Analog War Cry

Top Finds of 2011/ Tone Blue Custom FX

2012-01-04T21:37:00.000-08:00

Hello my dearest of readers. First let me say Happy New Year and I hope everyone had a great Christmas. I'm sure many of you got yourselves and got from your loved ones some pretty cool gear. Last year was an another amazing year for unique and marvalous music equupment, and I'm sure this year will be just as good if not better. I wanted to start this new year with some of my favorite finds of 2011, and this first feature I know you guys will absolutely love!

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Every time I think nothing more can be done to the overdrive pedal comes along a stompbox that turns my thinking in the opposite direction. Ladies and gents - let me introduce you to Tone Blue Custom FX. This my friends is a pedal company with some very impressive original and modified builds. On the TBCFX website you will come across everything from boosters, trems, verbs, loopers, fuzz's, to comps, chorus's, wah's, power supplies, and a handful of cool upgraded familiars. It's quite obvious these guys know what they're doing by the extensive and beautiful collection of stompboxes that they offer. Thank god for cool companies like these!

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Mighty Drive

My first encounter with the mighty world of TBCFX came to me in the form of a versatile little black box by the name of the Mighty Drive. Simple this pedal may be with it's Gain, Volume, Treble, Middle, and Bass controls - but I assure you it owns within it more than just one sweet spot giving you a wide range of useful and inspiring tones. For me it was the Mighty Drive's simple and straight to the point control layout that sold me from the start. The pedal's circuit itself being designed so well makes it one of the easiest dirt boxes to dial in and tweak, and one that works with many different setups and styles of music. For the hardcore tone purist guitar slinger this pedal will be an absolute dream come true.

The beginning of my Mighty Drive experiment started with a Les Paul Standard and 22 Watt Blackface amplifier. I began with a simple dry tone, no verb, and all of the amp's controls straight at noon. I began by setting the pedal's gain to a mild mellow setting. The pedal's eq stack I tried to match as close to the amp so I could get the most transparent boost possible. The Mighty Drive's volume I took to about 50%, which gave me an awesome amount of natural gritty yumminess. Right from the get-go the pedal worked beautifully as a booster and mild overdrive. The tones I got in it's mild overdrive settings reminded me of some of my favorite classic tube amps. The quality of the tone was rich, thick, and pleasing to the ear. I was able to convert the low watt amp into a grimy rock and blues machine. With the Les Paul's humbuckers thrown into the mix everything came together perfectly. I was able to go from bridge pickup to neck pickup and get a great balance of punchy highs and fat lows. The character of the pedal's sound came through with flying colors. As I went up into higher overdrive territories I began noticing the dirt getting tighter and fatter, making it sit in the mix beautifully and easy to work with. Cranking the 22 watt amp into a big and loud natural overdrive and stacking the Mighty Drive on top of it did a few cool things. First I used the pedal's volume to push the amp into a wonderful dirtier overdrive. Making it work more as a lead and distortion machine. With the pedal's middle and treble controls I was able to dial in tones that sliced through and punched with lots and lots of attitude. Rolling back the mids gave me some really cool heavy distortion tones. Along with the low watt Blackface amplifier I also plugged it into a 4x10 60 watt Hot Rod Deville with Jensen Blackbirds and Tornado's. Each of the 10" speakers in my Deville are 100 watters giving them lots of headroom which is perfect for a great sounding overdrive pedal. The Mighty Drive seemed to work like magic with this amp. I was able to crank in the pure tone of the pedal's mojo with just the amp's pure clean tone blended in. This brought out all of the pedal's feel and character. The big bouncing creamy sound of the alnico speakers mixed with the cutting edge sound of the neodymium magnets created absolute heaven. I plugged in a handful of guitars into this pedal and amp to see just what types of sounds I would get and to see if the Mighty Drive would work well with each pick and guitar style. I used a JR style guitar with a single Lollar P90, Les Paul with hand wound humbuckers, a Strat with top notch 60's style single coils, and a Tele with a classic style bucker in the neck and broadcaster style pickup in the bridge. It seemed as if the Mighty Drive were made for each guitar, pickup, and amplifier that I paired it up with. Each of the guitars' tonal styles came through and were accented by the Mighty Drive's unique and special circuit. In light settings the pedal pushed the amp's clean signal to give me more juice and more oomph. Using the pedal as an overdriver turned the amp into a rock and roll monster that worked for all typed of musical styles, including classic, blues, alternative, country, and punk. Cranking the pedal's gain to full blast, setting the volume at around 70%, then taking the eq stack and setting it to push the amp's highs/lows/ and mids made for a great experience. Strumming the strings I could feel lots of harmonics and sweet balance. The pedal sang with smooth and creamy overdrive/distortion. Last I did try this pedal with some other stompboxes, checking to see for noise or any other unpleasant ticks. I was very happy with the outcome. It it these types of pedals that a pedal junky like myself looks forward into running into to. In the end my experience with TBCFX was nothing short of amazing. The Mighty Drive was one that didn't take much effort to dial in nor did it eat away at any of my guitar's, amp's, or pickup's characteristics. I will say this - I am looking forward to see what more magic lies in store inside the Tone Blue Custom FX collection.

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For more info on FBCFX go to www.toneblue.com/tbcfx/ Make sure to stay tuned for more features from Tone Blue Custom FX to come in the near future. Remember.... Let'em hear you scream!!!

Xotic Nite at NAMM

2011-12-08T19:46:00.000-08:00

Prosound Communications Inc Presents

XOTiC NiTE @ NAMM

KIRK FLETCHER, ERIC GALES, with Special Guest from Japan YUYA KOMOGUCHI

Monday January 23, 2012 Doors at 7:30PM
Tickets: $10 at the door

Lighthouse Cafe
Address: 30 Pier Avenue, Hermosa Beach, CA 90254, Phone: (310) 376-983

Out of this World

2011-12-08T07:00:00.000-08:00

All you drooling right now continue to keep on drooling - cause this pedal sounds as good as it looks! I'd like to introduce to those of you who aren't familiar with Analog Alien to one of the coolest pedal companies I have ever come across. I will tell you - I have been one lucky son of a bitch to have run across these cats. There are a lot of people building pedals out there today, and many of those people very talented. We have come across a stompbox revolution of sorts. A time where tone is everything again, and where what you play and say are two different things. Music is once again making a come back in a beautiful way - thanks to all the wonderful gear that is out there to motivate and inspire us. It is cool little companies like Analog Alien that sit in the front lines making sure we have the weapons needed for the battle. This is what happens when a couple of dedicated tone hungry cats get together to make a pedal. I bring your the...

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Fuzz Bubble-45

Specs:

PETE SIDE
Out: controls effected output level
Year 66'-77': controls gain amount sent to pedal's OD circuit
Tone: this switch helps roll back lower frequencies

JIMI SIDE
In: controls amount of signal coming into the pedal
Out: controls effect output level
Haze: controls fuzz intensity
Tone: functions identically to Pete side circuit

Bypass Switch: switches pedal On/Off
Effect: switches between Pete and Jimi sides
Power: runs on either single 9Volt battery or 9V adapter

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The first time I saw this pedal was one of those moments when I said to myself; "Holy crap, now that's a pedal!". Boy was I right. This is baby is built extremely well, was designed to be user friendly so you can get the tones you want quickly, and ships with a very cool mini lunchbox which it is stored in! This is a two channel stompbox which lets you choose between a Pete side (overdrive/distortion) and a Jimi side (distortion/fuzz). What more can you ask for? The Fuzz Bubble-45 is the pedal for that classic rock tone addicted player. For those of you who dig those marvelous 60's-70's tube amps. For those who listen and grew up with those insanely great sounding rock gods of yesteryear.

(PETE)

Getting a great sound of this was as easy as plugging it into a decent tube amp and guitar. I went with my semi-hollow body Hagstrom Viking and modified Hot Rod Deville. The handwound humbuckers and 4x10 Jensen's seemed to take to the pedal like a hand and glove. I began by setting the amp to a big warm clean tone, with all of it's controls set at around 7 and reverb circuit turned completely down. I started with the Pete side, setting it's Out knob to 50% , Year knob at 67', and it's Tone switch in the left position. Once engaged the pedal pushed out a very smooth'n'cruncy natural sounding classic rock dirt tone. The sound had lots of defined grit which made each string come through with spectacular delivery. This tone was perfect for an get-go all around rock tone. I played some of my favorite classic, blues, and alternative rock tones and got nothing but magic. Chords especially sounded good, along with double stops and string bends. The big'n'beefy overdrive produced by the Pete side reminded me of my favorite golden era rock tones. As I went up on the Year knob and added more gain the pedal continued to give me more mojo and inspiration. One thing which I really dug about the Pete side was how well it owrked with my guitar's volume. Using my guitar's volume knob I was able to control not only the amount of grit, but also the feel, response, and character of my tone. I next flipped the Tone switch to the right side and like an atomic bomb my pickups pushed out more low-end muscle. My riffs sounded bigger and stronger, and chords even beefier and dirtier. The Tone switch I imagine would be the perfect little feature for either cutting through a mix or adding more body to an overall band's sound. In both positions the Fuzz Bubble-45's Tone switch was able to keep it's definition and smooth feel. Switching the pedal up to year 77' really made a difference not only in the amount of gain, but how it all worked with your pick attack and overall sound. Here I got more aggressive overdrive tones which really became more like distortion. But unlike modern distortion the Fuzz Bubble-45 is able to maintain a very velvety creamy classic feel. Along with the semi-hollow body I also played this pedal with a Strat, a Tele, and a Les Paul (of course). Each one of the guitars created it's own special collection of rock tones, making this one of the most user friendly circuits I've ever used.

(JIMI)

Switching over to the Jimi side was an entirely different ballpark. Here I got a wide variety of very useful fuzz tones. I began by plugging into my partner's Les Paul and 7/15 watt amplifier. Now, on it's own this amp of mine has always produced some pretty sweet rock tones. It has been one of my favorite amps to plug fuzz boxes into and one of the best recording amps I've ever used. The Fuzz Bubble-45's Jimi circuit quickly and beautifully produced some of the best classic fuzz tones I've come across. I began with both the In and Out ch in the knobs at around noon, the Haze knob at around 15%, and the Tone switch in the left position. The pedal kicked out rockin' good subtle yet powerful fuzz tone that made my little amp sound much bigger than it actually is. Sliding up and down the neck playing blues and rock licks felt and sounded like something from another time. I was able to hear, and better yet feel, a big stack of harmonics and string ringing goodness. The softer I plucked the strings, the less the pedal growled. The harder I smacked down on the strings, the more the tone came to life and the more it knocked out big'n'bad fuzz. With the In knob I was able to tame and mellow out the sound of the fuzz, making it easy to tailor to whatever style of music I was playing. As well as the In knob working nicely, my guitar's volume knob gave me even more control and let me tap into even more crazy good rock tones. Some vintage fuzz boxes when doing this do one of two things; #1. They either become too thin and brittle, or #2. Just waste away the entire feel and vibe of the fuzz effect. The Jimi circuit I assure does non of these things. With my Strat I was able to use the pedal to dial in the biggest and meanest sounding fuzz tone, and by rolling down the guitar's volume able to get back to my jangly signature Strat sound. I was able to get some super cool feedback effects and strange ambiances just by holding the guitar in the right direction or playing the strings in a certain fashion. All you psychedelic rock monsters will appreciate and dig the hell out of this pedal. There's nothing better than blasting down in a rad collection of single note fuzz riffs. This pedal lets you beef up your licks or make them cut like razors. With the Tone switch giving you even more variety to choose from. I also played the Strat and Fuzz Bubble-45 through a Super Lead, which indeed was something to write home about. I will just say this - Everyone in the lockout studios was quite jealous that day. I had the walls ringing and shaking as if they were about to come down. I dialed in the Super Lead to a killer natural ovedrive, and stacked on top of it the fury of the Jimi side. If you've heard the best Marshall and fuzz tones combined you have an idea of what I was able to dial in. I found it easy to match both sides so that switching back and fourth was cinch. I know I get frustrated trying to find the right combination of overdrive and fuzz to bring out on gigs. With this pedal you get the best of both worlds all in one very cool looking box. All in all you can't go wring with this pedal, and I in fact found nothing I disliked about how it sounded or worked. The guys over at Analog Alien definitely own a special gift that lives in a few. I would kill to see what else crept into their minds, what else they'd be pushed to build.

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For more info on the Fuzz Bubble-45 or Analog Alien go to www.analogalien.com You ill find some cool info on the history and making of this pedal. There are also some pretty cool vids out there for those of you that want some audio of this monster. Use our Youtube search engine to hunt down some oft hose vids. We will be sure to keep you guys posted if more comes out of this unique and talented pedal company.

Treat Yourself to Something Reeeaaal Nice

2011-12-04T08:00:00.000-08:00

Next on our list of killer pedals is a little number from the talented and amazing people of Aguilar Amplification. Last year I had a chance to try out a bunch of these pedals on bass guitar and was blown away by the quality in tone and wide range of sounds I was able to get. It didn't end on bass guitar either... no sir. I in fact also plugged some of these pedals into a bunch of my guitars and guitar amps and the outcome was nothing short of amazing. I also had a chance to meet the good folks from Aguilar at NAMM last year which really tuned me into what they're doing and the direction they are headed in. Let me just say this: Go out and try these pedals - you will not be sorry and very glad you did.

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TLC Compressor

Specs:

Threshold Control: variable from -30 to -10dBu
Slope Control: variable from 2:1 to infinity
Attack Control: variable from 10ms to 100ms
Level Control: -infinity to -3dBu
Low Distortion: (<0.2%)
Gig-saver Bypass: signal passes even if your battery dies
Power: 9 volt battery or optional universal power supply
Enclosure: heavy-duty steel construction
Battery Life: 100 hours
Inputs: one 1/4 jack
Outputs: one 1/4 jack

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How about that for a gem of a compression pedal? Here is an area where us musicians cannot afford to skimp out on. Compression when used the wrong way can be the killer of all tones. So where does one go when in need of some proper quality compression? Well, the TLC Compressor is a beautiful place to start, and a beautiful place to end. This powerhouse of a pedal is capable of giving your bass tones (and guitar) all the spank, thump, boom, bang, and bottom you will ever need. The control layout on this pedal is genius! And each one of it's controls capable of so so much. With the guitar it works equally as good. This is a pedal that does not discriminate and loves to play well with others (pedals). The TLC Compressor (just like our last Aguilar review) kick much ass. The one word that comes to mind is quality - quality - quality. Make sure to run back in our archive for more Aguilar reviews.

Round #1 (Bass Guitar)

My first experiment with the Aguilar TLC consisted of a P Bass and a Ampeg SVT. I dialed in a simple signature snappy P Bass tone, with lots of rounded corners and plenty of punch. I began with some subtle settings, tightening up the overall sound and getting more definition. The TLC quickly dished out more clarity making things sound sweeter and richer. I started first with a medium low level and ended up cranking the amp just about full blast. At low to medium settings the pedal accented all of the bass guitar's and amp's magic and mojo. Then once cranked things really became noticeable. My experience with most compression pedals has been they don't hang in there when in comes down to gigging or recording. Either they become too noisy or they just can't cut it. This is why studio compressors are so praised and so useful. The TLC was more than able to hold it's own. One very nice thing about this puppy, something I really dug, was it's low noise output. This is probably the one thing that turns me off to most comp pedals. With this pedal I was able to blast my bass amp and thump away at my bass guitar's strings like a madman. In the end the pedal stayed chill and quiet. I got no unwanted hissing or white noise. But more importantly was how quiet the pedal was when I wasn't playing. Here is where this pedal comes in handy for those of you looking for a proper gigging compressor. I also plugged the TLC into a higher output bass which worked equally as good. What I liked about playing this pedal through the higher output bass pickups was how well it helped roll off the high end sounds and jagged corners. This brought a lighter fluffier attack to my overall tone which made things sit much nicer when jamming with other instruments. I did also gig with this pedal, and on stage the pedal did more than it's job, falling beautifully into the mix and standing out just enough to accompany the guitar, bass drum, and vocals. Setting the compression to the club's room was cake! On the other side of the spectrum, in more extreme settings, the TLC also did a great job. The pedal's threshold takes care of a huge range of sounds and tones which helps you achieve just any sound or musical style you're going for.

Round # 2 (Electric Guitar)
For me finding a good compression pedal to team up with my guitars seems to something I've always had lots of trouble with. Really there has only been a handful of comp pedals that I've enjoyed. The TLC quickly became one of the few. I broke out my trusty bucker equipped Tele and my buddy's Princeton Reverb. The goal was to dial in a solid plunky country tone with plenty of meat and potatoes. I help back on the amp's reverb and rolled the eq straight up the middle. With a little meddling of the TLC's controls I was able to quickly get the sound I wanted. The guitar sang out lots of spanky goodness making each string sound like it's own thing. I was able to hear every little nuance and accent I played. My chords sounded off with lush clear projection, which made everything sound absolutely beautiful! Smoothness was the name of the game when playing through this pedal. The Tele jangled and chimed through the amp's big'n'bright tone. I was able to get plenty of sustain from my playing without any of the unwanted extreme sappy sounds. The TLC maintained my pick attack and left my guitar's natural character intact. While playing around the guitar I began fooling around with other pedals, such as overdrivers and distortion pedals. With overdrivers the pedal added a chunky ring to the overall sound that made things sound bigger and badder. I noticed my lows became rounder and warmer, with the highs becoming clearer and easier on the ear. I also got beautiful string balance that cut right through like a razor. In minimum compression settings the pedal gave the guitar's sound that hint of juice that helps bring one's tone to life. By adding in some of the pedal's level control I was able to naturally bring the amp's tubs into some pretty sweet gritty overdrive. This sound worked nicely for craning down on some classic country rock chord play. Blues and funk also sounded quite nice. I ran through some sweet licks and rifs and was able to hear every note with absolute authority. There is no doubt on my mind this pedal can hang with al types of music styles. Anyone hunting for a killer all around comp box would do themselves proper by grabbing one of these.

Some compressors squash your tone much too much, or just bloom and rise in the wrong ways. Something we're all too familiar with. The TLC's control layout made things very easy and user friendly. It took a bit of playing with the TLC's controls but once I began trusting my ears everything fell into place. This is what I tell my readers when the write in asking how to use compression, just trust those ears. Another great use I got out of this pedal was recording with it. I was able to get these very balanced, steady, and defined bass and guitar tones which were very easy to work with when mixing. The TLC is also very transparent, and instead of adding color to your tone - it brings what is already there to life.The magic in this pedal all comes from it's control layout and the quality of it's sound. This is what makes this little baby stand out from many others. Aguilar Amplification really did some number when designing this pedal and it shows right off the bat once you plug in and play.

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For more info on Aguilar Amplification go to www.aguilaramp.com Make sure to also check out Aguilar's awesome amps, pickups, preamps, and cabs. We will be featuring more and more of Aguilar's gear in the near future so make sure to keep them eyes peeled. Hit up our Youtube search engine to hunt down some cool Aguilar pedal vids!

The Mighty Verb

2011-11-30T18:31:00.000-08:00

Yes yes I know it's been a while since the AWC has been in any kind of action. First let me apologize to both our loyal readers and the awesome gear companies that have kept us afloat. Your patience and contributions have been nothing short of highly appreciated. Let me say this, it was worth the wait! For all you gear addicted tone hunting fiends - do we have some off-the-wall knock your socks off pieces of gear to share with you. We'll be bringing you reads from both familiar and brand spankin' new companies, we've hunted down a handful of great bands to turn you guys onto, and have some new features that will give you guys even more insight into our world of lovely'n'strange musical gear. There is a lot of catching up to do so let's get to it shall we?

We start our comeback with a sexy little number from our good friends at MOD Kits DIY (formally known as Mod Amp Kits). For those of you unfamiliar with the MOD collection they make some of the most fantastic sounding and easy to build DIY kits out there. MOD's pieces are the perfect introduction into the pedal building world for those of you looking to get your hands dirty. These pedals come stacked with quality parts and components, come with straight forward easy to follow building maps, and best of all are all reasonably priced. A perfect way to add some quality kickass sounding gear to any respectable tone arsenal.

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The Verb

Reverb Pedal Kit

Based on Belton Digi-Log module.
Adds quality reverb to any guitar rig.
Enclosure is 1.35 in height, 3.70 in width, 4.70 in length
Recommend 9-volt adapter for use with this pedal

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The Verb pedal kit comes stacked with everything you'll need to build a killer sounding digital reverb pedal. Once assembled you'll find it kicks out plenty of mojo and warmth, and lots of clean cut definition. The Verb sounds and works great with loads of different stompboxes, guitars, pickups, and amplifiers.This is the perfect build for those newbie DIY rookies looking to up their chops. Just bring to the table a little soldering experience and a bit of patience - and you'll have yourself a rockin' good reverb box that'll be capable of plenty rockin' good tones. Mod provides really easy to read/follow directions (and this goes for every one of their kits) making the Verb's build go by smoothly and without flaws. I was able to knock this build out and have the pedal singing sweet reverb in about an hour.

