Real Tube Goodness

ROD 880

Real Overdrive

Controls & Features

• Powered by Hand Selected 12AY7EH Preamp Tube
• Based on the TK999 Tube King
• Switchable Noise Reduction Circuit w/Variable Threshold Control
• Standard 9VDC Power Adapter
• Heavy Duty Enclosure
• Extremely Wide Range of Overdrive Tones

• Bass: Controls boom and thump
• Gain: Controls gain level
• Mid-Boost: Controls punch and kick
• Treble: Controls sparkle and brightness
• Master: Controls effected output volume

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To this this day I have never seen a Maxon effect pedal that didn't impress me in one way or another. And I have had experience with just about every type of Maxon pedal there is, from the vintage to the most modern. What's been impressive is that throughout all this time Maxon has always kept up to date on the gear scene, providing us with some of the most superb sounding effects a box can carry. A few months back I discovered and got to try the Maxon Real Tube Series, and again was blown away beyond belief. These pedals are built like tanks, sound like amps, and play like a dream. With the ROD-880 Real Overdrive I was able to dial in everything from classic Tubescreamer tones to some of the most insane snarling rock god lead sounds. The ROD-880 played off my pick attack and pickups just like a top notch tube amp, and gave me the same type of vibe and feel. The amount of flexibility this pedal owns should be against the law.

I first rocked and rolled the ROD-880 with a 15 watt amp and 1x12 cabinet. The guitar was a single Junior copy equipped with a single Lollar P90. I rolled up the amp to a subtle light crunch with the tone at noon and bright switch off. The P90 pickup spit out a tight punchy tone that sounded great for chord work. I set the ROD-880 with it's eq stack also at noon, gain at about 15%, and master unity to the amplifiers. The noise reduction circuit I kept off for now. With the pedal engaged I was able to take my tone just a little further, perfect for playing into a chorus and giving the overall sound a bit more life. I could hear and feel my notes hanging on a bit longer which was really nice for cutting through a mix. I also noticed a nice boost in my harmonics, which gave me more room and more grit to play with. By adding just a bit more of the pedal's mid-boost and lows I was able to get even more overdrive. Just like a sweet sounding tube amp. I then rocked the ROD-880's gain control up to about 30%, with the eq stack just past noon, and master control a bit louder to help push the amp even more. The combo of the tube amp's tone and pedal's preamp tube section worked together like a dream. The amp's tone already sounded pretty damn good on it's own. But with the pedal in it's path things became epic sounding. The medium crunch tone I was getting from the ROD-880 was great for all around work and all types of music. I played blues, classic rock, hard rock, alternative, and punk. Each and every style sounded killer! Next I took the amp to it's fullest, left the pedal as is, and let things fly. Here I got something really interesting. With the amp's tubes cooking it's full 15 watts and ROD-880 beautifully pushing it overboard. I was able to get these magnificent distortion/fuzz tones. Behind every chord and lick I played was a sizzling fuzzy tonal character that created a wild and creative dirt tone. A little analog delay thrown onto this tone and I was in solo champion arena. This motivated me to break out something with more power, something louder, and beastlier. My mind was on a 100 watt Marshall, but before going there I plugged into my modified 4x10 Deville and set is loud'n'clean. I wanted to hear just what kind of a tone I would get by playing through a completely squeaky clean guitar sound. In case ya'll don't know, my Deville sports four 100 watt 10"s speakers, two being Jensen Blackbirds, the other two Jensen Tornados. I am able to get all the clean headroom I want with these badboys, which lets me dial in the most precise clean tones at any volume level I wish. I started at around 3, with tone controls at noon, reverb at 2-3, and presence rolled off. The ROD-880 I had set with it's Mid-boost and Bass at 2'o'clock, Treble at 11'o'clock, gain at 50%, and master volume just a hint louder than unity. The result was mind blowing! The pedal kicked out a spot-on vintage tube amp crunch tone that had me grinning from ear to ear. The pedal's grit responded just like a tube amp, felt like a tube amp, and sung beautifully just like a tube amp. Rolling off the guitar's volume knob got me mellower tones which let me dial in multiple sounds on the fly. I also plugged in my buddy's Les Paul which also sounded quite nice through the pedal. The character in the sustain and overdrive's smoothness adapted perfectly to the guitar's thick'n'meaty humbucking pickups. Last I broke out the Super Lead, set it hot, and stacked the ROD-880 right up against it. I also wanted to hear what a clean booster in front of the pedal would sounded like so I also broke out my Xotic EP Booster. First I ran the 880 through Super Lead's crunchy sound. Instantly I got epic classic and heavy rock rhythm tones. The harmonic content, richness, and tonal quality all stood out beautifully. My chords were all balanced with every note coming off with killer clarity. I then stomped on the clean booster and watched the tone go from powerful rhythm, to powerful lead. I swam through a bunch of different licks and riffs and got nothing but grade A crunch and sustain. I also really dug how the pedal broke up the overdrive and created usable awesome sounding feedback. Really it was incredible just how much more size the ROD-880 was able to add the Super Lead. With a lot of these so called "tube pedals", you find out they get in the way more than they do good. This pedal worked with every sound I blended it with, and played off of my playing and dynamics. This is a pedal that sits in the "Last overdriver you will ever need" class. The possibilities are endless when you have a dirt pedal that can adapt to any amp, guitar, and pickup. Right before putting the ROD-880 away that first day I had it I decided to plug it into my Fender solid state amp. With a little eq adjustment and tailoring of the pedal I was able to get some damn impressive guitar tones. Now, what does that tell you? Get yours!!!

