Metropoulos Forum

I just sent my YJM 308 overdrive pedal to analogman,for the 741 chip/true bypass/LED indicator mod,and i can't wait to get it back.he even called me from Connecticut,to ask me what color LED I wanted!
I have abandoned the Hot British concept,as my HW really dosen't need any pre-distortion,with the way it sounds.
He does some pretty cool mods,making even Boss pedals sound good.
Yngwie308

Yes, those were nice pedals...

The Analogman mod is the right move (also if your having someone else do that mod).

My Cousin had the trubypass done to it and was also modded to handle 18 volts. He says that it gave him a smoother tone.
Overall, my Cousin said that the unmodded 308 is a bright sounding pedal as stated on Anologman site, The 308 is clearer and brighter than the new Yellow 250.
My Cousin says the mod made a positive difference.

He plays it through a RI MKll when he decides on the flavor of the day.

So, Dave, what is your reason that you are sending it in for the mod?
Trubypass perhaps...? Or just to get the "grey" tone?

Well, let us know how it sounds through your marriage of gear...
What I suggest though, is to get the "nuclear orange" led...


Jimmie K.

JimiJames,I chose the'emerald'green led!
Now that my HW is up to snuff,thanks to VG,Ithought it was time to upgrade theYJM pedal.Stock,I wasn;t particularly impressed with the tone,and it is noisy as hell!
I look to have a more rounded tone and some extra gain.
I had an original ProCo Rat,which I never should have sold,as well as my grey MXR flanger,which I bought in Brixton,London.It had resistors to cut down the voltage from 240,or some sort of different bridge rectifier arrangement.It is hilarious to think of all the places in the world,that I have bought gear.
The main deal is getting to grips,literally with my YJM signature Strat,I developed a lighter touch for the scalloped fingerboard,I just have pentatonic ingrained in my brain,so harmonic minor,and diminished arppegios,do not come naturally,but I am trying!
Thanks for your interest,will keep everyone posted about the tone ride,I am on!
Yngwie308

I have included my Harmony Central review here,I am so impressed with this mod and the great work,service,from Mike!
Entering review for Analog Man DOD 250 Mojo Mod