The first obvious test was to run the Verb pedal solo, through a nice clean amp tone with no other effects/pedals in the chain, to help me see just where this puppy was gonna be capable of taking me. The first amp candidate was my modified Hot Rod Deville. I set the amp's controls straight up the middle, killed the amp's reverb, and plugged into the 2nd input for a hotter beefier signal. For a guitar I pulled out the neck bucker Telecaster with the coil splitting switch and Broadcaster style bridge pickup. I started in the neck pickup position with the humbucker split, picking out a bunch of big open voiced chords. With the pedal bypassed the tone had plenty of sparkle, tight lows, and focused mids. I wanted to compare the tone's weight with both the pedal on and off. Many reverb pedals kill the meat of one's tone, making everything sound hollow and overly flat. Then I clicked on the Verb pedal and to my wonderful surprise found all of my amp's sweet sweet tone still singing with plenty of juice. In fact, the Verb gave my highs more sparkle, my mids more ooohmf, and my lows more snap. This was especially true when I split the buckers coil or switched to the single bridge pickup. In it's low to medium reverb settings the Verb worked great for just a handful of situations or musical styles. The single output/amount knob made it all super duper easy. Before I go on I must say I think it is a great idea to have a reverb pedal with just one control that handles both the output and amount. This makes for no sitting and debating whether you've got the right sound or not. Just plug in and go! I began with some subtle bluesy guitar licks and had the Verb help maintain and hold my notes out in the air just a little bit longer. I noticed no ghostly reverb effects and no loss in the tone's character. Smacking down on some big beefy chords also sounded insanely good, especially when adding in a hint of overdrive. I was able to accent all of my pickings character and style. When chugging away at my axe I could really feel and hear the pedal really do it's magic. It sounded warm and smooth, instead of harsh or too square waved. I then added in a bit more reverb setting the pedal at about 50%. Here I got even more sweet ambiances and accents. Me personally I like extreme reverb thing when messing around with different pedals and effects. The Verb pedal let me get the reverb signal just where I wanted it and never threw my overall tone down the drain. One favorite trick of mine is to take a great sounding reverb pedal and mix it with a big nasty fuzz box. This is how I get lots of my psychedelic fuzz tones. If you've ever heard the band The Black Angels you can get an idea of what type of sound I'm talking about. At full blast the Verb pedal dipped into these frequencies with ease and flawless control. I was able to hold my notes as if playing through compression. Which brings me to another favorite effect of mine - reverb, fuzz, and comp. The Verb pedal worked great with a handful of comp pedals and fuzz boxes I ran it with, and even helped me get some tones I'd had trouble achieving. This quickly made this an all time favorite reverb pedal of mine.What made this such an easy pedal to dial is again it's one knob system. Once I was satisfied with the tones I got from my suped up Deville it was time to plug into something a bit more powerful and classic. Here is where the Super Lead came into play. This amp was the perfect mate for pairing this pedal against. The huge Marshal tone and Les Paul that I played the Verb with all worked splendidly together as if they were made for each other. I first dialed in a natural sounding room reverb effect by cranking in the pedal's knob to about 3-5%. This gave my tone an organic room reverb sound that gave my playing a bit more room and space. I then dial in a big'n'dirty lead tone by pushing the amp's tubes and rolling in like 30% of the Verb's effect. For a digital pedal this little box really did dish out plenty of warmth! Adding in more and more reverb as I played along I began stepping into awesome sounding spring reverb tones. This gave those quick licks and riffs some very very tasty effects. No matter if I played the amp soft or hot, the Verb was able to deliver with spot-on efficiency. Last I used the pedal through one of my amp's effect loops. Here the pedal once again worked beautifully. For those of you tone conscience freaks this is a perfect option. I've played through some very expensive effects processors and much more complex reverb pedals. The Verb was able to respectfully hold it's own with flying colors. In the end I was able to use this pedal in just about every way I wanted. Use it with great amps and guitars, pickups and pedals, and many different musical styles. With the Verb you get great sounding reverb throughout it's entire sweep, giving you quick and simple settings, whether gigging, recording, or practicing. It makes for a sweet go-to reverb box....... and all with simple control.

For more info on this pedal and the rest of MOD's gear collection go to www.modkitsdiy.com Make sure to stay tuned for more features from our good friends at MOD, and make sure to use our Youtube search engine at the bottom of our site to see some of these pedal in action. Stay tuned for more folks!

News and Updates

2011-08-23T14:06:00.000-07:00

First let me apologize for the long hiatus, I had the opportunity at an awesome music project which in fact plugged me in even deeper into this world of strange and fantastic sounding gear. I will be back in action by the start of Oct and in full force he month after that. If any of you have any gear that you'd like me to look into please email with that info I'd appreciate it very much. Thank you for your patience and loayalty.

See you all soon,
Alfie

Magic in a Box

2011-02-20T03:31:00.000-08:00

There's creativity, and then there's Cusack Effects pedals. Since day one I have been a huge fan of these innovative stompbox designs. These are pedals that ooze with originality, superb sound, and one of a kind style. If there exists a perfectionist out there in the pedal building game I'd have to give that title to Jon Cusack. The coming of the Tap-A line was like nothing else before it. I can remember feeling like a first grader in an amusement park the first time I plugged into one of these pedals. All of the colors, buttons, and shiny lights drew me in like a mad sonic piped piper. Usually I am not a fan of multi-switch/multi-button stompboxes, but here was something different. Unlike the hundreds of gimmick driven pedals floating around today (EHX uhhhm uhhhm!), here was something different. These pedals made sense me, sounded great, and the quality of them is tip-top. From the simplest to the most complex creations, Cusack has proven time and time again that their pedals can stand up in just about any application.

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Tap-A-Delay

Controls/Features

Level: Controls output level
Mix: Blends original and delayed signals
Feedback: Adjusts feedback/repeat amount
Delay: Controls Delay time. 50ms-750ms.
Modulation: Selects one of 7 modulation settings. Up is off
Divide: Controls how your tap will be divided. 1/8 - Dotted1/8 - 1/4
Mode: Controls how the effect will react during breaking. Stay - Snap - Drift
Tap Speed: This works as tap-tempo switch. Holding down works as break to alter delay time.
Bypass: On/Off Switch. Holding this and Tap Switch changes direction of brake effect.
LED (blue): This LED gives you a visual of the tempo
LED (red/green): Works as status LED. Red = On / Green = Low Battery
In/Out Jacks: Standard input and mono output jacks.
External Tap: This RCA jack can be used to control taps for more than one Tap-A pedal.
DC Power Jack: Standard 9VDC power jack.
Echo Tone: Internal trimmer adjusts repeat tone. From dark to very bright.

(For more info on the Tap-A-Delay control layout click HERE)

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The Tap-a-Delay - Where the hell do I start!? This pedal very quickly introduced me to an entirely new level of on-the-fly delay control. As a standard use delay box this pedal is aces, but digging into it's features is where I quickly learned more than a thing or two. I began slowly, using this pedal as a simple every day ol' delay box. I dialed in a handful of quick delay sounds to get an idea of the pedal's sound and to see how it would get along with my amp's tone. Instantly I was impressed by the pedal's buttery smooth sound, and it wasn't until I read the manual that I even learned it was a digital delay. Unlike many digi-delays, the Tap-a-Delay beams with warmth and lush mojo. This gave the repeats a velvety tone that sat nicely within the mix and accented my every move. I first played this pedal through my buddy's vintage Twin Reverb - This amp would give me the perfect crisp and clear clean tone for hearing and feeling every nuance and tickle that this pedal had to give. I first set the Tap-a-Delay to some quick slapback delay sounds, using my customized Tele as the first guitar choice. Riffing up and down the neck I was able to create smooth and clear-cut echoes that came and went with perfect attack. I'll tell you this much, my so-so country licks never sounded so damn good. With the pedal's mix control I was able to blend in as little or as much of the delayed signal as I wanted, which came in handy for taming or creating extreme echoing effects. Next I experimented with longer delay sounds and switched to the modulation control's subtle setting. The result was a mellow chorusing effect that sat perfectly next to the delay sound. This setting worked out very nicely for adding some character and size to my chords and licks, and for filling in dead space. I continued to work my way through the modulation control listening to every setting and possibility. By the time I was done I had a world of sane and insane chorusing delay sounds. I'll tell you this much - you won't get bored hunting down sounds from this pedal. All in all I heard no change in my amp's root tone, not in the output level nor in the actual tone itself. I continued spreading out the delay time for longer and more complex delay sounds. For those of you delay scientist freaks this pedal works like a charm. There are so many ways to use this pedal within your playing that you can easily get lost inside of it's every echoes. The tap tempo switch I found to be very accurate and easy to use. Stepping on it I didn't feel any hesitation or ruff clicks. Throwing in on the pedal's divide control I was able to tap in just about any delay sound I could imagine. Again I found a level of control in this pedal that blew me away with excitement. But the ultimate cool feature on this pedal, at least my personal favorite, was the breaking option. By holding down on the tap tempo switch I was able to slow the delay time into strange and wonderful sound effects. Here is where the Tap-a-Delay's mode switch comes into play. With this switch you get three options; Stay/Snap/or Drift. In the Stay position the delay either slows down or speeds up with every hold and release. Letting go of the switch will leave you in whichever delay time you end up at. Very cool right!? The Snap position (my favorite) slows down or speeds up, depending on how you have it set, and letting go returns to the original delay time. Then last but not least there is the Drift mode. Here the delay time slows or speeds up and slowly drifts back to your original delay time once you let go of the switch. To change the break effect all you have to do is hold down both the bypass and tap switches, giving either falling or climbing delay effects. With the breaking effect I was able to create some maddening sound effect. All it took was one part fuzz box, one part imagination, and the Tap-a-Delay. The result was swishing, whirling, winding, slow motion, growling, haunting, bending, (you get the idea), delay sounds that left me with a huge smile on my face. But wait, there's more! Inside the pedal I found a nice little trimmer for darkening or brightening the delays repeats. This little trimmer came in handy for matching the pedal's sound to different amps, pickups, and styles. The super cool thing about this pedal is that it works for all types of players. If you're into simple straight to the point delay sounds this pedal is it. And if you're like me and enjoy finding strange new ways to create sounds, the Tap-A-Delay has all the tools. Jon Cusack has once again out done himself. I can honestly see no way for him to top this one. When all is said and done, this pedal kicks much ass. End of discussion!

For more info on this and the rest of the Tap-A line, go to www.cusackmusic.com or click the direct link in our sidebar. There is a ton of killer info on these pedals and a wide flavor of insanely cool sounding stompboxes. AWC will be continuing on down the Cusack line so make sure to stay tuned.

A Lesson in Splendid Tone

2011-02-18T18:58:00.000-08:00

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Handsome, well built, simple, and great sounding - is how I would describe the Manifold Drive if I only had a few words to do so. Everything on this pedal (and I mean everything) is super freakin' sexy and right on target. From it's gun metal grey finish and hip simple artwork, to it's very cool LED and tiny toggle switch. Right from the start it was clear this was no ordinary dirt box. Sporting a duo of controls for gain and volume, and a switch which dishes out dark-bright-and flat signals - the Manifold Drive is capable of a huge variety of sounds. The volume control alone has enough output to send your signal into natural grinding'n'growling overdrives, but it is it's gain control that really delivers the magic when introducing it into your amp's tone. The 3-way toggle works like an EQ for fine tuning and further shaping your overall sound. This comes in handy when having to compensate high and low frequencies in certain venues and rooms. The pedal rocks true bypass circuitry for keeping your treasured amp tones in check and untampered. The Manifold Drive can run off of a 9V battery or (+) DC adapter. The pedal ships with a (-) adapter for those using daisy chain power supplies and the like. Last but not least, these babies are built on a high quality PCB's, for durable and consistent designs.

I began my rundown of this pedal with a custom built Tele and 15 watt head with 1x12 cabinet. The guitar's tapable neck bucker and hand wound bridge pickup made for a wide variety of tasty tasty tones that the Manifold Drive would easily accent and bring to life. The amp was set to a sparkling clean tone, with it's EQ stack at noon and volume at about 30%. I started with the Manifold Drive's toggle switch in it's flat setting, it's volume matched to the amp's output, and the gain control up to about 10-15%. Here the pedal kicked out a mellow very natural sounding grit which brought out all of my amp's smooth and chiming tone. The subtle grit that the Manifold created was exactly that of a proper tube amp on the verge of breaking up. In the bridge pickup position I was able to easily control the pedal's overdrive and able to get a perfectly clean signal by easing up on my pick attack. With the Tele's neck bucker the Manifold pushed out a thicker and even smoother dirt tone. The overdrive was still quite mellow, only now by digging in and grinding down on my guitar's strings I was able to bring out more of the pedal's character. In both pickup positions the Manifold Drive worked exceptionally well at maintaining my amp's natural tone and guitar's feel. All very good good stuff for such a mellow gritty tone. While in this subtle overdrive setting I also played around with the pedal's toggle switch positions, first with the dark setting, then the bright. In the dark setting the highs from the amp became more forgiving and much lighter. This made everything warmer and gave the overall sound more bloom and boom. This setting would later work beautifully at shaving off some of my AC15's treble frequencies, making it easier dirty up and play loud. In the bright toggle setting the pedal dished out more ear candy tones. Setting the Manifold Drive bright added a crisp top-end which helped make every string punch and stand out more. This was perfect for getting the pedal's overdrive to cut through any mix. Next I set the Manifold Drive's gain at about 30%, with it's volume a bit louder, and it's toggle in the dark setting. Playing this pedal setting through a Les Paul, with the 15 watter set slightly hot, and a 2x12 cab in the mix - created one of the best rock rhythm tones I'd ever heard. The combination of the 15 watt head's natural dirt and pedal's super smooth grime made for one grade A golden rock tone. Here is where I really began hearing the difference between this pedal and the average ol' TS808 style pedal.. I was able to hear these subtle harmonics, overtones, and undertones when digging into the guitar's strings and working complex chords and riffs. I was also able to hear the Manifold's signature sound when bending and double stopping. It was something in the actual grit that became accented and much richer. Pushing the pedal's volume even higher helped to create some creamy woman tones and violin-like lead tones. This would become bigger and much more focused as I began adding in more of the pedal's gain control. I also rocked this pedal through my upgraded and customized Hot Rod Deville. This is an amp I use mostly for clean tones and for getting pure pedal dirt signals, The four 100 watt 10" speakers in this amp give it endless headroom and make it the perfect amp for hearing what a pedal is really capable of. Here I played with the Manifold Drive in it's medium to highest gain settings. I began with my amp in it's home run setting (which I won't share with you) and the pedal with it's controls at noon and switch in it's flat setting. Bypassed the amp produced a huge booming clean tone that let every string come across with massive clarity. Stepping on the pedal introduced a tight rumbling overdrive that hit my chest like a ton of bricks. I went from one guitar to the next, and each time the pedal worked it's magic. Cranked to the fullest the pedal also surprised me. I honestly thought with as much output as it's volume had that the sound would become muddy. But this was not the case. All the way form it's tiniest sound to it's biggest, the Manifold Drive came through beautifully. My last test with this pedal was to see if it would get along in a pedalboard situation. First I just plugged it in to see if there would be any excess noise - and there was none. Stacking this pedal up with clean boosters and putting it in front of other dirt boxes also sounded quite nice. I was able to take my pedals into new heights and create wild and tasteful tones. I also matched it up with some delays, reverbs, and other modulation pedals which really sounded off the hook. In the end there was no way to get a bad sound out of this pedal. Electronic wizards Wes Kuhnley and Peter Bregman sought out to create a collection of pedals that would express the sounds and tastes they most wanted to hear. With the Manifold Drive they not only accomplished their mission to design something unique - they also created something for us tone hounds, something we could appreciate and incorporate into our own world of tones. Get some and get your rock on!

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For more info on Field Effects/Resonant Electronic Design go to www.resonantelectronic.com There you will find more cool info on the Field Effects line and some sweet insight on the Resonant Electronic Design amp collection. Check back with us soon for another Field Effects feature - coming atcha very very soon.

Top Finds of 2010: Nace Amps

2011-02-16T21:49:00.000-08:00

It is no secret I am a sucker for a great sounding stompbox. But even greater than my desire for guitar pedals is my love for superbly built, great sounding amplifiers. Like the world of stompboxes, today just like yesterday exists a wide variety of boutique and commercial amp companies - all there to tempt us into snagging up one of their creations. For those of us who have been around long enough we know finding those few golden pieces of gear is not an easy task. But the gift one receives when he/she finally comes across that keeper of an amp is something that cannot be compared to anything else. Growing up I was fortunate enough to spend some time with some real heavyweight song writers and studio hounds. The one thing all these cats had in common?.... Their knowledge in amp tones and amp history. And the one piece of advice that all these cats had to give was "Play, collect, and hang on to as many good sounding amps as possible." Boy has this been truer than true. These last 5 or so years has shown us a steady come back in low and mid watt amplifiers, and for good reason too. With many players cutting their stage volumes in half, the need for great sounding low watt amps is a must. Well once again I have been blessed with another spectacular discovery - one that has shown me once again that deep rooted passion for building and designing musical gear still exists. For those of you who have experience with Nace Amps you know the magic they possess. And for those of you new to the Nace name hold on to your picks, cause here comes a doozy.

Nace

M2-7R

Specs/Features

Class “A” 5 watts average power clean, 7 watts average power rock distorted with a 6V6 power tube.
Cathode biased: uses proprietary “phase invariant cathode biasing” which reduces resistor/capacitor cathode biasing phase distortion.
Power tubes: EL34, 6L6, or 6V6
Pre-amp tubes: 12AT7, 5751, ECC83, 12AX7
Controls: volume, treble, bass, reverb
Input: ¼ mono
Output: ¼ mono – plug into one of two outputs 16 ohm, 8 ohm
Reverb on/off 1/4 mono - external switch pedal to turn on or off the reverb
Built in power conditioning: proprietary “trans flux power module” which enables the above specifications to be valid for the following input profile: 117vrms +/15%,48 Hz to 1 KHz or from 100VDC to 180VDC. Specifications shall not change over the specified input voltage/frequency range. Ideal for those “out of the way” gigs.
Very low noise: better than -60db. Studio/stage quality ideal for micing or recording. 120 Hz amp hum is gone. Note: guitar and pedal hum is a separate issue.
Also available in 1x12 combo with 12” Celestion Greenback - or - 1x12 combo 12" speaker ready

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If I had to put into just a few words I would say "Giant monster in a little box." This was the character that this little amp put out from the get-go, and from there it would onyl get better and better. For me (like for many of you I'm sure) there is nothing better than a simple, great sounding and elegant, well built amplifier. The Nace M2-7R is all of these things and nothing less. I found this little beast to be the perfect go-to amp for both live and studio applications, a great little amp for practicing and writing, and a stunning amp for incorporating into it stompboxes of all types. The M2-7R got along beautifully with speaker cabs of all sizes, guitars of all makes, and playing styles of every color. I found the amp to be very versatile for it's size and very quiet at it's highest levels (no unwanted noise here folks). Quality wise the amp is right on the money - all the way from it's cool knobs and clean tolex work to it's guts. For the price you couldn't ask for a better amp. At the end of the day though, when all was said and done, it was all about the amp's tone. Here is where amp guru Art Nace really put his talents and soul into this design.

The first couple weeks I had the amp I used it only with a 1x12 cab. This was really all I needed. The amp made it so easy to dial in desirable tones that I found no reason to plug into it anything else. Having the 1x12 cab was nice for dragging around to shows and setting up in recording sessions. I was able to get tons of different tones on the fly and able to blend in a handful of my favorite stompboxes (which all sounded and played fantastic!) For those of you fellow pedal junkies you will absolutely love this amp. First thing I wanted to hear when I plugged into this amp was it's clean tones. My experience with pulling sweet sounding clean tones from low watt amps hasn't been all that great to tell you the truth - but here things were different. The Nace M2-7R was able to produce clean tones sweet and powerful enough to rival some of my favorite classic blackface and tweed amps. Getting overall clear and sparkling tones was easy, getting the amp to kick and punch was a cinch, and taking those tones to the next level a piece of cake. On it's own the amp kicked out plenty of spank and clarity. Each pickup I played through the amp whether it be single coils or humbuckers all did something very special. What stood out from the beginning was how well the amp let each pickup project it's own special tone. Rocking the tone controls from their lowest to their highest settings all sounded great. And fine tuning those controls to fit the room or guitars being played sounded even better. Through my semi-hollow guitar I was able to get everything from beautifully dark jazz tones to jangly chiming classic rock sounds. With the M2-7R's reverb at hand I was able to add in more character and size - making my guitar sound just bigger than life! The amp was very touch sensitive when needed and barked out with plenty of growl when pushing my strings to the limit. Playing quick riffs and runs up and down the neck bloomed and blossomed with precision, making the amp's tone blend in perfectly in band situations and recording sessions. I played a few blues and funk gigs with this amp and it's clean tones definitely hit the mark and then some. At medium gain levels the amp is capable of producing huge sounding rhythm tones. In fact, the amp was much louder than I expected it to be, and very very quiet on the excess noise side of things. Getting the amp to give up some slight grit or mellow crunch was very very easy. With it's volume at about 10'o'clock things can start to get pretty crunchy, depending on what pickups you got on hand. With the semi-hollow's buckers all I had to do was a little bit of digging into the strings and wahla! One pickup that really stood out with the amp at a medium gain settings was the filtertron, and the P90 now that I think of it. This isn't to say others sounded bad, I just mean for me this are the two pickups types that I usually have the tuffest time dialing in - because of either noise issues or otherwise. I was able to get these insanely aggressive clean tones through my buddy's Grestch - those rockin' clean tones that seem to be hanging on to their last inch of clarity. Good stuff for blues, all around rock, and rhythm work. At medium gain levels the amp also pushed out killer alt-rock and punk rock tones. The P90 proved a great pup for this. Later when plugging into bigger cabs I found the power of this amp transfered over perfectly. Not all low watt amps sound good through all cab sizes, something I have had to learn the hard way. The amp's treble and bass controls proved versatile enough to match to plenty of gigs, rooms, and plenty of musical styles. The sweep within each tone control rolled beautifully and covered more ground than I expected them to. Going from zero to ten wasn't harsh or extreme, instead subtle and pronounced. This goes for the reverb circuit as well. I was able to get small bouncy verb tones, medium and large room verbs, and haunting good hall sounds. A real treat for amp of this size. Going into it's higher gain settings I discovered the M2-7R was able to hold it's own with much larger much more powerful amps. My Eminence Red Fang equipped 1x12 cab proved a great match for the Nace's wide range of sounds - but time did come to plug into my buddy's 2x12 Vintage 30 rosewood handbuilt cabinet. Never have I heard such a loud, chest punching guitar cab. The Nace matched up with this cab was like voodoo! I don't know if it's the wood, the build, or the speakers - but the combo of all these things stacked up with the M2-7R was quite epic! My 60's build Strat was able to get me a world of big'n'bright rock tones which brought me instantly into Hendrix heaven, and I mean proper authentic Hendrix tones, not wimpy wannabe sounds. On it's own the amp was able to kick out some pretty impressive rich distortion. And it seemed the louder and louder I pushed the amp, the more it would come to life. When I finally did put a clean booster in front of the amp everything came to life ten-fold. The booster help me to achieve these crisp and clean lead tones which accented the amp's natural tone and filled the air with mojo. This was also true of overdrive pedals in line with the amp's dirt. Everything from Tube Screamer type pedals to more aggressive dirt boxes did a wonderful job in bringing out more from this amp. Even when I pushed huge stompbox levels through the amp I didn't find it to sound flimsy or overpowered. At full blast the M2-7R was very usable and capable of further tone shaping. If you've played low watt amps and have ever cranked them you've noticed that one problem that many of them share is that they can't be manipulated or tamed once you got them full power. Things start to get muddy, too mid-rangy, and just overall too damn harsh. The M2-7R can more than hold it's own when cranked way on high, and beautifully take on the might of any dirt box. I was even able to push fuzz boxes through the amp and still get good string articulation and clarity. Getting the amp to clean up was as easy as rolling back my guitar's volume control - and all without loss of the amp's character. The really cool thing was that this amp was able to go from blackface type tones when setup clean, to plexi-ish sounds when cranked loud. Very cool stuff if you ask me. Gotta give it up to Art for that one, very very clever indeed my friend. In the end the M2-7R was able to pull from me inspiration and the drive to play. Which is more than anyone can ask for. If you're looking for an easy to use workhorse boutique quality amp - you must try one of these puppies. What more can I say?

