Treble Boosters – As we learned in part 1 of this column, guitarists in their quest for rock and roll tone often turned to fuzzes to push their amps to the breaking point, but another group of guitarists used a different device. To add some sparkle to the dark British amps in the sixties, many guitar players turned to treble boosters. In addition to adding more high frequencies, they also helped drive their amps with a dbl boost and some added distortion. Although a very 60s sound, the treble booster sounds completely different than the fuzz but if you want and need a varied classic type sound, having one of these in your bag is a must. How to use the treble booster – Just like the fuzz, you don't want to use a treble booster on a completely clean sounding amp. You want to use it on a somewhat loud, warm and crunchy British type amplifier. With the amp naturally overdriving to some extent, your guitar will absolutely sing with the treble booster on. With many of the newer ones on the market, you can set where you want the boost to take place, treble, midrange or lows for that matter. This comes in handy when switching between, let’s say a Tele or Les Paul, or whether you favor neck or bridge position pickups for that matter. Now, on to the big history maker before moving on to the new generation models:
Dallas Arbiter Rangemaster – Without a doubt, the Rangemaster is by far the most famous of the treble boosters. Used by Eric Clapton during his days in the Bluesbreakers, the Rangemaster was an important part of his distinctive sound. Interestingly enough, the Rangemaster was not a stompbox but sat on top of the amp as it was originally intended to stay on all the time. It only has an on/off button and a boost knob. Once again, just like in the old fuzz boxes, the germanium transistor is the key to the warm tone. It is funny to note that the transcribed notation on the unit is a G7 arpeggio. Some other users besides Clapton were Brian May, Tony Iommi, Ritchie Blackmore, Rory Gallagher and Billy Gibbons. 
ANALOG.MAN Beano Boost - Although the original Rangemaster is no longer manufactured, there are currently many new versions being built. One notable one would be the Beano Boost built by ANALOG.MAN (named so because Eric Clapton is reading the comic "Beano" on the cover of the John Mayall's Bluesbreakers record cover. This is the record in which Eric was first said to have used the Rangemaster). Like the original, these are manufactured with germanium transistors. With the single coil pickups on my guitar, I set the boost at 2:00 with the toggle set in the midrange position.
More info at: http://www.analogman.com/beano.htm
Keeley Java Boost – Manufactured by Robert Keeley with the coveted Mullard OC44 germanium transistor, the Java Boost has a great singing tone. Unlike the original Rangemaster, there is a tone knob which allows you to roll back some treble if need be and there is a three way toggle that allows you to set where you want to boost to occur (left is more of a full range setting). I set the level at about 4:00 and roll back the tone to about 3:00. When I am using a guitar with single coil pickups, I have the toggle set right, to the mid boost setting but a guitar with humbuckers sounds great with the toggle set in the middle, more like a traditional treble booster.
More info at: http://www.robertkeeley.com/product.php?id=3
Next up: Clean Boost/Overdrive
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