I will somehow discover some under-rated gems from the Carl Martin range of pedals, this Blue Ranger overdrive is one of them. It's voiced to manifest a brute, blues-type crunch but come to think of it, it's pretty much in line with what BOSS' Blues Driver has to offer. I hear more bite from it, more saturation in there as well. Currently, I'm in the mood for a non-metal distortion/drive, I have my personal favourites- CMat Mod's Butah & Fuch's Plush Cream; these 2 are awesome stuff (for my applications).
The BR works well as a stand alone pedal, enough standards to rival BOSS' Blues Driver, in fact, it's a little more intense in terms of the drive voicing. Being me, I have to try it with a booster/ in a stacked setting & the BR did well in both applications. The booster unit comes before the BR & it did well to give me more of the inherent drive. The BR's great paired up with your amp's dirty channel but for those of us with FX loop in our amps, it sounds more authentic through that, coupled with whatever amp drive you have.
PS: Blue plush bird not included in package :-)