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Art Nace also lends his talents to the world of Trillium Amps, which if you haven't seem I highly suggest you also check out. The M2-7R also comes in combo form (which is pictured here). Nace also produces their own matching cabs for those of you needing the whole package. For more info on these killer little amps go to www.naceamps.com Or click on the direct links on our sidebar. You can see one of these bad boys in action by typing Nace Amps in our Youtube search engine below. Stay tuned for more.

Have much fear - Tonebutcher is here

2011-02-14T23:24:00.000-08:00

Bronx Cheer

dynamic fuzz

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I must say it has been an honor to have come across such a cool and creative stompbox company. Each and every Tonebutcher pedal that I have had the chance to try has been nothing short of amazing! In each one of these boxes I have found the ultimate in excitement and madness. Besides the crazy cool sounds that this particular Tonebutcher pedal is capable of it also sports the super hip signature Tonebutcher look - A look which by the way reminds me of a tail light on an old Volvo that I once drove. The Bronx Cheer is certainly a dynamic fuzz to say the least, and an effect that will inspire and pull from you tons of wild child riffs. Plugging into this bad boy I found myself drenched in a world of super thick and syrupy fuzz tones. And probably the most impressive thing about the Bronx Cheer is it does what it does with only a couple of controls. On it's face there are only two controls - one controlling the pedal's effect output, and a switch that flips between wild and wilder fuzz sounds. For those of you synth-fuzz loving, extreme rock tone addicts, this pedal will be a dream. A big part of wha this pedal dishes out has to do with what pickups you play it with and how you pluck and pick your guitar's strings.

At first go I thought to myself "How, when, and where will I use this pedal?" The fuzz tones that were blaring from my amp had me overwhelmed and ready for new heights. I'll say this much, If you stompboxes adventures have only led you to the average everyday ol' fuzz box, you're in for quite a treat. Getting hooked on this pedal is as easy as plugging into a 100 watt monster and strumming away - something that will have you stuck for hours and hours. After cranking both the pedal and the amp I wanted to see what kind of range the Bronx Cheer had - so next came taming this beast. I began by setting the Super Lead clean and serene, and setting the pedal at it's mellowest level. This got me a tight and super focused fuzz tone that rumbled and filled the room with magic. My amp bled out a rhythm tone alien to anything I'd ever heard before. It was still chill enough to sit beautifully in a mix, yet aggressive enough to let cut through beautifully. The Les Paul's smooth sounding humbuckers ended up being a perfect candidate for the Bronx Cheer. Everything from fierce blues tones to slamming alt-rock guitar tones were ripe for the picking. Slowing I began rolling up the pedal's level while still in the mellower toggle switch setting. At mid levels the Bronx Cheer was entire different beast. Here it began dishing out subtle hints of frizzed out/synth-like undertones. The super thick'n'creamy fuzz tone was still there 100%, only now it was chased by a completely new animal. These tones were still very usable for blues licks and rock n'roll of all types. It especially sounded killer being played to dirtier rock flavors, such as garage, punk, and hard rock. Adding in some analog delay or reverb and I had a massive lead tone. Way up on the guitar's neck the pedal's tone stung with chilling wide open harmonics. Last, before going to the pedal heavier toggle switch setting I went ahead and blasted the level knob. Here the Super Lead sang and growled like a mythological ancient Greek beast. The only limits of what could be done were my imagination. Once I got an idea of the first setting's range, I flipped on over to the Bronx Cheer's wild side. I also swapped out the Les Paul for something with single coils - first P90's then a Strat with a set of spectacular handwound 60's spec pickups. My first impression was vintage Japanese fuzz meets classic Arbiter + robotic synth sputter. I don't know about you but I do love me a fuzz box that converts single note hits into huge sounding chords. Playing even the most elementary of single note guitar runs sounded like World War III. I could strike a single note and listen as it warped and transformed into a being of it's own. And still as wild and freaked out sounding as this setting was, it still had the original smooth and articulate fuzz sound that it had at low levels. Like the humbuckers the P90's created a sound all their own, being very punchy and in your face. This sound also ended up working quite nicely through low and med watt amps, and single speaker cabs. Containing and pushing the pedal's sound out through a smaller package seemed to bring out even more oddball harmonics and undertones. Again cranking the pedal and playing way up on the neck made for some interesting effects, and even cooler was dialing in some gritty amp tones then playing the Bronx Cheer through it. My chords all sounded twice as insane and exaggerated, lines and riffs became much more complex, and the simplest of licks sounded enormous. And as I began to delve deeper into the Bronx Cheer's mean side through different amp and guitars, I began to hear possibilities for other instruments, such as bass and keys, and even vocals. On hand I had myself an old Dano bass, a Rhodes keyboard, and a very hip electric mandolin. Each of these gadgets did something different when played through the Bronx Cheer, and all of them being down right awesome. This is something not possible with all fuzz pedal, especially with fuzz pedals that are a bit on the wilder side. Yes it's fine and dandy to own a crazy wild noise machine for experimentation and trickery. But this is only true if you can actually use those sounds. Many of the freakout fuzz machines that exist out there today are only that - noise machines. You get those pedals home and realize they can't be used for anything other than noise. The Tonebutcher Bronx Cheer is the alternative to many of these pedals. Once getting a hold of what this pedal is capable of it makes it almost impossible to walk away from, and mainly because of how usable it actually really is. I found dialing in the sounds I wanted was a cinch, getting completely original fuzz sounds was cake, and getting this pedal to go bananas was a walk in the park. I can only imagine what other strange and beautiful creation Tonebutcher has in store me next.

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You know where to go for more info on Tonebutcher.... but in case you don't the website is www.tonebutcher.com or click the direct link. You can also check out some video demos on our Youtube Search Engine at the bottom of our site, just type in Tonebutcher and the pedal you're seeking info on. We do have more to come very very soon so please hang tight you stompbox freaks.

Lay Down Your Soul

2011-02-07T18:49:00.000-08:00

Sometime in the middle of last year while surfing the web for new and exciting gear outfits, I came across this keen little pedal company by the name of Penfar FX. Instantly I was drawn in by the magnificent looking stompboxes that flooded the Penfar website. To top it off not only were the pedals all lookers, but they were all also reasonably priced. I was instantly hooked, and even more so curious beyond belief. After a little research I'd discover a handful of great write-ups and video demos - this would only fuel my interest even further of course. This led me to contact Penfar FX's builder and creator Chad Leavitt. Chad was more than happy to work with me in having AWC feature some of his creations. The outcome? Read on.

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Soul Taker

overdrive/distortion

Controls:

Invoke = Volume
Body = Presence
Agony = Tone
Pain = Gain

Specs:

22AWG Handwired
1/4" Neutrik Jacks
True Bypass Switching
16mm Alpha Potentiometers
2.1mm (-) DC Power Jack
Heavy-Duty Steel Knobs
Hand Built in the USA

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This was by far one of THE coolest finds I made last year. From it's build quality to it's guts, and versatility to it's stunning tone - the Soul Taker is there to impress. Across the board you will find controls for volume (Invoke), presence (Body), tone (Agony), and gain (Gain). Together these four knobs along with it's brilliant circuit, make the Soul Taker capable of a handful of killer overdrive and distorted tones. As an overdrive pedal the Soul Taker is an honest to goodness no-frills grit pushing machine. You can land anywhere from splatty crunchy overdrives - to grime soaked woman tones. Entering it's distortion capabilities the Soul Taker can do everything from smooth big'n'bold rhythm tones - to sustain heavy lead tones. And it does this through any guitar or pickup you stack it up against. I'm sure many of you have had dirt boxes that sound great through one guitar, then you go and switch that axe out for something different only to find it's all down hill from there. You won't have that issue here, read on.

I began my demo of this pedal through my semi-hollow Hagstrom Viking. I figured the humbuckers would be a perfect place to start for pushing the pedal through it's paces. Amp of choice was a AC15 based head, first hooked up through a 1x12 cab, then through a 2x12. I started by setting up the 15 watter as clean as possible with it's tone at noon and bright switch to the off position. The Soul Taker I started also with it's tone (Agony) and presence (Body) controls at noon, it's gain (Pain) up to about 15%, and the volume (Invoke) matched to get along with the amp's output. Once engaged the pedal kicked out a mellow gritty overdrive tone which worked beautifully for all types of rhythm guitar tones. Something that stood out about the Soul Takers tone, which was quite nice, was it's ability to cut through without sounding harsh or honky. With the treble pickup the pedal's tone had a very forgiving brightness to it which made each string sparkle with attitude. In the rhythm pickup things got smoother and warmer. Getting back to the amp's clean tone was a cinch - just a bit of tapering from the guitar's volume control and I was good to go. In both pickup positions the pedal let the amp and guitar's natural tone shine through beautifully. Something I always look out for when playing a dirt box for the first time is the change in my amp's tone. I begin by setting the pedal to a low grit amount, move up from there, and listen listen listen. If a pedal can't pass the test at low dirt settings forget about them doing your root tone justice at high gain settings. The Soul Taker didn't add any extreme coloration or dullness. Leaving my amp the push fourth it's rockin' good tone. Next I began playing with the pedal's medium overdrive/low distortion settings. From really low to mid gain settings the Soul Taker holds it's own dishing out sweet sounding overdrive tones. Once you hit past the medium gain settings and on into the high settings - the Soul Taker begins it's venture into it's distortion tones. Set just right you can get these splendid overdrive/distortion hybrid dirt tones. Depending on where you have the pedal's tone control set the Soul Taker is capable of everything from classic woman tones to sharp aggressive rock tones. I began playing with the guitar's tone and volume controls which ended up producing some pretty interesting sounds. Some pedals you take your guitar's tone control back even a little and it's all down hill from there. Same goes when you start playing with your volume knob. The Soul Takers circuit was definitely built to get along with on-the-fly adjustments and fine-tuning of your overall tone. Next I cranked the pedal's gain up to full blast and got to picking. Here the pedal turned into a completely different animal. Harmonically charged overtones and undertones swam and flew all about, making leads, licks, and rocking riffs sound like magic. A hint of analog delay and I had me one of the most epic lead tones I'd ever gotten from a dirt pedal. At about this point the pedal had proven more than worthy of doing my guitar's handwound humbuckers justice. Time came to break out my 60's Strat build and put it's single coil pups to the test. And just as beautifully as it worked with the buckers - it did so as well with the single coils. I was able to get the same amount of versatility, feel, and overall smooth tone. With the Strat's pickups it was a bit more harsh though - perfect for alt-rock, punk, and everything in between. At low gain gettings with the presence and tone just behind noon I was able to get these amazing blues tones which were quite a surprise and quite a treat. I was able to riff and dig into chords with perfect string articulation and a great amount of dynamics. Then setting the amp to a slight grit itself things got even more aggressive and wild. I was able to pull these stinging fuzz/overdrive hybrid tones which my little 15 watter really loved pushing out. The combo of the amp's dirty goodness and Soul Takers crunch created something more than worth listening to. It was time to plug into something with more juice - and so then came the Super Lead. I disengaged the Soul Taker, set the amp to a loud slight grit, and began working in the pedal's dirty tone. Here I found the pedal's volume pedal worked quite nicely for taking the amp's natural grit to the next level. At the lowest possible gain setting with the volume blaring and the tone matched to the amp's - I was able to create something very special. If you've ever heard those slamming good old school Soundgarden Badmotorfinger tones you can imagine what was coming from my amp. With an upgraded Les Paul Studio things would only get better. By the time I was done with my first run of this pedal I had myself a squadron of rock tones. Things like putting a clean booster in front of or behind the Soul Taker also sounded good. And this is only the beginning of the Penfar FX rock and roll adventure - besides this pedal I've also had a chance to try a couple more, and all of them just as good as this one. But more on that soon to come. I say do yourselves a favor and try some of these pedals for your setups, absolutely no way to go wrong.

Feb: Updates/News

2011-02-04T20:30:00.000-08:00

First and foremost I would like to once again apologize for the lack in write-ups and for our short 2010 Top Finds. If you read the post at the beginning of Dec you know that I ran into some trouble with an external hard drive going bad. Rewriting and catching up has proven a task much harder than I first expected it to be. I am happy to announce that with the help of some good friends, some late night writing missions, and patience - I was able to get things back on track. All of the remaining scheduled posts for our Top Finds of 2010 will still be featured throughout the next couple months amongst the regular reviews and articles. Keep your eyes peeled for some more AWC favorites and some amazing new finds. I would also like to take a moment to thank our regular supporters, welcome our new friends, and thank you our loyal readers. Analog War Cry is working on moving to a proper .com within the next couple months so please keep an eye out for that and keep on spreading the word. I have some more giveaways and contests coming soon which you guys will absolutely dig. Again, thank you so much for your patience everyone and for hanging in there with me.

Peace,
A.C.

Top Finds of 2010 / MXR Micro Flanger

2011-01-30T08:07:00.000-08:00

MXR has been doing it and doing it well for quite some time now. This is a company that has been steadily creating magic in a box for as long as I can remember, and a company that through hard work has become a favorite of players from every walk of life. Thinking back on my own pedal adventures I cannot think of one stage in my playing career where I have not had an MXR pedal as a part of my tonal arsenal. The MXR line has consisted of everything from timeless classics, no-frills champions, one of a kind originals, and let's also not forget the many MXR sleepers that have come to the surface to make our tonal dreams come true. Recently MXR chose to redesign a handful of their most sought after creations, breaking them down to their purest form, and releasing them onto the masses. Simple these pedals may be but nontheless quite useful within any situation. This little collection of pedals was one of the coolest of 2010, and below I will share with you my favorite of th bunch. This is a stompbox that once again shows us the beauty of the analog circuit and why less is most definitely more.

Micro Flanger

M152

All analog circuitry with bucket brigade technology
Two control knobs for simple operation
Faithful recreation of the classic 80's pedal

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This new M152 Micro Flanger is based around the sound of the super popular M117 Flanger. With the ability to knock out many of M177's tones and many of it's own, the M152 stands a beast in it's own right. Sporting an analog circuitry and designed with kickass bucket brigade technology, you can be sure you'll get the warmest and smoothest of tones. A true bypass footswitch has also been added to this design for the ultimate in tone preservation and clarity. Control layout is pretty simple - Rate knob for controling cycling speed, and Regen knob for dialing in overall intensity. I in fact have had lots of experience with the original 80's M177, and if there's one thing that has always impressed me about this pedal it is it's range. I was excited to discover the Micro Flanger rides side by side with it's classic cousin covering may of the same ground. How MXR was able to pack so much tone into such a small box I do not know, and do not care. All I know is that with all the gigantic stompboxes floating around out there it's nice to see something that saves pedalboard space while at the same time getting straight to the point.

With an effect like the flanger you always have to be very careful how you use it. Dial in too much of the flanger and your root tone will suffer, but then use too little and you won't get the effect's point across. The key is to tap into that magical little area where your root tone and the effect will get along their best. With the M152 Micro Flanger it wasn't all that tuff to find it's sweet spots, thanks to it's stunning sounding analog circuitry and simple yet versatile control layout. I found the M152 capable of producing spot-on vintage flange tones, as well as rich and aggressive modern sounds. I first paired the pedal up with a big'n'beefy 100 watt Super Lead and my single P90 Junior copy. I worked in a mellow slow and subtle flange effect from the M152 and dialed in a nice'n'gritty rhythm tone from the amp. I picked out a handful of pretty chords to accentuate the pedal's velvety sound. The pedal produced a glowing type of effect that added imagination to my guitar's tone. The flange effect blew in and out like a mellow breath, never taking over my amp's tone while letting it's voice be heard. The subtle effect worked great for adding size to my chords and for giving the overall tone some sweet character. At medium flange setting it was more of the same. Here I found some of the coolest sounds from this pedal. Some flanger pedals you can't even dial into their medium settings without having things sound too strong. Here is where I give MXR some major props. They designed a flanger and not some extreme strange cousin. Both at high and slow speeds the Micro Flanger creates absolute magic. The little bit of grit being produced from my amp married perfectly to the Micro Flanger's warm and focused sound. Here I kicked in a bit more gain which again accented the flange effect beautifully. For those of you high gain freaks wielding hot rodded super amps, this flanger will do wonders for you. It doesn't matter if you use P90's, humbuckers, Strat or Tele single coils, or any of the many other pickups out there - the Micro Flanger will do you proper. Plugging in my buddy's Les Paul got me some more really hot tones. The fatness and weight of the humbuckers drove the pedal to really knock out some killer sounding classic sounding flange. Rolling the amp up to lead tones and getting the Micro Flanger to create stinging flange tones was absolute Rock God heaven. The effect swam in and out through the room helping to create wild psychedelic visions. Chugging down on big power chords, digging into double stops, bending strings, and striking down on harmonics all sounding spectacular, if not epic! Really there isn't much more to say about this little gun metal grey demon. Go out grab one plug it in and see for yourself. A small footprint enclosure, two knobs, and a simple design is all it takes to make this one of the coolest pedals in the scene today. The M152 Micro Flanger is small, elegant, and packs a punch much larger than most pedals twice it's size. It is pedals like these that make MXR the company it is today. With the experience that these cats own and the group of builders/designers that back their play - MXR continues to sit way up high on the totem pole.

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For more info on the M152 and the rest of the MXR/Dunlop Manufacturing collection go to www.jimdunlop.com You can read up on a ton a cool info on many many of their products and check out some really cool vids. We will continue to bring you more from our friends at Dunlop so make sure to stay tuned. More to come very soon!

Top Finds of 2010 / Rock On Audio

2011-01-08T23:15:00.000-08:00

This my dear readers is a piece of gear I was especially excited to have discovered. The simplicity and capabilities that this gadget is able to provide is nothing short of genius! If ever you've played in a band, recorded music, or just jammed with friends - you know the hassle of getting everything dialed in and mixed just right. Playing live shows I have sat in just about every seat possible - from guitarist, bassist, and singer, to drummer, dj, and horn player - just to name a few. And in each role I have ever played in a band there is one issue that has always stood out above the rest - that being poor stage mixes. Unless you're playing a proper gig, have your own sound guy, or have an expensive in-ear monitor setup - chances are you'll end up with something not so pleasant. You know how the story goes; You start with a haywire collage of confusing noise, end up having to sacrifice one thing in order to benefit elsewhere, and then the war between what will sound decent starts to work it's nerve. For ages now I have been asking myself "Why and the hell doesn't someone come up with a simple fix for this problem?" With all of the technology out there one would think there would have been an answer to this long ago. Well earlier this year my dreams were answered, and to my surprise this creation wasn't expensive, complex, or hype driven (which was nice for a change). The responsible party for the Rock Box and man behind the Rock On Audio brand is a passion driven cat named Pete Lewis. If you guys have been hunting for a simple quick solution to your monitoring needs, please continue.

Rock Box Limiter/Rockon Cable

FEATURES:

(Rock Box)

Built-in Limiter: Designed to protect your precious ears
Large input Range: Accepts signals up to 7.5V peak to peak.
Line/Spk Switch: Engages a 30dB pad for different input signals
Dual Colored LED Indicator: Speaker = green / Line = blue
1/4" TRS Input: Accepts mono balanced TRS and un-balanced TS signals
1/4" TRS Parallel Output: In parallel with TRS Input for sharing mix
1/4" Headphone Ouput: Use with Rockon Cable or headphones/in-ears
Volume Control: Specially designed output limiting for IEM's
Small Build: For setting up with any pedalboard or setup
9V DC Power: Provided 9V AC adapter (+). Polarity can be changed.

(Rockon Cable)

Performer End: 1/4" plug for your instruments signal. Continuing down this end of the cable about a foot or so down is your In-line 1/8" headphone jack for your monitor mix.
Rock Box End: TRS 1/4" plug plug into Headphone Out on Rock Box. Splitting away from the TRS 1/4" plug is a In-line Female 1/4" jack which send your instrument cable to amp/tuner/pedalbaord/etc...

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It all seems pretty darn simple now doesn't it? Well that's because it is. This product helps you experience the magic of crisp clear sound, freeing you of that muffled unpleasant stage noise, all in a simple easy to use setup. Wireless systems up until now (at least the decent ones) are expensive and usually only found in professional setups. A good quality in-ear setup makes for a spectacular tool when playing huge stages, clubs, arenas, and outdoor venues. But what about the rest of us who aren't quite at the jumbo venues yet, we could use some help too. In fact, it is on smaller stages where sound is usually at it's worst, where monitors are at their cheapest, and where one can take all the help he can get. The Rock Box Limiter and Rockon Cable are the answer to all of our dreams.

Putting this little gem through it's paces I must admit was quite a blast. Do not let the size of this gadget fool you, it is capable of fitting into more applications than one might think. I was able to use it with many different in-ears and headphones, and in a bunch of different live and studio applications. The first task I assigned the Rock Box to aid me in was as a simple headphone amp. Here I paired the Rock Box up with a high performance set of Monster® Jamz™ in-ear headphones. I plugged my guitar into my pedalboard, then out into the Rock Box's input, and in-ears straight into the Rock Box's headphone input with a mini to quarter inch adapter. My first impression of this little box was how quiet it was and how crisp and defined the signal was. My Hagstrom's humbuckers came through beautifully with lots of beefy lows and mids, and rich'n'creamy highs. Another impressive thing about this piece of gear was how much output it had on tap, plenty for any stage or band practice. To get a little ambience into the in-ears I turned to my reverb pedal, dialing in just enough to let things breath. Here I also began to experiment with my dirt boxes (overdrive-distortion-fuzz-etc..). Surprisingly enough they all sounded pretty damn good. Usually pushing any stompbox directly into any piece of gear sounds flat and lifeless, but this was not the case here. As a late night practicing tool or for those of you who'd like to give your roomates/parents/girlfriend a break from the noise - this baby works like a charm.