Ease of Use
How easy is it to get a good sound out of it?
How about Editing patches?
How is the manual for it (if there is one)?
Do you know the firmware revision number? Has your unit been upgraded?
I found my YJM 308 to be a totally different pedal,in a great way!
The 741 Mojo mod/true bypass/led fitment I had performed by Mike,lets me use my pedal the way it was intended to be used,in front of a loud Marshall Plexi!Even the control knobs seem to work more smoothly!
The Mojo hand is definitely in the house on this one!
Rating for this category: No Opinion 1 - Very difficult to use 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 - Very easy to use
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Sound Quality
Can you get the sound of your favorite artists? Who are they?
Are certain effects (distortion, chorus, ...) very good? Very bad?
What setup (i.e. what guitars and amps) are you using this with?
Is it noisy? On what settings?
Are the effects weak or do they always sound great?
What amp are you using it with?
Of course I'm trying to replicate Yngwie's tone,with my 2005 Malmsteen signature Strat,Yngwie Magic strings Dunlop Tortex pick 1.5mm,ect.All I need is the talent,priceless,right!
Anyway I found the stock pedal to be incredibly noisy,harsh and thin sounding.
I am using the Analogman modded YJM308 with my infamous Marshall Handwired 100 watt Super Lead stack,see 100 watt Handwired review in Marshall section.
Now that it has been made to sound like a real Marshall,rather than the crap product turned out by the hyped up Marshall/Korg boys,I decided to have the DOD pedal modded so I could use it too!
It;s a shame that most things you buy these days,either are not what they claim to be,or don't reproduce the sound/tone advertised.
The pedal is now incredibly quiet,and is responsive at the lower gain settings as well now.
I am using it with the Boss NS-2 Noise Supression pedal,as does Yngwie.I am using the settings he reccomends on the Boss,but I don't really think I like the NS-2 now,and since the pedal is so quiet,I can use the DOD by itself,incredible!
The tone now is rich and warm,with much increased sustain,hats off to Mike at Analogman!!
I am going to try it with my Crate Vintage Club 30 watt amp for comparison,but the Marshall is the amp to use it with,I have yet to dime it(the anmp) with this pedal,and only used the lead channel,not bridging the channels.With George's mods,the HW's treble channel is quite sufficient by itself,and that is a huge improvement over a lot of 'real' Plexi's.
I know that the pedal will absolutely kill,with the Marshall crankeed,so that is a given.This is not a distortion pedal,but an overdrive pedal,designed to boost sustain,and the input of your amp.
And thanks to Mike at Analogman,it replicates the famous grey DOD 250,which I have never played,by the way,being much too young LOL!!
I think I will have to play with the modes of the Boss NS-2,to be fair,as on reduction,it is too abrupt.This pedal rules dude,to use the modern vernacular,which I try not to do being olde school,as I am.
Rating for this category: No Opinion 1 - It sounds terrible 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 - Pristine sound quality
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Reliability
Can you depend on it?
Would you use it on a gig without a backup?
I'm sure that it is 100% reliable now,and I know that Mike stands by his work.I think I will buy a DD-6,just to get his mod for that pedal too!
Since I don't gig,that is not an issue for me.
Rating for this category: No Opinion 1 - Think it worked once. 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 - Very dependable
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Customer Support
If you've dealt with the company, how helpful/friendly were they?
Ever get an upgrade, or try and get it repaired?
I sent my pedal,almost right away it seemed that Mike called me,asking what color LED did I want?
That totally impressed me,and I knew that he would do a great job,no worries.He sent me the pedal back Priority Mail,and everything was so quick and professional,thank God there are guys like Analogman still around.
I will be a longtime customer of his based on his intelligently written website,the ingenuity of his modifications,his honesty,and the superb quality of his workmanship.
Seriously,I highly recommend Analogman to anyone serious about effects,and the use of high quality modifications.
Rating for this category: No Opinion 1 - Not helpful at all, basically worthless 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 - Incredibly kind and helpful
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Overall Rating
What style of music do you play? Is this a good match?
How long have you been playing? What other gear do you own?
If it were stolen or lost, would you buy it again or get something else?
what do you love about it? What do you hate? What is your favorite feature?
Did you compare it to other products? Which ones? Why did you choose this one?
Anything you wish it had?
Does it help you make music, or does it get in the way?
Anything else you'd like to share?
I play mostly bluesy rockish type self taught things,attempted to play harmonic minor,ect,and am still getting to 'grips',pardon the pun,with the scalloped fingerboard of my Malmsteen guitar!!
I have been playing since I was 15 years old,am 52 years old now,you do the math!
If it was lost or stolen,I would buy pedals strictly from Mike,as he deserves your support,and is not as pretentious as Fulltone,et al.
Also the cool Analogman gold logo on the front of my pedal,matches the color scheme of the pedal extremely well,and the 'emerald' green led is totally cool! His total mod package,with shipping included,was $85,great value!'
People that know me,know that I am extremely loyal to those,whom do a professional job,as I know the dedication it requires to be that way.
Rating for this category: No Opinion 1 - What a hunk of Junk! 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 - Fantastic value
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What is the value of eight plus seven?
I'll bet you're all saying,another glowing Yngwie308 review,this guy is so easily impressed,well if you are thinking that,you would be far wrong!
I try to deal with professionals,having tried to work that way when I was invoved with electronics,and this is a great mod,totally making a horrible,pretend pedal,more than what it was before!
By the way I am totally impressed with my HW,and a small issue I am having,is i think related to FedEx,dropping it on end from a great height.
Love the amp,and all will be well soon.
Regards
Yngwie'Mojo Mod'308!!!!




[/i]

hey yngwie308! i was thinking about sending my dod 308 in for this mod too. it's definitely a bit bright. he had some options. i thought he said the original 741 chip was noisier than the newer 1458 or the 4558 that's already in the thing? i may be wrong. folks swear by the old chip though. i used to sel those things for nothing when i worked at radio shack back in the late '70's! hehe. those & the sad1024's,(analog delay chips) i had a bunch of that stuff & heaved it into the trash years ago thinking it was worthless...

