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Darkglass B3K V2

Based on 75 comments across 1 community
What 75 owners say
274 comments reviewed · scored on the 75 clearest verdicts
49%
Recommend
37 owners
27%
Neutral
20 owners
24%
Don't recommend
18 owners
Source
Breakdown
Score
N
TalkBass
49%
75
What owners love
  • Aggressive, articulate grindy overdrive like nothing else12 owners · 16%
  • Outright favorite drive after trying many9 owners · 12%
  • Great for mild, always-on grit6 owners · 8%
  • Stacks well with other pedals and amps5 owners · 7%
Common issues
  • Disappears or gets lost in a band mix7 owners · 9%
  • Too mid-scooped and polite sounding6 owners · 8%
  • Hard to dial in a usable tone5 owners · 7%
  • Can't get truly nasty or filthy4 owners · 5%

Top quotes, sourced

274 reviewed · 75 shown
Sentiment
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TalkBass▼ don’t recommend

I get one and I cannot get the "grind" that I've heard in so many different demo's/reviews on YouTube. I've tried using the controls every which way I can and still can't get it.

TalkBass▲ recommend

the overall impression I have is that this is the aggressive OD I've been looking for forever. It isn't mushy or buzzy the way most ODs on bass have been for me, it is touch sensitive

TalkBass— neutral

It's particular baked in tone is great for metal and prog rock, especially where you need to hear the note articulation. For stoner rock, I don't think it's a good choice at all.

TalkBass— neutral

Took me sometime to find a setting I liked, as with the blend/drive up high it would disappear in the mix. I could run it at a lower gain or blend at 12, but it wasn't really giving me what I need.

TalkBass▲ recommend

In my experience B3K has a more articulate and 'playable' sound, cuts through the mix much better (to be honest the Agro gets lost), and is quieter too (Agro is a bit hissy).

TalkBass▼ don’t recommend

It's dirt without the dirt Very tight, great definition, blah blah BUT... maybe suitable if you want that polished "modern sounding" djent tone, not if you want to sound nasty.

TalkBass▲ recommend

It's a great little pedal but definitely not enough for really brutal and nasty stuff on its own, it needs help for that. If you want to add a little dirt/drive to your sound, a bit of edge, it's great.

TalkBass— neutral

I'm not a big fan of the B3K/B7K with fretless either, though Steve Digiorgio makes great use of a B7K with his fretless- just depends on what you're going for!

TalkBass▼ don’t recommend

I wanted to like it but for that much coin I really expected to blow me away. It didn't. I just came to the conclusion that although it's a well regarded pedal, it just wasn't for me....

TalkBass▼ don’t recommend

I didn't get on so well with the B3K, but the VMT is a much different story. It does all the things I wanted the B3K to be: more dirt, cuts through the mix, not scooped

TalkBass— neutral

I had a B3K for a minute, but as others have said, once I found a good grindy tone that worked, it vanished in the live mix. Great for recording though.

TalkBass▲ recommend

the B3k definitely has something not many pedals have, and it's the ability to sound like the bass from many of the albums I like that the overdrive has this beautiful high end "ring" to them heard in the attack.

TalkBass▼ don’t recommend

B3k and B7k: I thought the bedroom tone was awesome but in a mix I had a real hard time getting them to not seem washed out... even with the EQ on the b7k.

TalkBass▲ recommend

The b3k isnt as wild as you would think from reading everyones comments on tb it can get nasty but it can also do old school tubey grit i love mine

TalkBass— neutral

I love how my B3K sounds but it seems to all but disappear in a full-band mix, and I’ve found that when I try to dial in slightly more dirt to stand out a bit more I lose a significant amount of low-end fundamental.

TalkBass▲ recommend

running it that way, plus using the mid switch, and keeping the tone no higher than noon, helps get some good dirt, without losing mids or "body"

TalkBass▼ don’t recommend

I dig the VMT but not really connecting with the B3K. I get OK bedroom tones from the B3K, but lost in the mix with the rest of my metal band.

TalkBass— neutral

I was expecting the B3K for me to give me completely unhinged, off-the-wall distortion, but sorta disappointed me when I got it (used). I however found a different use for it - perfect for dirtying up the signal a bit.

TalkBass▼ don’t recommend

I had to use a boost pedal in front of mine to get anything remotely useful out of it. I ended up selling it. Very much a hit-or-miss pedal.

TalkBass— neutral

although I did not like the B3k/b7k character too much on its own, I do like that character when complimented by other instruments in the mix.

TalkBass▲ recommend

Impossible to make sound like any other pedal and no other pedal comes close to what it does best i.e. grindy aggressive articulate overdrive.

TalkBass▲ recommend

thanks for making a pedal that can actually realise the sound I've had in my head for years AND cut through two high-gain guitar stacks

TalkBass▼ don’t recommend

the B3K is too... something. Too well-behaved? Scooped? No matter how I tweaked it I couldn't dial out what I experienced as a "scoopiness"

TalkBass— neutral

Cut through as normal but with a pretty round and tame tone. If I turned the drive or blend up I got more of a fuzz and true distortion tone.