Next came using the Rock Box in jams, practices, and live gigs. First I brought it along to band practice, and here is where I found this baby very very useful. If there's one thing I cannot stand when in a jam or band practice it's weak vocals and loud drums. As a guitar player it is important for us to hear the singer. It helps us with the vibe and feel of a tune, helps shape the dynamics in our playing, and just plain ol' keeps us in the moment. In a matter of seconds I was able to run the PA's signal into the Rock Box and hear exactly what was coming through it. With the Rock Box's volume control I was able to maintain and tame my mix, and with my set of kickass JH Audio JH 16 Pro's plugged into box I had myself some super quality overall sound. I was able to hear the lead and back-up vocals like never before!!! Super rich and full, with plenty of sparkle and clarity, and with a superb frequency range. Getting the rest of the instruments into my in-ear mix was a cinch. To get both guitars into the mix we setup a couple of SM57's in front of our amps, with the bass we ran it into a DI and split it's signal to the mixer and into the amp. The quality in the JH Audio's really let the bass hit hard and smooth. Then last for were the drums. Believe it or not, the existing mics in the room and bang in the drummer hit created plenty of drums to be heard. Later I also experimented with room mics, a stereo mic on the kit, and micing kick and snare. All of it worked like a dream! Band practice had never sounded so damn good. Which leads us to the stage. Again the Rock Box quickly and beautifully came through like a champion. Here it was even easier to dial in and get my in-ear mix - in fact I didn't have to do much. Here I shared my stage monitors/wedges mix with the Rock Box. To do this I just ran the stage monitors out into the Rock Box's in and whallah! Just like you would when you play a gig and ask the sound guys for more drums, more vocals, less of this, less of that - I was able to do this in my ears. On the quality was stunningly better. What was really impressive was how quickly it all went down. With the accompanying Rockon Cable the task is child's play. The Rockon Cable's design I must say is genius! I gotta take the time here to give Pete some major props. The cable just like a standard cable plugs into your guitar, but then about a foot or so down sits a 1/8" (mini) input jack for your in-ears/headphones/etc... The bottom of the Rockon Cable spilts into a 1/4" plug which goes into the Rock Box's headphone jack, and a 1/4" output for running a standard cable into it and then to your amp, pedals, or pedalboard. I found this little piece of gear works great with every gig I brought it along to and every jam I sat in on. With the Rock Box's Line/Speaker switch you can control and tame any signal. The built in limiter will also make sure your ears are always protected and in the safe zone. All in all this is hands down one of the most ingenious, coolest, and most useful pieces of gear you will ever own in your arsenal. The Rock Box Limiter makes it possible for anyone to own a great sounding IEM setup. And for it's price you really can't beat this little gem.

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For more info on Rock On Audio and the Rock Box Limiter go to www.rockonaudio.com Also make sure to check out the many cool vids showing the Rock Box in action. Scroll to the bottom of our site and search Rock On Audio in our Youtube search engine. We will keepyou up to date in any happenings with this very hip little company and bring you more info as it comes. Stay tuned and keep rockin!

Quick Update

2011-01-05T10:35:00.000-08:00

Hey guys,

I just wanted to apologize for the lack in posts recently. I had some issues with my laptop and an external hard drive that was corrupted. I lost a bunch files which consisted of many of my review layouts. I have been rewriting and trying to get back on track as quickly as possible. I will be dedicating this entire month to our Top Finds of 2010 and will continue with our regular posts, artist features, podcast demos, etc... in Feb. I want to thank our contributors for being patient and for the awesome gear they've helped out with. Stay tuned for some more super cool gadgets! Please keep emailing with any suggestions, any new gear companies, and any other news you may want to alert me of.

Peace,
Alfie

Top Finds of 2010 / Jam Pedals Tube Dreamer 72

2010-12-27T20:06:00.000-08:00

One pedal all us players can agree is a must on our pedaboards is the OD. As simple as these pedals are they can be used to achieve an enormous palette of tones, for just about any style of music. Overdrivers get along with anything from the cleanest of signals to the dirtiest and muddiest. Since the beginning of the stompbox revolution players have been hunting down, experimenting with, and hoarding many different breeds of overdrive boxes - All in the name of taking their sounds to the next level. It is the OD that is responsible for many of the signature tones of yesterday and today, and the favorite of many'a stompbox builder. Google overdrive and you will be sure to come across an endless sea of boutique, mainstream, and one-off creations. But of all these creations there is one circuit that is copied and tweaked far more than the rest.... the mighty TS808. If you've ever had a chance to run a proper old school Tube Screamer through it's paces you know just how and why these pedals are so special. Only problem with many of the modern designs is they come off more as distortion boxes than actual overdrives. A proper TS style pedal is subtle and pushes out a signal that works with your tone instead of against it (which is where many builders miss). Well, here is a company that hasn't steered me wrong yet, and with this here design has been able to take the mighty 808 to rockin' new levels. I promise you one thing - you won't have to worry or be confused about what is or isn't an overdrive here.

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Tube Dreamer 72

Vintage Overdrive

* Controls: Level, Tone, Gain

* High quality components

* True Bypass Switching

* Power: 9V battery or standard 9VDC adapter

* Uses only 6mA of power when On

* Custom artwork available

* Point-to-Point version available

* Bass version available

* Lifetime warranty

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The Jam Pedals Tube Dreamer 72 is a spot-on true to heart classic sounding overdrive pedal with some characteristics of it's own - and a look to die for. This baby was designed specifically for achieving that cranked tube amp tone at both high and low volumes. You won't have to worry about this pedal taking your tone hostage or coloring anything you stack it up on top of (thanks to a special secret chip). These pedals are hand built in Greece with the finest parts and components, and added upon each one is a bit of artistic flavor. The Tube Dreamer 72 sports true bypass switching for the ultimate in tone preservation, and like all Jam's pedals carries a lifetime warranty. A LIFETIME WARRENTY!!! But it's gets better? There isn't only one version of this pedal available, no siry Bob. Besides the 72 version which we will be looking at here, Jam also offers a 58 version based around the famous JRC4558 chip, an 88 which stacks the other two version together and adds a high gain switch, and last there is a + (plus) version which is a heavier version of the 72. Each one of these pedals can be built point-to-point and come with an array of different custom art works. And so the bass playing cats don't jealous - there are also bass versions of the Tube Dreamer ready at the helm. Pretty nice huh? Now for some tones.

Running the Tube Dreamer 72 through all of my amps was indeed an absolute dream. This was also true of my guitars, through every type of pickup, and with many other pedals. It sounded best with my tube amps of course but I was surprised to hear how well it sounded with a few solid states as well. When you got a pedal of this caliber in your signal path things are just bound to come out sounding awesome no matter what you plug it into. I began using the TD72 through a few different low watt amps, from 5-22 watters. I started with some super mellow pedal settings to see what kind of use I could get as a booster. With it's level at unity, it's gain at about 5-7%, and it's tone at noon - the TD72 let the amp's characteristics shine through beautifully. My root tone's nice'n'warm signal was converted into a more powerful version of itself, which let me dial in many more tones on the fly. I noticed that by turning up the TD72's level I could get plenty of punch and grit from tubes. Then with the pedal's gain rolled up even further things would only get sweeter and much much smoother. Something else you'll find quite nice about this pedal is it's tone control. With most overdrive pedals you get decent gain controls and even plenty output on some occasions - but when it comes to their tone controls they come off a bit too weak and unresponsive. What ends up happening is the builder either has to choose one sweet spot amongst the sweep spectrum. With the TD72 I was able to both maintain my amp's key tones and also help them into new grounds. Cranking the tone low I was able to hear a huge difference in the amp's tone, a difference that was usable and created a sweet and warm overall feel. The TD72 was able to kick out lots of sweet spots within every one of it's controls, giving all my amps new territory to walk upon. Another amp that worked quite well was a Fender 22 watt Deluxe Reverb. Completely dry with no verb and it's tone controls at noon, the Deluxe Verb was able to dish out some of the smoothest and meanest dirt sounds when combined with the Tube Dreamer. Being such a simple amp, all you really need to do is roll everything to noon and you're home free. Highlighting the Deluxe Reverb's capabilities was really something that brought upon some impress classic rock and blues guitar tones. An overall great match. From here I began exploring with higher gain amplifiers - first with some clean character amps, then with the big crunchy bad boys. My modified 4x10 Hot Rod Deville was a great place to start. Having a ton of clean headroom to play with really came in handy for dialing tons of different dirt tones at all levels. I was able to go from an inkling of grit to the smoothest grittiest growls. Alone it is damn near impossible to get an overdriven tone from my Deville - thanks to it's four 100 watt 10" speakers (I did do this on purpose though). With the pedal in the mix I had any dirty tone I wanted. I noticed that the louder I'd get, the more my picking attack was accented. This brought upon some very tasty sounds, harmonics, and wildness. As I'd push the 72's gain control higher, the grit would become dirtier yet the output would stay the same. And it sounded great at low volumes! With the gain at around 15% the pedal began tossing out these really nice mildly crunchy blues tones that brought my amp to life and had it singing like a little devil. Then there was converting the Deville into a true machine of dirt of growl - a very easy task when setting this pedal just right. Last came a Super Lead, one of my favorite amps of all time. Here the TD72 once again did things that sounding awesome. Taking the Suepr Lead's tone and accenting it, really brought to the amp to life in ways I thought were not possible. I found myself able to dial the pedal in in many different settings, leave it be, to have access to tons of tones on the fly. Working my guitar's tone and volume controls came in handy here, which made for some great tone shaping on stage. Semi-clean tones I was able to take to rich'n'thick overdrives, leaving me with a wider collection of overall dirt tones. At higher gain levels the TD72 was able to convert the Super Lead into an absolute beast! The sustain that came to be was very nice to play with and gave me new textures to play with. By the end of my demo with this pedal I had plugged in a handful of different single coil guitars, semi-hollow and solid humbucker guitars, and an array of others. Same went for amplifiers, from the lowest gain to the meanest. The TD72 got along beautifully with every piece of gear I through at it and gave back a killer results. We've had a chance to put a handful of Jam Pedals through their paces and are yet to be disappointed, and doubt we ever will. If you suffer from the same tone seeking sickness that I suffer from go out and grab yourself one of these Tube Dreamer versions, you're amps and guitars will thank you for it.

If you need more info on these hand made Greek masterpieces go to www.jampedals.com or go to our direct links. We will continue bringing you guys more and more of these magical pedals as they come and keep giving you the best possible insight. Stay tunes for more from Jam Pedals. Pictured above is another version of the Tube Dreamer, the TD88. Just another of the cool and crazy creations from our friends at Jam Pedals.

Top Finds of 2010 / Ampeg SVX

2010-12-20T21:54:00.000-08:00

Just think - A few years ago the only way to get a proper sounding vintage tone was to own some vintage gear of your own, borrow some, or build the gear yourself. But this is all a thing of the past thanks to today's wonderful world of plug-in software. Now anyone can own an impressive collection of both vintage and modern gear, all stored and ripe for the picking straight from your computer. Let's say maybe you want a classic Tweed or Blackface tone, or maybe you're after some of rock history's favorite stompbox effects. No problem! All you gotta know is the right place to turn and you're in there with the best of yesterday's tones.
And it doesn't end with amps and stompboxes either. Today you can find software

capable of mimicking anything from signal processors to microphones, and guitar cabs to micing techniques. And the list goes on. One of the champions on the forefront of this magnificent technology is non-other than the mighty IK Multimedia - creators of the popular AmpliTube programs. Today you will find it's damn near impossible to come across a studio and not find one of IK's powerful programs lurking in the cut. The reason for this is simple. Spot-on feel and spot-on sound. For those of you familiar with any of the IK Multimedia guitar orientated software, you know of what I speak. And for those of you multi-

instrumentalist/bass playing monsters, IK has also got some mojo for you. It's called Ampeg® SVX, and it is a must have for anyone looking for a professional proper Ampeg® bass sound. I have now been exploring and experimenting with the Ampeg® SVX software for a good 2-3 months and I will say I am quite impressed. The versatility, simplicity, and professional sound of the SVX software is perfect for every level of player and producer.

FEATURES

4 Separate Modules: tuner, pedalboard, amp head, cabinet/mic
8 Stompbox Effects
4 Signature Ampeg® Bass Amps Modeled
6 signature Ampeg® Cabinet Models
6 Microphone Models
High Precision Tuner
Stand Alone and VST/AU/RTAS Plug-In for all Popular DAW's
Includes SpeedTrainer™ for Playing Along with your Favorite Recordings
Includes AmpliTube X-GEAR for seamless integration with all the other “Powered by AmpliTube” products, MIDI control and StompIO integration
Powered by AmpliTube® with Exclusive DSM™ (Dynamic Saturation Modeling) Technology for Award-Winning Sound and Realistic Feel
Mac OS X (including Leopard) and XP/Vista Compatible

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Now, my partner and I may not have the biggest and most luxurious of recording setups. But where it lacks in size is it sure as hell packs in punch. And it is thanks to software programs like Ampeg® SVX that our sonic capabilities are as powerful as they are. I began meddling with the SVX software simply to just dial in and hunt for usable tones, just like I would with any bass amp. But unlike an amp I needed not worry about a beastly 300 watts of sound. Something both my ears and neighbors are very thankful for. For bass guitars I used a 70's reissue Jazz Bass and old Danelectro. I started by plugging the JB straight into my trusty Whirlwind IMP DI, then out into the mic pre, and on into DAW. I began with the SVT Classic head and matching cab, and Dynamic 20 mic (based on the Electro-Voice® RE-20). I dialed the amp's controls straight up the middle, with Ultra Hi/Lo switches out, and left the mic placement as it was. I let my fingers slide up and down the Jazz bass's fretboard, tapping on it lightly, and thumping with my thumb from string to string. I did this to see if I could get the software to respond just like an amp would. Right off the bat I was able to hear, and more importantly feel, all of the little accents and intricate frequencies that make a great sounding bass amp great. Next I pulled up a session and laid down a scratch bass track. Once I had the track down I went back and listened, and with little effort I was able to set the Classic SVT model just where I wanted it. Without leaving my seat I was able to experiment with a handful of different mic positions which all really sounded amazing. I'll tell you this much - with a tool like this finding tones has never been easier. In no time at all I had a rich, warm, and punchy bass tone that responded great to both my fingers and guitar pick. Later once I had my final take down, I had no trouble fine tuning the bass track with just a hint of eq and compression. In less time than one would imagine I had myself a killer classic rock bass tone which complimented anything I stacked it up with. All in all the SVT Classic model was able to deliver soft thumpy country tones, deep'n'punchy funk tones, and a world of different rich and aggressive rock tones. All which I was able to store away for future recording or live use. Along with the SVT Classic's Hi/Lo switches and the array of stompboxes that can be thrown into the mix - The possibilities are endless.

Now, I won't get into every amp model that the Ampeg SVX has to offer, but I will throw down some props on another of my favorite's... The B-15R model (based around the classic Ampeg Portaflex amps). Talk about the perfect marriage between smooth and aggressive. I have been very lucky to have had access to these amazing amps in many of the recording sessions I have taken part of throughout the years. And of all the amps I have played the old school Portaflex's are amongst some of the best. Here I also used the Jazz bass to get some stellar tones, but the real treat was plugging in the Dano bass, which gave me some extremely cool and original bass sounds. To find the tone I wanted I went through the same process as before - throwing down a scratch track then fin tuning it. This time I found the Condenser 414 (AKG® C-414) mic worked quite nicely with this setup. I also threw in some of the software's stompboxes, as well as testing the program with some of my own. To dirty up the signal just a hint I found the Scrambler Overdrive worked beautifully. Here I must compliment on how simple and user friendly the interface of the software is. Everything is self explanatory which makes the entire program move really smoothly. Dialing in the SCP OD felt and responded just like an actual pedal, giving me the rush and satisfaction of having a new pedal! Playing through the software's pedals and using it's amps, mics, and cabs - I thought would deliver an overly processed sound (as it has been my experience with other software), but this was not the case. Running the Dano through the B-15R model gave plenty of super smooth lows and mids, tight focused highs, and a great level of response. With the software's SCP OD pedal in the mix, the tone jumped and thumped like a tornado. I only wished I could click it in & out like you would an actual effects pedal, which is where IK's StompIO and Stealth Pedal come into play. Another couple pedals from this software that I really dug were the Envelope Filter and SCP Octaver. Both of these pedals had lots of warmth, and versatility, which gave them that sweet sweet analog feel. Again, it would be if they were stompable. Next I went back to the B-15R's root tone and pulled out a few of my own pedals. Now. if ever you've had experience in running stompboxes through software, you know it can be quite tricky. Not all programs I have tried work well with effects pedals of other hardware But again this was not an issue here. Because of the Ampeg SVX's tone and feel, it took to everything I pushed through it and blended with it beautifully. Driving the amp model with one of my own overdrivers got me dead accurate overdriven bass tones which also helped in expanding the amp models overall tones. By this point it was pretty damn clear that this program wasn't going to disappoint. And it hasn't yet. When I ran the software's heads with no effects of any kind, I found they didn't mask the character of my bass guitars. Alone all of the amp models produced neutral and honest tones which made recording, practicing, and writing all great experiences. I have played both originals and reissues of the amps and pedals modeled in this program, and can safely say I know them inside out. . Nothing compares to these magical pieces of gear, and having this software on deck recreates many of those tones dead-on accurate.

Listening back to the bass tracks I recorded didn't come across jagged or overpowering. I was able to hear all of my dynamics and accents like I would any killer amp. Some modeling and plug-in software can stick out like a sore thumb, causing you to work harder to correct it. The Ampeg SVX software does not introduce this problem in any of the applications I tried it with. IK Multimedia truly chose a fantastic collection of amps, microphones, and cabs to create a program that delivers an ocean of bass lovely tones. Having access to the tones available form this software can give a writing session a glimpse of what's to come - a demo recording the sound to inspire - and a live gig a taste of a studio's magic. Setups from the smallest home project studios to professional record producing giants, will find this a great source of magical sounding user friendly software. The Ampeg SVX program worked and sounded beautifully through all the hardware I ran it through, it worked great with other instruments such as keyboards and baritone guitars, and it did it all with a tasty organic feel. With an instrument like the bass guitar a thing like feel is everything. It is the backbone and weight that carries a tune, and is the instrument that gets the crowd moving. Last I will say - This was only a scratching of the surface of what is possible with this software. Get in and dig for yourself.

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For more info on IK Multimedia go to www.ikmultimedia.com For more info on Ampeg SVX click here. You can also go down to our Youtube search engine at the bottom of our site and search for IK Multimedia demo videos and tutorials. Make sure to stay tuned for more Analog War Cry features on IK Multimedia to come in the very near future. See ya soon!!

Top Finds of 2010 / Apache Amps

2010-12-19T18:50:00.000-08:00

Apache Amps

Amps,Mods,n'More

If there is one town fit for the musician it is Los Angeles, Ca. Living here in LA has always provided me with every piece of gear I have ever wished for - whether it be a guitar, amplifier, set up pups, or rare stompbox. But there is another resource that Los Angeles carries, one that if you ask me is worth more than gold. And this is?.... It's wide band of highly talented amp gurus. This last year I had a chance to meet one such cat, and this has been one of the-if not the most gifted builders I have ever met. This brother has not only introduced me to some new and exciting tone tools, but has also shown me to further appreciate the true meaning of passion for tone. His name is Tommy Aguilar, a laid back mellow individual with a keen insight on amp building and hot-rodding. Tommy and I's path crossed at one of my favorite local guitar shops (Time Warp Music) while doing a regular visit a few months back. What started as a just another gear chat with a fellow tone purist, ended in one hell of a treat. Within Time Warp's collection of impressive gear I would discover a handful of Tommy's hand built creations. Amongst these builds was a 50 watt JMP replica, a couple of hod-rodded amps and pedals, a killer sounding original Apache Amp and matching cab, and last - a curious little black box with a trio of vintage tubes sticking out from it. That little black box would end up being one of the most intelligently designed tone tools I would ever know. Ladies and gents, I'd like to introduce to you the...

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RectiDrive

preamp/clean boost/overdrive/fuzz

Features/Controls

Power Transformer
6X4 Rectifier tube
Compatible Preamp Tubes: 12AX7, 12AY7, 5751, 12AT7, etc...
Built-in Power Supply
Available Mods: Push/Pull Bright and Boost
Hand Built in the USA
Front Panel: Tone/Volume
Side Panel: Volume

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Imagine being able to hot-rod your amp while at the same time having the option to leave it bone stock, as is, untouched, and untampered. When on a mission to upgrade or mod our amps, what is it we're trying to achieve? To put it simply the answer is - better tone. The hot-rodding of guitar amps is a ritual that has been regularly practiced since the birth of the tube amp, and one that continuously improves as time goes on. Sometimes the amps we choose to upgrade are budget builds, some simple boutique builds, and others DIY kits. But then there's those few that choose to modify their precious vintage pieces. And if there's on sure way to screw up the value of a vintage amplifier it is by opening it up to tinker away at it. So what is the alternative to this? Well, until now there really hasn't been many options. The Rectidrive puts this issue to r-e-s-t.