Analog man rules, he does great work and stands behind his mods!

45auto,Analogman Mike totally rules,trust me.That YJM308 is such a different pedal now.
The hot lick on the Yngwie forum world is linking,the Mojo Mod 308,with a DS-1,or a DOD 250,linked into the front end of a plexi Marshall.
It seems multiple boosts,with a distortion at low levels is the secret!
I know Yngwie gets that insane clean sustain,especially on his instructional(lol) videos!!!It always cracks me up,how can we be instructed by Yngwie.
It's like watching Albert King,you're like,how did that just happen!
Upside down stringing,wierd Delta tuning,ect.
I watched it in front of me last November,it was like a magical event.
Anyway,linking two grey DOD's or modded 308's,plus a TS-9 or DS-1,is it,also the NS-2 at the end.
And now will pause for a short commercial:
Posted: Wed Aug 23, 2006 12:31 pm Post subject: Yngwie's Tone

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Guys,
I can't recommend anyone more strongly than George Metropoulos of Metro Amp,located in Burton,Michigan.
George was,is,a guitarist,got into building amps,as a result of repairing vintage Marshall's on the road.
His Metro amps,are the absolute finest Marshall clone amplifiers in the world,bar none,and I have tried them all!
He offers point to point kits for Marshall's,his own custom manufactured transformers,and goes to what ever ,expensive to him,length it takes to accurately replicate the classic plexi tones from 1966 -1969.
Visit the Metro amp forum to see how hardcore Marshall the whole setup is.
Yngwie's major tone component is his fingers,not available last time I checked!
I have a 2005 Malmsteen Strat,Yngwie Magic strings .008-.048,all the goodies,and I still sound like me,so it takes a lot of hard work,dedication,and if it was that easy,Digitech would issue the Malmsteen pedal,with COSM chips,giving you the famous Yngwie tones!
Seriously,I would like to get the sustain at low volumes that Yng gets,especially on the instructional videos!
Any thoughts?
Regards
Yngve308
_________________
What Time is it?
It's Time To Rock!!
Posted: Wed Aug 23, 2006 12:31 pm Post subject: Yngwie's Tone

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Guys,
I can't recommend anyone more strongly than George Metropoulos of Metro Amp,located in Burton,Michigan.
George was,is,a guitarist,got into building amps,as a result of repairing vintage Marshall's on the road.
His Metro amps,are the absolute finest Marshall clone amplifiers in the world,bar none,and I have tried them all!
He offers point to point kits for Marshall's,his own custom manufactured transformers,and goes to what ever ,expensive to him,length it takes to accurately replicate the classic plexi tones from 1966 -1969.
Visit the Metro amp forum to see how hardcore Marshall the whole setup is.
Yngwie's major tone component is his fingers,not available last time I checked!
I have a 2005 Malmsteen Strat,Yngwie Magic strings .008-.048,all the goodies,and I still sound like me,so it takes a lot of hard work,dedication,and if it was that easy,Digitech would issue the Malmsteen pedal,with COSM chips,giving you the famous Yngwie tones!
Seriously,I would like to get the sustain at low volumes that Yng gets,especially on the instructional videos!
Any thoughts?
Regards
Yngve308
_________________
What Time is it?
It's Time To Rock!!
Hi Guys,

I get my Yngwie tone as follows:-

Guitar: Stock Fender YJM Large headstock model - Maple neck.
(I have the USA and Jap models)

Amp: Marshall 1987X 50W Vintage reissue loaded with JJ Tubes.

Cabinets: Marshall 1960 A and B.