For more info on Maxon Pedals you can go to either www.maxonfx.com or www.godlyke.com There you will find tons more info on all of the Maxon lines. Make sure and stay tuned for more from these cats. Like us, we're sure you also can't get enough of these pedals. We will be back with more killer features shortly.

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Your Guitar Tone at the Speed of Light

To me there are a few pedal companies that will never seize to amaze me, Maxon being one of them. I can look back at some of the first Maxon pedals I ever had and remember them being stunning little devices. The art of the stompbox is something that the people at Maxon have down to a science. We're talking pro quality tone, flawless builds, and a never ending trail of designs. In the last couple years I myself have had a chance to use and travel with a handful of Maxon pedals and all of them have been right on the money to say the least. When the VJR-9 landed on my doorstep one thing came to mind, "Oh my God!!!!" I've played some pretty pedals in my time but WOW!!! Music these days has finally beginning to take a turn for the best. People are experimenting more and letting their creative ticks shine out big and bright. If you are one of these sound hawks who is on the constant hunt for new and exciting soundscapes you will love this pedal. No really, you will LOVE this pedal.

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Vintage Jet Riser
VJR-9

* VJR-9 based off of the legendary 70's Jetlyzer JL-70
* Employs newly developed Jet sound generator
* Capable of wide range of effects. From subtle chorusing/tremolo to heavy jet effects
* Employs DC to DC converter circuit & internal voltage stabilization circuit
* High performance NR provides high dynamic range with low noise
* Works great in amplifier effect loop
* True Bypass Switching
* Easy access no-tools battery compartment
* AC2009 power adapter can be used worldwide from 100VAC to 240VAC by auto voltage sensing. Great for touring musicians.

CONTROLS

* External footswitch jack: Switches Jet sound On and Off (latching or momentary)
* Range: Controls tone range/Jet sound
* Jet: Controls volume/Jet sound generator
* Sensitivity: Controls Jet sound amount
* Speed: Controls modulation speed
* Width: Controls modulation depth
* Footswitch: Effect/Bypass

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Let's get straight into it shall we? It is no secret where the idea for the Maxon Vintage Jet phaser came from. If you've been around for a while or have a love for pedals (like many here do) you have probably heard of the old school Ibanez Flying Pan, Ibanez Jetlyzer, or Roland Jet Phaser. These are all pedals that were ahead of their time with their unique sounds and unmistakable capabilities. As far as stompboxes go there weren't many that could stack up with what these pedals were capable of. Try finding one of these pedals in perfect working condition or at a reasonable price these days and you'll find yourself on a road to impossible. This is where the mighty Vintage Jet Riser steps up to the plate. Maxon has not only created a pedal capable of pulling off what the classics were capable of they have also gone the extra mile to give us a pedal capable of lots more. The VJR-9 is very easy to dial in, sounds fantastic, and is a perfect fit for both studio and live situations. The reason the VJR-9's success is it's state of the art sound generator, voltage controlled amplifier, and voltage controlled filter which give the pedal it's more realistic jet effect and give it it's wide range of effect possibilities. Toss in top quality parts and components, then take these features and blend them in with Maxon's MC4107D bucket brigade analog flanger circuit and you have one off-the-wall, splendid sounding effect unit. The VJR-9's layout consists of Input and Output jacks, an external footswitch jack, Range knob, Jet knob, Sensitivity knob, Speed knob, Width knob, bypass switch, LED indicator, and DC input. The Vintage Jet Riser also ships with it's own power supply for the ultimate performance. I was able to work the VJR-9 with not only guitars but also with many more stringed instruments and keyboards. The sky's the limit with this baby!