Now, there are a handful of different applications this gadget can be used in, and believe me I tried them all. You can simply run it straight into your amp, through your amp's power amp in/preamp out or effects loop, use it in conjunction with your effects pedals, with a power amp (example: Marshall EL34 100/100), and so on and so fourth. I won't get too scientific on how this little baby works but here is pretty much the gist of it. Unlike many "tube" driven gadgets you will find out there today the Rectidrive is actually capable of kicking out real tube voltages, meaning real tube tone. Two adjustable gain stages slam the front end of whatever you choose to run it through, resulting in thick rich tones and tube soaked sustain. Each volume controls it's own tube's results, with the first tube sending it's signal slamming into the second tube. Depending on how it's set the Rectidrive can deliver anything from clean boosts, semi-grit, and overdriven rock tones, to high gain distortion, scorching leads, and even fuzz signal territories. The end result on your tone's character lies on your choice of amp, which means all that hard work at perfecting your tone stays perfectly intact. This means a California amp will kick out more of it's rich good sound, a British amp more of that throaty growl, a Liverpool amp a jump in jangle and chime, and so on and so fourth. I began my adventure with this little gem with a DeVille and duel humbucker semi-hollow body. Before switching on the Rctidrive I dialed in my root tone and overall output level. Once my amp was thumping out plenty of rich tube goodness I began working in the Rectidrive. So as to use it as an overdrive channel and having the ability to switching it on and off, I went ahead and plugged the Rectidrive into a footswitch. As a clean booster this baby worked wonders! I was able to boost all of my amps tonal characteristics without any coloration or change in feel. The Deville's big sparkling clean tone became even bigger and much more focused. Warming up or brightening my root tone was also a cinch thanks to the Rectidrive's tone control. This would later come in handy when throwing in different types of effects pedals. Slowly I began adding in a little gain for dirtying up my signal. I started with some light bluesy rock tones and classic rock grit. At even the lightest overdrive settings the Rectidrive kicked out an impressionable amount of harmonics. This added great results to my picking attack, bends, and double stops. I could hear and even more importantly feel the amp's tonal character hitting me straight in my soul. Cleaning up the signal was also a cinch with a roll back of the guitar's volume knob, this making for a wide variety of tones on the fly. Another setup that worked quite nicely was my Les Paul and AC15 clone, which was one of my favorite amps to play this unit with. Playing the Rectidrive through a sparkling clean tone was really something special, but through a decent amount of tube grit things only got better. Setting the 15 watter to a light crunch and setting the Rectidrive to take it into lead tones got me just about every tone I needed. On it's own I was able to take the amp from it's light grit to velvety cleans. Adding in the unit widened my tonal palette by ten fold. At the tips of my fingers I held the ability to go from cleans to grit, and crunch to all-out sustain. And again, no matter how much or how little gain I pushed through my amp, it's tonal character stayed intact and held it's own. Beyond these two amps I also dove into a 100 watt Super Lead and Fender Eighty Five solid state amp. I was able to improve on the Marshall's tone (which I thought not possible) and able to go places I'd never heard before. For this giant of an amp I broke out my 70's Strat build. Pushed through both high gain amp settings or dialed in into high gain settings itself, the Rectidrive was able to hit these really cool fuzz-like arenas that were a sound all their own. The single soil pickups in the guitar created an entirely different vibe to how the Rectidrive's dirtiness responded. Through each and every pickup position I was able to pull out something tasty and totally different. Within these many tones was the control and tightness of a great sounding overdrive, only with a howling top-end and slicing midrange punch that beat the silence silly with attitude. Adding in a clean booster to this combo created even more possibilities - which I will leave to your imagination. Finally was the Fender solid state amp, where things got unbelievably better. The sharp clean tone that I usually dial in Eighty Five amp became a proper wall of tube saturated dirt'n'grime. Something I have achieved from this amp before but not without such ease. Once I had my fill of running this baby through a decent collection of amps came time to toss in some guitar pedals. Being a pedal hound myself and having many of you pedal players as well, I wanted to see just how well this unit got along with stompboxes. With dirt pedals of all kinds the Rectidrive worked perfectly, adding in a boost in harmonics and overtones that brought my pedal to life and gave them new voices. Like with my choice of amp - the choice of pedal also made a difference on my tone's end result. With modulation pedals I was to add a super tube richness which warmed everything up to a vintage-like flavor. This was especially true through chorus, vibe, and delay pedals of all types. But my absolute most favorite use for this little monster, the one that delivered the quickest golden results.... was the pairing of a loaned Marshall EL34 50/50 preamp. The amount of control that I had over my tone was stunning! There was a simple straight no-frills attitude to my sound that charged out from my speakers with pure grade A tube tone. My buddy who owns the EL34 50/50 power amp was really taken by the sound we were getting from his unit and the little black Apache Amps box. With it's one tone control and two gain stages the Rectidrive did what many other much more complex units are capable of, and then some. I tell you, there are many gadgets out there today capable of some great sounding guitar tones. And if you look deep into these products you'll learn it is tube grit and saturation that they are emulating. This is what players are after when modifying and upgrading their amps and rigs. This little box takes you straight to the source with no side tracking and extra components for dulling your sound. After about a week or so of experimenting with Tommy's genius design I discovered there was absolutely no wrong way to use this thing. It didn't matter whether it was amp, pedal, or power amp, and whether those amps were tube or solid state - the Rectidrive did it's magic and did it without breaking a sweat. For those seeking pure tube harmonics and sustain, and super charged overtones and undertones - this is it.

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For more info on Apache Amps and the Rectidrive unit itself you can emial Tommy at profeti2001@yahoo.com or contact him here through my site. Tommy is also a genius at hot-rodding amps, building his own designs, and pretty much building you anything you want. You may not find a website leading you to this brother, but that don't mean jack! Stay tuned, I will try and bring you more from Tommy's Apache Amps in the near future.

Top Finds of 2010 / Voltage Guitar Pickups

2010-12-15T23:49:00.000-08:00

As a gear fanatic and tone hound these are the things I love most - Upgrades and mods, a new piece of gear, and a proper gig or session. But there is something else which brings even more joy, something that stands out way above the rest. I call this "the mother of all rushes"... and that is - The discovery of a completely new and original product. In our history of gadgets, gizmos, and whatchamacalits, there are non more exciting than the coming of a new creation. Whether it be cosmetical, electrical, or for user friendliness. For those of you who have never heard of Voltage Guitar Pickups I implore you to please pay attention and make sure to visit their website once you've run through our post. I was blessed with a set of Voltage Chaos pickups earlier this year and the only thing I can say is... things will never be the same.

Voltage Chaos Pickups

(Strat Model)

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Take a close look at these pickups. At first look they may seem like just another everyday normal run of the mill Strat set. But then you look closer and notice there is something you have never seen on a set of Strat pups. Builder and designer Ben Sheppard calls this his "Voltage" single coil design. Now, this cool mesh grill design may look cool (beyond cool if you ask me), but there is a purpose behind this hip look. Ben designed these pickups to provide the player with healthy jumped in both power and sustain. This gives the already slick and unmistakable "Strat" sound an even cooler and much more versatile tone. The Chaos pups are wound from 5.8k to 6.2k and built with the finest parts and components. Each pickup is also calibrated for use in it's proper position for the ultimate in tone shaping and pickup blending. I've had a chance to rock these pickups now for a good period of time, and I will say they are like nothing I have ever played through a Strat. I have gigged, recorded, practiced, written, and compared these pickups to many others. One thing is for sure... these baby's are an animal all their own. This was a product that at first glance had me impressed as well as curious beyond belief. And even cooler was how great these pickups looked once they were wired into my guitar. Many times a company or builder will use looks solely to sell his/her product, and many times this technique works. This is not one of those incidences, nor is this design a gimmick of any kind.

For my testing of these pickups I would plug into a handful of different amps, A/B them with a Strat sporting traditional pups, and would run them through a handful of different stompboxes. I began the adventure with a 22 watt 65' Deluxe Reverb reissue (on loan froma good buddy) plugged into the normal channel, with a coily Bullet Cable and nothing else in the signal chain. The normal channel's Vol/Bass/Treble I set straight up the middle, this giving me a big'n'punchy blackface tone that sounded like absolute heaven. I began with the neck pickup, strumming away and a handful of different licks and chords. Right away the Chaos pickups chimed away with beautiful brute force and originality. It wasn't so much that they sounded extremely different or alien of a vintage Strat pickup. All of the snappy cutting power of a standard Strat pickup was there, only with more focus and clarity. The highs that these pickups let loose had a bell-like top end that shimmered and shined like diamonds. The bass was very present but not overpowering, with a smooth curve and tight corners. Then there was the midrange that these pickups produced (my favorite), a sound that slammed right in-between everything else and gave the amp a well balanced overall tone. The fact that these pickups gave more of everything made them very very versatile and also gave them a wider dynamics range. To warm them up I only needed to roll back on the guitar's tone control, and rolling back on the volume they would hold their own. Some pickups you start playing around with the guitar's volume control and you listen as your tone goes to all hell. Same goes for the guitar's tone knob. These pickups responded beautifully to this little trick, making them a prime choice for those of you who dial in & out on the fly. I also noticed how sensitive they were to my pick attack. This would later provide me with some tasty tasty sustain when matching them up with an overdriven amp and dirt pedals. Next I ran through a bunch of different chords, from the simplest to the most complex. Through every type of chord I played I was able to get stunning good balance. The pickups created great string articulation and clarity, had plenty of bite, and were easily tamable. Even the lightest of my touches I was able to enhance what the amp would dish out. I then pushed the Deluxe Reverb into a natural tube driven grit, and here is where these pickups did most of their magic. What had been projected through my clean tones was now flowing even stronger through a wave of gritty goodness. It seemed like the lows, highs, and mids became even stronger once I added in a little grime. Touching down softly on the strings produced light semi-dirty tones that bloomed in & out. The harder I dug in - the more the Chaos pickups gave me. Through very loud amp tones I was able to control and mold amp feedback as if pushing a paint brush. And still I took them further. It was time for me to break out something a little stronger, something with more wattage and output. My next choice would be a Super Lead slammed into a huge sounding rock tone. I wanted to see just how much these pups could do. To get an idea of the differences between the Voltage Pickups and a traditional vintage set of single coil pickups, I first played through my 60's Strat build. I ran through some blues licks, rhythm power chords, leads, and bends and double stops. Comparing the standard set of pickups to the Chaos set I easily heard the difference. It wasn't a matter of better or worse, nor did one set out weigh the other in any way. With the Chaos pickups everything was brighter, thicker, and meatier. Instead of softer, warmer, and spankier like you would get from a vintage set. The rockin good tone form the Super Lead made for great classic rock, hard rock, punk rock, blues rock, and every other type of rock I played. Switching from one pickup position to another was something quite special. Every pickup position kicked out a character of it's own, leaving me with an arsenal of golden tones to choose from. Here I broke out the pedals. First I plugged into some dirt boxes, then modulation, then wahs and the like. Through clean boosters the pickups were enhanced, never getting in the way of the root tone and only taking it further. Overdrive pedals were are something you will discover these pickups love most. Just like overdriven tube amps I was able to get lots of richness and clarity. With fuzz boxes I was able to maintain better string separation and huge amounts of sustain. Mixed in with a little delay I was able to shape some of the most epic sounding rock tones I have ever heard. I needed not blend these pickups with a compressor or EQ pedal. In the studio the Chaos pickups proved to be a very powerful weapon, as well as on the stage, and in practice. Anyone looking for pull more from their Strat's would do themselves nicely by wiring in a set of Voltage Pickups. Up until now I have played these pickups through more amps, pedals, and effects units than I can count. Each and every experience has been a positive one, a memorable one, and one full of inspiration. Hands down... there is no way to go wrong here.

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You can check out more info on Voltage Guitar Pickups by visiting www.voltageguitarpickups.com Also make sure to stay tuned for more pickup features from this magical company in the near future. Keep on tuning in for the rest of Analog War Cry's Top Finds of 2010!!

Top Finds of 2010 / Ddyna Music: Bass 10

2010-12-14T23:00:00.000-08:00

Righty-O here we go. We all have our own tastes, opinions, favorites, and go-to's when it comes to gear. Whether it be an amp or pedal, guitar or set of pickups. This is what makes gear so special and what gives us all our own unique tonal voices. To me there is no such thing as better than - what might sound good to me or work for me may not work for another, and vice versa. This next collection of articles and reviews are our own personal favorites - pieces of gear that stood out to us in one way or another. There is not one piece of gear featured on this site that isn't special to us, which is exactly why I started this site - to share with ya'll my insight and experiences. I thought there'd be no better way to start this Top Finds than by hitting you with the long awaited Bass 10 from my good buddy Dan Simon of Ddyna Music. I can remember when I first became acquainted with Dan (some 2 years ago or so) and him running down his idea of what would become the Bass 10. I must admit that even way back then I was quite curious and eager to see the pedal come to fruition. Now that this pedal is in rotation amongst the world of us stompbox junkies, I will say it has surpassed every one of my expectations. The world of effects pedals is one that does not touch or work for every player. But for those that do choose to use these little metal boxes of magic and wonder, I say it does not get much better than this.... the Bass 10.

BASS 10

Comp/EQ/Overdrive

Specs:

Switching: True Bypass (TPDT)
Input Impedance; 300k (min)
Output Impedance: 4K (max at 5Hz)
Input/Output Jacks: Neutrik 1/4" Phone
Current Consumption: (Operating) 60mA (max) - (Standby) 54mA @ 18DVC
Power: 12VDC AC Adapter (Supplied)
Voltage Range: 12.0VDC-18.0VDC
Connector: 2.1mm x 5.5mm - Tip Positive
Dimensions: 4.87(W) x 3.72(D) x 2.25(H)
Weight: 0.92 lbs
100% Analog Signal
Built with Top Notch Components in the USA

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Many of you guitar slinging readers of mine may and see the word bass and instantly be turned off. But for those of you who have done your fair share of pedal experimenting - you know that bass pedals can sometimes do more than just the trick of working with basses. The Bass 10 certainly proved worthy of providing for more than just the bass guitar. In my guitar ventures this pedal did more than I thought possible, this goes for many other instruments as well - stringed and not. It is the array of versatile controls that linger on the Bass 10's face that make it capable of taking your tone up on high and just about anywhere you want it to go. The controls themselves are very intelligently laid out and work with one another beautifully. The top row of controls sporting the white markers work as four Bandpass Filters - there for precise dialing in & out of the selected frequencies. The bottom row of controls is split into two channels/sections - The controls sporting the blue markers are a top notch great sounding compressor, and the ones with the red markers are your overdriver. Last you will find two footswitches - one for engaging the compressor and the other for kicking in the overdrive. Together all of these controls come together to create one of the most powerful and versatile pedal I have ever come across. The Bass 10 is a 100% analog circuit, sporting true bypass switching, and can run off of anywhere from 12 to 18 volts.

My first run-through of this magical pedal began with a Jazz Bass and Ampeg amplifier. I found this a great pair for hearing exactly what this pedal was capable of. I started by rolling the amp in straight up the middle, this giving me a neutral sweet sounding overall tone. The bass I played both with my fingers and pick. One giving me a warmer softer sound, and the other pumping out plenty of thump'n'boom. I dug into the bass, slapped the strings a bit, played soft jazz and R&B runs, and simple roots rock bass lines. I did this to get an exact feel of what the Bass 10 would do for me. Once my ear got adjusted to the clean amp tone I went ahead and set the pedal's compressor. First I set the ratio to my liking, then the sustain, and last I worked in the compression's volume. Before using the pedal's EQ section to shape and mold my tone, I first played around with it to see how easily I could match the amp's root tone. This in fact ended up being as easy as pie. Engaged, the Bass 10 gave my tone more clarity and control. I was able to hear the strings much clearer, the touch of my fingers, and the walking of the notes. Playing softly the pedal's compression created this pillowy sound that sounded spec-tac-ular. The notes would jump out at me as if alive and breathing. I was able to maintain the tone's character while at the same time fine tuning each corner and peak of the overall sound. This is where a killer sounding compressor can do you proper, and what no other effect will do. Once set to the Jazz Bass' liking and kicked in, I found no reason to turn this pedal off. I found the compression channel very easy to use and very friendly to my attack. Here I began playing with the overdrive section and tuning in the EQ section to a bigger feel. I set the drive first to about 10'o'clock, started with the depth control back near it's lowest setting, and last dialed in the overdrive volume. The EQ's bass I rolled well past noon, the low mids at about 9'o'clock, high mids between 1 and 2'o'clock, and the treble at noon. In this setting the pedal provided me with more of a boost than an actual overdrive sound. It was the depth control's position that made this possible. Rolling the depth clockwise converts the overdrive signal into a more of a square wave tone other than a round sound. This control alone makes the overdrive channel on this pedal very very versatile. Oh, and before I forget to mention - The overdrive section cannot be engaged unless the compression channel is in action. This keeps the overdrive signal in check, and with the EQ stack blended in the possibilities are damn near endless. Getting a dirtier bass tone from here was very simple. Just roll in a bit more drive and depth and you are home-free. With the depth right around noon, drive just passed 9'o'clock, and OD volume to my liking - I was able to get a nice balance of my root bass tone and th pedal's dirty/compressed signal. I found this tone this tone worked great for jumping the dynamics in tunes and making things in general just sound much bigger. Here is where I discovered the range and possibilities of the Bass 10's depth knob. By rolling th depth closer to 2-3'o'clock and rolling in a little more OD volume, I was able to take the same drive setting into even more of a grittier tone. With the EQ section things only got better. I was able to shape the overdrive signal into anything I wanted - a big fat dirt sound, or a thin bass cutting punching machine. Even fuzz tones were no problem wit this pedal. Before experimenting with other instruments I also did plug in a Danelectro bass and a active pickup ESP bass. With both of these basses ( as well as the Jazz Bass) I was able to shape them way beyond their character tones. Giving the Dano bass more aggression and softening the EMG's signal were no problem. This proved one thing - Dan did his homework, making this a pedal fit for many types of bass guitars. Next came my guitars. I ran the exact same tests with a semi-hollow body, Strat, Tele, and Junior. The pedal's compression proved to work much better than some of the guitar comp boxes I have come across, and the overdrive section did this really cool tight'n'gritty thing that blended really well with other guitar tracks ( both clean and dirty). One of my favorite though was playing this baby through a lap or pedal steel. Hands down one of the best tools for this type of instrument I have ever heard. In the end this pedal worked beautifully for both vintage and modern tones. As a tool for the bas guitar I could not recommend anything else. For those of you who dig multi-functional pedals this pedal is a dream. I myself am a huge fan of finding pedals that work just as good in the studio as they do on the stage. The Bass 10 is of this breed of stompbox. This of course is only a graze of the Bass 10's capabilities... the rest is for you to discover.

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Find more information on Ddyna Music stompboxes at www.ddynamusic.com or click the direct link in our sidebar. Also make sure to search our other Ddyna Music reviews and articles. We will be featuring much more from Dan Simon's world to come in the very near future. Stay tuned and get ready for more Top Finds!!!

December Madness!!!

2010-12-06T11:33:00.000-08:00

Hello hello hello! Hey guys, sorry about the small break there. Took some much needed time off there to focus on some song writing, and blog writing. I hope everyone had a great holiday this past November and hope y'll are planning a great Christmas and New Year. I had a chance to dig deep into the world of pedals and gear in general, and I must say it paid off with sweet sweet glory. This month is going to be an absolute dream of killer gear galore! I of course have the Top Finds posts, which will start the second half of this month and continue on into the new year, along with some more cool and interesting looks into some music making products you may or may not have heard of. I want to thank all you guys for writing in with yours thoughts and suggestions, keep writing in. With the year coming to an end there are many new toys just around the bend. Both small and large gear companies are planning some awesome treats for us gear addicted monkeys. I will try my best to get my hands on some of this gear to bring you some more killer insight. Hold on tight and get ready for one freakin' good month of golden golden gear fever.

-Alfie

Two Stunning Sequels

2010-11-15T18:19:00.000-08:00

T-REX MUDHONEY II

Controls (Both Channels)

Level: Controls overall output
Gain: Sets grit/crunch/distortion amount
Tone: Controls high-end roll-off
Normal/Boost Switch: Switch from moderate to high gain
Bypass Footswitch: True bypass switching

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The release of this little doozy was one that for me made absolute sense. Like the original this new pedal also works perfectly for all types of rock - from alternative, punk, and hard rock, to blues, country, and classic rock. And also like the first Mudhoney this puppy is also an awesome tool for stacking up with other dirt boxes and overdriven amps. Only with this Mudhoney T-Rex has added a second identical channel for even more tonal range on the fly. Finding suitable amps, guitars, and pickups to match this pedal up with was a piece-of-cake. I was literally able to just plug in and go without any problems, thanks to the pedal's responsive and versatile controls. I plugged this pedal into everything from Strat's and Les Paul's, to Tele's and semi-hollow guitars, and never found I wasn't able to dial in stunning tones.

I'll start with my 15 watt head and neck bucker Tele, which I later used with the Mudhoney II on a small gig and ended up being the perfect little tone machine for knocking out all of my overdrive and distortion textures. Later I would discover this would also be quite an impressive setup for studio and recording sessions. With the amount of range that this pedal's gain and tone controls have to offer, it made it possible to dial in everything I needed. Then add in the pedal's boost function and a little meddling of your guitar's controls - and you got yourself a whole new range of tons to play with! Having the ability to set one of the pedal's channels to a light boosted grit, and the other channel to a hotter drive - really made this one of the most useful dirt pedals. Using the pedal to slam into the tubes I was able to get these traditional punchy clean/dirty AC15 tones with lots of highs and smooth mids. Then once engaging the pedal's second hotter channel I was able to push into more distorted and aggressive rock tones. All without loosing the amp's characteristics and maintaining my root tone feel. I was also easily able to control how and when the tone broke up by the dynamics of my picking and strumming. A light touch would provide a sparkling clean tone with gritty undertones, and digging in would take the amp into a howling growl. With ease I was also able to get back to the amp's clean tone by rolling back on the guitar's volume, all without any coloration or drop in tone. Next I experimented with one channel as a clean booster and the other cranked full blast. Here the pedal created an authentic rich'n'smooth golden rhythms and ruff'n'rugged leads. Most awesome was how each pick would respond. In the Tele's bridge pickup the overdrive signal was able to slice and cut with great definition and spank. Ringing out chords never sounded so beautiful! I got great note separation yet still had plenty of attitude to punch out massive sounding chord work. With the neck humbucking picking it was more of the same. I got all of the same note separation and aggression, only with even more smoothness and low bottom thump. I thought to myself "Here I am not even ankle deep into this pedal and it's already pushing out tons of awesome tones." This was something that the first Mudhoney pedals had, and why so many players love them so. Another amp/guitar combo that works nicely with this pedal was my 4x10 Deville and P90 equipped Junior copy. Here also tried the clean booster channel/fully cranked lead channel thing and it was marvelous! The throaty P90 tone cut through like a deadly samurai sword. It was obviously going to be no problem getting this pedal to adapt to whatever pickup you played it through. I was could take the sparkling Fender clean tone into just about any dirt tone I wanted. Through this amp I also got hear what the Mudhoney II sounded like through super loud levels. If you guys have ever played the Hot Rod amps you know how knarly they can get. And with mine sporting four 100watt ten inch speakers, a revamped tone circuits, and a few other tweaks - it gives it enough clean headroom to spare and makes it the perfect amp for running dirt pedals through. With the amp cranked loud enough and the Mudhoney set just right, I was also able to convert it into a Marshall-like demon. The four 10's sounded like a wall of rock god heaven. This amp is also another piece of gear I use a lot for gigs, and with the Mudhoney II it was really nice. On stage the pedal was able to give me the perfect blend of clean to distortion, and able to provide me with those blaring screeching lead tones. Using this pedal live also gave me the opportunity to stack it up with some other pedals... hehehehe. Just for kicks in the middle of a riffing good break down I decided to stomp on the Mudhoney, while already playing through a blaring smooth fuzz tone. The Mudhoney took the fuzz pedal's grimey sound and twisted it into a mothership of psychedelic harmonics and overtones. Then there was pushing this pedal though an already overdriven signal, which was probably one of my ways to use this pedal. Through both pedal overdrive and amp overdrive the Mudhoney II came through with flying colors. After playing around with the Mudhoney II for a couple days I would safely describe it as a pedal capable of a huge range of dirty tones, a pedal that plays well with other stompboxes, and a pedal that thrives when matched up with tube amps.... and just a kickass pedal PERIOD!

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T-REX ROOM-MATE

Controls

Mix: Mixes the dry and the wet signal. Set at 12 you can hear the guitar go through
Decay: Determines the length of the spring, that is emulated
Hicut: Cuts the high notes on the tail of the reverb. Giving the tail a smooth sound
Level: Controls the output volume
Gain: Controls the level on the input signal. With this knob you can turn down the input signal, if it is too power full. The green light on top of the pedal will go red, if the input signal is too high and makes the pedal distort

Reverb Types

Spring: Sounds like an old vintage Fender amp with the typical spring based reverb
Room: Typical room reverb. Like a clinic in a small room
Hall: Sounds like a big concert hall
LFO: Reverb with chorus

(Pedal gives stereo output through the left and right output jack plugs)

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I could very easily describe this pedal in one sentence simply by writing - The end-all be-all reverb pedal for the masses. But I won't stop here. First let me say I honest to God thought there was no way T-Rex could improve on the Room-Mate... boy was I wrong. I myself never owned a first version Room-Mate but nontheless I am quite familiar with the pedal. The first Room-Mate is a pedal that many cats that I know use in their studios and gigging pedalboards. For this reason I must admit that when I first heard there was going to be a new Room-Mate hitting the streets, I got giddy with excitement. Never did I think it would end up being as amazing as it is. Features I won't go into, if you want to read up on the new Room-Mate's features look above or click here. It is all about how this pedal works with you and your tone, and how versatile of a reverb box it is.

