Paul Gilbert is a name that every guitarist should be familiar with. Whether it’s watching him play on some of the biggest stages or through his many highly-influential instructional DVDs, Gilbert has been at the top of the guitar world for nearly four decades.

A dynamic player who can switch from ultra-fast shredding to blues-inspired, classic rock licks in an instant, Gilbert needs a sound that can keep up with his playing style.

I put his most recent signature outing, the Paul Gilbert MojoMojo Overdrive from TC Electronic, through its paces to see if it can supply the range of tones needed to help you sound like the guitar icon.

A quick confession. I’m not Paul Gilbert, and, though competent on my instrument, I possess only a fraction of his ability. But that’s OK as I’m led to understand that this is commonplace for most guitarists when compared to one of the best to ever lay hands on the instrument.

It’s important to note that tone can come from a variety of places, including your fingers. This means that the way I play may produce a different sound to Paul Gilbert’s playing on the exact same setup.

Before we dive into the ins and outs of the Paul Gilbert MojoMojo Overdrive’s capabilities, it would be prudent to remind everyone that tone is subjective. What sounds good to me, may not for you, and vice versa. For this reason, I tested the Paul Gilbert MojoMojo in a number of different ways to highlight how it reacts and performs in different setups. So, you can find out how best to use it to fit your requirements.

The gear

Guitar: PRS Mark Holcomb SE tuned to Eb with D’addario NYXL 10-46

Amplifier: EVH 5150iii 50-watt head

Cabinet: Custom Zilla vertical 2 x 12 with Celestion V30 x G12-M 65 Creamback

Microphone: Shure SM57 and Shure SM7B

Amplifier modelling: Line6 Helix

Audio interface: Focusrite Clarett+ 4Pre

Monitors: ADAM Audio A7X

Cables: High-quality Klotz

The setups

A rundown of the signal path of each test:

Test 1: Guitar – Paul Gilbert MojoMojo Overdrive – Amplifier input – Cabinet – Microphone – Interface

Test 2: Guitar – Paul Gilbert MojoMojo Overdrive – Amplifier Effects Send – Cabinet – Microphone – Interface

Test 3: Guitar – Paul Gilbert MojoMojo Overdrive – Line6 Helix – Interface

In action

Using the Paul Gilbert MojoMojo Overdrive in the most conventional way, Test 1 was very successful.

Combining well with all channels on my amplifier, the Paul Gilbert MojoMojo had something extra to add to the tone. When used on the clean channel, it became obvious that this was what the pedal was designed for.

In this setup, the pedal becomes very versatile. It can comfortably be used as a light overdrive with the increased headroom for some natural-sounding breakup. Or when engaging the newly-implemented ‘11’ gain mod, it takes a clean tone to some serious fuzzy distortion.

You might find that you need to drive the level control to reach unity gain levels, matching the bypassed volume. However, there’s still plenty of headroom to take this even further, so you can increase the level going into your amp for a bit more sustain and bite.

When used on the clean channel of the EVH 5150iii 50-watt head (a Fender-designed clean channel, no less), the gain has a ‘squishy’ and ‘spongey’ feel to it. Far from the tight, percussive sound of the amp’s own distortion, this has the vintage flavour of an amp being driven hard with a voltage sag, adding some compression and searing harmonics.

Continuing with the same signal chain but using the crunch channel of my amplifier, the Paul Gilbert MojoMojo Overdrive delivered my favourite sound. An already Marshall-esque tone when dialled right, the 5150iii 50-watt crunch channel is exceptionally detailed and articulate, with enough gain on tap. I added the MojoMojo to the mix with a cut in the bass down to 9 o’clock, boost in the treble up to 3 o’clock, and the traditional Tubescreamer-style settings with the drive at 0 and level to the maximum. This was the key to this sound.

Doing this could take my tone from very tame to modern and crunchy in an instant. The perfect solution for vintage Marshall or Laney-style amplifiers with less gain than modern variants, the MojoMojo Overdrive Paul Gilbert brings you into modern territory, nailing anything from rock and roll to punk-rock.

Test 2 was to see if the Paul Gilbert MojoMojo Overdrive can be an ‘amp-in-the-box’ style pedal. Running straight into the effects send of my amplifier, this bypassed the pre-amp section, using the PG MojoMojo as the pre-amp into a power-amp for volume. Employing pedals as ‘amplifiers’ that run into a power-amp is becoming increasingly common as it cuts down on travel weight when travelling from gig to gig.

There are quite a few modern offerings of Marshall-in-a-box-style pedals which fill this job nicely but it’s not the wheelhouse of the Paul Gilbert MojoMojo Overdrive. On its own, the MojoMojo doesn’t have the bite and punch you’d need to replace an amplifier and play heavy rock over a loud live drummer and bassist.

Fortunately, the next test was a winner.

