Tuning up the Rock Machine
The second pedal sent to us by Montreal-based Solidgold Soundlabs was a dirt box honestly titled the Rock Machine – an overdrive/boost stomp with a vintage bent. The OD sector of the boutique pedal market is awash with pedals, most derived from vintage Tubescreamer circuits while others like the Rock Machine, bring something a bit different to the party. I was thrown a bit by the Rock Machine at first due to its appearance – one knob and one toggle… hardly standard issue for an overdrive, but once I got into the pedal, the logic of the controls come forward. But does the Rock Machine deliver on its promise of vintage classic rock and blues tones in one package?
The Rock Machine comes in the standard sliding matchbox-style Solidgold logo box and is packed with an instruction/warranty sheet, four self-adhesive rubber feet and a Solidgold logo pic. The pedal is simply decorated with blue ‘Rock Machine’ text criss-crossing across the top of the box several times. The pedal controls are very straightforward. The box has one knob – Level, which controls volume and a two-way toggle that allows you to move between Rock and Blues settings. Inside, the Rock Machine gets its oomph from a NOS Military Spec CV7003 germanium transistor.
So let’s wrench up the Rock Machine. Using the Les Paul first we dial in a dirt pile and check for worms. With the level knob dimed, here is the pedal handling a simple rock pop/rock strum. First clean, then the Machine… Blues setting, then the Rock setting.
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You can tell right away that their is a decent mid-gain range on tap here. This is no metal box. It will not give you brootalz cred, but more of a 70′s rock tone. The Blues setting is obviously a bit beefier than the Rock setting, which kicks in the mids. The Blues side gets a bit spongy with chord work when the Level is dimed, but the Rock side kicks in a nice mid-growl that works well with the pop progression. Over to the Strat, bridge pick up first, we lay in a little blues riff with the Level dialed back to around 2 o’clock. First clean, then Blues… followed by Rock.
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With the single coils, the Blues setting here seems more natural and throaty. The Rock setting gets a bit spiky with a more lo-fi feel, but still completely useable. Shifting up to the neck pickup on the Strat we dial back the Rock Machine even further. With the Level at around 10 o’clock we get a little funky… clean, Blues, Rock… go!
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The Solidgold FX Rock Machine is a solid overdrive stomp. It will take its lumps due to lack of controls, but the tone that Greg has dialed in here is fine one. Add in the Rock/Blues toggle and you can achieve a number of different low-to-mid gain voices with it. Plus, rolling off your guitar’s volume knob will get you even more tonal choices. The price, $175, might be a bit tough to swallow for a single knob overdrive, but that issue might be more psychological than functional. That said, I still wish I had a little more ‘on stomp’ control over the dirt texture. That’s our opinion anyway… your mileage may vary!
PLEASE NOTE: All YMMV Review clips are played through a Reverend Hellhound 40/60 combo amp with 1×12 extension cab. No reverb or other effects were added to the clips. Guitars used in this review include a 1979 Gibson Les Paul Custom and a 1998 Fender American Deluxe Stratocaster.