I'll start with some honest to goodness classic spring reverb tones. For this I plugged into my Super Lead and Telecaster. The big booming sound of the 100 watt Marshall in fact ended up being the perfect canvas for the new Room-Mate's awesome tones. To achieve a vintage voiced spring verb sound was indeed very very easy. I simply set the mode switch to spring, dialed in it's controls to my liking, and that was that. Right there swimming out from my amp was a lush sparkling classic reverb tone that had my guitar sounding pretty damn hip. I had the perfect blend of British attitude and classic American verb, which made for one very cool tone. I slowly went from a clean tone to pushing the amp into a light grit. With the pedal's decay and mix controls I could dial-in just the right amount of effect and feel. It was nice having the ability to have a big decayed reverb only mixed in lightly. This created this strange reverb that sat intensely behind the amp's root tone. Lots and lots of fun. When I first demo'd this pedal I had done it through a Twin Reverb (the king of all reverb amps if you ask me). This would later lead to comparing both of the reverb types. A/B-ing the amp and pedal's reverb tones I must say was quite tuff, and I will have to honest here - I did choose the pedal more times than I did the amp. Later when getting deeper into this pedal I knew exactly why this was - It is the Room-Mate's tone quality. Even at low almost undetectable rverb settings the pedal gives your root tone a little bit of sweetness. This is one of those pedals that holds all of the mojo that makes a great vintage tone great, yet takes this tone into higher grounds. This let me pull surfy psychedelic 60's verb tones and light fluffy whispers, with plenty of warm and definition. All literally a breeze for this pedal. With the pedal's wide range of controls I could pull a bunch of variations on each reverb tone I dialed in. This automatically makes this a killer gigging reverb. Anyone without a on-board reverb would do themselves proper by snatching up one of these pedal's. Then there was using this pedal as a studio tool (which is where the fun really began). Not everyone can afford expensive rackmount reverb tools or has room for big bulky reverb tank units. This pedal is a perfect alternative to all of this. I'm the type of cat that when recording uses the best tool for the job. Not always what might work best for one application work for another. Sometimes I like to use something flashy, sometimes I use a plug-in, and sometimes I use pedals. With the new Room-Mate I was able to get all types of uses out of it. One of my favorite was using it's room reverb effect in recording sessions and live gigs. With drums and vocals this especially worked best. I was able to give my drum tracks a big, sweet, forgiving room sound that added size and muscle to the overall sound. I recorded these hi-hat/kick/snare tracks with a stereo overhead and mic in the kick, that in the end sounded pretty damn impressive (thanks to my micing techniques and skills, hehehehe). Later when adding the Room-Mate's room reverb things got even sweeter. I was able to hear and feel all of the room's characteristics and sweet acoustics. This possible with both hall and room settings. Adding the pedal's hall reverb also sounded great with fuzz pedals and high gain distortions. I myself really enjoy using an exaggerated hall verb with fuzz for adding spooky and psychedelic layers to tunes. It's a great way to create background noise and make your fuzz notes trail on forever. Then last came the super cool super hip LFO reverb mode. Oh mama! I've heard and played many different takes on this type of reverb before, and thought either they were too much or just not interesting at all. With this pedal it is not like so. The LFO mode really takes your tone and turns it into something wild and special. I was able to get these beautifully aquatic-like reverb/chorus hybrids, then take her all the way up to trippy warbling madness. Again, having the amount of control that that this pedal offers made it a cinch to get tons of different variations. From one end of the reverb spectrum to the other - I was able to cover just about every sound you could imagine. This is one of those pedals that really needs no help in speaking for itself - a pedal that will for sure become a collector's in years to come.

Night of the Living Fuzz

2010-11-10T23:00:00.000-08:00

Spencer Amps
Distortion Processors/Modifications

That's right kids, we've got another extra special treat for you from the awesome mind of Bill Spencer. Earlier this year when I discovered Spencer Amps I had no idea what I would be in for. In this life of a tone conscience/tone hunting fool - I come across and am introduced to lots of different gear. Some of the time the finds are real gems, and other times it is just more of the same. With Bill's gear it was a refreshing combination of familiar and wild'n'crazy tones. For those of you didn't catch our Spencer Amps feature on the Mystique Overdrive click here and come back to us once you've finished. You'll be glad you did. So what is it that makes these pedals a force of their own? Well, it appears Bill has a knack for uniting distortion tones with killer sounding fuzz. This is a talent that has led Bill to modify and design some real champion stompboxes. Below Bill has taken what in my opinion is not all that great of a pedal, and converted it into a spectacular one. You players that dig swimming within the distortion and fuzz box realm will ab-so-lut-ely dig this one.

Supra Zombie Distortion

Mixfuzz (Total Conversion Mod)

Controls:

Level: Controls overall output, with enough on tap to send your amp into a fierce overdrive
Tone: Shapes your overdrive's tonal character - From smooth to sting
Gain: Dials in grit amount and overall aggression
Mix (Zombie): Works to blend in a second distortion circuit for a world of dirty tones

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This is one pedal I have been very very excited to share with you. I have always thought DOD pedals could be easily improved on and always wondered why more builder hadn't done so. Bill Spencer's "Zombie" modification of the DOD Supra Distortion is one that not only converts this pedal into a higher quality stompbox, it also provides it with the ability to deliver tons more tonal possibilities. What was once a normal run of the mill dirt pedal, is now a beast of many many faces. The Supra Zombie is capable of hitting you with everything from gritty boosts and overdrives, to distortions of all types and fuzz's of all colors. But dirty signals isn't all this pedal can do, no sir. In the right settings this pedal is also capable of synth-like tones, gated overdrives, and even controllable noise and feedback sound effects. Exactly how this pedal does this I won't get into. If you'd really like to read up on the specs and techs of the Supra Zombie you can click here. Instead I will share with you my experience with this saucy demon.

One of my favorite amp's to push with the Supra Zombie was a mighty fine ol' 22 watt Fender Deluxe. This amp's ability to go into naturally smooth and silky overdrives, makes for a great painting canvas. The Deluxe is an amp that on it's own is capable of great clean, semi-clean, gritty, and all-out distorted tones. By playing the Supra Zombie through this amp I was able to add to and accent everything the amp created. Guitars of all sorts were also something this pedal worked with magnificently. Through the Deluxe amp P90's and Strat pickups were my favorite. With the Strat I was able to get awesome Texas blues tones, super sustain soaked lead tones, and Hendrix-like fuzz tones. With the P90's I was able to some of the most aggressive and brutal dirt tones ever! And getting all of these tones was a cinch too, all thanks to the Zombie knob. Some dirt pedals you will wit with for hours trying to find and dial in sweet spots. Many dirt pedal you will plug into and just end up with the same old thing. With this baby that ain't so. In one direction the Zombie control will act much like an overdriven tube amp, giving you plenty of dynamics and letting you control the character of the crunch with your pick attack. At the opposite end the Zombie knob will take you into non-traditional dirt tones. I began by experimenting with the pedal without it's Zombie circuit blended into the signal. I Set the pedal's level and tone at noon, and the gain at 9'o'clock. Here the pedal pushed out a spot-on Pete Townshend rhythm tone that sounded amazing through all types of chord work. No matter how strong or soft I pushed the strings, the signal would dish out balanced and defined notes. It was something quite special actually, and it really took me my surprise. Strumming lightly the Supra Zombie kicked out perfectly clean notes that had plenty of sparkle and chime. Whenever I wanted more from the pedal I had to do was dig into the strings and I was home-free. With every bit of gain that I added to the signal I would get more crunch and more attitude. Once I got to about noon on the gain knob, the pedal began producing these harmonically rich super charged under/overtones that sang and howled with every little touch. This was really noticeable when chugging down on the strings, playing up on the higher frets, playing harmonics, and bending and playing double-stops. Here I was able to dial in a killer sounding David Gilmour lead tones. Then by adding in a hint of analog delay only made it that much better. Last before getting into the Zombie knob I went ahead and cranked the gain to full blast. Just like I expected the pedal's grit stayed intact with killer note articulation and smooth sweet compression. But even with the gain at full blast the pedal wasn't done doing it's magic. By rolling off on the tone knob I was able to get even more tonal characteristics and colors.And then, it was time to mix in the Zombie control.I started slowly, rolling it up while playing a chord. At low levels the Zombie control created these light synth-like tones that only got in the way enough to give the tone some extra sizzle. I began crunching down on a bunch of complex huge chords, and just like magic the pedal was able to hold it's own. Everything from riffing to bending sounded spectacular! Then I rolled the Zombie up a little more and the pedal began creating these killer sounding gated overdrive/distortion tones. But unlike sticking a normal gate pedal into your signal, this baby made things much more user friendly. The Zombie control was able to maintain and tighten the guitar's overall signal, yet produced a smooth enough roll-off that things didn't sound too choppy or robotic. Then I set the Zombie control at noon and things really started getting interesting. Here is where the signal turned into something other than just an overdrive or distortion tone. It was synth city all the way.And once this started the possibilities were endless. I was able to shape and mold the tone with my guitar's volume and tone, with my picking, and with my feedback. It was lovely! A little trick I found to be quite fun was playing way close to the bridge, with the volume rolled back half way, and the tone at full blast. Talk about a stinging hot signal. Passed noon the Zombie control began to blend a perfect balance of the first distortion stage into the second one. I got plenty of sizzle and zap, lots of smooth overdrive, and a hell of a lot of weird overtones. The type of pickups I played with the Zombie circuit engaged also made a huge difference on it's outcome. High watt amps, overdriven signals, through clean boosters, wah pedals, dirt boxes, etc... all sounded rock and roll. What was really cool though was how the pedal's dirt signal would stay defined and balanced no matter how much gain or Zombie I introduced into it. For anyone on the hunt for something a little bit different, a little bit strange, yet capable of getting back to the traditional - this pedal is it. If any of you out there have a stock DOD© Supra Distortion laying around the house collecting dust - Do yourself a favor and contact Bill Spencer for a proper mod. You'll be stoked you did!

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For more info on Spencer Amps go to www.spenceramps.com or click one of the Spencer Amps links. Make sure to check out our other Spencer Amps reviews and look out for more from this company in the near future.

Helping You Get There

2010-11-02T15:27:00.000-07:00

Vyagra Boost

Tone Shaping / Booster

CONTROLS

Right Footswitch: True Bypass Operation
Left Footswitch: Kicks in Parametric EQ
Gain: 25db of Clean Boost
Frequency: Parametric EQ / 220Hz-1kHz
Cut/Boost: Cut or Boost Frequency Signal

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Anytime I get a chance to try anything from the Crazy Tube Circuits pedal line, I just know I'm going to be in absolute treat. For those of you hardcore pedal addicted stompbox junkies, these pedals are the ultimate fix. It didn't take me long to become a loyal and dedicated fan once getting a hold of these boxes. Everything from the artwork on these boxes to the dynamite sound that they project is highly attractive. Chris Ntaifotis (mastermind behind CTC) has been able to design his pedals with the perfect balance between vintage vibe and traditionally smooth boutique sound. In all of the CTC pedals I have ever tried I've been able to find spot-on classic tones, as well as characteristics that make them all their own beasts. And speaking of tone beast, this is exactly the perfect way to describe the fury of the Crazy Tube Circuits Vyagra Boost.

The Vyagra Boost's purpose is unlike any other booster you will ever come across. This simple yet extremely effective pedal will most certainly boost your signal into some of the most beautiful and powerful overdriven tones your ears will ever hear. But it is the Vyarga Boost's capability of taking your tone into wild and new horizons that sets it apart from many others. How it does this exactly? We will get to that shortly. This pedal is housed in a heavy duty small footprint enclosure, which makes it great for saving on pedalboard space, and built with only the highest of components. The Vyagra's gain control is capable of a whopping 25db of boost, enough for slamming the front-end of any amp. The freq control works as a parametric eq which lets you dial in a number of different tone characteristics. The cut/boost works inconjunction with the freq control for dialing the eq signal in & out. Last the pedal sports two LED indicators, and two high quality footswitches for true bypass and the for switching in the eq circuit.

Because of the Vyagra Boost's eq section I was able to run it up against every type of pickup and amp imaginable. The sweep of the parametric eq made it possible to fine tune both my clean and dirty tones, and let me convert certain pickup types into completely different animals. The pedal's eq section also made it possible to convert other pedal's into different beast and gave pedals such as modulation and compressors really cool flavors. I started with a duel humbucker equipped semi-hollow guitar and 15 watt tube amp. I set the amp as clean as I could with it's tone control at noon, no verb, and nothing but a pair of high quality cables going to amplifier and guitar. The root tone itself was thick and full of lots of meaty clean harmonics. The Vyagra Boost I set with it's gain control at about 15% power and left the eq circuit out for now. I engaged the pedal and hear the amp go up into an even thicker meatier sound. With the guitar's humbucking pickups I was able to easily get a bit of grit from the signal simply by digging in and striking down on the strings. Chords rang out rich and clear which made the amp sound much more poweful than it actually was. Single notes also had plenty of definition and strength which sounded great with riffs and licks of all sorts. I added in another 10% of the pedal's gain and switched to the neck humbucker. Here the root signal became much thicker and even more grittier depending how I struck the strings. I really liked how transparent the Vyagra's signal was, and how much mileage I could get from it's sound in each gain setting. I switched the pedal in & out to listen for changes in my tone, but there was none. The character of the naked amp was still present, only much more in-your-face. I then dialed the pedal's gain control to give me a medium overdriven signal, something perfect for blues and classic rock. I was actually able to get these great southern rock tones by pushing my amp and using the semi-hollow guitar. All good good stuff. I then took the amp's volume control as loud as it could go, which gave me an organic crunchy tone, and shot it's tone up a bit higher for more sparkle. I then pumped the pedal's gain up to about 50% which pushed the amp into delivering a stunning bedroom/studio level rock tone. The overall sound handed me plenty of everything! Rich harmonics, great overtones, lots of smooth'n'creamy grit, and sweet sweet mojo. Next I took the pedal's gain to full gain, and cranked out an army of different chords. My oh my what a sound that little was able to kick out. I was actually quite taken by how much power the Vyagra had to give. Here is where I began playing with it's eq section. I began by finding the neutral eq frequency, and left the cut/boost control at noon. From here I experimented with shifting from cut to boost. This is where I realized just how many sounds were going to be possible with this pedal. I was able to add weight to my sound or thin it out with just a turn of the cut/boost control. This also let me fine tune my amplifier, which is perfect for those of you who have trouble finding your amp's sweet spot. By cranking the pedal's gain control to the desired spot and setting the eq section just where I wanted it - I was able to get exactly the sounds I was hearing in my head. Next I began playing around with different freq control settings. Very very quickly did things become interesting. To get the sound I wanted form my pickups all I had to do was strum down on a chord and turn the freq control until I found the tone I wanted. Then with the cut or boost I was able to dial in as much or as little of that sound as I wanted. I was able to get cocked wah sounds, treble boost tones, midrange heavy tones, tones that sliced through the air, and just about everything in between all of these. Using this pedal for lead guitar tones was something I found was exceptionally fun. I then plugged the Vyagra Boost into a 100 watt Super Lead and let it fly. I set the amp really loud so it would overdrive into a big natural crunch. Then I stacked the pedal's boost section into it and got an even bigger sound. The Vyagra didn't change the feel of the tone but instead gave it more of what made it sound great. The more of the pedal's gain I pushed into the amp, the more of the amp's mojo I was able to get. Tossing in some of the pedal's parametric eq was also quite delightful. The huge sound of the amp and frequency range of the eq gave me just about every sound I wanted. I could go about playing my amp's natural clean or overdriven tone, then with the Vyagra Boost boost that signal and have the eq pre-switched for a maniacal sound that made everything sound wild and crazy. Then there was mixing in different dirt pedals, such as overdrivers, distortions, and fuzz boxes. The Vyagra Boost worked as an external eq control which could convert every one of the dirt pedals into whatever sound I wanted them to be. Overall the Vyagra Booster worked great with other pedals and many many different amps and guitars. This was only a scratching of the surface of what kinds of sounds one can get from this pedal. It you're a tone perfectionist or just love tone weapons with lots of range - this pedal is for you.

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For more info on Crazy Tube Circuits go to www.crazytubecircuits.com or click the direct links in our sidebar. Make sure to check back in with us for more awesome CTC features coming very soon! Also make sure to check out our review of the CTC Ziggy overdrive pedal. Just type out Ziggy Overdrive in our search engine.

Nov: News/Updates

2010-11-01T11:54:00.000-07:00

Xotic Effects

presents

Interview and Demo with Gannin Arnold

My good friends over at Xotic Effects/Pro Sound Communications have got a real treat for you guitar lick loving, rock & roll digging, riff till dawn guitar lovers. Xotic has added another awesome interview/gear demo with another one of today's inspiring and extremely talented guitar players, Griffin Arnold! Griffin demos Xotic and EWS pedals such as the AC & RC Boosters, Brute Drive, Arion Chorus w/Mod, and Fuzzy Drive. There are also some great live performances and a lot lot more. Make sure to check it out!

Check out the rest of the rest of the videos here

www.xotic.us

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The Cats at IK Multimedia have released their newest version of the iPhone/iTouch Amplitube App

Below are some of the new features found on Amplitube version 2

New recorder with insert FX and re-amping
New speedtrainer to slow down/speed-up imported songs
Enhanced sound quality derived from AmpliTube 3
Import songs directly from your iPod library on your device
Import songs directly from iTunes with file sharing
Export recordings to iTunes as WAVs with file sharing
Send recordings by email as MP3s
New preset naming
New set-up panel with input/output settings and metering
Now settings can be retained after closing the app
Keep playing with the app in background with multi-tasking

There are also new in-app purchases for expanding your playing and recording experience

New 4-track recorder with pan, volume, send FX and insert FX + New Master FX section with Reverb, EQ and Compressor (available for only $9.99/EUR7.99)
5 New Stomps effects suitable for playing or recording guitar, bass or any other type of instruments or vocals:Compressor, Reverb, Parametric EQ, Graphic EQ and Limiter (available for only $2.99/EUR2.39 each)

For more info on Amplitube 2 for iPhone/iTouch click here

www.ikmultimedia.com

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Now Available from our fantastic friends at Strymon, is the mighty mighty
El Capistan dTape Echo

The cats at Strymon have been working day and night to bring another batch of these fantastmic boxes. So go on ahead and head over to the Strymon online store and get yourself your El Capistan dTape Echo. Can you dig it!?

Strymon is also on Facebook so make sure to stop by and add them to your group of friends. You can keep track of all their news, events, contests, and other cool happenings. Go to www.facebook.com/strymon for more info.

For those of you Strymon pedal playing rockers, join Strymon on Youtube and be a part of their Playlists. There you can see a little of what players are doing with these fantastic pedals. For more info on the Strymon Youtube channel go to www.youtube.com/strymon.

And last but not least... Congrats to whomever is the winner of the Strymon El Capistan that the cats over at Huge Racks gave away!

www.strymon.net

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Sonoma Wire Works bringing us

AudioCopy/AudioPaste Software to Help us Share Audio

Sonoma Wire Works, creators of the

FourTrack iOS app and the Mobile Audio Product Interaction (MAPI)

Program, has released the AudioCopy/AudioPaste Software Development Kit v1.2 for iOS audio app developers. Apps that support AudioCopy/AudioPaste now include a pasteboard history of up to 12 items with audio previews. Users can make up to 12 copies of audio, then launch an AudioPaste app, and paste from any of those 12 copies. The AudioCopy/AudioPaste pasteboard includes meta data such as tempo, file format, name of app copied from, duration, and more. Forty apps from fifteen publishers have implemented AudioCopy and/or AudioPaste and more are coming soon. The AudioCopy AudioPaste SDK code license is free, downloadable, and includes source code, optional UI, instructions, a license agreement, an example app, and a link to a demo video to help developers implement the features into their apps easily.

To check out more info and some of the AudioCopy and/or AudioPaste compatible apps click here.

www.sonomaworeworks.com

Drifting Through the Highway to Hell

2010-10-25T03:10:00.000-07:00

RRPG Mini Looper

True Bypass Switcher

Size: 1 3/4" x 3 7/8" x 2 3/8"
Single Channel Swictcher
Heavy Duty Enclosure
Built w/ Top Notch Parts & Components
Custom LED Color Options
Standard 9V (-) Adapter Jack
Hand Built in Canada

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In today's world of stompbox play it is not uncommon to see players using switchers of one sort or another. These helpful and genius little boxes have become the secret weapons for many of today's players, from the bedroom jammer to the certified pro. With today's breed of player becoming more and more tone conscience, tools like these are a necessity. So where is it one turns when on the hunt for a solid top quality switcher?... One place many players are turning to is Road Rage Pro Gear, and for good reason too. RRPG's rep for kicking out great quality versatile switchers is one that has really begun to make some noise. This little Canadian outfit offers one of the widest variety of switchers you will ever come across. On the Road Rage website you will find everything from single all the way up to 12 channel loopers, different types of signal/feedback/and tap-tempo switchers, boosters and buffers, small footprint volume pedals, DIY kits, great quality enclosures, awesome pedalboards, and much much more. Each one of RRPG's products is built by hand one at a time and constructed from the finest parts and components. Road Rage Pro Gear comes to us courtesy of Jeff Wesseling. Along with his partner Rosa, Jeff has made it his mission to deliver unto the music playing community some of the best quality tone saving tools money can buy. These switchers are great for maintaining one's root tone and for pulling the best sound from your pickups, amps, and guitars. Once you have a go at one of these switchers you will see just how impressive and attractive they really are. I myself was quite blown away by the beauty of the RRPG Mini and found it to be one of the most useful little gadgets I have ever come across.

Whenever assembling, designing, or putting together together one's precious beloved pedalboard, the name of the game is always to try and save on as much space as possible. This is where a pedal like the RRPG Mini true bypass switcher comes in very very handy. Being no longer than a finger and no wider than two, this little box is the perfect choice for any crowded pedal gathering. And don't let it's size fool you, this box is capable of a lot more than most pedals. Pay attention.