Pedals: DOD YJM308, or Ibanez Tube Screamer run through a Boss DS-1 cleaned up with a Boss NS-1 (CRUCIAL).
By using either the 308 or the Tube Screamer, I find you can vary the sound considerably to emulate different Yngwie album periods.
Apparently Yngwie did occasionally use a Tube Screamer years ago - see pictures of his pedal board on the web site - it's right there!
Use the Boss DS-1 set with a slight signal clip, so you can play at low level to keep the neighbours happy, but maintain a decent distortion with the 308 or tube screamer. Once you really crank the volume the JJ tubes begin to clip, so then off comes the DS-1 as it will be redundant.
Colour this with some digital delay of your choice (I use Boss).
A note on Power Attenuators - I purchased a Marshall 'Power Brake' so I could get my JJ tubes singing, but be warned, I found the so called bedroom volume settings with this box were WAY TOO LOUD. I tried this and woke up my whole street! Besides, it will destroy your valves in the long run so AVOID these. I HAVE NOT tried any other attenuators on the market, so I can only comment on the Marshall variety.
Using a YJM308 alone with a 1987X has to be done LOUD!
You will not attain a decent valve clip at low volume unless you assist the signal with other devices such as the Boss DS-1 Distortion I have mentioned above.
Finally, add some Dunlop Cry-baby and Boss Octaver (I have the second model which allows you to play chords with octave! (check out 'Marching out' second track - Maybe?)

You're thinking at this point, hang on this is mostly the gear Yngwie uses!
Let me explain, I have an average job, but I work hard at it. I saved and saved until eventually was able to afford the equipment of my dreams. It was not easy, but I tell you what, have you seen the price of beer and cigarettes? You've guessed it - I don't drink or smoke!

Play loud
Deuterium here from the HCAF. How's it going, dude !

I ended up getting the Analogman grey spec DOD 250 (308 with mojo 741 mod)...and it kicks all sorts of ass, and is definitely warmer and captures the vintage Yngwie tone better then the stock 308.

But, like you, I sometimes stack my DOD pedals in series, with the stock 308 first after my guitar, and then the Analogman DOD 250 grey next, prior to input to amp. With my two YJM Strats, and my plexi-type amp, I can nail classic (early) Yngwie tone...which, IMHO, is sonic Nirvanha.
Hi!! Just ordered the AM YJM-308 (mojo-741)

I like my Pedalworx Double D, but sometimes I just use one side of it anyway, and I always wanted to try the Analogman version.

Also have great luck running it into a BK Butler Tube Driver.

The main idea, IMO, it using TWO boxes, if you use a clean Plexi type amp. You can get that sustain ad effortless ability to wail at TV volumes, if needed.

There is a reason there is a TS-9 in Yngwie's rack. No doubt he's hitting it with his DOD.
carlygtr56,
JJ here, I totally agree with your view about Yngwie using more than one overdrive/preamp 'in line' to attain that classic tone! This is a very interesting concept for all us fans interested in just how he gets that sound.
If I remember correctly, take a look at the end pictures on the Yngwie live in 85 video. Featured here are (very revealing) shots of MORE than one DOD250 on his pedal board. The rest of course is up to the viewer to surmise whether or not this is Yngwie's trade secret!
A truly great point, and possibly a groundbreaking discovery for Yngwie sound searchers alike.


Deuterium,
Thanks for the link on the London Power Scaling kit. This looks very interesting indeed. I shall have a good read.
Also, see comments above.
always thought in the early day he ran two DOD-250's. I can't prove it

Recent years shows a 250 and a TS-9 in his rack. I bet he uses both.
Many pedal guys "stack" their overdrives these days
This is the rumour going around,I need another pedal to try this out,what do you guys think,have you tried stacking boost pedals?
45auto,get the mod from Mike,you won't be sorry!
Yngwie'Stacked Pedals'308

I sell a dod 250 clone with the 741 chip at
http:/mysite.verizon.net/ressquyj

I got the Pedalworx Double D. Two grey-spec DOD-250's in one box. Works and sounds great. Tone is a bit bright. You really have to dial the amp's tones to the pedal.
Analog Man just shipped my YJM-308 Mojo mod. I'll use that to od just about anything else. From a DS-1 to my BK Butler tube Driver.

cool! 2 in one... i don't really want any coloration of the sound if possible. the 308 brightens it up pretty substantially. the marshall is fairly bright to begin with. i'm thinking about trying jerry's
"so smooth" anybody have one yet?

Necrovore has one of my More Pedals but nobody has the So Smooth yet. Send me a pm.