, I'm selling it for $350, or a trade with a Fulltone OCD V4 plus top-up. Price is firm as I believe it's fair. This unit was also sold to me in the wrong box, therefore the manuals and warranty card do not match the product. The paperwork happens to be in Japanese as well, plus warranty is only valid in Japan(although I really don't think I would ever use it; this thing is built like a tank), so in the end it doesn't really matter, but I'm taking it into consideration for pricing regardless.
So once again $350 FIRM or trade with a Fulltone OCD V4 with top-up. Meetups between east side and town preferred. Interested parties may contact me at 9070 9160. If it doesn't sell after a while, I just might flout my rule about using signature gear! Cheers and thanks for reading!
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