I can honestly say I took the Vintage Jet Riser and pushed it to it's furthest/farthest capabilities. Straight from the box before I even plugged into this box I was impressed beyond belief. Maxon's build quality is one that is seriously second to none. You can take these pedals and toss them off your roof without the fear of them falling apart. I've had many many 9 Series Maxon pedals on my pedalboard and I will say all of them look and function just as great as they did the day they landed in my setup. I first dialed in some clean'n'crisp guitar tones to hear the pure uncut effect of the stompbox. My Tele and Deville were the perfect combo for this. I set the VJR-9 through my amp's effect loop and got to work. The first sound I was able to get from the pedal was a lush, smooth, and sweet chorusing sound. I wanted to see how many sounds I could get before switching on the Jet effect. The quality of the pedal's sound, especially through the amp's effect loop sounded brilliant and very defined. The sweep was mellow but quite present, letting the chorus sound fall and rise with organic analog goodness. I was also able to get some pretty cool sounding tremolo effects by positioning the controls in just the right settings. I found the VJR-9's Speed control to have a really wide range of possibilities. Depending on where I'd set the Sensitivity the tremolo sounds came off either choppy and strong or mellow and fluttery. By dialing in a blend of the pedal's chorus and tremolo sounds I was also able to get these great sounding vintage vibe effects. The pedal's bucket brigade circuitry really gave off some warm pulsating effects. I soon found myself in Robin Trower and Hendrix territory by tossing in a thick'n'creamy overdrive or fuzz pedal in front of the VJR-9. Even with wild and unpredictable fuzz tones I found the combination of both pedals to produce very low to no noise. If ever you've used vintage flanger, chorus, or vibe units with harsh sounding drive you know the noise that can come along with it all. This pedal was having none of that! The VJR-9 blended in beautifully with everything I threw at it and sounded great with both clean and dirty amp settings. Now for the wild and crazy tones this pedal is known for. I will say that having a footswitch thrown into the mix makes all the difference in the world and gives you much more options when gigging or just playing in general. I used both momentary and latching type footswitches with the VJR-9. My AC15 style amp pushed to a natural grit was the perfect tone for getting things started. I dialed the pedal into a slow climbing Jet effect and let the amp's drive create the extra growl and aggression needed to make everything much more extreme. With the latching switch I was able to from classic sounding flanging effects to futuristic plains. The Vintage Jet Riser also worked great with a bit of and a lot of delay thrown into the mix. I almost don't want to share this but I will anyhow. I'm big on volume swell tricks and am always looking for new and exciting ways to create different sounds. The VJR-9 was able to give me one of the most exciting volume swells effects I have ever heard come from my amplifier. The formula was a sopping thick helping of the pedal's Jet effect with a hint of flange in the mix, next a good healthy helping of my analog delay pedal set to a slow long setting, then last I rolled up some of my amp's reverb to mesh everything together into a blanket of trippy swishes and swooshes. The ultimate though was setting this pedal to big epic Jet effect with some thick sounding fuzz, a hint of analog delay, and a momentary footswitch for clicking the sound in and out. For those of us who dig the art of sound play this is one awesome freaking pedal. The trick really is to use the Jet effect in small amounts and in te right places. I dig giving my listeners little doses of weird and wild guitar sounds. This pedal sounded great through clean and dirty tones, heavy and soft settings, and with just about every effect I threw at it. This made the Vintage Jet Riser one of the most versatile pedals I have ever used and one of the most fun. The strange, psychedelic, and futuristic phase tones that this pedal produced are only the beginning of what it possible. Some of the most desirable sounds were the warm vintage type effects that I was able to get. The thing with vintage units is that they're just too damn precious, too damn delicate, and not suitable for live applications. And the thing is that not all classic pedals sound good. I've played all of the vintage units mentioned above and when it comes to tone quality, tone range, and effect features the VJR-9 blows them all away. I'm not one that puts vintage gear ahead of modern gear just for the sake of doing so. For me there are three things that are a must when it comes to pedal play. #1. A pedal must be user friendly, which means I have to be able to get what I want from it without having to study a 30 page manual. #2. It must have great quality sound, and work with my root tones and not against them. Then there's #3. It's gotta work with me in both the studio and the stage. The Vintage Jet Riser proved to hold it's own in all of these applications while able to surprise me on more than one occasion. For me it is these type of pedals that are the most desirable. I want to have tone tools that will help me expand my tonal possibilities. You tone freaks will love this pedal and love it like no other. Get out there and grab one before they discontinue this baby. I easily see the Maxon VJR-9 becoming one of our timeless, collectible classics.

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For more info on Maxon pedals click either the link in our sidebar or the Godlyke Dist. link below. Be one the look out for more pedal features from this awesome company. We will be looking at more from the famous 9 Series and much much more. Stay tunes my friend's.

HAO

Those of you who have been doing their thing in the boutique pedal world for sure have come across the HAO name. On many guitar players pedalboards have seen these pedals mounted and ready for war. In fact I myself have had much experience with these pedals, at one time the HAO Rust Driver was the main OD pedal on my pedalboard. After this I went and tried more of the HAO pedal line. Not once was I disappointed. This of course led me to the new HAO "Premium Workshop" models, and if you think the first HAO run was killer wait till you plug into these. The first of the HAO Premium Workshop offerings is the Omega Drive Sixteen. A no-frills, well rounded, cream of the crop overdrive pedal. From the get-go I was stunned at how freakin' great it sounded. I stacked t up with everything from p90's and humbuckers, to Tele and Strat single coils. The OD-16 is easily one of the top overdrivers to come out of 2010, and definitely one of the best dirt boxes of all time. Plug in and see for yourself.