Connecting to my Line6 Helix Floorboard, the MojoMojo performed excellently. Another common solution for reducing the carry weight between gigs is guitar amplifier modelling systems, but some pedals don’t play nicely with them. The Paul Gilbert MojoMojo, however, blends with the amp models very well and doesn’t suffer any loss in tone or character.

The drive remains gritty and textured whilst the Bass and Treble controls remain flexible and powerful enough to dial in your sound. Using the added ‘11’ gain mod switch responded identically to a real amplifier, tightening your sound and boosting the harmonics to cut through for solo sections.

The good, the bad, the ugly

Good

A fantastic addition to the Paul Gilbert version of the MojoMojo, the ‘11’ switch lets you do exactly what you’d expect.

Get more gain, level, bite, and sustain like you would by turning up a classic valve amplifier to the bursting point.

When the ‘11’ switch is engaged, both the Treble and Bass controls become more tactile, meaning you can sculpt your sound more precisely. On that note, the Treble and Bass frequencies are centred around pleasant, guitar-friendly frequencies, making them ideal for thickening up single-coil guitars or adding brightness to humbuckers.

Features aside, it’s a highly responsive pedal, ideal for the nuanced techniques of rock genres and Paul Gilbert’s playing.

Switching between humbuckers and single coils, the Paul Gilbert MojoMojo reacts very well to both pickup systems. It follows the dynamics of each, with both neck and bridge pickups sounding as good as each other.

Volume rolls are very balanced, with no dead spots, and touch sensitivity is extremely detailed. These are perfect for dynamic shifts in output that help give rock its explosiveness.

Built to a very high standard (just like all TC Electronic pedals), the Paul Gilbert MojoMojo Overdrive is housed in an all-metal casing with highly durable dials and switches that will certainly last.

All of this is packaged in a modest-priced unit that’s extremely competitive, even across the saturated market of overdrive pedals as a whole.

Bad

Tying in together, the two points of concern lie with the twisting of the dials. Firstly, the range of motion on the Drive and Level control isn’t smooth and contains audible ‘steps’ between values. This can be problematic on the Drive dial in particular as you may find that one setting is too much but with only a small adjustment down, you’re left with too little.

Secondly, the two-band EQ onboard seems to traverse a huge range of frequencies with some crossover between them. I noted when boosting the treble, the sound does get brighter but there is also a noticeable reduction in the amount of low-end.

In a similar fashion, boosting the bass reduces brightness. Of course, this effect would be perceived naturally when adjusting EQ, however, it was noticeable with the Paul Gilbert MojoMojo. These don’t detract any of the core tone or usability of the pedal but could lead to a longer time to tweak and perfect your sound.

Ugly

Unfortunately, there is one thing that cannot be overlooked: the position of the ‘11’ switch. It’s sandwiched between two dials and makes it difficult to switch without knocking the position of these dials. This limits its use (especially live on stage) to an ‘on/off’ status, as switching it on for certain sections of a performance, such as a guitar solo, is impossible.

As it’s such an important feature and one that defines the original MojoMojo Overdrive to the Paul Gilbert version, this could have been refined for on-the-fly switching to make use of the extra push in situations that call for it.

Is this really an overdrive?

After extensive testing, it’s difficult to call this pedal an overdrive in the conventional sense. While other ‘overdrive’ pedals are perfectly adept at taking a signal from the edge of breakup to raunchy distortion, this isn’t quite in the wheelhouse of the Paul Gilbert MojoMojo.

When thinking of overdrive designs, you’d be forgiven for heading straight to soft-clipping TS-style pedals. The Paul Gilbert MojoMojo Overdrive reacts much more like a hard-clipping design than classic overdrive.

Who is the Paul Gilbert MojoMojo Overdrive for?

Firstly, this is for fans of Paul Gilbert. It’s unmistakably the sound of his recent albums. If you’re looking to emulate his sound, regardless of what other equipment you may have, this is the pedal you need.

Not just for fans of Paul Gilbert, the MojoMojo Paul Gilbert Overdrive is an excellent choice for all players who stay within the realms of rock and all its subgenres. It’s even suitable for blues players. The distinctive drive tone and character are excellent for cutting through a dense mix.

I think most interestingly, this pedal is for players who use a single channel, clean amplifiers, or amps with a poor driven tone. It transforms your amp into a two-channel one. And with incredible flexibility, it can be used in a variety of ways, giving you extra versatility in your rig that’s ideal for live-performing guitarists. Plus, it’s priced very well.

The golden setting

For my tastes, the Paul Gilbert MojoMojo Overdrive was best suited to an already-crunchy tone, adding extra bite and sustain.

To achieve this, the volume was pushed to the maximum, the gain at 9 o’clock, treble at 3 o’clock, and a cut in the bass down to 9 o’clock. It was the perfect middle-ground as it gave plenty of extra push behind a crunchy tone and allowed me to utilise the ‘11’ switch for solos and leads without sounding too fizzy or messy.