I began my Road Rage Mini experiment by using it as a simple true bypass looper. Because of the pedal's size I was able to mount it onto my board without moving or swapping out any of my pedals. My first mission was to plug it into some of my buffered overdrivers, boosters, distortions, and fuzz boxes. I have some great sounding old and new dirt boxes that I just knew would benefit from a true bypass operation. Just like I expected the pedal helped with both tone sucking and overall sound issues. The Mini was able to show me th differences between true bypass and the opposite, which helped choose just where and with what pedals to us it with. When using a pedal like this you won't necessarily hear from insanely crazy change in your sound, it's something you feel and can notice in the response of your playing. Through the Mini I was able to achieve a much more transparent and clearer tone, which made everything work smoother and got me closer to the naked amp feel. The RRPG Mini also came in handy for use with switchless stompboxes. An example of this was plugging my switchless treble boosters in with the RRPG Mini. This let me kick the treble boosted signal in & out as I pleased just like any other pedal. This sounded and worked great for solos, choruses, and build-ups. Digital delays are another area where a true bypass switcher can come in handy. Not all digital delay stompboxes are of studio quality or built with the finest components. This can have a dramatic affect o your sound which you will most def pay for in the end. This little pedal here fixes this problem by making those cheapo part delays into true bypass fine machines. Another great use I found for this pedal was using it as a preset switch, which the possibilities can be endless for. For this all you simply need to do is grab those two or three favorite pedals that you like to use together, plug them in line and then in and out of the switchers send and returns, and that's it! You're good to go with a killer, simple, favorite preset switch you can call in any time you'd like. I did this with a fuzz and reverb pedal to help me get those haunting spaced out tripped out fuzz sounds. This is a sound I like to use whenever layering or adding accents to a song. I actually used the Mini on a few gigs which was of huge help. The last switcher I had didn't fit on my board and sat on the floor. Here I did not have this problem. Another really cool trick I was shown some time ago, is plugging in a half cocked wah and throwing in a crunchy/gritty overdrive pedal. This creates one of the wildest most unique tones you will ever hear, and it is simple to do. How about those of you that like play your lead tones with delay? Again, not a problem with this little beast. Like I said, the possibilities are endless. Next, I was able to use the Mini as a silent true bypass tuner mute. This works great for any tuner you need or like to leave on, or any of thos egreat quality non-switch tuners. But one of the coolest uses I found for this little monster was using it as an A/B amp or instrument switcher. This is another trick I learned from a buddy of mine that I dig using when playing big enough venues. You can literally feed one signal into your favorite clean amp, and another to your favorite dirty amp. You can also patch in whichever pedals you like to use with each amp or plug into all your pedals first to use them with both amps. With the Mini you can switch from clean amp to dirty amp, all without some complex or expensive system. With instruments maybe there's an acoustic and electric you gig with, or a keyboard and guitar you gig with. Plug them both in and switch back and fourth with no problem. In the end this makes for a much more powerful tool that it may seem to be. For those of you familiar with the world of true bypass switchers and loopers you already know how they can benefit you. For those of you who haven't had the chance to jump into this world, this is a perfect place to start. The Road Rage Pro Gear Mini is tiny and packs on hell of a punch!

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For more info on Road Rage Pro Gear go to www.roadrageprogear.com or lick any of the RRPG banners on our site. We will try to bring you some more from our Canadian friends as soon as possible so hang tight and let the bed bugs bite.

E to the M to the G

2010-10-23T20:11:00.000-07:00

When I was first introduced to the guitar as a small wild child, there was only one thing I wanted to do.... and that was rock as loud as humanly possible. For me it was all about ass kicking, greatly defined, crisp distortion being pushed out of my midnight purple Charvel guitar. Boy did that guitar see some insane volumes. Then one day comes my buddy with this beastly looking V shaped Jackson equipped with EMG active pickups. I had never seen pickups of this nature and was instantly drawn in by their sleek and simple look. Next I would hear what these pickups were capable of, and from that day fourth it was all about those three lovely letters whenever wanting to take it full force... E-M-G. As the years went by my style of playing and taste in music would grow. I began falling in love with the roots of rock & roll, jazz, and later folk and country music. This led me to explore many different types of ceramic and alnico designed pickups. Fast forward a good 20 years later and I still reach for my EMG active pickup equipped guitar for heavy sessions, and alnico or ceramic magnet pickup guitars for mellower types of rock and other music. Recently I discovered EMG was building a wide variety of great quality, superbly priced, collection of passive pickups. At first I thought, "Ok, passive pickups. Cool, I'll try them". The results?.... read on.

SRO Series

OC-1 Neck/Bridge

Pickup Specs Neck Bridge

Inductance: 3.80 8.15

DC Resistance (kOhm) 7.35 16.90

Resonant Frequency (KHz) (2) 1.96 1.35

Resonant Frequency (KHz) (3) 3.18 1.95

Z @ Resonance (kOhm) (2) 46.70 69.00

Magnet Type: Alnico 5 w/Steel Pole Pieces

Wired In Series

Loaded w/500k Vol & Tone with a 20' Cable

Loaded w/1MegOhm / 47 pf

EMG-SRO Coil Wiring

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Installing the OC-1 set was an absolute walk in the park. With the neatly arranged wiring system these pickups come with and the wiring diagrams that are provided, you can set them up for just about any sound. The SRO 5-Wire Cable also makes it easy to swap in & out of other SRO HZ Series pickups without having to re-solder anything. This gives you instant access to different tones and pickup characteristics on the fly. The OC-1 pickups themselves are built beautifully, and look and feel great. For the price asked you can't go wrong. I was actually quite impressed with the overall quality and look. As a guitar choice for the OC-1's we went with my buddy's Les Paul Studio, which I thought would be the perfect choice. Now, I have owned many and played many different active EMG pickups, and in fact still own that EMG 81 equipped guitar from my youth. The one thing that has always stuck with me about the EMG sound is the clarity and projection that is sucked up from the pickups and pushed out through an amp. This would indeed be the first thing I would notice from the OC-1's.

I began playing the pickups through a reissue 1959 Super Lead and 4x12 cabinet. Starting with just the guitar'n'pickups, a proper cable, and the amp set sweetly clean. I did try the OC-1's through a handful of other amps which all sounded great, but the Super Lead was by far my favorite. I began strumming down on some open chords, barre chords, and blues licks and riffs, and just like any nice set of passive buckers I was able to hear plenty of warmth and lots of boomy bottom-end. With every run of the frets the pickups would push out plenty of sweet sweet mojo. Even better was the feel these baby's kicked out. Standing in front of my amp I could feel the pickup push out plenty of thump and growl. The sound would hit my back with powerful dose of vibrating sonic therapy. Along with a great sounding collection of booming lows the OC-1's also kicked out plenty of snap and bite, which made the treble and midrange frequencies sound spectacular. This really helped with painting the amp's clean tone character and feel. In the neck position the OC-1 was able to provide me with these beautifully balanced vintage/modern tones that were easy to shape and manipulate. With just a flip of the guitar's tone knob I was easily able to round out or soften the overall tone to my liking. This would later help me with getting kickass sounding woman tone. The guitar's volume control also worked quite nicely for finding interesting sounding tones. In the bridge position the pickup produced lots of sparkle and even more clarity. I was able to get more aggression from this pickup which made perfect for riffing and lead tones.The bridge pickup also made it easy to cut through any mix, and it did it without sounding harsh or tinny. This worked great for stacking up more than one guitar in live and recording situations. Next I slowly began to introduce a bit of the amp's natural overdrive, beginning with a very mild semi-clean tone. I did this by just cranking the amp's volume to get an idea of how the pickups would respond to natural overdrive. In both pickup positions the clarity and clean tone was still present, only now with a thin layer of glowing tube grit. The leftover clean tones blended with the now mild gritty undertones, made for some awesome note articulation. If ever you've taken your humbucker equipped guitar and stacked on a bit of EQ, whether it be a pedal, plug-in, or rack effect, you know the difference it can make. This was the vibe that I first got from these pickups, only on a much more subtle level. Taking the amp to a medium overdrive level I began to really hear what these pickups were capable of. Clean tones sounded awesome through these pickups, but the real magic began once a nice amount dirt was dialed in. The pickups dished out everything from blues and classic rock, to hard rock and heavy rock. With the amp now dialed in slightly hotter, I broke out a TS-808 style overdrive pedal and simple clean booster. I set the pedal with it's volume and tone knobs matched to the amp's gain st to hit the amp's signal pret-ty hard, and in neck pickup position. The pickups adapted beautifully to the OD pedal and together with the amp kicked out more grit, grime, and aggression. Every chord I pushed out through overdrive signal stayed smooth and intact. Just like in lower gain settings, in higher gain settings I also noticed great string separation. This created stunningly powerful rhythm tones that worked great with all types of music. The overall sound had a classic rock type feel only with a bit more midrange honk and definition. Getting a scorching blaring lead here was very very easy. All I had to do was incorporate the clean booster and I was home free. In fact, here I was able to switch in and out of semi-cleans, gritty rhythms, crunchy distortion, and rockin' leads. All possible thanks to the guitar's tone and volume knobs. In the neck pickup position the pickups and pedal created more of a modern tone. The OC-1's also responded quite nicely to the clean booster and sounded great with a little bit of analog delay. Overall the pickups did a great job. They were able to deliver different variations of both modern and vintage tones, they sounded great through both high and ow watt amps, and played well with many different stompboxes. For the price the OC-1's are a steal! Anyone looking for that crisp and clear EMG sound but wanting to keep it passive would do themselves proper by grabbing a set of these.

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For more info on EMG Pickups go to www.emgpickups.com or click any of the EMG logos on our site. Make sure to also check out EMG TV on the website for killer demos and artist interviews, and cool performances. Stay tuned for more EMG pickup features here on AWC coming very soon.

News & Updates

2010-10-21T00:00:00.000-07:00

EWS & XOTIC:

Brent Mason

Rocking out to EWS and XOTIC

Brent Mason's interview video & live video clips for "The PLAYERS" have been uploaded into Reality Web Video section. For more info and more vids go to the link below. Enjoy the first video here.

More Videos Here:

http://www.xotic.us/video/index.html?area=rwv_player&id=127

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T-REX ENGINEERING:

T-Rex has launched an Alter Bridge competition where you can win a T-Rex Mudhoney signed by Myles Kennedy, the new Alter Bridge CD, plus a concert ticket for the Alter Bridge concert in Copenhagen. To Enter the competition all you have to do is upload a picture of your pedalboard and that's that. T-rex would love to see which of their pedals you all are using and would love to hook you up with some great prizes, so make sure and enter.

Go to this link for more info and your chance to win.

http://t-rex-effects.com/Default.aspx?ID=474

:::NOTICE:::

T-Rex has three of each prize to give away. 3 Tix, 3 Pedals, and 3 CD's.

The Competition will end the 28th of October

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GODLYKE DIST:

TRISKELION HARMONIC ENERGIZER

Our good friend's at Godlyke are extremely excited to announce the release of the new TWA Triskelion. Only debuting this past winter NAMM, this pedal has already begun to get an overwhelmingly positive response, a pedal which which many of us stompbox junkies have been dying to see. Godlyke has just announced that the Triskelion will be shipping by mid-November, so get ready and get in line so you don't miss out.

Click here to learn more about this amazing pedal and to see/hear an in-depth demonstration of what it can do...

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SCOTT HENDERSON CROWNS MAXON SD-9
"...best Distortion pedal ever made."

Blues/Jazz legend Scott Henderson is known as much for his unique playing style as he is for his stellar guitar tone. Scott recently "came clean" about one of the secret weapons in his tone arsenal, the Maxon SD-9 Sonic Distortion

Oct Monthly Pick / Strymon

2010-10-17T22:07:00.000-07:00

What is it one thinks of when starting a new stompbox company? I'm sure quality and great sound are probably first on their list. Then next probably comes cool looks and innovation. With versatility, user friendliness, compact design, and a touch of vintage mojo never hurts. No? Is this not what most cats think about when building a new gear company? Well Strymon sure and the hell does. I will tell you - If there is one pedal company I have seen hit the market in the last couple years that has impressed me to the fullest it is these guys. My first encounter with a Strymon pedal gave me an endorphin rush that literally left me floored, satisfied, and wanting more. At first I could not figure out for the life of me how these cats had packed so much into such a standard sized box. It is quite clear that whoever the hell is in charge over at Strymon has definitely done their homework. And as the Strymon line continues and grows, it is quite clear that these guys are also writing the book for new and exciting ways to use effects.

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FEATURES

Hand crafted dBucket algorithm for highly accurate reproduction of every stage of an analog bucket brigade chip
Super low noise, high performance A/D and D/A converters w/ 110dB signal to noise
High performance DSP stuffed into a compact form factor
3 modulation types (chorus, muti-mode chorus, vibrato)
3 dynamic modes (normal, ramp, envelope)
Controllable ramp speed | envelope sensitivity
Global tone control for the overall color of your modulation
Mix control for dialing in various modulation intensities
TRUE BYPASS (electromechanical relay switching)
Stereo input and output
Favorite footswitch for saving your favorite setting
Powered with a standard 9V center negative DC supply. Compatible with all major DC supply brands. Current consumption 200mA – (250mA recommended supply)
Premium analog front end and output section
No-nonsense user interface
Strong and lightweight blue anodized aluminum chassis
Crafted with love in the USA

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At first glance I really thought this pedal was gonna kick my ass, leave me confused, and in a state of irritation. But after a couple minutes of turning knobs and flipping switches I learned this would not be the case. This along with the stunning quality in sound make this pedal on of the most attractive chorus/vibrato pedals I have ever laid hands on. The same day the pedal landed in our little studio I was able to use it in a gig later that night. Never had it been so easy for me to get the chorusing and vibrato effects that I wanted from a pedal. As a Monthly Pick I couldn't be prouder to have this pedal as one of the features. On board the face of the Ola you will find just about everything you'll ever need to get chorusing and vibrato effects from just about every era. Upon further experimentation I also discovered the Ola was capable of sounds all it's own, classifying it in a world all it's own. The pedal's layout consists of Speed, Mix, Depth, Tone, and Ramp/Env knobs. A Type switch that lets you choose between Chorus/Multi/or Vibrato modes, and a Mode switch that lets you choose between Normal/Envelope/or Ramp modes. There are also two footswitches, with one controlling the bypass and ramping, and the other there for you to switch in & out a favorite saved preset. On the back on the pedal you will find duel In's and Out's, giving you true stereo use for the ultimate in chorusing and vibrato effects. The magic that this pedal is able to wield with these controls is mind blowing! Through and through the Ola kicks out nothing but pro level sound effects. I was able to blend this pedal with tons of other effects, play it through many different of guitars, and able to stack it up with every amp I threw at it. Strymon has meticulously and immaculately gone over this pedal's design........... and it shows.

I guess the first sound that impressed me from this box was the tasty and flavorful vintage Uni-Vibe sound that I was able to dial in. And not only was I able to pull killer Uni-Vibe tones from this pedal, I was also able to control the effect's speed just like the original. This is all possible thanks to the Ola's ramping option. For this sound I found a blaring Marshall Super Lead tone was the perfect companion. It made for a spectacular canvas for which to paint on with the Ola's dreamy vintage-like sound. To get this classic vibe sound I simply set the speed to where I wanted it to max out at, rolled the Mix/Depth/and Tone just behind noon, the Type to vibrato, and Mode to ramp. Then with the Ramp Speed knob I set how quickly or slowly I wanted to effect to ramp up. To get the effect to ramp up like a Uni-Vibe all you do hold down the Bypass footswitch and you're in! Once engaged the Ola in no way shape or form did it mess or warp my root tone into something of it's own. Instead it accented it and brought it to life with a round and fluffy feel. It's tuff to explain exactly what this pedal does for your tone, it's something you feel more than hear. Which of course is the best type of effect in my opinion. It is like a tone facelift! It gives your sound these subtle and luscious curves that make you feel like your swimming in rock'n'roll heaven. The ramping effect of this pedal really makes this a special and unique modern stompbox. I could dial in as wild or laid back an effect as I wanted and the pedal's ramping feature would work it nicely each time. It also sounded great with both little or a lot of grit. To get the Ola's effect to react more aggressively I rolled in a bit more of the Mix and Depth. This let the pedal's sound swim in & out of my guitar's tone with a more dramatic effect. For fuzz boxes this is perfect! The guitar I was using at this time was my single Lollar P90 equipped Junior copy. The P90's aggressive and gritty rich tone blended perfectly with the Ola's projection. Then just for kicks I plugged in my Strat with Chevalier Hendrix tribute pickups (the 1967 pickups). The combo of the Ola, Super Lead, and Chevalier 1967 pickups got me the closest to a proper Hendrix vibrato dirty tone that I have ever dialed in. It was like finding one of those holy grail tones that one comes across when blending a certain collection of products together. This led me to use the Chevalier equipped Strat for a lot of the demoing I did with this pedal. Next I experimented with more dreamy clean tone'd chorusing sounds. For this we broke out two different amps - First a Twin Reverb, and then my modified Hot Rod Deville. I wanted to see how the pedal would react to both a vintage and modern Fender clean tone. I switched from the ramping effect and went into Normal mode, and switched to Chorus. The first setting I worked with was simple, with every control at noon. I started with some big'n'rich chords, picking out each string to make the effect bounce a little smoother. Again the pedal blew my mind and took me directly into space. Some chorus pedals not matter where you set them, whether it be a mellow or harsh chorus effect, just sound too cartoonish and rubbery. This can make your tone sound awful and can ruin even the best of your chops. With this pedal you won't have that problem. Like I mentioned earlier, there is this special rich and forgiving tone that pumps through each effect you dial in that makes everything you play sound fantastic. Something else that also sounded fantastic was stacking on a bit of delay, both analog and digital. I was able to get these amazing tape delay effects, Memory Man sounds, and some completely original out of this world sound effects. To cover more of the modern side of things I used the Multi function with both the Ramp and Normal modes. This produced crisper much more complex chorusing tones that stayed intact at all levels. This setting worked great for controlling the warping and pitch shifting that happens from high depth settings. Here I was able to get these killer universal chorusing sounds by dialing in the speed and depth just passed noon, tone slightly warm, and mix at about 2'o'clock. Blending this in with a lead tone brought every note I played to life and gave the guitar a special vibe that just made me want to play it. Then was the Envelope mode, where the Ramp/Env knob comes back into play. Here the Ola lets you dial in these awesome sounding chorusing effects that you can control with the dynamics of your playing! The possibilities are endless. For the riffing monster this is the perfect tool because of how it adapts to your every move. Lay back and listen as the chorus sits right behind your tone. Then start to kick things in and watch as the pedal becomes more aggressive. It is absolutely beautiful! And still it gets better. Having true stereo as an option on this puppy really gets things cookin'. If you've never heard what a chorus or vibe effect sounds like through a stereo setup it is time you wake up and smell the stompbox. With the Ola pedal, stereo use is even cooler because of all the options and sound quality that it owns. And in between all of these fantastic sounds that I dialed in lives a hundred more possibilities. It don't matter if you're looking for CE-1 or CE-2 soudns, Uni-Vibe tones, experimental, or studio quality chorusing effects. This monkey has them all. So go out, grab one, and listen as every piece of equipment you stack this pedal up with becomes the perfect candidate for the Ola's beautiful collection of colors.

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For more info on Strymon go to http://www.strymon.net/ To read up on some info on Strymon's dBucket technology click the highlighted section on the features section. Make sure to stay tuned for more from this one of a kind company. We will sure as hell work our butts off to bring you more very soon. Dig it!!!

Funktified-Tripped Out-Psychedelic Goodness

2010-10-11T13:10:00.000-07:00

It was a few years ago when I was first introduced to the Tremendous Trio (AC Booster/RC Booster/BB Preamp), this was how Xotic Effects first caught my attention. Once discovering this company I began to following it's work closely, trying out everything they releassed, and keeping tabs on all the great reviews that were being written. I soon noticed Xotic was on fire! Building one awesome pedal after the other, with each pedal being special in it's own way, and more and more players sticking these boxes on their boards. Next came the Robotalk, a envelope filter/arpeggiator that absolutely rocked and blew people away. Unlucky for me I didn't get a chance to grab one and it is now probably THE #1 pedal on my wishlist(hint hint friends at Xotic). The good news here is Xotic has a 2nd version of this pedal which is equally as cool and just as great sounding. I honestly thought there was no way to improve on the envelope filter of the first model... I was wrong. The Robotalk II has one-up'd the first version by stacking a second identical envelope filter channel which can be blended with the first. This thing has a spot-on classic vibe that will warm up, funk up, and excite any tone you throw at it. I thought this would be a great pedal to share with you guys and a perfect addition for anyone looking for a great sounding envelope filter.

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Robotalk II

Envelope Filter

CONTROLS

Channel A

Sensitivity: Determines how sensitive A-Ch envelope reacts

A-Ch Volume: Controls A-Ch volume

Decay: Determines length of decay, time of envelope, and start frequencies

Resonance: Controls the amount of envelope feedback for A-Ch

On/Off Switch: True bypass

Channel B

Sensitivity: Determines how sensitive B-Ch envelope reacts
B-Ch Volume: Controls B-Ch volume

Decay: Determines length of decay, time of envelope, and start frequencies

Resonance: Controls the amount of envelope feedback for B-Ch

A & B Channels

Direct Volume: Allows you to blend dry signal against effected sound.

Internal DIP Switches

4-Pole DIP Switch: Envelope frequencies

(for both A and B channels)

2-Pole DIP Switches: Input pad settings

(works to match to your pickups)

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This my friends is by far one of the most versatile envelope filter boxes I have ever plugged into and played. On this pedal you will find two identical envelope filter channels both rocking Sensitivity, Decay, Resonance, and Volume controls. In the middle the pedal sports an Direct Volume control which blends the pedal's overall effected signal into your root tone. The amount of flexibility that the Robotalk II possesses with these controls is mind blowing. I have always been a sucker for vintage envelope filters and have always tried to find new and interesting ways to use this effect. The Robotalk II produces warm'n'silky plushy vibes that feed your amp a unique collection of sounds that you will fall in love with. This pedal not only works great vintage tones but can also be used to tool new heights. This second version of the Robotalk is exactly why Xotic Effects has become and continues to be one of my favorite pedal companies.