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Omega Drive Sixteen

overdrive

FEATURES

* 3PDT True Bypass Switch

* Internal Voltage Doubling Circuitry

* Compact Cast Aluminum Enclosure

* Built with High Quality Components

* Ultra Bright Status LED

* 9V Battery or AC Adapter Operation

* 3 Year Limited Warranty

CONTROLS

* Tone

* Gain

* Level

* Direct Tone Bypass Switch

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Where to start? I was able to get so many great sounding natural/earthy overdrive tones that I was dizzy with excitement. The amount of overdrive on tap from this pedal goes anywhere from low to medium, but crank the Level control into full force or blend it with an overdriven amp and you'll be sure to pull some sopping wet distortion tones as well. The OD-16 works great with other pedals, sounds great through many different amps, and works nicely with any guitar. Like many of my favorite overdrive pedals the Omega Drive Sixteen also comes equipped with the mighty trio of controls, being the Tone, Gain, and Level layout. It doesn't quite end there though, there is one more little trick that this pedal has up it's sleeve. The OD-16 also sports a Direct Tone Bypass mini-toggle switch which lets your guitar and amps natural, untainted tone blend with the pedal's overdrive sound. This is great for those of you who really don't need a bit more highs or lows thrown into the mix. It also lets you shape all of the pedal's overdrive sound with your amp's tone controls or guitar's tone pot. A simple but very helpful idea, you can imagine how much fun this must be. Some of the stunning tone quality this pedal is capable of comes from it's ability to convert your 9 volts into 16. This creates a wider headroom and helps with attack, response, and dynamics. The pedal can be run on a single 9V battery or with a AC adapter. Finally everything is tucked away in a small footprint, heavy duty enclosure which is sure to save room and sure to last you a lifetime.

We started our Omega Drive 16 dance with a couple of high quality cables, a fat/clean amp tone, and a freshly stringed guitar. The amp was our buddy's 65' Princeton Reverb, and guitar my custom tricked-out Tele. Now, I don't know what it was about these three pieces of gear that worked so well with this pedal, and I don't care. All I do know is that once the OD-16 was engaged things went from great to greater. I had the Princeton Reverb set like so; volume set at around 8, the treble and bass at 6, the reverb at 2-3, and no vibe/tremolo effect. The Omega Drive 16 was set with it's level just hair past unity, gain just under noon, and it's direct tone bypass switch engaged. This was able to give me all of the amp's sweet smooth tone, and gave me the ability to shape and mold the tone's character with the guitar's tone pot. With the neck bucker I got pure fat'n'creamy crunch. The overdrive was stunning! The 15 watts sounded 3-4 times it's size, a perfect tone for mic'ing up and recording. I was able to control the OD-16's overdrive beautifully with just a flick of my hand. The amount of drive wasn't too extreme but somehow I could still dig and hold a note with the aggression of my picking. The only way to describe the tone would be to call it the child of Eric Clapton's woman tone. With the Tele's lead pickup the overall tone became brighter and stung much harder. Imagine those hot country rock overdrive tones from the 60's and you got the sound I dialed in. Now here is where I discovered how cool this pedal really is. Switching in the OD-16's tone circuit was able to give me a whole new collection of dark and lovely rock tones. Next I was able to dial in a brutal Hendrix type vibe lead tone. I did this by kicking in some of the pedal highs, turning the gain to 75%, and pushing the level way past unity. The pedal's output was able to cook the Princeton's tubes a bit hotter, sending them into a howling wall of soul and tone. Blended in the amp's vibe circuit and breaking out the Strat was the finishing touch. The sound breathed in and out, rose and fell perfectly, and the crunch worked it's magic with every chord and lick I threw at it. Something really cool about this pedal that you'll notice once you start plugging it into different guitars is how well it compliments the pickups at hand. Before putting the Princeton back in the closet I went ahead and cranked the Omega Drive's gain to full blast. The tone is tuff to explain. It definitely had that distortion nature but with the response and projection of a natural tube overdrive.Rolling down the Strat's volume brought me down to a mellow medium overdrive, and rolling it down even further got me a subtle, organic overdrive that worked great with just about every style of music. Next we paired the OD-16 with something a bit stronger, something I was blessed to have in the studio that day. An 80 watt, EL34 based, 1x12 combo, Bogner Shiva. Talk about pairing up two awesome pieces of gear. The Omega Drive Sixteen again worked it's mojo and somehow was able to compliment and pull even more tones from the Shiva. Having the option of being able to cut the pedal's tone circuit was again an absolute dream. I mean I am really really impressed with this simple and versatile feature. For this setup I took out Erica, my 335 style Hagstrom Viking. I started with amp's first channel dialing in some big'n'bright clean tones, and letting the pedal do all the work as far as grit went. First without the OD-16's tone circuit, then with it engaged. The first run was breathtaking! I took the pedal, rolled up as little gain as possible, used the pedal level control to push the amp just a tad, and started with the Viking's neck bucker. The result was a semi-clean, edgy, somewhat hairy blues/country/and jazz tone. Actually that would be cheating the tone. Everything I played sounded killer, from funk to classic rock, alternative rock and slide guitar. I was actually having so much fin with the slide that I went ahead and rolled up some more gain, shaved off the guitar's tone, and switched into the bridge pickup. The difference between both pickups was really something special. This pedal's ability to hit you with one thing then another the next second is mind blowing. Then I jammed in some lead monster slide tones by cranking up more gain, switching the amp into some overdrive of it's own, and turning on the pedal's tone circuit. I'm talking razor sharp baby. Every little detail, accent, and flicker was shot out with aggression and soul. There was going to be no way to get a bad sound out of this pedal. I went into the night playing around with the Omega Drive Sixteen and jotting down amp and pedal settings as I did so. I did in fact plug it into a few of my own amps and just like I expected got super results. I did some blending with clean boosters, delay pedals, and trems, chorus's, and vibes. It was all lovely. HAO has hit beyond a home run with this little demon. I am very very excited to see what the HAO Premium Workshop line has for us in the near future. For now this is a sweet place to start and a kickas look into what's to come.

