General Guidelines on the use of the Hot Drive'n Boost mk3:

Carl Martin Hot Drive'n Boost mk3 has similar to the Hot Drive'n Boost & Hot Drive'n Boost mkII been carefully designed to imitate the sound of a good old distorting Tube-Amp. The Hot Drive'n Boost mk3 is the perfect choice for that "CRUNCH" Blues-guitar and Country sound, and also the rare capability to handle a great ROCK-guitar tone using polyphonic notes and open chords.

With the BOOST device the Hot Drive'n Boost mk3 is a "TWO IN ONE" pedal. The Boost ranges from 0 to 20 dB, and is very useful in giving that extra kick for solos, PLEASE NOTICE the boost works both with or without the distortion activated.

The Hot Drive'n Boost mk3 has a built in regulated (+-12V) power supply. This enables us to design circuitry of the highest quality with maximum headroom.

The low output impedance insures a no noise connection, and gives improved working conditions for the guitar amp.

SAMPLE SETTINGS:

CARL MARTIN "HOT DRIVE'N BOOST mk3".

Most guitar players that use distortion as a major part of their sound want a distortion that is crisp, clear, with a great tone, long sustain and great for chords not just single notes. Over the years many distortion devises have come and gone from the market place, some successful, some not so successful. We have developed the HOT DRIVE'N BOOST mk3 not only as a superb distortion unit in its own right, but also as an addition to your system to enhance the sound from any tube amp, giving all those features to your sound that you have been looking for.

This guide is to help you get the best from your HOT DRIVE'N BOOST mk3.

When using your HOT DRIVE'N BOOST mk3 in conjunction with a valve amp, the best result in achieving great tone, long sustain and `clean` distortion will come from setting the amp's gain control high and using the master to set the overall level. Setting the gain level as high as possible before getting a crunch distortion will give a warmer tone more body, longer sustain, a tighter `cleaner` distortion with a round, less `fizzy` top end.

There are two ways to achieve a great CRUNCH sound for blues.

1). Use the setting sample on fig:, and use the boost for solos.
2). With the amp's gain set high, use the Boost to add the right amount of level to get CRUNCH from the amp. This leaves the Drive mode available to get the ROCK sound. This way you have the choice of four different sounds at your feet; CLEAN, CRUNCH, ROCK and a really good SOLO sound.

With the ROCK and HARD ROCK settings you will get a good old vintage rock sound. With the Boost activated, you can add the extra level you need for solos and by doing so, the amp's input will become overloaded. This should compress the signal a little and add some distortion to the distorted signal from the Drive section and achieve a warm, round sound and a long sustain. Again, this affect is achieved using our amp setting suggestion.

HEAVY ROCK is achieved by adding more bass on the amp and/or turning down the tone on your guitar. By adding a bit more gain on your amp you will be able to achieve as much distortion, sustain and good controlled tone as you need.

These examples are merely general guidelines to help you get started. With a bit of experimenting we are sure that you will be able to get just the sound you've been looking for and you'll never have to worry about being heard an solos again.

GOOD LUCK.