The first thing I gotta say caught my attention about the new Robotalk was it's super hip super cool look. If you dig retro vibe'd funktified goodness - This is your thing. The next thing that caught my eye and ear was the very keen layout of controls and sounds those controls were capable of. To see exactly what this pedal could and would do I first ran it through a sparkling clean Fender Twin Reverb. I set most everything on the amp at noon and held off on the reverb output. I left the pedal in the setting it was in, strummed out some licks, and got some killer killer sounding auto-wah sounds. My hand was able to control the pedal's effect smoothly which let me project the exact vibe I wanted. A big big plus. Next I began dialing in the Robotalk 2's left channel (A) to a subtle, traditionally vintage voiced envelope filter sound. Then low and behold started flowing all of my favorite James Brown and Curtis Mayfield licks. The pedal's effect rose and fell beautifully, it was smooth and warm, and it was pleasing to the ear. For those of you who have played lots of envelope filters before you know they can be a bit on the sharp side. The Robotalk 2 is not of this breed. Instead this baby hands you a sound that works with your guitar's root tone and helps you mold what you're after. Slowly rolling in the sensitivity control back and fourth I noticed how sweet and how large the overall range was. I was able to take this pedal from extremely subtle pulsing sounds to all-out loud buck wild quaking madness. In every setting you dial this baby in it responds to your pick attack with precision and great tone. Manipulating this pedal to move how, when, and where I wanted it to go was easy as cake. A quick flick of the resonance and sensitivity and you got yourself a spicier much more aggressive sound. Then blending in overdrive signals with this baby is straight up rock and roll! I was really impressed at how well the Robotalk II worked with overdrive signals, from light grit to fuzzy sweetness. With a light smooth envelope filter setting and light crunchy drive, you can get some killer signature blues tones. Add a little more grit and you've got yourself a great classic or hard rock sound. Boost that signal and you're in super wild lead tone territory. Then taking it to the extreme like blending the pedal with some fuzz... Oh mama! The way this thing's effect bends, turns, screeches, and squirms when played through high fuzz is unbelievable. You get these crazy robotic sound effects that turn your guitar into a voice of it's own. One of the sweetest uses I found for this baby was definitely setting two envelope filter sounds and switching back and fourth from them. Having this ability in one pedal made for saving on pedalboard space and gave me a broader range of use live and in the studio. The real magic though starts when you begin to blend the two channels together. In one channel I had a warm vintage voiced envelope filter effect that gave some color to my root tone and made things overall interesting. The next channel I set a bit crazier. I set it with much more sensitivity and let it ring and stand out harder. Live I was able to go from one to the other for different tunes and what not. Then there was the third channel, the blending of both channels. This is where the Robotalk II separates itself from many other pedals of it's kind. Here the sky is the limit! If you've never heard what two envelope filters crashing into one another sound like you must grab one of these pedals. You can get from warping spaced out effects to swishing swirling unpredictable weirdness. The ability of using both channels independently or together really makes this a special and one-of-a-kind stompbox. Overall you'll end up with a world of great quality sound effects that work not only with guitar but also sound awesome through bass, keys, vocals, samples, etc... The Robotalk 2 has definitely been one of the most unique stompboxes to come through Analog War Cry. Get out there and try one!

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For more info on Xotic just click the direct link either on the sidebar or our header down below. You can also go to www.xotic.us or www.prosoundcommunications.com for more Xotic and other killer gear. We will be steadily putting more of these awesome pedals through their paces so make sure to keep them eyes peeled. See ya soon!

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Aqua Puss

2010-10-08T12:06:00.000-07:00

The Aqua Puss delay. A pedal that sooooo many cats have been dying to see back on the front lines of rock & roll. And for good reason too. Go out and try to find yourself an original Aqua Puss and you'll quickly learn the task is near impossible to conquer. I myself only through absolute luck got to experience the magic of the original. I can remember how impressed I was by the pedal's overall tone and simplicity. So when I first heard Way Huge was gonna be rockin' this baby again I became weak in the knees and giddy like a little school girl. But then again I guess Way Huge pedals just do that to people... at least I hope they do. I will tell you from experience that the Aqua Puss mkII definitely does justice to it's original brother. But then again, with gadget giants such as Tripps and Dunlop teaming up together - What else could we expect but the best, right? I am yet to see a failure from this duo and highly doubt one will ever see light. Get out there and get your hands on the new Way Huge collection. Your tone will thank you for it.

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Aqua Puss MkII

Analog Delay

Delay: Deliciousness from 20ms to 300ms
Feedback: Sets Echo Repeats
Blend: Dry to Delayed
Toggle Switch: On/Off
LED: Bright Enough for Anything
Power: 9V Battery or Standard 9VDC Adapter

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If ever there was an effect that has been universally excepted and loved it is the delay pedal. Delay pedals no matter what quality or kind can always be a blast to play with, there is noooo denying that. So imagine what the top dogs are capable of, mmm mmm. Well, take a delay with grade A tone, add some mystery, a bit of legacy, and wallah! You have yourself the unmistakable and magical Aqua Puss. There just is no replacing the soothing psychedelia of a killer sounding echo box like the Aqua Puss. So far Way Huge has been right on the money with every single box they have reissued, and this baby is no different. At the price and quality that this new reissue comes in at it really can't be beat. It maintains the same tonal characteristics as the original and sports the same user friendly layout. With only Delay, Feedback, and Blend controls, you'll find yourself easily moving in and out of just about any delay sound you can imagine. I was able to pull extremely accurate vintage delay sounds from this pedal, and able to work it into just about every style of music and amp tone I could muster. I found the quality of the pedal's repeats to be top notch, it's look super hip, and it's overall build to be immaculately tasty. Dunlop and George Tripps really have something special going here and I hope there is no stop to it anytime soon.

With the Aqua Puss (like all the rest of the Way Huge pedals) I was able to just plug in and just go. The pedal's tone and layout really make finding the delay sound you're after a cinch. You'll notice right away how the analog delay sound that this baby seeps is just designed to adapt itself to any signal you stack it up with. This makes it a fantastic all around echo box choice for any type of player or producer. I began my little Aqua Puss experiment with a simple little amp... a Deluxe Reverb. The guitar was my hot-rodded Tele, and cable of choice the mighty Colassal Sweet Fat. I began with the amp set squeaky clean, normal channel, with mucho bass and mucho treble. What a gorgeous sound it was too. I then set the Aqua Puss to a short/light slapback delay and let things rip. Smacking down on some of my favorite country licks the pedal created a quick jabbing delay that beautifully mirrored my picking and playing. This setting also created a spectacular sounding reverb effect that made things sound quite interesting. With the Aqua Puss engaged and me riffing up and down the neck, I was taken into some of my favorite classic country records. Each note I played jumped into the next with great detail, lots of warmth, and an overall quality in sound that was fantazmic to my ears. One thing I must say is - Way Huge/Dunlop really hit a homer in finding a sweet balance between bright and warm when designing this pedal. This is probably what makes this version so close to the original. You can dig in or lay off and hear the pedal's repeats with great clarity and sweet articulation. Exactly what makes analog pedals such champions. I now Lengthened the delay time just a bit to help me create a bit more space. I ended up getting an even sweeter sounding reverb effect, something between a traditional spring and plate type verb. It gave me a sound all it's own that handed me all the benefits of verb but without the emptiness and loss in volume. This sound works beautifully for those looking to get more from their tone or anyone who's not too big a fan of reverb. Rolling up the repeats with the delay time set quick I was able to get this killer sounding trailing echo effect that swirled and bounced into itself creating absolute magic. Again my attention went straight to the pedal's overall tone and how well it worked no matter how many repeats were dialed in. Next I moved the delay to about 10'o'clock and dialed in a bit more feedback and blend. Here I found the delays worked great for chugging away at chord work and riffs. Here the delays jumped out with great definition, then smoothly tucked back to let the playing do it's thing. Only at the tail end of my riffs would I hear what the delay was doing, sort of like a subtle ducking effect. For those of you who like to leave your pedal on at all time this makes for perfect choice. Leaving the feedback as is, I then proceeded to crank the delay to full blast. Here I got the unmistakable U2 Edge sound that so many cats dig to play and copy. Only I noticed the Aqua Puss's sound to be much more user friendly and not as sharp. More like something you'd hear on a classic Floyd album. The movement of the trails is what really had me stuck on this pedal and what had me spaced out and playing tripped out runs for hours. The Aqua Puss produced this swimmy and organic vibe that flowed out to make it really damn unique and special. I could incorporate a hint of drive, a lot of drive, or a bunch of distortion and get killer results each time. With a nice amount of dirt the amp and pedal combined to give me a big'n'beefy rock tone that stacked up really nicely with other guitars. These medium delay settings also worked really good with keyboards and even vocals. Taking the pedal to noon on each control and cranking the Deluxe to full blast got me what ended up being one of the baddest sounding classic rock tones I'd ever heard. Something about the actual tone in the Aqua Puss made the amp's tone much more desirable. This is something that units like the Echoplex were known for doing. The combination of the amp and pedal created the perfect root tone on which to play whatever style I pleased. Even in longest delay setting the Aqua Puss's sound was still usable as an all around sound. The warmth and subtle nature of the pedal's delays give it legs for days. I was then itching to play this pedal through a proper heavy rock tone and so broke out the Super Lead. Along with this I also took out one of my favorite fuzz boxes which broke out an enormous sound! Taking the Marshall into ear splicing levels, then setting the pedal to a medium length delay created the true definition of Rock and Roll. Then by stomping on the fuzz box I was able to go even further. This provided me with a great lead tone which flew and swirled through the air like magic. I could simply reach down and manipulate the pedal's knobs to morph and oscillate into space aged madness. And just as easily I was able to get back to my root tone. I tell you - As a no frills delay box this is it baby. With the Aqua Puss set to quick short echoes I was able to get everything from blues and country, to jazz and funk. In medium settings I was able to hit every era of rock and roll period! And at long delay setting able to beam into the psychedelic and tripped out scene. A box this simple should bot be allowed to do so much. I am really curious to see what else Way Huge releases and if Tripps ends up doing some completely new designs? Hint hint.

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You can check out more info on Way Huge pedals at www.wayhuge.com or click the link in our sidebar. You can also check out some awesome demo videos on our Youtube search engine at the bottom of the site, just click Way Huge pedals and you're good to go. Be on the look out for our venture into the Dunlop and MXR realm coming at you very very soon.

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Little, Orange, Awesome!

2010-10-06T16:03:00.000-07:00

Bjorn Juhl. What else can I say that hasn't already been said about this man? It is no secret that this is one extremely talented cat when it comes to the world of tone tools. Just look at Bjorn's road of work and it will speak for itself. It is as if this man was born for this, programmed to understand the needs and wants of players, and gifted with the skills to deliver no frills gadgets. To date there hasn't been one Mad Professor stompbox that hasn't impressed me in one way or another. And it only gets better once you start dabbling into the Mad Professor amps. So what is it that people love so much about this brother's work? Why is it that the Mad Professor never misses no matter what type of effect is designed? Of course the simplicity and candy-like look to each pedal is downright attractive, but there's more. I'll tell you what instantly drew me in - It was the sound and response you get from these pedals. The user friendliness designs and endless usable tones that seep from each box. This along with top notch components and a stunning build makes Mad Professor pedals some of the most desirable on the market today. From the guts to the shell these pedals don't disappoint. The first time I had a chance to try a few of these pedals I left the guitar shop flabbergasted. Like a pedal junky overdose.

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Mad Professor

Turenki, Finland

Tiny Orange Phaser

Phase Shifter

features:

* Handmade in Finland

* Especially tuned for electric guitar

* Hand matched premium quality components

* Capable of phase shifting to vibe sounds

* True bypass circuit

controls:

* Speed: Controls speed of modulation

* Resonance: Sets resonance (tone) of the effect

* Mix: No effect at 12'o'clock, CW and CCW controls depth of two different phase tones

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-First Look-

The phaser - It is one of the few effects that I have had a ruff time getting acquainted with, and one of the many effects out there that many have gotten wrong. For one reason or another most phasers I've tried just haven't cut it. Either they've been too intense, too weak, eat my tone, drop my volume, or just all-out sound awful and cartoonish. But this isn't the way of all phasers. Many of our favorite classic rock records had great sounding phase tones. You know the ones I mean. Those lush, silky smooth sounding swirling phasers that give character to a lick, riff, or chord. For me it is this type of phaser that gets my creativity bug jumping, and this is exactly what the Tiny Orange Phaser was able to do for me. If I were to pin-point this phaser's sound I'd say it lives somewhere between the mighty vintage and crisp'n'clear modern. One of the reasons for the Tiny Orange's hit the spot sound is it's specially tuned to work with guitar frequencies. The hand matched parts, premium quality components, true bypass circuit, and intelligent control layout make this one of the top phasers out there today.

-Let's Play-
Whenever I demo any phaser I always like to start out by playing it through the cleanest tone possible. This let's me hear every swirl, whirl, and curl, and gives me a better idea of how to work it into my dirty tones. I ended up testing the Tiny Orange Phaser through a bunch of different amps and guitars, and they all sounded good, but there were a few that stood out from the rest. One of these setups being my AC15 clone and semi-hollow body Hagstrom. Through this duo I was able to dial in the perfect balance between sparkling highs and woody lows. It also made for a nice painting canvas on which the phaser was able to show it's fine work. I began with the speed knob rolled back to about 9'o'clock, mix just behind noon, and resonance at noon. This proved to be a perfect starting point for getting an idea of what the phaser was capable of. The pedal dished out a rich'n'lush tone that gave everything I played more life, character, and substance. The pedal's sound sat beautifully just behind my clean tone and peeked out just enough to make things sound interesting. Perfect for anyone looking to add a little something extra to their sound. Then came a little extra surprise that kind of caught me off guard. With a bit more of the pedal's resonance and a bump in speed I was able to get this stellar sounding vibe effect, something I've noticed vintage phasers are capable of. These vibe sounds always end up being unique and flavorful, which can be of big help to your overall arsenal. Next I took all of the controls straight up to noon and pushed the amp up a little hotter. This got me a subtle crunchy tone mixed with a killer sounding phase tone that ended up working great with all types of music styles. I began riffing around and moving up and down the neck bending and playing double stops. The pedal's sound moved in & out of the amp's grit smoothly and without taking over or ruining the it's feel. With slow chord work the phase shifting was creamy and full of velvety psychedelic goodness. Perfect for that classic Floyd stuff. As I played faster and I began to notice how nicely the phaser shifter accented my moves. This was true of all the dirty tones I dialed in and worked great a bunch of different speeds. From the grittiest to the most overdriven, and fuzziest and to most distorted. The pedal did wonders for me. This got me to the phased out distorted stuff, the stuff we're all used to hearing on our favorite rock records. This meant it was time for a change in amps, and while I was at it a swap in axes. My partner's Super Lead and vintage Charvel made for the perfect rock and roll weapons. I began with the amp hot enough to give me plenty of crunch, harmonics, and sustain. I set the Tiny Orange Phaser with it's speed at noon, mix at 2'o'clock, and resonance at 3-4'o'clock. This made the pedal's effect present but not too present. Just enough to mix and blend in with the amp natural crunch. I began by slamming down some big heavy chords, then some rockin' good riffs. The quality in the pedal's effect was unbelievable! Every little swish and whirl could be heard beautifully. The phaser sat tucked just behind my notes becoming more pronounced as I played harder and stronger. I then bumped up to a lead tone by introducing a booster into the signal and again got more mojo form the Tiny Orange Phaser. The boost in the tone and clarity in the pedal's sound made for an epic overall tone, the classic Eddie phase tone that all of the world's rockers love to play and listen to. The Tiny Orange Phaser did this by producing a human like quality to the sound that attached itself to each note. Even with the heavy rock tone I was still able to feel the warmth of a vintage pedal, only with a modern bite that made it something all it's own. Even at extreme phase settings the pedal was able to keep things usable. My amp's tone was still there 100% with all it's muscle and glory, while the pedal did it's magic on top of it to help it sing and swing. With fuzz mixed into the phase signal the overall tone sounded as if it was floating about on fire. I could hear and feel the Tiny Orange's sound bouncing all around and breathing with life. Rolling down the phaser to a mellow effect was also nice with fuzz and heavy distortion. Perfect for filling in space and double tracking rhythm work. Hands down this phaser is all no frills and all killer tone. The Tiny Orange Phaser doesn't produce wild unusable phase shifting effects like many modern phasers do. Instead it works with you and helps you get to where you're going. The sweep in the speed, mix, and resonance is smooth, and it's range goes beyond most phaser with 3 controls. I never got any unwanted ugliness or unpleasant sounds. I was able to get a sweet balance of clarity, warmth, and sparkle in just about every setting. And last and most important - It did what I wanted a phaser to do. My experience with all of the Mad Professor pedals have been exactly like this, which is what makes these pedals so special. I'm sure most of you by now have had some sort of experience with these boxes. But for those of you who haven't, you are in for a real treat!

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For more info on Mad Professor pedals go to www.mpamp.com or click the Mad Professor logo in our direct links. Remember, these cats also make some stunning amplifiers so make sure to check those out as well. AWC will be looking into more of the MP stompboxes so make sure to keep them eyes peeled.

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The Sound We All Love

2010-10-02T01:56:00.000-07:00

Tweed Overdrive

TO-1

For Pros and Everyday Players Alike
No Clone or Copy Here
Hand Built with Top Notch Components
Versatility to the Fullest
User Friendly Layout
True Bypass Circuit
Heavy Duty Roadworthy Powder Coated Enclosure
Power Supply Included (standard 9VDC)
Works Well with Others

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If there's one type of overdriver I've always thought there was never enough of, it's got to be the tweed voiced overdrive pedal. Those of you with vintage tweed amp experience know that when it comes to rich'n'creamy overdrive it don't get better than a proper tweed amplifier. I'm proud to once again feature the awesome brand of Bules Pearl, this time with their TO-1 Tweed Overdrive. This pedal was one that proved quite useful right from the get-go. Having a handful of "British" voiced dirt boxes it was nice to bring in something with super smooth feel. Like many of my favorite dirt pedals the TO-1 sports a trio of controls, being Volume, Tone, and Drive. This pedal's simple layout assures you will be able to dial in quick and spot-on tones. Other than the normal run of classic tweed style tones, the TO-1 is also capable of much much more. Just like all the rest of Blues Pearl's designs, the Tweed Overdrive sports the highest quality parts and components. A pedal built to last and last, and give and give.

There were two things I was really curious to try once I got the Tweed Overdrive into my clutches. One was to run it through a non-tweed style amp, and the other to stack it up with an old tweed amp. I began this trip with a Les Paul and my modified 4x10 Hot Rod Deville, setting the amp as clean as the good lord would let me (which was plenty), with no reverb, and just a cable between the amp and the pedal. The TO-1 I set with it's volume at unity, tone matched to the amp's, and drive at around 15% hot. Most pedals at a low gain or drive setting won't do much, or just end up giving you an unusable sound. This champion of a box came through quite nicely at this low setting. I riffed around while in the lead pickup, dug into some dirty blues licks, and picked out some big'n'heavy chords. The pedal delivered beautifully, giving me a bright yet warm tone that made me want to rock out! Next I took the gain control just a hint higher, and pushed the volume to about 2'o'clock. Right there in all it's glory, blended in with the Deville's big'n'bright clean tone, was the Tweed Overdrive's silky smooth grit making the sound tasty and flavorful. The nice thing though was that the pedal would only reveal it's grit when I dug in hard enough. This gave me the ability to really knock out some cool sounding classic vibe'd rock tones. Next I moved up the drive to about 30% and rolled the drive knob up just a tad. Again I still had plenty of clean signal along with the pedal natural tube-like grit. And just like an old tweed amp the TO-1 was able to maintain the amp's tonal characteristics perfectly. Kicking out a perfect mellow rock rhythm tone I pulled out some of my favorite classic rock licks and drove away. The touch dynamics were at the right sensitivity and the tone was unbelievably balanced. This made everything I played come off even and in harmony, which also let the pedal's sound sit much nicer in a mix when I used live. For me this is one of the most important qualities in a pedal, for it to deliver great string articulation. yes of course it takes a great set of pickups and a rockin hand. But if you've ever played an old tweed amp you know that they just give that to you no matter what you play them with. Up until this point I was getting grade A tones that worked for a wide range of music styles. But it was the next tone I dialed in that really had me drooling at the mouth. What I did was set the amp a bit warmer, then countered it with a brighter pedal setting. I dialed the amp's treble close to 9'0'clock, mids just behind noon, bass at around 3'o'clock, with a hint of presence and a hint of reverb. I also warmed up my guitar's tone by shaving off some highs with the tone knob and switching into the bass pickup. The Tweed Overdrive I set with the gain at noon, the tone just past 4'o'clock, and the volume quite hot to help cook the amp's tubes some more. This gave the tone a smooth but biting edge that reminded me of something between Neil Young's tone and Clapton's woman sound. Overall this tone wasn't all that hot, more like a medium grit tone. Even though I was able to break the signal up something awful just by digging and grinding down on the strings. Full gain, tone in the middle, and volume at about 3'o'clock was another awesome tone that the Tweed Overdrive was able to deliver. Here the pedal gave me a killer universal dirt tone that helped me with all types of situations and styles. Throwing a clean booster in front of the TO-1 helped to take the tone into lead territory. Within the first few licks I played I noticed the Blues Pearl box stacked up beautifully with other pedals. Next came out the 57' Tweed Deluxe (thanks to my buddy Art). Before I plugged it into the 57 I first plugged the pedal into a 22 watt Blackface style amp. I began by comparing tones back and fourth. First I'd dial in some semi-clean tones, then some brittle/gritty stuff, then some creamy dirt, and last full blast. All throughout the comparison the pedal was able to hold it's own and deliver the same feeling in the sound. Before putting this badboy away I finally went ahead and plugged it into the 57 Tweed Deluxe. First I did with the Tweed amp what it does best... dialing it in hot! I grabbed my single Lollar P90 equipped Junior copy and went to work. The amp and guitar alone dished what was one of the most spectacular tones I'd ever heard. Slowly I began to introduce some of the TO-1's gain and volume into the mix, with the tone matched to the map. At low gain and volume settings the TO-1 worked as a killer quality booster. It was able to help me take the amp's tone even further which created a world of harmonically rich textures and overtones. At about half way up on the gain and volume unity the pedal began to take the amp into a strange lead fuzzy/overdrive type of distortion. I was quite surprised how the pedal didn't mess with the amp's root tone or color the character of the dirt itself. Then even more impressive was how well the signal mellowed out when rolling back the guitar's volume knob. With both pedal and amp cranked pretty high I wasn't able to get a fully clean sound, but enough sounds to let me work some real magic on the fly. I had in my hands a proper tweed tone whether I used the Tweed amp or Tweed pedal. I really got to give it up to Blues Pearl for doing their research and delivering a product that does what it says it's going to. This pedal is a great choice for those of you who have been hunting down a proper classic tweed tone, or those of you who have tweed amp's that you don't want to take on the road. This is only the beginning of our Blues Pearl trip too, we will looking into many more of their pedals and making sure to bring you guys the best possible info. Stay tuned for more!

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For more info on Blues Pearl go to www.bluespearlamps.com or click the direct link in our sidebar. Blues Pearl is also in the works of designing their own line of amplifiers which we promise to try and get our hands on. Look for more Blues Pearl features in the near future.

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