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For more info on HAO Premium Workshop go to www.godlyke.com or click the Godlyke direct below. We will be bringing more from this kickass pedal company in the near future so keep them eyes peeled.

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TWA: a look into the future...

It has landed, the first creation from Totally Wycked Audio has landed, and if this doesn't take your head off I don't know what will. If you remember correctly we were in communication with Godlyke sometime in the beginning of TWA's venture into the creation of the LD-01 Little Dipper. They were keeping us informed, filled in, and up to date on all the happenings of this cool and sexy pedal. Well now it's here and I am speechless... Never have I come across something so cool and innovative. TWA has taken all the skill, knowledge, and experience they could muster, to create what will go down in history as one of the baddest stompboxes to hit planet earth. My good buddy Kevin at Godlyke said I would absolutely fall in love with this pedal and he was right, I'm in ahh. I'm so proud of these cats and cannot wait to see what else they come up with in the coming years. Raise your glasses, throw up your fists, and get ready to bow down to the teachings of Totally Wycked Audio. Now come on down and get some.

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Totally Wycked Audio

LD-01 Little Dipper

CONTROLS

Ascension: Controls the depth in the sweep of the pedal's filters. Similar to threshold in envelope filter.

Inclination: 4-way switch that determines the trigger timing of the two filters in relation to one another

Diffraction: At zero filtering effects are clean, as you add Diffration in it creates a fuzz effect.

Blend: This is an internal control that blends in clean instrument signal against effected signal.

Gate: This internal control acts as a threshold control that will gate noise in between notes.

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So what is the Little Dipper exactly? Well for those of you who missed class last time I will explain it one more time. The LD-01 is an envelope controlled vocal formant filter based around a classic 70's circuit. Which circuit exactly? You'll have to figure that one out on your own. Like other envelope filters the Little Dipper responds on playing dynamics, only it covers a wider range of frequencies and is much more organic sounding, similar to the human voice. This pedal lets you emulate everything from auto wahs and phase shifters, to talk boxes, traditional wahs, and fuzz tones. You'll be able to turn your guitar into vowel slobbering, goo-goo gaa-gaa-ing, funktified hammering, machine of this-that and the-other thing. It is the mocking bird of effects pedals and something you're sure to get much joy from. The Little Dipper is basically a whole new breed of pedal, a pedal built to add an entirely new world of colors to your tonal canvas. I wasn't 5 minutes into trying this pedal before I was calling every musician friend I knew asking them to come over and check it out for themselves. Everything TWA said this pedal could do is right on and then some.

The pedal is 100% US made, built with the highest quality components, and able to handle some serious stage time. The LD-01 sports true bypass, three rugged chrome knobs (Ascension/Inclination/Diffraction), two internal controls (Blend/Gate), 7 LED's (which are shaped like the "Little Dipper"), and can run on both a 9V battery or power supply. How's that for a work of art? When you do use batteries to power the LD-01 make sure you're using top quality and not generic brand 9 volts, this will assure you get the best performance from this unit. When using power supplies run it with adapters of 500 mA or higher, the Godlyke Power-All system is always a good alternative. Everything is housed in a heavy duty dark blue sparkle enclosure that blends with the pedal's LED design to look like a summer night star filled sky. I can imagine just how cool it must look in a gigging situation, hypnotizing and lighting up the darkness. The pedal also has 1/4" input and output jacks which are mounted to their own board to keep from damaging the main circuit board. The guts of this pedal expose highly skillful workmanship which tells me this pedal will last a very long time if not forever.

I wanted to hear the full and clean effect from the formant filter so I started with the Diffraction control rolled all the way off, I set the Inclination in the 2nd position, and rolled the Ascension up about a quarter of the way up. This setting produced a classic, warm'n'quacky auto-wah effect that worked beautifully with funk licks, and rhythm chucking. The filters dipped and rose smoothly with every little accent in the effect coming off clearly. My original sound was still strong and present which was a nice change from the many units that muddy things up. The reason the Little Dipper works so great with your natural tone is the cool little Blend pot that can be found on the inside of the chassis. You can funktify your sound to all hell and with the Blend knob work your clean tone back into the mix to balance things out, it's lovely. Next I rose the Ascension knob to about 50% and added in a bit of the Diffraction. This produced a more in-your-face kind of sound, perfect for cutting through a mix or for live gigging. One thing you'll notice about the LD-01 is how intact your lows stay, this makes gigging, band practice, and loud playing in general sound much better. A common problem with envelope filters is they tend to eat your bass, sharpen up your highs, and flatten out your mids. Non of that here my dear chaps, the control layout on this pedal keeps things amp friendly and makes sure you're able to dial in a sound you can use. One of the sounds I was dying to get out of this pedal was a talkbox effect, I have always dug what talkbox pedals sound like only I've never enjoyed having to set them up or how they function. Getting the Little Dipper to sound like a talkbox was much easier. To do this first find the spot in the Ascension control that works best with your picking dynamics, I found the 3rd position of the Inclination works best for this effect, and last add in the desired amount of fuzz with the Diffraction knob (the more Diffraction the more intense). The last ingredient is an overdrive or distortion pedal, this gives you the perfect amount of growl, howl, and robo-vowels. Then just control the talk with your picking dynamics and that's that. Another cool use I found from this pedal was the cocked wah effects it can produce, I actually did this by mistake by leaving the Ascension knob in place and strumming a chord while turning the 4 positions of the Inclination control. This made for some dynamite sounding lead tones. My distortion exploded with character and life. Played through a Super Lead with my favorite overdriver created some sounds to die for, sounds Hendrix would've rocked the hell out of. As I continued to flip through the controls I found yet another sound, a classic, mild phase effect. It isn't like a modern phaser with all the wild swishing and swooshing. The phase tones you can get from LD-01 are much mellower and user friendly. Depending on how you set the Ascension and Diffraction make a big difference on how this sound comes off. Last I put the Little Dipper through a bunch of different dirt boxes, I wanted to see how much grit I could push through it. Just like I expected the LD-01 is extremely pedal friendly, because it keeps your natural sound's eq nice and tight makes this pedal a dream to match up with dirt pedal. My favorite though, the absolute coolest sounds I was able to get from the Little Dipper, were the unexplainable, uncataloged, and yet to be named sounds. I was able to dish out more unique tones from this one pedal that I knew what to do with. It's cool that it's based off of a classic design and also holds it's own special design, this keeps things traditional and exciting all at the same time. Today's music needs a bit of a facelift, not entirely don't get me wrong, I'm as old school rock and roll as one gets. Having pedals like these though makes playing fun and keeps things fresh. Totally Wycked Audio has really given us a look into the future with the LD-01, and at the same time given birth to some extraordinary sounds. These cats own a talent that will surely bring forth some more unique musical tools, tools we can really use in these hard musical times we're living in. Until TWA comes up with their next masterpiece I will be trying to master the LD-01. I say you do the same and come join me in the stars.

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For more info on Totally Wycked Audio go to www.godlyke.com or click the direct banners located on our site. Make sure you stay tunes for more awesome gear from the cats at TWA and Godlyke. As long as they keep dishing them out we will be reporting to the masses, hell yes!!!

Some of Maxon's finest

For those of your who haven't had a chance to go out and try some of Maxon's new 9 Series let me just say this...quality and class all the way baby. To be quite honest, I haven't heard any difference between the vintage runs of these pedals and the new. The build quality is immaculate, and with a matching tone to go with this you have some of the top dogs of stompbox world.



CP9-Pro+ Compressor
This comp most definitely falls into that elite category of "last comps you will ever need." Whether you use this puppy in the studio or on the stage, it will deliver some of the most professional quality compression anyone could ask for. The CP9-Pro+'s circuit is based a low-noise DBX compression technology that is used in some of the worlds best high-end pro audio products, hence the name Pro+. I won't get into the circuitry and insides of this pedal, all I can say is it's guts do one hell of a job providing some of the tastiest compression I have ever heard. There's one thing you always hear when it comes to comp pedals...there are either the subtle kind, or the squashy kind. This little honey does both and does them well. Lay back on the controls and you get the perfect amount of compression perfect for always leaving on. A hint from this pedal goes a long way. We did some acoustic guitar and some lap steel tracks in the studio a few months back that never sounded so good. The picking dynamics and bit of extra ringing from the notes provided us with the perfect sound for mastering and mixing. This is where this pedal is seperated from some others, it works amazingly as a professional studio tool. Compression was once the one effect I didn't understand and knew very little of. If you fall into that category of player that really doesn't know what comp is used for or how it works the CP9-Pro+ is the perfect pedal for walking you through the many sounds that are possible when plugged into the right comp box. Now my favorite way for using compression...as a sustainer. Some years back I had recorded a session with a producer/engineer who gave my guitar this insanely cool sound. It was a mixier of fuzz, reverb, compression, and delay. I ended up calling that sound my "Screaming Banshee" tone. For years I couldn't get that tone onto the stage, I got close many times but never really exact. The sound was a combination of the notes being squashed, streched, and opened. Pure psychedelic heaven, if you know me you know I love classic psych rock. There are only a few compressors in pedal form that have ever given me my Banshee tone, this being one of them, and the one that probably does it the best. Welcome to compression 101 kids.



CS-9 Pro Chorus
There is the right kind of chorus and there is the god awful, corny sounding, please turn that off chorus. This here being one of the right kind. I've always seen the chorus effect as the introductory effect to the beginning player. It is one of those effects that many times comes with an amp, and that there are hundreds and hundreds of pedals of. Again, like it's brother above the build quality is like no other and it has the engine and guts to match. The cats at Maxon really deserve a lot of credit, I say this cause once the pedal boom hit they could have gone about things like many pedal companies did, in the wrong direction. Not only have they kept the sweet'n'organic sound of an old favorite, but with this new CS-9 Pro Chorus they have gone the extra mile to give us more of what has worked for so long. That's pretty much all they did when they rebuilt this pedal. It is still capable of delivering those mellow, space traveling, dreamy, liquid-like tones. Can still add that hint of effect that beefs up your tone and does well to make itself almost unnoticeable. Only now the quality of this effect is so much more sweeter. Like in the past they kept it true to that bucket brigade technology, that unmistakeable sound that has worked for so long. You'll find out of this pedal those old school pulsating chorus sounds that killer vintage amps once produced. Like any grat chorus pedal the CS-9 Pro Chorus can also imitate an authentic, lush sounding rotary speaker effect. This is where I found this pedal to really shine and stand out from so many. Whether plugged into a guitar, keyboard, or lap steel it just sounds freakin great! And that's not all. There is one more sercret weapon within this badboy. It's Delay Time control. I'll let the good folks at Maxon explain this one. "The Delay Time control exhibits an inverse relation between the delay time and the frequency shift of the chorus - as the delay time increases, the frequency that is shifted decreases. This inverse relation creates "double level" and "cancellation" peaks and notches at particular frequency points to create an amazingly realistic, three-dimensional chorus effect. In addition, the Delay Time control is interactive with the Rate and Depth controls, so that if you increase the Depth, the Delay Time range increases, and if you increase the Speed, the Delay Time changes faster." How cool is that?! Not much more needs to be said here.



For more info on Maxon products go to www.maxonfx.com or www.godlyke.com You can also click the Godlyke logo in our links. Look for more killer pedals from Maxon to come soon.

Godlyke releases the TWA Little Dipper

A few months back we mentioned Godlyke would be releasing their own effects pedals under the Totally Wicked Audio brand. That time has come, and what we'll soon have access to will surely quench your pedal junky needs. The first model to hit the streets will be the LD-01 Little Dipper/vocal formant filter, which will be shipping in late June. What exactly is a vocal formant filter you say? Hmmm, well I had a chance to play with one at NAMM last Winter. Imagine your auto wah/envelope filter, only much more expressive, organic sounding, with crystal clear tone, and human-like qualities. The Little Dipper also has the ability to hit the extreme and can create some knarly spaced-out sounds. This is all I can say from a quick demo of it, but that little bit of time spent with it showed me a revolution in envelope filters. Below is some more info on the TWA brand from our good friends at Godlyke. Keep your eyes peeled kids, Analog War Cry might just be demoing one here shortly.




Godlyke, Inc. is proud to announce the launch of our new line of boutique effect pedals, Totally Wicked Audio (TWA). Consisting of dedicated analog stompboxes, TWA line features unique and esoteric effect types that will help set the discerning player apart from the masses. All TWA models are 100% made in the USA using the highest quality components and offer all the features and construction quality expected from a high-end analog device.

The flagship model of the TWA brand, the LD-01 Little Dipper will be released during the 2nd quarter of 2009.

The Little Dipper is an envelope-controlled vocal formant filter based on a classic 70's circuit. It's dual filters react to playing dynamics, crreating peeks and notches that simulate the vowel sounds of human speech. The Little Dipper allows the user to emulate talk boxes, auto-wahs, filters, and phase shifters, as well as creating strikingly vocal wah-sounds. A built-in fuzz circuit emphasizes harmonics for a more dramatic effect while dry blend and noise-gate trim pots offer a full-frequency response with ultra-low noise operation.

The Little Dipper features a 16-gauge bent steel chassis with heavy-duty powder coating and eye-catching LED display. The Little Dipper also features mechanical true-bypass switching and comes with a three-year manufacturer's warranty.

-Godlyke Distribution, Inc.


For more info on Totally Wicked Audio products as well as other products distributed by Godlyke, go to www.godlyke.com or click the Godlyke logo in our links section. You can also reach them toll-free at 866-246-3595 (international dial 973-777-7477)

Godlyke Releases PA-9D Power-All Deluxe Kit

PA-9D Power-All Deluxe Kit

In this day and age having access to a solid, user friendly, and reliable power supply is as important if not more important than the effects pedals we use in our setups. There are many power supplies out there kids, but beware! The pedal boom saw many many gimmicks and poorly designed gear. Through lots of research, trial and error, and tweaking I learned which pedals out there stood true and which ones were mear jokes. The same went for power supplies, some are prone to white noise and buzzing, some are too weak, and some can easily ruin your beautiful collection of stompboxes. I for a long time used batteries and only batteries, even when I had pedals that were only mounted with power jacks I'd use battery adapters and use batteries, what a mess I must have been making. It was simple though, tidy, and a quick way to setup. Only my power lacked consistency and the pain of having to swap batteries in and out became a very annoying pain in my ass. When I discovered Power-All's PA-9 Deluxe Kit at first I was a bit skeptic, any real musician will always go through the "test" before becoming convinced. All of the skepticism quickly disappeared once I got a chance to plug my board in and listen to the results. There is one simple way to explain this power supply...CLEAN POWER! Just imagine consistant, safe, and plenty of power for that carefully designed pedalboard you've worked so hard to setup. My pedalboard has never looked so neat and has never sounded so damn good. With some careful planning the Dasiy Chain cable it comes with can easily be tucked away to keep your rig tight'n'tidy. Not to get into any hype but I must also say this. There are pedals on my board that I can honestly say I've never really heard until I played them through the PA-9D. Pedals that I've always felt weren't delivering to their fullest. It's like the power supply distributes the ultimate amount of power to each pedal, while keeping the power balanced througout the board, and having each pedal perform at their highest levels. I don't sweat losing power while gigging or practicing anymore, and don't worry about my pedalboard getting fried. Try one and find out for yourself, with a lifetime warranty you can't go wrong. Below is some info from Godlyke on the PA-9D Power-All Deluxe Kit. Go on and dig it kids, it'll do you right!

Features:

* Power-All 9 VDC, 2000 milliamp digital power supply

* Cable-11/R 11-lead right-angle Daisy Chain with spring-loaded jacks
* (1) Cable-Blue/R right-angle 3.5 mm Phone Plug Jumper Cable for use with EH and other vintage pedals
* (1) Cable-Green Line-6 Jumper Cable with spring loaded jack for use with Line 6 Modelers and other pedals requiring a 2.5 mm internal diameter jack
* (1) Cable-Green/R right-angle Line-6 Jumper Cable
* (1) Cable-Grey Battery Clip Jumper Cable for pedals with no AC input
* (1) Cable-Red/R right-angle Reverse Polarity Jumper Cable with spring-loaded jack (5) Cable Cap insulator sheaths to cover power leads when not in use

The PA-9 Power-All is the world's first 2000 mA, single outlet power supply designed specifically for guitar effects users. Rather than waste money and natural resources on disposable batteries, users can now power their entire pedalboard from a single power supply that takes up only one outlet space!

The Power-All Deluxe Kit provides 9 volts DC at 2000 milliamps - more than enough current to power dozens of effects pedals, including up to 4 Line 6 Modelers. The Power-All Deluxe Kit can power eleven pedals out of the box, and comes complete with a variety of jumper cables that allow connection of phone plug, reverse polarity, digital, and battery-only type pedals. New Ten-Foot, 18-gauge output cable allows for longer power runs without an extention chord.

The Power-All's special circuit design offers the lowest noise floor of any digital power supply on the market. The PA-9 now comes with a ferrite-core filter built onto it's output cable to further reduce noise and hum. The PA-9 automatically converts any input voltage from 100-240 VAC to 9 VDC, allowing it to be used anywhere around the world.

Built to stand rigors of the road, the Power-All features professional-grade construction and comes with a lifetime warranty. The Power-All is not sold through big-box retailers or jobbers and offers A+ margins to independent music retailers.


For more info on Power-All power supplies and other Godlyke products go to www.godlyke.com or click the Godlyke banners or logo in our links section. Look for more posts on Godlyke Distribution products.